Author: A Solitary Pagan
Hekates Night, 13th August, 8, Hekates Night Conclusion.
The middle of August coincides with many things that relate to Hekate. The Nemoralia festival, the Kourotrophos festival, possibly a Deipnon one year, the Ides of Hekate, and loosely the dog days of summer. Nemoralia is however the most likely originator for the modern festivals date. The things observed in the festival all match with Hekate to some degree – She is associated with storms and pro...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 7, Further Dating.
Hekates Night, 13th August, 7, Further Dating. There are two more possibilities or connections to the 13th and Hekate. The first is the possibility, though I call it the least likely, that the date is simply because one year the Deipnon fell on the 13th of August and people got confused thinking the festival always happened on the 13th. The other is this interesting statement, “The time was at han...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 6, Kourotrophos.
The ancient Greek calendars were luni-solar. The years were marked by the solstices or equinoxes (region dependent), for example the first day of the year in Athens was the first new waxing moon after the summer solstice. The months thereafter were purely lunar, beginning on the first waxing moon, ending on the dark moon. This means that no matter how we spin it, the calendars back then can never ...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 5, Nemoralia.
There is an ancient Roman festival called the Nemoralia which was held on either the 13th-15th of August or over the full moon of August. This festival is in honour of Diana Nemorensis. Women would hold a torch procession to Lake Nemi, they would leave Diana various offerings as well as tokens of gratitude and requests for various help especially healing. Diana was often heavily conflated with Hek...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 3, Offering at the Crossroads.
The crossroads offering is seemingly a later addition and it’s pretty obvious where it comes from – the Deipnon. Every lunar month, on the dark moon, we offer to Hekate at the crossroads to honour Her of course, but it is also a propitiation offering that in some ways asks for protection. On the dark moon She wanders the world as leader of the host of the Restless Dead. So we offer at the crossroa...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 2, The Modern Line.
Hekate Night is mentioned in several modern Pagan books, by that name and sometimes not by any name, simply listed as a night sacred to Hekate. When these books cite other modern, but still older, books this makes the festival seem a touch more legitimate. Then you get a book by reputable or at least popular Pagan authors, they don’t even need to cite a source. They say it, it must be true. “Her ...
Hekates Night, 13th August, 4, Protection and Harvest or Crops.
As noted above, one of the things people find issue with when it comes to this festival, is the idea of Hekate protecting the harvest/crops. Many people find the idea of Hekate and agriculture to be, well, just wrong. Some also find it difficult to understand why Hekate would be called on for protection. So we need to look at these aspects of the festival as well – do they fit Hekate or not? “Heca...
Ghostly Connections 11, Seance.
On occasion during a seance, someone who has not before beheld any phenomena may find that quite suddenly they become aware and that their nascent abilities have been kick started. This usually happens to someone who has a natural latent ability and just needed the right catalyst to awaken it. Generally, a seance will go for one hour, any longer will be tiring for all concerned, especially the lea...
Ghostly Connections 10, Mediums.
Some mediums work with a particular spirit guide, while others call upon spirit assistance and wait for one to make contact. To begin each person closes their eyes and holds hands with the person on either side of them, left palm down, right palm up. The circle is not to be broken while the session is in progress and all participants must remain holding hands until the session is ended. Once the m...
Ghostly Connections 9, An Occult Journey.
Those who are beginning their occult journey may wish to try a Ouija board, with one or several people, the best conduits are wooden. Each person touches the message indicator lightly with the tip of their finger and one person asks one question at a time, then waits for the indicator to spell out the answer. Contact with spirit depends on the awareness, sensitivity and receptiveness of the indivi...
Ghostly Connections 8, Telepathic and Clairvoyant Projection.
The ancient Egyptians believed every soul had a double (ka). Other beliefs are that a living person can project their astral body or their soul which is a reflection of their physical form. It is also thought to be a type of telepathic and clairvoyant projection, an expansion of a person’s consciousness. Crisis apparitions show that a living being is capable somehow of projecting themselves and pr...
Ghostly Connections 7, Spiritualism.
Spiritualism became popular throughout England and America in the 19th century, it came about as people felt the need to gather with others and share a new faith beyond anything scientific. There was a need to confirm life after death, mediums were coveted worldwide due to the new collective unconscious. Many fraudulent mediums surfaced at this time which stifled the new thinking until after the F...