When Zeus took it upon himself to interfere with the quest to break the bonds of Hera the world watched as the quest ended in defeat at the very foot of the forested hill where the final Heraian Votive was to be placed. But in spite of the astonishing manifestations and actions of the King of the Gods this would not be the end of the journey to release the Goddess from her ancient binding.
On March 30, 2013 the quest began anew and The Journeybook chronicled the rise from the dirt and ashes of defeat, great sacrifice, and a climb out of the river valley where the new story was to find its beginning.
The bridge in time between the defeat and the rise landed me on the very river bank where the bronze statue of Hera is taken on the Spring Equinox every year to be washed in the waters of the river.
Defeated, covered in dirt and rubble, it was necessary to offer up sacrifices in the form of ash and flame.
Sacrifices to the Gods must be something of rarity and value. It is the very definition of the word 'sacrifice' - to give up something of worth. As an offering to Hera in light of the defeat the altar ash, collected from the votive burnings in the Altar Room over a three year period were given up. Mixed with the dirt and rubble in the opening sequence of The Ashes of Prometheus Video. At the same moment, off in the forest, an iconic blue rose waited alone in a landscape that had been laid to waste by a massive flood. The tress splintered and strewn about, the land covered in a think layer of sediment and sand. The blue rose was the only color in this dusty and drab landscape.
Like a phoenix, as I rose from the earth the blue rose began to burn. A life for a life. The great symbol, reaching far into the past, was taken by flame so that a new flame could be lit from its sacrifice.
As the flames consumed the blue rose, unleashing its memory and power, the renewed quest to finish the long, complex ritual to free Hera and defeat Zeus began. And what would rise from the ashes of sacrifice was something new to this story. Something that Zeus himself knows all too well...
The Journeybook is the ongoing interactive project that not only records many of the events written about in this very chronicle but also brings others into the story as both witnesses and philosophical debaters. There is a vast number of people out there who make and swear to lot of things. But when it comes to offering up visual proofs, when it comes to walking their talk, they come up short.
My relationship with Hera which led to the creation of The Heraian and The Journeybook Network on YouTube where this story plays out in front of the world is both simple and radical. Surely it is an unbelievable story to many, until they see it playing out in the near 100 videos already included in The Journeybook. The first season of which, chronicled the adventure of placing 22 hand carved stone votives to the Goddess Hera in various locations as part of a lengthy ritual that defied Zeus. A defiance that did not go unnoticed or unanswered for. I did, in point of fact, fail in the quest to place the final votive and complete the ritual in the final chapter of the season. A failure which was also well documented here. I have no shame in this. It happened, it was recorded, an none of us involved in this story are entirely invincible.
My story is an anomaly in the modern Age. Paganism in general is on the rise the world over in countless different flavors and interpretations. But no one else has dared take on a path such as this one and even within classical Greek myth those who aligned themselves with Hera and defied Zeus in one way or another did not end up with a "happy ever after". In fact, some of the most sadistic punishments ever conceived came from the mind of an offended Zeus. I know those cautionary tales well. I simply don't care.
As the events of last year played out, as votive after votive to Hera was placed, and I came closer and closer to pulling off the ritual my own realm and people were all but annihilated. Once the most powerful, feared, and revolutionary force in the global pagan community has fallen to ruin where only a precious few struggle to hang on. While I was out questing for the glory of Hera my world and all that I had suffered for and loved fell to apathy and betrayal. By the time the final votive was to be placed my people were expecting a victory and instead they saw me fall just 3 miles short of the end after suffering an abdominal injury and enduring freezing temperatures in the middle of a forest with no shelter.
Following the defeat I was insatiably angry and full of rage. I had been defeated after traveling over 1,000 miles in my quest, my world and people lay in ruin, and at the center of it all stood Zeus - the God who I had defied at the side of his reluctant Queen.
It was to Hera which I turned following the assault and from Hera which new power came forth. Holding to the idea that all not only had to be written but shown this new strength was also filmed and displayed before the eyes of the world, quickly becoming one of the most viewed and awe inspiring videos in the entire story.
For the past 5 months I have been in training to hone my strengths and abilities in order to continue on with my quest and this very story. As of this writing we are only 2 days away (March 30th) from the first quest of the Second Season of The Journeybook where this story will continue to unfold before the eyes of the world in a new series of videos and thousands of new photos along with the written account that is this very blog.
Not only will The Journeybook reveal stunning landscapes as we quest to place the final votive and rob Zeus of his power - breaking his bond over Hera - but it will display and illustrate abilities that come only from this level of devotion to a singular Goddess. I will not only write and talk about it, I will show you and I will do it all LIVE.
I could, like many others, have these experiences and keep them to myself. Never offering such proofs of what I claim and write of. But what would be the point in having them if they are not shared experiences? However unbelievable it is a story that should be and needs to be told. You do have to see it in order to believe it.
I am a pagan who came from nothing, rose up to become a King, created a spiritual pagan dynamic and realm that is unmatched and peerless, gained the favor and love from an individual Goddess who I have honored and glorified with unprecedented passion and devotion, and defied the will of Zeus to the point that I have made a clear and welcomed enemy of him.
Zeus represents everything I have come to hate about the world of men and the petty nature of the Gods. His affronts to Hera and misogyny will be answered for and it will be me who passes down the punishment in Hera's name.
Anyone who watches The Journeybook beyond the written accounts of this blog will witness a battle between a Pagan King and the King of the Gods. And we will battle it out until only one of us remains.
I have already publicly announced that I am putting my title as the King of the Denians on the line in the Second Season of The Journeybook. If Zeus answers my challenge and manifests to face off with me again he will either end my 17 year reign (and this very story) or the world will bear witness to me setting before them with Zeus's power in my own hands.
Defied, robbed of his power, his bond over Hera broken, Zeus himself - the ancient King of the Gods - will lay defeated at the hands of a mortal who fought, suffered, and sacrificed to become something else. But it is not the power of Zeus that is to be my prize for victory. This is not a quest or battle for power. It is a battle for the hand and heart of Hera herself.
To win the hand of Hera Zeus himself must be defeated. And the battle between mortal and God to see that happen is about to unfold before the eyes all all.
