Daily Reflection - Tumblr Posts
August 20, 2024
I have some ideas for some bigger concepts I’d like to write about, but for today I’ll stick with my perception of Lord Hades and Lady Persephone at this moment in my life.
Lady Persephone has intrigued me for as long as I could remember. I was taught Greek mythology at a young age in school, and I remember being instantly drawn to this figure who was only mentioned in passing at the time. All my teachers taught me was that she was abducted and ate the fruit of the underworld, so she has to go back every year, and thus we get the seasons. Even at a young age I could tell there was more to the story than that, for both Hades and Persephone. As I grew older, I did more research and have always held certain preconceived notions about them, some of which have changed since my spiritual encounters with them:
My first encounter was with Persephone, and I immediately got the sense that her age changes with the seasons. As it is the start of fall now, she appeared to me as a young woman with light brown, braided hair in her late teens/early twenties. Such joy radiates from her, you can feel her smile moreso than see it on her physical form. But this is not all there is to her. I have found that if I begin to think of her too much as a young, innocent figure, she sends me warnings, such as sending a bird to fly into my car. She is an incredibly gifted and powerful force, and her strength increases even more when she and her husband both seek something or desire to send a message. She’s a figure of duality-the all powerful queen of death and the joyful spirit of life.
What has intrigued me the most with Hades is how he has appeared to me during meditations (where I have most of my direct spiritual encounters). Unlike Persephone, the aspect of Hades I have been working (and will continue to work) with has appeared to me as a figure made entirely of shadow. I can’t make anything out about his physical appearance - as opposed to Persephone who has a distinct physical form - but I get the distinct feeling that he is male. My intuition tells me that he does have a physical form he can take, but is waiting for me to give more to him before showing me. This is perfectly fair and reasonable in my opinion, as I have been doing much more work on connecting to Persephone than to him. Mostly that was out of me being intimidated by him, but now that I know they are both present in my life, I must work to honor both of them equally, as they reign.
August 21, 2024
One of the biggest things that has struck me so far is how little we have remaining from history when it comes to how Hades and Persephone were worshipped. I understand that worshipping Him was a bit taboo, but I’m surprised that I’ve struggled to find evidence of Her being worshiped in isolation from other gods. She’s usually with Demeter.
It seems to me that, other than in a few regions outside of Greece proper, Persephone was mainly worshipped in relation to her Spring aspect, not her role as Queen of the Underworld. I hope I can serve both aspects of her so she’s not limited in any capacity
I feel an urge to give them more of what they have historically been overlooked for: recognition and veneration. Of course there are some stereotypical elements that are associated with them, such as the pomegranate, but I’d like to find ways of acknowledging and praising them that are a bit more individual, tuned to my personal relationship with each of them, as those relationships develop. I think I’m getting stuck in my head and overthinking my struggle to come up with ideas of what to put on their altars, and am overthinking it.
With not as much historical evidence of practices and rituals as other gods may have, I’m going to rely a lot on my intuition and what I gleam from my interactions with them to guide me in what ways are best to venerate Them. I’d love to hear any suggestions you all have or any practices you’ve had experience with that are related! What actions/offerings do you think are appropriate here? I do have a background in history (not much Greek, though), so I do hope in my continued research I’ll find a practice or offering with historical precedence that I can adapt to todays world!
Another thing that’s been on my mind a lot today is that it’s important to me that Lord Hades and Lady Persephone know that I’m seeking to cultivate connections with both of them individually, and not just viewing them as a unit. This is probably just my anxieties flaring up a little in my mind. I’m just in awe that two beings with such power have connected with me, and I want to make sure I do everything “right,” but that’s not really how a practice like this works. There aren’t a set of rules already established for me, especially none set for the 21st century. I need to listen to my gut in my craft, and my gut tells me to focus a lot right now on each of Them as individual gods. Perhaps this means a break from reading about the two of them together and more time meditating on one of them at a time.
August 22, 2024
For today’s reflection, I’d like to look inward a bit and begin to unpack a common theme that has been coming up a lot in my tarot readings lately: doing what I can to make the world a more compassionate place
This is something that has motivated me for my whole life, so it doesn’t initially surprise me that I’m drawn to those cards often. However, what has been unexpected is the fact that Hades has frequently been the one identifying Himself with these messages.
Now I know not everyone is going to agree with my beliefs and that’s ok! I love that faith brings everyone to their own individual interpretations, I think that’s beautiful! And I am aware that my personal beliefs deviate quite a bit from traditional Greek practices, but I’m not trying to recreate those practices exactly. So that’s just a little disclaimer that I’m not looking to argue with anyone about philosophy, this blog is more of a personal journal through my faith journey, just made public in case it helps anyone else!
What my gut tells me about this is that, contrary to popular belief, Hades does really care about what goes on in the land of the living. I mean, what happens in life has a huge impact on who we are when we die, so it makes sense that the events of life would have repercussions on what the afterlife looks like. If there’s overwhelming negativity, divisiveness, and hate in our world, maybe those elements are popping up more and more in the Underworld, leading to more and more conflicts that Hades has to manage. If we can bring joy to this life, we can bring it to the next. Obviously that’s all much easier said than done, but right now I’m just focusing on doing more positive acts of kindness intentionally throughout the day and being more selfless.
Honestly part of me is hesitant to share this thought, but Hades has encouraged me to share my knowledge to the world in addition to kindness through my divination with Him, and I want to honor that.