#the gift of eleos

[maladaptedreader-writes]

Mal's ramblings/sources for TGOE Ch 5

Not much research for this chapter, but I do have an interesting rabbit hole on SOAP!

Did you know soap was not a thing in Mycenae? I just wanted to know what ingredients might have been used to make soap then (did they have creamy soaps, like we do?) and found that, no, soap didn't exist for them. Just like with papyrus, it missed them.

My first source was wishy washy on the subject (get it??), but only because tablet evidence is lacking.

From Olive Oil and Other Sorts of Oil in the Mycenaean Tablets [PDF] by José L. Melena:

"... we have still no evidence on soda in the Mycenaean tablets, but Crete was full of alkali plants, which might produce soap when treated with oil. The importance of the Knossos textile industry requires the existence of detergents and soap to be employed in the final stage of textile processing; the occurrence of an oil amount associated with garments (we-a(v2)-no-i) in a Mycenae document might be explained not as intended for perfuming them, but for their cleaning."

One of the sources cited for the above paragraph (supposedly) says…

"But in the absence of soap the ancient world made much use of olive oil for the toilet, and it was a normal practice to anoint the body with oil after exercise." (Cf. J. Chadwick, The Mycenaean World, p. 122) (emphasis added my me)

But then another one says… this complicated mess of citations:

Cf. M. Levey, "The Early History of Detergent Substances", Journal of Chemical Education 31, 1954, pp. 521-524. "In Crete soap plant Saponaria officinalis L. grows in wet spots, cf. I. E. Chabáki, Φυτά καί Βοτάνια της Κρήτης, ρ. 312, s.u. Τσουένι; and a further source of alkali is Salsola carpatha L. and S. aegeaea L., cf. O. Rackham, op. cit., p. 297. See for parallels H. de Genouillac, "Le blanchissage au savon à l'époque des rois d'Ur", Revue d'Assyriologie 7, 1909, pp. 113 f.

And what I got from that mess (because I didn't follow up on these) is that Crete has a soap plant that may have enough alkali to be used for soap. But, like, maybe not enough to share I guess?

But I just… I didn't want that to be the answer. So I checked another source and found this line from Bathing at the Mycenaean Palace of Tiryns by Joseph W. Shaw that quotes another source:

Concerning perfumed oil, Shelmerdine writes that it "was a common offering to the gods, and was also used for medicinal and cosmetic purposes. It was particularly valued in a world without soap." (emphasis added by me)

Shelmerdine is one Cynthia Wright Shelmerdine, who wrote a book called "The perfume industry of Mycenaean Pylos."

Long story short, Patroclus and his contemporaries never used soap. Oops. Well… I guess I'll try to remember for future fics. For now, getting lewd with the sewds. Suds. Whatever.

[neriyon]

∙ Basics ∙

Name: Hawu'li Puu Nickname(s): No one's really came up with anything (me included) Age: 23 Nameday: 17th Sun of the 4th Umbral Moon (17.8) Race: Keeper of the Moon Miqo'te Gender: Male Orientation: Gayyyy Profession: Warrior of Light / travelling healer

∙ Physical Aspects ∙

Hair: Lavender purple and pretty fluffy. The turquoise part of his bangs is dyed, and needs to be redone regularily. Eyes: Bright yellow Skin: White with pink undertone Tattoos/Scars: White, slightly curved "dots" next to his eyes, three on each side. No notable scars - he's very diligent in healing any big hurts after battle.

∙ Family ∙

Parents: - Mother, Hawu Puu. Matriarch of the Puu family. Alive and well, strictly leading her family back in Shroud. Hawu'li visits her, but rather rarely. - Never met his father, nor know anything about him. It's uncertain if he even knows he has a kid. Siblings: - 2 older brothers, Hawu'a and Hawu'to. Hawu'a lives back in Shroud and hunts for a living, while Hawu'to is a researcher in Old Sharlayan. - Grand total of 5 older and 2 younger sisters. Three of the older sisters left home after adulthood to start their own families, the rest of them live with their mother and help provide for the family. Grandparents: Mostly unknown. Hawu sometimes talked about her mother (Hawu'li's maternal grandmother), but she had passed away before Hawu'li was even born. Other: - Draevoux "Drae" Chevalier and Nana Chevalier, elezen couple who are both his (currently retired) co-wols and "roommates". - Varying lineup of partners. He's poly with multiple partners and I've yet to make a solid list of them all since they change all the time. Aymeric and G'raha are the two I mention most. Pets: Carby the Carbuncle. Hawu'li's uh, not that good with names. Carby is your avarage ruby carbuncle, but is around pretty much 24/7. Often refered to as Hawu'li's "emotional support carbuncle", since it's jobs include keeping him calm when he is left alone.

∙ Skills ∙

Abilities: Strong affinity with healing magic and the ability to hear the elementals, making him a formidable white mage. When situation calls for destruction rather than healing, he's also well versed in the art of summoning, and has been known to call upon demi-Bahamut when feeling truly desperate. Hobbies: Cooking, reading and singing. Also likes to mend stuff (patch holes, fix broken furniture) and read stories to kids (usually his sisters')

∙ Traits ∙

Most Positive Trait: Seemingly endless positivity. For someone who's job is to kill gods and see people get hurt on daily basis he's somehow still sure Things Will Be Better, and that deep down everyone has the potential to change for the better. Most Negative Trait: Separation anxiety. From some deepest parts of his soul comes a crippling fear of being left alone. At it's worst, he'll go into full blown panic attack in fifteen or so minutes after losing sight of others. At it's best (mostly after EW) he'll survive with only Carby as his company for almost half a day.

∙ Likes ∙

Colors: Purples, turquoise, most pastels and bright colors Smells: Freshly baked things, forest, lilies, apples baked with cinnamon Textures: Running fingers through silky hair. Wood, fur and silk. Rocks smoothed over by water. Drinks: Tea (any), milk, blackcurrant juice, mulled wine

∙ Other details ∙

Smokes: Nope Drinks: Only in company Drugs: Nuh-uh Mount Issuance: Koivu, his beloved lavender chocobo companion. Disinterested in almost everything, but happily follows any command given by his owner in exchange of some tasty treats. Been Arrested: Surprisingly, only once - in Ishgard, on suspicion of heresy along with Alphi and Tataru. (Drae took the msq spot of fighting for Tataru's freedom)

Seen this tag game around a lot lately, and I wanted in on the fun despite not being tagged. Took a lot longer to fill than I thought, so we'll see if I have the energy to fill this for other ocs too.

If you want to do it too, go for it! ♪(´▽｀) It takes a while, but is very fun to fill~

[seodami]

The tale of the star and the ant | HHJ

Pairing: Idol!Hwang Hyunjin x non celebrity!reader

Genre: fluff & angst

Warning: heartbreak <\3

Word count: 1158

Hwang Hyunjin was an angel. An angel sent from heaven, caringly raised by Eleos, the god of compassion, and kissed by the goddess Aphrodite who gifted him ethereal beauty and the ability to love deeply. Hwang Hyunjin was a masterpiece in every aspect. He was the epitome of perfect.

The first time your eyes layed upon his, you knew he was special. He was so mesmerizing, a smile so kind and warm it made your heart melt a little in the coldness of the long lasting winter days. You knew from that moment on, you wouldn’t and couldn’t forget him.

By your definition, fate personally had decided to grace you with the opportunity to talk to Hwang Hyunjin, laugh with him and even one dance with him. It felt like a series of unexpected and unexplained events, only destiny could have gifted you. He was a bright star in the sky while you were the tiny ant looking up to him, wondering how a star so surreal like him could exist.

And Hyunjin was special. He really was. A star so grounded, so kind and gentle, it was impossible to stay away from. And he welcomed you with open inviting arms and a big smile on his face, letting you in on a well protected side of his. Allowing you to get to know him.

But knowing Hwang Hyunjin was a mess. There were days you wished you would have just stayed in the shadows the day you met him. To save yourself from all the consequences he brought along. But deep down, you still believed in fate’s calling for you.

Knowing him came with floods of messages from old acquaintances and unknown people. It came with intruding questions, uncalled actions and unprofessional behavior. It came with slimy people creeping up to your good side, empty promises and the feeling of loneliness.

But Hyunjin was the reason you stayed up until 3 am in the morning, talking about everything and everyone all at once in your living room, wine glasses swishing in your hands, bubbly laughter echoing through the walls of the dim room. He was the reason you couldn’t stop smiling in the train, at work, at the supermarket, even at the post office. He was the reason your stomach exploded with warm fuzzy butterflies, expanding in every area of your body, leaving you feel so vulnerable, so happy and giddy, so full of pure love.

Every second you spent with Hyunjin was magical. Like a dream. Even if you tried, you couldn’t stop your heart from drumming loudly, racing faster and jumping higher out of your chest. It could have been the lovesick smile he was showing only to you, his big dark eyes watching you full of genuine adoration or the way his fingers gently grazed your skin in every given occasion.

It were the little moments you cherished the most inside your heart, safely secured inside a treasure box with his name written on top of it. The soft kisses shared under the moonlight rain, your stupidly lovesick giggles inside his fancy big bathtub, his fingers playing with your earlobe, grazing your cheek and neck. It was the smell of his hair after a fresh shower, the hourless deep discussions you had in front of his fireplace inside his warm arms and his proud smile radiating pure happiness when he gifted you your own set of keys to his apartment. It was the way he openly invited you to spend Chuseok with his close family and the way he admired you sneakily while you played with Kkami and baked him his favorite cake after an exhausting day. How his beautifully plush lips adorned a teasing smile as he took his sweet time to draw a portrait with so much care of you while you were posing in front of him. How his adorable contagious laughters infected you when you tickled him as you tried to take a little peak at his unfinished work. And how he coyly showed you his more than perfected art piece, showing you just how ethereal you looked in his eyes.

You were so absolutely devastatingly in love with this man, wondering how a feeling so deep and so new could live within you.

But loving Hwang Hyunjin was dangerous. It was everything but it was also too much. Loving Hwang Hyunjin came with threats, wary warnings and shocking revelations. It came with a loss of privacy, paranoia and fear. And it most definitely came with disgustingly deep rooting hate, that seemed to reach no end.

It was endless, brutal and ruthless. Mean, nasty and disrespectful. Despite Hyunjins honorable and restless support and tries to put this behaviour to rest, nothing seemed to stop. People were following you constantly, spying on your every move, making you feel unsafe in your own four walls. It just never stopped.

Loving Hwang Hyunjin came with pain, pain and more pain. And even though your heart screamed for his love, yearned for his touch, longed for his time … it couldn’t get what it wanted. It never could in this world, where he was the star and you were the ant.

So why did fate made you suffer through it all? The pain was unbearable at first, so deep, so mind numbing. It felt as if a crucial part of yourself was torn apart from you. As if someone removed everything happy within you, around you. And with pain, there comes regret. And after that, even more pain … until it all vanished and leaves you with the sour aftertaste of bitterness on your tongue. You hated it with all your heart. What if…

But still loving Hwang Hyunjin despite the heartbreak was the worst. It was something small inside your mind, that would always lead you back to him like a broken record player playing your favorite song on repeat. Never moving on, always longing for the next part, wondering how the future may look like if it wasn’t damaged.

It came with bitter realization after a while. You were no match for him in this life even though your souls still longed for each other after all the pain.

Loving Hwang Hyunjin came with silent promises. Promises to meet at a different time, a different place and a different universe. It came with a reassuring smile and a soft farewell kiss mixed with the saltiness of tears streaming down both your faces.

Hwang Hyunjin was still an angel. He was still an angel sent from heaven, caringly raised by Eleos, the god of compassion, and kissed by the goddess Aphrodite who gifted him ethereal beauty and the ability to love deeply. Hwang Hyunjin was still a masterpiece in every aspect. He was still the epitome of perfect. And he was still the love of your life, your soulmate even if in this universe, fate did not allow you to be with him.

[diana-thyme]

Greek Gods 101: Eleos

Eleos is a Daimona of mercy, pity, and compassion. Excluding the universal offerings, some common offerings include:

Depictions of Doves

Depictions of Olive Trees/Branches/Etc.

Feathers

Relaxing Herbs

Veils

Coins

Gifts

Items You’ve Found

Depictions of Blessings (Money, High Marks, Work Benefits, Etc.)

For devotional acts, some activities that can be done for her include:

Cutting Your Hair

Undressing

Being Kind

Showing Mercy Towards People

Helping People

Asking for Assistance

Donating to People in Need

She is not celebrated in any Athenian holidays.

[mouse-or-mousai]

Welcome, one and all, to the blog of Kalos’s own sparkling performer! My name is Mousai, and alongside my wonderful team, Skitty, Iron Valiant (Valiant for short), and Diancie, we’ve come to put on the best performances Kalos, and the world, have ever seen! But behind the dresses and sparkling bows…

I’m a bit of a fraud. Tragically, Pokemon Performers are an exclusively all girl class, and I don’t exactly fit those requirements. So instead, I cross-dress so that I’m able to perform. It’s a sort of double-life scenario. And I’m a bit too deep in to back out now. My real name is Mouse, I use He/Him or Rib/Bon. But when I’m cross dressing and performing, I used She/Her.

On stage, I don’t call my pokemon by the names I’ve given them, to preserve our identity. Furthermore, I’ll only be posting about my skitty, Hebe, and my recently acquired espurr, Eleos, on my main, as to avoid suspicions. Here are some info cards about them!

I battle with them, for their enrichment, but not competitively. They seem to enjoy performances as much as I do!

<Hey there, my name’s Vex (@virgils-muse), I run this account. Use He/Him for me. Both Mouse and myself are teenagers (I am 16, Mouse is 17). This is the second iteration of this intro, as very early on into this blog I decided to reboot it. I should also add that although the above stuff is in-character, it isn’t canon. He wouldn’t put all of his secrets in his pinned LMAOz More than anything I would like to emphasize that Mouse and Mousai are the same person. Mousai is just a fake facade/character Mouse puts up while cross dressing/performing. Below, you will find an example of what Mouse looks like, and what he looks like when he’s cross dressing (or, presenting as Mousai). You can find the picrew used to make these here.>

<Posts from Mouse will look like this.>

<Posts from Mousai will look like this.>

<Posts which aren’t blog posts from Mouse, and are narrations of him doing shit will not have the blog-username-header-things present. Narration for these kind of posts will look *like this*.>

<Tagging System.>

#💝 ~ intro! — this post.

#💝 ~ just your average guy! — Mouse doing shit.

#💝 ~ the pretty performer! — Mousai doing shit.

#💝 ~ doomscrolling in kalos! — Mouse posting shit.

#💝 ~ pose for the fans! — Mousai posting shit.

#💝 ~ peer through the reflection — a look to the past (aka Mouse as a kid).

#💝 ~ ask games! — self explanatory.

#💚 ~ ooc! — out of character posts.

#💚 ~ maintenance… — blog reboot/clean up stuff.

#💚 ~ pre blog reboot… — posts that occurred before the blog reboot and were kept. Nothing important happened in these posts, just small online interactions from Mouse.

<Pelipper Mail is on!>

<Pelipper Malice is off!>

<Musharna Mail is on!>

<Musharna Malice is on!>

<Mystery Gifts is on!>

<Union Circle is on!>

<Magic Anons is on, lightweight!>

<Interactions from sapient pokemon, evil teams, fallers, and anyone under the sun is allowed!>

[brosephine-grant]

MY POST-SERIES HEADCANONS (1/?)

1. Picard shows up to Beverly’s new home on Earth with a housewarming gift of things he’d had boxed up at the Château to help make up for what she lost on the Eleos. Not only mementos of their relationship (like the photo she passes on to Jack that he takes with him), but souvenirs from his friendship with the first Jack Crusher, his invitation to Jack and Beverly’s wedding, photos of the three of them together, baby pictures they’d sent out for Wesley’s birth and first milestones, and programs of the different plays she’d had the Enterprise crew do. He hadn’t been able to bring himself to look at them after her disappearance, but unboxing it all in her living room with her as they share the story of each item with their son, they finally become happy memories again.

2. Picard becomes super excited about celebrating Jack’s birthday for the first time, and it ends up turning into a massive party with not only the Picard S3 characters, but all of the extended friends and family that weren’t able to be part of this adventure.

3. Kestra’s life on Nepenthe leads her to a Starfleet career studying the natural healing potentials of unexplored worlds and undiscovered plant life, and her Aunt Beverly becomes her mentor.

4. Beverly’s time as a civilian doctor leads to a massive overhaul in the way medical care and humanitarian aid is distributed by the Federation after she becomes head of Starfleet Medical.

[transtundras-fr-archive]

Some loose drawing practice with some of my perma-mirrors!

Vernon: Earth born mirror. Probably has Snapper heritage. Big, fat, and loves to headbutt.

Caden and Eleos: siblings who got separated from their original pack long ago in the Viridian Labyrinth. Caden viciously defended their weaker brother who sports strange feathers.

Weevil: a gift fella from @2dmax-fr , a fellow who is anxious but has a yearn to explore.

[abookishdreamer]

Character Intro: Theodon (Kingdom of Ichor)

Nicknames- Theo by the others

The Black Prince by the people of Olympius

Age- 15 (immortal)

Location- The Underworld

Personality- He's an intelligent young man with a nihilistic sense of humor. Far mature than his years he's comfortably introverted (but doesn't actively avoid people), mysterious, brutally honest, & non judgemental.

He has the standard abilities of a god except shapeshifting. As the god of reality, uncertainty, & fate his other powers/abilities include limited umbrakinesis, inducing the feeling of confusion or uncertainty in others, chronokinesis (not on par with his mother, but still quite powerful), reality manipulation, psychometry, and is able to communicate with his mother's sacred animal- the snake.

Theo lives in the Underworld with his mother Ananke (goddess of inevitability, compulsion, & neccessity).

His bedroom has a dark academia aesthetic with the color scheme being forest green, gold, cobalt, silver, and black. Many of his own original artwork & sketches cover the walls as well as renaissance paintings and posters of his favorite movies & musical acts. He also owns an antique record player (which he bought from Hades). There's also a bookshelf (built from obsidian) filled with many books, including pristine leather bound first editions.

Theo owns a pet- a dragon with pale silver-green scales named Amaris (who's usually his mode of transportation). Sometimes he likes to help out in his mother's herpetarium.

There's never a shortage of black liquid eyeliner, statement rings, & dark nail polish for him!

A notable feature of Theo is his impressive height. At the age of fifteen, he slightly towers over his mother at 6''3!

A go-to drink for him is roast coffee with just a bit of sugar. He also enjoys earl grey tea, beer, pomegranate cola, lavender tea, dark cherry cola, and taro bubble tea.

Theo is currently on break from school. The godly schoolmates he talks to the most include Koalemos (god of foolishness), Circe (goddess of sorcery), Dysnomia (goddess of anarchy & lawlessness), Cedalion (demi-god of smithing ore), and Telesphorus (Rusty) (god of rehabilitation). Other godly students include Eileithyia (Ella) (goddess of childbirth), Morá (goddess of babies & children), Eirene (goddess of peace), Philautia (goddess of self love), Eunomia (goddess of law & legislation), Eleos (Ellie) (goddess of mercy, pity, & compassion), and Eiresione (Ren) (goddess of offerings).

Outside of school he's close and hangs out with Ascalaphus, son of Acheron (Titan god of pain).

At school it's well known of his high grades in AP Philosophy, AP Calculus, and Underworld Studies. He's also part of the drama club & photography club.

Theo's even taking a few classes at the University like quantum physics, astronomy, & engineering!

He can play the lyre, trombone, and piano.

His favorite treat to get from The Bread Box is a small mushroom soup.

Theo is currently being mentored by Lachesis (one of The Moirai who's known as "the allotter.") He already knew that this would be the case of course! He's enthralled so far in his mentorship- even getting a brief look at the process of making lifethread! There was a time when Theo had a crush on her, having a few wet dreams after coming across a black and white nude portrait of Lachesis- her signature bouffant and long loose curls & sharp winged eyeliner.

He smokes cigarettes and a bit of pot. Ascalaphus once gifted him a Stygian Iron bong!

He's also fluent in Old Greek, Latin, French, & Minoan.

Theo is looking forward to his induction ceremony, especially since he knows that Achlys (goddess of the death mist, poison, misery, & sadness) will do his tattoos!

Theo is undecided about the feelings he has towards another schoolmate Heimarmene (Marnie) (goddess of shared fate). Aside from a brief interaction on the steps of the University during a particularly rainy day, they don't really socialize. At school, he'll often find himself staring at her or vice versa. He's had more than a few visions of them both making out.

His favorite dessert from Hollyhock's Bakery is the espresso chocolate cheesecake.

Some of his favorite musical acts to listen to include Pale Blu, Blood in the Water, Death Theater, and Discordic Harmony.

In the pantheon Theo greatly admires Hades (god of the dead), Erebus (god of darkness), Moros (god of doom), Momus (god of mockery, satire, & ridicule); loves watching The Agnostic Network, Hecate (goddess of magic & witchcraft), Nemesis (goddess of retribution); who he also used to have a crush on, Favian (god of philosophy); has a signed harcover & paperback copy of every book he's published, and Keres (goddess of violent death).

He has even dog sat Cerberus a handful of times, with Hades paying him 100 drachmas!

Theo has a complicated relationship with his mother. On one hand he admires her intelligence & respects the fact that she's taking responsibility when it comes to handling her mental illness and how she treats him like a mature young adult, but on the the other hand, he sometimes wishes that Ananke was the kind of mom that asked how his day was or made a home cooked meal or volunteered spending time together. For the longest time as a kid, Theo thought that Acantha, a lampade who works for Ananke, was his actual mom instead of being a glorified nanny! The two of them still have a pretty close relationship! There used to be times when Theo was the mediator between Acantha & his mom every time she'd have a violent outburst. In a weird way, he does know that his mother loves him.

His all time favorite meal (which Acantha makes) is a filet mignon (well done) served with sauteed mushrooms, blackened asparagus, & garlic mashed potatoes.

His all time favorite movie is Blooddancer! He remembers going along with Ascalaphus to the premier at the Agesilaos Theater in the Underworld!

In his free time Theo enjoys calligraphy, ink painting, skateboarding, reading, writing poetry, listening to music, drawing, pottery, playing video games, chess, lava surfing, poker, and basketball.

"A brutal reality is always better than a sweet deception."

[atdutiesend]

{ @runeskald sent: }

"So... Noticed you know about the Starlight Celebration." He set down the box he had brought in with him before stepping aside, gesturing towards it. It wasn't festively wrapped, but it seemed to be a gift.

"Go ahead, there's something in there for you. Hope you like it."

---------

Inside the box contains:

1 new outfit. A cozy scarf and cardigan with a warm, comfortable shirt, insulated pants, soft fluffy socks and knee-high boots.

The Eleos Greatsword, complete with the signature crafted glow.

A package of treats from Eorzea, the Far East and the New World. All handmade by Caster.

Three moogle plushies. Small (Bridesmoogle), medium (Taoist Moogle) and hug-sized (Delivery Moogle).

A medium-sized plush of his FFXIV OC, complete with plush Eleos greatsword.

A set of Eorzean pens and a few empty journals.

"Cu, you didn't have to..." He's not complaining though, curiously opening the box. His eyes widened and he stared for a moment before standing and pulling him into a hug.

"Thank you!" He's definitely not all teary-eyed, shut up.

[ao3feed-imzadi]

Shores of Mourning 2

Shores of Mourning 2 https://ift.tt/7ehm5yt by OzarkBear80 When Jean-Luc Picard gets taken by the Borg off the Bridge of the Enterprise-F, Raffi Musiker, now in command, sets off on a mission to get the great captain back. Meanwhile, back at Chateau Picard, 8-year-old Jack Crusher Picard has had nightmares and starts exhibiting clairvoyant gifts, informing Beverly that his papa is on the Borg Cube moments after she got off a private call with Starfleet Headquarters about the issue. Words: 1397, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English Fandoms: Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: The Next Generation (Movies) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: Multi Characters: Jean-Luc Picard, Beverly Crusher, Jack Crusher (Star Trek: Picard), Original Child Character(s), Original Female Character(s), Original Male Character(s), William Riker, Deanna Troi, Kestra Troi-Riker, Thaddeus "Thad" Troi-Riker, Raffi Musiker, Worf (Star Trek:TNG/DS9), Geordi La Forge, Wesley Crusher, Locutus of Borg, Borg Queen (Star Trek) Relationships: Beverly Crusher/Jean-Luc Picard, William Riker/Deanna Troi Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Jacks a kid, Late Rise of Locutus, Married Beverly Crusher/Jean-Luc Picard, Jean-Luc and Beverly have lots of kids, Starship Eleos (Star Trek), What-If via AO3 works tagged 'William Riker/Deanna Troi' https://ift.tt/GtBYkjV August 17, 2024 at 03:24AM

[maladaptedreader-writes]

Mal's ramblings/sources for TGOE Ch 4

PRAYING TO HERMES

Supplication

I bumped this one from the very last note to the very first, because it was my MOST heavily used source. I mentioned it back in chapter 1, and subsequently read all of it, but it turns out The Nature of the Act of Supplication is only Chapter 1 of Gaye McSweeney's masters thesis Acts of Supplication in Ancient Greece, which I will find the time to read, because holy cow it's fantastic!

I used so much from it, I can't even list it all. It's the backbone of the whole chapter. That said, all of this focuses on what's seen in the epics unless otherwise stated. I wanted to focus on Mycenaean traditions, but there's very little information available.

Suppliants bough

I mentioned in chapter 1 about an olive branch being used as a suppliants bough, but hair may be used in its place in certain circumstances. Supplication to a chthonic deity is one. (See Acts of Supplication in Ancient Greece.)

Self-abasement and mutilation

Self-abasement means to lower oneself, and there are various things you can do to achieve this depending on your need. In this chapter, it's done three times. Once when Patroclus dons the only thing he owns; again when he kneels before the hearth; and lastly when he tears the tunic, lacerates his chest, and laments.

During the prothesis (lying in state) part of a funeral, mourners cry, prostrate over the body, tear their clothing, lacerate their flesh, tear out their hair, and cover themselves with dirt or ash.

During supplication, the supplicant must abandon their dignity and honor, and behave in the "manner of a slave."

For both, the goal is to achieve pity, but funereal self-abasement has special meaning on top of this; McSweeney mentions theories on these acts mimicking violence used to protect the living. And since you can no longer protect the dead, the mourners turn the acts on themselves. (I took this a step further in the narrative.)

I did look for specific words for the different acts, or for the practice as a whole, but couldn't find any. Self-abasement, self-effacement, self-mutilation, disfigurement, etc. are the closest words, it seems, and these first three are the words used by McSweeney. For all I know, there are words, only I can't read them, but I've chosen to imagine there are no words for it in the old language because they didn't think of it like we do. I'd love to be corrected if someone does know!

All About Hermes

The chapter is named after the two forms of Hermes, his Ouranic (Olympic) form and his Chthonic (Underworld) form.

Hermes is called Cyllenius because he was born on Mt. Cyllene in the most common story. In his Chthonic form, the story goes that he was born of Dionysis and Aphrodite. But I am sticking with Zeus/Maia, since that seems to be what Hades (game) did.

Again I use Theoi (Hermes section) a LOT for this, and use Neokoroi for the offerings.

For both prayers, the Orphic Hymn 28 to Hermes and Hymn 57 to Chthonian Hermes were models, especially the last line of 28, but all 5 hymns on Theoi were inspirational in some way. So was Aeschylus' Libation Bearers.

I also looked into how current Hellenic worshipers structure their prayers. Interestingly, it seemed to mostly align with the Orphic hymns. Still, it was more inspirational than a guide.

Statue of Hermes

It's just called the Statue of Hermes. I really tried to find something more significant for the scene, but gentle Hermes with his hand on a tortoise (which he used to create a lyre so "gentle" might be a stretch) seemed appropriate.

Fumigation

The Orphic hymn mentions which herbs to fumigate with. The why I made up. Maybe it's in my head from somewhere (pagan practices or something), so if I did steal it from somewhere specific, sorry?

Barley

I legitimately wondered "what about barley meal?? Should they just throw flour?" (Do not throw flour at a fire! It turns into a cloud of flame!) While, yes, you can use alternatives when you don't have barley meal, Odysseus did, it's really only necessary for animal sacrifices, I guess.

GRIEF AND MOURNING

I cribbed heavily from Aeschylus' Libation Bearers, which takes place not long after the Iliad, so the funerary practices would align, even if Aeschylus wasn't a peer of Homer. (They both lived long after the Bronze Age anyway!)

As for research, Portraits of Grief: Death, Mourning and the Expression of Sorrow on White-Ground Lêkythoi [PDF] by Molly Evangeline Allen was the biggest help, though I only read the section on Male Mourning.

Gendered behaviors

Men and women had specific roles when it came to funerals, and specific behaviors tended to be more feminine or more masculine, though there were shifts throughout the centuries.

That said, similar to how we used to (or maybe still do) view crying as a womanly thing to do, men were not unknown to express themselves in ways that weren't particularly manly. There are examples of male laments, hair cutting, and skin lacerating (at least in the epics and plays).

McSweeney and Allen (authors of Acts of Supplication in Ancient Greece and Portraits of Grief... respectively) both discuss gendered differences in the varied acts of mourning (and supplication). I also found a paper discussing Male Lament, but only the abstract. Link below in the section on lamentation.

Tearing the breast/chest/cheeks/hair

From my 21st century, American perspective, this is a significant act of grief. Either it's just dramatic enough to find its way into many stories, or it was more common than I would expect. Though, it was significant enough for Solon to make a law about it, so I guess it could be both.

Still, it is a prescribed act, as McSweeney references in The Nature of the Act of Supplication. Meaning it's expected, and there are rules around it. It's not, necessarily, a spontaneous act of grief.

Cutting the hair

When I read that a character cuts their hair for the dead, I read it as them going full Mulan.

However, there is precedent for using locks rather than chopping off all of a mourner's hair. I direct you to Aeschylus' tragedy, Libation Bearers. As it opens, Orestes, son of Agamemnon, cuts 2 locks from his hair, and sets them on his father's tumulus (grave mound).

Lamentations

Briseis, Helen, Achilles, and so many other characters lament within the Iliad, but it's not in a way I would think of as lyrical, probably because I have trouble reading lyrics in song. (It was annoying whenever there was singing in LOTR, ngl.)

But, I made an effort to express grief in song, since it's a huge part of funeral rites. Even men sing.

Men and women (according to the above source) do lament differently, though. So I did a fair amount of looking into lamentations.

First, I read and re-read many of the lamentations within the Iliad. External sources include An Ancient Greek Lament Form by Charles H. Cosgrove (though I could only read that first page), Athenaeus' The Learned Banqueters, Drowning Sorrows: Archilochus fr.13 W. in its Performance Context [PDF] by Deborah Steiner, Aeschylus' Libation Bearers, the previously mentioned abstract from Male Lament and the Symposium by Gregory Jones, Portraits of Grief... [PDF] by Molly Evangeline Allen (which had a small quote from Euripides' Alcestis), and one actual recorded lament I couldn't find in my YouTube history, but was definitely in one of these documents… I didn't use it to compose anything though.

I felt awkward writing a song when I'm a terrible songwriter, especially when it's supposedly coming from a culture where songs and singing are so important. Or at least seems to be important. But I pushed through and came up with something, even if there's only 1 ½ lines in the actual narrative.

Nico's chant

This is straight up pulled from Greek Orthodox funeral rites. It's really just the Trisagion (a specific chant).

OTHER THINGS!

Hippodameia Briseis

I've thought a lot about whether to use the name Hippodameia or Briseis. It's easy to say "Briseis means Daughter of Brises" and that her first name, Hippodameia, is found in Homer's scholia (notes, basically), and call it a day. But it's not nearly that clean.

While I've read this information all over the place, I'd like to direct you to the book Homeric Variations on the Lament by Briseis by Casey Dué. It's intensely fascinating, but I'm using it for the only source here because the content and footnotes aggregate the information I'd read elsewhere. And it has an argument to make on compressed stories within the epic that I like.

Long-story-short, we have 3 origin stories for Briseis, which Dué illustrates are all intertwined in the narrative of the Iliad. Only one of the origins calls her Hippodameia, daughter of Brises, King of Pedasos.

There are arguments to be made that Briseis may be her given name, and that Briseus doesn't exist. Or that she and her father both are named for their home town of Brisa, a town on Lesbos, which pairs poetically with Chryseis, daughter of Chryses, both from the town of Chryse.

As for me, I chose my route. It'll have nice poetry itself later. Though, I must admit, it's a knee-jerk reaction that I don't want to call a woman exclusively by her father's name, like she has no existence outside a man (very Western of me, I know), and that definitely played into my decision to even look into this. But I digress.

PS Hippodameia means "horse tamer" (Briseis means "martial strength") and Deidameia (Achilles' first wife) means "she who is patient in battle." The word "dameia" in both names means "tamer", so I'm curious to know how "Deidameia" reached such a non-literal meaning, unlike Hippodameia, which is extremely literal.

Patroclus "related" to the gods

t/w: incest (Should this be a t/w? It's mythology, I just assume there's incest.)

All this came from hunting through Wikipedia. There are variations on who got with who and who had which baby, so where there was disagreement I went with either the more popular, the one that was the least confusing, and/or the one I liked better.

We're going to skip the 5 potential mothers of Patroclus and only look at his paternal lineage.

Patroclus' grandmother was the naiad Aegina, daughter of the river god Asopus and the naiad Metope, herself daughter of the river god Landon. And according to Hesiod's Theogony, rivers were all born of Oceanus and Tethys, so both Asopus and Landon would be their get. That puts Patroclus 4 generations removed from titans (and Zeus on his grandfather's side), and 2 from gods (nymphs are minor deities, after all).

So, yeah. Godly relations.

Nyx not Persephone

In the chthonian prayer, I explicitly name Nyx as the empress of the underworld, not Persephone. This comes from Hades, the game.

(Mild spoilers? It's all set-up info.) At the start of the game, Persephone is not known to be the Queen of the Underworld. Instead, Nyx is known as the other half of the partnership, though her relationship with Hades himself is ambiguous. The gods are told, at some point, that she and Hades had a son together, but I don't assume the mortals know about Zagreus.

Polytheism Banned in Greece

The spread of Christianity killed polytheism in the Roman empire. In Greece, it was made legal again in 2006.

Cutting condoms

They still teach this in sex ed, right? You can cut the tip and bottom off a condom, and cut it up the side to create a dental dam.

[neriyon]

And the last ship meme! Template once again here. (edit: I forgor to mention but mine is edited a little!)

This time it's ancient trio time~ ShB/Endwalker spoilers and lots of rambling under the cut

I'll start with mentioning that Eleos is Azem and Hawu'li is his shard. I think I've posted what he vaguely looks like in form of a picrew pic buuuut uh, this time you get a quick little scribble of his mask I drew instead.

Height and age - yeah no, I did not want to fuck with trying to choose anything for them since ancient world works weirdly. They are all of similar ages and fairly young, Hades has just aged a lot due to having to deal with his husbands lol. He's tallest of the three, with Eleos being just a tiny bit shorter than Hyth.

Jock - game keeps saying Emet is "the greatest mage" but honestly I could not mark him as nerd when he swings that huge drk sword so effortlessly in Ktisis. So to me he is also physically strong. Hyth is nerd on account of working basically a desk job and complaining how he doesn't usually fight, even if using a bow logically makes him somewhat buff too.

Affection - Hades is tsun so no pda. Hyth is used to this and knows not to tease him too much. Eleos does not care and teases both of them mercilessly with his affection, regardless of where they are or who is watching.

Confessions - Hyth and Hades were an item even before meeting Eleos, and their thing started from Hades managing to voice his feelings (Hyth had known about them already, but wanted to hear him say it). With Eleos, they kinda confessed together, with Hyth once again pushing Hades to admit his feelings out loud. By this point Eleos has been saying he loves them both for like, literal months but somehow also never initiated anything? Even Hyth was kinda confused if it was more plationical or not lol.

Kiss - Hades kisses both of them first: Hyth during a really sweet and romantic moment as teens, and Eleos to shut him up. Which surprisingly worked, as Eleos just kinda froze and was unable to process any thoughts for like half an hour. It has not worked ever since.

Propose - Hades is the most easily jealous one, so he really wanted something to seal the fact that they were all bound to eachother. All 3 have matching earring. Eleos also got a tiny magic circle drawn on his ringfinger - Emet's magic, made to contain both his and Hyth's essence to help calm Eleos down (he's strongly affected by feelings of others). It's usually invisible, but glows softly purple when touched.

Other stuff:

Hades and Eleos are both really stubborn so Hyth has to act as mediator between them

Hades first noticed Eleos from his soul (mix of orange and purple hues, like a really vibrant sunrise) which was so out of normal it got his attenttion in a big crowd (and Eleos did something really stupid right after so it really was unforgettable lol)

Eleos has a habit of just. Leaving in the middle of night if his wanderlust happens to hit. He's gotten really good at sneaking out and only leaving small "gone travelling, see you" note behind.

As a countermeasure, both Hyth and Hades sleep holding him really tight so he can't just dissappear to god knows where. Eleos doesn't seem to mind too much (but still manages to escape some nights)

All 3 spoil eachother so much but in completely different ways.

Emet overlooks so much of his husbands' mischief and no matter how busy, is always ready to give them his time if they want it

Hyth brings the other 2 interesting concepts from work as gifts

Eleos brings them whatever he find on his travels. He's especially good at picking things that pacify Hades' anger when he's done something stupid again.

[kruel-kreator]

Another year, one more valentines. It's been much longer than it should've but well, he's still there, alive. Jesse sat there, at the edge of his world, a small box of chocolates to his left, some gold and red flowers, and a black and yellow blade that was gifted to him once upon a time rested on his right.

"Yknow, I didn't think I'd live this long. I mean, I know I'm supposed to but its still shocking." He spoke, taking a drink from the glass of wine in his hand. He was talking to someone, not himself. "I wish you were here with me, my dear." Jesse said as he sighed to himself.

He looked over at the sword and poured a bit of the wine on it. "This is my favorite brand..." He muttered to himself before looking over the edge of the universe again. Thats when a soft hum came from behind him. "I thought you didn't like wine" Spoke a gentle voice. "Ah- Connor. Or should I say Eleos. Why are you here?" Jesse asked to the darker man

Connor chuckled before sitting beside Jesse after the latter moved the sword onto his lap. "Visiting you, don't want you to be too alone on Valentine's. It's always been your weakness." Connor spoke with a softness to his tone that's only there when Jesse's at his worst. "But don't you have a wife to spend valentine's with?" Asked Jesse.

"I do, but you're still someone that matters a lot to me, and I dont want to see you suffering on a day like this." Connor answered, the bright halo that glowed around his head and the white stardust cape on him signaling his status as a creator of a realm.

"Why don't you come over to reality today? The day's great, in fact I can take you to the restaurant Camille and I are going to, you can eat whatever I'll pay." Connor insisted as Jesse sighed and got up. "Fine, but Vic's coming with me..." He said, holding onto the sword strongly. Connor didn't question it, just nodded as he opened the portal back to reality.

For the first time in more than 30 years, Jesse wasn't alone during Valentines.

[spiritsoulandbody]

#DailyDevotion LORD Have Mercy Upon Us

#DailyDevotion LORD Have Mercy Upon Us Psalm 123 I look up to You on Your throne in heaven. 2Yes, like servants looking to their masters' hand, like a maid looking to her mistress' hand, so we look to the LORD our God until He has mercy on us. 3Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us because we've had more than enough contempt. 4We've had our fill of being mocked by those who are at ease, our fill of being despised by the proud. The LORD has given us this direction to look by His manifested actions in our sight of coming down and going up. So we see the LORD coming down on Mt. Sinai. The pillar of cloud and fire come down from heaven. We see the Angel of the LORD go up with the fire of the sacrifice. We see Jesus the LORD ascend to heaven forty days after the resurrection and we know He is coming down that way again. Jesus told us when we see certain signs look up because we know our redemption is near. The temple of the LORD was up for the pilgrims making their way up to it, who were singing this song, to celebrate the three mandated festivals for them. It is well for us to look up to the LORD to seek from Him all good things. We look up to Him and pray to Him to give us every good and perfect gift from above. We do not only look up to receive. We also look up to Him for direction. The hand of the master or the mistress guides the actions of their servants. We are servants of the LORD. From the Temple, the LORD would have the priest instruct His people in His way from the Torah He had given them. We also gather together and look to the mouth of our pastors, whom He has given us, to instruct us in the ways the LORD Jesus has given us. We look to our LORD to give us mercy and to have mercy on us in His teaching. In verse three, the theme of mercy comes up again. There are a total of three mercies then in the Psalm that are called upon. This is the Hebrew word "chanan." Sometimes chesed (usually translated steadfast love) is used for mercy, but here it is chanan. In the Septuagint the two mercies in verse 3 are eleos, like kyrie eleos. In the Septuagint though in verse two the Greek word for mercy translated by the Jews is oiktirō. It is only used twice in one verse in the New Testament in Romans 9:15, where Pauls quotes Ex. 33:19, “I will be merciful to whom I want to be merciful; I will pity whom I want to pity.” It is the word "pity" that is translated from this word. Interestingly in Ex. 33 the Hebrew word being translated there in Exodus is racham. I guess it is all in the same semantic field. In our worship service we sing the three-fold Kyrie Eleson, Lord have mercy upon us. So in this Psalm there is a three-fold plea for the LORD to have mercy on us. We pray for mercy because we need the LORD's word of instruction. We plead for mercy because we are held in contempt by all the world. Unfortunately, those who hold us in the most contempt for having the faith are those who claim to be in the faith but do not live by the faith. Besides having our fill of contempt by others because of our faith in the LORD we are also filled with being mocked by them. Try expressing your faith on the internet or any public forum and you will soon join those who sing this Psalm on their way up to the Temple of the LORD. These people are at ease and full of pride. They are full of themselves and their supposed learning but they do not have understanding. It is understandable they have no understanding because they do not have the Holy Spirit. They do not submit themselves to God's Word but to the philosophy of the world. But we need the LORD to have mercy and pity upon us so we can bear up under the cross laid upon us by our LORD Jesus Christ and to participate in His sufferings so we may participate in His glory when He returns. O LORD, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us, so we may know Your peace and live in Your understanding. Come quickly LORD Jesus Christ so we may enter into Your eternal kingdom and we may live under you. In You precious name we pray. Amen.  Read the full article

[neriyon]

Ohhhh perfectly timed wolqotd bc I was just thinking about ancients yesterday~

Hawu'li's ancient is Azem, more intimately known as Eleos. He/him, pan, born on some small, remote village, and around the same age as Hyth and Emet. They all met during their akadaemia years (when Eleos, being himself, caused a big commotion during enterance ceremony), and ended up dating sometime around their graduation. He and Hyth both really get on poor Emet's nerves some days, but they all love each other very much.

Eleos had long (down to around the small of his back), dark purple hair with bright orange highlights, often worn open with a small part gathered up as a ponytail on the left side, and his bangs parted to right. He's also got a mole under his left eye, bright orange eyes reminiscent of sunrise, and is often seen smiling, laughing or playfully smirking. He's bit shorter than Hyth and of similar build.

Thanks to this picrew I finally have somewhat accurate picture of how I image him!

Venat is his beloved mentor and idol - she saved his home village during her Azem years, and Eleos who was just a wee kid back then was so blown away by how amazing and cool she was. Their relationship is generally very close after Venat herself offers student-Eleos to become her apprentice, only taking a turn for the worse when final days start happening (he's not into the whole summoning plan).

He's also in somewhat good terms with other Convocation members during his time as Azem (Lahabrea might've something to say about his behaviour tho...) but seemed extra close to Elidibus whom he seemed to consider as younger brother, often bringing him gifts from his travels.

hm? oh is it wol question time?

who is your wol/oc's ancient?

is it Azem, or someone else? what's their name? what was their relationship to the ancients we know (Venat, Emet Selch, Hythodeus, etc.)? do you have a picture of them?

[albertfinch]

"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."  - Hebrews 4:16

There is a difference between HAVING favor and SPENDING favor. You can have money and not spend it. You can also have favor and not spend it, or not spend it wisely. It is time for the people of God to recognize that we have been given amazing favor through our relationship with Christ. In the New Testament, the word grace and favor come from the same Greek word, "charis". So when Hebrews 4 says to boldly come before God's throne of grace, it is for far more than just forgiveness of our sins:

It is a THRONE OF FAVOR

("charis"—grace, graciousness, joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, goodwill, benefit, loving kindness, gifts, rewards, strength and increase)

which we can COME BEFORE BOLDLY

("parrhesia"—with free and fearless confidence, cheerful courage, boldness and assurance)

to LAY HOLD OF MERCY

("eleos"—kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them) and to help in a time of need.