#helpol

Part 1 of my spiritual journey

I left Christianity when I was 16, I remember sitting on my dog house in 2014 and saying “God if youre there, im so sorry but this isnt for me…”

I remember so clearly the relief washing over me once I admitted to myself I needed to find my own path.

Witchcraft found me pretty quickly. But it was Hades, where I found my belonging.

Hes always there, just out of sight watching over me and giving me space to learn. He has never made me feel awful or ashamed when life forced me to put down my practice.

The underworld and his presence is the one place I have ALWAYS felt welcome.

It was around the time my son turned 1 that Queen Persephone started to show up.

It was 2020 and I am a Healthcare worker. Being in a nursing home as a single mom during shutdown was a new type of lonely I hadn’t experienced before.

But I learned so much more about who I am and who I wanted to be

Sometimes I spontaneously think about Ariadne. Like, is someone thinking about her right now? Does someone remember she was a goddess of ancient Crete? Does someone worship her as a separate pre-Hellenic deity? Who was her last worshipper on Crete, and what were their last thoughts?

i was yapping to my fellow academically burnt out friends irl about how the ancient greeks liked to honor athena on the third of the month and i think i accidentally inspired them to leave her an offering??? 😭😭

Look what I have now🥹

Happy Monday! I’ve been feeling creative lately so I’ve started a Minecraft world as another digital offering for Lady Selene. First thing I built was a moon shrine with a fountain which looks really pretty.

Khaire Anon,

Thank you for your message. Currently, this is not something that we actively offer - but it is something we are hoping to start doing before summer comes!

In light of the recent controversy Discord (article here if you haven’t heard about this yet) we are currently working on getting a Fluxer server established to help with our community building efforts. If anyone has any tips or tricks for using Fluxer please send them our way!

Regarding the subject of Group Activities - we’re curious to hear from the community as to what you all would be interested in and actively participate in!

Please only answer the below poll if you would actually participate

does anybody do something specific for the start of spring/the equinox as a helpol? i’ve been looking for ideas, specifically ones that honor Lady Demeter and/or Lady Persephone and id love to hear other peoples opinions :)

it seems like many people are not actually aware of this difference so FYI

chthonic = deities and spirits who originate from or permanently inhabit underworld locations that are inaccessible to (living) mortals, e.g. Thanatos, Haides; these figures were not typically worshipped in antiquity, only propitiated

chthonian = deities with roles, epithets, or characteristics that are infernal, agricultural, and/or ‘earthy’ in nature, e.g. Zeus Melikhios; this can overlap with the former but is broader in scope & not exclusive to underworld residents (though they may be erroneously used interchangeably)

I also think this misunderstanding feeds into the (false) notion of the ouranic/chthonic dichotomy - it’s unlikely that these categories were ever as strongly delineated as they often are today since virtually every deity, 'ouranic’ or otherwise, had a chthonian aspect that could be invoked for certain events & situations. they weren’t conceptualized as entirely separate groups & there was an almost complete overlap between their 'membership’ (with a few obvious exceptions). the determining factor has much less to do with the deity per se than with the particular ritual context in which they’re embedded.

rarely are there ever simple & clear-cut distinctions wrt the gods; if you believe you’ve found one, that’s probably an indication to look deeper!

Not gonna lie, I never expected that I would be working with Apollo. Just never though it was a thing for me. But here I am, sometimes the unexpected will happen, and that’s okay.

Ways to worship Tethys (Τηθύς) that I do.

I feel like perhaps more people will begin to show interest in worshiping Mother Tethys so I thought maybe a list! Most are my UPG as she isn’t a well known Titan but I adore her nonetheless. 🌊🐚

• Drink water in her honor, she is the goddess of fresh water. It’s good for you.
• Offerings of Spring Water. 💙
• Research older cultures connected to Ancient Greece and river worship practices, they are there. Even if scarce.
• Water magic research.
• Learn about ocean and river creatures. 🐙
• Honor Okeanos (her husband), Mêtis (one of many of her daughters), and even Hera as it was said she suckled and fed Queen Hera. Tethys is said to have given birth to 3,000 children that make up the ocean called the Oceanids.
• Honor and respect the mothers in your life.
• Donate to charities that provide food and water to war torn areas, all deserve to eat and be loved in her honor.
• Charities that care for foster children or kids in need living in poverty.
• Donate leftover food cans to food banks around you and in your area.
• Give clean water to your pets.
• If you live near the ocean, shells are a wonderful offering to her. Research different kinds of shells and their spiritually meanings. Some can be used for protection, others for prosperity, be respectful in what you take and take what the water gives you. (Some creatures will still need those shells as homes, share).
• Declutter and clean up trash near the seas or rivers. No littering. Save the turtles and be responsible. 🐢
• Tethys is also associated with clouds, rain water is a perfect offering to her. If you can get enough, bless it and use it for spell work or give in libation, or clean your altar with it.
• Jasmine, Myrrh, and Frankincense are what I’ve noticed she likes.
• I personally write letters to her or simply sit and talk to her. I think heart-to-hearts are utterly valuable to all deities. 🐡
• I do think she will enjoy any arts and crafts projects you make for her.
• Leaving behind old and bad habits, it’s tricky and hard but she wants you to improve yourself and be true, or bad thought processes that have left you stuck. And in that case, going to regular therapy is an awesome offering to any God or Goddess. Effort is the key and always appreciated.
• Self care. Actual SELF CARE.

That’s all I can think of and considering most of this is my experience and UPG, take what works and leave what doesn’t. 👍

I was offering my darling Lady Aphrodite some ginger cake and it crumbled as I lifted it off the plate into her food offering dish.

Into a perfect heart :) I love her so much

ranting at my hermes altar while I’m dramatically sprawled across the floor is oddly fitting

hey y'all!! ik a lot of my audience is in north america and probably asleep rn (i live in france for reference) but if ur awake - or tbh if u see this - how about a q&a!!! it’s a beautiful day, praise rhe gods, and i’m making lunch! :)

- eris

Lately, I have gotten into the Chthonic side of things.

Chthonic = of the earth. In practice meaning, “of the underworld.”

Some people out there have internalized bad Victorian-era scholarship that proclaimed there were gods who were exclusively Chthonic, and these gods were in opposition to gods who were exclusively Ouranic (Heavenly). This is mistaken. Most gods have aspects of both, they merely perform different functions at different times.

Nonetheless, it’s true enough some deities are more closely associated with the Underworld than others. And that’s where I have been lately.

Why you ask? Well, as I said in my last post I’m getting older and thinking more about the afterlife. But moreso, it’s just my personality. Some people are like rays of light and streams of rainbow … or at least they pretend to be. I’m not, and have never pretended to be. Some of us just have a darker soul.

(Please note, dark doesn’t mean “evil”. Although my personality often clashes with “light and rainbow” people.)

Anyway… I have set up a shrine to Hecate Chthonia, Hermes Chthonius, Hades and Persephone. And Dionysus has his own shrine. But these are my underworld gods.

I have also been honoring the ancestors a lot. Some Hellenes honor their ancestors once a month, per the Athenian calendar. Others never or rarely do so if they have antipathy to their ancestors. I prefer to check in once a week with mine.

I will have more to say later.

I basically have accepted at this point that my practice is going to be its own weird singular thing and that my personal ‘versions’ or conceptions of the gods will be different from anyone else’s, since I’m so heavily focused on syncretisms that are historically uncertain and/or fully upg-based. and while that may be a little bit isolating at times it doesn’t prevent me from enjoying & finding value in engaging with others in the community, partaking in group rituals, etc.

having said that, I’ve since come across a couple others who are independently doing some of the exact same weird syncretic things as me in a way that’s pretty eerie. like ohhhhh okay so there is actually something here, I’m not just making this up whole cloth if we’re arriving at the same extremely specific conclusions - if nothing else there’s enough evidence for multiple people to have identical interpretations, which alone is a sort of confirmation I think.

(also not the first time something similar has happened, so maybe one day I will learn to simply trust myself & accept what I’m told!)

just showing off my altars because I’m very proud of them <3

This one is Lady Aphrodite’s, the one I am devoted too

Unfortunately Lord Apollo and Lady Bastet have to share since I don’t have enough space

and I do want to set one up for King Zeus one I have more space

your touch is gentle as the rain drops dropped from the sky by Zeus, your voice is a song written by Apollon and the background noise of your lovely tunes are played by Pan. your divine presence brings peace to everyone, you are one of the muses and the gods have made you for the world. you don’t deserve this place, you deserve more.

Thank you friend Entity, may Madam Persephone bless your gardens, internal and external.

I’m on my period. I’ve been trying to look at it as a time of rest and recuperation, especially because I get hit with major fatigue and brain fog. I slept into the afternoon and spent most of the rest of the day in bed, and I know this rest is what’s called for in this time, but it’s so hard not to feel guilty about it.

I want to try and find some way I can connect with my gods from bed next time, especially because I am chronically ill and as a result do spend much more time in states of rest than other people. I’m not sure exactly what will work yet. I like to do libations in the backyard, and I love the idea of burning incense but currently cannot.

I guess if anyone has ideas on how to show reverence, love, and connection with the gods when you’re not feeling your greatest, please do share. Thanks 🩶