How Not to Worship.
There are countless guides available for how to worship the Greek Gods and it is not my intention here to reinvent the wheel.
The truth is that while I often claim that there is no wrong way to worship* - there is in fact one major trap that I see folks fall into.
Worship should bring you joy and if it feels like a chore, you should try something else.
Many of us are taught from an early age that prayer should be a silent and solemn act. We are told to sit still and listen. We are told to obey without question. These ideals, while common place in our modern society, are not Hellenic. We are supposed to question the world around us, we are supposed to question ourselves. This is the nature of philosophy, of science, and of art. To ask questions and to pursue truth.
Worship should be ecstatic, liberating, incredible. Worship should fill you with joy and a sense of purpose. To worship is to be human. Worship is an art form and it is not easily relegated to straight lines or whispered regrets. If you’re not here yet, that’s alright. Everyone walks their own path, in their own way, in their own time.
The Gods accept you as you are. The Gods accept you where you are.
The Gods ask us to be our very best selves; they do not ask us to be anyone else.
Worship is ultimately, for us, more than it is for the Gods. Even burnt offerings were largely meant to be shared in a communal feast. Worship is supposed to bring us together, not push us apart.
So worship in the ways that work for you. Dance or sing or write poetry. Stare up at the stars in wonder and go bird watching on a mountain.
Do whatever it is that inspires your soul to light up from within*.
Breathe.
Live.
Cry.
Be human.
The Gods want us to freely express ourselves* and to find joy in the moment. If an offering or prayer makes you feel burdened or overwhelmed, it is not the right offering or it is not the right setting.
The joy of being human is that we have free will and when we choose of our own free will to spend our precious time, our limited energy, our finite resources on community and connection (Xenia always), we please the Gods. By and large, the Gods are not interested in coercing payments out of desperation. They are Gods, not mafia bosses.
Just be yourself. You are enough, my friend.
There’s a common misconception that happy people do not pray as well as unhappy or desperate people. This idea lends itself to the notion that the Gods have a vested interest in keeping people desperate and sorrowful. The core of that point would be then that the Gods are worried that we will abandon our altars and our shrines if we do not need them. It is not our Gods who bear that insecurity, but another God who I will leave unnamed. Finding freedom in happiness does mean that we are free to leave our Gods behind us, and it is only then that we are capable of consenting to worship. The Gods want us to choose them, not be forced or compelled to their worship under fears or threats.
The state of politics is right now is designed to overwhelm and divide us. It’s designed to make us dependent on weak people who can find no better way of protecting themselves against the dangers of critical thinking, of questions, and of joy. The best way to thwart those who wish us misery is to find our joy. Dionysus’ worship has been outlawed countless times by weak people seeking to control with fear and hatred. Dionysians have survived this before and Dionysians will survive this again.
Why would such great lengths be taken to outlaw the God of Ecstasy if Ecstasy was not truly powerful?
The truth is that happy people are not easily controlled. Happy people are not easily manipulated. Happy people are not lead to hatred through anger or violence through fear.
Our Gods want the sounds of joyous laughter at their altars, not the sounds of broken-hearted wailing. Our Gods are not so insecure that they need us in a constant struggle for safety and survival. Our Gods do not need to be feared.
If another unnamed religion finds more worship when people are out of options and desperate, well- that’s their problem, not ours. Ours is a faith built on community, freedom, and joy.
We know that you have your choice in Pateron Deity and we thank you for flying Air Hermes 😉
*harm none.
- Alyx the Amused, The Pythia of Providence
#Dionysus #worship #pagan #hellenicpolytheism #greekgod #Hermes #guide #pythia
