Who is hecate the goddess

Hecate took pity on her, though, and brought her back to life as a dog to be her companion. Of course, as the goddess of boundaries she had the power to let things in as well as keep them out.

In a hymn to Hecate, Hesiod detailed the ways in which the goddess could both allow good fortune and deny it:. Whom she will she greatly aids and advances: she sits by worshipful kings in judgment, and in the assembly whom she will is distinguished among the people.

And when men arm themselves for the battle that destroys men, then the goddess is at hand to give victory and grant glory readily to whom she will. Good is she also when men contend at the games, for there too the goddess is with them and profits them … and to those whose business is in the grey discomfortable sea, and who pray to Hekate and the loud-crashing Earth-Shaker [Poseidon], easily the glorious goddess gives great catch, and easily she takes it away as soon as seen, if so she will.

She is good in the byre with Hermes to increase the stock. The droves of kine and wide herds of goats and flocks of fleecy sheep, if she will, she increases from a few, or makes many to be less. Although much of her power appeared generally dark or menacing, Hecate could also be a merciful goddess. In aiding Demeter during her search for the missing Persephone and transfiguring Hecuba to spare her captivity or death she showed a level of compassion that might not be expected from an occult figure.

It is the story of how the polecat became one of her companions. By the 2nd century AD, a story had developed around Galinthias, a daughter of Proteus and friend of Alcmene. She convinced her daughter Eiliethyia, the goddess of childbirth, and the Moirai, the Fates, to prevent the birth. The Moirai crossed their arms and Eileithyia refused to help the laboring woman.

Seeing her friend in pain, Galinthias tricked the Moirai into thinking the child had been born despite their interference. When they heard this the Moirai uncrossed their arms, releasing the bonds that kept the infant Heracles from the earth. In revenge for the trick, Eileithyia turned Galinthias into a polecat. This was a terrible fate. Polecats hid in dirty holes and, it was believed by the Greeks, had a grotesque and unnatural way of mating.

Hecate, however, took pity on Galinthias. She could not undo the curse, but she made the polecat her sacred servant. Of course, as with many stories of Hecate there was also a darker version. Another story said that Hecate herself had cursed a witch named Gale to be a polecat for disgusting her with incontinence and abnormal desires.

As a protective goddess, it was common for statuettes of Hecate to be placed in the doorways of homes in Greece in the hopes that she would intervene to prevent bad fortune from passing in. These statues took on a distinctive appearance. As early as the 5th century BC, the image of the hekataion was the standard way of showing the goddess in sculpture.

The hekataion depicted Hecate as three women encircling a central column. The three-part goddess was able to keep watch in all directions, and became standard in both written and visual representations. Such triple goddesses were common in ancient religions. While Hecate was described as a single goddess with three parts, the tripartite goddess in other instances was shown as three separate but intrinsically-linked beings.

Greece itself worshipped many trios of goddesses or goddesses with three forms that fit this archetype. The Moirai, or Fates, were one such trio of goddesses. They were often associated with the three stages of life — youth, adulthood, and old age. Female monsters also often came in threes, as was the case with the Gorgons and Graea. Sometimes, as was the case with Hecate, it was a single goddess who was shown with three aspects.

While Hera was considered a singular being, she was given three names to represent her different stages in life — maiden, wife, and mother. The triple goddesses are often referred to as the Maiden, Mother or Matron , and Crone.

This concept became a central figure in many later versions of polytheism. Modern neopagan and Wiccan religions often include worship of a triple goddess, and of Hecate herself. Hecate, however, was not just a goddess shown in three parts. She was also bound to other goddesses in a closely-linked trio. Many historians believe that the Greek pantheon was once much smaller than we know it today. Over time, some of the Olympians changed form and function. Each of the Greek gods has a few specialized functions.

They are associated with certain ideas, occupations, or stages of life. Earlier, though, there may have been fewer gods with more complex functions. By not sacrificing herself to another, Hecate remains immortally virginal—helping guide and protect children, shepherds, and sailors navigating the sea. Hecate remains an important figure in mythology. She is demonized in mythology; however, she known by humans as a virtuous protector and sorceress of life.

Recognize her as the ultimate protector of all realms of existence. Lisa Stardust is a NYC based astrologer.

Known for her pop culture horoscopes, Stardust adds humor and cultural events to aide others in understanding the stars. Stardust acts a guide for clients to help navigate them through finances, relationships, and other facets of life. BUST Boobtique. According to Pausanias , Hesiod stated that Iphigenia was not killed but rather became Hecate by the will of Artemis.

In this identification, Hecate was sometimes associated with a goddess whom the Tauri worshipped as Iphigenia. Hermes similarly occupied chthonic characteristics, and some ancient sources described Hecate as being the consort of this chthonic Hermes. Both Hecate and Hermes were gods of the dead and could transcend liminal spaces and boundaries between worlds. The connection between these two gods was first offered by the Roman poet Propertius in the first century BCE.

Ancient authors, such as Ovid and Pausanias indicate that dogs — particularly black dogs — were sacrificed to the goddess. This is because dogs were also the sacred animals of other birth goddesses, such as Eileithyia and Genetyllis. According to the legend, Odysseus received Hecuba as his captive after the fall of Troy. But the Trojan queen murdered a Thracian king on her voyage to Greece.

As punishment, Hecuba was transformed into a black dog and became the companion of Hecate. Another sacred animal of the goddess Hecate was the polecat or weasel.

While seeing Alcmena in labor pains, Galinthias went to the goddess of childbirth, Eileithyia, and the Fates — who prolonged the labor as a favor for Hera — told them the child had been born. In retribution for deceiving the gods, Galinthias was transformed into a polecat. Hecate pitied her transformation and appointed Galinthias as her servant and companion.

The cult of the goddess in mainland Greece was not as popular as the worship of other Olympians. The goddess had few dedicated temples throughout the ancient world. Smaller household shrines for Hecate were commonplace in the ancient world. These smaller shrines were erected to ward off evil and protect the individual from witchcraft.

In Samothrace, the goddess was worshipped as a goddess of the Mysteries. Evidence of her worship has likewise been discovered in Thessaly, Thrace, Colophon, and Athens. Pausanias offers that Hecate was the goddess most worshipped by the people of Aegina who believed that Orpheus established the rites of the goddess on their island.

Pausanias also describes a wooden image of Hecate located in the Aeginetan temple. In fact, the collection of Orphic Hymns opens with a hymn dedicated to the goddess. This is significant because of her role as a goddess of entry-ways. The Orphic Hymn to Hecate reveals a lot about her spheres of influence as perceived by the Orphics. In their mysteries, she was the goddess of roads and the crossroads, and invoked as such.

Most notably, she is also called the goddess of the dead, who presides over deserted places. In this hymn, her sacred animals include deer, dogs, and wild predators.