Discover everything about the Goddess HECATE and much more

Hecate is a goddess known throughout Greek mythological history, whose origin was considered very ancient, but was also complex and mysterious, since her attributes changed over time, and she came to be considered like many other goddesses, although independently. with respect to most of the gods of the Olympic Pantheon. We invite you to stay in this article, so that you can properly know this goddess, considered by some to be dark.

Introduction

Greek mythology is one of those that has left the most cultural contributions to cultural knowledge of the evolution of humanity. It is considered to have originated in Crete, as the result of the union of the terrestrial deities with the gods that were venerated by all the peoples of Achaean origin; who took from the people of Crete, everything related to heroes and the world of hell.

But later when the Dorians, who were an Indo-European people from central Europe, invaded this region, new cities began to be created and the history of Greece began; whose life and legacies have reached our days, thanks to the stories of Hesiod, a poet of the time, author of the Theogony.

Which is precisely a poetic work, which contains one of the versions, considered the oldest, regarding the origin of the entire Cosmos and the presence or birth of the gods, which are part of Greek mythology. This being a wide source for many of the future writers, with whom they created their epic stories and tragedies.

Therefore, based on the stories of antiquity, the goddess Hecate is born, who was not initially known as a Greek goddess. But since she comes from Asia, she ends up being fused to the Greek gods. She is considered the representative of the crossroads and guardian of the borders.

But a very important task, since the boundaries guarded by this deity were between the world of humans and that of spirits; Therefore, for some time it was used with the purpose of warding off evil spirits from all houses.

It is for this reason that we want to let you know who the goddess Hecate was, since surely many people do not know about her.

However, she has been considered a very important deity, called by some as the dark lunar goddess, and therefore, by reading these lines, we will let you know all the details of this goddess Hecate, so that you can expand your knowledge. cultural, about Greek mythology.

Who was Hecate?

Hecate is a goddess who has a quite complex and mysterious career, making it necessary that to know her properly, all possible aspects of her mythological life are kept in mind. To do this, we are going to take a tour of many of the considerations left by the authors regarding this deity.

In the case of the poet Hesiod, Hecate is presented as the daughter of Asteria, an Amazon, and Perses, who was a Greek mythological Titan. She is born independent of the gods of the Olympic Pantheon, but is also recognized by Zeus himself, since he considers her to be a deity endowed with powers and privileges.

Some stories related to the life of Hecate place her as the daughter of Zeus and therefore the sister of Aphrodite, both being therefore considered goddesses who influence the night and all those lands that are unexplored. Giving Aphrodite the splendor of the night, but for Hecate only the terror of darkness.

But as has been indicated, all this forms a portal to the historical complexity of Hecate; which has been presented with a diverse and changing origin at the same time. Therefore, Zeus himself recognizes that this goddess could favor those who came to her, since she had immense power.

However, over time the goddess manifests a change and appears manifesting in a dark and disturbing way, since she begins to be linked to the world of shadows; where she was also linked to the moon, but in the aspects of darkness and terror of it.

It is then considered that this goddess Hecate used to wander during moonless nights throughout all regions, being accompanied by a group of dogs, ghostly in appearance and constantly howling, to indicate the arrival of the goddess. It was at that time that she sent all humans to be prisoners of the terror of the night, to observe the presence of ghosts and see specters like one called Empusa, which was said to be able to eat human flesh.

Under this appearance, the goddess Hecate was considered the representative of sorcery, the arcane, and as such venerated by magicians, witches, and all those who were practitioners of dark cults; where they offered lambs and black dogs to this deity, generally with each lunation.

It is said that this goddess appeared to them with a torch in her hands, or that she could simply appear disguised as some type of animal. But for the navigators of the time, she was considered a deity, who could predict good voyages.

The Romans also knew about this goddess, and therefore considered her within their Trivia, which was their divinity for the roads, being the representative of the crossroads presented by the roads and in the same way, they linked her with the presence of magical rituals. .

For this reason, the Romans built sculptures on the roads, where a woman with a triple body was represented, because they considered that travelers could deposit offerings to her, to prevent them from being presented with the pack of dogs and the scares, sent by the goddess Hecate.

It is said that as for the descendants of this goddess, she had a union with Phorcys, who was a sea god, and with whom she had the monster and whirlpool called Scylla. Then Hecate joins Aeetes, who was a king of Colchis, known today as Georgia, between Europe and Asia; with whom he had Circe and Medea.

Who, along with their mother, became the archetype of witches, magicians or sorceresses. Being considered throughout history as an example of women who were powerful, free and who managed their lives autonomously.

In summary, when you ask who Hecate was, it can be stated that she was considered the goddess of sorcery, a queen among ghosts, who was present between the earthly world and the underworld, and who was an example for all followers of magic. and witchcraft. She therefore was for many the Mother of all the great magicians and practitioners of sorcery, within mythology.

Hecate seen as Goddess

Hecate as a goddess, was considered full of benevolence, and possessed of a series of gifts with which she could perform favors for all men on earth. She is considered the goddess of crossroads, of pre-Hellenic origin, whose cult arose from the Mycenaean civilization, or that from ancient Greece.

But it was also worshiped by many of the people of the southeastern region of Europe, made up of countries like Bulgaria and Turkey. She was later considered within the Greek Pantheon, but without ceasing to be considered complex and mysterious.

Being for this reason seen as a dark goddess and worthy of much respect when it was necessary to talk or work with her. This was basically due to the fact that she was a deity that encompassed everything underground, what was considered unexplored and the entire dark part of the moon.

On the other hand, Hecate was considered the goddess who was in charge of the mythical activities associated with witchcraft, being in this sense associated with the Roman deity known as Diana.

Being from this point of view, considered the descendant of Mother Earth, the sky and the oceans alike. Whose teachings and gifts are still in force among modern witches, and she is considered one of the few who have survived the various changes in beliefs expressed by people.

Some authors consider that as the cult of this goddess spread throughout areas of Greece, it had problems due to the fact that many of the powers of this deity were already covered by other goddesses, who were more prominent than her within of the Greek Pantheon, especially in the case of the goddess Artemis.

But this type of myth, where a local deity sponsors the creation of a foreign one, was popular in many ancient cultures, being a way of integrating foreign sects.

Currently, the goddess Hecate has become popular within neopagan religions, which are inspired by feminist concepts and Wicca, due in most cases to being a deity associated with witchcraft.

Symbology

When talking about Hecate in terms of her symbolism, we find that she is usually presented with torches in her hands, which manifests as a symbol that this deity illuminates the path followed by people. But she is also presented as being accompanied by dogs, or at least one with three heads.

It is a deity who wears a diadem on his forehead that characterizes him as the goddess who represents the moon; and that she is considered a goddess that represents three personalities, where childhood, motherhood and maturity are found.

It is for this reason that it can be considered a triform divinity, where the presence of the moon, hell and the oceans is concentrated. In this case, it is presented with three bodies, or simply with three heads, in which it has snakes intertwined around its neck.

It is said that this goddess rules the waning moon, since it is precisely at this time that darkness wins over light. Therefore, this is the opportunity that her faithful devotees take advantage of to invoke her and work with her.

But it is always necessary that when invoking it, it is done with caution, avoiding having to face it. Well, she will show only what she considers necessary for people to see, and not beyond that. The invocation of her is just by repeating her name three times, and in this way, she will allow the shadows to recede and she can walk in the darkness, without falling into infinity.

It is at this time that Hecate is considered the goddess of mist, being responsible for separating the world of the gods and that of mortals. And she therefore states in her own words the following.

“My children learn to use the Mist to their advantage, to create illusions or influence the minds of mortals. Other demigods can do it too. And you should too, Hazel, if you want to help your friends.”

This being part of a text found in the book of the saga, The Heroes of Olympus, where this deity is referred to, and where Hazel is a young protagonist.

Mainly six symbols have been associated with this goddess, such as a pair of torches, snakes, a key, daggers, skunks and dogs. She being presented in most cases as a dog or accompanied by them. (Reading the article on the Trojan War is recommended)

Children

This goddess has generally been considered the mother of all the great witches, magicians and sorcerers who have existed…