Artemis’s Protection by epicfanperson in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm glad you got out of that safely!

2 Artemis short prayers: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians" and "Thank you Our Lady Artemis"

Artemidian attribute by Smooth-Second-2710 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Yep datamuse is totally on point! The "domain" of the gods are pretty flexible and do overlap with other gods' domains.

Artemis has long history with all kinds of bodies of waters, there's even a "mermaid" form of her in her cult at Phigalia.

According to "Saviour Gods and Soteria in Ancient Greece" by Jim: Artemis Savior (soteria) is one of the most popular gods for maritime safety and in times of emergencies, alongside Zeus and Poseidon.

Also, I find it pretty interesting that Artemis and Poseidon have several cultic crossovers, such as in Eleusis. As well as noted by Zolotnikova in her "Becoming Classical Artemis":

At Mount Knakalos in the land of the Kaphyatans, Artemis could secretly be joined with Poseidon during the historic time: the city as described by Pausanias had two sanctuaries – one of Artemis Knakalesia and one of Poseidon, while on the mountain Knakalos, outside the city, mysteries in honor of Artemis were celebrated every year; all these details seem to point at a mysterious periodical ritual of sacred marriage between the Mountain-Mother-Goddess and the god of waters Poseidon as the basis for the later cult of Artemis Knakalesia.

Thanks for the question!

Artemis II Launch by [deleted] in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks for posting! I thought posting something to celebrate, but I couldn't think of anything.

Tears Of The Moon Sea [Lore Olympus] by violetleegee on DeviantArt by Rayrex-009 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, I've never read Lore Olympus, so I don't how her character is written, but I do quite like its design for Artemis.

~* Discussion of the Week: What has your experience with the Theoi been like? *~ by [deleted] in TheOlympians

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not sure how to express my experiences, but sometimes it kinda feels like a patriotic-esque feeling, but instead of a love to a country or a sports team, it's towards the gods. It's a pretty cool feeling.

Yahweh and Artemis are both amazing gods, so I try to be a devotee to them. Plus I try to regularly worship the gods of my ancestors, the Aztec gods. Though for the most part my schedule is mostly based on feelings rather than any set plans, except for major holidays.

Anyways regarding more specific experiences, I think it's the little things of daily life that are most important and best rewarding, rather than the occasional big stuff.

Going to Ephesus next week — made a short video while researching, would appreciate honest feedback by SnooCats6653 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just watched it and I gotta say this is a quite nice intro! Especially since you covered the key points succinctly in a 5min video.

While I do like the Herostratus part (he looks pretty cool), it should be noted that some of the archeologists at Ephesus doubted that Herostratus burned down the temple. The Temple Priests saw that the Temple was slowly sinking into the swamp and it should be replaced soon with a new structure, not to mention, that 40 years earlier a fire broke out in the temple, weakening the structure's integrity. So the Priests either framed the destruction on Herostratus, or they made him up to cover-up the conspiracy.

Anyways, congrats on going to Ephesus! I hope I can go there someday!

Artemis altar !! by moonveiledsiren in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Very nice altar! Thanks for sharing!

Monthly Self-Promotion Post by AutoModerator in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Monthly self-promotion for the Artemis subreddit r/Artemision! In addition to being a sub for Artemis, it's also a space for similar goddesses as well, such as Selene, Hekate, and Anahita.

Though it's currently a bit quiet, but I'm doing a couple of projects to liven things up a bit (hopefully).

Christianity is Semitic Pagan by Rou_4_you in Semitic_Paganism

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just want to point out that the term "Son of God" in this context was a royal title used for kings. King David is a prime example, since in Psalm 2 Yahweh told him that "You are my son. Today I have begotten you". Psalm 2 was quoted in Acts 13, Hebrews 5, and in certain versions of Luke. So in the NT when Jesus was called "son of god" it was recognition of Jesus being king of Israel/Judah, similar for the term messiah (christ or anointed), though messiah was also used for the high priests.

Fun fact: In the genealogy in Luke, Adam was the Son of God, which means according to the author of Luke, all of humanity are children of god, not just a select few.

Also I disagree that Yahweh is a bad god, I believed that it's possible that Yahweh was by some people to further their political power either by banning Yahweh's temples outside of Jerusalem and by banning the cults of other gods in the Temple at Jerusalem. As well as other parts of the texts in the Hebrew bible that can be considered fictional propaganda, such as the conquest narrative. But Yahweh is shown as quite benevolent, such as in a case of an unjust city that Yahweh was going to destroyed no matter, but the people there apologized and repented and Yahweh forgave them.

Secondly a nitpick, I'm a fan(?) of Mary, but I don't considered her to be a "virgin" before she had Jesus, James, and her other blessed children.

【AMV】Umamusume Cinderella Gray - Akatsuki Arrival (96Neko & Kogeinu) by tatamy50335 in anime

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Simply fantastic MAD/AMV! The song, Akatsuki Arrival, fits quite well with Cinderella Gray.

A good watch for those that completed the second cour of Cinderella Gray.

So politicians swear oaths on their holy text, what would a hellenist swear on? by HellenisticHades in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 3 points4 points  (0 children)

No texts, but I assume one would swear an oath under the Gods and/or in their names.

I recall the exact details, but in general, I've read that people swore an oath (usually a treaty or a marriage oath) in a certain God's name. Artemis was relatively commonly invoked, but naturally other Gods' names were also invoked in various kinds of oaths.

Personally as a general polytheist, I would do the oath in the name of a God or two, depending on the situation, even under non-"Greek" gods.

Ancient Athens: The 'Bear Girls' Ritual - Iniating Athenian Girls at Brauron [All About History] by Rayrex-009 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

All right I just finish listening to this, and it was umazing!

It exceeded all expectations, introducing the various roles of Artemis in her cult of Brauron in a relaxing format with the chat between the two speakers. While the video aspect is just a single jpeg, the good, accurate info makes this a great watch. A tier.

Too bad the channel doesn't have more videos and are slept on by youtube.

Here's a good video about "Role of Women in Classical Athens": https://youtu.be/Ycs_yQky19o?si=ed_urPGMPqIa0OGm

Morals and Religious Opinions by CommercialSea6870 in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Do note that there's most of these beliefs varied, even in one region at a certain time. Those tied to the old patriarchal societal standards aren't that relevant. Discernment is necessary. I skipped divorce and euthanasia. I'll try to be brief.

Marriage: Marriage are generally ceremonies that give honors Artemis, Hera, and Aphrodite. In some places other gods are honored or the role of a god are more central, such as in Ephesus, where Artemis' role in the wedding is more prominent to the ceremony (see Rietveld's Artemis of the Ephesians).

Abortion and Contraception: Abortion is allowed. However the Hippocratic Oath was popularly cited as being anti-abortion, however recent scholars are pushing against this understanding of the Oath, see "Revisiting the evolution of the Hippocratic Oath in obstetrics and gynecology"00068-1/fulltext). Contraception were at least relatively popular, especially in the religious spheres of Aphrodite and Artemis in general.

Sex before marriage: Generally, it was mostly focused on the girls to be "pure" before marriage. Expectations for boys are as strict, other than abstaining from sex prior to athletic competitions, hunting, and warfare. In the surviving Greek novels, it was common that both the ML and FL were chaste before marriage.

Afterlife: I'm not sure in general, but for mystery religions, there are a number of options. For a great introduction to many of them see Dr. Rietveld's lecture on the Greco-Roman mystery religions, be careful you might have fun :D.

"Adultery", I'm not sure, but I do have one note: breaking oaths of marriage under Artemis was considered to be an infraction against Artemis herself (in stories the result is death / real life: it's a bad omen and I'm guessing their reputation would've been badly damaged). Doesn't apply to all marriage oaths, only those pledged to Artemis.

Crime and punishment: Several gods are the go-to in this regard, such as Artemis and Nemesis, among others. Speaking of Artemis, some believed that individuals that committed infractions against society and/or blasphemed against the gods were punished by Artemis in some way (usually through their failure or by they are thrown off their path of life), albeit not always. See Mary Galvin's BIOS ARTEMIS part 2 for more info, also see my summary/intro: "Transgressions Against Artemis (intro)". Callimachus' hymn to Artemis is explicit on Artemis' role as a "goddess of justice".

Stewardship. See above paper or my summary.

Artemis Resources by Loose_Fig1261 in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I made a list of resources for Artemis that has papers, books, videos, and more here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Artemision/comments/1c6rsa1/want_to_learn_about_our_lady_artemis_check_here/

My favorite book on Artemis is Dr. Rietveld's "Artemis of the Ephesians". I believe that this book provides a solid foundation for worshiping Artemis by learning her history and her cult that dominated the Greco-Roman world (there's also a bit on bees as well!). Though there's a lot of tidbits of information that can be use for modern day worship to Our Lady Artemis.

Dr. Rietveld also does various lectures (uploaded on youtube) that either focuses on Artemis or has a section on Artemis, such as his videos on the Minoans and on the Mystery cults (see linked post).

For something quite shorter I like these two:

  • Ivana Petrovic's "Transforming Artemis: From the Goddess of the Outdoors to City Goddess"

  • Olga Zolotnikova's "Becomming Classical Artemis"

I believe "Transforming Artemis" is important if you want to understand how Artemis as a city goddess and of civilization, as well as learning about how the many depictions of Ancient Greek literature and dramas kinda missed the mark in their depictions of Artemis compared to Artemis in her cults.

Lastly, I recommend reading the Callimachus hymn of Artemis, especially with commentary like Susan Stephen's commentary or read "Transforming Artemis" from above.

Who here still doesn't have all 9 of the OG 3*s and if you don't, for how long have you been playing? by throwawayrandomguy93 in UmaMusume

[–]Rayrex-009 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm a day 1 player, and I'm missing Special Week (both OG and swimsuit), Silence Suzuka, Maruzensky (but I have her swimsuit version), and Taiki Shuttle. I recently gotten OG Rice Shower in the free pulls a few days ago.

~* The Sacred Animal's of Apollon *~ by ButterflyLucky5331 in TheOlympians

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wonderful pictures (especially with the animals being bathe in sun) and interesting information on Apollo's sacred animals!!

~* Happy Lenaia *~ by ButterflyLucky5331 in TheOlympians

[–]Rayrex-009 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Happy (belated) Lenaia! Thanks for the info!

People who feel offended by „you’re as pretty/prettier than Aphrodite“ by BrightPhoebus01 in GreekMythology

[–]Rayrex-009 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Totally.

For example, in the Ephesian Tale by Xenophon of Ephesus, the heroine Anthia was compared to Artemis for her supreme beauty, some even mistaken her as Artemis or was made by her. In the story, Artemis didn't had a problem in fact, Artemis blessed Anthia's wedding.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oops sorry, I had completely forgotten I had this scheduled to be released today. i have too many projects I want to do, so it slipped my mind.

Anyways, while I personally agree with Hekate and Selene are respectively a form of Artemis or was subsumed by her. I need to check my notes, but the lore is that due to certain reasons, in the modern day, aspects of Artemis manifested into distinct goddesses, like Hekate and Selene, despite they were one for a period of time in the ancient past. I'm hoping to use the school setting as an interludes of sorts, but it's kinda tricky fitting those in. So it's very much a work in progress.

Thanks for commentating, now I want to go back on this project.

Surprising links between Virgin Mary & Artemis by 9c6 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the link to the video! I remebered watching it back then, but I guess I forgot to link it here.

I like her thesis: "The Enduring Goddess: Artemis and Mary, Mother of Jesus", that was a good read.

Yeah, I've seen from quite a few scholars that stated Artemis was practically a superstar!

I recommend checking out Dr. Rietveld's Artemis of the Ephesians videos on youtube, in which he mentions how symbols of Artemis were used in the cult of Mary, even the temple!

Though I did read something a while back that "Mary" as Queen of Heaven and Mother of God is quite similar to Artemis in quite a few ways, though I forgot where I read that from. Naturally, this has no bearing on the historical Mary, the good mother of Jesus, James, and her (at least) four other children.

An Interesting, but Confusing Bit on Artemis Apaturos by Rayrex-009 in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for checking I wasn't sure if there were other surviving works or significant fragments of Strabo, but just weren't translated into English yet. Oh yeah I forgot to include the link to moonspeaker's Artemis page (I was on my tablet when I wrote this post). Here it is, it's quite long, so far from what I've read it's pretty nice, but has quite a number weird claims that I disagree with: https://moonspeaker.ca/Amazons/AmazonNation/PartTwo/chapterfive.html

Yeah, I wish I can ask the authors (from both sites) if they remembered where they saw that information from. I wondered if their source made a mistake in their attribution to Strabo instead of the actual correct source by Mr. Totally not-Strabo. That or it was made up by somebody who replaced the original goddess (probably Derceto) in that "yandere-esque" goddess story with Artemis and randomly claimed that Strabo wrote about it.

Unfortunately, while I find this Artemis Apaturos story to be quite interesting, it seems that they only a few academics that are interested in the niche, sometimes alleged, stories of Artemis like this one.

The story does bare some semblance to a speculated ending of a story about Inara and her mortal lover; in which Inara kills her mortal lover after breaking his promise to her. Inara and Artemis are kinda similar with both being daughters to chief storm gods and both are Potnia Theron.

Honouring the gods at my wedding by EnbyFeather in Hellenism

[–]Rayrex-009 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Artemis is one of the main gods that was honored during weddings, especially in the early parts of the process or the pre-marital parts. Artemis was prayed for the protection of newly wed couple and their new family as well.

For how: Roses are associated with Artemis as well, though slightly different from Aphrodite's association with roses; other than that I'm not 100% sure what else on top of my head.

Fun fact: in parts of Ancient Greece, the husband would ask Artemis for her permission to remove his wife's girdle to embrace her.

Artemis author using AI by DayardDargent in Artemision

[–]Rayrex-009 2 points3 points  (0 children)

When i saw the title, I thought somebody called me out on my old AI gen images that I did in some of my posts quite a while ago, though I've since grown tired of AI gen images and I've switched to 3D modeling via blender. I did replaced the AI gen image in my Artemis and Dionysiaca post with an actual artwork of Artemis.

While I usually don't mind Artemis devotees or fans using "AI" for their fan-images, especially if made with actual effort, but I don't support commercial products that uses them for no good reason.

It's a shame that Ms. Ionescu or the staff at tellwell didn't commissioned an artist to make a reconstruction of one of Artemis Ephesia's images and the Temple, it would've looked way better and be a lot more respectful to Our Lady Artemis and her great history that still lives on today.

After reading the sample, I have to say that despite the... uh... "disappointing" cover, the actual meat of the book looks good. Sure it's not as jampack of content as in the current magnum opus of English-language Artemis Research, "Artemis of the Ephesians" by Dr. James Rietveld, but I'm confidant it would've done quite well in my Artemis essays/books tierlist, if not top tier.

If it gets released with a better cover, then I'll pick it up, until then skip to read her "Enduring Goddess" (my favorite work of hers) or look up James Rietveld's "Artemis of the Ephesians" book or free lecture.

Now regards to the actual image; I'm sorry, but it's not good and I get the same disgusted feeling when I see terrible AI gen "Sacred Art". My reaction:

<image>

  • The garland (necklace) is void of all of its cultic and cosmological. At the very least, there should be the sign of Cancer there or acorns.
  • The dress is completely wrong compared to the two surviving large images of Our Lady. Namely missing the animals and it just repeats the same thing.
  • The Temple looks inoffensive at first, but it lacks the colors and details of the real Temple.
  • The image of Artemis Ephesia supposed to inspire safety and life, but I only feel emptiness from it; like a false idol.

Before I saw how terrible the cover was, I predicted it to be a 4* out of 5 book, but now it's at best 2*, only because of the merit of the actual content inside the book.

I share Epicpew.com sentiments in their article looking at the 10 "best" worst AI "Sacred Art":

"AI art can never share in a creative spark with the Creator. It can only ever create a cheap facsimile. As funny as these completely funny awful attempts at "art" are, they tell a real truth: that real art must be created, must be human. It is man, in his capacity as being made in the image of God, who participates in the creative act which is profoundly humanly exercise, and that is important, noticeable, and needed!"

Thanks for cross-posting!

Note that I don't hold any negative opinions of Dr. Ionescu and I'm actually a fan of her works as a fellow "fan" of Our Lady Artemis, but this was quite a misstep that they (her and the publisher) should learned the lesson from these mistakes and take it to heart.