“Tainted Greek (polytheism)” – An Ode To the Lack of a Universal Hellenism

“Tainted Greek (polytheism)”
AKA Ode to The Long-time Suffering of People Who Want “One Proper Hellenism”

(With apologies to Soft Cell!)

—-

Sometimes I feel I’ve got to
Hellenesplain I’ve got to
Moan and complain about the lack of universality
The gods we share
Don’t have the same customs everywhere
And I’ve lost my Walter Burkert book
Want proper piety and purity but neither wherever I look

Once I came to this practice (I practice)
Now I’m out of practice
This tainted Greek you’ve given
I give you all a Hellenist could give you
Take my miasma and that’s not nearly all
Oh tainted Greek
Tainted Greek

Now I know I’ve got to
Achieve arete, I’ve got to
Explain Hekate
I really want my Hellenic purity
To make rituals right
You need to go on the internet and fight
Should mind my business, practice, and pray
But I’m sorry I don’t pray that way

Once I found my muse (I found)
Now I’m not amused
This tainted Greek you’ve given
I give you all a Hellenist could give you
Take my hubris and that’s not nearly all
Oh tainted Greek
Tainted Greek

Don’t talk to me about history
I cannot stand the lack of purity
I want you even though you don’t exist
Now I’ve got to actually research the stuff I missed
Tainted Greek, tainted Greek
Tainted Greek, tainted Greek
Libate maybe, tainted Greek
Off’rings maybe, tainted Greek
Tainted Greek
Tainted Greek
Tainted Greek

Abramelin, day 197

Four hours of sleep last night because nothing is sacred.

Morning rite and noon prayer rite went well.

First day at the psychic/tarot reading job went well, helped many and did well on tips too. Apollo was with me. 🙂 Everything is getting sharper and the more I exercise these skills the harder it is to “come back” and I realize I can’t, the floodgates are open.

Night was coven event, very intense. That awkward moment when you have to ground before ritual. Given how it went glad I did.

Evening rite went well. Exhausted on so many levels, sleep now.

Abramelin, day 138

Morning rite went well. I did not sleep very well, I woke up around dawn and didn’t get to go back to sleep.

The issue I raised in my previous entry has been resolved. I decided to go public and just be honest about what happened and why I chose to abandon the group. I need to start listening to my gut instinct about people and stop with the “benefit of the doubt” nonsense and questioning my feelings over and over again with the idea that I must somehow be wrong about people and that I’m condemning them with no proof. I don’t have to blacklist people I feel that way about but I really need to be more careful in the future. I try to hard to see the best in people and be openminded and sometimes it comes to bite me in the butt. I am truly an idealistic pessimist. I did not want to see this person as ugly as they are, but…there you have it.

No one can say I didn’t try.

Noon prayer rite went well, did my usual walk. I needed to get out and be alone for a bit, think about everything and whether or not I approached things the right way, and what to do for the next time. Honestly, my only takeaway from all of this is to trust myself more on my instincts about people. I try and fail to recall any time I’ve been wrong in that regard.

I’ve decided to stop stressing about the end date. If I’m ready by September, I am. If I’m not ready until Nov, Jan, March, whatever, I don’t care. It’s about the journey and I need to focus on that. If I’m meant to take a week off at some date I’m sure I’ll get some sort of notification or instinct to do so in advance so I can take it off from work.

I feel so much better now in so many respects. My conscience is clear on the drama issue and I feel a lot better about when this rite will be completed. I don’t want to feel rushed nor do I want to drag my heels. It’s about the process. I’ll be done baking when I’m done baking.

Evening rite went well. I am filled with immense gratitude at how different things are now versus before I started this rite in ways I can’t even begin to get into. I will be fine. Everything will be fine.

 

Abramelin, day 129

I woke up at dawn on the dot, so I managed to get enough water in me to think straight in order to do the morning rite. Went well.

I had a very strange, very vivid dream afterward which was entirely on the astral, knew I was dreaming, etc. Some of those purification issues have come up again. Interesting.

Noon rite went well, but was delayed by quite a bit due to a two hour call with my mom. The amount of family drama that has been going on has been escalating to daytime tv drama levels. I am now physically and mentally in pain; I need a hot bath and a glass of wine, but Abramelin. I could do just the hot bath maybe with some kombucha from Whole Foods? Tea? Yes, tea.

My mom reminded me of someone whom I was very good friends with in high school and lost touch with them sometime while I was in college. Found him on LinkedIn, and he’s local to me. Small, weird world I live in.

And today I get an invite to be one of the admins of a page called Pythia, do oracles on behalf of Apollo. This is the second Apollo priestess related thing I’ve been invited to join in the past few weeks that can transform into a Big Deal. Apollo is the god I’ve gone on a divinatory/psychic path for; I’ve always had gifts in that respect and after he came into my life, that path became very much associated with him. Moments after I invite several people to like the page, I got a comment from someone that both touched and overwhelmed me. It may have been the best compliment I’ve received in a very long time.

I also finally got the laundry done.

Evening rite went well.

Abramelin, day 123

Up before dawn, so morning rite went well.

Today was my first day at the new job. So far I have discovered that they are incredibly work from home friendly, the commute is a bit long for my tastes, but great for personal development audiobooks, and the people are nice. There’s even a BBQ for half a day this Friday and alcohol in the fridge, so they don’t seem terribly uptight. A bit on the quiet side, but that’s great for just sinking back into phase three and getting my crap done.

There’s also a small shower room in the bathroom. You get in, and according to the compass app on my phone, it faces east. Perfect for visiting at noon for the prayer/rite.

Evening rite went well. I thought of how taxed I feel right now, maybe needing to find a way to work smarter, not harder. Perhaps by doing one thing on my list it’ll knock off most of the items, a keystone step if you will. As I did, I turned to look at Hermes’ statue, and I swear I saw him sticking his tongue out at me.

Of course, that’s probably what the Abramelin rite is supposed to be doing…not sticking its tongue out at me, but being the keystone that unlocks other things so I spend less time running around trying to do a ton of shit.

Abramelin, day 119

I had two interesting dreams, one where I was attending some high school somewhere, didn’t have a class schedule but remembered having been there before at least once. There was some bus that had to take you to a different part of the high school and I had a class there. In the second dream, I was with Apollo and Dionysos, but was mostly talking with Apollo. Dionysos was fairly quiet, no idea why. I remember something about Doric Greek was bought up and I had asked the difference between it and Attic Greek, and was told it was like the difference between “Baahston” and “Boston”. Interesting.

This rite needs no strange drugs.

I woke up at dawn but was unable to stay awake; I had gone to bed earlier than usual because I was totally and utterly wiped and falling asleep around 10pm. My stomach is unhappy and I got the very clear message that today is fasting day whether I like it or not, and I get to do it until sunset. This is the part of the rite I struggle with most given I workout. It’s no excuse but I need to just suck it. I shouldn’t have to eat food that I know will make my clean food eating body sick in order to get me to do this, but hey…at least I’ll feel better about working out knowing that I had a calorie surplus the previous day.

Morning rite went well.

This image has popped up in my FB feed in ridiculous frequency and at interesting moments:

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Noon rite went well. Got in a workout, plus lots of tea.

Social media is both good and bad for me right now. It contains…opinions. Lots of opinions. Some are helpful, some are not. In some instances I can be of help, and some I cannot. I’ve heard the advice to avoid ALL social media during the last few months, but my business requires it. And of course I hear I shouldn’t be doing business, but I’m starting a new job next week and need to be able to pay my mortgage.

There are no ideal circumstances. If I waited for such to do this rite, I would never do it. I have to trust in my gods that given common sense and me not being a doofus that the roads will be made open for me and things will work out. I have to try, even if it means sticking it out a little longer than 6 months.

Gods help me, I need to get my shit together.

Finished the fast at sunset with a nice, cleansing ritual shower, the evening rite, then food.

Abramelin, day 85

Morning rite went well. I am trying not to whine but it’s hard.

Last night, I found a recent job posting online from a consulting company I used to work for in 2012, so I applied. Phone conversation taking place today at 10am. My fingers are crossed, as I enjoyed working with them before.

I know I need to do that relaxing and letting go thing. It’s hard when it comes down to basic shit like survival, paying the mortgage, etc. Maybe that whole “My HGA won’t let me starve and Hermes is usually ridiculously good to me in this arena” will hold true, and I will just…breathe. The problem is this: I keep having the door slammed in my face with the same line: “Too many ‘short term’ jobs”. Full time places are panicked I’ll bail, and contracting places look at me and think I’ll prefer a full time role. It’s to the point where I feel like I can’t win. At a place I have a proven track record with, maybe there is hope.

Next Wednesday I leave for a fitness coach conference in Vegas. The idea of my continuing to do the Abramelin under these circumstances is perhaps hilarious, but there is nothing more alchemical than getting up at 5am every day to do a 6:30am workout with trainers like Shaun T and Tony Horton. Also, the timing is lovely; it’ll force me away from the job hunting nonsense to focus on my overall health and well-being. I also have plans to meet up with fellow Hellenic polytheists for a Summer Solstice ritual in honor of Apollo–who just happen to live in Vegas. There are no coincidences in this world. I will do my usual ritual for when I am traveling; it worked out well in the past for both the charity walk and the visit to my parents’.

The friend of mine who had died in a fire at the start of this operation, her boyfriend finally posted to FB with the story of what led up to the fire and after. That was a painful, painful read. As expected, he is fully blaming himself and thinks he is damned. I felt compelled to write him, because I KNOW she would never want him to beat himself up like that.

Meanwhile, I decide to take the day off, and four recruiters contact me each with different positions which are exactly what I’m looking for. Maybe the message is “stop working and it’ll come.” Hm. Maybe I’m trying too hard. Hm. Now I’ve been emailed to help out with a major travel site for fitness blogging. Hm. Hm. Well. Funny how when I just relax and stop working and stressing over shit…hm.

There’s something to this, and that something is going with the Flow. I’ve also referred to it as “riding the Tao”, and it’s that sweet spot in between letting go and working your Will.

I wonder if so much of what I’m learning in my job search is “Wax on, wax off.”

Evening rite went well.

Abramelin, day 47

Morning rite went well. I’ve had some much needed clarity, and it’s given me hope.

I took some more Reiki attunements today, one of which gave me the much needed insight for phase two: how to “pump up the volume” on the prayers, purification, and that “two hour reading” equivalent thereof, since my faith doesn’t really have much in the way of holy texts. Once upon a time, I received the Vajrasattva and Green Tara empowerments (yes, I took refuge and Bodhisatva vows, got my Dharma name, etc). I was good about doing them until I had a lot of personal struggles and issues, then never felt good about getting back into the practice–I don’t know why. That’s shit I’ll have to start digging into, meditate on, find out what happened there, what my blocks were. I think I’ll start doing them again.

I encountered Green Tara even before Apollo. This is old business. 🙂

The Reiki is good stuff. I need to make more of this part of my routine. If I wink out of this plane of existence, it might be more than just the Abramelin.

Evening rite went okay, aside from my once again forgetting a few things. I am learning that this rite is about fucking up and how you handle it. Or more accurately, trying to cultivate mindfulness and end habits which have outlived their usefulness. At least this much I can currently say about phase one of the operation.

Abramelin, day 17

Take my revolution ikite yukou
genjitsu wa gamushara ni kurushi
jibun no ibasho sonzai kachi wo mitsuketai
kyou made no jibun wo

Take my revolution, and let’s go on living,
As reality approaches frantically.
I want to find my place, the worth of my existence.
From this day, I will take myself and

isagiyoku nugisuteru hadaka ni naru
juu wo mau bara no youni
tatoe futari hanarebanare ni natte mo
watashi wa sekai wo kaeru

Bravely strip down to nothing at all,
Like a rose spinning free.
Even if the two of us are ever separated,
I will change the world.
– Shoujo Kakumei Utena, “Rinbu – revolution” (“Wheel Dance – revolution”)

The anime Revolutionary Girl Utena is essentially Crowley’s “Wake World” on massive amounts of crack. That’s all I’m gonna say. I think I need to rewatch it during my Abramelin working.

Morning rite done. I slept reasonably well given I wasn’t in bed until an hour I haven’t stayed up until in about forever, but I did not wake up in the best of moods. Very conscious of how my emotions can impact my thoughts and actions right now.

Another thought: I need to be mindful in my socializing and not just blindly do it for the sake of doing it. There needs to be discernment. I need to watch for that pendulum. I need to be clear and assertive on my boundaries, but not to the point of shutting everyone out and not lax enough to let people treat me in a way that is not appropriate. I cannot allow for that pendulum swinging to occur; there must be a happy medium and I need to find it. So many people have disrespected those boundaries in horrible ways in the past that I have actively avoided most social situations.

And as today is Apollo day, I asked the question of an oracle: “What would Apollo like to see for me and/or have me do?”

The response was “Juggernaut. God’s astronaut. Proficiency in prophecy, hard fought.”

Wow. Okay then. No pressure.

I keep thinking about that dream I had about Apollo a few nights ago, literally being Kyrene, etc. Little bits and details keep coming back to me. Stuff I initially didn’t remember, stuff I didn’t take note of before…it was a complicated dream. It must be noted that when I first “met” Apollo and began having mystical experiences and dreams involving him, much of my initial reaction kept consisting of, “Am I SURE this is not Dionysos?” Then I met Dionysos and well…I can never confuse the two now, that’s for sure. But the gods are indeed complex. Dionysos has the whole back and forth of life and death in his very nature owing to his double birth. During my ritual to him on Friday, I got the VERY clear indication he wanted me to spend more time with Apollo. Well, all right then…it IS that time of the year, and the Delphic cycle continues.

Evening rite done, performed after my offering rite to Apollo. I think it went well. I’m realigning my focus, or so I’m trying. Old habits resurfaced today and I had to squash them down. Patterns need to be broken, like eggshells for the chick to be born. I keep thinking over and over again that I’m so very glad that I started this operation and grateful for what it has brought me so far, but at the same time I’m getting a very strong intuitive inkling that I have absolutely no idea what I’m in for, and the temperature has yet to be turned up.