Greek Alphabet Oracle Stones

I've been rediscovering divination techniques lately. While I own a few tarot decks, I mostly use the them as an alliance in studying and understanding the Qabalah and working up the paths on the Tree of Life. (For anyone interested in that I recommend Robert Wang's book "The Qabalistic Tarot". It is most excellent.)

I also own a copper pendulum that I purchased years ago, in what I like to consider the "beginnings" of my serious magical/spiritual/religious exploration. While it was fun in the beginnings, it was not a serious method to divine anything worth while.

And so, in my searches around the web, (and in my recent interests into Heathenry), I came upon an interesting site which covered the Greek Alphabet Oracle. Here is the link: http://web.eecs.utk.edu/~mclennan/BA/GAO.html#alpha

I liked the clear information and decided to give them a try. So I headed to my local Michael's craft store and purchased a number of round wooden chips. 

A total of 24 chips was needed, and they come in packs of 7 so I had a few left over which was good in case of mistakes. My first inclination was to paint all the chips one solid color, but the more I thought about it, I thought it would be nice to have the chips be two colors. I settled on blue and white and realized towards the end that those are the colors of the modern Greek flag. Total fluke, lol.

Once they were painted, I took a black sharpie and drew on the letters of the Greek Alphabet. I know, sharpie is not very fancy, not like wood burning, but it did the trick. Then I sprayed them with a coat of clear enamel.

Now that they were finished, it was just a matter of blessing them. I knew I wanted to call upon Apollon as God of the Oracles and Omens, but I had to wait till my son was out of the house so I would not be interrupted, lol. 

The video can be found here on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9KtrGtLrB_I

Polytheistic Reconstructionism

Let's talk Polytheistic Reconstructionism.

Firstly, Polytheistic reconstructionism (Reconstructionism) is an approach to paganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s, and gathered momentum in the 1990s to 2000s, and still going strong today. Reconstructionism attempts to re-establish historical polytheistic religions in the modern world. - Wikipedia, Polytheistic Reconstructionism

The term Reconstruction (Recon) is thrown around a lot in the Hellenic community, however, many do not realize that Polytheistic Recon is a methodology to approach reconstructing ancient religions. It does not simply mean: Do exactly as the ancients did. That would just be re-enactment.

What follows are key excerpts from Bil Linzie's excellent paper "Reconstructionism's Role in Modern Heathenry" found here: http://www.angelfire.com/nm/seidhman/reconstruction-c.pdf

This will give us a good grounding on how another tradition is approaching reconstruction and hopefully we can start thinking about how we can apply the methodology ourselves.

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Reconstructionism is a philosophical and theoretical approach to revitalizing Germanic heathenry in the modern era.

The questions should now be clearly defined: ``What exactly is reconstructionism, what differentiates it from any other approach and, lastly, why is it even important?'' Reconstructionism is simply this: Reconstructionism is an experiment pure and simple: "If we take the worldview of XYZ-people, and apply it in our own lives, what is the experience?"

The basis of reconstructionism is to reconstruct the 'worldview' of any group of people and apply to gain experience. The simplest of these reconstructive efforts will be completely physical in nature such as carving a runestone utilizing only the tools which were known to have existed during the period and among the culture which one is studying. Other physical-experiments would be that of baking bread, making cloth, blacksmithing, animal husbandry, gardening, boat-building, preparing and putting on a feast, carving wooden utensils, and so on. There is little difference between such an approach taken by modern heathens and those experiments already being conducted by anthropology students engaging in experiential anthropology.

The next questions should probably be ``Why would anyone have to engage in such activities just to belong to a religion?'' What is the relationship between reconstructing the physical processes of artifact production and religion? The assumption that the reconstructionist is working under, however, is that there is no real religion to be had. For the reconstructionist, 'religion' is something that is culturally independent and self-contained and what the reconstructionist is seeking to experience is not the religion but the worldview, the mindset of the the people in question, which gave birth to certain specific spiritual practices.7 The central spiritual practice of the modern heathen is the blót, for example, a sacrifice the regin (ON), the gods, but the reconstructionist isn't looking to rebuild the ceremony so much as he is trying to experience why the ceremony was even important in the first place. The reconstructionist is looking not for a religion but for that which underlies spiritual practice.

The reconstructionist must always be aware that history is not being relived, nor can it be perfectly duplicated. That is not the point of reconstructionism in modern heathenry; the actual point is the attempt to gain the experience of what life was probably like because it is a collection of experiences and perceptions about the world in a specific way which was the matrix in which heathenry was germinated and grown and, by extension, in which it evolved.

While a 'true believer' may find this situation to be paradoxical, the reconstructionist finds such

a position to be a fertile place worthy of study and research. The 'assumption' is that 'belief' must be a necessary component to modern heathen praxis. The reconstructionist questions the concept of 'belief,' though: What was the Old Norse or the Old High German or the Old Saxon word for 'belief?' Was the word used among heathens or was it created to represent an early Christian concept?

The heathen engaging in reconstructionist research is in a good position, holding to no specific beliefs or dogmas to speak of,8 to question everything: Is such-and-such fact, or are we assuming it to be fact? What is the evidence supporting the alleged fact? Here are some reconstructionist style questions:

1. How much of the eddaic material is Christian interpolation or interpretation?

2. Why doesn't the tribal separation of the Vanir versus the Ásir show up in gothic, Old High German, Old Saxon, and Anglo-Saxon texts?

3. Was Óðínn viewed as 'the High God' in all Germanic linguistic branches?

4. Why does a heathen Afterlife show up only in later (eddaic) poetry while the sagas and heathen period skaldic poetry match the bulk of archaeological evidence that life was

continued in the grave?

Things to note:

1)  First, and foremost, it is important to understand that reconstructionism cannot replace adherence to a worldview. 'Adherence' implies that one is operating from the 'inside'; reconstructionism gathers its real power from being on the 'outside' looking in. The paradox is similar to the paradox of quantum physics where one is able investigate the motion of an electron but cannot at the same time know anything about its position and vice versa.

2)  Reconstructionism does not imply that one is engaged in reproducing or duplicating history. It is not a time machine where one is able to step back into history and experience it first-hand. It is rather 'a methodical approach to studying those forces and processes which most likely gave rise to heathenry.'10

3)  The end-product of reconstructionism is not to re-create early germanic cultures in the 21st century; knowledge only of the ancient processes is the only goal.

4)  Reconstructed heathen worldviews will only function as an aid to clearing the mirror of history so that modern adherents will have a chance to experience more fully the picture in a historically accurate fashion, but even at its best, reconstructionism will never be able to completely clear the glass.

5)  Reconstructionism is an approach to studying the historical foundations of heathenry; it is not, nor can it be 'an approach to 'living as a heathen.' 'Living as a heathen' must be from within an activated worldview.

6)  Our detractors with all their arguments against reconstructionism are absolutely correct. Their arguments come from within an 'activated worldview,' historically accurate or not; our arguments are always from the perspective outside looking at usually more than one worldview in a static fashion.

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Taking all this information and applying it to a Hellenic mind set:

What is the Hellenic worldview? What time period are you looking at? 

Are you considering the lives of all peoples? The elite, the writers, the farmers, the women, the children, the slaves?

What did the ancient Hellenes believe "made a good person"? 

What were the social, religious, political, etc. conditions that affected such views? We often talk about "Hellenic Ethics". What are these ethics? How did they come to be? Who determined what was considered ethical? Who determined what was seen as good or bad? Did ethics change throughout the course of Hellenic history?

When looking at literature from the time, what was happening in Athens at the time that said piece was written? What were the political events, struggles, attitudes of the time? How did these things affect what the author was writing about? Was the author speaking for all the Hellenic peoples or just the elite? 

If the gods were seen as the ultimate authority, did the author use the gods in his play to voice the opinions of the masses? Or the elite? Or himself? Was the play written to criticize the elite, or spread their propaganda to the masses?


These are just a few of the many, many questions that arise when applying the methodology of Polytheistic Reconstructionism. It is not simply about "doing what the ancients did". It's about a deeper understanding about why the practices and beliefs existed, so that we can relive an ancient religion in a modern context. 

We've Changed Our Name!

Greetings :)

If you haven't already noticed, there have been a few key changes to Hellenismos of Manitoba - or should I say, Hestia's Hearth. Yes, we've changed our group name. There were a few reasons behind this:

1) Hellenismos of Manitoba sounded a bit too professional 
2) Limiting the group to members living in Manitoba only, was unrealistic
3) People recognize the name of a goddess easier than the term Hellenismos

Therefore the name change took place last night and I've been slowly working on changing over the FB page and this blog to reflect the new changes. I also advertised the FB Group on two popular Hellenic FB pages in hopes that we can attract some more active members. Active participantion and discussion is an important part of learning and growing as a community. As of this moment we have welcomed 6 new members to the FB group! 

This blog had been silent over the past few months as my focus had been on establishing my personal Inner and Outer Hellenic Magical Orders. I've now gotten to the point where I can refocus on building Hestia's Hearth into a proper Modern Hellenic Community.

Why the term Modern?

Well, we are modern people living in modern times, however I personally feel that the concept is lost on most Hellenics who are trying to revive an ancient tradition. For example, our group does not follow an ancient calendar. I have yet to see the reason why we should. Following a calendar that was structured around the lives of people that lived in Ancient Athens 2000+ years ago makes little sense to me. I'd much rather do the research and create our own calendar which is properly suited to modern times and the geography of the land in which we live: Manitoba, Canada.

As well, our group utilizes concepts of magical practice, be they Hermetic, Qabalistic, European Witchcraft, or American Conjure. Many other Greek Revivalist groups don't acknowledge magic at all. However through our independent research into topics such as The Greek Magical Papyri, the History of the Qabalah, and the History of Hermetics, we feel that Ancient Greece did in fact incorperate magical pracitices and techniques and was heading more and more to a magical way of thinking. 

Maybe at this point it is important to point out that the type of magic we are speaking about is not the New Agey 'love, light, crystals and spells' that are so popular amoung Neo-pagans of today. When we speak of magic we speak of deep communion with diety; of disecting the myths and journeying into the stories to come away with a new look on life and the world around us. Invoking Hera into our lives and home to help us with a troubled marriage, or working intensely with Ares to over come our quick to rise anger issues. 

With that said, I'm looking forward to writing more frequently for this blog and getting some good conversations started in the Hellenic community.

In December, We Honour Hephaistos

When it came time for me to decide which of the Olympians should be assigned to which month of our calendar, I tried to incorporate a number of ideas:

1) keeping with modern traditions - example - February for Aphrodite because of Valentine's Day; June for Hera because the month most weddings happen, (and the Roman name for Hera was Juno - bonus)

2) corresponding to natural phenomenon in Manitoba - Artemis as goddess of assisting in Birth and the wild places, so she was placed in the spring; Ares took August for the heat; September is the beginning of wine making hence Dionysos took September.

3) hopes of furthering associations - Hephaistos takes December

And this is what I want to discuss, why Hephaistos took December.

According to the Ancient Athenian Calendar (because every major polis had their own calendar, although we have the most information on the Athenian one, hence it is the one to follow), the month of our modern December falls in line with two ancient months: Hespereon and Poseideon. This is because the ancient Greeks used a lunar calendar instead of the solar one we use.

It is the month of Poseideon that lands towards the end of December, named after the festival of Poseidea, a celebration to Poseidon. Because in today's culture we are so tied into this idea of big end of year celebrations (Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Yule), many modern Hellenics have taken to celebrating Poseidea on or near the Winter Solstice. Some groups have even made a big celebration out of honouring Herakles' birth at this time of year. 

For me, in the hopes of furthering associations between the Theoi and our modern lives, I choose to place Hephaistos over Poseidon for December.

While there is no doubt in my mind that the ancient celebration of honouring the God of the Sea had intense meaning at this time of year for a country that's a peninsula, it does not have much meaning for us, a province in the middle of the continent. While the sea may not play a big role for us at this time of year, the cold and snow does. And so I thought about the cold, the snow, and how it feels to be stuck outside in minus 40 degree weather. Naturally when thinking of December my mind went to Christmas and while I tried to stay away from those associations, something kept coming back - the fireplace. 

The fireplace naturally had me thinking of Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth, who is honoured everyday in our homes. But as I thought more about December - staying indoors, knitting or building things to keep our selves busy, creating things with our hands - it lead me quickly to the God of Smith Work - Hephaistos. 

The fireplace is a great representation of Hephaistos' forges, and also a symbolic representation of stoking the solar fire (the Sun) for it's return to power. December is a great month as a Pagan to hunker down and prepare yourself for the new year. The winter months are the right time to replenish supplies, create new tools, do reading a research. All great things to do since the frigid temperatures prevent us from doing many outdoor rituals or celebrations in general.

Honouring Hephaistos is a month long observance. HoM does our monthly libations to the Theos on the first Sunday of December, and the rest of the month is for further contemplation, study, relationship building with Hephaistos. Members of HoM are encouraged to celebrate the winter solstice, however as of yet, the HoM does not have a set celebration for that period.

Mystic Musings: Prometheus

This post was inspired by a quote I found on Facebook. While the actual content of the quote was a bit too "mystic sounding" and seemed to lack any actual substance, I thought I'd explore Prometheus a bit more. (The quote from FB is posted at the end of this blog post.)


Prometheus ("forethought") was the Titan god of forethought and crafty counsel who was entrusted with the task of moulding mankind out of clay. His attempts to better the lives of his creation brought him into direct conflict with Zeus. 

The Prometheus myth first appeared in the late 8th-century BCE Greek epic poet Hesiod's Theogony. He was a son of the Titan Iapetus by Clymene, one of the Oceanids. He was brother to Menoetius, Atlas, and Epimetheus ("hindsight" or "after thinker"). In the Theogony, Hesiod introduces Prometheus a lowly challenger to Zeus's omniscience and omnipotence. In the trick at Mekone, a sacrificial meal marking the "settling of accounts" between mortals and immortals, Prometheus played a trick against Zeus. He placed two sacrificial offerings before the Olympian: a selection of beef hidden inside an ox's stomach (nourishment hidden inside a displeasing exterior), and the bull's bones wrapped completely in "glistening fat" (something inedible hidden inside a pleasing exterior). Zeus chose the latter, setting a precedent for future sacrifices.

Henceforth, humans would keep that meat for themselves and burn the bones wrapped in fat as an offering to the gods. This angered Zeus, who hid fire from humans in retribution. In this version of the myth, the use of fire was already known to humans, but withdrawn by Zeus. Prometheus, however, stole fire back in a giant fennel-stalk and restored it to humanity. This further enraged Zeus, who sent Pandora, the first woman, to live with humanity, Pandora. 

Prometheus, in eternal punishment, is chained to a rock in a mountain range where his liver is eaten daily by an eagle, only to be regenerated by night, due to his immortality. The eagle is a symbol of Zeus himself. Years later, the Greek hero Heracles slays the eagle and frees Prometheus from the eagle's torment.

Hesiod revisits the story of Prometheus in the Works and Days . Here, the poet expands upon Zeus's reaction to Prometheus's deception. Not only does Zeus withhold fire from humanity, but "the means of life," as well. Had Prometheus not provoked Zeus's wrath, "you would easily do work enough in a day to supply you for a full year even without working; soon would you put away your rudder over the smoke, and the fields worked by ox and sturdy mule would run to waste." 

Hesiod also expands upon the Theogony's story of the first woman, now explicitly called Pandora ("all gifts"). After Prometheus' theft of fire, Zeus sent Pandora in retaliation. Pandora was fashioned by Hephaestus out of clay and brought to life by the four winds, with all the goddesses of Olympus assembled to adorn her. "From her is the race of women and female kind," Hesiod writes; "of her is the deadly race and tribe of women who live amongst mortal men to their great trouble, no helpmeets in hateful poverty, but only in wealth."

Despite Prometheus' warning, his brother, Epimetheus accepted this "gift" from the gods. Pandora carried a jar with her, from which were released  "evils, harsh pain and troublesome diseases which give men death". Pandora shut the lid of the jar too late to contain all the evil plights that escaped, but foresight remained in the jar, depriving humanity from hope.

Of Prometheus, Eliphas Levi in his book Magic: A History of Its Rites, Rituals, and Mysteries, writes:

"Prometheus, the Golden Fleece, the Thebaid, the Iliad and the Odyssey - these five great epics, full of the mysteries of Nature and human destinies, constitute the bible of ancient Greece, a cyclopean monument, a Pelion piled upon an Ossa, masterpiece over masterpiece, form on form, beautiful as light itself and throned upon eternal thoughts, sublime in truth. It was, however, at their proper risk and peril that the hierophants of poetry committed to the Greek people these marvellous fictions in which truth was shrined."  

The little bit of exploring I have done on Prometheus online, has lead me to believe that there are great mysteries that can be unlocked by Prometheus and his mythos. What exactly these mysteries are, remain to be discovered. 

Sources: Theoi.com, Wikipedia.com, and Magic: A History of Its Rites, Rituals, and Mysteries by Eliphas Levi

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Quote from Facebook :

This Promethean soul of man come down from heaven can only be freed from the earth-chains and the Time-Vulture by the destruction of Zeus (that is, his transformation—transfiguration into the higher form), the phenomenal world, and by its elevation to a higher power, that of the ideal, the only real.

Prometheus is moreover the revolt of the enlightened Soul against all false—popular—sacerdotal—established—hierarchical forms of religion, those religions which seek for personal salvation, founded on egoism, instead of general universal good and the salvation of all sentient beings.

Prometheus is the Grecian form of the Atman of the Vedanta— the true ego, set free from incarnations in the masks (personae) of personality and the torture wheel of Necessity and Fate, and admitted into its rest and home in the universal—immanent Cosmic Spirit, escaped from the sorrows of the world of Creation. Prometheus is the ideal “Nomos” or Law in the soul itself, the “Conscious law—the King of Kings,” the God “seated in the heaven of the heart.”

In the Agonies of this “Nous Agonistes”—the birth agonies of the race and of each individual there must ever be that Crucifixion of the ideal man represented by Odin—Prometheus—Christ; but after the Cross comes the transfiguration, in which these words of Prometheus are fulfilled,

“By myriad pangs and woes
Bound down, thus shall I ’scape these bonds.” 

-Schelling

http://www.esophoria.org

The Idea of Patron Gods...

A recent discussion on HoM's Facebook page regarding the article on Patheos.com titled "Our Gods Are Not Safe" , has given me an idea for this blog post. 

One of HoM's members, who is also a practicing Heathen of the Norse Tradition, commented on the article: 

"That's why in terms of Heathenry the worship of the gods was and continues to be a group thing. Much easier to enter into a gift-cycle with them as a group. [sic] This is not to say that you can't have your own personal reverence of the gods, or even be drawn to particular ones, but you don't necessarily want to have personal relationships with them. 

For example, in the lore if a god was in a personal relationship with a human, it usually didn't bode well for the human." 

This comment got me thinking about Hellenismos, and whether or not it is appropriate to incorporate the modern Pagan ideas of Patron/ess deities, and personal relationships with the Theoi.

For those of you who are not familiar with the terms 'Patron and Patroness', here is a definition by Elani Temperance on her blog Baring the Aegis:

"Modern patronage, in this context, is the support or encouragement of a patron, where the patron or patroness  is a divine being. In these relationships, the active party is often the deity in question, who claims the passive human. Some will describe a sense of 'being owned' by their patron. The human becomes a conduit for the work and will of the patron in question, and is required to spend large portions of their lives in active service to that deity. The bond between deity and human is personal."

Lets also note that Patron = Male God, Patroness = Female Goddess. 

While the idea of Patron deities is a popular one among Neo-Pagans, it's not exactly a well supported idea in Hellenismos. Here is what Elani has to say on the subject:

"... patronage is not part of Hellenismos, and it was not part of ancient Hellenic life.

Hellenism has its own beautiful system of kharis (religious reciprocity), and because of that, there is no need to bring in a modern concept like patrons. When we, in Hellenismos, petition the Gods for aid, we always do so with an offering. This offering can be incense, a libation, a food offering or anything else. It must be something tangible. Good thoughts and intentions don't count. This offering is given freely, joyfully, with pleasure, out of respect and love for the Gods. We ask what we feel we need--sometimes that's a new job, sometimes just a sentiment like honor and prosperity to the household--and never expect to be granted this request. Petitions aren't bribery. We give to the Gods and should They feel inclined to grand us our request, we thank Them by offering to Them again, to which the Gods might respond, to which we will sacrifice, and so on. This circular practice of voluntary giving is called kharis, and through it, we built relationships with all Theoi.

In ancient Hellas, there were priests; most of them were chosen through hereditary lines and often served short terms in the temple of a deity their family was connected to, either through the family line or by choice. There were also priests who chose to come into the service of a Theos or Theia; they were voluntary priests and they devoted themselves to the God(s) they were drawn to or especially thankful to. Neither type of priest would have worshipped only the deity they were in service to, and all would have attended state festivals, and most likely had a household practice that included a large number of deities. Note that the active party in these relationships is the human, not the deity in question.

There are a few (mythical) exceptions to this rule that could be seen as patronage: Athena was a guide and aid for Odysseus and his son, and many Gods were (temporary) aids of Hēraklēs. These were heroes, chosen by the Theoi to suffer a specific fate and to rise above it as heroes. If you are Hellenistic and you feel you are being divinely aided to make it through such a path then by all means, say you have a patron. If not, it feels like hubris (excessive pride or self-confidence) to me to make that claim. Of course, there is a degree of personal viewpoint here (i.e. we can never judge the lives of others; what feels like an epic quest of hardship to you, may seem like a breeze to me and the other way around), so for safety's sake, I stick with my viewpoint that patronage has no place in Hellenism, because as much as our lives may feel like an epic journey, we are not all Odysseus."

As we can see in the above quote, and Elani is a reliable source, patronage was not a part of ancient Hellenic practice. Also, there is the issue with modern Neo-Pagans whom 'take on' a Patron/ess and do not work with any other members of the pantheon. While there is essentially nothing wrong with this, this is not polytheism, and especially not Hellenismos. 

"Polytheism means that many gods are worshipped not only at the same place and at the same time, but by the same community and by the same individual; only the totality of the gods constitutes the divine world. […] To overlook or despise a god is to curtail the richness of the world and hence the fullness of man. - Walter Burkert

To practice Hellenismos, is to honour all the deities of the pantheon. Our levels of worship may ebb and flow depending on our lives, our personal struggles and situations, (example: if your marriage is struggling, you'll feel a pull to work more with Hera, Goddess of Marriage), but all in all, one must remember to honour all the Olympians, lest one get offended. As the article 'Our Gods Are Not Safe' mentioned, especially when it comes to the Greek Gods, jealously is a common thread that flows through the mythos of our gods. And if you view the Theoi in a slightly Jungian archetypical view point as I do, as expressed in my blog post 'Asteria's Personal Theogony', you will understand that favouring one deity over others for a long period of time will stunt your growth in spiritual development/enlightenment. 

To conclude this post, be wary of the person who claims to work with Hekate (or other Greek deity) and is therefore a practicing Hellenic. Hellenismos is the inclusion of all the Hellenic deities, with special focus on the Olympians, not just a focus on one or two.

A link to Elani Temperance's full blog post can be found here. 

EDIT:  I just wanted to add that a form of patronage did take place in Ancient Greece, but this was in a group setting and formed the basis of the religious cults. Cults sprung up all over Greece and were usually area specific. For example, the Cult of Aphrodite would appear on Cyprus where the Goddess was said to have sprung up from the sea foam (where she was "born"), or the Cult of Demeter and Persephone at Eleusis, which was tied into the myth about Persephone's return from the Underworld. However, even members of these cults still paid their respects to the other Olympians. 

Demeter, Goddess of Agriculture

October happens to be my favourite month. 

Actually, I think it's a popular month for all North American Pagans. After a hot, humid summer, the earth is dry and still a bit warm, but the breeze is cooler. Perfect weather for cozy sweaters, colourful scarves, fashionable boots, and mugs of warm liquid. 

This is also the time of year that most Pagans in the Northern Hemisphere associate with dying. Whether it's the Neo-Pagan celebrations of Samhain, Mexico's Day of the Dead, or just Halloween in general, there is definitely something going on during the cross-quarter period between the Autumnal Equinox and Winter Solstice. 

That is why, for Hellenismos of Manitoba, we celebrate and honour the Goddess Demeter, and her daughter Persephone. Along side the two Goddesses, we also take this time to acknowledge the Khthonioi (Chthonic) deities associated with the Greek Underworld. 

But first, as the first Sunday of the month approaches, lets take a look at Demeter:

Demeter was the daughter of Kronus and Rhea, and sister of Hestia, Hera, Haides, Poseidon, and Zeus. Like the other children of Kronus she was devoured by her father, but he gave her forth again after taking the emetic which Metis had given him. 

Demeter was the goddess of the tilled earth, and more especially of the earth as producing fruit, and consequently of agriculture, whence human food or bread is called by Homer, the gift of Demeter. The notion of her being the author of the earth's fertility was extended to that of fertility in general, and she accordingly was looked upon also as the goddess of marriage (along side Hera), and was worshipped especially by women. Her priestess also initiated young married people into the duties of their new situation.  As the goddess of the earth she was like the other theoi chthonioi, a subterraneous divinity, who worked in the regions inaccessible to the rays of Helios. As agriculture is the basis of a well-regulated social condition, Demeter is represented also as the friend of peace and as a law-giving goddess. 

She was often represented in works of art, though scarcely one entire statue of her is preserved. Her representations appear to have been brought to ideal perfection by Praxiteles. Her image resembled that of Hera, in its maternal character, but had a softer expression, and her eyes were less widely opened. She was represented sometimes in a sitting attitude, sometimes walking, and sometimes riding in a chariot drawn by horses or dragons, but always in full attire. Around her head she wore a garland of corn-ears or a simple ribband, and in her hand she held a sceptre, cornears or a poppy, sometimes also a torch and the mystic basket. 

The Abduction of Persephone

By her brother Zeus, Demeter became the mother of Persephone. The most prominent part in the mythos of Demeter is the rape of her daughter Persephone by Haides, and this story not only suggests the main idea embodied in Demeter, but also directs our attention to the principal seats of her worship. 

Zeus, without the knowledge of Demeter, had promised Persephone to Haides, and while the unsuspecting maiden was gathering flowers which Zeus had caused to grow in order to tempt her and to favour Haides' scheme, the earth suddenly opened and she was carried off by Haides. Her cries of anguish were heard only by Hecate and Helios. Her mother, who heard only the echo of her voice, immediately set out in search of her daughter.

Demeter wandered about in search of her daughter for nine days, without taking any nectar or ambrosia, and without bathing. On the tenth she met Hecate, who told her that she had heard the cries of Persephone, but did not know who had carried her off. Both then hastened to Helios, who revealed to them that Haides had been the ravisher, and with the consent of Zeus. Demeter in her anger at this news avoided Olympus, and dwelt upon earth among men, conferring presents and blessings wherever she was kindly received, and severely punishing those who repulsed her or did not receive her gifts with proper reverence. In this manner she came to Celeus at Eleusis. As the goddess still continued in her anger, and produced famine on the earth by not allowing the fields to produce any fruit, Zeus, anxious that the race of mortals should not become extinct, sent Iris to induce Demeter to return to Olympus.  But in vain.

At length Zeus sent out all the gods of Olympus to conciliate her by entreaties and presents; but she vowed not to return to Olympus, nor to restore the fertility of the earth, till she had seen her daughter again. Zeus accordingly sent Hermes into Erebus to fetch back Persephone. Haides consented, indeed, to Persephone returning, but gave her a part of a pomegranate to eat, in order that she might not always remain with Demeter. Hermes then took her in Haides' chariot to Eleusis to her mother, to whom, after a hearty welcome, she related her fate. At Eleusis both were joined by Hecate, who henceforth remained the attendant and companion of Persephone. Zeus now sent Rhea to persuade Demeter to return to Olympus, and also granted that Persephone should spend only a part of the year (i. e. the winter) in subterraneous darkness, and that during the rest of the year she should remain with her mother. 

Rhea accordingly descended to the Rharian plain near Eleusis, and conciliated Demeter, who now again allowed the fruits of the fields to grow. But before she parted from Eleusis, she instructed Triptolemus, Diocles, Eumolpus, and Celeus in the mode of her worship and in the mysteries. These are the main features of the mythus about Demeter, as it is contained in the Homeric hymn; in later traditions it is variously modified.

The mythos of Demeter and her daughter embodies the idea, that the productive powers of the earth or nature rest or are concealed during the winter season; the goddess (Demeter and Persephone, are here identified) then rules in the depth of the earth mournful, but striving upwards to the all-animating light. Persephone, who has eaten of the pomegranate, is the fructified flower that returns in spring, dwells in the region of light during a portion of the year, and nourishes men and animals with her fruits.

Later philosophical writers, and perhaps the mysteries also, referred the disappearance and return of Persephone to the burial of the body of man and the immortality of his soul.

Source: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology; via theoi.com