homewardskies

[homewardskies]

heyy im a queer muslimah and its so rare to find such respectful people as you! thank you for existing 🤍

Aww thank you so much, I hope you have a lovely day, anon!

[homewardskies]

Hi! I’m interested in doing prayer beads structured like the rosary, but don’t know any short enough prayers that would work for it. Particularly for Apollo, Athena, Hermes and/or Aphrodite. Do you have any? :) Thanks!

This took me so long to get around to, I'm so sorry :(

I personally have prayer beads, and I use them to count the epithets and kennings that I'm praying to. I take the major points of a few prayers and incorporate them as needed, or I just make my own, and I use the beads as I want to pray to different aspects of a single God. So maybe that'd work?

Pagan prayers are often pretty lengthy, so breaking them down into chunks is another way you could do that.

[homewardskies]

No, you raise a good observation.

I'm of the thought that myths are valuable because they provide insight into how ancient people conceptualized natural forces in regard to deities and other spirits. That's pretty important because that tells us the "why" and "how" of certain traditions.

The whole idea of Gods being "enemies" or not getting along is, in my opinion, a misunderstanding of what the myths are intended to be. Ultimately, they are neither scripture nor the entire picture of a God's being. One myth will not describe the whole thousands of years of experience a culture (or multiple cultures) had with one deity.

Aphrodite and Ares had relations in myth because war and passion are often tied together. That's not to say myths should be our only understanding of the Gods. Personal experience is invaluable, but the myths are a good starting point for the base-level traits of the Gods and their interactions with respect to the culture of the time. Not in a literal sense, but a metaphorical one.

If that makes sense, I guess

I’ve a genuine question for the polytheist community.

I see people say so often, “Don’t take the myths literally, that’s not what they were meant for.” — yet, at the same time, those same people seemingly tend to take the myths literally (e.g suggesting certain gods don’t work well together because ‘x’ myth says they are enemies/they had a fight in ‘x’ myth, or talking about the god’s myths as if they’re 100% factual and still relevant to who they are today—like with myths regarding non-consensual acts—etc). I’m really curious as to why this is.

Something someone said a while ago really provoked thought as well; they said that the gods aren’t static, and holding them to their myths is essentially pointless. So why do we do it? Why do we adhere to them so closely, talking about them as if they’re still so relevant in this time? Do the gods not possess the ability to change and evolve like we do? I do understand that reading them has its own importance and relevance, but why do we talk about them as if they’re factual while simultaneously pushing that they are not? (And this isn’t just relating to creation events and such, I have seen the notion that the myths regarding the gods are factual as well, but how is this so if they were simply made up by people like us?).

I’m someone who doesn’t feel the need to put a lot of stock in the myths. I enjoy some of them, but I don’t read them as hardline fact, because to me, what makes them any different to any other story? They’re made up just the same. I find it a hard line to walk, because on one hand I feel that disregarding them entirely could mean the gods don’t exist (since the stories are made up), or they only exist as a concept to help people understand the world around them—but then on the other hand, I feel that taking them into account while not believing them as fact, in some respect, is hard to do.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I also apologise if anything comes off rudely, it is 100% not my intention, I am merely someone who overthinks and overanalyses things and I like things to make some level of sense 😅

[homewardskies]

There’s no actual evidence that Aphrodite was forced to marry Hephaestus, the whole “contest for Aphrodite’s hand in order to free Hera” thing is a weak modern theory that got popular for whatever reason. It’s actually was more narratively interesting that Aphrodite and Hephaestus agreed on an arranged marriage but it didn’t work out.

[homewardskies]

Selene and Endymion. As dawn approaches, night herself prepares for slumber alongside her ever-sleeping love.

[homewardskies]

OOOOO I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS

This is what originally turned me away from Wicca (among other reasons). So many books, blogs, and other resources seem to have so much built-in misogyny that it boggles my mind.

It's part of why I hate the invention of the "Mother-Maiden-Crone" archetype so much.

No, Hekate is not MMC. She is a powerful force of sorcery and liminality. No, the Morrigan is not MMC. She is a Goddess of bloodshed, mercy, and power.

Reducing such multi-faceted entities, such influential spirits, down to the box that patriarchal systems tried to fit them in is so disrespectful.

Freya, Frigg, Aphrodite, Hekate, Athena, etc. Do many Goddesses have aspects of fertility, nurturing, parenthood? Yeah, they do, just like Zeus, Ares, and Njordr. Is that all they are? Is that even the core of what they influence? Not always.

Immediate red flag if any book you're reading only has Goddesses in the footnotes, as mothers.

Pagan writers when talking about female deities: "They're a mother goddess"

Pagan writers when talking about male deities: "Well, their role and function is a lot more complicated and important than just just being a father god, and here's a 10k word essay discussing why they're more than just a father god"

[homewardskies]

Yeppp, and this, I'd say, applies to most forms of Paganism! Deconstruction is so, so important.

Hello everyone.

I think a lot of you just want to be Christian.

I'm not talking cultural Christianity or internalized beliefs. I'm talking about wanting helpol to be a pjo au Christianity.

I had to leave so many tumblr helpol communities because this formula kept happening:

1. OP believes a god (or multiple) is omnipresent

2. That said god/gods is extremely pissed off at them for something minor.

3. That there is some intricate ritual that OP can do to make the god/gods forgive them.

4. "Omg we should have temples where we spend 90 minutes to two hours worshipping the same god and we talk about the mythology."

5. "Why can't I feel the god(s) presence all the time?" (See 1)

None of the above are in helpol. All of these things will be in Christianity. If you want these things, be Christian.

I feel like the whole "You just want to be special." Take is a cop out, but I think the desire comes from wanting to be so special that a god who has been dormant for 1500 years will awaken to watch you like a hawk. Even if it's out of hate.

[homewardskies]

"Queen of the Immortals is she, surpassing all in beauty: she is the sister and wife of loud-thundering Zeus,--the glorious one whom all the blessed throughout high Olympos reverence and honour even as Zeus who delights in thunder."

-Homeric Hymn 12 to Hera (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C7th to 4th B.C.)

[homewardskies]

We're now half way into year 2025 and I do agree the following are fascinating and interesting and all, but if you're white then these ain't for you, so leave them alone. Leave them alone!

Lilith

Santa Muerte

White sage

Palo santo

Shamanism

brujería

Voodoo

Hoodoo

Limpia con huevo

Kabbalah

Orishas

Totems

Tulpas

[homewardskies]

Prayer for the Start of the Week

To the Norns and the Divine, as the Web is Woven

As the sun rises and the wheel turns, I greet the dawn of a new week. Before me lies the unwoven thread, The path not yet tread, the story not yet told.

At the well beneath the great tree, I honor the Norns Urðr, who remembers, Verðandi, who is, Skuld, who waits with what must be.

Wise weavers of fate, Spinners of threads both bright and shadowed, May I walk with awareness of your work. May I meet what comes with strength and grace.

I call to Odin, wanderer and wise one, To Freyja, mistress of magic and might, To Frigg, keeper of deep knowing, And to all the holy powers who guide and guard.

Bless my steps as the days unfold. May I speak with truth, act with honor, Love fiercely, and walk rightly.

May I find joy in the work of my hands, Clarity in the stirrings of my heart, And peace in the patterns of the web.

This week, may my deeds ripple outward As offerings upon the loom of fate.

Hail the Norns. Hail the gods. Hail the spirits and ancestors. Hail the weaving of wyrd.

[homewardskies]

"Ratatosk is the squirrel's name, who must scurry

about on Yggdrasill's ash;

the eagle's utterance he must bring from above

and tell to Nidhogg below."

-Grimnir's sayings, The Poetic Edda (Trans. Carolyne Larrington, 1996)

[homewardskies]

“Give Aphrodite a red candle!” “Give her a blue candle!” Give her a candle of your favorite color. Tell her why you love it so much; is it just comforting or does it symbolize something to you? When you see that candle you’ll think “aw I love that color!” That’s literally what some of her epithets personify her as, that feeling of love and warmth! Just an idea idk 🤷‍♀️

[homewardskies]

I've noticed this as well! And it does seem to be a rather unhealthy, unhelpful mindset, probably carried over from previous experiences and backgrounds.

Obviously, everyone has their own views on this, but mine is "why wouldn't they care about us?" The universe is always giving unto itself, 100% interconnected and dependent on each ecosystem, species, and natural force working in tandem. We see this reflected in various forms of Paganism. The gifting cycle, Kharis/Xenia, whatever you wish to call it!

For me, offerings are me paying thanks, bringing my contribution to the potluck, if you will, to the natural and spiritual cycles that already exist beyond me. The Gods are part of this, and so just as I care about the spiders in my room, the people in my neighborhood, or the preservation of wetlands, the Gods, in the same notion of thought, care about us!

The idea that they wouldn't care, in my uneducated opinion, comes from the oppressive power structures in religion that have dominated the world for the last few hundreds of years. In other words, it's an idea that was perpetuated by institutions that require human fear of an angry, disappointed divine entity to exist. I don't believe it has a place in modern pagan belief systems.

If I might inquire from the polytheistic community,

What in the ever-loving FUCK is with this seemingly common attitude that the gods view us as nothing more than a speck in the universe, not remotely worth their time or affection? That we are worthless to them unless there is some special reason they should pay us attention? That they don’t have a care for us at all?

I escaped that mindset from a cult I was forced to be in, foolishly thinking I’d be safe from it in polytheism, but instead it seems to just get reinforced, discouraging me from it altogether. That cult taught me that I was worthless to my god; that I was no more than the dirt under his divine feet, and that it was a privilege to be loved by him and seen as worthy by him, even though I was fundamentally worthless and pathetic. I don’t ever want to feel that way with any god ever again.

The lack of certainty when it comes to the gods makes it so hard for me to subscribe to one mindset or another. I can neither confirm nor deny that the gods care about us, that they care about me. So it feels really easy to be swayed from one mindset to another. It’s hard to feel like people saying “the gods care about us—about you!” Isn’t just some kind of self-soothing gesture instead of a fact.

I’ve been away from polytheism for over a year now due to the struggles I have with it + my mental health, but this mindset a decent chunk of people have about it puts me off of coming back to it. Why would you even worship gods who could not give less of a shit about you? More importantly, why do you feel the need to push those views as a fact when nobody can know for certain save for their own experiences?

[homewardskies]

"Gladsheim a fifth is called,

there gold-bright Valhalla

rises peacefully, seen from afar;

there Odin chooses every day

those dead in combat."

-Grimnir's Sayings, The Poetic Edda (Trans. Carolyne Larrington, 1996)

[homewardskies]

Can we like, stop making Hades out to be a bad guy in Greek myth and zues to be a good guy. Honestly Hades is like not even evil in most Greek iterations. Zues is the one who fucked everyone and caused issues. Zues is the fuckup, Hades mostly just wanted a wife. And in most iterations she willingly went no trickery and willingly wanted to stay. And after thousands of years Demeter is still upset about it. Persephone willingly stayed Hades isn't evil, and neither is the location known by the same name.

[homewardskies]

Holidays, Offerings, and Other Ancient Praxis in Paganism: It's Not an Exact Science

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A lot of people just starting out have questions about the specific details of their praxis, which isn't necessarily a bad thing! Beginners, I've noticed, especially want to know how many holidays, what to do for them, when exactly they are, etc. Some are caught up in wondering what acceptable offerings are, how they should offer, and how should they pray. And these are all very reasonable questions from a beginner's perspective. The problem is that pagan religions, particularly those that are reconstructed from ancient belief systems, (in other words, not new age religions like Wicca) are not that easily simplified; there isn't one secret collection of knowledge on how to get it "right."

So, I wanted to break down a few of the difficulties with reconstructing historical traditions that you might run into and also remind you that maximum accuracy isn't always the goal.

1. Timeframe

The first problem we run into for recreating really anything, is that some traditions (ahem, especially Hellenic and Kemetic paganism) have a lengthy history. Those civilizations spanned thousands of years, so their religion did not exist in one singular, unchanged form for the countless generations it was practiced. If you want a modern example, we can look at holidays popular in modern culture, like Christmas, that have already changed and adapted over the course of maybe the last 200 years.

Now, put that into perspective for figuring out holidays from ancient religions. There is no single answer for how to go about Paganism because there wasn't just one correct way to practice when these religions were "alive." The best we can usually do is guesstimate based on surviving records and fill in the rest with our own UPG and experience. And that leads us to the second struggle:

2. Lack of information

This is a bigger issue for pagan traditions like Norse, Celtic, or Slavic. These people relied far more on oral tradition, well up to Christianization. Because of this, we don't have a super detailed idea of what certain aspects of the practice looked like, particularly from further back in their history. There's a bit we can infer from anthropological findings and secondary sources, although those aren't always reliable since many were retold from a Christian perspective, and we then lose the context.

3. Localization

This isn't so much an issue as it is something to simply be aware of. Ancient pagan civilizations were not monoliths of culture and belief; different regions had different practices. In Hellenic Paganism, for example, there were different deity cults that were city-specific. Just as culture changed over time, it also changed over space, so the recorded history of holidays in, say, Athens, wouldn't be the same as a rural village fifty miles north of Athens.

This is one that can really inform our modern practice because I'm fairly certain that the average practitioner isn't living like folks were back in those times. We can localize according to our own cultures, geography, and lifestyle, just as they had to do. Example: Olives and wine were a central part of Ancient Greece and many offerings were centered around this. I, however, live in the southern US. Instead of stressing about the cost of imported Olive Oil, I will instead pick honey suckles, offer a locally brewed Stout, or set aside some Crawfish.

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Now, this is all to say, don't get weighed down by the finer details of your practice, especially if you're a beginner, because the "right way" is in itself an oversimplification of the change inherent to spiritual practice. Even when the religion was still "alive," it was not a single, uniform structure (deconstruct that Othodoxy, ya'll).

Yes, a pre-made calendar is a good frame of reference for worship, and yes, a guide on how to pray to each God would have helped in the beginning. But odds are, you live in a different environment than ancient people, under different circumstances than the religion was originally practiced, and most of the original context under which they practiced no longer prevails. So you have room to create your own path.

Don't get stuck in the "learning phase" because your whole practice is the learning phase.

[homewardskies]

"Now Iapetus took to wife the neat-ankled maid Clymene, daughter of Oceanus, and went up with her into one bed. And she bare him a stout-hearted son, Atlas"

-Hesiod, Theogony 507 ff (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.