Moving between the barrier between life and death explains Hecates connection to both ghosts and necromancy. The evening meal in ancient Greece, especially in Athens known as Deipnon, was in honor of Hecate. The chief Greek god, Zeus, was very fond of this Goddess and gave her a share of the earth and sea. As an Amazon Associate, Kidadl earns from qualifying purchases. Your privacy is important to us. The Lampades are people who carry torches and travel with the goddess at night. I am the owner and chief researcher at this site. First you can set down the offerings to Hekate on the crossroad, just be sure to choose a less travelled crossroads free of heavy traffic for your safety. Hecate was considered an ancient Thracian divinity and she was also a titan; the titans ruled the heavens, the earth and the sea. goddess, with the latter having a 6th-century BCE circular altar for sacrifices to be made in her honour (the earliest archaeological evidence of her worship). In the sources about Hekate that are from the ancient world, the crossroads are not mentioned as a symbol of Hecate. Hecate (Hekate) is the goddess of boundaries and guardian of crossroads; she is often shown with three faces and carrying a torch to show her connection to the night. According toPausanias, the 2nd-century CE Greek traveller, the island ofAeginahad a mystery cult dedicated to the goddess where it was believed those suffering mental illness could be cured. Hecate has been depicted in Greek art, literature, and pottery dating from the fifth century BCE. As she is said to be the guardian of the crossroads, she is most often depicted with three faces and carrying torches or a key. The food offered to this deity included cheese, cakes of eggs, and a dish of red mullet. "Hecate: Greece's Dark Goddess of the Crossroads." Some lexicographers, experts that study the origins of language, believe that the word hag and hex, which means witch, is derived from the word Hecate. Hecate could give her worshipers wealth and blessings, but she could also take them away if they didnt worship her well enough. In many cultures and religions in many lands. Hecate's powers transcended the boundaries of the sky, the earth, the seas, and the underworld. Much later, Shakespeare referenced her in Macbeth, where she is mentioned in the scene of the three witches boiling together their dire brew. Hectate is derived from the Greek word 'hekatos,' which 'means worker from afar.' Asteria may be the original goddess associated with the Asterion mountain range on the island of Crete. To find out more about LearningMole please visit our about us page or visit more of our topics available. This was a terrible fate. Is Hecate a jealous goddess? The Egyptian fertility goddess Heqet was associated with magic, which the Egyptians called heqa. Hecates actual origins may be in caria, Turkey we can find The Temple of Hecate in the Sanctuary of Hecate at Lagina in Caria (modern-day Turkey which has been dated to the last quarter of the 2nd century CE. The duration ofa dark moonvaries between 1.5 and 3.5 days) to the crossroads. She has also been mentioned in the works of Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, King Lear, and Macbeth. A goddess of crossroads, magic, poison, and the undead, Hecate was also the daughter of the Titan Perses and the nymph Asteria, according to Hesiod. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Hecate was an only child and was worshiped in households of Athens where families hoped to receive protection, prosperity and daily blessings. She was both a product of the Titans and an honored member of Zeuss court at Olympus. Athenian Greeks used the evening meal, known as Deipnon, to honor Hecate. With a torch in her hand, she accompanied Demeter in the search after Persephone; and when the latter was found, Hecate remained with her as her attendant and companion. Both of these gods were thought to be in charge of the dead and had something to do with Persephone coming back in the spring. Some authors say that she was the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. From the Greek word for to turn away, apotropaic magic is that which defends by turning away evil or harm. The dog was so closely tied to her than in many ancient stories people could hear the howling and barking of her sacred animal when her magic was used nearby. As a cthonic goddess of the underworld, her rituals and rites were often associated with death and secrecy. Check your inbox for your latest news from us. Hecate was believed to be a goddess of both the living world and the underworld. She was the ruler of crossroads, entrances, nighttime, light, magic (witchcraft and sorcery), herbs and plants. Instead, some believe that the goddess originated in Asia Minor. By the first century CE, Lucans Pharsalia made it clear that Hecate was the goddess of magic and witchcraft. People used to believe that dogs would eat the dead if they werent buried. The Hades and Persephone Story. They believed that by praising the goddess, the restless dead would be soothed and not deliver vengeance on the family. Hecate was the principal goddess who had jurisdiction over enchantments and spells. Several modern devotees already adapted the tradition of giving food offerings to Hekate- these are sacred meals, that are bought on the dark moon ( This is the last visible crescent of a waningMoon. According to them, Hecate is known to support bravery and hence encourage soldiers, warriors, athletes, etc. Share This Post. Her main jobs were to control boundaries, witchcraft, and the Underworld. The crossroads are special places, places of great power, but at the same time haunting places. The Greeks, too, had many different theories about Hecates origins. Many people think that worshipping the goddess began before the Greeks, while others think it started in Thrace. Thus, pillars called Hecataea stood at crossroads and doorways, perhaps to keep away evil spirits. This was a group started by May Otis Blackburn in Los Angeles, California. Scylla's most retold appearance is in Homer's Odyssey. The most popular theory is that the Carians in Asia Minor brought Hecate to Greece, where she became a part of their religion. Like Hermes, who was also a deity of liminal spaces, statues of Hecate were often placed at crossroads and borders. However, the queen killed the Thracian king when on her way to Greece. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. Her attributes, besides the torch, are the snake, whip, dagger, and sword. She thus becomes a deity of the lower world; but this notion does not occur till the time of the Greek tragedians, though it is generally current among the later writers. Performing a protection rite on yourself and use of amulet is always encouraged as well. Hecate appears in many plays and poems as the personification of darkness, the moon, and magic. Some versions of Scylla's myth say she was once a beautiful sea nymph. Contrary to popular current belief she wasnt originally a matron for women but for all who fit the above categories. The chief Greek god, Zeus, was very fond of this Goddess and gave her a share of the earth and sea. Many of the traditional offerings to Hecate- are: milk, honey, oil, cakes, cheese, bloody meat, eggs, onions, garlic. Those who failed to win the goddesss favor could expect her to invite evil and misfortune into their lives. Hecate, goddess accepted at an early date into Greek religion but probably derived from the Carians in southwest Asia Minor. creative tips and more. The goddess was also worshipped in Kos, Erythrai, Samothrace, Thessaly, and Miletos. Subscribe for virtual tools, STEM-inspired play, The Orphic Mysteries said that Hestia was the daughter of Demeter instead. The goddess, on the other hand, usually has human heads. Child of Perses and Asteria, she was the only Titan to retain her control under Zeus' reign. A lot of the same things were said about all of the goddesses. They gave mortals wealth, victory, wisdom and luck. Controlling who moved through the border between the earth and the underworld gave her a unique power to summon spirits and raise the dead. In single form she appears on Greek vases and coins. Archaeologists have found essential offerings to the goddess at Lagina in Caria and Phrygia. Greek pantheon was once much smaller than we know. A: Hecate is the Greek Goddess of magic and witchcraft. The name "Hecate" (Greek , translit. Hecate is usually thought to have originated in Thrace, a wild northern region of Greece that is also known for its tales of Amazons. The Matres While little is known of their exact function, over 1,000 images of the three goddesses have been found in Northwestern Europe. The masculine form of this word is said to be used for Apollo, one of the Greek gods. In the physical world this could mean anything from doorways to city walls and state borders. In literature, there is a clear link between her, Demeter, and Persephone. But the version of Hecate that appears in Greek texts is not so straightforward. One can view the doors between the worlds as being very thin during this time therefore it is a golden opportunity to show her your respect. Q: How do the three witches make Hecate angry? Article created on Monday, March 3, 1997. Hecate or Hekate [a] is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, [1] and in later periods depicted as three-formed or triple-bodied. The ancient Greeks thought of her as a Greek goddess, not someone from another country. In Late Antiquity, the empousai have been described as a category of phantoms or spectres, equated with the lamiai and mormolykeia . She was often placed at the entrance of homes to help protect against the evil forces of the world. Some scholars believe that Hecate was one such goddess. Kos, Erythrai,Samothrace, Thessaly, and Miletos also worshipped the. She was the only Titan who kept her power while Zeus was in charge. In fact she seems to have started out as Heket, the Egyptian Goddess of Childbirth. She could switch between being a Titan and a goddess in Greek mythology. If you purchase using the buy now button we may earn a small commission. Lycophron, 77; Scholiast on Aristophanes'. In addition to magic and witchcraft, Hecate was also considered to be the Goddess of crossroads, gates, and ghosts. Hecate is known to rule over the sky, the earth, and the sea. Performance & security by Cloudflare. The goddess had a lot of powers, some of which were later taken over by other gods. Although Hecate found Persephone, instead of rescuing her, she helped her settle into her new life as the bride of Hades. They were so closely linked that Hecate was referred to as Medeas mother in some later texts, although earlier ones had said she was the child of an Oceanid. As these stories were passed on, though, they often changed. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a28cb13cce875e3 Hecate was a goddess in Greek Mythology. Long before Hesiod and Homer began writing their poetry, the stories of the gods were passed on through oral tradition. While some scholars attribute these displays as holding a dark side to Hecate, most myths associate her with a protective nature toward humans. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong. Most likely, the cults of Thessalian Pherai (Pherae) and Eleusis saw Hekate as Chthonian (Underworld) Hermes's wife. As the Romans developed and constructed superior road systems, we started to see the emergence of choices and nowadays in modern. Hecate is petitioned for fertility, especially for female children. Mike Greenberg, PhD. As goddesses that straddled the boundary between this world and the afterlife, they were believed to be the keys to uncovering the secrets of what lay beyond that boundary. "Worker-from-afar." She was associated with witchcraft, necromancy, and poisons. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. She was specifically associated with witchcraft, magick, the Moon, Archways, and creatures of the night such as hell-hounds and ghosts. She is capable of both good and evil and is most often associated with magic and witchcraft. A statue called Hekate Epipyrgidia (On the Ramparts) stood at the Athens Acropolis entrance. The offerings to the goddess were made each month during the night of a new moon. Such triple goddesses were common in ancient religions. The time of the dark moon is a special time of the month to give offerings to Hecate. In other Indo-European cultures, the three-part goddesses included: The archetype of the triple goddess is so common that its considered one of the fundamental aspects of Indo-European religion. Kidadl has a number of affiliate partners that we work with including Amazon. She was often placed at the entrance of homes to help protect against the evil forces of the world. Hekate assisted Demeter in her search for Persephone, guiding her through the night with flaming torches. The beginnings of Hecates worship are shrouded in mystery. The dog connection may be the fact that dogs were known to eat the dead if left unburied; they also howl at the moon, of course. One of these was the boundary between life and death. Like most of the Olympic pantheon, Hecate predates the written mythology of Greece. When the marriage of Persephone was finalized and she became the queen of the underworld, the bond between the three goddesses was strengthened. Her name is akin to the Latin words dium ("sky") and dius ("daylight"). The goddess Hecate is one of the Greek goddesses that not many people know about. Some later stories agreed that Asteria was her mother, but claimed Zeus had been her father. In single form she appears on Greek vases and coins. Local sun goddesses from before the Greek era have many of the same attributes as those later associated with Hecate. The Egyptian god Anubis, who led souls to the Underworld, may also have something to do with dogs. And the dark moon is also a powerful time to cleanse you, from negative energy, negative influences or potentially harmful spirits. On her head she sometimes wears a kalathos, a tall wicker basket, or a moon sickle. Hecate hkt, hkt , in Greek religion and mythology, goddess of ghosts and witchcraft. Polecats hid in dirty holes and, it was believed by the Greeks, had a grotesque and unnatural way of mating. Like her Greek counterpart, she was also a goddess of domestic animals. Nearby Recently Sold Homes. Persis and Asteria, two Titans from the generation of deities prior to the Olympians, are the legendary parents of Hecate. It measured 21m x 28m and was built in the Corinthian order with 8 columns on its shorter sides and 11 columns on its longer sides. Sorceresses ask the goddess for help with their magic and spells, and she is shown on curse tablets that have survived. A case in point is the Greek goddess Hecate. If you use any of the content on this page in your own work, please use the code below to cite this page as the source of the content. These three goddesses are also linked in the Mystery cults. Hecate. She was the daughter of Perses and Asteria. Some speculate that it represents the full moon, half moon, and new moon. According to the most genuine traditions, she appears to have been an ancient Thracian divinity, and a Titan, who, from the time of the Titans, ruled in heaven, on the earth, and in the sea, who bestowed on mortals wealth, victory, wisdom, good luck to sailors and hunters, and prosperity to youth and to the flocks of cattle; but all these blessings might at the same time be withheld by her, if mortals did not deserve them. Hecate was also offered dogs, especially puppies, as a sacrifice. Meanwhile, others believe she is the progeny of Hecate and Phorcys. She is invoked for justice, especially for sexual crimes against women and girls. Some of the statues she made as offerings to the goddess had the Graces dancing around her.