Finding Dionysos

“Prepare yourselves for the roaring voice of the God of Joy!"

- Euripides, The Bacchae

What could be found an an ancient Dionysian celebration?
Alcohol
Scantily clad revelers
Men and women on the prowl for a mate
Dancing
Make up
Drugs
Bull riding (well didn't we just talk about him being a bull god? Even True Blood got that right...)


Does this sound familiar? What else has all of these things? Why, a bar! Well, not all of them have a mechanical bull, but still! The cult of Dionysos lives! There's a wonderful quote in The Last Olympian, the final book in the first Percy Jackson series. Dionysos says: "Wherever there is a party, my presence is invoked." My favorite quote? Dionysos is playing Pacman and is eaten by the red ghost. He exclaims: "Erre es korakas, Blinky! I will have your soul!"

I'm keeping this blog short because I don't want to turn this into a brain dump. I'm going to go commune with the God of Joy and continue to read about Sin, the deity, not the slang for doing something wrong. It's also the new moon and time to ritualize! I'm keeping it to a simple devotion, incense and a candle offerings along with bread and purified water and wine. So let's close tonight with the Orphic Hymn to the God of Joy:

Come, blessed Dionysos, various-named, bull-faced, begot from thunder, Bakkhos (Bacchus) famed. Bassaros God, of universal might, whom swords and blood and sacred rage delight: in heaven rejoicing, mad, loud-sounding God, furious inspirer, bearer of the rod: by Gods revered, who dwellest with humankind, propitious come, with much rejoicing mind.

Khaire, Dionysos!

Full moon in Aries

I was going to post this yesterday, but was asked to post The Halloween Witch, so here it is!

I was born as the moon waxed full in Aries. This is my favorite moon of the year! This year the full moon is within a few degrees of my natal full moon which makes it conjunct, so double yay! This is a tiny bit of a brain dump because I am high on energy and haven't properly grounded yet.

I was typing out a prayer I used as a toast during ritual tonight and three things happened at the same time: As I typed Diana's name, the clock struck midnight and a dog outside somewhere started barking! I'm still giggling about that.

Queen of the stars, all-wife Diana hail! Deck'd with a graceful robe and shining veil; Come, blessed Goddess, prudent, starry, bright, come moony-lamp with chaste and splendid light,
Shine on these sacred rites with prosp'rous rays, and pleas'd accept thy suppliant's mystic praise.

 –Orphic Hymn to Diana.

Speaking of giggling... Ever since I began working with Mercury in earnest, my flow in ritual has changed, especially when I'm working with others, and especially when I'm working with others who are being too serious. It's like my goofball factor is proportionally inverse to the others' stick-in-the-mud factor.

This is not to say I can't be serious. When the work is important, the work gets done. But quite often, people need to lighten the fuck up. When I'm working on my own, there's no goofing around. Laughing at myself, perhaps, but it's not quite so mischievous. That is one aspect of Mercury which isn't routinely called upon: The Trickster!

Those who resist will be pursued! Can't find the funny? It will find you! Best to embrace it, to have a release for it. I was recently reminded of the old axiom "be careful what you wish for:" I was musing that I want to work on a show. I used to work in theatre but I left it many years ago for several reasons. However, it's not something you can really get over- it's like that ex boyfriend you hook up with occasionally long after you've broken up. I had really only mused that I'm in the mood to do a show. I didn't really refine that idea out loud. I talked about this with a friend, wondering where the feeling was coming from and how I could scratch this itch. I received an email the next day offering me a job on a show. Which show? Hansel and Gretel! Ummmmm erf... headdesk. Do I really want to do a show about a Witch who tries to eat children? Especially when it was changed from the original version where the parents were the real bad guys? At least the libretto includes fairies who protect the children. I suppose it all depends on the concept of the production. So I get something I wanted... kinda... Love you, Mercury. You are full of awesome ;)

Greased Lightning!

The planet Jupiter is now retrograde. Astrologically speaking, it's not considered that big of a deal because Jupiter is retrograde for half the year, every year. However, there is a shakeup around the 5 days or so it takes for it to slow down and turn retrograde and later turn direct once again. This Jupiter storm coincided almost perfectly with the storm of Mercury going direct. In the days it took Mercury to stabilize into direct motion, Jupiter was slowing. So many people complained that it felt like Mercury was still retrograde!

In astrology, the planet Jupiter rules many things, including luck: It's the difference between the football hitting the goal post and going in, or hitting the post and bouncing off. What do you think is more likely to happen when Jupiter is retrograde? Yeah. No goal.

Last night we had a storm which inspired this post. The lightning was amazing- the likes of which I haven't seen since I was in the Berkshires at Mount Greylock and the lightning danced with the top of the mountain. Wow!

Lightning striking the top of the Washington Monument

Here's more info on the Iuppiter, aka Jupiter, aka Dies Pater.... lots of akas.... "Iuppiter originated as a vocative compound of the archaic Latin vocative *Iou and pater..." Our Father much? ;) The link is to the Nova Roma entry for Jupiter. I respect their research and typical attention to detail. There's also a great list of epithets!

Best Jupiter quote ever, unintentional tho it might be:

"Now if the Attendants be bright as the Sun, quick as Lightning, and powerful as Thunder; what is He that is their Lord?" -Thomas Comber, 1676

Let's leave off tonight with His Orphic hymn, which is thought to have been, in it's original language, used as an invocation during the Mysteries of Eleusis.

The Orphic Hymn to Jupiter
Thomas Taylor 1824

Fumigation from Storax
O Jove, much-honour'd, Jove supremely great,
To thee our holy rites we consecrate,
Our pray'rs and expiations, king divine,
For all things to produce with ease thro' mind is thine.
Hence mother Earth and mountains swelling high
Proceed from thee, the deep and all within the sky.
Saturnian king, descending from above,
Magnanimous, commanding, sceptred Jove;
All-parent, principle and end of all,
Whose pow'r almighty shakes this earthly ball;
Ev'n Nature trembles at thy mighty nod,
Loud-sounding, arm'd with light'ning, thund'ring God.
Source of abundance, purifying king,
O various-form'd, from whom all natures spring;
Propitious hear my pray'r, give blameless health,
With peace divine, and necessary wealth.