Aidonian's blog

Hekate is a Greek goddess associated with the wisdom of age, healing, medicinal and herbal knowledge, women’s mysteries, sorcery, witchcraft and necromancy. She was a guardian of the crossroads, doorways and other liminal spaces, and had the power to grant knowledge of the future. Sometimes depicted as a triple goddess, in aspects as maiden, mother and crone, Hekate was most commonly identified with old age. In Athens she was revered as a chief domestic goddess, protector of the home. In the Middle Ages, she was demonized as a goddess of witches, one of few classic deities to maintain a potent presence after the Hellenistic world disappeared.

Her role in mythology

Her role in mythole is somewhat limited. Which in itself does not say much about her cult. In mythology she is the daughter of Perses & Asteria, two Titans. As Krataeis, she is thought to be the mother of Skylla, but other than that, she is said to have no offspring. Later authors said Kirke, Medea and Aigaleos to be her children by Aeetes. She stood by Zeus in the war against the Titans as against the Giants. Hesiodos says this about her: 

““Hekate whom Zeus the son of Kronos (Cronus) honoured above all. He gave her splendid gifts, to have a share of the earth and the unfruitful sea. She received honour also in starry heaven, and is honoured exceedingly by the deathless gods . . . For as many as were born of Gaia (Gaea, Earth) and Ouranos (Uranus, Heaven) [the Titanes] amongst all these she has her due portion. The son of Kronos [Zeus] did her no wrong nor took anything away of all that was her portion among the former Titan gods: but she holds, as the division was at the first from the beginning, privilege both in earth, and in heaven, and in sea. Also, because she is an only child, the goddess receives not less honour, but much more still, for Zeus honours her.””

She is one of the few who can keep her domain and her titles after the war against the Titans. According Hesiodos though. The man was known misyognist, but he worshipped Hekate. 

Hekate is the goddess of witchcraft, necromancy, ghosts and crossroads.

She had few temples in the ancient world but small household shrines–erected to ward off evil and the malevolent powers of witchcraft–were quite common. Her most important cult centres were those of Eleusis and the island of Samothrake where she was worshipped as an associate-goddess of the Mysteries.

In classical sculpture Hekate was depicted in one of two ways–either as a woman holding two torches or as three-bodied woman with forms back to back facing in three directions. According to Pausanias, Alkamenes was the first sculptor to portray her in the so-called Triformis style. Examples of Hekate Trimorphis can be found the Vatican Museum and Antiquities Museum of Leiden.

This version of her holding two torches or having three bodies is a reference to her being the one to cross the bounderies between heaven, Earth and Hades. Some witches and neopagans view this as the three aspects of a human life: young one, adult and old one. 

While they are entitled to these beliefs, I don’t view her like that. To me, she is like Hermes or Iris, being the one to cross the thresshold of various domains and even in the afterlife. Where she is one of the few who could do that.

Cult titles

– Aidonia

– Brimo

– Perseis

– Trioditis

– Trimorfis

–  Enodia

– Kratais

 in modern times

Today Hekate is more known as a crone or just a goddess of witchcraft. She is so much more than that. She is also the Goddess of the moon, heaven, Earth, Sea and the Underworld aswell as ghosts, witchcraft and magic. Its not uncommon for Gods to have lengthy titles. Apollon, Athena come to mind. 

Most witches/Wiccans revere her in the triad of three Goddessess where Hekate represents the grown up woman, Kore/Persephone the maiden and Demeter the crone. While in the middle ages she was portrayed as a crone, a archetype where all other representations of witches came from that you see in comics, and children’s books, shows and movies. 

I always viewed her as more than that, that she alongside Hermes guides souls to the afterlife, that she helps people on their crossroads in their lives.She can help heal people, help them find to make decisions on their crossrads in life, but also guide them on their journey to the afterlife, before handing you over to Kharon.By focussing on just one aspect, and ignoring the rest, you don’t do Her any justice and limit your experience with her. Its easy to say that because of the Underworld connections, Hekate represents the darker side of the moon, the sea and the Earth, but that’s not it. While its also part of her domain, she can also represent the brighter side of it as well through healing, helping,etc….She is not evil in the monotheistic sense of the word. For most polytheists evil was something purely human, not a outside force that was represented into one being like the devil. Polytheists view evil as part of human nature. Is a crocodile or lion evil for following their instincts to eat their prey? Their prey might say so, but the truth is that its just part of nature. That is something we must not forget that evil is a human condition.