#and the goddess everyone has a different view and opinion of

[mynabirb]

the blacksmith and the dove

[linkspooky]

PITY VS. EMPATHY

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 265 quickly surpassed Gojo's death chapter as my favorite chapter in the entire manga. It's a high point in both Yuji's character development and the Sukuna fight, a notion most of the fandom agrees with. That being said, it's once again time for me to take a stance contrary to most of the fandom opinion. I was going to make this post two weeks ago but I'm glad I waited, because this week's chapter helps me illustrate my point in the contrasting way Yuji treats Sukuna and Megumi.

As you can probably tell by the title, my hot take of the week is that what Yuji is showing Sukuna isn't true empathy. It's not atn attempt to understand Sukuna's worldview, but rather condescending pity from a place looking down on Sukuna, which is why it infuriates him so much. This is illustrated in Yuji's atual actions this chapter, which is to go at great length to show memories from his past to make Sukuna understand HIM and not the other way around.

Whereas, what Yuji shows Megumi is compassion, because he's not telling Megumi what to feel or imposing his own views on him but rather accepting the fact that Megumi might be suffering too much to keep living on.

I'll explain more under the cut:

Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy

Yuji is, not as far along in his character development as he might seem. I don't want to undervalue his growth, this chapter shows definite progress, and I understand why it would seem that this is the completion of his arc of being a cog in society because he straight up says people don't need roles, and it seems like the manga is quickly coming to a close.

However, sometimes characters words don't exactly match their actions. Sometimes characters aren't self aware. People often call characters multi-layered and complex, but what does that mean exactly? For me, a mutli-layered character is the embodiment of "people are never what they appear to be."

A story has multiple layers when you're not supposed to take everything the author says at face value. Every time you read a story, whether you are aware of it or not you engage in some level of personal interpretation. You're not supposed to automatically accept everything the author feeds you without question. Therefore characters are not exactly what they are stated to be, and good character writing allows room for interpretation for what is going on in a character's head beneath the surface.

In a jungian sense this would be the ice berg model of consciousness. There's the persona, or the ego, which is what the person presents to the world and the people around them. Their own-self conceived image. Then there's the part of the ice berg that submerged, which accounts for all of their internal mechanisms and facets of their personality they aren't aware of. This could range from anything to like, how trauma can affect people's actions without them realizing it, things they are in denial of and don't want to admit to themselves or just like someone who's bossy but not self-aware about that trait until someone else points it out for them.

Everyone's have that friend who you try to call them out on their bad behavior, but no matter how hard you try they just won't admit it. That alone illustrates there's a difference between self-perception, how we view ourselves, behavior - how we actually interact with the world, and pther people's perception of us. Somewhere in between these multiple points of view there exists a vague outline of a person, and personality, whatever "personality" means exactly.

To step away from Jung, in a character writing sense this means a good character's motivations, personality, and actions can be viewed from multiple angles. There is conflict between how Yuji views himself, his actual actions in the story, how other characters might view him, and how he's framed in the story. The first two, Yuji's self-assigned roles, and what his actual actions amount to is a conflict that's run over the entire story.

It starts from chapter three, where Yuji's answer for why he wants to become a sorcerer is that he wants to fulfill his grandfather's dying wish, and Yaga immediately says "Is that what you really believe, or are you just using your grandfather as an excuse?" The story shows us Yaga was right to point out the discord between Yuji's stated motivation and his actual desires because Yuji changes his answer.

This stated motivation, "To do something that only I can do", or have a role as another way of putting it is Yuji's central motivation for most of the manga. Of course as I said people have multiple layers, so he can also have multiple motivations. Yuji's desire to have a good death, him wanting to be surrounded by people when he dies, his belief that fulfilling his role as a sorcerer will save other people from curses, all of these things are equally true but that one desire to have a role to play in the grand scheme of things is at the center of it.

The role Yuji has chosen is to kill curses so people can have more natural deaths, and also to stop more victims of curses from piling up. He's also resolved from the start to die with Sukuna in his body, to also spare victims of curses Sukuna might attract, and also kill Sukuna for good.

Even these stated motions are challenged right away, and then again continually through the comic.

I'm not going to go over Yuji's entire arc here, but the fact that Yuji is someone constantly interrogated for his motivations and even punished in story for his altruism is a constant pattern in his character arc.

It extends deeper than just the fact that Yuji is a selfless person in a world where selfish people like Mei Mei, and Sukuna get ahead while people like Nanami die young. A world where it is in your best interest to stick out your neck for others.

For me a lot of the harsh consequences Yuji's conflict in the story also centers around the fact that he can never live up to the role that he has assigned himself. Not only is Yuji mistaken in his perception of himself, but the fandom in general is as well, because most people tend to take Yuji's stated desire to guide people to good deaths and save them at face value.

For example, people were excited to point out the Guanyin symbolism directly referenced this chapter, and also the significance of the seal for Yuji's domain.

There is much speculation, but it seems certain that this hand sign is an invocation of Ksitigarbha, a revered bodhisattva in East Asian Buddhism. Ksitigarbha is also known as Jizo Bodhisattva in Japan. His name can be translated as Earth Womb, Earth Matrix, and Earth Store. These translations evoke the image of a vessel, which seems relevant to Yuji's role as Sukuna's vessel.

While I agree the symbolism is well suited for Yuji's goals, someone who wished to guide people to a more peaceful death, and also the way Yuji opposes Sukuna right now determined to kill him who lingers in this world as a parasite for a thousand years finally back to the cycle of reincarnation. It even alligns with his desire to try and make Sukuna understand the value in one individual's life by showing him his memories. In that way Yuji is fitting the role of someone guiding others to enlightenment.

However, Yuji is not a bodhivista in the end. He is a normal teenage boy. In fact this is the crux of Yuji's character to me, he is a good kid, but he's not as good as he thinks he is. If anything this is what this chapter goes to great length to demonstrate, that Yuji despite being a science experiment to create the perfect vessel for Sukuna for Kenjaku's 1,000 year plan, had a normal childhood. All of the things Yuji says in this chapter are for the most parts the musing of a normal kid his age.

This isn't me criticizing Yuji. I'm just trying to state the message I believe Gege is getting across in this chapter. It's similiar to the conclusion Yuji himself comes to, the conclusion that the value in life lies in the memories you make on a day to day basis, even if you're not living a life full of adventure.

Yuji's conflict is that he pursues the role of a bodhisvatta, and he holds himself to the standard too of someone who exists to be a sorcerer because by doing his job as a sorcerer people will get saved as a result. However, Yuji as a person will always fall short of this ideal, because ideals by the nature of them being IDEAL and therefore not compatible with reality.

To use an example for another media, it doesn't matter how hard Shirou Emiya strives to save others, or how selfless he tries to be, he will always fall short because the ideal of saving absolutely everyone is impossible. However, in most versions of Fate's story Shirou absolutely refuses to compromise on this and in the future, Shirou will continue to strive towards the ideal of saving everyone until his inability to achieve that ideal and the number of people he's failed to save eventually breaks him.

So Yuji may genuinely hold onto an unbreakable ideal, but is his inability to let go of that ideal necessarily a good thing? His ideal might break but what about Yuji as a person? Yuji will in the end always fall short of that ideal because of his humanity, especially since Yuji is the most human character in the story and practically the only one with a normal background.

There's also as I stated above Yuji might not be aware himself of the ways he falls short of his ideal, because he has a flawed self perception. Yuji is getting closer with his revelation in this chapter of looking at reality instead of trying to have a role like a character in the story, but that doesn't mean he's finished (since the story's not finished) or he's become a fully realized character.

One of my favorite quotes from my favorite Yuji video helps describe the point I'm getting at with Yuji's lack of self awareness and the way he sometimes falls short of the savior he sees himself as.

By assigning himself the role as heroes, and the other characters as victims to be saved Yuji sort of condescends to the people he endeavors to save. I describe this as condescending because this way he doesn't see the people he saves as fully fleshed out human beings who are separate individuals from himself.

Yuji is alligned with Higuruma of all people, someone who shares Yuji's savior complex and becomes disillusioned because the people he decided of his own free will to protect as a defense attorney are not perfect victims.

Someone who becomes disillusioned when looking at flaws in other people, and also cannot deal with his own guilt when he too, becomes like the crimminals he once defended after becoming a murderer.

In fact Yuji sees himself in Higuruma's inability to live with his guilt, and only being able to see himself atoning with his death. Yet, despite Yuji seeing himself Yuji also seems uneasy with Higuruma being unable to see one other way forward in life.

Also, remember that Higuruma is a defense attorney. The whole point is he's supposed to defend crimminals even if he knows they did the crime and try to get them off their sentence and win the trial. Therefore at this moment Higuruma has failed to live up to his ideal.

There's another character Yuji is paralleled to constantly, who also shares Yuji's symbolism of being associated with a divine, and benevolent figure.

Geto's ears, his dressing as a monk in a Gojo-gesa, this official art all connect Geto to be Budha and yet it's quite obvious that Geto has failed entirely to live up to his role as the budha.

There's so much symbolism aligning Geto as a divine figure bringing salvation to others, and this corresponds to his original ideal as a sorcerer who belived that sorcerers had an obligation to use their powers to protect others, because in a just society the strong protect the weak.

Geto is an outsider who wasn't born into the Jujutsu World who entered in with an attitude different from most sorcerers by trying to become a sorcerer for altruistic reasons. However, Geto, like Higuruma grows disillusioned when he's confronted with the fact that the people he wants to save are flawed.

However, Geto's ideal was mistaken to begin with because much like Yuji, by distinctly separating people into the weak and the strong, he's separating them into two categories where the former is inherently inferior to the latter. Other people existed to be saved by Geto. He couldn't cope with the fact that the people he wanted to save were people and not victims.

So we finally circle back to chapter 265 where Yuji is attempting to relate to Sukuna and see some humanity in him... or is he?

Yuji shares the same flaw of both Geto, and Higuruma where he sees the people he wants to save as existing in a separate category than himself. So, is what Yuji is offering Sukuna understanding and an attempt to emotionally reach out to him, or is he attempting to show Sukuna the mercy of a conqueror.

Even if Yuji wins the battle and spares Sukuna's life in the end, it won't be Yuji's compassion or empathy that won him the fight. If Yuji wins against Sukuna it's simply because he's stronger. Yuji only feels confident trying to offer Sukuna in the first place because this time he's finally confident he's stronger. It's mercy, offered at a threat with the same time. Yuji, like Geto, is still separating people in categories of strong and weak, he's just showing mercy to someone he now considers weaker than him which is why Sukuna reacted the way he did.

As I said above, Sukuna begins by just assuming that Yuji had just let go of his anger, and was now trying to reach out to him on some other way. He calls him weak for being unable to keep hating his worst enemy, because in Sukuna's world view Yuji should keep hating him and wanting to defeat him with all his strength to the end. Sukuna mistakenly believes for a moment that Yuji is the kind of person who, cannot sustain his anger even towards his worst enemy.

It's when he realizes that Yuji is just showing him simple pity that he snaps. Yuji doesn't care for understanding Sukuna's worldview or seeing the humanity in him, in the same chapter he says he can't forgive people who act like lives are worthless.

To Yuji's credit he admits he doesn't really know which side of the fight is truly human, or whether or not he's right, he admits it's his own personal belief. A lot of Yuji's wisdom this chapter, I'd argue, comes from admitting the things he does not know, and acknowledging that there's no objective truth or "meaning" to the world. However, he still separates people into "good guys, and bad guys".

Yuji isn't actually that interested in considering the perspective of those he considers the "bad guys" he just still had a faint hope that he could somehow convince Sukuna to see worth in his life by sharing memories, therefore convince Sukuna that an individual's life can have value.

He doesn't want to understand what Sukuna thinks, he wanted to change the way Sukuna thought so it was more like himself. Yuji doesn't ask Sukuna any real questions about himself while exploring his memories. Kind of ironic, because for some reason Sukuna of all people was patiently listening and even engaging Yuji in conversation while he went through the most mundane memories of his childhood.

Irony on top of irony, Yuji's worldview does resemble Sukuna's in some ways. They're supposed to mirror each other after all, Yuji is literally the son of his identical twin brother reincarnated. First and foremost Yuji's offer of mercy isn't really breaking away from Sukuna's ultimate ideal of "Might Makes Right." Yuji isn't seeking some other way of settling this besides fighting Sukuna, he's going to make Sukuna submit because he's stronger.

Maybe there was no hypothetical "third way" for Yuji to put down Sukuna other than fist fighting him into submission. There probably wasn't, Sukuna's pretty up front what he's about, and what he's about is being the strongest and nothing more. He lives and dies by violence, a Sukuna who isn't the strongest is nothing more than a corpse so can that person be reached? However, I just wanted to point out that Yuji wasn't interest in solving this in any way other than a fist fight to begin with. As opposed to say, the way that Takaba handled Kenjaku taking a third route by making Kenjaku feel entertained for the first time in 1,000 years.

In the middle of that fight Takaba even APOLOGIZES to Kenjaku, for saying that it doens't matter if he doesn't understand his audience and he fails to make 1% of them laugh as long as the other 99% of them are laughing and states it's his duty to make everyone laugh otherwise he's failed as a comedian.

Yet, another reason why this is the greatest fight in the manga. Yuta even remarks in the end that Takaba isn't someone who can kill people. Not only does his cursed technique negate most damage to him by turning it into cartoonish antics, but Takaba's comedy is also all about understanding his audience and trying to get his audience to understand him because his comedy began when he clowned around as a kid when he was lonely. All of this to say we've been shown more points of view than just "Might makes Right" and there are characters who've resolved conflicts in other ways. Kenjaku is also, probably as monstrous as Sukuna, and yet Takaba engaged him right from the start by asking him about his motivations and if there was some other way he'd be happy than the merger.

You could argue that maybe Sukuna can't be understood. Characters in the story certainly try to and all they amount to doing is projecting their own ideas onto Sukuna. Yorozu projects her obsession with love onto Sukuna and we get the idea that Sukuna must somehow be lonely at the top, but in the end Gege subverts this expectation by showing us that Sukuna was never lonely, rather characters like Kashimo and Gojo projected their feelings of unresolved loneliness onto him. They are strong, and he is strong, ergo he must feel the same crushing loneliness as them. Gojo himself demosntrates not understanding Sukuna as he expresses regret in the afterlife that he was unable to make Sukuna go all out and that he related to that guy's loneliness only for Sukuna's response to be a very gratified "You cleared my skies."

Sukuna: Others love us for our strength, and we respond to that love.

The twist of that is Kashimo and by extension the audience assume that Sukuna must not understand love, and therefore he's lonely. However, Sukuna all along had his own definition of love, that people express their love and admiration for him by trying to fight him and he receives their love by facing them at his full strength and giving them the chance to prove themselves. Sukuna's habit of toying with his opponents is an extension of this he wants to see them realize their full potential in their fights with him. Sukuna does understand love, he just REJECTS our understanding of love. Sukuna does not think in the way that we do, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have things he values, or is devoid of positive traits. Respect for his opponents, honoring strength, these are all values they're just not Yuji's values.

As stated above, the irony of all this is that Yuji does buy into "Might makes Right" to an extent. To reiterate, following Geto's "the strong exist to protect the weak" still divides people into two categories strong and weak and implies the weak are helpless. A benevolent might makes right, as you might say. Yuji wants to show compassion to the weak, but he also loathes weakness, he loathes himself for being weak.

"There still may be lots of people who are weak like you."

Higuruma even points out the flaw in his mindset, well if you loathe yourself for being weak, then what about other people who are weak do you loathe them too? I think it's no coincidence that Yuji is paralleled not one, but two (Geto, Higuruma) people who tried to use their strength in benevolent ways only to start out loathing the people they were trying to help. I'm not saying that Yuji secretly hates weak people, but his mindset of black and white, weak and strong, a mindset that can't accept the greys of reality is a dangerous mindset to have and Yuji has the potential to become like those two.

However, these parallels exist for us the audience to see just how close Yuji was to repeating the cycle, because it makes it that much more meaningful when Yuji grows in ways that Geto and Higuruma doesn't to move one step forward towards breaking that cycle instead.

Yuji is someone who experiences the same loneliness as Sukuna and Gojo for being the strongest, though to a lesser extent because he wasn't born into the realm of sorcerers. At the start of the manga we're introduced to Yuji a kid who despite being someone friendly to everyone he meets and incredibly social, has a friend group consisting of two friends. Two friends who hang out with him because they need a third member for their occult club. Yuji for the whole manga excluding one exception really only knows how to form relationships based on someone else needing him.

Noritoshi Kamo: Itadori why did you become a Jujutsu Sorcerer? Itadori Yuji: It just sort of happened. i'm a loner. I wanna help a lot of people so when I die I'll be surrounded by people.

Yuji has also appeared in flashbacks in early culling game as someone who doesn't really understand, or even take notice of weak people. Yuji in Amai Rin's flashback is beating up bullies, a heroic notion, but from the perspective of somone spineless like Amai who was just going along with the bullies so he himself wouldn't be bullied because he didn't have the strength to stand up with them, and wasn't born with the body of an MMA fighter at fifteen, Yuji looks scary.

The reason why reducing people to labels like strong and weak is reductive is that humans are complex and contradictory creatures. Let's take Amai Rin for example, an incredibly minor character. In the real world, Amai Rin would be someone as equally complex as Gojo Satoru. Amai Rin a middle school bully would have just as many layers to his personality, inconsistencies, contradictory behavior, different sides of himself as Gojo Satoru himself.

Humans are complex in the first place because we can't see inside their heads, we can only see inside our own heads and know that we're complex and sometimes say things we don't mean, behave differently depending on the situation, do things we're not proud of, but we also usually don't perceive others the same way because we are not inside their heads like our own. Amai Rin is just as complex and multifaceted a human being as Gojo Satoru, he is a person with his own memories and life experiences that shape him, but from Gojo's worldview Amai Rin is a minor character. By reducing him into someone weak, Gojo doesn't care to try understanding him.

So Yuji for the longest time does not try to see the humanity in weak people (except for his big moment with Junpei) he just sees them as people to be saved. Which is why his real moment of progress to me comes the next chapter, with the way he shows empathy to Megumi.

Yuji begins when speaking to Megumi by relating his frustration with his grandfather for not wanting to go through chemo and accepting his own death in old age. Yuji is now mature enough to understand that just because his young body is tough enough to endure chemo, doesn't mean an old man's body can withstand that pain. When he was young Yuji had a very immature viewset of "Well, I can endure it, so why can't they?"

Yuji then compares the situation with his grandfather to Megumi. Yuji wanted his grandfather to keep living, so he couldn't understand why he wouldn't even try the chemo. Yuji wants Megumi to keep living, but he now understand why Megumi wants to give up. Yuji' fe elings of wanting Megumi to live are not more important than Megumi's own feelings of despair and wanting to escape pain.

Yuji is no longer imposing his feelings onto Megumi. Yuji is respecting Megumi's feelings, because in the end he can't FORCE Megumi to live. It has to be Megumi's choice whether he wants to live or not.

Yuji is no longer pushing Megumi away, or acting protective of him, while disregarding his feelings. He has gone from "as long as I'm around you'll suffer" to "I'll be lonely without you." Yuji doesn't ASK Megumi to live even though he wants to, because he knows he can't tell Megumi to keep on living. What Yuji does is just an honest expression of his own feelings. He's sharing his own feelings after listening to Megumi's ideal life with Tsumiki and Yuji, because that's what empathy is, an exchange, a conversation.

People often jokingly use the term "yap sessh" on Twitter, but yeah that's the different between a conversation and a "yap sessh" in the former you actually care what the other person has to say, in a latter it's only about expressing your own opinion.

That's why this panel, is such a perfect contrast with this panel.

One is Yuji offering Megumi a choice. The other is Gojo taking Megumi's choices away by giving him the false choice of "go to the Zen'in Clan and be a sorcerer and your sister will be abused, or come with me and be a sorcerer." Gojo railroaded Megumi into being a sorcerer and never let him decide for himself if he wanted a normal life. Gojo didn't see Megumi as his own person either, he, just like the Zen'in Clan just saw Megumi as the holder of the Ten Shadows Technique.

This is entirely different to Yuji who respects Megumi's feelings. Yuji expresses that he'll be lonely without Megumi, but that's just laying the cards on the table. In the end Yuji leaves what happens next entirely in Megumi's hands. Yuji cannot tell Megumi to live, even though he wants him to live so badly, he cannot tell Megumi to just get stronger and keep on trucking because he's not Megumi, he's not experiencing Megumi's pain right now.

Yuji does not tell Megumi to live and therefore becomes the first person in Megumi's entire life to give him a choice. This choice is the most important choice of all, a choice we make every day of our lives. The choice of whether we want to keep on living in this world.

Hopefully, Megumi chooses yes.

[butch-reidentified]

DNI if you believe "everyone has a price." you're pathetic & I don't trust your morals.

Skip to bottom for About Me section.

Preface: Most of this blog is not dedicated to trans-related topics. However, seeing as I get nonstop harassment regarding trans matters, almost always from people assuming my views, experiences, and thoughts entirely incorrectly, a disproportionate number of the links in this Pinned will be aimed at this subject in order to provide legitimate insight as to my views, my feminism, and my experiences - both with my transition & the trans community in general. Chances are, you are very wrong about me in all those areas. Only one way to find out 😉

1. What is a woman?

Deep dive into my perspective on gender identity ideology (GII) & my response to an anon regarding "autogynephilia" [this includes the article above]

Argument for Using "Cis-Identifying"

Pitch: New Terminology to Replace "[Biological] Sex"

And related: A conversation with a "NERF" about radical feminism, gender identity ideology, and what we/I actually believe.

2. Inform yourself on some of the work I've done for trans people before you continue the trend of cowardly hypocrisy.

No, I obviously don't hate trans people, and if you believe that, you have a black-and-white way of looking at things. Trans people deserve safety and equality; this must not come at the expense of women/girls, homosexual people, people with DSDs, or any other marginalized and vulnerable group. If you think these opinions cannot coexist, maybe ask yourself why. If you think they can coexist, why do you have a problem with me?

3. My primary thread responding to the way much of the tumblr trans community handled my sharing my story of surviving the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting (often by stealing my lived trauma and removing my url) is easily one of the most - if not the most - important posts pertaining to trans discourse I've made to date. And a bonus: This lovely ask.

4. Hope for Women (this is a very new project, WIP)

5. Comparative Analysis of Cult-like Patterns in Gender Identity Ideology, Radfeminism

Another post (not mine) listing indicators something may be a cult

6. Response to an anon asking why radfems team up with conservatives (spoiler: we don't), including THE QUESTION I have about gender identity ideology that would make me change my views completely if answered; response to a similar anon simplifying the differences between TRA, radfem, & conservative views on gender.

About Me:

I am a butch lesbian, married to a badass gnc (but not butch) radfem lesbian goddess whose misandry surpasses even my own; she does have tumblr but rarely uses it - @psychichologramnightmare is hers. I'm 28/Taurus/May baby, though I'll be real, I've never liked astrology and found my birth chart n whatnot always laughably wildly inaccurate to me (sorry astrology girlies). Former competitive rock climber, still in love with hiking and climbing. Wilderness survivalist. Trained & armed woman, advocate for female-only firearm ownership.

My wife and I run our own business, and bought our first home together at 24 & 25 respectively - it's a lovely 4/3 on a quarter acre where we have 5 mango trees and more, plan to start growing our own food and herbs, foster kittens, and provide free housing (and more) regularly for those in need. We do a LOT of IRL feminist action/work/organizing. I post about some of that work pretty often, but I couldn't possibly post about all of it (even if it were safe to do so). I am basically organizing (mostly offline, but some online as well) full-time now.

Survivor of abuse, CSA + captivity, trafficking in my teens where I was forced into porn as a minor, the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando 2016, and more. I am no longer affected by any of these in any negative psychological manner. I own my past, every moment of it, and wouldn't change a thing I've experienced. What I often tell people is, "I'm not glad it happened; I'm glad I was there."

I got my Bachelor's in Neuroscience/Neuropsych, used to work in a top neuro research lab, and have been a coauthor on a peer-reviewed scientific journal publication. I wrote my undergraduate thesis on POTS, ADHD, some of the relevant epigenetics, and norepinephrine dysregulation. I was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos & POTS in 2015, before pretty much anyone had heard of them (including most doctors). My POTS is very well-managed now, but chronic pain from EDS is more of a struggle. I recently went for testing for EDS subtype and was diagnosed with Type IV/vascular-type EDS (VEDS).

I practice "witchcraft" (kind of...) as a form of artistic expression. I don't subscribe to any literal metaphysical/supernatural/whatever set of beliefs or narrative, and have had a lifelong inability to believe in such things, but I am passionate about lesbian-centered/lesbian-exclusive (esp butch & gnc lesbian) witchcraft. I am also using this practice in part to connect further with my ancestors and their culture & way of life, but this would take a full essay to elaborate on/explain.

Adoptee with complex history. Working through a lot of feelings surrounding my ancestry - one birth parent was white, other was almost entirely indigenous Mexican (Nahua), and I have like zero personality traits in common with the former - and the fact that my adoptive family (white) has not always handled things well in raising adopted kids. I only learned my full biological family history as an adult and was lied to by them about it my whole life. Which, looking back it feels like I always knew on some level, as adoptees often seem to, and it puts a lot of my childhood difficulties etc in context. Adoption-critical but not abolitionist - I plan to adopt with my wife in a couple years. I've talked a fair bit about my experiences, adoption trauma, ethical adoption, and more. Check out my tags such as #ethical adoption, #adopted, #adoptee, and so forth (tagged on this post for easy accessibility). BTW, here's a list of native-owned businesses (mostly artists) that I hope to update periodically!

I spent many years surrounded by majority-trans-identifying friends/acquaintances both irl and online, deeply involved in trans spaces & activism, and even identified for a bit & was on T for a while. I am not "uneducated" or unfamiliar with trans-identifying people, their experiences, or gender identity ideology in general. You, like me back then, very probably have been lied to about radfems ("terfs") and what we believe and fight for. I am happy to talk in good faith (provided you do the same) 1 on 1 with anyone who is curious about what we actually believe and what we stand for, what common radfem takes on gender identity ideology & trans identity actually are and why.

I have a history of purely physical sex dysphoria (physical sensation like pain or itching). I got "top surgery" (elective mastectomy) due to this and other reasons: constant painful breast cysts & very large breasts (DDD even when I weighed under 100 lbs). I was not trans-identifying by the time I got this surgery (though I tried to briefly identify as nb/transmasc just bc I felt obligated, but hated it). I have never wanted to be a man socially and genuinely hated the very thought. I came out the womb feminist, got in trouble throughout primary school for fighting boys who tried to pull sexist bullshit, always lowkey believed in female superiority (I mean just look at our biology, lifespans, pain tolerance, the things we've done throughout history despite violent patriarchal oppression...). I spent years preparing myself. I read from & spoke to women who regretted this surgery, challenged myself at every turn, dove deep into my mind and thought processes, tried alternative treatment attempts, worked with a non-affirming therapist, made sure my past traumas were fully healed, and waited until I was in my mid-twenties so my brain was more or less fully matured. I have no regrets about it. I still have some (still purely physical sensation) dysphoria ("phantom male genitals" type of thing) at times, but have come to manage this very well. More on this here.

Formally assessed psychopath & participant in research by leading psychopathy experts (read on before jumping to conclusions). Check out this post and my #psychopathy tag (tagged on this post for easy accessibility) for info, particularly about high-EQ female psychopathy, & to find out everything you think you know about us is wrong 💕 (what you know about male psychopaths is usually right tho 💀)

Note: When it comes to politics, I strive to discuss exclusively that about which I am *uniquely knowledgeable* - by which I mean, essentially, that I (believe I) have something to contribute that is unlikely to be found on every other blog. I do not and will not make posts or reblog posts about topics I do not feel this way about. You are not entitled to know my views on every hot-button issue, and I have no intention of speaking on that which I know little about, or that I don't know enough about (through study or personal experiences) to contribute something you can't get a thousand other places.

Tag Guide (WIP):

#mine -> original posts, including ask responses

#ask -> ask responses only

#anon hate, #anon love -> should be self-explanatory. anon love does include some non-anon love for simplicity.

#catposting, #dogposting, #petposting -> images of cats, dogs, and both, respectively (not always my own)

#Wilder wives -> posts pertaining to me & my wife (last name Wilder)

#mvawg, #mvaw, #male violence -> male violence against women/girls

#ethical adoption -> my takes as an adoptee on the issues within the adoption industry & how adoption can be done ethically

#nahua, #nahuatl, #mexica -> ranges from personal journal style posts about my process of reconnecting with the Nahua community to sharing facts about the language (Nahuatl, pronounce it Nawat) and stories from Mexica mythology etc. posts I make specifically as part of the facts-and-stories series are tagged #indigenous reconstructionism.

#what we believe -> fairly new tag for posts trying to educate on what radfeminism is actually about/damage control for disinformation & misinformation about it

#trans violence -> violence committed by trans-identifying people, including threats of and graphic violent fantasies (primarily misogynistic ones)

#trans misogyny, #trans lesbophobia, #woke misogyny, #woke homophobia, #woke lesbophobia, etc. -> what it says on the tin

[lilislegacy]

Do you ever think Percy and Annabeth have opposite reactions from people from Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood? Like people in Camp Half-blood knew Percy since he was 12. They know that despite how powerful he is he’s still the guy that was heartbroken and crying for his mom after killing the Minotaur, the guy who made blue cola, and almost killed a kid in archery. And Annabeth is the super soldier trained from the age of 7 and the battle tactician that one the battle of Manhattan, and redesigned Olympus.

But in Camp Jupiter, Percy is the guy who arrived with a goddess on his back fighting two gorgons, broke the 5th Cohorts losing streak, and almost immediately became preator. And Annabeth is the child of a virgin goddess(?), who flew in on a ship that almost immediately carpet bombed the city and Judo flipped her boyfriend. (The fact she confirmed Percy was taken probably didn’t win her any points.)

Very different first impressions

Once again, another reason they probably wouldn’t stay in new rome.

thanks for the ask @darkmist111!

i definitely think camp jupiter and camp half-blood have very different perceptions of the two of them.

percy less so. the main difference between how cj sees him and how chb sees him mostly has to do with his age and experience. so while his entrance at camp jupiter was even more legendary, he showed up at both camps after doing something amazing, was claimed as a son of poseidon, and then went on an awesome quest and returned a hero. chb definitely knows him better, but both camps see him as a leader, and as an overall cool and funny dude.

their initial view of annabeth however? yes. total opposite. like… not even relatively similar perceptions.

now about them staying in new rome. i’m with you that they’re not going to stay there forever, like some people think. but not for the same reasons. as we see at the end of BoO, the romans and greeks totally bond. and by the end, they have a very, very high opinion of annabeth, with the whole athena parthanos and tartarus situations. plus when percy and annabeth go to college there, they’ll get close with everyone there. so i think they’ll def settle down there for a bit after college, probably start their family there. but annabeth is an architect who craves to travel, and percy is a loyal new yorker, so i don’t think that would be their forever home. like i’ve said before, i love the idea of annabeth building a greek version of new rome. a new greece or new athens, or something along those lines, and them living there.

[bethanythebogwitch]

Digimon & mythology: the Olympos XII

One of the most underused major groups of Digimon in my opinion is the Olympos XII. As the name suggests, they are based on the twelve Olympian gods of ancient Greece and their Roman successors, the Dii Consentes. While the older lineup of the Olympoans and the Dii Consentes used an equal number of gods and goddesses, the goddess Hestia/Vesta was later replaced by Dionysus/Bacchus as her worship fell out of favor and his became popular. Digimon uses the lineup that includes Dionysis/Bacchus and excludes Hestia/Vesta. The Olympos XII also use the Roman names for the gods, though they take inspiration from both cultures' interpretations, as well as original ideas. In fact, some of the Olympos XII seem deliberately designed to be unlike their mythical counterparts.

The Olympos XII rule their own Digital World called Digital World: Iliad, which is hosted on a different server than the mainstream Digital World ruled by the computer god Yggdrasil. While the two worlds rarely interact, Yggdrasil is keeping its eye on Iliad and it is said that one day the Royal Knights of Yggdrasil's server and the Olympos XII will confront each other. Whether that confrontation will be violent or peaceful remains to be seen. Iliad has its own computer god named Homeros, who is very different from Yggdrasil. While Yggdrasil seeks to rule its Digital World, Homeros believes in absolute freedom and left Iliad in a state of anarchy. The Olympos XII rose up to establish order and justice in defiance of Homeros's anarchy. While some media depicts Homeros as an enemy of the Olympos XII, others imply it has some authority over them.

One thing to note before covering the members of the Olympos XII is that the Greek and Roman myths were not set in stone. Beliefs changed and ideas were absorbed from neighbors. Different groups of people also interpreted the gods differently. For example, the Athenians generally had a negative view of Ares and depicted him as a brutal monster, the but Spartans and Romans had a much more positive view on him. The Greeks and Romans also had a practice called interpatio graeca/interpatio romana where they would absorb the gods of other cultures into their own pantheons, often by claiming that the foreigners' gods were actually the same gods under different names. This was especially common in Rome given how diverse the empire was. An easy way to avoid religious infighting was to declare that everyone is actually worshipping the same gods under different names. Different sects would also worship different aspects of the same god, which were sometimes given their own titles. For example, one group of Romans might worship Jupiter in his aspect as the bringer of storms where another may worship him in his aspect as a leader. This is all to say that the mythologies that the Olympos XII draw from are very diverse and were constantly changing and whatever I say about mythology here can be both supported and refuted by multiple sources, all equally valid.

Warning that some of the Olympos XII members have some of the most explicit "sexymon" designs in the franchise. Some of the art below may be NSFW.

The founder and leader of the Olympos XII is Jupitermon. It founded the Olympos XII to bring justice to the Digital World: Iliad and presides over weather as the god of the sky. It acts as a dispassionate judge who declares acts as being either good or evil, then metes out divine judgement on those declared evil. There is an appeals system to Jupitermon's Judgments which consists of facing Jupitemon in combat. If anyone beats it, then Jupitemon will rescind its judgement. As of yet, nobody has ever succeeded. Jupitermon wields two hammers that produce lightning bolts. While it normally refuses to allow emotion to get in the way of its duties, those who have committed great sins can cause Jupitermon to become overcome with range and trasfrom into Jupitermon Wrath Mode. In this form, it becomes much larger and transforms into a living mass of lightning contained in armor. It trades in its hammers for a greatsword named Keraunós (Greek for lightning) that is crackling with electricity. Jupitermon is based on the Greek Zeus and roman Jupiter. It lacks many of Zeus's more famous traits, such as being impulsive, hedonistic, and willing to sleep with anything that moved regardless of consent. In this is draws more of later Roman depictions of Jupiter (or Iupiter or Jove) whive removed many of the character's more negative traits and made him much more of a paragon and leader figure. The hammers it uses may be a nod to Norse mythology and the thunder god Thor's hammer Mjolnir, but may also reference a judge's gavel. Wrath Mode is based on the general idea of divine wrath, where a god will smite evildoers to those that displease it. There are many stories of Zeus sending down his lightning bolt to smite mortals who have wronged him. Each member of the Olympos XII has a signature animal that is incorporated into its design and Jupitermon's is the owl. Owls are more traditionally associated with Athena than Zeus/Jupiter and are often used to symbolize wisdom. That fits with Jupitermon being a judge over good and evil and most of Athena's wisdom aspects didn't make it into her Digimon counterpart anyway so moving them to Jupitermon makes him a better leader.

Jupitermon (left) and Wrath Mode (right)

Jupitermon's partner is Junomon. She is Jupitermon's lover and defender who spends her time defending and eliminating those who would act against him. Because its love for Jupitermon is overflowing, Junomon is very aware of its habits and personality and preferes to spend as much of her time with him as possible. If separated for too long and forced to face an overflowing amount of enemies, Junomon can be taken over by a hidden, evil personality will surface, changing her into Junomon Hysteric Mode. Hysteric Mode is overflowing with jealousy and views everything around it as a threat to Jupitermon. Whenever Hysteric Mode emerges, it will slaughter everything round it until reverting. Curiously, Jupitermon seems to be unaware of the existence of Hysteric Mode and has therefore never judged it as evil. Even when not in Hysteric Mode, there is a hint of the darkness within as the angelic-seeming Junomon is a virus attribute and member of the Nightmare Soldiers field. Junomon is based on Hera/Juno, the wife and sister of Zeus/Jupiter and goddess of marriage and fertility. Junomon's relationship with Jupitermon is almost the inverse of Hera's with Zeus. Hera and Zeus seemed to hate each other and their wedded life was miserable, with Zeus constantly cheating and fathering bastard children and Hera attacking those children because she couldn't take it out on Zeus himself. By contrast, Junomon is so in love with Jupitermon she becomes a yandere. Interestingly, we won't have any official media I'm aware of that shows whether Jupitermon reciprocates her feelings, though him never noticing Hysteric Mode could be interpreted as deliberately turning a blind eye so he doesn't have to judge his love. Hysteric Mode can be seen as representing Hera's fits of anger, though in this case she's lashing out in a misguided desire to protect Jupiter(mon) rather than proxy revenge against him. The Romans' beliefs about Juno were so diverse that adequately cataloging them is a huge headache for scholars of Roman religion and she almost seems to have been multiple distinct goddesses conflated into one. Several Roman depictions did give her and Jupiter a much happier marriage than that of Zeus and Hera. She also took on some war god aspects, which is reflected in Junomon battling those who would oppose Jupitermon. Some scholars have suggested some Hindu influences from the goddess Sarasvati on the Roman Juno and Junomon's weapons are identified as katars, a type of Indian dagger. Junomon's animal is the peacock, which was seen as a sacred animal to both Hera and Juno.

Junomon (left) and Hysteric Mode (right). Can I just say that Hysteric Mode is one of the dumbest looking mode changes in the franchise?

The Olympos XII members that have gotten the most exposure in the franchise are the siblings Apollomon and Dianamon. They are gods of the sun and moon, respectively. Apollomon can unleash the heat of a star, which lets it burn through anything. It is a prideful being with barely-restrained energy that can lead it to going on a rampage or launching itself at a powerful enemy in search of a battle. In contrast, DIanamon is more peaceful, but just as the moon has a light and dark side, Dianamon's nature is two-faced and it is shockingly powerful in a fight. While Apollomon uses fire, Dianamon presides over water and ice. It can weave moonlight into illusions so powerful they can trick an enemy into ripping itself apart. These two are based on the twin gods Apollo and Artemis/Diana. While these two were gods of the sun and moon (in some versions inheriting this position from or contracting it out to the older Helios and Selene), they were also gods of many other things and sometimes the sun and moon aspects were seen as fairly minor duties for them. Digimon chooses to go all-in on the sun and moon motifs and ignore the other elements. This is fitting of the two's evolution lines debuting in the paired games Digimon Story: Sunlight and Moonlight (released in English as Digimon World Dawn and Dusk) which heavily played into the sun/light and moon/darkness motifs. Both gods were often depicted as archers and while neither Digimon uses a bow, they both have attacks where they shoot arrows named after their Greek god inspirations. Apollomon's signature animal is the lion and it looks like a humanoid lion. Lions are often associated with the sun and strength and in alchemy, a lion was used to symbolize the sun. Dianamon's animal is the rabbit, which is easier to see in her pre-evolutions, which are all humanoid rabbits. Japan often associated rabbit with the moon. The dark markings on the lunar surface that are interpreted in the west as a face (the man in the moon) are interpreted in Japan as a rabbit making rice balls or mochi. This rabbit and moon symbolism is found in another major influence for Dianamon: the title character of the mange Sailor Moon. Her name, Usagi, means rabbit and she and Dianamon have similar silhouettes and design features. In addition, one of Dianamon's attacks is named after the children's book Goodnight Moon. When the Digital World: Iliad was visited by an unprecedented crisis, Apollomon and Dianamon merged into GraceNovamon. GraceNovamon holds the power of a galaxy in its body and it is impossible to measure the amount of data that makes it up. GraceNovamon doesn't have any mythological references that I can find.

Left to right: Apollomon, Dianamon, and GraceNovamon

Volcanusmon is the Olympos XII member with the most influence on Digimon outside of its group. This is because it is the god of smithing and has created many of the Digital World's most famous weapons, all of which it names after Spanish words for food for some reason. Examples include Beelzebumon's Berenjena shotguns, Astamon's Oro Salmón tommygun, and Sparrowmon's Zanahoria pistols. Given that Astamon is a villain and Beelzebumon is one of the Seven Great Demon Lords, it's clear that Volcanusmon doesn't care about the morality of its client, just whether or not the client is impressive enough to deserve a special weapon and has the power to master its use. Volcanusmon works in silence, using all eight of its arms in harmony to create true artworks. It is not very good at fighting and prefers to work behind the scenes. Volcanusmon is based on the god Hephaestus/Vulcan. This is one of the gods that changed more in the transition between Greece and Rome as Hephaestus is specifically the god of smiths and craftsmen while Vulcan is more generally the god of fire, with smithing being just one of his roles. Since the fire god role was given to Apollomon, Volcanusmon leans heavily into the smith role. Another trait of Hephaestus that didn't carry over to many depictions of Vulcan is that he was disabled, having a bad leg due to (depending on which version of the story is told) either being born that way or being thrown off of Mount Olympus after birth. Volcanusmon's legs leem to be fine, but it does have bandages over its face and one eye, is using a breathing device, and is weak in battle, all of whcih hearken back to Hephaestus's disability. Volcanus or Vulcanus is sometimes used as an alternate name for Vulcan. The name Vulcan may descend from a god worshipped on the island of Crete named Velchanos. Volcanusmon's animal is the octopus, which appears to be an original idea rather than having any mythological basis.

The members of the Olympos XII have a varying relations to their mythological inspirations. Some are very strongly based on a god while in other, it is much more loose. The latter category is where Mercurymon comes in. Mercurymon is the fastest of all Digimon, so quick it cannot be seen with the naked eye. It also hates staying still and constantly travels the world. Mercurymon is also a shaman who can summon spirits from another world. Mercurymon is based on Hermes/Mercury, who was the god of a lot of things but was most famously the messenger of the gods. To aid in this duty, he wore winged sandals that allowed him to move at incredible speeds. That is literally the only thing that was brought over into Mercurymon. Well one attack description says Mercurymon has the Kerykeion, which is another word for the god's famous Caduceus staff, but that's the only place I could find it referenced. There's not even art of Mercurymon using it. Mercurymon also has some references to the Aztecs with its design and knife being named Aztec. Hermes/Mercury was sometimes associated with shamanism and divination, but Mercurymon's shaman aspects seem more Aztec. Mercurymon's English name is interesting. There was already a Digimon whose English name was rendered as Mercurymon (based on the metal) that debuted before Mercurymon. The dubbers experimented with Mercuremon or Mercurimon as new names, but somehow settled on Merukimon, which is complete gibberish. Mercurymon's animal is the wolf.

Another Olympos XII member who subscribes to the same "dude in an animal suit" school of design as Mercurymon is Marsmon. Known throughout the Digital World as a god of war, Marsmon is a master of every form of combat and will use underhanded methods in battle. While it has a variety of hidden weapons on its person, its preferred method of combat is wrestling. So focused on victory is it that it will cheat in battle if it is losing. Marsmon was the first member of the Olympos XII to debut and its reference book entry established the existence of the group. Marsmon is based on Ares/Mars, the god of war. He is one of the gods that has had the widest variety of depictions. Many of the Greek sources we have, which are mostly from an Athenian viewpoint, depict Ares as embodying all the worst aspects of warfare: brutality, savagery, fear, and pain. By contrast, the Roman view of Mars was more positive and he was revered as aone of the most important and beloved gods. This is partly due to him now embodying all aspects of war rather than just the worst parts and also due to him being merged with agricultural gods. In addition, he was said to be the father of Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome, making him the ancestor of Roman people. This can kind of be seen with Marsmon, who is a vaccine-attribute, which are usually seen as more heroic. Marsmon preferring wrestling is a reference to ancient Greek wrestling or Pále, a popular sport and the first sport added to the Olympics that wasn't a race. Marsmon's animal is the panther.

Probably my favorite member of the Olympos XII is Ceresmon. It is a god of nature that takes the shape of a colossal bird-shaped island with a forest on its back that flies through the air. The forest is called the Karpos Hulē (Greek for fruit forest) and grows the sweetest and most nutritious fruits in the world. Ceresmon is a gentle being who will allow injured and weak Digimon to live in its forest and feed on its fruits to grow strong. However, it will not tolerate those who disrespect nature and will bring down on them all the power a flying island can give. The island body of Ceresmon is more of a vehicle that the true Ceresmon uses. The true form, the humanoid on the bird's head, is Ceresmon Medium. Medium can detach from the bird and move around on its own, but it is weak on its own and will only do so around those it trusts. It's worth noting that Digimon Survive treats Ceresmon Medium as an independent Digimon no weaker than any other of its level. Ceresmon is based on Demeter/Ceres, goddess of nature and agriculture. She was seen as a motherly figure and a patron of the common folk, which fits with Ceresmon aiding common Digimon. The most famous myth involving the goddess, that of her daughter being taken to the underworld for half of the year, is not represented in Digimon. Ceresmon's animal is the bird.

Ceresmon (left) and Medium (right). Sidenote, Ceresmon is one of the few cases where I think the reference book art is better than the New Century art.

Some gods have grand purposes and some just want to have fun. That's where Bacchusmon comes in. It is the self-proclaimed foremost drinker of the Digital World and spends its entire time partying or preparing to party. It can brew any kind of alcohol within its body, but its favorite is made from the fruits of Ceresmon's forest. Because of this, Ceresmon and Bacchusmon are on good terms with each other. While jovial and generous, there is a dark side to Bacchusmon as it can generate all manner of horrific poisons in its body. It can also reconfigure the data of enemy Digimon to turn them into drinks, which it will then consume. Rumors say that human hackers are studying the data of Bacchusmon's poisons to develop chemical weapons. Some media gives Bacchusmon a mode change called Crapulence Mode, but most treat Crapulence mode as the normal Bacchusmon and give it no mode change. Bacchusmon is based on Dionysus/Bacchus, the god of wine, indulgence, and parties. He was a latecomer to the Greek myths, but eventually his following became so popular that writers and theologians replaced Hestia with him on the twelve Olympians. Bacchus was never considered that major in Rome, where Hestia/Vesta remained on their version of the twelve Olympians, the Dii Consentes. In fact, the festivals in his honor, Bacchanalias, were eventually banned due to them subverting the social order of Rome, though they of course continued to happen in secret. A really interesting thing that happened with Bacchus is becoming the subject of multiple mystery cults. The mystery cults are a really interesting and really complicated topic I do not know nearly enough to give a comprehensive overview of. To overly simplify, mystery cults were a trend in the Roman world of taking a god from a previous, often polytheist faith, and worshipping them as personal savior deities who could grant salvation (often salvation from death) to followers through fellowship, communion, and baptism. What made them mystery religions is that the general public and new initiates would be given false stories filled with metaphor and parable. Only as one advanced within the religion would they be considered wise enough to learn the true teachings. Because of this secrecy, we don't know the true teachings of a lot of the mystery religions, even if their public stories are well-documented. Bacchusmon's animal is the snake.

Minervamon is one of the most combat-focused of the Olympos XII. Despite having the physique of a young girl, she has incredible strength and can easily wave around her sword, Olympia, one-handed despite it being as large as her. Minervamon is a childish Digimon that prefers to spend its time playing and having fun (often through fighting things) and can throw temper tantrums if it gets mad. When Minervamon matures, she becomes Mervamon. This is sometimes treated as an evolution, but the two are the same level. Mervamon is much more mature and calm than Minervamon. SHe seeks elegance and sensuality at all times, even in battle, where she moves with the grace of a dancer even while hacking down enemies with her gigantic sword Olympia Kai. Because she is more mature, Mervamon is much more intelligent than Minervamon and is a brilliant strategist. She also no longer throws temper tantrums when mad. One one arm, Mervamon bears a snake named Medullia that can move and fight on its own. Minervamon is based on Athena/Minerva and being or at least starting as a hyperactive child with no attention span was a deliberate subversion of her mythological counterpart's role as the goddess of wisdom. The Greek Athena was also seen as a war goddess, representing the civilized aspects of warfare as opposed to Ares representing brutal warfare. Minerva lost many of the war aspects and became more focused on wisdom, though she still was associated with victory and strategy and was usually depicted holding a spear. I find it interesting that the transition to Roman mythology stripped Athena of her war aspects while the transition to Digimon stripped her of her wisdom aspects. Mervamon regains some of the wisdom aspects by being calmer and smarter. Another subversion of the original myths that Digimon uses is Mervamon being focused on sensuality (and being one of the more notorious sexymon) while the original Goddess swore to remain forever a maiden. Mervamon's name comes from Menvra, the Etruscan version of Athena that developed into Minerva. Minervamon's animal is the snake. Minerva was more famously associated with owls, but snakes were used as a motif as well.

Minervamon (left) and Mervamon (right)

While the Olympos XII rule the Digital World: Iliad, there is only one who commands the seas. This is Neptunemon, the absolute lord of all aquatic Digimon on Iliad. It resides in a castle built at the bottom of the ocean, so deep that only Digimon whose body can withstand the crushing pressure can travel there. Neptunemon is blindingly fast and can command powerful storms and tidal waves to crush its enemies. Neptunemon is based on Poseidon/Neptune, god of the sea. He was one of the most important gods to the greeks and retained a similar level of importance to the Romans, who expanded his domain to include fresh water. Like the gods, Netunemon wields a trident as a weapon. Tridens were used for spearfishing, hence their association with the water. Poseidon also dwelled in a palace underwater. Poseidon and Neptune were associated with horses, a trait that did not carry over to Digimon. While the gods were not generally depicted as mermen, Poseidon's son Triton was a merman with two fish tails. Neptunemon's animal is a fish.

The Digital World is a harsh place where the law of the jungle reigns and violence is a way of life. Into this world came Venusmon, who desires nothing more than peace. Venusmon rules over love and is filled with compassion. It is a pacifist that refuses to fight. All of its attacks deal no damage, instead pacifying the enemy. Wherever Venusmon goes, flowers bloom and the land is restored to beauty. Because of her looks and powerful glamour, Venusmon constantly has to deal with other Digimon swooning over her. This makes her uncomfortable and she wears a blindfold to reduce the effect of this power. Because she can't tell if a Digimon really likes her or is just enamored by her, Venusmon is rather lonely. Her only true friends are the two animals she travels with, a dove named Olive and a scallop named Hotan, who both talk to her without reservation. Venusmon is based Aphrodite/Venus, the goddess of love, beauty, desire, and sex. Venusmon is another case of Digimon deliberately subverting the traits of the god. Aphrodite was a promiscuous, vain, jealous, and proud goddess who seduced damn near everything while Venusmon is uncomfortable with all the attention she gets and tries to reduce it. The Roman Venus did have some association with peace as she can turn hearts from vice to virtue. Her friends being a dive and a scallop is because both doves and seashells were often used as symbols of Aphrodite. A common example of Aphrodite imagery has her rising form the sea, fully grown, supported by a giant scallop shell. Weirdly enough, Mercury, the god who is famous for having winged sandals doesn't get them on his Digimon counterpart, but Venusmon does for some reason. Venusmon's animal is a dove.

That is all the members of the Olympos XII, but because this monster of a post isn't long enough already, there are two more Digimon to go over. They aren't members, but they are tied to the Olympos XII's lore. The first is Plutomon. Plutomon shares Jupitermon's desire to punish evil, but its methods are so brutal and cruel that the dispassionate and neutral Jupitermon was disgusted and refused to allow it to join the Olympos XII. Plutomon rules the Dark Area of Iliad, the graveyard of deleted data where evil Digimon are consigned when they die. When not in the Dark Area, Plutomon patrols the world looking for villainous Digimon and attacking them. Its armor is covered with mouths that gnaw on sinners and it can summon a gigantic mouth that consigns those it swallows to the Dark Area. Even good Digimon, who Plutomon will not target, fear it due to its cruelty. Plutomon is based on Hades/Pluto, the god of the dead and ruler of the underworld. Hades/Pluto is often notorious for being depicted as evil in later adaptations, a trait that resulted from Christian writers using him as a satan figure, something Greek mythology lacks. While Hades was never viewed as a god of evil, he was feared and was never a popular god. His worship was often viewed more as appeasement than an act of devotion. Plutomon kind of draws from the devil in that he rules over the Digital World's hell (or Tartarus in this case) and torments evildoers. Unlike the devil, Plutomon does want to do good despite his methods. Think of him as the Punisher to Jupitermon's Superman. I don't know if this was intentional, but Plutomon's mouths chewing on evildoers reminds me of Satan's depiction in Dante's Divine Comedy, where his three mouth endlessly chew on the worst traitors in history. Its worth noting that Plutomon's usual pre-evolution, Cerberumon, is based on Hades's three-headed dog Pluto and guards the entrance to the Dark Area.

The final relevent Digimon is Titamon. Titamon is the enemy of the Olympos XII, born from the hatred of all the Digimon ever defeated by the Olympos XII in their battles for supremacy over Iliad. It now lives for nothing more than to slay the Olympos XII and will stop at nothing to kill them. Chambers on its arms hold the skulls of all those it has killed and it can call on their power to raise an army of phantom warriors fueled by hate. Titamon is based on the Titans, the generation of gods who lived before the Olympians. Eventually, the Olympians overthrew the Titans in a war called the Titanomachy. The majority of Titans were imprisoned, but a few who sided with the Olympians or stayed neutral were allowed to remain free. The Titans are often depicted as giants, but there's no real texutal evidence for them being bigger than the Olympians. Their siblings, the cyclopes and hecatoncheires, were giants and that''s where the idea may have come from. Titamon is indeed, gigantic. Titamon being able to summon an army from bones comes from the Spartoi, an army of warriors who sprung from the teeth of a dragon that were sown in the ground like seeds. Titamon also has some Japanese origins, with the names of its attacks and sword being Japanese. It was originally designed as an evolution for Ogremon intended to fill the role of Bacchusmon and to draw from the evil, alcoholic oni Shuten-Douji. the finished design was judged to be too evil for one of the Olympos XII and it was repurposed into an enemy of the group.

[leikeliscomet]

No, Ncuti Gatwa's Casting Isn't Regressive

Chapter 3 - Dancing Queen/Conclusion

‘I’ve experienced racism my whole life, and while I always believed in myself, always knew [racists] were stupid and uneducated, I guess it did misinform my view of how the world works. It makes you think everyone has that opinion and you’ll constantly have to fight through life – then you learn that you don’t: you can find a tribe, you can find your people.’ - Ncuti Gatwa for Elle

So with the treatment of Who’s Black men and the neglect of Black women in its representations of womanhood, consider the Fifteenth Doctor. A dark-skinned Black queer man, wearing a kilt and a bold smile, spinning to his heart’s content on the dancefloor. This is an image of Blackness, an image of queerness and an image of manhood and masculinity the show has never seen before. Gatwa is fully aware of this and has gone in depth in his interviews. He’s also addressed his Rwandan heritage and his family fleeing genocide against the Tutsi. Gatwa knows the feeling of being an outsider, heavily mirroring the revelation of the Timeless Child. Black Britishness is already a form of representation mainstream British media has only recently acknowledged and in this case, Black Scottishness is taking the forefront. Despite being a British cultural stape, Doctor Who’s been shy about representing Black Britishness specifically. We’ve had three Black companions, but little references to the culture (minus Ryan’s mention of grime music in Arachnids). We know Yaz is Pakistani. But is Ryan African? If yes, is he Nigerian, Ghanaian etc.? Is Ryan West Indian? If so, is he Trini, Bajan etc.? Is he both? What was Martha and Bill’s heritage? Many Black people in the British Isles are 2nd and 3rd gen immigrants, some of us are African, some are West Indian and some of us are both. Black British identity is complex as it is a melting pot of different African and West Indian cultures blended to create something new. Gatwa’s Black Scottishness provides this insight to Fifteen. Gatwa’s Rwandan heritage is included in Fifteen’s sonic too, with Gallifreyan symbols translating the phrase ‘the sharpness of the tongue always defeats the sharpness of the warrior’. Other Black cultural references have appeared for Fifteen too, with Gatwa noting his wardrobe is inspired by Black American HBCU fits. Even though it isn’t yet confirmed (and unlikely for series 14/season 1 seeing as there are no Black writers… yay!), Gatwa has shown interest in a Nigerian historical stating he’d love for the Doctor to meet the Orishas, goddesses of West African folklore. Again, with many different Black cultures not only is this an opportunity for representation but also new stories, new locations and new concepts the show has yet to discover. To fit in so many spaces but none at all is a perfect summary of the Black British experience and other Black experiences in Western countries.

“We choose our families. And the Doctor is a lonely wanderer, looking for their next adventure … I know many a gay man, MANY a gay man, I could describe that way!” - Ncuti Gatwa for the Guardian

Queer Black manhood and masculinity is rich and diverse and with this new era, we could see the tip of its iceberg. There have already been representations of this before in media such as Moonlight and Noah’s Arc so for a mainstream British show like Doctor Who to feature a queer Black man as the lead, we have the opportunity to show something special. With Nine and Jack’s kiss and Fourteen’s cosign of Isaac Newton already showing this potential, we could see a canon longer term mlm pairing involving the Doctor for the first time. And not only that but with a Black doctor for the first time. A queer Black man showing love and being loved is a reminder for queer Black people that universe-defying romance includes us too and that our DoctorRiver or TenRose moments can exist.

There is so much to look forward to in this new era and even more potential for the type of representation it can bring. So with that in mind, I hope the greater fandom at large can see this and that newer fans will get to experience that same joy we did when we first fell in love with this show.

‘This person survived a genocide. This person fits in everywhere and nowhere. I am the Doctor. The Doctor is me. I decided that I had to get this role’ - Ncuti Gatwa for Rolling Stone

<- Chapter 2

[hilkaro]

My Fox headcanons, because why not.

He has an obsession with control. Perhaps due to his traumatic and unresolved experiences from his youth, Fox likes and needs to always keep his hand on the pulse in every situation. That's why living under the watchful eye of cameras, recording, and tracking his life has become entirely normal for him, to the point where he no longer pays attention to it. He often reviews this material to analyze it and draw conclusions. For this reason, Fox also enjoys meticulous planning. Making detailed notes, setting reminders on his phone, and gathering as much information as possible on topics that interest him are things that relax him and he enjoys doing. He also likes rituals and routines because they introduce a pleasant monotony into his life. He dislikes surprises and when things don't go according to plan. This makes him furious and he finds it difficult to control his anger. Through such outbursts, he tries to mask the fear that overwhelms him when he enters unknown territory.

He is narcissistic and egocentric. At one point, Fox delved deeply into social psychology. He strongly identified with Zimbardo's theory of wolves and sheep. He saw himself as a wolf - a superior being, much better than the rest. He willingly surrounds himself with people he perceives as inferior, weaker than himself. They have a mainly objectified role for him, they are tools he can use according to his preferences at any moment. For this purpose, he mastered the art of manipulation and spreading terror; he was excellent at managing fear and weakness in others. He is despotic because in his opinion, he is the most intelligent and practically infallible. When he makes a mistake, he blames others. He also believes that a sheep can transform into a wolf - he himself was once such a sheep - and he avoids such people the most.

His cheerfulness is just a facade. In reality, he is a very lonely and unhappy man who cynically views the world. His joy and cheerfulness are only a mask he puts on for his needs. He sometimes sits in the dark and thinks for long hours about how he has been wronged by the world. Then his sense of injustice and disappointment grows - why can't he have what others have? How are they better than him?

Bonus Why is he so obsessed with Lynn? Lynn is one of the three daughters of the Mother Goddess. She was created to be loved. For this purpose, she was endowed with certain traits that manifested when she encountered suitable individuals - lonely souls yearning for affection, those bruised by life, maniacs with twisted souls. Such individuals always saw in her what they most desired, which could be something different for everyone. Fox, being a great narcissist, saw his young self in her.

[kittymama01]

Can I point out something interesting between Solas and Flemeth?

Maybe I don't have to spoiler warn about it but I will. If you haven't finished Dragon Age: Inquisition- go past this post.

_____________

So, big reveal about Flemeth is that she is herself but also the Elven "Goddess" Mythal. They're not actually Gods, just extremely powerful mages.

Another big reveal is that Solas is the Dread Wolf. And he and Mythal know each other, they were close.

What I want to talk about is the views these two have on Grey Wardens.

One powerful being has been asleep most of the time and has watched most things happen in dreams.

The other powerful being has been awake and lived on Earth all this time

... Solas is smart. But, he hasn't really lived in this world. Mythal/Flemeth has. She's watched and truly experienced what Thedas has gone through. She's sat through, almost, every Blight that's happened in history. She sees the importance of the Grey Wardens, that she even risked her life to save the HoF and Alistair. If it wasn't for her, Thedas... Or, really, Ferelden at best would been lost.

But, to Solas... Grey Wardens aren't necessary. He thinks they're pointless. He says there's a way to defeat the Archdemon and shit and it's like... Okay... Do it, dude.

Mythal/Flemeth has been here watching all these Blights happen and she couldn't do anything. And we've seen how powerful she is and if she says "let's rely on the Grey Wardens". What does that say about the Blight?

Like, seriously, this just adds on to Solas being a know-it-all. And by that I mean- he doesn't actually know shit. This is the dude that is trying to save the world by bringing down the Veil and killing everyone in the process. He's been asleep all this time and comes out acting as if he's the man with ALL the answers.

Not gonna lie, it would be interesting if a Blight does happen in DA4 and Solas tries to stop it himself. Only to fail.

I might be seeing this differently, if anyone else has an opinion on this, I'd be happy to hear it. This is just something I noticed between the two and I think it says a lot about Solas.

[ageless-soul-au]

HIHIHI OKAY. i absolutely love flicker. do you accept fanart (might be a silly question but im 16 and want to make sure before i actually draw/send in anything. im here for my boy /lighthearted)

but besides that. ive never seen anyone else actually hc that downfall hero of time DIED AS A KID and i am SO GLAD other people feel the same. like dont get me wrong everyone has their own opinions and none are wrong but. I LOVE FLICKER. i love that the gods didnt quite catch him in time to put him to sleep and he took the sword to ganon and held his own until beast ganon. it makes me do a little happy wiggle.

he was not a "valiant, noble man, tragically lost to evil" he was a misguided child told the world rested on his shoulders and because of that, he was killed. and i LOVE that kind of tragedy

so. flicker supremacy, thank you very much.

Hi hello!!!! Omg you had so many great points, thank you for the enthusiasm!!

Mostly for the 18+ warning, we're trying to keep minors away from the main fics bc there are heavy, potentially triggering topics and NSFW-ish things there. As long as you have your community labels set up right on the blog tho, it should be safe to browse/interact with (though main blogs are different, Kio's is strictly 18+). I'm not your dad etc etc, practice caution online, we really only ask that minors don't read the fic or view the NSFW. We'll still probably be writing ASAU by the time you turn 18 tho so maybe see u on ao3 then?? XD

TLDR, it's up to you if you wanna make art of the lil guy. We appreciate everything that comes our way!

The decision to keep Flicker 9 years old came from a discussion on why the hero failed in the downfall timeline. Bc if things progressed like they had in OoT, then Link would have still won! So what needed to change in order for him not to win? It wasn't bc the player just went out to play basketball instead of beating the game /ref

The sages put Link to sleep bc he wasn't ready to wield the sword. But nothing changed except his size. He was in a 17 year old's body, but his mind hadn't matured any. Somehow he was able to pull it off tho, and everything turned out fine (or... It depends on your definition of fine).

So the sword didn't put Flicker to sleep. He didn't get stronger. And he's a tough kid, but that only goes so far. He also rushed to get to the final boss, which Time didn't do, so Flicker got there underprepared in his haste. He died, then the goddesses went "oh shit, that shouldn't have happened!!" and reset the timeline. And as we know, a reset doesn't mean that the original timeline goes away, now there's just two versions of the story.

Poor lil guy... His Zelda (Aria) and the sages managed to pull it together, but the timeline was still pretty fucked. I can't wait for when we get to what happened to it in the fics, but that won't be for a while. Flicker is still out there tho... In the forest... Doing his little guy things....

Thank u for ur interest! Maybe we'll have gotten to Flicker's point in the story by the time you're 18 hchdhdj

-Kio & Mizu

[alatismeni-theitsa]

Your thoughts on Emily Wilson, the so-called first woman to translate "The Odyssey" (although she wasn't)? I just read an articule a journalist wrote about how the Sirens has been turned into these "sexy seducers" trope and how Wilson "got it right" in her translation (the Sirens offering absolute knowledge to Odysseus, not romance). What do you think of this author?

And, do you think all the fuss and the hype about "A woman translated the Odyssey!"... It is necessary or even good? I mean, sure she can offer different points of view, but the way journalists talk about it... It feels like all the previous translations are all the same, even if they were translated by different men, in different moments of history, and they are treated as a homogeneus, worthless block... Which isn't fair IMO. A new translation shouldn't get praise for being done by a woman/man, It should get praise for being good, beautiful and faithful, period.

Also, the fact that Wilson has collaborated with Miller in some interviews, does this give us some clue about what her thoughts & treatment of Greek Mythology is? (Those white, anglo female writers seem to think Greek myths are just a bunch of rape stories, where women are always the good ones but these heroines can't do anything but endure misfortunes and abuse at the hands of the men) Thanks, sorry for the longo ask.

Well, our opinions align on Emily Wilson. She's not the first woman to have translated any of the Greek Epics but well... the US is gonna US and make it all about them. I agree with Wilson that there can be male biases in the translated texts and, sure, a female translator could make a difference in a few aspects. However, Wilson then inserted her own biases into her translations to an extreme point, causing significant alterations. To the Greek texts she did the same - if not a worse - disservice than these male translators she accuses.

By the way, we are not talking about Wilson because she's a woman. We are talking about her because the US media (aka 80% of what we see online) present her as some type of translator-goddess who has done something revolutionary. With this type of attention, we have to speak of her, and also discuss why she's not as perfect as everyone says. Additionally, while speaking on her I want to draw attention to how the NW European and N. American academia is still racist, and it colors how anyone who partakes sees the ancient texts. Just because she's a woman, it doesn't mean that Wilson shook every bias off her.

Take a look at this post for a relevant discussion on how her biases altered the og text.

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If my posts have helped you in any way consider buying me a ko-fi 💖

[poisonnxkki]

hey there! i’ve been looking around for resources since i’m sort of dabbling in hellenic paganism. i really really like your blog so far, so i wanted some advice from you.

i think the greek pantheon is something i’m super duper interested in, and there’s some deities that i’m super drawn too, and some not as much. but i understand that each deity does something different - can i venerate/worship all the deities, but work more closely with others? will this offend the other gods/goddesses? i’m just starting out, i apologize if this is stupid, but i’m really curious. i don’t want to offend anybody, but i know they all have different domains and only working with a select few and not the others feels awkward to me.

i also have a second question, if it’s not too much to ask: any good resources for someone just starting out? other blogs, discord servers, youtube channels, maybe even books, and most helpfully, websites! i really appreciate that you took the time to read this and i hope you have great day!! thanks so so much :]

Thank you for your question!! Sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you. Remember there are no dumb questions so if you have anything else you want to ask, pls do!!

Firstly, you can definitely venerate multiple deities but work more closely with others (and it will most definitely not offend anyone). This was actually an extremely common practice in Ancient Greece. Some deities were more significant depending on the area you lived (or the identity you possessed), so although you may have acknowledged the main 12, you would have worked closely with only a number of gods. I would like to gently suggest that you should do what feels natural to you and not worry too much about making mistakes or offending anyone. Making mistakes is a natural part of the learning process and is bound to happen eventually. As you gain more information, your opinions and practices will change so just focus on acquiring knowledge.

Some resources:

Understanding Greek Religion by Jennifer Larson- this is a more academic text so it may not be for everyone but it has a lot of important information in understanding how the ancients viewed worship and interacted with the gods

The Homeric Hymns (and other primary sources)- reading primary sources (especially the oldest sources) are super important because they are what many later sources reference. You can find them all online!

Theoi.com- I will link this below but this is good if you are focusing on a particular god/gods. I use it as a jumping off point for finding references.

Let’s Talk About Myths Baby- (podcast available on Spotify and Apple) retellings of the Greek myths from a feminist perspective. The host is witty and entertaining and I’ve found that she breaks down the myths in a way that is easily understandable.

Tumblr- there are a ton of accounts on here which provide resources and give their own personal takes on information. One of my favs is @olympianbutch but there are so many on here!

I don’t want to overwhelm you with sources but these are a few different types which you can explore since you are just starting out. Also if anyone wants to share their favourite sources (or their perspective), then pls do!

[empresskadia]

Spartan Relationship Headcanons [Naomi-010] [Part II]

Part I

I know for a fact that Phillips and you bond over the truth that Naomi is a beautiful goddess, after that he’s your bestie. Naomi is just happy you found a friend and doesn’t understand how it happened.

At the end of the day, Naomi has to stop you from bullying the ODSTs with BB, she doesn’t know why but you hit it off with BB right away and she’s worried about it, especially when she has to put BB in her armor because the AI calls her out.

“Well, well, [Y/n], it appears darling Naomi doesn’t appreciate our dynamic duo, how rude.”

In my head, for some reason, Naomi is fascinated by physical touch and this only started when she began dating her partner. It’s the little things she loves about it, you resting your arm in the crook of her elbow, intertwining your pinkie with hers, comparing your hand sizes against one another and she likes resting her head on your stomach or lap.

She’s also a sucker for getting her hair played with, it's such a simple form of affection that means the world to her. Naomi grows her hair out a little longer so you can style it, the current go-to is braids or a ponytail because they fit nicely in her helmet.

She actually gets flustered when you call her any form of Valkyrie but loves it when you call her, ‘your Valkyrie’. She didn’t really care for the nickname until you gave it a personal spin and a smile always tugs at the corner of her lips when you walk into a room, spot her, and say, "Well, well, if it isn't my Valkyrie."

If Mal hadn't witnessed this happen, he would’ve never believed Spartans could get flustered, cause Naomi had the faint pink on her cheeks and her mood visibly brightened. This man seriously stopped drinking his coffee and stared at you with his mouth hung open. 

BB is the snitch that tells the whole ship you two are in a relationship and he didn’t have to do you guys dirty the way he did.

Naomi is slightly upset about it and almost beefs with BB, her relationship has always been her own and yours. It’s the one choice she made herself and it’s sacred to her, especially if this happens early on before she’s had time to bond with everyone, Naomi feels so awkward and is even more upset for you. She’s seen Marines and ODSTs butting into their teams relationships and she doesn’t want that.

Before BB outed the relationship, Naomi likes to poke fun at the time you first heard Mal call her sweetheart and you had to do a double take like you hadn’t heard that right then gave Naomi a look that meant you could possibly throw hands. She had to talk you down before you did anything dumb. 

Naomi still ended up asking Vaz to read over her file, only because she thought you might view her in different light if you found out more than she had already explained to you. When Serin first told her about the Halsey journal, Naomi felt devastated and a sense of loss, she hid away in the Mjolnir compartment and you found her tinkering away at her armor, she didn’t even look in your direction, which was a sign something was wrong.

You sit silently with her until she’s ready to talk or it stops bothering her, which in this case she wants to discuss once she’s gathered her thoughts together and can properly explain to you what Serin told her. Naomi wants your opinion but it will be hard for her to accept if you talk bad about Halsey, so even if you have negative feelings about the Doctor, you need to understand her side and not let it get the best of you. If you don’t have any hard feelings about Halsey, Naomi’s more inclined to listen even if you say, “Yeah, hun um, that sounds kinda messed.”

This does start some fights between you, Vaz, and Mal. They don’t understand why you can be so calm about this whole Halsey thing and you think they are acting like children that need to keep their noses out of things.

Being lowkey upset with Serin for starting this whole spiral of a mess and some unkind truth are said on your part. Naomi had to step in before you crossed a line she knew you were running for. The captain and you did make up a few days later much to everyone’s surprise, Naomi assumed you were going to be salty for longer.

Mal thought Spartans were already terrifying on the field but nothing prepared him for Naomi’s reaction to when you got hurt during a mission. If what he saw was the equivalent of a Spartan losing their shit, he wonders why the Covenant never called them Devils. Serin had to order him and Vaz to bring you back to the ship and leave Naomi to calm down on the lines of them getting caught in the crossfire [if that’s what the captain could call ‘crossfire’ was Mal’s thought], the only thing he could tell Phillips was ‘there is a lot of blood.’

This point is further driven home when Naomi returns covered in a mix of fluids on her armor and chunks of stuff that Phillips doesn’t want to speculate on. He’s left in awe when the first thing she does is check on her partner and the tone of worry in her voice not matching up with the activities left on her.

Naomi is a huge nerd, she loves talking to her partner about her armor and all the upgrades she’s making or thinking about making. Ask her questions about what she’s doing cause it makes her so happy, if you manage to name certain parts or follow her train of thought, she’s in love all over again and you can tell when her eyes are seriously bright, they look like they have stars in them.

Talking about stars, one of your first dates was star gazing, and it continues to be so on anniversaries and other special occasions. Naomi is an astronomy nerd, so this is a perfect way to spend time together especially if you pack a picnic and spend hours outside with her. If you bring up the idea of getting matching star tattoos, she’s sold and she wants to do it right away.

When Kilo-Five finds out Naomi has a tattoo, they are surprised, especially Serin, she never would have imagined a Spartan getting inked.

If you aren’t on the ship, they are extra shook when she tells them it’s a matching constellation with her partner. The whole ship gets quiet and it takes them a few minutes to respond, Serin wants BB to give her a full report on this individual.

Naomi finds this amusing and calls you that night, if you aren’t on a mission or busy, to tell you. This is also how BB tracks you down to pull your records, he honestly listens to the entire conversation because he’s a snoop and marvelous at the tone of Naomi’s voice when she talks to you. It’s more soft and there is a hint of emotion in her tone that he can’t distinguish.

He ends up telling Serin that Naomi was quite taken with you.

[lilislegacy]

Oop-

I hate when tumblr messes shit up, but Hey, it's me again.

Like in my original aks, I want to reiterate that I'm not trying to come for everybody. Everyone is allowed to have their own opinion. This is just my 2 cents on the whole demigods and menstruation thing

My original ask was kind of convoluted, so I'll just sum it up here.

I like the idea of what demigods being different but I don't like the idea of administration just being completely gone.

I am currently reading jealous of the god, and that is something that Percy directly says is how you get the worst of both worlds.

I love the idea of demigods being more powerful and more protective when they are pregnant or whether their partner is. But imagine not knowing you're a demigod and never getting your period, then thinking "oh I can never get pregnant!" and then get pregnant. That sounds terrifying.

I do like the idea of certain demigods from certain gods having a different sort of thing. Kind of like with Athena, I saw one post about annabeth getting a migraine and shit which is hilarious.

I just feel like having no menstrual cycle. It all seems a little too easy. It's very reminiscent of Alexandria's Genesis if you were around on Tumblr about 10 years ago to remember that. (If not then izzzyzzz has an amazing video on YouTube all about this fake disorder and hoax)

In my original ask I pointed out how It would be an interesting point of view especially for trans demigods.

I am a transperson. I have a lot of dysphoria around that sort of thing. I am currently in pain because of it. So I've been thinking about it a lot.

(Also, this is a completely different headcannon, but I definitely headcannon Leo as a trans man)

Thinking more about it would be interesting to see people lose control of their powers because of how in pain they are I know. I get very upset very quickly like imagine how terrible that would be. (Like Thalia accidentally zapping someone or something)

I'm also a sucker for those hurt/comfort fics surrounding periods and such. Idk why I just like comforting fics lol

I do like the idea that the hunters of Artemis once they become a hunter would not get a period because fuck that.

Also among other things, Artemis is the goddess of childbirth and I feel like she can do that for her hunters.

I did add a little bit more from my original ask because I've just been thinking about it more.

Again, not coming for anyone I really love that everyone has their own opinions and fantastic ideas. It just makes me so happy as an artist!

Thank you! (Sorry tumblr deleted the original one lol)

thank you for the ask! and thank you even more for sending it twice lol!!

now, onto my thoughts. i totally see where you’re coming from. because you are right, part of being a demigod is having to deal with the crappy parts of both worlds. and as much as i would love for female-born demigods to not have to deal with periods, i can totally see them still having one.

so maybe it just works differently? maybe their cycles are longer and they only have a few periods a year? or maybe they are just way lighter? idk. but i still feel like they would work differently than regular humans

i definitely see where you’re coming from on the account of trans-demigods having to deal with it. there would definitely be an added emotional struggle with it along with the physical, and there’s a lot to explore there!

i love the idea of the children of different gods having different symptoms. like you mentioned athena’s kids having more headaches and migraines lol. and maybe ares kids get huge angry mood swings, and maybe aphrodite’s kids get really lovesick and cry every 3 seconds over couples doing cute things lol.

100% with you on the hunters not having one. no boyfriends = no sex = no babies = no period needed. they ain’t got time for that! they’ve got hot girl shit to do. like shooting people with arrows.

i also like the thought of demigods’ powers being heightened when they’re on their period lol. that’s hilarious. imagine a child of demeter having cramps and craving chocolate, and a cocao tree just spurts out of the ground LOL.

thank you for being so nice and wonderful towards people having different headcanons! and whether someone thinks demigods menstruate or not, it sounds like we can all agree that it’s at least different for them than it is for humans.

thank you for your thoughts! they were all super interesting!

[salah-with-sadie]

Exploring Religious Syncretism

As-Salam-u-Alaikum wa-rahmatullahi wa-barakatuh (“Peace be unto you and so may the mercy of Allah and his Blessings”)!

Religious syncretism is the practice of blending two or more religious beliefs. This phenomenon has occurred throughout history and has given us a plethora of diverse religious beliefs, rituals, and customs. Religious syncretism often occurs from assimilation and conquest. However, its origins are not always born from negative events; syncretism also comes from cultural exchange, trade, and other peaceful interactions between different religious communities.

The Ancient Origins of Religious Syncretism:

One of the oldest examples of religious syncretism is that of Ishtar. Ishtar was an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of fertility, love, and war. There is a list, known as the “Ishtar Tablet” which lists the names of other goddesses that are syncretic equivalents to Ishtar. Syncretic examples of Ishtar include Innana, Astarte (who is mentioned in the Old Testament and is my cat’s middle name), and Aphrodite.

Key Examples of Religious Syncretism:

Interpretatio Graeca/Interpretatio Romana: Ancient Greece would often try to identify foreign deities by using their own pantheon. Rome would do this same practice, especially with the Celtic pantheon. For example, Sirona is the name of a Celtic goddess. However, she was often paired with Apollo “Apollini et Si/ronae.”

Ancient Egyptian Religion: Syncretism was frequent in ancient Egypt. The god Amun and the god Ra were combined into Amun-Ra. Ancient Egypt would also combine their gods or goddesses with those of neighboring civilizations. For example, Osiris would be combined with Helios or Zeus. Whether the combination is due to religious similarities or political gain is up to historians.

Christmas Trees: Anyone familiar with the Gospels will tell you it never mentions evergreen trees or ornaments or even Santa Clause. However, these are iconic aspects of Christmas season. The Christmas tree finds its roots in pagan religious practices. The evergreen being a symbol of life in a dark, lifeless time.

Challenges and Controversies: 

Critics of religious syncretism claim that it raises questions about authenticity, purity, and the preservation of traditional practices. Some religious purists may view syncretic movements as heretical or impure, leading to tensions within religious communities, even going so far as saying religious holidays are “fake” if they are touched by syncretism.

The Significance of Religious Syncretism:

Despite the critics, religious syncretism is still incorporated into most of today’s societies, religious or not. It’s clear in the examples given, but also in the names of the days of the week (Norse paganism), names of some of the months (Roman paganism), the workday/weekend schedule, etc. Ignoring thinks simply because they have been affected by syncretism is, in my opinion, silly.

For those of us trying to find some divine meaning in our lives, syncretism can show us the overlap of everyone’s beliefs. Personally, I always hated the idea that there is only one, chosen group of people that have had the truth revealed to them. The Qur’an tells us the names and stories of some of the prophets, but not all of them. Messengers have been sent to all ends of the Earth, to all people. Their messages just get lost in time and change into different religious beliefs (almost like a giant game of telephone). In my opinion, by seeing the reoccurring themes throughout religions, such is flood stories or “golden rules” that are prevalent in many belief systems, syncretism is just one of the many tools we can use to find the “truth.” Additionally, I personally see syncretism as a way for people to see how their beliefs are not so different from others.

Conclusion:

In a world characterized by globalization and cultural exchange, religious syncretism continues to shape the spiritual landscape, offering a glimpse into the rich tapestry of human belief and practice. By embracing diversity and dialogue, we can appreciate the beauty and complexity of syncretic traditions, fostering mutual understanding and respect across religious boundaries.

[demidevildiva]

welcome to marina, DELPHINE ST.GERMAIN ( cis female, her/she) ! they are an THIRTY TWO year old who has lived on the island for HER WHOLE LIFE. word on the street is they’re currently living in PROSPECT HILL and works as a HERBALIST. everyone also says they look a lot like JAZ SINCLAIR. what do you think?

TW: breast cancer mentioned, spirituallity explored

Much like the rest of her siblings, Delphine - first of four - was born on board a ship in Marina Island. From a very young age she was taught everything there was to know about their family's livelihood as well as superstitions and lore that accompanied their ancestory. Growing up she never much believed in it, but did enjoy all the stories and too memorized them by heart.

During her early childhood through teenage years she worked alongside her family to provide and divide the shores and responsibilities equally. The siblings have always been close so there were not many - if any - disagreements or begruntled feelings shared between them.

During her last year of high school she met a woman that changed her life. Much like her, this woman shared a passion for people. A passion for seeing the best out of everyone and everything that the world provided. The two became close but it wasn't until they entered college that their story fruition. Their souls bounded in a way that Elph had never felt before and they married.

Together they discovered much about themselves and even more about the ways of the world. Elph had no ties to religions, but she deeply believed in the existence of the Goddess of the Moon. Her triple goddess that although bounded to multiple different names and tales around the world, Elph viewed holy and almighty beyond anything else and views all those deities as one.

During her adult years, she focused and learned everything that she could about herbs, plants, flowers, and healing the body and mind with elements of nature. This wasn't something she'd gone to school for, but a passion of hers that she simply could not evade. A gift from the goddess herself she believed, so she put an end to any other plans she had in life and fixated on this.

Before long, and with the help of her wife, they were able to open up a small shop at the Green Market and that's where Elph has been selling her crafts for the last ten to twelve years. She has received a reputation of being a 'witch' simply because of her different views, but she embraces the complements. It's empowering to her, and helps her grow more as a person.

A year ago her wife was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer. The news itself was devastating as it would be for anyone else, but they saw the world differently. Instead of waiting around for death, they celebrated the small things in life and prepared for the upcoming reincarnation. Her journey through the land of the lost would be cut short as she reunited with their goddess and embodies a new life. It wasn't anything to fear, but rather look forwards to. They truly believed that in every life form they'd find one another. Their souls had danced under the midnight sky, and entangled beneath the light of the moon.

Other

Has a tendencies to house a lot of wounded wild animals and heal them. But she does not like the idea of domesticating animals as pets.

Never liked the idea of eating another living creature, but allows herself to eat fish as a fuck you to the sea witch that cursed her family. Pescatarian KBKFSHKNKJNJKFS

Operates a small booth at Green Farmer's Market over in Prospect Hill - also accepts commissions

Wife's name is Tabitha (npc) and they are known polygamists.

Personality:

She's a full believer that anything you throw at the world will come back to bite you three times over so she's generally very well mannered and kind. Quite affectionate with those closest to her, but has her own opinions and doesn't hold back from saying her beliefs. Has a tendency to be overly honest and straight forward. Embraces and associated herself with the attributes of her Goddess The Mother - sexual, casual, and emotional.

[a-d-nox]

Hi there, have a question in mind : How do you think the accuracy of the interpretation of Asteroid astrology?

Eg asteroid in houses / signs / the meaning of asteroid based on the Greek goddess stories

second ask:

i was a literature major in college / at uni. does that make me 100% correct with astrology *shrug* probably not because astrology and literature is open to many interpretations (critical reading requires people to interpret written forms in many ways). but mythology has been around a very long time, it's the very origin of astrology. during ancient great antiquity, it was the documented method for predicting shifts in the seasonal cycles. if the stars and planetary/luminary shifts could predict changes, of course, one would deem them representatives of the gods.

asteroids have stories as i emphasize here. mythology has its roots in oral traditions, so it is often that older cultural groups may know a different story. often there are pieces of literature written to make claims of what the masses believed (click here for examples - because i do reference sources that predate all of us here by centuries). sometimes the translations of the piece differ - because we as humans do make mistakes. i am not without my flaws, but i do correct myself when i do make mistakes. when i entered the community, about a year ago now, i didn't know what the term "closed practice" was nor what it included and tried to share what i had been taught by a college i attended regarding an aboriginal myth and a hebrew myth. both communities corrected me, and i made a public statement about each as to where and why i was wrong (because the versions i had access to were appropriated and groomed by christian point of view). the aboriginal one was strictly oral in tradition, thus no accurate and publicly agreed upon source had been made like i was lead to believe. and the hebrew one was catholic propaganda, which i had been feed at a young age through only small fault of my own. but i never faught that i was correct and they were wrong because i went back and looked at my sources for each post and saw they were weak.

the posts that are not blacklisted on my blog i know are strong because they come from centuries old literature that are widely accepted. if there is conflict, it is because of historical or interpretational differences, but that is why i provide a story with my posts so everyone has a chance to see something different that maybe i didn't see. that's also why i never just list one interpretation with an asteroid because from a literary perspective, i have been taught to see what i read from multiple angles.

haha, i will never forget when i walked to my modernism class and i was ready to hear about "the rocking horse winner" being about the great depression and classism, but my professor talking about oedipal complexes and sexuality for multiple class periods regrading this short piece of fiction.

that's just it as well, mythologies fall into the realm of fiction, so it is up to the reader to decide if they believe it is possible or not. if it holds up and means anything to the topic at hand. but in astrology, i find it good practice to use the mythical resources regarding who/what the asteroid is named after/for.

as for sign, degree, house, and aspects - it is mostly extrapolation on my part. i blend what i know about the myths and about the preexisting planetary/luminary symbolism to produce my opinion on what they may mean. i never claimed that what say for interpretation, regarding any placements, is fact - it's too bold to claim that. but i do believe that if there is common evidence that supports my argument that it does hold some accuracy. for example: someone who claims that pluto is about how fast someone speaks is just wrong there are plenty of people in the community and plenty of books that will prove them wrong. but if i hypothesize that mercury in the 3h likely makes someone a fast talker - i could argue why. and i can do that with every one of my posts, which is why at the end, and sometimes the beginning, i state that people can forward their questions to me.

as long as you can support (your source better be good though - not another blog with no sources) what you say, you can say it, as my professors say.

thus, i am always open to hearing what others have to say if the conversation remains respectful and open to new ideas and interpretations (i will mirror the energy). but everyone should remember: i will block you if you begin bullying anyone - i do not tolerate bullying (click me for example) or the disrespect of others.

hope this cleared some things up.

a.d.