Tag: deities

honorthegods:

theprettyboysclub:

doe-eyed-harpy:

kambal-consul-of-allocation:

doe-eyed-harpy:

Reminder that even if you don’t have a comfortable or okay relationship with your father, Zeus is a father god and therefore Sky Dad. Happy Father’s Day to Sky Dad.

Zeus is also dad to many many many things and kinds the most horrible charcter in all of Greek mythos (and that’s saying a lot) fuck off Sky Dad you crazy womanizer you.

According to the mythos, Zeus is the father of gods and men. If you’d like to educate yourself further on the mythos you think you’re referencing, I’d recommend you read his page on theoi.com.

Furthermore, this is both a religious post and an acknowledgement that today can be very difficult for people without supportive fathers and father figures. I am going to kindly request that you either be respectful or that you refrain from adding unnecessary, over-simplified commentary.

But, like… as an entity rather than an archetype… didn’t he also… rape a bunch of people. I mean, probably more supportive than my dad, I’m just saying.

Ancient Greeks and Romans did not regard Zeus/Jupiter as a rapist, nor do modern Hellenic and Roman polytheists. The ancient myths were not and are not treated as literal truth by those who worship the deities of the Hellenic and Roman pantheons. The tales of the lovers of Zeus were told to provide exalted lineages for extraordinary human beings or the founders of cities. Moreover, our interpretation of the word rape, “sexual assault”, is very different to the way the word was taken by the ancients, as either “carried away” or “rapture”. To the ancients, what happened in the myths was seduction, not involuntary penetration. 

Furthermore, the epithets and cult titles of Zeus (the words used by the ancients to describe him in prayer, worship, and poetry) describe him as a savior, a protector, a wise ruler, and a protector of marriage and women in childbirth.

So, no, Zeus didn’t rape a bunch of people. It might be your opinion, it was probably the opinion of the Christian Fathers, it might even have been Edith Hamilton’s opinion, but it’s not what the ancient Greeks and Romans thought, and it’s offensive to those who worship Zeus today. 

dionynotcis:

anyways, ive said it once, i’ll say it again,

the great goddess aphrodite, patron of womanhood and beauty, is a patron to transgender women.

aphrodite, who is war as much as peace, stands by all trans women who must fight for their place in this world.

aphrodite, who is love, shines her adoration on all trans women who welcome it. she knows your heart, and she knows you have earned your place in her heart, too.

Devotional Aesthetic for Artemis

Crickets chirp, filling the night air with sound

I walk through a serene forest, basking in the presence

of nature and harmony

Through the breaks in the canopies above, i see the moon shining overhead

and I know I am safe

You just have to Look

dandthegods:

The gods haven’t left us, but some say they are forgotten

Zeus roars his battle cry as lightning strikes skyscrapers and thunder rolls over corn fields and grassy plains.

Hera sings a lullaby to the crying newborn babies every night and hold the hand of those born early, those fighting to survive.

Artemis screams her protest in the voices of every woman, young and old, as they raise their fists for equality.

Demeter whistles through the streets of cities, rustling the leaves of scarce trees, reminding the concrete jungle of the jungles around them.

Poseidon bellows through the foghorns of steam ships, cruise liners and cargo ships as they dock into the harbour.

Hephaestus hammers his forge’s red fires with the punch of a time-clock and in the muscles strains of the working man.

Apollo blasts his voice through every headphone, earbud and speaker turned way too loud.

Ares’ battle cry echoes through a stadium as the crowd cheers after a national anthem is played.

Aphrodite whispers in the giggles and “I love you"s said between lovers intimating.

Hermes laughs in the roar of every engine and the gurgle of gasoline through the pump.

Dionysus cheers in the spirit of every young person celebrating themselves and making their lives enjoyable.

Athena hums in the silence of a late night library visit, in the turn of a page and the scratch of a pen.

Hestia smiles in every host saying “come in”, in every oven’s beeping, and the sigh of relaxation in ones home.

Hades beams in every dark humoured joke, in every Halloween night, and in every morning after.

They say the gods are gone, forgotten and a world away.
But they are here, if you look for them.

Hiya, I’m new and still building my practice right now. I really want to incorporate Zeus and worship him (I came to Hellenic polytheism through Aphrodite) but, like a lot of people, I’m feeling pretty uncomfortable the more research I do. I was wondering how you reconcile some of the myths with your practice, as a woman. I know you just had an argument with some fuckface who was very rude about this same topic, so feel free to shelve this question until you’re feeling better.

terrasunshine:

elys-book-of-mirrors:

terrasunshine:

Hi. So, we as a community have written on this a lot. Elani of Baring the Aegis wrote “Why do gods have sex with mortals?” (I’m on mobile so I can’t hyperlink), soloontherocks wrote “A list of Reasons” on her old blog (google soloontherocks-moving-refollow a list of reasons). This is just extra reading so you can get more than just my perspective.

The whole of it, though, is that the myths aren’t real. The myths aren’t our sacred text, and they were written by mortals in a sexist society, more sexist than ours is now. It’s not Zeus’ fault that the men who took it upon themselves to write stories about him decided he was going to do some bad things by our standards. You have to understand the societal context that surrounds the myths; the things Zeus did were things that were largely acceptable in Ancient Greece.

Also, even if we were to toy with the idea that they did happen, we can’t…. prove that he did anything. You know? We weren’t there, we didn’t witness anything, and nothing can be proven.

So, all in all, the way you work around this is by reminding yourself that a) the myths were written by sexist mortals who were conditioned by and perpetuated a sexist society, so it’s reflected in their stories and b) he is an amazing god.

He is so much more than his mythology. He is a wonderful and just King, a loving husband, and a gentle hand. To me, he is also a father figure that I did not have in my mortal father. I am in the process of incorporating him into my practice more as well.

I hope this helps. Feel free to drop another line if you have more questions.

No, it definitely did help and Solo’s List of Reasons is one hell of a resource (but the tumblr URLs need to be changed to “soloontherocks-moving-refollow”). And I’m still new enough that I’m following like crazy to find my way around the community.

I suppose because I’m “culturally Christian” (raised in an atheist household), I automatically assumed the myths to be a collection of holy scripture. I’m quite pleased that’s not the case. The ancients wrote myths for their culture, at that time, to display Zeus’s power and might in ways that they understood. 

And, since they’re not holy scripture, I’m gonna assume writing myths for the Theoi (from a point of worship and respect) in our current culture would be alright? Taken out of the context of scripture, they’re more like fables to explain the glory of the Gods?

This is something a lot of new Hellenics run into, especially those of us that switched from a Christian faith. It’s hard to wrap your head around the fact that we don’t really have one sacred text. The only thing I can think of that even comes close is the Pillars, but even then, there’s so many authors writing on it that it’s important to craft your own Pillars for your practice.

Also, yes! It’s definitely okay to write myths on the Theoi in a religious sense. Retellings are also pretty common, I know @pomegranateandivy has one about Zeus wooing Hera that I particularly love.

I’m glad this was able to help. 🙂