The Pyanepsia, Day 2 (2014), Poseidon and Theseus, Theseia and Oschophoria (2014)

Okay, so when the sun goes down we'll enter the second day of the Pyanepsia. The first day was wonderful. I gave my offering to Apollo, burned a candle that was just for him, and did the full ritual. Now I didn't have one that had been written up for me. But I thanked him. I thanked him for allowing Theseus to come back, even though his father died. And I told him that I was thankful for what food that I did have.

I think that's the most important thing about the ritual, besides remembering what Theseus had done for his people. Being thankful.

Tonight we honor Poseidon and Theseus, though in a much different way. It's also the Theseia and the Oschophoria. Below are info about these holidays. I got info about Theseia from the same website that I got the other holidays from.

The Theseia on the day following Pyanepsia and Oskhophoria celebrated the return of the (alleged) bones of Theseus to Athens from their original burial place on the island of Skyros, as ordained by the Delphic oracle.  The Athenians created a temenos near the agora (and likely near the temple of Hephaistos) to re-inter the remains and instituted a festival in 475 BCE to honor the state hero.  The observance became a major festival with a procession, athletic games and consumption of meat sacrifices (Parke, p. 81).  Another distinctive feature of this festival was the serving of athara, a special "pudding" made with milk. 

The eighth of the month is a day devoted to Poseidon, divine father of Theseus, and often to Theseus himself, hence it lent itself to an observance of such an important event as the return of the state hero’s remains (Parke, p. 81).

Oschophoria is to honor Athena but it's also a day to honor Dionysus

I hope that you all have a good one and this info helps you. 

 

The Pyanepsia Day 1 (2014)

Tonight we celebrate Pyanepsia, which is for twelve days. During this time I will be talking, a bit, each day, about what mine has been like. I look forward to sharing each days celebrating, the next day. So I will start it off with this blog post and then tell you what my first day was, tomorrow. It will all make sense in the end. Below is some info about this holiday and I give thanks to Temenos for the info.

Pyanepsia

by Chris edited by Melissa

“Eiresione bears figs and fat bread,
honey in a cup and oil to be wiped off,
and a cup of unmixed wine, so that, getting drunk, she may go to sleep”
(ancient eiresione chant translated by Melissa G.)

(7 Pyanepsion)  The Pyanepsia, an ancient festival probably with origins as far back as Mycenaean times, was associated with Apollo and Theseus, the founder-hero of Athens, and to some extent with Helios and the goddesses of the seasons collectively known as the Horai.  In Archaic and Classical Times the festival centered around a panspermia, a mixture of beans, wheat and other seeds and grains.  Isidorus and Porphory both regarded beans as one of mankind’s first and most primitive foods (see references below).  The appropriate activity at the feast was the telling of legends, probably of Theseus and related myths.

The explanation for this panspermia is found in the myths and legends associated with Theseus. The story told was that it was on this day that Theseus, who had just returned from slaying the Minotaur, wished to pay his vows to Apollo. The youths who had returned with him pooled and boiled what was left of their provisions to provide a feast and an offering to Apollo for bringing them safely from Delos to Attica (Plutarch, Theseus, 22.4). 

Another practice at this festival is the carrying of eiresiones throughout the city by boys, who chanted the eiresione song above as they traveled from house to house.  Plutarch described the eiresione as “a bough of olive wreathed with wool, such as Theseus used at the time of his supplication, and laden with all sorts of fruit-offerings, to signify that scarcity was at an end” (Theseus, 22.5).   Parke says that it bore pastry shapes of harps, cups, vine branches and other things, as well.  The revelers apparently expected a gift from each house they visited (p.76).  By the Classical Period an eiresione was hung over most every door in Athens and enjoyed its particular position year-round, being replaced at the Pyanepsia and the Thargelia.

See also the Oskhophoria.

Observing Pyanepsia today:
This is another harvest festival but has several features that were particular to Athens: the panspermia meal and offering, the retelling of the legends of Theseus and the carrying of the eiresione.  First, you will want to prepare a panspermia for your feast and ritual. 


Some of this panspermia should be placed on the altar and, if possible, burned for the God.  If not, share it with nature afterwards.  At the feast, serve the panspermia with rich bread and wine.  Avoid meat.  During the meal, after hymns to Apollo, read Plutarch’s Life of Theseus.

Create an eiresione. Ideally, use an olive or laurel branch.  If this is not available, Russian olive or bare branches to which you attach olive-shaped leaves would be appropriate.  Another good choice would be a branch from a local fruit tree.  Wind the branches with strands of white or purple wool, preferably not spun.  Attach pastry shapes and fruits of all kinds, especially figs.  Create a tune to suit the eiresione verse (see pronunciation guide below).  Provide your guests with small gifts.

What was hung on the Eiresione no doubt depended on the wealth of particular worshippers; we hear of white wool and purple wool, vessels of wine, figs, strings of acorns, cakes; nothing in the way of natural produce came amiss. The Eiresione once fixed over the door remained there, a charm against pestilence and famine, till the next year; then it was changed for a new one.

The Eiresiône Song

from Plutarch, Life of Theseus, 22.5

eiresiônê suka pherei kai pionas artous
kai meli en kotulêi kai elaion apopsêsasthai
kai kulik' euzôron, hôs an methuousa katheudêi.

Modern Greek pronunciation:

Capitalized syllables are emphasized according to the poetic meter.

EE-re-si-ON-NE SEE-ka fe-RE KE PEE-on-as AR-tous
KE me-lee EN ko-tee-LEE ke e-LE-on a-POP-SEE-SAS-the
KE kee-lik EF-ZO-RON, OS AN me-thee-OU-sa ka-THEV-dee.

Pausanias has the song:
'Eiresione brings
All good things,
Figs and fat cakes to eat,
Soft oil and honey sweet,
And brimming wine-cup deep
That she may drink and sleep.'


I hope this will help you and I will have my altar photo up when the holiday is over.

The Proerosia (2014)

Tonight we celebrate Proerosia, which honors Demeter. Below is info about this holiday, though right now it wouldn't be done in the same way as it would be in Greece. Things are just different over there.Tonight is also the night that we honor Artemis as well.

The Proerosia, is about the things to be done “before plowing”.  The first fruits festival was in May, when the “first fruits of the cereals” were harvested.  According to H. W. Parke (Festivals of the Athenians, 1977, p.74), the offerings to Demeter were made to invoke her blessing on the plowing and seeding to come.  It is Demeter, after all, “the greatest help and cause of joy to the undying Gods and mortal men” (Homeric Hymn 2, to Demeter, lines 268-269, translation by White), who according to the author of the Hymn “made fruit spring up from the rich lands, so that the whole wide earth was laden with leaves and flowers” (Hymn 2, 471-473). 
The festival took place at Eleusis, site of the Great Mysteries and setting of much of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter.  The explanation for the rite was that a plague had afflicted the whole of Greece, and the Delphic Oracle said that Apollo ordered a tithe to Demeter of the first harvest on behalf of all Greeks.  Thereafter, except for disruptions during the Peloponnesian War, offerings arrived annually from all over the Greek world for the Goddesses’ blessings before plowing and seeding, although apparently the residents of Attica did not participate to a great degree (Parke, p. 73).  On the other hand, a special and very popular festival of Apollo (Pyanepsia) took place a day or two after the Proerosia and, among other things, it featured an offering of a mixture of boiled beans—arguably a harvest portion, though it has a myth of origin outside of the Hymn to Demeter. At Eleusis on this day, sacrifice was made to Pythian Apollo, which is construed by modern scholars as a show of gratitude to the Delphic oracle for the foundation of the Proerosia. 
Helene P. Foley, in her background article on the Eleusinian Mysteries in her edition of The Homeric Hymn to Demeter, states that “all important rites of Demeter in Attica seem to have been linked (at least loosely) to stages of the agricultural year (p. 71).  Moreover, these festivals seem to have a connection with some part of the Homeric Hymn, especially since Eleusis, which was incorporated into Attica, was the site of much of the narrative of the Hymn. Thus Proerosia is part of the sacred festival cycle of grain in ancient Greece, along with the Thesmophoria (also Oct), Haloa (Dec), the Lesser Mysteries (Feb), Thargelia (May), Skirophoria (June) and the Eleusinian Mysteries

Proerosia today: This day marks the beginning of the Greek agricultural year.  For some North Americans and Europeans, this is not the season for plowing grain crops.  For others in areas like California (mild winters with few hard freezes) crops like winter wheat are planted.  For colder climates consider Elliot Coleman's books like The Winter Harvest Handbook for organic bounty in MAINE. ).  No matter what your fallow season is, it is appropriate to recognize the ancient tradition and calendar and to honor Demeter and Kore and the Horai (Seasons) for bringing grain and fruits to mankind in your appropriate season.   

Below is a sample ritual for Proerosia

Notes and packing list are at the end of ritual.

The Pompe, or Procession
The Priestess then lights the fire on the altar, which should have been laid out beforehand.
The Incense is lit, then, in the order dictated by the order of the Sacra, as listed above, the People 
are lead by the Priest or Priestess to the Temenos, or Sacred Precinct, containing the altar.

At the entrance to the Temenos, each person is sprinkled with pure spring water (note 1) then 
moves in a counterclockwise direction to form a circle around the bomos/altar.

After the khernips, everyone remains silent until the Priest or Priestess cries out:

"Hekas, o hekas, este bebeloi!"

The People Reply:
"Let All That Is Profane Be Far From Here!"

Y.R.:
Welcome to the rites of Proerosia!
We are here to prepare the sacred field,
To bless the Earth in the name of Demeter,
Zeus Epakrios we will also invoke,
Bringer of thunder and rain from on high,
That He may bless the coming season.


The Lighting
The Priestess cries out:
"Paresmen time, sonta tas theas kai tous theous."

The People Reply:
"We Are Here To Honor the Gods and Goddesses."

The Scattering
Katie walks the barley counterclockwise and each person takes some and tosses it upon the altar. 
The remaining barley is placed nearby.

“with this scattering, we are joined as community”

The Mixing
The Libation Bearers move to either side of the Priest or Priestess and the Wine and Water is mixed.
The Priest or Priestess says:

"Theasthe ta hudata biou."

The People Reply:

"Behold the Waters of Life."

The First Libation
The Priestess says:
"Hestia, Thine is always the first and the last."

Some of the water/wine in the cup is poured out on the altar fire, then the cup is passed around counterclockwise, each person taking a sip in offering to Hestia, or touching a drop to his or her 
forehead in offering, and repeating the above formula of offering to Hestia. The Priestess takes a last 
sip, and the remaining part is poured out on the altar.

As it’s being passed around…(note 4 for source of prayer)

Hestia,
Goddess of hearth and temple fire,
Of the spiritual center of our world,
And of all sacred places.
Hestia, beloved Goddess of the spiritual flame,
Come be honored at this place.
Bring to us the peace and sureness
Of that place which is home and hearth.
Please bring your purity and beauty to us,
As we honor you
Who are the center of the spiritual flame.

Hymnodia
The Priestess cries out:
"Koimeson stoma!"

The People Reply:
"We will be silent!"

(The People then maintain silence through the Hymn. Note 5 has the source.)

Demeter Panagia
Pure and Holy mother of Creation,
Goddess of the Blessed Seed and of the Greater Mysteries,
We sing of you,

Beloved Mother of the Earth, fertile and full of power,
With reverence we ask for your blessing on this day
O Verdant and Fruitful one
Release the Earth from its dry bondage of summer
And in this new planting season,
Let the seedlings rise young and green.
Sustain them until the flowering, and from flowering
To the gold fruit of harvesttime.
O Mother of Life
As we have given you praises and libations,
Bless our labors here.

To you
We offer gifts of the heart
Of love, beauty, and reverence,
O grant us the season’s bright benedictions
As we honor the Great Mother of the land.

The Second Libation
The Libation Bearer fills the cup with milk. The Priestess offers up the cup and says:

"Hear, Oh Demeter,
First Mate of Father Zeus,
Goddess of the Barley and the Wheat:
You Who preside over the growing of all crops,
You in Whose care is all that lives upon Gaea, the Earth;
without Whom the seed does not sprout
nor the blossom blow nor the fruit mature and fall from the tree.
Mother Who brings forth, and Mother Who defends;
Mother Who Destroys if aught assault Her Offspring;
You before Whom the very throne of Olympus must give homage, lest we poor 
mortals utterly fail and fall.
Goddess of the Biosphere: we call upon You with whatever name it pleases You 
to be called! If ever we have made offering to You, or honored You in word or deed,
 grant us that sustenance without which mortal life cannot go on."

The Priestess pours some of the Milk on the altar, then passes the cup counterclockwise. When 
the libation returns to the Priestess she takes a last sip, and the remaining part is poured out on the
 altar.

We planted our lettuce and wheat seed at this point.

Hymnodia

The Priestess cries out:
"Koimeson stoma!"

The People Reply:
"We will be silent!"
(The People then maintain silence through the Hymn)

Great Zeus, Son of Kronos,
Most High, Father of Gods and Men,
Protector of Strangers, Good Counselor
Hear my prayer, and bestow your blessings
-
Zeus Kataibates, Cloud Gatherer,
You descended upon Danae as a shower of golden rain.
Rain now upon your parched children, Ombrios,
Water more precious than gold.
-
Our dry lips praise you, Great Zeus,
In thanks for this blessed moisture.

The Libation Bearers again mix water and wine. The Priest offers up the cup and says:

"Zeus, this Libation is for You”

Cup is passed, etc.

Zeus Epakrios, great father of the thundering skies,
Your blessed rains have begun again to fall upon the fertile earth.
Oh benevolent one
Gather your darkening clouds and let fall
The potent and gentle rain.

The Sacrifice/Offerings
The feast portions are brought to the fire.

The Sacral Feast
Everybody eats.

In making Sacrifice and in the exercises of the Agon we have called upon the Deity to join us. 
When the Agon is done, the Sacral Feast is set and everyone eats. This can be something as 
simple as bread and milk, or as elaborate as a many course banquet. For Demeter, the Bounty 
of the Harvest should figure prominently in the Feasting. The important thing to remember is 
that this is a communion not only between mortal and Deity but between the mortals who share 
the feast as well. We are all joined in communion, in community, by the sharing of the Sacral 
Feast.


The Libation of Thanks
The Libation Bearer pours milk again. The Priestess leads the people in giving thanks to the 
Goddess, letting individuals speak at will. Then the Priestess offers up the cup, saying:

"Demeter Charin echomen soi."


Some of the milk in the cup is poured out on the altar, then the cup is passed around counterclockwise, 
each person taking a sip in offering to Demeter, or touching a drop to his or her forehead in offering, 
and saying:


"Demeter, Hilathi!" (Demeter Be Propitious!)

or

"Demeter, Sponde!"

or simply

"Demeter, we thank You."

The Libation Bearer pours wine again…..


"Zeus, Hilathi!" (Zeus Be Propitious!)

or

"Zeus, Sponde!"

or simply

"Zeus, we thank You."



The Final Libation
The Libation Bearer pours wine one final time. The Final Libation is offered to Hestia, with the words:

"Hestia, Thine is always the first and the last."

It is offered in the same manner as the first, but when the Priestess pours out the last of it upon 
the altar, she cries out:

"Houtos heksoi!"
The Response is:

"Houtos heksoi,"

or simply: " So Be It!"

This is the End of the Ritual.




 I hope that this helps you out and I hope that you have a wonderful Proerosia.

Book Review: Greek Religion by Walter Burkert

So I'm doing another book review and this is for Greek Religion by Walter Burkert. This book is pretty thick and so it might be a long review. First of all I would like to say that this is a good jumping off point for those that are interested in practicing Greek religion and understanding how the Greeks did things. So here goes.

Chapter 1: Prehistory and the Minoan-Mycenaean Age

This covers everything from early man to the rise of the Minoan civilization. It covers the following: The Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, Indo-European, the Minoan-Mycenaean Religion (which was much different than the religious practices of Greece), a Historical Survey, the State of the Sources, the Cult Places, which are divided up into Caves, Peak Sanctuaries, Tree Sanctuaries, House Sanctuaries (which lasted longer than the others), Temples, Graves. They also covered Ritual and Symbols, the Minoan Deities, the Mycenaean Gods and Linear, and the Dark Age when the Mycenaean people just vanished.

Chapter 2: Ritual and Sanctuary

This covered the following: 'Working Sacred Things': Animal Sacrifice, Descriptions and Interpretation, Blood Rituals, Fire Rituals (the burning of the body), Animal and God, Gift Offerings and Libations, First Fruit Offerings, Votive Offerings, Libation, Prayer, Purification, Function and Methods, The Sacred and the Prue, Death, Illness and Madness, Purification by Blood (apparently they knew something we didn't), Pharmakos, the Sanctuary, Temenos, Altar, Temple and Cult Images, Anathemata, Priests, The Festival, Pompe, Agermos, Dancing and Hymns, Masks, Phalloi, Aischrologia, Agon, The Banquet of the Gods (which I believe explains why King Lycon was cursed), Sacred Marriage, Ecstasy and Divination, Enthousiasmos, The Art and the Seer, Oracles.

Chapter 3: The Gods

Covered both Major and Minor and there places

Chapter 4: The Dead, Heroes, and Chthonic Gods

Pretty much explains about the dead, their place in Greek religion, heroes that died, and of course the gods of the underworld.

Chapter 5: The Polis and Polytheism

Covers the structure of Greek city-states and the religion that connected them all.

Chapter 6: Mysteries and Asceticism

Chapter 7: Philosophical Religions

I found the Atheist section to be interesting. It talked about them in a very nasty way, stating that the people viewed these non-believers as going against the state and causing their own ruin. I think that would be a good example of what's going on now.

Ancient Hymns and Modern Hymns and Prayers

I wasn't planning on doing a blog post until tomorrow but I decided that I was going to do this post. One of the great things about this religion is that we have sources that have, by some strange miracle, managed to survive the the present day. The hymns that were used in the past, where hymns to the gods which included the titles that were used. The hymns were apart of ritual and apart of letting the gods know that the offering was for them.

In today's world we have a broken line of ritual and honoring of the gods. While most Hellenist will use the ancient hymns, which are great, some prefer to create their own and use them. Just as much as they like using modern prayers for the gods. The reason that I'm mentioning this is that one of the people that I'm following has stated that she has read modern hymns, and while some of them are wonderful, she won't use them in her practice. Now that's okay, and I'm fine with that. But I believe that modern hymns and prayers are a connection to the gods in the hear and now.

Just as the ancient ones were for the ancients.

I'm not against those that don't want to use the modern hymns to the gods. But what I don't like is people telling me that I can't, as though they have the right to tell me what to do. When you start telling people what to do, it becomes dogma. And dogma has no place in our religion. So, no matter if you use modern or ancient hymns, they are valid, just apart of two different times. Modern prayers are good too and I used them as well.

Note; This is a correction of the same post that didn't really explain my point.

Turning This Blog Into A Journey

One of the bad things about trying out different paths is that people will always remind of the paths that you’ve tried. And since I’ve settled on being a Hellenist and determined to follow the path of the gods, I’m turning this blog into a journey of being a Hellenist. I’m going to be talking about each holiday as they approach and I’m going to be talking about books that I’ve read and giving reviews of said books.

I’m doing this as a record of my spiritual path and religion. I believe, once again, that documenting my path is the most important thing. I’m keeping all my old blog posts, because their important. I’m really excited about doing this and writing down the things that I’ve discovered. I can’t wait to discover new things and get closer to the gods.

Hermes, Hercules, Aphrodite, Apollo, Eros (September 2014)

Kala Ermou Tetras and Tetradistai

Today (September 28), the sundown will bring the fourth day of the month of Pyanepsion 

On the fourth day of every month we celebrate the Ermou Tetras and Tetradistai.

The Ermou Tetras celebrates the birth of Hermes and his four gifts: Logos (speech), Agon (Contest), the musical scale and geometry

The Tetradistai is also a birthday celebration. It celebrates the birth of Aphrodite, in her epithet as Pandemos (Common to All People), and the birth of Eros.

Herakles is also said to have been born on a fourth day.

Also the fourth day of every month is sacred to the gods Apollon and Hermaphroditos

"On the fourth day of the month queenly Maia bare him (Hermes)."
~excerpt from the Homeric Hymn 4 to Hermes

"...Menander, in his Flatterer, makes the cook on duty at the fourth-day club-feast (Tetradistai) or the day of Aphrodite Pandemos, speaks as follow: 'Libation! Round with the tripe! Mind what you do. Come Sosias, boy, libation! Good for you! And now pour out. To all above we will pray both Gods and Goddesses, and may Life, Health, and many a blessing come of this, and those we've got Heaven grant we never miss!" ~ Athenaios 14. 659Dd

"...the fourth, and the seventh -- on which Leto bare Apollo with the blade of gold - each is a holy day"
~ excerpt from Hesiod, Works and Days

"On the fourth and seventh days of each month, he directs mulled wine to be prepared, and going himself to purchase myrtle-wreaths, frankincense and convolvuluses; he returns to spend the day worshiping the statue of Hermaphroditus."
~ excerpt from Theophrastus, Characters