What To Put In Your Hellenic Journal And Why It Helps

Magic For The Disabled

A few things that I do when I’m at my lowest. Made specifically for disabled people, but anyone can do these! See this post for low energy witchcraft ideas not directly related to disabilities.

Enchant your blanket for a good night’s rest

Enchant your coffee/juice/water/NyQuil/whatever you’re drinking to aid in recovery

Enchant food to aid in recovery

Place sigils around to aid in recovery, memory, etc.

Keep relaxing herbs/stones/etc. around

Cast a sleep aid spell (I have a bag with lavender and amethyst hanging on a bedpost)

Cast a recovery spell (I have another bag with a variety of protection and rest herbs and crystals)

Enchant fidgets or objects used to stim to calm you and to never break

Use energy magic instead of physical spells.

Use art/writing/etc. magic! Draw sigils, deities, write spells, recipes, shopping lists, etc.

Stir and infuse good energy/banishing into teas or coffees.

Keep some supplies nearby (i.e. tea lights, a lighter, grimoire, oils, etc.).

Use showers, washing of face/hands, etc. for cleansing.

Brush out the bad energy when brushing your hair.

Ward health aids or mobility aids against breaking and bless them to work quickly and well.

Use apps or websites for sigils, spells, etc. (VirtualCandleSpell for digital candle spells, Craiyon for sigils).

Keep room sprays near you and bless them to serve a certain purpose.

Make emoji/song spells! Use corresponding emojis and charge them with intent. Use corresponding songs, put them on a playlist, charge them, and listen to it whenever you want to cast it.

Use makeup/skincare as glamours.

Use sunscreen as protection!

Use wax warmers and melts instead of candles.

Use oils in diffusers instead of candles or incense.

Enchant anything you use daily.

“Lucky Bath from The Element Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells by Judika Illes”

—

hi! i love your blog so much. i am an aspiring kitchen witch:) i was wondering, do you have any recipes that would serves as a good offering to hermes, or recipes that he would like to be a part of in general? thank you for the amazing posts as always~❤️

Wellll he usually seems to like things like beer, honey, eggs, and clean water. So what about some honey beer-battered fish?

HERMES HONEY BEER BATTER FISH

Ingredients

5 cod fish fillets

12 oz bottle beer of choice (the alcohol with boil-off while cooking, please don’t have a heart attack yet)

1 beaten egg

4 cups vegetable oil (for frying)

2 tbsp raw honey

2 tbsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp old bay seasoning

Salt and pepper (to taste)

1 cup flour

Directions

In a pan or bowl, combine flour, old bay seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Whisk in your beer, honey, and egg. Season your cod with salt and pepper.

Coat your codfish in batter one at a time, pour oil into a deep pan or pot. The oil should be about 3 inches deep. When your oil becomes very hot. Add your cod into the oil and let cook until golden brown, about 6 minutes, or until fully cooked. 

Plate with some fries and enjoy!

ANGEL’S AWARD WINNING LEMON POPPY SEED BREAD

Sooo, I know I haven’t posted in awhile but it’s because I’be been very busy recently. Never the less, here is a recipe for you guys that I love! This bread is famous among my friends, town, and family for *ahem* being pretty good…

Anyways from my kitchen to yours, here is the recipe!

Did You Know?: Poppy Seeds are sacred to the god of sleep, Hypnos, and the god of dreams, Morpheus. Demeter, created the poppy so she could sleep.

Ingredients:

½ cup oil

½ cup melted butter

3 tbsp poppy seeds

Juice and zest of 2 lemons

1/3 cup whole milk yogurt (plain)

1 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp baking soda

A pinch of salt

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

3 eggs, divided.

1/3 cup buttermilk

2 tsp Madagascar vanilla extract (Any will do)

1 ½ cup granulated sugar

For The Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp leftover lemon juice

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Butter a large loaf pan and line it with parchment paper. In a kitchen aid cream your butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Beat in egg yolks, vanilla, yogurt, buttermilk, and lemon juice (leave a little left for your glaze.)

In another medium-sized bowl add in all of your dry ingredients and gently combined them slowly with a spatula into the wet mixture until just completely mixed. 

Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, in thirds, fold the whipped egg whites into the batter. Add in poppy seeds. 

Pour batter evenly between two loaf pans and let bake for 50 minutes or until completely done. Poke the cake with a stick and if it comes out clean, it is fully cooked.

Combine all your glaze ingredients and drizzle over the cooked loaf.

Grimoire - Decolonizing Witchcraft

Racist Stereotypes About Magic What you mean to say: Karma Edition Depth and Cultural Appropriation in Witchcraft Racism, Spirituality, and Witchblr Making Magic More Inclusive Accidental Appropriation Closed Traditions Aren't a Monolith. Chakras - What they really are CHAKRAS (are not what you think they are) Recognizing the difference between real history and pseudohistory

More related posts at: For Pagans/Witches to Beware of My Posts Related to My Practices Religions and Deities

Artemis Delia 🏛

(from Delos)

hi ive moved out and im super broke do u have any cheap and easy/quick recipes for bringing luck or positivity

BRING ME POSITIVITY PECAN FRENCH TOAST BAKE

This recipe feeds a lot of mouths for cheap, you can also cover with foil and serve at later times, just pop it in the fridge, and when your ready to eat it again, just put it in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

Ingredients

2 tsp cinnamon

positivity, luck, strength, abundance

5 eggs

1 1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream

1/2 cup maple syrup or honey

attract positivity, heals

2 tbsp butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

attract good things, self-love

1 loaf of any bread of choice (cut into cubes)

1 cup brown sugar

desirable outcomes, self-love, comfort, luck

1 tsp nutmeg

luck, money, prosperity

1 cup pecans

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Whisk the eggs, half and half, 1 tbsp brown sugar, spices, and vanilla. Pour 1/2 the mixture into a deep baking tray. Add in your cubed bread and pour the remaining mixture on top. Cover and refrigerate as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

In a medium saucepan melt butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Bring to a slight boil then turn the heat to low. Simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add-in pecans.

Pour in the syrup on top of the french toast. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until done.

Common Terms in Helpol!

Hello there! So... Hellenic polytheism has a lot of words, and they can get confusing. It's hard to keep track of so many things! So I thought I would make a list of a whole bunch of common, or maybe not-so-common terms in Hellenic polytheism! Honestly, I really just wanted to make a really long informative post, so here you all go!

If there is any term you would like me to add to this list, let me know and I will gladly add it! Also, at the bottom of this post, I will link other posts where people have done an absolutely amazing job going into detail about one or more of these terms, or maybe others I chose not to include in this list!

Hellenic/Hellenismos/Hellenistic/Helpol

If you’re on helpol tumblr, or really any helpol-focused social media, you’ve heard all of these terms, and you may be wondering… which is the right term for the religion?

Hellenic: of or relating to Greece, its people, or its language specifically: of or relating to ancient Greek history, culture, or art before the Hellenistic period (Merriam-Webster). Basically, Hellenic means Greek.

Hellenism: devotion to or imitation of ancient Greek thought, customs, or styles; Greek civilization especially as modified in the Hellenistic period by influences from southwestern Asia; a body of humanistic and classical ideals associated with ancient Greece and including reason, the pursuit of knowledge and the arts, moderation, civic responsibility, and bodily development (Merriam-Webster). Basically, Hellenism means relating to Greek culture.

Hellenismos: Hellenism, but closer to what the word is in Greek, to my understanding.

Hellenistic: of or relating to Greek history, culture, or art after Alexander the Great (Merriam-Webster) The Hellenistic Period refers to 323-31 BCE, from the death of Alexander the Great to the rise of Augustus in Rome.

Hellenic Polytheism (Helpol): Hellenic polytheism, which would literally mean "The worship of more than one Greek god" is generally thought to be the best term for the worship of Hellenic (Greek) gods. And in my opinion, it makes the most sense!

Theoi

Theoi is the ancient Greek word for the Gods. There are many "Types" (sort of) of Theoi, including Theoi Einalioi, Theoi Georgikoi, Theoi Gamelioi, Theoi Kthonioi, Theoi Ouranioi, Theoi Olympioi, Theoi Nomioi, and the Theoi Titanes (Theoi.com) Most commonly mentioned of these "types" of the theoi are Ouranic and Kthonic. Many (if not most or all) gods fit in to more than one of these categories, for example, Lady Aphrodite is part of the Theoi Einalioi (Sea), Theoi Gamelioi (Marriage), Theoi Ouranioi (Sky), and Theoi Olympioi (Olympian).

Ouranic: The Theoi Ouranioi, or Ouranic deities are the gods of the sky. Offerings to Ouranic deities can be eaten, and when praying, palms are traditionally facing up.

Kthonic: The Theoi Kthonioi, or Kthonic deities are the gods of the earth and underworld. Offerings shouldn’t be eaten and when praying, hands are typically down towards the ground.

Khaire/Xaire

Khaire, chaire, or xaire (Greek: χαίρε) Is a Greek greeting, meaning “hello”, “hail”, “rejoice”, “goodbye”, or “farewell”. However, to my understanding it is not used in modern Greek, though it’s plural, χαίρετε, is occasionally used in formal settings.

I have personally seen many helpols use the spelling “khaire” as a greeting, while the spelling “xaire” to mean hail or rejoice. As far as I can tell, this is just their personal preference.

Purification

Miasma: “Stain”, “Defilement”, “Pollution”. Miasma refers to being extremely ritually impure, and one who is miasmic should not approach the Gods. However, you likely do not have miasma. Miasma comes from murder, incest, assault, and other extremely serious crimes. Miasma affects its surroundings, and can make the area around it also impure, but being a victim to these crimes does not make one miasmic. Without the proper purification, miasmic individuals should not approach the Gods.

Lyma: “dirt”. Lyma is impurity one naturally picks up from the world around them. Humans are not naturally impure, but they can pick up lyma on a normal day to day basis. Examples of lyma include being around/giving birth, blood, being around death/the dead, literal dirt, etc. Having lyma is not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s best to wash it away (most people in modern day and in ancient Greece to my knowledge simply wash their hands in running water) before approaching the Gods, similar to washing your hands before dinner. It’s just more respectful.

Khernips: Khernips refers to a flame doused in water and is basically a fancy way of purification. Most of the time, you don’t need to use khernips to rid yourself of lyma, you can just use regular running water, but some prefer to use khernips all the time.

Kharis

Kharis at its most basic definition is a reciprocal relationship with the gods. This means not asking for things without giving anything in return, such as praying for big things without an offering to go with it. Kharis goes both ways, so if you give an offering, a god will often respond to your request.

Xenia

Xenia, meaning “guest-friendship” and “hospitality”, is often thought to be an important ideal in Hellenic Polytheism. Many take it to mean inclusivity and kindness to everyone, including strangers. In ancient Greece, xenia was thought to be important because there was always a chance that a guest could be a god in disguise.

Hubris

“exaggerated pride or self-confidence […] In classical Greek tragedy, hubris was often a fatal shortcoming that brought about the fall of the tragic hero. Typically, overconfidence led the hero to attempt to overstep the boundaries of human limitations and assume a godlike status, and the gods inevitably humbled the offender with a sharp reminder of their mortality.” - Merriam-Webster. Basically, hubris is putting oneself at the same or higher level than the Theoi.

Offerings

Offerings: Gifts to the gods. Common offerings include foods, art, music, trinkets that remind you of the god the offering is for, etc.

Libations: Liquid offerings to the gods. Libations can be poured on the ground or into a container. Common libations include wine and water (though I personally like to offer Diet Coke, but that’s just me)

Devotional Acts: Things done in honor of the gods. Often, these are used as a more subtle way of offering. An example of a devotional act would be for Lady Aphrodite, doing one’s skincare/makeup, or spending time with a loved one.

Patron

In modern helpol spaces, I often see the word patron used to mean a god one closely worships. However, in ancient Greece, a patron god was one who held dominion over certain aspects of your life, such as your job, hobbies, identity, or where you lived. For example, Lady Athena is the patron of Athens, and Lord Hermes is the patron of travelers and thieves.

Epithets

An epithet is “a descriptive term (word or phrase) accompanying or occurring in place of a name”, sometimes described as a nickname. Epithets often refer to qualities of the one they are given too, whether by appearance (ex. Bright-Eyed Athena), personality (ex. Zeus the Merciful), history (ex. Sea foam born Aphrodite), or actions (Swift-Footed Achilles). Gods and some heroes have epithets.

Reconstructionism/Revivalism

Reconstructionism and Revivalism are two different ways of practicing helpol (not specific to helpol, but I’m just talking about that here). When done respectfully, neither is wrong, nor better/worse than the other.

Reconstructionism: “Reconstructionism attempts to re-establish genuine polytheistic religions in the modern world through a rediscovery of the rituals, practices and contextual worldviews of pre-Christian pagan religions.” In other words, reconstructionists attempt to recreate the religious practices of ancient times as closely as possible (while usually modifying some things such as animal sacrifice that aren’t as acceptable nowadays).

Revivalism: Revivalism refers to those who practice in a more modern way, while still keeping in mind the ancient traditions. An example of something that a revivalist might do is a digital offering, something that would not have been possible in ancient Greece.

UPG, SPG, and VPG

Unverified Personal Gnosis: UPG refers to an experience, belief, or association with a deity that isn't backed up historically. UPGs are personal, and others may or may not agree with or share them.

Shared Personal Gnosis: SPG, also known as PVPG (Peer Verified Personal Gnosis), refers to experiences, beliefs, or associations shared by many worshippers of certain deities. Though they don't hold as much weight as beliefs backed up historically, they tend to hold more weight than UPGs.

Verified Personal Gnosis: VPG means that an experience, belief, or association someone has is backed up by historical sources.

Great Helpol Resources

These are mostly just some amazing other tumblr posts that have helped me a lot and also explain some of these terms in more detail/better than I have.

Xenia and UPG vs SPG vs VPG ~ @beautyofaphrodite (me)

Miasma, Lyma, and Khernips ~ @sisterofiris

Beginner’s Guide to Hellenic Polytheism ~ @wisdom-devotee

Ouranic, Kthonic, and Einalic ~ @pietyandpearls

Blogs such as @khaire-traveler and @atheneum-of-you are also amazing! khaire-traveler has some great subtle worship posts, and atheneum-of-you has some amazing and very well researched informative posts.

As always, if something I mentioned is wrong, weirdly worded, confusing, I missed something, etc, please please please let me know and I’ll do my best to fix it! Much love 🫶

Protection Salt

Salt is one of the fundamental ingredients when performing protection magic, and while just plain salt is perfect for your spells, there are plenty of ways to punch it up to get a little extra protective power out of it.

You Will Need:

Coarse white salt

Essential oils - eucalyptus, orange, & pine are my favorites

Protection herbs - I usually use rosemary, pine needles, mugwort, bay leaves, and pennyroyal, but use whatever you vibe with!

A stick of cinnamon

A jar to keep your finished salt in

Measure out however much salt you want to use onto a plate. Mix in the essential oils first and make sure you get the salt well coated. You don't want it to be soggy or anything, but you want more than a few drops in there.

Then mix in your dried herbs! You can do this with a mortar and pestle as long as you're careful not to actually do any grinding. I usually mix mine in my cauldron because then it also picks up ash from spells and herbs that I have previously burned in the cauldron and that gives it a little extra magical kick.

Purify your jar with a little incense (I like sandalwood) and then fill it halfway with your salt and herb and oil mixture. Situate your cinnamon stick in the middle and then carefully pour the rest of your salt in around it.

And viola! You made your very own protection salt!