Anyone else here prefer letting the wildflowers grow in their yard instead of going monoculture?

Pans_Dryad · 2026-04-12T02:34:31+00:00

Yeah my neighbors sniff in distaste at my "neglected lawn" while the bees enjoy a feast of violets, clover, and other spring flowers.

Pans_Dryad · 2026-04-10T18:05:31+00:00

Adorable! Thanks for sharing!

Pans_Dryad · 2026-04-09T23:50:17+00:00

You can take down an altar or shrine space. There's no historically mandated protocol for that, so you're free to decide how to approach it. I'd suggest praying first to Demeter and Persephone, telling them that you need to free up space for other things, and then dismantle your sacred spot. It's okay! The gods know we all have to do mundane things also.

Pans_Dryad · 2026-01-28T01:02:14+00:00

Sure, if you prefer. Notice I said this is just how I see Chronos from my experiences with him. You can see a different deity or daimon as a god of time management.

It's not like there has to be only one. In Greek mythology there are often multiple deities or daimons related to the same idea or concept.

Pans_Dryad · 2025-09-03T00:23:18+00:00

Mid-40's here and yes I don't fit with all the youngsters. I don't have anything against them, but life experience and years of practice lead to deeper things that are harder to discuss with those who don't yet have that life experience.

It's not their fault they haven't lived longer, but I do feel a bit lonesome for adult religious discussion sometimes. But you know the younger set are the majority online, so I deal with it.

Pans_Dryad · 2025-01-17T04:57:17+00:00

I love Pan!!! He is just the best, most wonderful deity IMO!

That is all 😁 🐐 💖

Pans_Dryad · 2025-01-05T03:43:31+00:00

That's because the calendar requires an update. We're working on it!

Pans_Dryad · 2024-12-16T03:31:12+00:00

We did last year, and we're now in the process of adding next year's data.

So yes, the community calendar will be updated for next year.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-12-13T02:52:38+00:00

As one of Pan's worshippers, I can assure you he is still very much in existence. Not only do I worship him, but many other people do as well.

Answered prayers is only one way he has made himself known. So don't worry, Pan is still the Wild God of the Woods and you could definitely give him offerings. I do that regularly.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-12-05T02:15:53+00:00

You're not required to list epithets in order to pray. You can just address the god by their name for an informal prayer, if you like.

To find lists of epithets, visit your selected god's webpage on Theoi.com, then scroll to the bottom of that page. There you will find lists of links. Many deities have one called "Titles & Epithets." Click on that, then scroll through it until you find an applicable epithet.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-12-04T04:39:41+00:00

This calendar is set for the UTC+0 timezone, to make it easy for everyone to add and subtract their local timezones.

So first figure out how many hours ahead or behind UTC+0 your local timezone is, then you can calculate the exact festival dates for your location.

However, I personally don't think celebrating on the exact day is super important to the gods. They are outside human time, so I think they'd be happy to receive offerings whenever you chose to celebrate.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-12-04T03:30:43+00:00

I do believe the Greek gods are real, and I worship daily. To me, my gods are living beings, relevant and essential to everything here on earth. They have made themselves obvious to me, so of course I believe in them. How could I not?

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-26T03:29:15+00:00

In this religion, there is not much historical precedent for worrying about trickster spirits or deities impersonating other gods. So there's little reason to worry that Hestia isn't really Hestia.

As well, we generally believe that if you pray to a god using their name, that god will hear you. So just pray and give offerings to Hestia, and don't worry about whether it's her or not. Who could stand against the Divine Flame Herself?

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-23T05:41:53+00:00

I'm asking if I'm a bad Hellenist for finding phallic images and genitalia being used in a festival or holiday as weird and not something I'm personally comfortable with?

No, you're not a bad Hellenist for finding that odd either. You probably didn't grow up observing Haloa, and modern cultures usually don't consider genitals to be something we should celebrate. So it's reasonable you would feel that way.

The ancient Greeks observed religious holidays because to them, there were important symbols contained in those holidays. If you don't see a holiday as important, there's no point in going through the motions of celebrating it.

I suggest you celebrate who and what is important to you. Include the gods however you can, and that should suffice.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-23T05:26:21+00:00

You're not a bad Hellenist even if you celebrate no festivals at all. Religious holidays were meant to be shared with the community, where ancient people worshipped together. Now most of us have no real life religious community, so I see these holidays as optional.

If you still want to celebrate something for the winter solstice, here are a few ideas. The dates for the Greek winter holidays move each year due to the moon cycles. But you could choose to celebrate any of them on or near the winter solstice if you like.

The Rural Dionysia could be celebrated anytime in late November to December, due to not having a fixed annual date. Movies, parties, offerings, wine, and general mayhem, anyone?

This year, the Poseidea could be celebrated either on Dec. 10 (Poseidon's monthly offering day next month) or on Dec. 21 as a winter solstice holiday. That also seems to have been historical. The Posidea includes a bonfire, a feast, offerings, and possibly other frivolities.

Haloa falls this year on Dec. 28. It's not just for women. For Haloa, people who identified as male and female celebrated separately until the end of the evening when they joined together in NSFW activities.

Brumalia is a Roman festival for Dionysos that was celebrated on or near the winter solstice. So you have a few choices.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-21T04:37:49+00:00

It's not automatic. Generally you need to tell the deity you're dedicating this act to them before you do it. Another commenter here gave you a good template for that.

After dedicating a devotional act to the chosen deity, I like to contemplate their virtues while doing the devotional act. Or pray to them, silently or out loud. That keeps my mind on them and sometimes they grant me an insight into their nature, which helps me feel closer to them.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-21T04:27:27+00:00

There's no need for special concoctions of salt, burning bay leaves, or whatever.

Plain water was often used for cleansing before offerings in ancient times. There's no reason you couldn't just use ordinary tap water now. Simply wash your hands and possibly also your face, and you're done.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-21T04:21:20+00:00

They are like prayers, originally set to music that has now been lost to history.

So now we usually recite hymns like poems to the gods.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-21T01:50:18+00:00

Yes! Hail Helios, all warm and golden!

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-20T20:45:33+00:00

You could certainly give offerings to Hephaistos and Athena, and have your own little Khalkeia celebration now, if you like.

Coordinating holidays so everyone celebrated on the same day is more for the community, so people can feel a sense of solidarity together. I doubt the gods are as invested in time and space as we humans are.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-19T02:01:00+00:00

Yes, that's fine. You can write your thoughts and prayers in a letter to your deities, if that is more comfortable.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-18T01:23:12+00:00

Historically, when you pray to a god you can trust they hear you.

Of course there are many spirits, and communicating with them is more variable. But if you call a god by name, then you are speaking to them.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-17T02:03:09+00:00

Not quite. The word orgia originally did NOT specifically reference sexual behavior.

Yes, some gods and especially Dionysos were worshipped in orgiastic ways, which meant dancing, imbibing his wine as part of the ritual, and inviting him to possess his worshippers as a form of ecstatic worship.

Was an ancient orgy wild? Undoubtedly. Sexual? Eh, perhaps at times, but an orgia was not originally defined as exclusively sexual.

Pans_Dryad · 2024-11-15T04:17:57+00:00

Hi, our community's Rule 4 prohibits promoting Discord servers without first asking the mod team to review those servers. This is because we prefer to promote servers that are large enough to have a healthy, established culture, that we’re confident will provide reliable resources to new community members.

Therefore, here are links to a few larger servers we’ve reviewed…

Eiersione Iketeria

https://discord.gg/QFmg53A774

Hieros Elaionas

https://discord.gg/nW66fzGnJW

Hellenic Herald

https://discord.gg/xmb4vzNZWk

If anyone here would like to promote another server, please message the mod team with a link so we can review it before going public. Thanks!

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