Aidonian's blog

“To Plouton (Pluto) [Haides].

Plouton, magnanimous,

whose realms profound are fixed beneath the firm and solid ground,

in the Tartarean plains remote from sight,

and wrapt for ever in the depths of night.

Zeus Khthonios, thy sacred ear incline,

and pleased accept these sacred rites divine. Earth’s keys to thee,

illustrious king, belong, its secret gates unlocking, deep and strong.

‘Tis thine abundant annual fruits to bear,

for needy mortals are thy constant care.

To thee, great king, all sovereign earth assigned,

the seat of gods and basis of mankind.

Thy throne is fixed in Haides’ dismal plains,

distant, unknown to the rest, where darkness reigns;

where, destitute of breath, pale spectres dwell, in endless, dire,

inexorable hell; and in dread Akheron (Acheron),

whose depths obscure, earth’s stable roots eternally secure.

O mighty Daimon, whose decision dread, the future fate determines of the dead, with Demeter’s girl [Persephone] captive,

through grassy plains, drawn in a four-yoked car with loosened reins,

rapt over the deep, impelled by love,

you flew till Eleusinia’s city rose to view: there,

in a wondrous cave obscure and deep,

the sacred maid secure from search you keep, the cave of Atthis,

whose wide gates display an entrance to the kingdoms void of day.

Of works unseen and seen thy power alone to be the great dispending source is known. All-ruling, holy God, with glory bright,

thee sacred poets and their hymns delight, propitious to thy mystics’ works incline, rejoicing come, for holy rites are thine.”

This hymn, i think is very beautifully written. I use it every time when i pray to Plouton. This hymn describes who the God is, his attributes, his domain and delves into the myth of the rape (read kidnapping) of Persephone. The one thing readers might find odd here is that He is called Daimon. From a monotheistic point of view, this might corralaborate their claim that the Gods are demons, but daimon and demon is not the same thing. A daimon in Hellenic polytheism might mean divine being. It could be applied to spirits, ancestors, even Gods. The hymn refers to His domains as the underworld, but also the earth where the riches are located, as Plouton He is the God of riches. Hades is the name of the Underworld, but Euboleos is epithet usually reserved for Zeus, but it seems it can also be applied to Plouton as well. Which is not uncommon. I will make another blogpost on the epithets of Plouton. In the hymn, there are also referals to other Khthonic deities like Tartaros and Akheron – one of the rivers in Hades and also a river God. Akheron is one of the rivers like the Styx that flow in Hades. Tartaros is the region of the Underworld reserved for the worst offenders like Sisyfos, Tantalos, Ixios and also the Titans are imprisoned there. Tartaros like Styx and Akheron were also deities in their own right. While They didn’t receive any cultus, at least not that im aware of. Not every God received cultus, perhaps in Eleusinian mysteries They could have received cultus. The hymn is meant to showcase who He is, the Ruler of the Underworld and all its inhabitants, including demons, ghosts, spirits, and Gods. He is also master of the Erinyes or Eumenides, and helps the Moirai when the thread of life is clipped, meaning the death of a person.