The funny part about genealogies of the Gods is that they are all equally ‘correct’, as long as they stem from ancient sources. Genealogies of the Gods were all written down by humans about the Gods and there are a variety of them. Which one is entirely true is unknown and perhaps none of them are–or all of them. The most famous account of how the Gods came to be comes from Hesiod. His 'Theogogy’ is a complete recounting of the story, starting with Khaos:

“Verily at the first Chaos came to be, but next wide-bosomed Earth, the ever-sure foundations of all  the deathless ones who hold the peaks of snowy Olympus, and dim Tartarus in the depth of the wide-pathed Earth, and Eros, fairest among the deathless gods, who unnerves the limbs and overcomes the mind and wise counsels of all gods and all men within them. From Chaos came forth Erebus and black Night; but of Night were born Aether and Day, whom she conceived and bare from union in love with Erebus. And Earth first bare starry Heaven, equal to herself, to cover her on every side, and to be an ever-sure abiding-place for the blessed gods. And she brought forth long Hills, graceful haunts of the goddess-Nymphs who dwell amongst the glens of the hills. She bare also the fruitless deep with his raging swell, Pontus, without sweet union of love. But afterwards she lay with Heaven and bare deep-swirling Oceanus, Coeus and Crius and Hyperion and Iapetus, Theia and Rhea, Themis and Mnemosyne and gold-crowned Phoebe and lovely Tethys. After them was born Cronos the wily, youngest and most terrible of her children, and he hated his lusty sire.” [ll. 116-138]

He goes on to list a great many deities, cutting out a rough shape of the cosmos while doing so. There are many variations of this family tree, and in the ancient writings, there are also creation stories that range beyond this basic framework. In the Orphic Theogonies, for example, the universe does not start with Khaos, but with Thesis and Hydros, reaching back to Hómēros:

“Originally there was Hydros (Water), he [Orpheus] says, and Mud, from which Ge (the Earth) solidified: he posits these two as first principles, water and earth … The one before the two [Thesis], however, he leaves unexpressed, his very silence being an intimation of its ineffable nature. The third principle after the two was engendered by these–Ge (Earth) and Hydros (Water), that is–and was a Serpent (Drakon) with extra heads growing upon it of a bull and a lion, and a god’s countenance in the middle; it had wings upon its shoulders, and its name was Khronos (Unaging Time) and also Herakles. United with it was Ananke (Inevitability, Compulsion) , being of the same nature, or Adrastea, incorporeal, her arms extended throughout the universe and touching its extremities. I think this stands for the third principle, occuping the place of essence, only he [Orpheus] made it bisexual [as Phanes] to symbolize the universal generative cause.” [Theogonies Fragment 54] So I can’t point you to one account that is entirely accurate. At best, I can tell you that many of the ancient writers had their own thoughts on the subject, undoubtedly inspired by the community they lived in, the region they lived in, and the circles they moved in. Not knowing everything about the Gods is just one way by which They let us know we’re mere moral beings, I suppose. Embrace it!

That depends on what you’re worried about, I suppose. Will you be lacking privacy? Are there rules that you have to stick to in order to continue living where you will be living, be it a dorm or an off-campus site? Perhaps this will help: a list of what you need to practice and the substitutes allowed anywhere and which you can hide.

An altar to sacrifice at = use your desk or clear a tableA sacrificial bowl (x2, one to sacrifice into, one for khernips) = deep plates or soup bowlsCandles = electric candles or unlit onesIncense = perfume (keep away from fire!)Wine = grape juiceA garden to pour out libations / bury sacrifices = a potted plant

That’s all you need, really. Usually you can light a match even in a dorm room, so you should be able to make khernips by dropping a match into water. Most likely you won’t be able to have a fire burning to burn sacrifices in. Sadly, that’s just how it’ll have to be until you get out. Practicing without a fire is a reality for many people until they have a home where it’s possible to safely and legally practice that way. Some never will, and that’s all right too. I hope this helps and good luck at college!

I think that might be a good video idea, but I already have a post about prayers (and hymns) too. Offerings and ashes are still sacred to the Theoi, and are to be disposed of in a respectful manner. In ancient Hellas, these were buried in votive pits, on the temenos, the sacred site, be it near a temple or at home. In modern times, this is usually a (shallow) pit dug in the garden where you can dispose of whatever remains after sacrifice. As for the crossroads: a crossroad is by definition a point where two roads meet, but in ancient Hellas it was often seen as any liminal place–a point of transition–from home to street, for example. I place my offerings to Hekate near the gateway from our home to the alleyway that runs past our backyard, for example, as that is a crossroad too.

One of the most important and confusing of the many Hellenic festivals is the three-day transition from month to month. Although unlinked, the Deipnon, the Noumenia and Agathós Daímōn are held on consecutive days, around the new moon. Especially the placement of the days is hard to get right; at least, it was for me.

The Deipnon (Hene kai Nea)–or Hekate’s Deipnon–is celebrated any time before the first sliver of the new moon is visible. In practice, this is the day after the new moon. The Noumenia is held the day after that, when the moon has become visible again, and Agathós Daímōn the day after that. It is important to note that the ancient Hellens started a new day at sundown the day before. Instead of starting a new day at midnight–or in the morning–like we do today, they started it at sundown of the previous day. This means that–when applied to modern practice–the Deipnon starts on the day of the suspected new moon, and the rest follows after, to the total of four days. Confused yet? How about a schematic. In this example, we’ll assume that the sun goes down at six P.M. on all days.

Day 1: All day - (suspected) new moon6 P.M. - start of the Deipnon (Deipnon night)

Day 2:All day - day after the new moon6 P.M. day 1 to 6 P.M. day 2 - Deipnon (Deipnon day)6 P.M. - start of the Noumenia (Noumenia night)

Day 3:All day - second day after the new moon6 P.M. day 2 to 6 P.M. day 3 - Noumenia (Noumenia day)6 P.M. - start of  Agathós Daímōn (Agathós Daímōn night)

Day 4:All day - third day after the new moon6 P.M. day 3 to 6 P.M. day 4 - Agathós Daímōn (Agathós Daímōn day)

In general, you celebrate the Deipnon at night time on the day of the Deipnon, so after sundown on day one. Many Hellenists spent the day of the Deipnon (day two, until sundown) cleaning and taking out things like the recyclables; getting everything ready for the new month. The Noumenia starts at sundown on day two. Typically the bulk of the Noumenia rituals is done in the daylight hours, so on day three until sundown. Personally, I do a nighttime ritual on day two after sundown for Selene, as She is a moon Goddess and honoring Her when the first sliver of Her becomes visible is important to me. I also honor Her during the daytime on day three. At sundown on day three, Agathós Daímōn starts. The ritual aspects are usually held in the daylight hours, so on day four, until sundown.

I hope this makes it clearer!

Very welcome! I am always willing to help, and even more willing to clarify when I haven't made myself clear! ^_^

It’s in there, I promise, but let’s make it more simple: prayers and the sacrifice were and are conducted roughly at the same time and are smoothly transitioned into from hymns. If you want to split them, do the sacrifice first, then make your prayers. It comes down to the same thing: while your sacrifice burns, prayers are said. I hope it’s clearer now :)

Yes, they do. As I said: personally I see no reason to add modern interpretations of possible ancient festivals when we already have 70+ known festivals to celebrate ;-)

A solstice is an astronomical event that occurs twice each year (around 21 June and 21 December) as the Sun reaches its highest or lowest excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. An equinox occurs twice a year as well (around 20 March and 22 September), when the plane of the Earth’s equator passes the center of the Sun. At this time the tilt of the Earth’s axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun. In essence, during an equinox, the period of time the sun is down (night time) and the sun is up (daytime) is roughly the same. The ancient Hellenes observed these four points in the year, and because of that, the ancient Hellenic calendar is partly solar: the solstices and equinoxes are anchor points for the otherwise lunar calendar.

Depending on the city-state, one of these four points was picked for the start of the new year. Athens and Delphi had the summer solstice, Boeotia had the winter solstice, and Milet started out with the autumnal equinox, but moved the new year to the spring equinox around the end of the 4th century BC. This anchor point was the most important; the rest were used to check the accuracy of the calculations.

Is it reconstructionistic to honor specific Gods on the solstices and equinoxes? That depends on which Gods you honor on the equinoxes and solstices. We know there were festivals celebrated on or around the time of these anchor points:

The Galaxia was closely associated with the Spring/Vernal Equinox.The Kronia was closely associated with the Summer Solstice.The Eleusinian Mysteries were celebrated around the autumnal Equinox.The Poseidea was closely associated with the Winter Solstice.

If you want to associate other deities with these dates, feel free, but honestly, with a calendar of roughly 70 festivals throughout the year, I personally do not feel the need to add modern ones.

1. Back in ancient Hellas, most religious activities surrounding the household revolved around the central hearth, which was seen as the physical manifestation of Hestia. While Hestia has little mythology to Her name, Her worship was a vital part of ancient Hellenic religion. For one, Her flame connected every single Hellenic oikos to each other and the state. All the household fires were lit with a flame from the prytaneion (Πρυτανεῖον), the structure where state officials met and where the city kept a fire for Hestia burning day and night. Every single heart fire in the city or town was linked to that central one, and that central fire was linked to the city from where the settlers of the new village, town or city came. This network of fires, which were never allowed to go out, brought all Hellenes together. In modern worship, we very rarely have a fire burning at all times of the day, so many Hellenes opt to have a candle burning for Her (or a battery powered one when we leave the house). In modern worship we thus usually have a fire to Hestia burning during ritual as well as a sacrificial fire, but since the sacrificial fire is usually lit from the flame to Hestia, it is really an extension of Hestia’s flame.

2. Traditionally speaking–which is what I practice, so that’s the answer you’re getting when you ask me things–yes, all Ouranic sacrifices should be burned. Sacrifices to heroes too, by the way, and even some Khthonic sacrifices were burned. The ancient Hellenes burned things (like sacrifices, incense, but also the firebrand to make khernips) because smoke was the only way the sacrifice reached the Ouranic Gods. That’s how the sacrifice traveled to Olympos and how the sacrifice itself became sacred. Pure. Not burning sacrifices, traditionally speaking, is promising the gods sustenance and giving them an empty plate along with a message saying “just imagine it’s food. I’m sure you’ll feel full”. Of course, I–and hopefully They–know it isn’t always possible, but I do advocate burning sacrifices if at all possible.

3. Sacrifice was and is the highlight of Hellenic ritual. In ancient Hellas, communal sacrifices almost always included animal sacrifice. Worshippers processed to the ritual site, consciously leaving the mundane behind. The scent of incense would have filled the air, and hymns would have been sung. They cleansed themselves with lustral water (named khernips) and sprinkled the area and altar with it. All participants threw barley groats onto the animal, the ground and the altar to sow good fortune. The hymns would have continued until libations were made in or around the fire. This signaled the start of prayers. After the libation, the person who would kill the animal would have taken the knife and cut a lock of the animal’s hair. Swiftly, the lock would be tossed into the fire as a warning of the impending sacrifice. The tension would have reached its height at this time and with a swift motion, the animal’s throat would have been cut. All of its blood was collected and later dripped onto the fire or–in case of a smaller animal–dripped onto the fire directly. Women would scream, possibly to cover up the dying sounds of the animal, and then the tension would have most likely been broken and the ominous mood turned festive: while the entire animal belonged to the Gods, They saw fit to give much of it to Their followers for rare meat consumption. Then, Hestia received the last libation.

Modern worship is organized somewhat the same way as ancient sacrifice was. Perhaps needless to say: modern worship rarely includes animal sacrifice, although meat sacrifices are more common. We start with a procession (no matter how short) toward the altar, where we purify ourselves and the space around us with khernips. We also sow barley groats. This is not only a form of purification, it was the start of the process of kharis where the strewing of barley groats on and around the altar of the Theoi is like a spiritual sowing to reap the benefits of later (asked for through prayer later on in the rite). As such, the barley that we use is whole form, just like it is for actual sowing of the crop.

During the procession, songs are sung, and once purification is performed, a hymn is sung or proclaimed. Hymns are sung to please, to bring forth. It is a way to celebrate the deity in question, but also to make Him or Her more inclined to grant the following request. Prayers are next on the agenda. A prayer is carefully formulated to convey a message as persuasively as possible to the God, and was thus often spoken. The idea is not to please, but to request. They make use of the established and just now strengthened kharis to petition the Gods for aid. Where the hymn is an offering to go along with material sacrifice, the prayer is not an offering at all. To soften the request, prayers are often accompanied by the sacrifice–the main event of the rite.

I describe the pantheon of Hellenic Gods like a tapestry. The major displays woven into it are undoubtedly of Zeus and Hera, of Their brothers and sisters, of Their parents and well-known children like Apollon and Artemis. But the fringes of the tapestry are just as colorful as the main display. They hold the “minor” Gods and Goddesses who rule over our emotions, the weather, the stars, rivers and other bodies of water, and literally everything else in your environment. Without these minor Gods and Goddess, the tapestry would not only be plain, it would be threadbare. It’s my firm belief that it’s impossible to practice Hellenismos and only worship one or a handful of Gods. One must invest in at least the pursuit of knowledge about every single God or Goddess in our pantheon to fully grasp the parts you thought you already understood. Without the details of the tapestry, its full beauty can’t be appreciated, after all.

That having been said, it’s impossible to honor all of these divinities. There are probably thousands, after all. There aren’t rules on how to honor the divinities with little mythology to Their name but thankfully, in Hellenismos, that isn’t an issue. All worship was conducted in the exact same way: we start with a procession (no matter how short) toward the altar, where we purify ourselves and the space around us with khernips (lustral water made by dropping something smoldering in water). We also sow barley groats. This is not only a form of purification, it was the start of the process of kharis (ritual reciprocity) where the strewing of barley groats on and around the altar of the Theoi is like a spiritual sowing to reap the benefits of later (asked for through prayer later on in the rite). As such, the barley that we use is whole form, just like it is for actual sowing of the crop.

Once purification is performed, a hymn is sung or proclaimed. Hymns are sung to please, to bring forth. It is a way to celebrate the deity in question, but also to make Him or Her more inclined to grant the request to follow. Hymns were accompanied with music and dancing; they were true celebrations in that regard. They are performed to proclaim existing kharis and built upon it by showing respect and knowledge of the lives of the Gods. Today, they are mostly proclaimed, but the words are heartfelt and proclaimed clearly and (if at all possible) loudly.

Prayers are next on the agenda. Prayers are attempts by men and women to communicate with Gods by means of the voice. A prayer is carefully formulated to convey a message as persuasively as possible to the God, and was thus often spoken. The idea is not to please, but to request. They make use of the established and just now strengthened kharis to petition the Gods for aid. Where the hymn is an offering to go along with material sacrifice, the prayer is not an offering at all. To soften the request, prayers are often accompanied by the sacrifice–the main event of the rite.

A sacrifice to the Gods is a way of bonding, of kharis. It’s a way of showing our devotion to the Gods and bringing Them, actively, into our homes and lives. It’s a way of acknowledging Their greatness and recognizing our loyalty to Them. Practically, this means that whatever the sacrifice, it should be given with love, dedication and with respect to the bond between immortal and mortal. This outlay is the same for all Gods, be They major or minor. You can worship Gods with very little to none mythology to Their name exactly the same as those with extensive stories to be told and proclaimed. If you don’t have a hymn for Them, then make your own by way of what you know and why you are called to Them. There are no specific hymns for  Eileithyia, for example, but we can make them from bits and pieces of ancient material and our own inspiration. For example:

“Khaire Eiliethyia of women’s child-pains. She Who Comes To Aid, hear the praise I sing of you! You who brought forth the birth of bright Artemis and Apollon, twin champions of arrows and protectors of children, you whom Galanthis tricked to allow the birth of the great hero Herakles, drawn near to my humble altar and lean down to lend me Your ear and accept the sacrifice I make in Your honor, for without you Goddess of childbirth, Eileithyia, maid to the throne of the deep-thinking Moirai, child of all-powerful Hera, hear my song. For without you should we see neither the light of day, nor know the kindly dark, nor win the gift of Hebe, thy sister, the glorious limbs of youth.”

I think that’s a lovely name and a lovely idea! Theia (Θεία) is a Titaness. She is the brother and consort of Hyperion, God of the sun, and together they are the parents of Helios, Selene, and Eos, other Gods and Goddesses of the sky. The name Theia alone means simply “Goddess” or “divine”; Theodore comes from the Greek “Theodoros” (Θεοδωρος), which in turn comes from “Theos” (θεος, God) and “doron” (δωρον, gift). So, yes, I think it makes sense linguistically!

I’ll give you my personal opinion, as there isn’t ancient precedence. Personally, yes, I think it would be disrespectful, not to the Gods (I feel you would just be missing out on that connection to Them, but that is your “problem”, not Theirs) but to the animal. That animal just gave its life to improve your relationship with the Gods, and then you go on to spurn its sacrifice.

The animals the ancient Hellenes sacrificed were raised for that purpose. They were well-fed, socialized with large groups of people, they were taught not to fear fire, they learned to walk calmly on a rope and to stand still. In short, lots of time was spend on these animals, and lots of money was spend on them as well. Ancient Hellenic people had deep respect for the animals they sacrificed, and part of that respect was eating their flesh once their sacrifice was completed.

Now, there were vegetarians in ancient Hellas! Many of the philosophers especially thought eating meat was bad for the body and soul. Maybe they attended animal sacrifice, maybe not. We do know that they usually made their own sacrifice of animal shaped cakes. I think there is a distinct difference between then an now, though: very little meat was eaten back then that was not sacrificed or dedicated to the Gods in some way. Now, (almost) all of our meat is eaten without dedicating it to the Gods. If one goes through the ordeal of animal sacrifice–if one takes a life even through proxy–I strongly feel that sacrifice has to be honored. Of course, that is my opinion and I never claim my opinion to be truth. You will have to make up your own mind if this hypothetical situation ever becomes reality.

Hellenic prayer and hymn-singing is not a private thing; unlike the Christian type of praying we are used to today–a praying that is intimate, calm, and very much private–the Hellenic form of praying did and does everything it can to draw attention to itself as a public display. It is a form of heightened expression which claims the attention of a God. Hymns are a means to get a divine spotlight upon you, because without it, your prayer will fall upon deaf ears. This is why hymns and prayers always go together in the typical structure of (ancient) Hellenic ritual: one is useless without the other.

Ancient Hellenic prayers were made standing up, with arms raised. If you were the one pouring libations, the arms needn’t be raised as high, but the libation-bowl was poised. For the Ouranic deities, the palms faced upward, to the sky. For the Khthonic deities, the palms faced downward, to the earth. To both, the voice is raised, so as to draw as much attention as possible.

Of course, modern times call for modern measures sometimes. Perhaps you can work around it by doing rituals when no one is home, or else you’ll just have to whisper and pray for the best. Now there aren’t whole city’s populations shouting for attention, perhaps the Gods listen more carefully, you know? and I do truly feel that once the Gods know who to keep an ear out for, They’ll find them even when they whisper Their names.

Ancestor worship was performed in Khthonic state festivals and as hero worship when at home. That is a generalization, of course, but it seems to mostly hold true.

Archeological evidence suggests that hero worship was closer to khthonic sacrifice in execution than ouranic ones the further back in time you go; especially in the archaic period, it seems that hero worship consisted of destructive sacrifices–sometimes in the form of a holókaustos where the entire animal was burned, sometimes in a sacrifice where only a part (most often ‘a ninth’ of the animal) was burned and the rest remained on the altar for the heroes to eat from until gone. The sacrifices were generally burned in an offering pit known as a bothros. The food offered to heroes consisted of meat, blood, and 'food eaten by men’ like grains, fruits and other every-day dishes. These were usually offered to the heroes on a table–known as a trapeza–and the heroes were sometimes offered chairs or a bench to sit on. As time went on, the living began to eat part of the meal laid out for the heroes, joining them in celebration.There were regular state festivals organized for the dead (nekysia) and for the forefathers (genesia). On such days, graves were adorned, offerings of barley broth, milk, honey, unmixed wine, oil, water and the blood of animal sacrifices were given in the form of khoai–fully poured out libations. Graves often had bottomless amphorae placed on it on hollow columns. The libation was poured into this and seeped down into the dirt to 'feed the dead’. The Genesia seems to have been a festival of the dead–especially of dead parents. It was celebrated on the fifth of the month of Boudromion in Athens, but that is all we know for sure. There is reason to believe that the Genesia was panhellenic–although we do not know if all city-states performed the rites on the same day. We are also unsure if the Genesia was a set day for all children to visit their parents’ grave and perform sacrifices there, or if there was a public commemoration of all parents. The day is also sacred to Gaea, who housed the remains of the dead, and brought fertility and wealth to the living. These rites were to commemorate specific people. It was also possible to honour the family line and it was actually a part of the celbration of Agathós Daímōn, the third day of the month. The goal was not to honour the people in the family line but to express pride in your blood and bring about good fortune as stemming from the family line. This type of worship was closer to hero worship and was performed at a separate shrine or at an offering pit outside. These sarcifices were generally wholly given as well and could either be an animal or, more commenly, unmixed wine.

Oh that’s such a lovely thing to say! Thank you very much! Baring the Aegis has been a daily staple of my life for over five years (since June second, 2012) and in that time, I have learned a lot, shared a lot, and most importantly: I have met wonderful people, many of whom I have been allowed to help on their path to an active practice of Hellenismos. It’s been my honor and pleasure, and I believe it’s also my calling. I hope to do it for many more years to come!

I would like to, yes, but I’m pretty much out of inspiration! I have one planned on a specific form of division practiced in ancient Hellas and recently worked out the barebones of one on the difference in practice between ouranic and kthonic sacrifice. If you guys have ideas, let me know! The core rule is as follows: the topic has to benefit from the visual element! If I can explain it better in writing or it would just be me sitting in front of a camera and talking, it’s out ;-)

Khernips, or lustral water, was exactly that–water. Khernips is created by dropping smoldering incense or herb leaves into (fresh and/or salt) water (preferably sacred spring water or sea water). When throwing in the lit item, one can utter ‘xerniptosai’ (pronounced ‘zer-nip-TOS-aye-ee’) which translates as ‘be purified’. Both hands and face are washed with khernips. The vessel holding the khernips is called a khernibeionas (Χερνῐβεῖον).  Khernips are the traditional way to cleanse yourself from miasma, ritual pollution.

When preparing Khernips entirely in advance and then storing it, I have noticed that the chemicals produced when setting something on fire actually impact water and if left out long enough–even when covered or contained, micro-organisms naturally in the water and added to it by the fire eventually start to multiply, causing the water to pollute. Maybe purification tablets would counteract this (a bit), but it wouldn’t be my preferred option.

Do I think storing khernips ahead of time is possible? Yes. Is it the most desirable option? No. For me, preparing khernips before my ritual is as much a part of the ritual as tossing barley groats, singing the praise of the Gods and sacrificing with them. Ffollowing the same ritual steps ever day is a wonderful way to get in a ritual mood; repetition literaly deminishes miasma. If only because of that, I am in favor of preparing khernips fresh every ritual or at least every day.

As with anything concerning miasma, most books on ancient Hellas and/or Hellenic religion don’t mention khernips at all, or under a synonym. As with miasma, I am going to assume this is because the evidence of its existence is so flimsy besides a resounding 'it was used and important’. My rather vast collection of scholarly material is silent on any details beyond the basic information already provided. As such, I am forced to speculate based upon what I know.

Personally, I tend to mix tap water with sea water into a large vessel from which I take a measure every evening to use throughout the day. I drop the smoldering firebrand (a match when traveling, a bit of burning wood or herbs when home) into the measure poured our, not the vessel itself. So, in short, I prepare the base in advance but the actual mixture on the spot. I only use one measure one day, after that, I dip it out onto the earth and replace it with a fresh batch before my evening rituals. Personally, I would advise this if you want to prepare things in advance.  Even the worry of cleaning yourself with polluted water would negate the use of khernips, after all, would it not?