Moment Of Truth

CHARACTER TROPES in The Last Of Us Part II (insp)

Pick A Card: Everyday Life With Your Future Spouse

Hey, there! Ivy here. In this new PAC that I prepared, we'll be taking a little sneak peek about what your everyday life is going to be with your future spouse. And I've also added some little details about them and/or your relationship. I've had a lot of fun doing the readings, and I hope you'll enjoy them as well! The energies are just so ✨ bEAUtIFuL ✨ ugh, I could bask in it forever.

Anyways, thank you all so much for the comments, likes, reblogs, love and high vibes in the first reading that I've made (which you can check out here if you still haven't.) You guys are as sweet as my favorite ice cream flavors. Here, just take my heart: 💙 I never expected a lot of people would resonated with the readings! Therefore I'm glad to have help in anyway. Sending much love your way, muah! Now without further ado, cue the music and let's start the reading!

Please choose from one to three piles. I pray that your intuition will lead you to the messages that's meant for you to hear. Keep in mind that this is a general reading so take what resonates and leave what doesn't! If one pile doesn't resonate with you at all, then you're welcome to choose again. After all, the situation that the cards predict is not set in stone. It's only one of the countless possibilities that the future holds, and you undoubtedly have the power to change your future.

Disclaimer: This is for entertainment purpose only. Do not take this reading as a professional or medical advise. Photos used are not mine, they belong to their respective owners.

From left to right: 1, 2, 3.

Pile One

chemistry, forgiving & learning, the world (reversed), page of swords (reversed), knight of pentacles, ace of wands (reversed), wheel of fortune.

Okay, I instantly got this sudden thought that your future spouse will spoil you, a lot actually. Or you both spoil each other. I'm receiving different kinds of messages but let me first begin with what I started. So there are like somedays when the both of you wanna go out and have fun together. Like going out to the mall, shopping, watching a movie, eating out, buying stuffs for your home and all that. And when you're both at home, you would just coop up in your couches and just Netflix and chill ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° (kidding. not.) I actually see this person as a bookish sort, they love reading. Especially novels where they could lose their selves into. That could be you too. I see one of you would just read aloud and the other listens earnestly. I actually got a hint earlier that both of you like to flex your wits and you like to debate about things, a lot actually. Nothing too serious, just things that makes your brains excited and learning about each other's opinions. Oh, and while I was starting to type this, I just saw that when you're both out in public, you're going to turn heads. Those people would just stare at the both of you for a moment because they think you're just a jaw-dropping, amazing couple. Probably the way you both dress, or the way you both talk as very engaging and intellectual, oh and they just couldn't deny the aura that you both permeate. Damn, I love this pile. You're both confident souls. (Dear pile 1, once you're both married, adopt me please lmao.) Oh! AND THAT PROBABLY WAS A MESSAGE TOO. Okay, for some of you, maybe you and your person would like to consider about adopting a child.

Okay, a little earlier I said that somedays you wanna go out together. But I have a feeling that you and your future spouse actually LOVES going out A LOT. And not just in typical places, but like both of you are this kind of people who explores every nook and cranny in their city or country. You both love exploring together. So yeah, when you marry this person, expect a lot of roadtrips and traveling and such. I feel like they like to go on hikings too, or maybe that's you. But don't worry, hiking is not an everyday life for the both of you, HAHA. Just going out here and there is.

One more thing, since the Forgiving and Learning card showed up, I feel like this is just an additional message that confirms that you and your FS don't fight a lot. But when you do, it's when serious things get. You don't quarrel about pointless things. Both of you will go through it logically. But your fights won't last. You'd easily forgive and explain to each each other while also learning something. For some of you, this is just a message for you right now to forgive your past so you can move confidently towards your future. Now, forgiving doesn't necessarily mean forgetting; but you can make peace with what's done in the past and you'd rather choose to leave all the negative energy and not become a victim of it anymore. (What am I a wise, old, bearded wizard with a pointy hat and a staff now?)

OMGGG, I JUST SAW 555 🦄✨

Channeled song: White Houses by Vanessa Carlton (i love this song sm)

Channeled words: rain, bush, two umbrellas, mansion, religious altar, sweet, priceless, pool or backyard party, valiant, aisle, dwindling, time, demanding for answers, lightning. (I literally just saw one out my window.)

PS: I forgot to point out. Both of you could be extroverts. But it's also possible for you or them could be an introvert. Nevertheless I do see one of you is extroverted.

Remember to take care and love yourself! See ya! — Ivy

Pile Two

express your love, this could be the one, ace of wands (reversed), eight of cups (reversed), the hierophant (reversed), knight of cups, the tower.

While shuffling the cards I saw a garden and I strongly feel that the house you'll be living in with your FS has a garden, or somewhere surrounded in greenery. Your relationship with them will also be nourishing. So in your everyday life with them both of you will actually be very romantic. Both of you literally can't go on a day without letting each other know how much you love each other. Oh, and I almost forgot! After seeing that garden, I also saw that your FS will cook you delicious meals every day. And I mean meals that you'll be eating in a restaurant. For some of you, your FS could be a culinary expert, a chef. Or that could be you. I'll point out that you'll rarely eat the same foods everyday, because you'd cook new meals together. Alright, I don't mean to change the topic right away but (AHSKDHSJSH) the same could be said in the bedroom, you know? Everytime you'd make love will feel very new and exciting for the both of you. Since I already mentioned the elephant in the room—I'd say: yes, part of your everyday life would be.. you know, THAT. Don't look at me, that's what I saw in the cards, so yeah. Golly, you can't just take your hands off each other, hmm?

MOVING ON... Okay, I get it now. I could make this reading very short and just say; “Everything is new with your future spouse.” But for the sake of clarity, I'd say right now that the main core of this relationship is actually exploring, learning, and doing new things together. LIKE LITERALLY. I can't stress it enough! Everyday will feel like a new exciting chapter with them! Damn. Oh, and rest assured that both of you will find fun, joy, and love in the things that you do together. Why do I feel like y'all would just celebrate life, dancing in the living room together? Heh.

You two could be very spiritual, but I definitely see them being one. You two would probably spend some time to meditate, learning more and discussing about spirituality, and just enlightening each other's souls.

One more thing; now this may or may not resonate with you at all. But for some of the people who chose this pile, it's most likely that you already know this person—your soon to be future spouse, yes. It's probably someone you're crushing on right now, or a trusty friend who you probably have an undeniably chemistry with, or that smoking hawt neighbor you have next door, I don't know, HAHA. OR... if you're not single and already in a relationship, then this is just a validation that your partner right now is, yes, they're ze ✨ O N E & O N L Y ✨

Channeled song: willow - moonlit witch version by Taylor Swift (omggg this is too beautiful, i want your channeled song sm lmfao)

Channeled words: candies, smile, take me, wooden doors, England, daisies, priest, focus, mars, home, wishing well, forest, cottagecore, dragon, believe, friend, fairy.

PS: There's a heavy cottagecore vibe here, confirmed it when willow came up. So I do feel that you'll be living together somewhere where nature is easily accessible. Could be your house's aesthetic is cottagecore, and/or you or they is such an enthusiast of that aesthetic.

Remember to take care and love yourself! See ya! — Ivy

Pile Three

romantic feelings, it's safe for you to love (this came out twice), eight of wands, queen of pentacles (reversed), the devil, the hanged man, seven of cups.

Alright, among the other two piles, this is like the most “chill” of them lol. Daily life with your future spouse would probably just be relaxing in each other's arms whenever you're both at home. I heard It's Nice To Have A Friend by Taylor Swift and this lyric stick out the most in my head: “Feels like home, stay in bed the whole weekend. It's nice to have a friend.” Oh and I have a feeling that song would resonate a lot with your relationship with them. It really feels homey and chill, I really love that song. With the oracle card that came out saying that It's Safe For You To Love, I feel like that could be a message for you when you start have a relationship with your FS or when you start developing feelings for them, that it really is just safe for you to love. Your past relationships might have left you wounded and then you're gonna start contemplating whether you could trust your FS to not crush your heart when you give it to them. But the Universe is literally just saying to you that it's safe for you to do so. I just saw 222, omg.

Might I point out that there is just a heavy passionate energy here. And I mean like the you know, you know. 👀 It's scorching in here, HAHA. There wouldn't be a day when your future spouse would stop letting you know and feel how much they love you. Also, I forgot to mention that they have this safe and homey energy around them and you just can't help yourself but to bask in it. They want to make sure to make you feel safe as much as possible and they wouldn't do anything that you're uncomfortable with. They like to take notes of your likes and dislikes. When both of you are free from work you would just be busy pampering each other. And I sense a relaxing atmosphere where both of you could just unwind and relax, having conversations and a glass of wine or two. This person loves taking care of you. Oh, and I heard this person could love gardening, or that could be you. Okay, they really have this Queen of Pentacles vibes to them. They are very nurturing and generous. I also heard this person can be quite of a neat freak, they like to keep things in their proper place and they don't like to see mess, the same could be said for mistakes—they don't like one. They could by a perfectionist. Also, expect this person to be introverted, they're also quite spiritual and psychic. So both of you might spend time together doing things together that fulfills you spiritually. For some of you, this person could be a practicing witch. I heard they're more of a green or kitchen witch. (Now for those of you who don't know, the term ‘witch’ can be used for all genders.)

And last but not least, both of you might be creatives. You'd spend time together doing art, it can be any form of art. This person could lean towards writing, they could be an author. Or perhaps that's you, or both of you. If that's the case, I definitely see some writing activity here. Overall, I sense a lot of creativity coming from the both of you. You two would share and give ideas back and forth and learn from each other. Aw, this is so... ಥ‿ಥ

Channeled song: I Know Places by Taylor Swift (and I just saw 1111)

Channeled words: pastel, canvas, painting, hot weather, coupons, Tracy, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost (poem), you have time, happy, skyscraper, glow, singing, miniscule, jumper clothing, dryad, quail bird, dewy grass, portal.

Remember to take care and love yourself! See ya! — Ivy

Actual ancient lapidaries or "the ancient Greeks and Romans probably didn't use crystals the way you think they did"

The Internet being of cyclic nature, I feel like talks about the use of crystals come back to view at least twice a year. I usually don't pay much attention to those discussions, since they tend to be unfruitful and, to be quite frank, boring. However, the topic of the historicity of linking certain stones to certain gods -or more widely- properties is an interesting one nonetheless.

But first, a disclaimer: 1) Some of the practices I will be describing below are not safe and should not be reproduced at home. I feel like this should go without saying, but the fact Goop's jade egg is still on the market only proves the necessity of such disclaimer. 2) I do not care about people's personal practices. If you associate certain stones with deities, good for you. It's not my problem and this post isn't meant to attack your practice. It's merely meant to put some things within context.

Now that this is out of the way, let's define the matter at hand. Let me start by saying that from this point on, I will refer to "crystals" as "gems" or "stones". Both terms seem to be more appropriate and widely used in academical context.

The sources

We do not lack evidence of gemstone usage in the Ancient world, both literary and archaeological. Usage included jewelry making, medicine, and magic. The first is a given so I won't dwell on it. I am more interested in the other two and how they relate to each other.

On the literary side, the earliest Greek treatise on stones is from Theophrastus (371 - 287 BC), titled Περὶ λίθων ("On stones", quite literally). In this work, he lists the stones known to him and their properties from a physical standpoint and explains where they are found in the Greek world. He gives, in general, very few indications of potential magical properties.

We start having much more literature around the properties of gems in the Roman period, especially around the 1st century BC onwards, with Pliny the Elder's (23/24 – 79 AD) Natural History, and the works of Greek physicians like Dioscorides (40–90 AD) and Galen (129 – 216 AD). Some of those works will be considered of importance throughout the Middle Ages, while some will be "rediscovered" at the Renaissance.

On the archaeological side, we have thousands of magical gems (see: the Campbell Bonner database). Here is the official definition given by the database:

"The designation 'magical gem' is a category of modern archaeology, which denotes the most sophisticated amulet type of the Roman Imperial Period. Magical gems were carved of precious stones sized 1 to 3 centimeters, chiefly between the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD, and were designed to bring their owners health, prosperity and love. Their typology follows the shapes of Graeco-Roman glyptics complemented with a few Mesopotamian and Egyptian variants. They are distinguished by their characteristic engravings of inscriptions, signs and images, which usually appear on both faces of the gems, and sometimes even on the edge."

Their usage

Interestingly, the timeframe the previous definition gives fits the one where we find the majority of literary sources. This is probably no coincidence, and it probably isn't a coincidence that interest in stones and gems seems to appear after the Classical period, especially if we consider the importance of Egyptian and Mesopotamian elements found on them. This would coincide nicely with the growth of the Hellenistic Empire.

Before I jump into what would be considered "magical use" (the lines are blurry, as we'll see), let me give a few examples of medical use taken from Dioscorides:

IV, 139 λίθος σάπφειρος, Lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli seems to help people stung by scorpions when drunk. It is drunk for internal ulcerations and it shrinks excrescences, defects inside the cornea, and pustules on the eyes, and it joins together the rents of their membranes.

Here we have an example of how the stone could be used as an ingredient: filed down to a powdery state and most likely mixed with wine before being drunk by the patient. Another example, still from Dioscorides, would be qualified today as on leaning more on the magical side:

V, 142 λίθος ίασπις, Jasper There is a jasper which is emerald green, another like crystal resembling phlegm, another light blue, another smoky as if it were blackened with smoke, one which has cracks that are quite white <and> shining and which is called astrios, and there is one called terebinthizon, resembling turquoise in color. All seem to guard against evil when hung on a person and to promote a speedy birth when tied around the thigh.

While, in the case of Selenite, both "medical" and "magical" properties are offered:

V, 141 λίθος σεληνίτης, Selenite Selenite, which some people have called aphroselenos because it is found at night when the moon waxes, occurs in Arabia. It is white, transparent, and light. Filed down, it is given as a drink to epileptics and women use it as a protective amulet. It also seems to make trees fruitful when attached on them.

There comes the issue of correspondences. Here Dioscorides gives us straightforward uses but doesn't necessarily tell if the colour matters and/or if something should be carved on it. Meanwhile, the archaeological pieces we have are all inscribed somehow (and it's very likely how the modern eye could distinguish them from just any shiny rock).

So the question is, what makes magical gems magical? Attilio Mastrocinque in his article The Colours of Magical Gems noticed a pattern between the colour of the chosen gem and the organ/bodily function/secretion it is supposed to regulate or heal:

The series of gems discussed above show that haematite (and its reddish-brown variety, i.e. limonite) was used to protect red-brown organs, such as the liver and kidney, and that natural pieces of this stone actually have the shape and gloss of these organs. The inscriptions on several gems confirm that they were amulets for the liver. Moreover the Syrian god Adad was known for his stone kidney, and a Syrian haematite intaglio is shaped like a kidney. The colour and properties of stones were supposed to be syntonic with the world of the gods.

Stomach or intestinal diseases, pregnancy and the womb’s other functions, and breast-feeding were dealt with thanks to Chnoubis and his gems. The liquid secretions on which bodily health depended are red (blood), black (when the intestine is bleeding), green or transparent (the stomach juices), and white (milk). Chnoubis gems are rarely red or yellow, whereas they are often white, green, and sometimes transparent or black. If we reject the idea of casuality, we must look for a logic or a taxonomy in the choice of colour. A possible explanation emerges from the colours, because white stones were suitable for breast-feeding and the iconography of a threeheaded Chnoubis appears on a white gem. This iconography is known as useful for breast-feeding. Therefore: white gems = milk. Greek physicians recommended, in case of stomach diseases, green or transparent stones with the image of this god. Therefore: green or transparent gems = the stomach, whose juices are green or transparent. Other physicians recommended transparent stones for pleuritic and hip diseases, and therefore another possibility is: transparent gems = pleura and hips; but in this case the colour was scarcely related with the disease. Another numerous group of gems shows this god over the womb, and these gems are of haematite.

The divinities majoritarily represented on magical gems are not strictly Greek. Chnoubis or Chnoumis is the Greek name of the Egyptian creator god Chnoum, for example. Even hematite gems which are described as representing Ares are explained by Mastrocinque this way:

This Ares is not the Greek god, but the result of cultural synthesis in which a Syrian god assumed the iconography of the Homeric god. This iconography was used to represent Syrian gods like Azizos and Arsou, or the warlike god of the Nabataeans.

It seems more and more clear that the Greeks and, by extension, the Romans, adopted a long Egyptian and Eastern tradition. There are, still, gems that clearly show Greco-Roman elements:

Pliny describes a type of coral called Gorgonia, after the monster’s name. In fact a series of coral gems with Medusa’s face have been preserved (Pl. 3a). Red jasper could be used as a substitute for coral, as is proved by gems with the same subject. These gems often have an image of Hekate on the reverse; both Gorgon and Hekate were considered to be powerful characters in averting demons, illnesses and enemies.

In this case, we find both the Gorgon and Hekate in very traditional apotropaic positions. More interesting, however, in a series of amulets showing Herakles fighting the Nemean lion serving this purpose (Christopher Faraone, Text, Image and Medium: The Evolution of Graeco-Roman Magical Gemstones):

In his chapter ‘On the colicky condition’ Alexander of Tralles, a 6th-century ad Greek physician, prescribes the following treatment for colic, a painful disease of the lower intestine: ‘On a Median stone engrave Heracles standing upright and throttling a lion. Set it in a gold ring and give it to the patient to wear’ (2.579). There is some confusion about the precise identity of the ‘Median stone’ in this passage, which may have been a form of haematite or magnetite but Alexander’s description coincides well with a popular series of amulets that consist of an opaque red stone (almost always jasper) engraved with the wrestling scene that he describes; [...]

This particular case is interesting because, as Faraone notes, we know of the existence of a carnelian scarab with the same scene that was found in a 5th century BC grave in Cyprus. More curious is the fact that this specific scarab also has two eyes of Horus next to Herakles. It is impossible to know if this amulet was just that, a protective amulet featuring two highly apotropaic symbols or if it was intended as something else.

One last notable example before I start wrapping things up. There is a series of lapis-lazuli gems that represent Aphrodite Anadyomene ("rising from the sea"). The Campbell Bonner database counts 23 of these. On these, Faraone says:

On the back of the stone we find the magical word arôriphrasis which is typical of these amulets, as we can see from one of the lapis stones in the British Museum (Pl. 12c). Scholars, myself included, sometimes repeat the claim that arôriphrasis transliterates an Egyptian title of the goddess Hathor as ‘The Lady of the Blue Stone’; the epithet exists, but apparently bears no phonetic resemblance to the word arôriphrasis on the gemstone. We do find, however, on one lapis gem of this type the name ‘<H>athor’ inscribed before arôriphrasis, suggesting that the word – whatever it means – was, indeed, an epithet of some sort, and since Hathor and Aphrodite are assimilated in Graeco-Roman Egypt, there is some logic to the appearance of the name and Aphrodite on these blue stones. As in the case of the other types, a rare inscribed prayer tells us much about the perceived power of this kind of amulet: on a greenish lapis gem of another type (with Aphrodite and Ares) we read: ‘Arôriphrasis, give your charm to the bearer’. It would seem, then, that like the name Chnoubis, arôriphrasis identifies a divinity – probably Aphrodite/Hathor – who is thereby invoked to produce charm and beauty in the person who wears the gem.

Once again, we have a case of an association linked to a Greco-Egyptian syncretism. It is worth noting, however, that other gems representing Aphrodite aren't necessarily blue. She is also found on hematite, carnelian, or amethyst, amongst others. This would lead us to believe that the choice of the gem is not made upon the basis of correspondence with a divinity, rather than the function, as seen with the medical examples above or, as with this example, a specific epithet or specific voces magicae (and even then, there is an example of Aphrodite Anadyomene on orange/red carnelian...)

This perhaps explains why it is possible to find such statements in some studies:

"It may be observed that gemstones depicting Jupiter are frequently cut on milky chalcedony; those showing Sol are often on heliotrope which was thought to reflect the sun’s rays; of Mars on red jasper or cornelian, the colour of blood; of Demeter on green jasper which has a sympathy with vegetation and of Bacchus on amethyst which was believed to be wine coloured hand to prevent drunkenness. Such systems of correspondences, differing in detail no doubt, form a continuous tradition linking the Hellenistic age to the very end of the Middle Ages. During all that time lapidaries, stone books, were consulted. No doubt they were in Roman Britain."

This quote I took from Religion in Roman Britain by Martin Henig, who only references Joan Evans as source (Magical jewels of the middle ages and the renaissance particularly in England, 1922). Some of those observations, which clearly are hard to consider valid for generalization (counterexamples are plenty) also contradict other systems of correspondences, such as the one found in PGM CX. 1-12:

. . . a voice comes to you in conversation. Lay out the stars on the board in their natural order, with the exception of the sun and the moon. Make the sun gold, the moon silver, Kronos of obsidian, Ares of yellow-green onyx, Aphrodite of lapis-lazuli streaked with gold, Hermes of turquoise; make Zeus of a [dark blue] stone, but underneath of crystal.

The PGM (Greek Magical Papyri) is always a difficult source to assess because of its syncretic and fragmented nature. In any case, its material is dated between the 1st and 4th century AD, which is a timeframe that is likely to be in sync with Roman Britain. It is worth noting that this specific passage of the PGM refers to the planets carrying the names of deities.

In any case, none of those correspondences seem to fit with modern ones, which are, for the most part, taken from an entirely different system (especially the bastardized/westernized idea of chakras). As for other uses, we can clearly see that some of the health claims made by "lithotherapists" (or just Karens on the Internet) trace back to ancient Greek medical treatises. And, please, don't ingest crystals.

-

Attilio Mastrocinque, The Colours of Magical Gems

Veronique Dasen, Magic and Medicine: Gems and the Power of Seals

Christopher A. Faraone, Text, Image and Medium: the Evolution of Graeco-Roman Magical Gemstones, all 3 in: Gems of Heaven : Recent Research on Engraved Gemstones in Late Antiquity c. AD 200 (eds. Chris Entwistle & Noel Adams), British Museum Press, 2012

Hans Dieter Betz, The Greek Magical Papyri in Translation Including the Demotic Spells, 1986

Dioscorides & Lily Y. Beck (tran.), De materia medica, 2005

“Good friends, good books and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.”

— Mark Twain

Piristephes’ Masterpost

 Hello, friends! Welcome to my masterpost. If you wanna read about me, please click here.

Please follow my portuguese hellenic Blog / Sigam meu blog Helênico em português -> @hermeneutas  Now a list of my original posts, may you find some of them useful and whatnot.

On Divination

- Gods and Divination 

- Prayer to Apollon for Divination

- About divination and oracles in Hellenic Polytheism

- Hellenic Divination: Ornithomancy

Nymph cult info

- How to connect with nymphai and nature spirits (PT and EN)

- Honouring the Nymphai, the Maidens of Nature

Monthly observances and household worship (Based on Hesiod’s Works and Days, and other sources)

- Noumenia: The New Moon festival

- The Agathos Daimon

- Yet another Agathos Daimon post

- Honouring Athene (and Ares) on Tritogeneia 

- Honouring Hermes on Ermou Tetras

- Making an Herma for Hermes

- The 5th lunar day, to the Eumenides/Kindly Ones

- The 6th and 7th lunar day, to Artemis and Apollon

- Devotional act suggestion for Artemis

- Honouring and approaching Apollon

- You don’t always need to do big rituals (a post for Apollon)

- Dikhomenia, the Full Moon festival to Selene

- Prayer to Selene, Artemis and Hekate on Dikhomenia

- Deipnon, the Dark Moon festival to Hekate

- Mesomedes of Crete’s “Hymn to the Sun”

General worship tips, suggestions for rituals and personal experiences.

- Basic greek for worship 

- General tips and where to go to after initial research

- Suggestions for Haloa

- Suggestions for Olympeia

“Song of Mounykhia” to Artemis

- Honouring the demigods before exercises

- On the nature of blessings

- Quote: Pillars to Apollon

- Hermes, the Ram-Bearer

- Ares, a warrior

- The time Hera helped me

- Quote: Circe and Cheese

- Quote: Ares, a God of Women

When I was robbed and thanked Hermes

- Honouring Apollon, Artemis and Leto

- A personal rant about Apollon and Helios

 That time when Hermes made me come out of the polytheist closet

Posts from @hermeneutas in English, originally in Portuguese.

 Blog introduction

 Differentiating Hellenismos, Hellenic Polytheism and some other stuff

 Why you shouldn’t just mix folklore and polytheism

 Regarding deceased pets

 Altars and cult spaces

How do I know if my offering has been accepted or denied?

Worshipping Tips - The Delphic Maxims

About divination on Hellenic Polytheism

The monthly cycle of the household cult

What should I do with the offering after it spoils on my altar?

The afterlife and the Underworld

Regarding the matter of Magic in Hellenic Polytheism

Do you think all gods are just different manifestations of the same energy?

Gods and their epithets series

Gods and their epithets - Hestia

Gods and their epithets - Hephaestus

Gods and their epithets - Hermes

Gods and their epithets - Zeus

Gods and their epithets - Hera

Devotional art and poetry

Devotional texts

Poems

Art in general

Hymns

*turns the mic on* TERFs are not allowed here nor in hellenic polytheism as a whole, as they are in direct opposition to Xenia. Bigotry has no place here. Consider taking your time reading the Xenia Declaration too!

I hope this list was helpful! Errosthe!

i come home early one morning after a long double shift at work, and crawl into bed next to you. you, warm with sleep, eyes still closed, pull me in close, draping your arm over my hip. the night without you was long, but i feel safe and held now. i close my eyes and fall asleep easily in your arms, your body wrapped around mine.

things are finally easy. we have not gotten where we are going, but the journey from here is smooth. we are able to be still, to breathe, to walk downhill instead of up. i think to myself at night, curled around you, that there is no one i rather share this with but you. there is no one safer, lovelier. you are my best friend, and this struggle was better because you were with me every step of the way. i hold you close. there is no empty space between us, and no emptiness in our lives.

what do you do to include judaism in your daily life?

i’m looking for suggestions of ways to include little jewish things, behaviours, and practices in my daily life! i’m atheist leaning, i’d say? so it’s a bit of a struggle- but i’m still more than happy to hear about suggestions that involve Hashem!

(i’m asking around jumblr (so you might see this ask on other blogs))

Hello!! Thanks for the ask!

I’m not sure how much value someone who is atheist leaning would get out of these things, so I apologize if this isn’t what you’re looking for, but here’s how I include Judaism in my life!

- Lots of Torah study and Jewish readings

- I’m involved with two Jewish organizations through my college and engage with their MANY events

- Learning to make and/or eating Jewish foods

- Making copious amounts of challah

- Saying the Shema twice and day and relevant brachos if I know them! Also frequently learning new ones! Like I recently learned there’s one for seeing a strange animal for the first time! A great resource for this is https://www.brachos.org/

- Keeping kosher (mostly! I’m working on it!) or at least eating with intention

- Trying to learn Hebrew but I’m really bad at languages :/

- Reading a page of Talmud a day through the Daf Yomi emails from https://www.myjewishlearning.com

- Touching the mezuzah on my doorpost every time I come home

- Studying the history of the Jewish people

- Learning and participating in new traditions

- Learning traditional hymns and songs

- Tzedakah

- Trying to be Shabbat observant but it’s a work in progress

- Having Jewish decor in my home

- Being intentional with my words and actions and considering how they may impact myself and others

- Feeding my pets before I feed myself

There’s probably more things I’m forgetting but this is all I can think of right now!

I hope this helped!

If there’s anything you specifically want more information on please feel free to ask!

“There will always be a person who looks like a poem the earth wrote to keep you alive.”

— Juansen Dizon

시발비용 = Fuck-it Expense