What I am Listening to: Odyssey-Wendy Rule
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10:57 pm

tonight I thought I would post something about my Patroness Goddess Hecate, just cause I feel like it.

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A little bit of Herstory . . .

Hecate is one of the most ancient embodiments of the Triple Goddess, invariably emphasized in her Crone aspect. Hecate was absorbed into the Greek pantheon, but there is evidence that she is much more ancient, probably Thracian, and associated with Goddess worship in Asia Minor and Middle Europe in the 3rd and 4th millennia. (George, Mysteries of the Dark Moon)

Hecate is most often portrayed as a sinister figure, strongly linked to death, occultism, evil and "black magic," (demonized by the church as an evil Queen of the Witches), and is almost always depicted as the ugly hag of fairy tale witches � the worst stereotype of the Crone, although she can appear in any form, even that of an "overtly sexual" temptress (see Trobe, Invoke the Goddess).

Many Greek images of Hecate depict her holding three sacred objects: a key, a rope, and a dagger. The key is the key to the Underworld, unlocking the secrets of the Mysteries; the rope represents the umbilical cord of rebirth and renewal; and the dagger represents the Athame, cutting away delusion. (George, Mysteries of the Dark Moon)

The Voice of Hecate:

Transformative Goddess and Guide to the Interior and Underworld Realms

Hesoid, in Theogony, described Hecate's name as meaning "she who has power far off." Likewise, Hecate has been referred to as "Distant One," and "Far-Darter." (Interestingly enough, she has also been called "Most Lovely One," which is contrary to popular ideas of her as an ugly, frightening, old hag!) Jean Shinoda Bolen (Goddesses in Older Women) gives Hecate the title of "Goddess of Intuitive and Psychic Wisdom." She asserts that the many references to Hecate as "distant" refer to the way she is often experienced � through dreams, intuition, psychic experience, or synchronicity.

Bolen's vision of Hecate is as the voice of intuition, a silent presence deep within, and "a witness within us at every juncture, even if the ego denies, represses, distorts, and cannot acknowledge what is happening. This observer makes connections and speaks to us in the symbolic language of dreams and flashes of insight." (Goddesses in Older Women)

Hecate is a goddess of our own underworld, a goddess of the unconscious mind. As such, she is a goddess of dreams, and also nightmares, of our "shadow" side, of the grip of addiction, of depression, of hallucination. Demetra George notes that the truths and insights that Hecate can illuminate may well be more than we are ready or willing to face. "Like hallucinogens to the underdeveloped mind, Hecate poison as well as intoxicate and turn ecstatic inspiration into madness." (Mysteries of the Dark Moon) Hecate stands between light and shadow, the upper world of consciousness and rationality and the underworld of unconsciousness and irrationality, and she may serves as a powerful guide to deep, inner exploration � for those who are ready. Hecate is never to be taken lightly

Correspondences

Candle Colors: black, purples, mauves

Season: Autumn and Winter

Animals: all wild animals, but especially dogs, reptiles, dragons, horses, snakes, the frog (symbol of the fetus) or toad ("toad" in many languages means "witch" or "prophetess")

Numbers: Her scared numbers were 3 and 9

Trees: Funerary trees, especially the yew, alder, and poplar (the yew is associated with immortality)

Tarot Cards: The Moon, the High Priestess, and the Wheel of Fortune

Sacred Days: Samhain, November 30 � Day of Hecate at the Crossroads, the Winter Solstice.

Times: Waning moon and especially the dark moon, midnight, dawn and dusk, transitional times, strong link to the menstrual cycle (PMS or during bleeding especially)

Activities: Banishing, releasing of negativity, inner work, dream work, healing, shamanistic journeys, meeting spirit guides, communicating with the dead, divination, spellworking, to increase psychic powers, scrying