that almost everyone has their own and don't often mind referring to it on
profiles or in writing, the bulk of the latter rarely exceeding a paragraph or
two. Even more rarely mentioned than any meaty in depth bits of wisdom, that
they somehow gleaned from their chosen path, is talking of the Gods and
Goddesses associated with their beliefs (if only at the foundation marker) or
those they call on during spell/ritual workings.
It's difficult to get people to talk of the Gods they claim to worship or
halfheartedly follow. All too often deity doesn't really play a major role in
their daily lives. It's simply not a daily thing, not a part of their studies…if
they study at all. A good majority don't study paganism but run all over the
place claiming they "know" about paganism. And it's the same when it comes to
deity. The reason they wont talk about the gods is because they don't know shit
about them. They invoke their names, cross pollinate them in their salad bar
styled rituals (that are little more than 17 layers of pure fuck up), and call
themselves the wise elders, priests, and priestesses of the modern community.
Yet, one would think, that if you're going to label yourself as a "High"
anything you best have some "Higher" knowledge of the shit your talking about.
Otherwise, your nothing but a fraud, a wanna-be, a half assed lazy idiot.
The notion of dedicating oneself to deity is commonly about as vague and
ridiculously lame as just about anything else they accomplish or produce
afterwords. In many parts deity has been simmered down, reduced, handicapped,
and become as completely meaningless as it could possibly get. No names, no
histories, no personalities, no true spheres of influence, no reality or
historical fact. They do that because when there is literally nothing there to
explore, get to know, debate over, or defend absolutely no effort is required.
Their vision of the gods have them with no identity of their own aside from
being in the service of the whims and wishes of a lazy, indolent people obsessed
with instant gratification. An obsession, they find, that never really manifests
and when it comes to gaining favor from meaningless and hallow Gods with no
names and scarcely accurate backgrounds, things tend to fizzle out pretty
quickly. The bottom line is: if you don't have the right name, number, and area
code, you can't make the call.
If you ever want to see people squirm, and nine time out of ten screw up, ask
them about their personal deity(ies). It's both hilarious and sad enough to make
any self respecting pagan embarrassed for all our kind no matter what path
individuals claim or attempt to follow. It is why they never really seem
comfortable, never at rest, never complete or whole. They are almost always in a
state of spiritual, emotional, and mental flux. They can't make up their minds
because they simply don't know. And for ignorance being bliss there sure are a
lot of miserable, incredibly powerless fucks out there who are completely
oblivious to the fact that they are in fact ignorant and powerless.
Some eliminate the idea of deity all together and go with the line of "earth
based" which sounds kinda anti-spiritual by its own right. Earth based? "Nature"
based may be a more sympathetic term. But who has dominion over nature? Depends
on the path of course, but it almost always comes down to a deity or spirit and
almost always goes right back to what they don't really know anything about. You
have to love those city people who claim to follow a nature based religion but
never get out of their houses.
Here in Denia there are all sorts of backgrounds and spiritual paths working in
harmony with each other. One is never above or below another because in that
harmony and sense of balance and peace the Den becomes something more; a
personal guide in answering the question: How can I light up the dark? The only
time deity is ever defended here in Denia is if one attempts the lame and far
too common trend of claiming that one God or Goddess is the same as another. If
you are ever in the mood for a galactic bitch slap try telling me that Hera and
Juno are the same person.
The closet thing the Den has to a "patron deity" is Hera and that is only
because she is mentioned and depicted more than any other. Hera does have a
profound and fundamental influence on how the Den works beyond the seen web. And
Hera, like most other deities has been massively misrepresented by modern day
pagans. There are entire chapters of her life that are backed by archeological
evidence that are missing from common knowledge. The most prominent is her
relationship to Zeus and being misinterpreted as the Goddess of Marriage. She
could give two drops of monkey piss about the foundations and weaving's of
marriage, especially on a mortal level. In fact, Hera was NEVER even depicted at
the side of Zeus until the 7th century A.D. in a wood carving that has so much
symbolism against the idea of marriage it's ridiculous and nearly impossible to
argue, nor was the piece found in a sacred site or had any connection to cult
use. That says a lot considering Hera was born nearly 25,000 years prior to the
wood cut being made and nearly everyone today considers her souly as the "wife"
of Zeus and Queen of the Gods.
Hera was born on February 1, 24,000 B.C. (according to the archeological record
of her earliest appearance on Earth on the bank of the Imbrasos river under a
lugos tree. February 1st can be viewed as her day of "birth" due to the Bronze
Age festival of Tonea. During this yearly procession the effigy of Hera was
taken to the banks of the river where she was bond to a tree and washed in a
fertility rite.
Hera, in her original role, was the Goddess of Spring and Mistress of Wild
Animals; a fertility Goddess with dominion over all life and production. She was
also a fierce protector of her people. Her annual washing in the river renewed
both her virginity and blessing to the river itself, the "veins" of life within
nature. Her arrival on the banks of the river hearkened the return of Spring and
new life. This was the role she played until she was first re-mythologized in
the 6th century B.C. and her sacred pomegranate that represented everything from
the seed of life to Hera's own blood abruptly vanishes from all of her temples
or as votive offerings. Though the pomegranate is still recognized as being
sacred to Hera very few elaborate on the details of why.
The same holds true with the peacock and the cuckoo birds. Lesser known things
sacred to Hera are the dove, horses, olive, oak, pear, juniper, willow, bovines,
pine cones, poppy heads, rivers and streams (her original domain) and lions. The
cow was not really sacred to Hera so much as it was attributed to her due to
tale and in the tale she was not really fond of the cow. It's a simple
misinterpretation…a lack of sight.
This is just an extremely small piece of Hera's biography that I have learned in
my relationship with her. And the more I learn the more angry I get at all of
the half assed reports of her character and influence in the world of men. Oddly
enough, I did not "choose" Hera as my patron Goddess. It's a bit more
complicated than that. But it is a relationship that has benefited me and mine
greatly in the past, further back into my own life than I ever realized. And I
honor her correctly in turn. By learning.
Know your Gods, know them well, and know them deeply. If they are not visiting
your home unannounced on nearly a daily basis…you have work to do.
