#Demeter Devotion

[boymanmaletheshequel]

A few common misconceptions and hurtful myths about the gods I worship:

• Demeter is not careless or selfish for reacting the way she did to the loss of her daughter. Grief, even amongst the gods, is an emotion so powerful that it causes us to loose control, and surrender to our own emotions. You would not blame a woman in grief over the loss of her child for having a mental breakdown. Also, I don’t personally believe that the plagues that befell Greece after these myths were written were caused inherently by Demeter, as agricultural disasters happened often, especially back before modern farming and cultivation knowledge, and it was if anything, a coincidence of timing which frustrated and worried men used as justification to attack and blame Demeter as a target of their angst, and a scapegoat to direct their suffering at.

• Poseidon wasn’t a rapist, nor was he inherently malicious or “evil”. Although he is most certainly impulsive and often aggressive, it is rarely in a malicious way, as many of the myths paint him as. You have to remember as the embodiment of the sea, sailors and others who knew the dangerous and unforgiving nature of the ocean often cast these traits onto Poseidon by association, and not all of the things they believed of him were necessarily true. The idea that he is a rapist is also a myth, or many myths, cultivated I’m sure by the high ranking and extremely misogynistic patriarchal men of Greece, who saw powerful male gods like Poseidon and Zeus as equals to themselves (foolish) and therefore believed that if they liked taking advantage of women and other unconsenting individuals, than surely they did too. (I imagine many found themselves smitten as a result of this.) if anything, Poseidon was more of a dominant father figure, like Zeus. He saw the women of the Parthenon as his daughters and sisters, as well as his followers, hence the reason many modern devotees such as myself refer to him as “father”.

• conversely, Artemis was not a misandrist, she didn’t hate sex, and she was not some uncontrollable psychopath. Many of Artemis’s myths heavily exaggerate her animalistic tendencies, which do exist, but are certainly not psychopathic or evil in nature, as nature itself is inherently incapable of being so. She also did not “hate” men, non-virgins, or sex. In fact, as the patron goddess of pregnant women and babies, these things are inherently connected to her domain. One of the reasons these beliefs have emerged, besides the myths, is that people have exaggerated the fact that as a virgin goddess who remains chaste as a virtue, Artemis tends to avoid men and people who aren’t women in her myths, not out of misandry, or other ideas that are honestly quite terf-y, and have been used to push transphobic narratives, but because she hopes to protect these virtues. She does not hate her male, trans, or otherwise non-cis woman followers, she values them just as much, and this is an unfortunatley common, and hurtful, misconception. Like Poseidon, she is often aggressive, and can be impulsive, but she’s MUCH more of a stern mother of nature, than a ruthless animal.

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Please don’t fall for these common misconceptions, read Hellenic texts and stories yourself, and try not to spread misconceptions yourself! There are many reliable resources to avoid this, such as Wikipedia, theoi.com, and more! Have a blessed day 💙🏛️

[temperamentalgreen]

Queenly Deo, the sender of splendid gifts 🌾

To Demeter Eleusinia. O universal mother, Deo famed, august, the source of wealth, and various named: great nurse, all-bounteous, blessed and divine, who joyest in peace; to nourish corn is thine. Goddess of seed, of fruits abundant, fair, harvest, and threshing are thy constant care. Lovely delightful queen, by all desired, who dwellest in Eleusis' holy vales retired. Nurse of all mortals, who benignant mind first ploughing oxen to the yoke confined; and gave to men what nature's wants require, with plenteous means of bliss, which all desire. In verdure flourishing, in glory bright, assessor of great Bromios bearing light: rejoicing in the reapers' sickles, kind, whose nature lucid, earthly, pure, we find. Prolific, venerable, nurse divine, thy daughter loving, holy Kore . A car with Drakones yoked 'tis thine to guide, and, orgies singing, round thy throne to ride. Only-begotten, much-producing queen, all flowers are thine, and fruits of lovely green. Bright Goddess, come, with summer's rich increase swelling and pregnant, leading smiling peace; come with fair concord and imperial health, and join with these a needful store of wealth. --- The Orphic hymn to Demeter

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Portrait of Demeter, I was mainly practicing working with colors and drew from a lot of artistic references for this. Overall, I'm happy with the piece (despite how rough and messy she still looks) , and I had a lot of fun working on this for her

🌾I hope that everyone is doing well, and may Demeter keep your plate full and your cup overflowing 🌾

[homey-worshiper]

i have been thinking about how i see the deities that i work with and with that, how does it affect my worship & work.

lady hestia for me is a calm, and gentle presence, she is the cozy feeling i get when i wake up and dont want to leave my bed because its too nice, lady demeter is strong, the only way i can describe it is, i know when lady demeter is around because i can smell her candle in my space without lighting it, she makes her presence known.

when lady hestia wants to teach me something, she guids me and its almost as she takes my hand and walks with me, showing me the good and the bad of my decision, lady demeter shows me few paths and i need to choose the best one, if i chose wrong - a chestnut will fall on me or i will step on a ladybug, she knows the correct path but wants me to make my way forward on my own.

lady hestia loves food, warm food, maybe not an overflowing plate but she is a foodie, a warm soup or a hot cup of tea with honey, simple things and she enjoys herself. lady demeter also loves food, a lot of it, full plate and an overflowing cup, she likes a collection of dishes, specially if i spend hours making them, she loves dinners, full of healthy and colourful things, when lady hestia is always around when i have a warm breakfast.

lady hestia is the delicate bedding and the pillows that let me relax, where lady demeter is the blanket that covers me tightly and i feel secure.

lady hestia's voice is almost like a whisper, just bearly loud enough to hear, she listens, smilling, nodding, i think of her more as a listener, where lady demeter's voice is strong and powerful, her words always carefully crafted and her manner elegant but welcoming, she always invites into the conversation

lady hestia likes silence, crackling of paper when i write to her, where lady demeter loves to be surrounded by laughter, happy voices.

[starlight-sage]

𓇣❀ᴅᴇᴍᴇᴛᴇʀ • ɢᴏᴅᴅᴇss ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴀʀᴠᴇsᴛ, sᴇᴀsᴏɴs, ᴀɢʀɪᴄᴜʟᴛᴜʀᴇ, ɢʀᴀɪɴs, ғᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴛʏ, & sᴀᴄʀᴇᴅ ʟᴀᴡ❀𓇣

[fairyboy1111]

A digital offering to Demeter! May the nourisher off all creatures make our lives bloom with joy 💚

[the-astral-archives]

Δημητηρ - Demeter

“I begin to sing of rich-haired Demeter, awful goddess, of her and of her daughter lovely Persephone. Hail, goddess! Keep this city safe, and govern my song.”

Homeric hymns from theoi / Images from pinterest.

Requested by : n/a

Feel free to request boards or ask about our practice!

[per-sii]

I just dreamt with Lady Demeter.

Like, I know NOTHING about her (in the most respectful way I'm saying it) and I had this dream where I was dancing and singing some kind of hymn and a lot of epithets that I truly don't know what they mean. And I had this kind of white really thin dress with some kind of veil, and on top of that it was in the middle of my old school's forest.

I fear I'm going crazy. Help as always, I'm sorry. I think you might know me as the "always asking for help person". 🕴🏻

[mckennatagen]

dedicated the act of picking berries to demeter other week, weather was beautiful, just hours of me and nature

[the-purvashadha]

When you step into sunlight, you honor Apollo. When you admire the moon, you honor Artemis. When you admire cloud shapes, you honor Hera. When you smell petrichor, you honor Zeus. When you laugh at a joke, you honor Hermes. When your body twitches to dance at a particularly upbeat music, you honor Dinoysus. When you enjoy the first bite of your breakfast, you honor Demeter. When you choose your peace over any conflict, you honor Athena. When you warm yourself up by sheltering yourself in blanket, you honor Hestia. When you listen to Ocean sounds, you honor Poseidon. When you smell flowers, you honor Persephone. When you admire the coolness of first day of Autumn, you honor Hades. When you wear your favourite jewellery, you honor Hephaestus. When you smile, you honor Aphrodite. When you exercise, you honor Ares. When you light a torch in a dark room, you honor Hekate.

Your body is a shrine to Gods, your being an act of devotion for them. You, by yourself, are enough for them.

[khaire-traveler]

There is a greatness in the names of deities that, when uttered from my lips, fills me with a momentary sense of awe. A quiet and unspoken power that lies within them.

·° ★ *·

Hestia. A humble energy that is both the First and Last of all the deathless Olympians. A welcome comfort in times of trial that brings with her the love of a sheltering home. A soothing warmth that can be found without the presence of a kindled fire, for her arms are open to all and to all she provides an internal flame.

Zeus. An unmatched power that shakes the skies and brings the most indomitable beasts to their knees. A hardy will that bends the sturdy hands of the fates and dishes out blessings and curses in equal measure. A mighty presence that cannot be overshadowed nor overcome by any other, though it is a brief encounter when the name is merely spoken.

Hera. An elegant strength that is carried with the grace of a lioness, royal in nature with a silent yet undeniable authority. A razor-sharp gaze that can cut through the hardiest of stone and pierce the heart of any person who dares to question her rule. A confident presence that knows when to show compassion and when to assert one's power, certain of her worth and limits.

Poseidon. An earthshaking presence that commands the respect of those brave enough to traverse the crashing waves. A nurturing caretaker who oversees the health and wellness of every underwater denizen. A flowing energy that rolls in and out, rising and falling, ever-changing as the tides of life itself.

Demeter. An ever-caring mother of the very land we tread upon, the soil that squeezes between our toes. An unyielding mountain of power that provides for every manner of creature that roams the earth. An ever-changing force with the variability of the very seasons themselves that plants the seed of transformation within every person she encounters, simply by her nature.

Haides. The gentle yet sturdy ruler - the king who rules us all, in the end. The certainty of an ending paired with the uncertainty of the details. The warmth of burying your feet beneath the earth and watching plants grow over them. The curiosity of change in all its forms, and the subtle comfort that comes with its acceptance.

[boymanmaletheshequel]

If you’re a closeted hellenist, teen or adult, and are in a family that requires you to join in prayer before meals, and you don’t want to pray to the Christian god, one way you can divert this is by using that time while your eyes are closed to pray to Demeter instead! She is the Hellenic god of crops and farming, so we believe that she delivered that food to your plate. Your family will never know which god you were actually praying to ;)

[temperamentalgreen]

WIP portrait of Demeter

[dionysianfreak]

I decided to carve a shell into the top of Aphrodite's plate. it came out better than I expected, I'm obsessed !

finally, a snake that lives and dies simultaneously for Kore and Demeter :3 I plan to paint on some wheat beside the snake 💕

[starlight-sage]

I feel like both Hestia & Demeter would love stardew valley. I’m gonna play some stardew valley for them later I think

[fairyboy1111]

A prayer for Demeter + Digital offering

I sing of kind-hearted Demeter whose face framed in golden locks is so beautiful it endlessly expresses itself through blossoms of all sorts

Richly crowned with leaves of lively-green, cradling in your arms fruits of various hue; beloved queen, the yield of the harvest belongs to you

Year after year you send to mankind wonderful gifts from below the ground, they receive them gladly and with open arms wherever they may be found

Your generosity keeps us fed and supports all of mortal life, you fill our souls with bliss and remove our minds from strife

You give our hearts the strength to keep on beating, you keep away hunger’s cruel pangs so that they may be fleeting

To lay in the soft grass is to be held in your arms, to rest under a tree’s shadow is to be mantled in your veil; you know our needs and in accordance to them you provide us with the sustenance they entail

The wide-pathed earth is your throne, strong and deep-bosomed, teeming with life; a glorious chariot pulled by scaly dragons is yours to drive through the sky

Bearing ears of grain in one hand and a sickle in the other, you taught the art of agriculture to mortals, you are every seed’s mother

Birther of spring, when your daughter is away your grief barrens the world and dries up the land, yet when she comes back your joy overflows and enlivens every plant

Persephone is her name and to hug her is your greatest delight, fate has decreed that she divides her time between the underworld’s darkness and Olympus’s light

Oh, flower-decked mistress of the Horae, you who applauds and rewards toilsome labor; trim-ankled Deo, much besought for your bountiful favor

Lover of peace, bringer of justice, you uphold the laws of nature and men; petal-soft to those who act justly, thorn-sharp to those who spread pain

I beg you to heed my words and hear my prayer, children-cherishing crop-begetter, remind me to water myself so that I may keep on growing better and better

Guide me towards a fertile path where my life can bloom with glee; send your son, beauteous Plutus, to walk alongside me

Regard me graciously, bearer and nourisher of all beings, for day-to-day I honor your presence in all ground-born things

Smile upon me, happy and mild; daughter of lovely-haired Rhea, hold the hand of your child

[travelingthief]

Devotions and Offerings List

Alexiares and Anicetus

Apollo

Aphrodite

Ares

Artemis

Athena

Clio

Demeter

Dionysus

Hades

Hecate

Hephaestus

Hera

Hermaphroditus

Hermes

Hestia

Mnemosyne

Poseidon

Selene

Tyche

Zeus