#aphrodite ourania | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

raeynbowboi · 2 years

Text

The Many Cleric Domains of Aphrodite

According to the Player’s Handbook, A Cleric of Aphrodite has only 1 domain to choose from: Light. Except, Light is a terrible choice for Aphrodite. And for those of you who don’t play DnD, don’t worry, this post is still easily understandable. I’m just using DnD mechanics to highlight Aphrodite’s mythical history. You don’t need to know anything about Dungeons and Dragons to understand this post. The Light Domain is for Gods of the Sun, Light, Fire, and that generic “Holy” vibe. The Domain throws “Beauty” in as another type of god that can fit into Light, but calling down beams of sunlight and throwing fireballs isn’t really appropriate for this Goddess. So, I’m going to list out every single Domain that is more appropriate for Aphrodite of the Shapely Form.

PEACE DOMAIN

Before people complained, this was going to be a Love Domain, and mechanically, it’s still great for a Love Goddess, as it’s all about bolstering allies and is the most support-centric Cleric subclass outside of Life. After Love, it was rebranded as Unity, which has Aphrodite’s name all over it. In Athens, Aphrodite Pandemos (all-people) was worshipped for her capacity to bring people together and unite all people as a populace, even helping Theseus to unite the people of Athens as a single collective. Aphrodite is by no means a goddess of Peace herself. If anything, she stirs up problems more often than she settles them, but Aphrodite does have small aspects that do correspond with Peace. Her daughter, Harmonia, is the Goddess of Peace. Aphrodite also demonstrates a fierce maternal protectiveness in the myth of Eros and Psyche. Granted, this is also heavily driven by petty jealousy of Psyche, but Aphrodite would set an entire empire on fire for insulting her baby boy. She occasionally has epithets that denote her as a protectoress, such as Aphrodite Lamenia, which protected harbors, Aphrodite Kourotrophos, who protected small children, Aphrodite Genetyllus, who protected and watched over women during childbirth, and Aphrodite Gamelli, who protected wives in marriage. Several of those would also support Aphrodite having the Life Domain by the way, so it’s not getting its own section. She also had a few epithets that may not have necessarily denoted her as a peace goddess, but have aspects of peacefulness. Such peace-oriented domains include Aphrodite Philomedes (smile-loving), Aphrodite Epistophia (She who turns to love), Aphrodite Kharidotis (giver of joy), Aphrodite Eleemon (the merciful) and Aphrodite Ourania (heavenly) who represented non-sexual universal love for all things and was later syncretized with (or influenced by) the Virgin Mary.

TRICKERY DOMAIN

While Hermes is the god of mischief, trickery, and thieves, two gods stand paramount among the Olympians for their sway over mortal minds: Dionysus and Aphrodite. Dionysus was the god of madness and intoxication, and getting drunk or high was seen as falling under the sway of Dionysus’ control, though he could also drive people to fits of madness or violence. But what about Aphrodite? In the Gigantomachy, Aphrodite used her wiles to lure Giants so they could be ambushed by Heracles. While many people think Aphrodite caused the Trojan War because she was being stupid and selfish, it was actually a clever plan. See, Menelaus prayed to Aphrodite for help winning the hand of Helen, and she helped him. But when it came time to pay her, Menelaus skipped out on the check. So, when given the chance to bribe Paris, she saw an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. She offered Helen as her bribe to Paris to spite Menelaus for withholding his end of their deal. So, she got everything she wanted. She won the beauty contest and bragging rights, got to fuck over Menelaus for rebuking her aid, and (if her resentment for Psyche might indicate her feelings about Helen) she gets to make the beautiful girl’s life a living hell for daring to be beautiful. There’s no mythical clues that Aphrodite hates Helen, but if she wanted to curse Psyche to love a monster for being pretty, it’s not unlikely that she hates Helen too. During the Trojan War, Hera came to Aphrodite and asked to borrow her Girdle, a divine relic that when worn made the wearer irresistibly attractive. Hera wanted it in order to distract Zeus and tip the war in her favor. Zeus is on Aphrodite’s side, fighting for Troy. Hera is on the side of the Greek army. Yet, Aphrodite complies with Hera’s request and gives Hera the means of distracting Zeus and giving Greece the winning edge over Troy. In the myth of Atalanta, when the hero Hypomenes begged her for help winning Atalanta’s favor, Aphrodite gave him golden apples that distracted Atalanta during their foot race. This allowed Hypomenes to win the race and Atalanta’s hand in marriage. She made Phaedra fall in love with her own son, Hippolytus, who wanted nothing to do with love, which angered Aphrodite. Phaedra lied to Jason that Hippolytus got fresh with her, and Jason asked Poseidon to smite Hippolytus for this grievance. Like Phaedra, she drove several other kings, queens, heroes, and gods alike to unnatural lust, such as with bears, cows, themselves, and every male they see. In fact, depending on who you ask, Zeus’ inability to keep it in his pants is directly because Aphrodite purposefully drives him mad with lust, possibly out of anger for Zeus forcing her to marry Hephaestus. While this stinks of shifting the blame off the serial womanizer, it also speaks volumes to Aphrodite’s level of cunning and manipulation. We don’t really think of Aphrodite as a cunning goddess of mischief, but it fits her surprisingly well. Aphrodite also has a few mischievous epithets, including Aphrodite Kryphios (hidden, concealed), Aphrodite Catoscopia (spying, peeping), Aphrodite Psithyristes (whispering), Aphrodite Apaturus (Deceitful One), and Aphrodite Machanitis (deviser, contriver). Aphrodite Despoina (Mistress) has connections to the Eleusinian Mystery Cult surrounding Demeter and Persephone, the only other two goddesses ever known as Despoinai. This suggests there could have been a secret mystery cult of Aphrodite like Demeter and Persephone at Eleusis. Given that the Eleusian mysteries revolve around Persephone’s journey through the underworld and reunion with her mother in spring likely means that Aphrodite Despoina is linked to Aphrodite’s venture in the underworld following the death of Adonis, linking all three goddesses to cthonic rituals and journeys through the land of the dead.

WAR DOMAIN

While War is often considered the farthest thing from Aphrodite’s sphere of influence, it is absolutely part of her repertoire. Aphrodite’s worship originated from Phoenician trade routes bringing influences of Astarte, who herself was influenced by Ishtar/Inanna. Both Ishtar and Astarte were goddesses of love, beauty, sex, and war. When Aphrodite’s cult made landfall, she was in fact a war goddess. Despite later having this side of her silenced by the Greeks, She had numerous statues around Greece depicting her war goddess status. This included Aphrodite Areia (Warlike) at Sparta, Aphrodite Hoplismene (Armed) at the Acropolis of Corinth as well as Kythera, Aphrodite Encheios (spear-bearing) at Cyprus and the Aropagus in Athens, Aphrodite Strategis (Generalship) at Paros, Aphrodite Strateia (Campaigner) at Mylasa, Aphrodite Hegemone (Leader (of the Troops)) at the Agora in Athens, and Aphrodite Nikephoros (Victory-Bearing) at Argos. That last one is super interesting because it depicts Aphrodite bearing Nike in her hand, supposedly striding across battlefields and changing the tide of war. And Nike is almost exclusively associated with military victory. Beyond having numerous statues depicting her wielding spears or a shield, she plays a pivotal role in sparking the single most culturally significant war in Greek mytho-history, is depicted in a 6th century Attic Dinos fighting the Giantess Mimas (misnamed Mimos) with a spear and shield, is the mother of two war gods (Deimos and Phobos) and the lover of another (Ares), and she is the mythical Founding Mother of Rome, the single most militaristically-driven empire in the ancient world. Point is, you can take the goddess out of the war, but you can’t take the war out of the goddess.

ORDER DOMAIN

Aphrodite’s origins in the Middle East are much loftier than her role in Greek Mythology. Ishtar is the Queen of Heaven in her pantheon charged with power over rulership and divine justice, and Astarte is likewise associated with rulership. Even Aphrodite’s Egyptian counterparts have more royal clout. Hathor is the wife of Ra, King of the Gods. Due to her role in the founding myth of Rome, Aphrodite was heralded as Venus Genetrix, the Mother of the Empire. Roman Emperor Julius Caesar claimed to be her descendant, and even the mythical King Arthur is descended from her son, Aeneas. Important queens would sometimes be synchretized and deified as aspects of Aphrodite, such as Aphrodite Stratonikis (Queen Stratonike) and Aphrodite Laodike (Queen Laodike III). She also had royal epithets that likely flowed into Greece after Venus got her Empire Founder status. These stately epithets included Aphrodite Eustephanus (richly crowned), Aphrodite Skiptoukhos (scepter-bearing), and Aphrodite Vasileia (Queen). She also had some stately titles including Aphrodite Saemni (exalted), Aphrodite Polytimitos (highly honored), and is called in Homeric Hymn 55.5 the Sovereign of the Three Realms (the sea, land, and sky).

GRAVE DOMAIN

So, remember how I said Aphrodite ventured into the underworld after the death of Adonis? Yeah, that’s actually way more impressive than it seems. Aphrodite is one of only a few gods ever to go into the underworld. Hermes is a Psychopomp leading dead souls to the afterlife, so he doesn’t really count. It’s part of his job to come and go down there. Persephone as well is free to come and go, though is bound by Pomegranate seeds. In some versions of his myth, Dionysus was raised by Hades and Persephone or at least was ritualistically dismembered, stillborn, or otherwise killed and reborn. But Aphrodite has no formal connection to the underworld. She’s the only Olympian to voluntarily go into the underworld when it’s not a regular part of her duties. And this too is a result of Eastern influence. You see, in Mesopotamian myths, Ishtar ventured into the underworld following the death of Tammuz and fought with the queen of the dead, Erishkegal. And the cult of Tammuz was imported to Greece with the new name Adonis. But wait, there’s more. When Aphrodite syncretized with Venus, she also consumed a small time Roman funerary goddess, Libitina. As Aphrodite, she had a few death-connected epithets. I already explained Aphrodite Despoina, but there’s also Aphrodite Tymborychos (Grave-Digger), Aphrodite Epitymbidia (she upon the graves), and Aphrodite Androphonos (slayer of men). Given her overlapping spheres of War, Love, and Graves, I would not be surprised if Aphrodite was sort of the goddess of widows and loved ones, a goddess of mourning and loss. But that’s mostly just a personal theory. Even names like Grave-digger can be misleading. Is she digging graves to bury people she’s killed, or is she digging graves to bury the already dead and mourn for their departure?

I hope after going over so many of Aphrodite’s epithets and aspects that people come away with a better understanding of this goddess than just “bimbo”. Of all the Greek gods, I feel like Aphrodite tends to get the most reductive treatment by pop culture. They see a goddess of love who cheats on her husband and caused the Trojan War and that’s about it. Which ignores some of her coolest and most interesting lore. So, the next time someone portrays Aphrodite as a vain slut, I hope you think back to what you learned here and remember that she’s so much more interesting than just a goddess of sex. Also, shout out to Hercules: the Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess. Hands down the best and most accurate version of Aphrodite in television.

148 notes · View notes

ofsappho · 1 year

Note

Hello! I've recently been receiving a lot of content and information about the gods on my social media algorithms and am trying to research more in an effort to separate the fact and myths because all the information is new to me. I was wondering specifically about the gods giving people blessings/gifts. I was wondering what are some of the blessings/gifts of Aphrodite, and if I could have possibly been given a gift or blessed by her unknowingly (without me knowing). Like I said I'm very new to all of this information, and intend no disrespect to the goddess, or any of the other gods and deities. Thank you for taking the time to read this, I appreciate it. <3

Hey there anon! Thank you so much for asking <3

I'm so thrilled that you're starting this research and considering this path, definitely in total support of that and if there's anything else I can help you with or point you towards, please let me know!

This probably isn't the post you were hoping to get, but I hope it is still useful.

While there are a variety of flavors of approaches to worshipping the Theoi, my specific flavor is reconstructionist/reconstructionism. I do significant research into history, archaeology, anthropology, comparative mythology, etc and reconstruct a viable religious practice from that research, that evidence, from confirmed, legitimate academic sources on Ancient Greece and Ancient Greek people/culture.

As I am personally a reconstructionist, my perspective on this subject will likely be different from someone who isn't.

Also, I would be irresponsible to omit the disclaimer that social media algorithms reward engagement and will take the most extreme/wild/engaging content and overpromote that. These algorithms are really cleverly written and HIGHLY advanced and will show you content the computer program has calculated you like, not content at random or content that could be divinely selected for you.

For the sake of this post, I'm going to assume you are speaking about extraordinary/notable blessings/gifts, other than stuff like success in dating, marriage, making yourself more beautiful, beauty in general, etc which are gifts from Aphrodite, just probably not the ones you are asking about.

So while the Ancient Greek people were not mythic literalists, and our religion doesn't take myths literally either, we do use them to teach us things, to show us values, to give us rules, to teach us history, to teach us about the gods, etc.

Within myths, blessings and gifts from the gods served purposes within those stories, whether it was to help a hero achieve a goal, or to demonstrate the power of the gods, or to instruct on an ethical value, or to support a mythic origin for a historical city state, or countless other reasons I can't think of right now.

Aphrodite's mythic gifts have not always turned out well for the heroes they have been bestowed upon. (See: the Trojan War) And given that her mythic blessings/gifts are clearly associated with purposes that we probably don't have today, I feel comfortable saying that we cannot rely on myths to give us any consistent information on what a blessing or gift from Aphrodite would look like today.

I did a brief scan over a few assorted contemporary sources of information on cults of Aphrodite throughout Ancient Greece (Pausanias, Pindar, Strabo, Herodotus, etc) and there is no mention that I have seen so far on ~extraordinary blessings/gifts given by Aphrodite to anyone in the general populace of worshippers, or even consistently to her priests/priestesses/religious people in service to her.

So we can conclude that she probably didn't hand out extraordinary gifts to your average Ancient Greek person on any scale that was so notable it survived in the historical record till this day.

i personally do not feel that there are any objective, externally verifiable, consistent signs/blessings/gifts that Aphrodite gives out today, if she ever even did.

What is a blessing to one worshipper will look like ordinary life events to another, because relationships with the Theoi (and with any god) are heavily individual and subjective. Only you can give the meaning of blessing/gift to something that happens to you. No one on Tiktok/tumblr/wherever can.

There's a lot of information flying around in pagan/neopagan spaces about signs/blessings/etc from Aphrodite and I dislike giving that info authority because for a lot of people, those listed signs/blessings/whatever simply will not apply. And it is a very isolating and sad thing to feel like you are not connected to the gods because you are not living up to someone else's standards.

To be explicit, just because you do not experience Aphrodite's presence in the same that people who go viral on the internet do, does not mean she does not love you, care for you, or want you to worship her.

You don't have to smell roses out of nowhere to be loved by Aphrodite. You do not have to hear things to be cared for by Aphrodite. You do not have to suddenly desire to go to the beach to feel Aphrodite's presence.

the only person who can know if Aphrodite is communicating with you, blessing you, whatever, is you. That is your relationship with her, that relationship is not anyone else's business, and it cannot be dictated by anyone else.

One of the most important parts of my religious practice is seeing the gods in everything and everywhere. In that sense, anything/everything is touched by Aphrodite Areia, my patron and lady to whom I have been devoted to for years. I see her in myself, in other people, in a sunset, in grass, in my cat. I see all of the gods in everything and I work actively on viewing myself as surrounded by the divine, in relation to the divine, etc.

To me, i feel that, for example, my recovery from Borderline Personality Disorder was in part due to her. You could call that recovery a blessing from her, even though I think it's a lot deeper than just a blessing.

If you feel as though something in your life is a gift from her, if you feel her presence and love and divinity there, than it is. It's that simple.

When you first start out on a religious path like this one, I think there's definitely some pressure to try and find your "place", find your gods, find signs from them ASAP. There's a strong desire for concrete "evidence" that these gods you are just starting to build a relationship with are real and listening.

I want you to know that you don't need to have concrete evidence, a lot of people didn't at the beginning, you are loved and welcomed no matter what is going on in your life, and that blessings and gifts from Aphrodite can only be revealed to you, not anyone else. Sorry that this post was so long, again I hope it was useful even it maybe wasn't what you were looking for. Feel free to ask more questions, and if anyone else reading this wants to ask, my inbox is open.

#aphrodite #aphrodite devotee #hellenic polytheist #hellenic polytheism #hellenic polytheistic #hellenic reconstructionism #reconstructionist hellenic polytheist #hellenic pagan #hellenic paganism #aphrodite areia #aphrodite ourania #ancient greek gods #ancient greek mythology #ancient greek religion #greek gods #greek mythology #helpol #dodekatheism

6 notes · View notes

deathlessathanasia · 1 year

Text

“Plato and Xenophon draw a sharp distingtion between Aphrodite Ourania on the one hand. as the "heavenly" goddess who presides over the highest form of love that is directed primarly towards the soul of the beloved, and Aphrodite Pandemos (of all the people) on the other hand, as the goddess who concerns herself with vulgar or mercenary love that is purely carnal in nature. This is a literary conceit of a moralistic character that deliberately reinterprets the meaning of these cultic titles. Aphrodite was no less a goddess of sexual desire under her title of Ourania, which was derived, as we have seen, from her Semitic counterpart, who was not noted for her high-mindedness; and far from bearing imoral conotations, Aphrodite's title Pandemos represents her as a civic goddess whose worship unites the whole people. At Athens, Aphrodite Pandemos was a quiet and staid marriage-goddess, in whose worship nothing untoward seems to have taken place; according to local legend, Theseus founded the cult after he had united the people of Attica into a single state.”

- The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology

#aphrodite #aphrodite ourania #aphrodite pandemos #epithets #quotes #excerpts #cult titles

6 notes · View notes

transgender-er · 2 years

Text

What's better/worse than one Aphrodite?

3 Aphrodites.

And there were.

#or 4 if you want to count Venus #Aphrodite Areia Aphrodite Pandemos and Aphrodite Ourania if you were wondering

12 notes · View notes

diana-thyme · 7 months

Text

Greek Gods 101: A Masterlist

This is a masterlist of the “Greek Gods 101” series. This series aims to provide basic information and worship ideas for both major and minor deities. This masterlist also involves heroes, deified mortals, spirits, and other figures of Greek mythology.

Aceso

Acheron

Acratos

Aedos

Aegle

Aeolus

Aether

Aglaea

Akhlys

Ampelus

Amphitrite

Ananke

Anemoi

Angelia

Anteros

Antheia

Aphrodite

Apollon

Aporia

Ares

Arete

Ariadne

Aristaeus

Artemis

Asklepios

Asteria

Astraeus

Astrape

Athena

Atlas

Bia

Britomartis

Calliope

Carpi

Cassandra

Ceraon

Cerberus

Ceto

Chaos

Charon

Chione

Chiron

Chloris

Chrysos

Circe

Clio

Clymene

Comus

Cratus

Cronos

Daphne

Deimus

Deipneus

Demeter

Dicaeosyne

Dike

Dionysus

Dysnomia

Ececheria

Eileithyia

Eirene

Ekho

Electryone

Eleos

Elpis

Endymion

Enyo

Eos

Epiales

Epione

Epiphron

Erato

Erebus

Eris

Eros

Ersa

Eucleia

Eudaemonia

Eunomia

Eupheme

Euphrosyne

Euporia

Eupraxia

Eurybia

Eurydice

Eusebia

Euterpe

Euthenia

Eutychia

Fates

Furies

Gaea

Ganymedes

Gelus

Hades

Harmonia

Harpocrates

Hebe

Hecate

Hedone

Hedylogus

Helius

Hemera

Hephaestus

Hera

Heracles

Hermaphroditus

Hermes

Hestia

Hesychia

Himeros

Homonoia

Horae (Seasons)

Horae (Time)

Hormes

Hybris

Hydros

Hygeia

Hymenaeus

Hypnus

Iaso

Iris

Lelantus

Lethe

Leto

Macaria

Matton

Medusa

Melinoe

Melpomene

Methe

Mnemosyne

Morpheus

Nemesis

Nike

Nyx

Oizys

Orpheus

Orthannes

Ossa

Ourania

Ouranos

Ourea

Paeon

Paidia

Palaemon

Pallas

Pan

Panacea

Pandaisia

Pandora

Pannychis

Panopia

Paregoros

Pasithea

Pegasus

Peitho

Penia

Penthus

Persephone

Perses

Perseus

Phales

Phanes

Phaunus

Pheme

Philophrosyne

Philotes

Phobus

Phoebe

Phorcys

Phthonus

Phusis

Pistis

Plutus

Poena

Polemus

Polymnia

Pompe

Pontus

Ponus

Porus

Poseidon

Pothus

Priapus

Prometheus

Pronoea

Prophesis

Psamathe

Pseudologoi

Psyche

Ptocheia

Rhea

Selene

Silenos

Sophrosyne

Soter

Soteria

Styx

Tartarus

Telesphorus

Terpsichore

Tethys

Thalassa

Thalia

Thallo

Thanatus

Thaumas

Thea

Themis

Theseus

Thesis

Thrasus

Thyone

Tithonus

Triptolemus

Triton

Tritopatores

Tyche

Tychon

Urania

Uranus

Zelus

Zeus

What is a “Universal Offering/Devotional Act?”

Feel free to request or suggest deities! This list will be done in order but you can ask for me to complete one that’s further down the list.

This list is subject to change. There are probably repeat deities (deities who go by multiple names, parts of groups like the Horae or Charities who are mostly grouped together, etc.) on this list. Some deities are not on here. Some names are spelt wrong or different.

#masterlist #masterpost #greek gods 101 #deities #hellenism #helpol #hellenic #hellenic pagan #hellenic polytheism #hellenic community #hellenic polytheist #hellenic deities

1K notes · View notes

pacificwaternymph · 5 months

Text

To me it always struck me as odd how Santa Perla in Empires has been so heavily associated with sunflowers and gold and light, and yet Pearl herself is very moon-coded.

To me, I've always reconciled this by referring to her in my head as a goddess of duality.

She's a goddess of day AND night. The sun AND moon. Agriculture AND war. Life AND death.

Which led me down the path of thinking of how so many Greek Gods got split into multiple versions of themselves through their epithets (Athena Parthenos, Phoebus Apollo, Aphrodite Ourania, etc.) and how Pearl could have essentially gone through the same thing some time in the thousand years between her death and season 2.

There are essentially two different versions of her, one which represents the lifegiving, warm, goddess of the sun whom Sausage's people seemed to worship, and the darker, unhinged, warlike goddess of the night that we see in cases such as Double Life.

And then you have Sausage, who may very well be the first person in a very long time to worship her for both. To merge the two halves of her faith back into a single deity, as she was so long ago.

#empires smp #empires smp s2 #empires s2 #empires season 2 #empires smp season 2 #mythicalsausage #pearlescentmoon #santa perla

330 notes · View notes

whispersinthewaters · 4 months

Text

183 notes · View notes

thefloweredblade · 6 months

Text

To Aphrodite the rich, the golden, the lovely, the heavenly 🩷❤️🩵

#lord aphrodite #lady aphrodite #helpol #e offering #aphrodite deity #aphrodite goddess #aphrodite worship #aphrodite #Aphrodite Ourania #Aphrodite Chrysia #Aphrodite Dia #Aphrodite Eustephanus #Aphrodite Symmachia

23 notes · View notes

stalkerofthegods · 6 months

Text

Aphrodite And Venus deep dive, straight to the point

Herbs • anemone, daffodil, myrtle, lettuce , pomegranate, apple, rosemary fresh roses, vanilla, cinnamon, cypress, jasmine, the olive tree, narcissus, honeysuckle, the apple tree, the lime tree, Strawberries, Oranges, Pears, lotus

Animals• hare, turtle-dove, sparrow, goose, swan, horses, hummingbirds, cats, butterflies, bees, fish, hare.

Symbols• Hearts, Seashells, Mirror, Girdles, Dolphins, Doves, Swans, Sparrows, Bees, Sea Foam, Pomegranates, Apples, Strawberries, Oranges, Pears

Colors • pink & red, rose gold , blue, green, white, gold, baby blue, pastel colors, Seafoam green, Aqua

Appearance in astral or general • many ancient artworks of her, depicted her with traditionally male features, like beards, along with traditionally female features, she can change looks many times, but no matter her looks she is the most beautiful alive.

Crystal• rose quarts, garnet, pearls, diamond, sapphire, aquamarine, opal, sea glass, silver, emerald, rhodonite, rhodochrosite, ocean jasper, morganite

Jewelry • pearls, rose gold, promise rings, diamonds

epithets of Aphrodite• Psytiros - whispering Aphrodite, epithet also is attributed to Eros, Euploia - a marine epithet to Aphrodite of easy sailing, fair voyage, Leaina -the Lioness, an epithet given to the Goddess by Athenian orator Democha, Praxis - Aphrodite of action, a statue to whom stood in the city of Megara, Peitho - as an epithet to Aphrodite, it describes Her a persuasive, Epiodoros - Aphrodite of bountiful gifts as She was titled by Greek poet Stesichoru, Argounis - shining Aphrodite, worshiped in Boeotia and likely associated with Dawn, Philomedes - Aphrodite of a lovely smile or smiling Aphrodite, Helikoblepharos - quick-glancing, or Aphrodite with an ever-moving eye, Polychrisou - rich in gold, rich in many golden gifts, Chrisopeplos - gold-clad, Aphrodite dressed in gold, Chrisostephanos - Aphrodite wearing a golden wreath, Chrisanios - Aphrodite holding golden rein as Her chariot was often said to be fully made of gold, Nikêphoros- She is the Warlike, Areia- She is the averter of unlawful desires and actions, Apostrophia- She is one who blessed marriage and unions, Migôntis- She is the one who turns to love, Ourania- Heavenly, Divine Love, Pandêmos- Common To All, Epistrophia - She who Turns to Love, Nympthia Hêrê - Of Hera of Marriage, Symmakhia- Ally in Love, Pontia - Of the Sea, Kypria - Of Cyprus, Pothon Mater - Mother of Desire, Chrysea- Golden, Aphrodite Urania (also spelt Ourania), Aphrodite Pandemos, Venus Genatrix, Peitho, - meaning persuasion, Philommeidḗs - "smile-loving", Cypris and Cythereia - for her association of Cyprus and Cythera, Eleemon, In Athens, she was known as Aphrodite in kopois ("Aphrodite of the Gardens”, At Cape Clias, a town along the Attic coast, she was venerated as Genetyllis "Mother", Aphrodite Euploia - of the fair voyage, Anaduomenê - The Goddess Who Arose From The Sea, Ambologêra - The Ons Who Delays Old Age, Antheia - The Blooming One / Friend Of Flowers , Apotrophia - The Expeller ( Of Shameful and Sinful Desire), Areia - The Warlike, Kupria/Kuprigeneia - The One Born in The Island Of Cyprus, Despoina - The Rulling Goddess/ The Mistress , Genetullis - The Protectress Of Births , Nikêphoros - Bringer Of Victory

Cult epithets • Ourania (heavenly) , Pandémos (common to all) , areia (of ares, warlike) , hòplismené (armed) , Symmakhia (ally in love)

Poetic epithets • Kypris ( of Cyprus) , philomeidês (laughter loving) , aphrogenia (foam born) khryseé (golden) Pothón Mêtêr (mother of desire)

Names• Venus, Aphrodite, Harthor, Astare, Priyah, inanna, isis, Freaya,

Mortal or immortal • immortal

Zodiac • Libra, taruas

How to get closer • sign her hymms or dance in her honor

Number• 5

Courting• Ares, she is no longer married.

Past lovers and flings • Anchises (a mortal in the past she dated), Adonis ( handsome young man killed by a boar (Ares in disguise), Dionysus, Zues (maybe), Hermes, Phaethon, Posideon, Butes, Apollon

Devine children • Phobos, Deimos, Harmonia, Eros, Anteros, pothos, hermaphrodios, (From the mortal Anchuses), Aeneas a mythical hero of Troy and Rome, and Lyrus/Lyrnus (From Butes), eryxs, Meligounis and several more unnamed daughters, Hymenajks, lacchus, priapus, the Charites, (graces: Aglaea, Euphrosyne, Thalia) (From Dionysus) Phobos, Deimos, Harmonia, The Erotes (Eros) , Anteros, Himeros , Pothos, from Ares, Hermaphroditos, Priapus, from Hermes, Rhodos from Posideon, Beroe, Golgos, Priapus (rarely) (from Adonis), Astynous from Phaethon, Priapus (from Zeus)

Attendees • The erotes, Harmonia, Hebe, peithos, the kharites , Naiades

Regions• Cyprus; Kytherea, Corinth, Eryx in Sicly

Holiest shrine• Paphos, island of Cyprus, (her birth place & seat of her mysteria)

Other shrines • Temples throughout Greece and Asia Minor and ur moms house. Some places, most notably Sparta, Thebes, and Cyprus honored her as a goddess of war.

Parents • Ouranos Sometimes it’s said that she is the daughter of Zeus and Dione. And born from the severed genitals of the primordial god Ouranos.

Siblings • Aeacus, Angelos, Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Athena, Dionysus, Eileithyia, Enyo, Eris, Ersa, Hebe, Helen of Troy, Hephaestus, Heracles, Hermes, Minos, Pandia, Persephone, Perseus, Rhadamanthus, the Graces, the Horae, the Litae, the Muses and the Moirai.

personality• she isn’t intimidating at first, she likes not having already used products on her alter if possible, a clean, nice smelling alter.

dislikes• She does not like Medusa, she wants nothing to do with her for some reason, just what I’ve heard from people who worshiped Aphrodite and Medusa in close timelines

Diety of • Sex, libido, self-image, self-love, relationships, friendships, parent love and pet love, crushes, lust, procreation, seduction, pleasure, happiness, sadness, passion, stalking, ports, port homes

Home• Olympus and was living in the sea before Olympus

Hate• Boars, pigs.

Likes• Faries, unicorns, butterflies, lacy & frilly things, music boxes, ballet, cars.

Roots• Greek, born near Paphos, on the island of Cyprus

Offerings • pastries, cakes, , olive branches, dark chocolate, wine, apples, perfume, makeup, Pomegranate: said to be first planted by Aphrodite herself, Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Figs, Watermelon, Sea shells, handheld mirrors/ beautifully ornate mirrors, makeup products, perfumes (sweet/sensual/seductive ones), skin/body care products, fruits, apples, lettuce, pomegranates, chocolates, sugar and cream, honey, wine (rosé or sweet-scented), sweetened rose tea, rose quartz, pearls, jewelry, roses, flower bouquets, statues of her sacred animals (ex- swans) , myrtle or myrrh incense, pink/gold/white candles, seawater, the artwork of her, devotional poems, self-care routines, ritual baths, have a rose garden that you can take care of in her name if possible, be supportive of women and the LGBTQ+ community. • olive oil, fruit, honey, chocolate, dark chocolate (she loves it) , Apples/golden apples, Mermaids, Jewelry, Cherries, Dolphins imagery, Perfumes, Cologne, Makeup, Combs, Affirmations/Affirmation Cards, Beach Sand, Sea imagery, Water, Love poems, Oyster shells, Pink Salt, Driftwood, Sea glass, Amenome/Roses/Carnations, Other flowers, Valentine's Day gifts, Teddy bears, Rose water, Eros/Cupid imagery, Cakes, (Dress up) Dolls, Chapstick/lipstick, Fishnets, Honey cakes, Undergarments, Hearts, Handheld fans, Pictures of loved ones, Condoms/lube(18+), Lingerie(18+), Undergarments(18+), Sex toys(18+), NSFW magazines/books/movie(18+) (AND I MEAN IT WHEN I SAY 18+, OR ASK HER!!), roses, Myrtles, Apples, Pomegranates, Honey, Chocolates, Cookies or cakes made to look like one of Her symbols (ex- hearts), Strawberries, Oranges, Pears, Bath Salts, Bath oils, Bubble bath soap, Scented lotions or fancy soaps

Devotional• light your favorite candle, put on your favorite lotion or perfume, put on your favorite piece of jewelry, put on your favorite article of clothing, enjoy a sweet treat, Sex magic, Glamour spells, Dressing up, acts of self care and acts of self- love, Caring for mental & physical health, Take a bubble bath,Spend time at the sea, Collect sea shells, Read Sappho poetry, Donate to LBGTQ+, Support sex workers, Have safe sex and learn about it, Stand up for yourself and what you believe in, Donate to woman programs and shelters, Do stuff to make ur self feel empowered and beautiful, Honor her kids and ares, watch a romcom, watch a regular romantic movie or show or read your favorite romantic story, Make plans with loved ones and friends or your lover in her honor, Treat yourself to something you enjoy, if you have a pet and they like to snuggle, snuggle or lay with them. Talk to them and tell them how much you love them (If able take them for a walk or a ride), listen to ocean/sea soundscapes, read up on all the many kinds of love, engage in an act of self-care, listen to love songs, listen to a devotional playlist for her, make a Pinterest board or playlist, or journal all of your favorite things and things that you love, learn about the different kinds of love, do things that boost your self esteem, be gentle with yourself, take it easy, etc, watch a ballet, read love poems, Dress up and selfies, Keep menstrual products on you (even if you don't bleed), Advocate for pro-choice, Give/accept compliments, Advocate for SA victims, Go on a date, Take yourself on a date, Do something nice for your partner, get a Manicure/pedicure, Flirt, Affirmations in the mirror, Drink wine, Advocate for proper sex ed (Including queer sex ed), Experiment with your style, Mirror scrying, Listen to sleep affirmations, Love letter to self/her/partner, Take a bath/shower,Go to the ocean/water, Finally give into that one kink (You know the one, 18+), do Masturbation in her honor (only 18+, I heard she’s not comfortable with minors doing it, but that’s between y’all, just ask her beforehand.), Practice safe sex (18+), Educate yourself on the porn industry, Support sex workers (TIP THEM, 18+), Have sex (18+), Get educated on consent/safe sex, Take nude/lewds (18+)

Holiday • on March 18, goddess of fertility day

Season• spring

Status• Olympian, major goddess

Music • Harry styles, Classical music, old love songs (50s & 60s)

Day• Friday

Planet• Venus

Tarot• High priestess, the lovers, the empress, the star

Rituals • honored and invoked for love and fertility and beauty

Festivals • Aphrodisa, kinyrades ( summer festival) adonia ( mourning for Adonis, woman only)

Fact• She was most worshiped during times of politics, Many people offered her Opiates, or did Opiates in her honor. opium-burners were often found at her shrines in ancient times, please do not do opium.

Prayer•

1• sing, sing, oh i sing to aphrodite who is most beautiful! she who stirs the passionof men & god alike! o, to she — i sing! golden goddess with soft lashes, golden goddess withsoft arms, i spin and sing and delight in the bright rose that is you. may i dance with your grace, lifted up as the foam from the sea as you were — may my smile be blessed with delight. golden-haired goddess, bless my tongue to be sweet as honey, bless my fingers to be delicate and swift, bless my steps so they may bound forth in soft beauty. glory to she — praise to she! goddess of ever golden smiles, of fierce beauty, of spilling laughter and delight. o! may i love as you love — may i delight as you delight! goddess, fill me with your beauty — may i shine & rise above the wrathful waters of those around me and delight, delight, delight in the glory that you have given to me!

2•Golden Aphrodite

Lady of beauty and grace, Please give me the power to appreciate my body, Grant me confidence in my masculinity, Help me to feel your love within myself, and to express it outwardly as well, Lady Aphrodite, please hear my prayer, I sing your praises and offer you this incense

3•Aphrodite, guide me towards love. Help me discover it, receive it, embrace it, give it, celebrate it, honor it, teach it, and live it. Let love be the mark I leave, as your devotee, as a human being.

4• Antheia

Hear to me my call for spring to have sprung,Oh, sweet one scented of honey and nectar. Hear my call Aphrodite Antheia,As I harken a need for the sweet bloom. I crave the beauty of the opening flower, The sweet taste of its nectar upon my lips. Ah Aphrodite Antheia, Bring to me the joy of the fresh blooms. Let the petals cascade upon my body, Allow me the joy of the sunshine. Oh sweet one, Oh Aphrodite Antheia. Bestow upon me and mine, The gifts of the flowers fair.

5•daughter of seafoam, goddess of beauty, aphrodite please hear my cries. please listen as i describe all the parts of me that are shattered & torn, please understand as i tell my stories of pain. aphrodite accept me please. aphrodite pick me up & help me mend myself for i am yours, thank you so much & so mote it be

6• Aphrodite rivals the beauty of the sun setting over an ocean's horizon as you stand on the shore, the water tickling your feet as it pulled in and pushed back out repeatedly by the waves.

Scents/Inscene • Rose, wine, fresh roses, Frankincesne, Myrrth, vanilla, cinnamon, cypress, jasmine, cherry blossom, lavender.

Other• images of things she’s associated with, jewelry, perfume, bath salts , scented lotion, seawater, seashells, sand, makeup, feathers, self care essentials.

Links/websites/sources

@khaire-traveler

ephemeral-cryptid.tumblr.com

@mars-and-the-theoi graffitiphilosopher.tumblr.com teawiththegods.tumblr.com

@seleniangnosis

@melitheoidevotion

@seafoamsister

evilios.tumblr.com hearthcreation.tumblr.com orsialos.tumblr.com

@hisfluer

Aphrodite is the goddess of our hearts, we all love her, and she has a great personality, and is beautiful in looks and soul.

237 notes · View notes

funky-astrologer · 2 months

Text

🌹 - Aphrodite - 🌹

Greek Goddess of Beauty, Love, Romance, Pleasure & Sex🌹

Happy Women’s History Month & Venus day ❤️‍🔥

Venus keywords:

Love, Romance, Beauty, Self-Love, Relationships, Healing, Femininity, Intuition, Material Possessions

Venus holds a special place in my heart--especially for self-love, I even have a tattoo of the birth of Venus. Along with that, I have honored Aphrodite as a goddess for self-love and healing self-worth for some time now.

She is splendid and has a wonderful and loving energy in my experience. If you enjoy the concept of working alongside goddesses, gods, spirits, etc, here is a little snippet from me about Lady Aphrodite🌹

🌹 - Associations & Symbols - 🌹

Roses

Lilies (her virginity was renewed on an annual basis)

Love, Sex & Romance 🥰

The Ocean & Seashells

Fridays (day of Venus)

The number 5 - sacred number of Venus

Apples

Doves, Swans

✨ - Epithets - ✨

Euploia - “of fair voyage”

Pontia - “of the sea”

Philommeidês - “laughter loving”

^ in my personal experience, each time I’ve connected with her, I laugh a lot more, she loves it☺️

Aphrogeneia - “foam born”

Nikêphoros - “bringer of victory”

Morphô - “of shapely form”

Symmakhia “ Ally in love”

Apostrophia “Averter of (unlawful desires)”

Ourania - “Heavenly (Divine)”

🤍 - Offerings - 🤍

Rose or Lily Flowers

Self-care or self-love

Rose Quartz

Pearls

Sea Glass

Mirrors

Chocolate

Fruits such as Apple, Coconut, Strawberry & Peaches

Honey 🍯

Jewelry

Praise

Poetry

Acts of Love 💋

Sex, Self-Pleasure

Sea shells

Ocean Water

Sugar

Marjoram

Incorporate these into your life and energy and you just might find her reaching out to you! If not, I’m sure she’d love for you to reach out to her☺️

Below is a link to the perfume oil I created to honor Lady Aphrodite, if you worship her or wish to work alongside her or her energies, this oil is for you💋

🌹Inspired by the Goddess Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess of Love, Romance, Sex, Pleasure & Beauty. Handcrafted & blessed by Lady Aphrodite & made with intentions for love, attraction, bringing in sweetness, sensuality, joy, pleasure and beauty. This perfume oil will assist you in attracting your heart’s desires as well as exude blissful and loving energy.

I have some new exclusive patreon posts up! Including this one, of course I may be adding more additional content about the work I do with Lady Aphrodite as she is so enjoyable to work with🥰

Would you like to know more about the asteroid Aphrodite in your chart? Book a reading with me babe, igu, email me or sign up on my Patreon for 50% off your reading.

Links in Bio ❣️

Patreon memberships start at $5

XOXO

-S.

#aphrodite #greek goddess #goddess energy #perfume oil #venus day #march 1st #women’s history month #deity work #deity worship #aphrodite deity #asteroid aphrodite

135 notes · View notes

coinandcandle · 2 years

Text

Aphrodite Deity Guide

Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, sex, fertility, and beauty. She is known by the Romans as Venus. I've become interested in working for Aphrodite recently.

This is from my personal grimoire but I tried to remove anything that is an opinion or bias.

Quote from Trisha Mateer's "Aphrodite Made Me Do It"; banner by me.

Who is Aphrodite?

Strongly associated with love and beauty, Aphrodite is also worshipped as a sea-fairing goddess as she is associated with the ocean.

Some places, most notably Sparta, Thebes, and Cyprus honored her as a goddess of war.

In the epic Theogony, the author tells how Aphrodite was born from the severed genitals of Uranus, personification of heaven. The genitals were tossed into the sea by Cronus and out rose Aphrodite.

The goddess gets her namesake from the Greek work aphros which means “foam”.

Parents and Siblings of Aphrodite

Uranus

Sometimes it’s said that she is the daughter of Zeus and Dione.

If she was the daughter of Ouranos, her siblings include the Titans, such as Cronus, Rhea, Hyperion, and others.

If Aphrodite was one of the daughters of Zeus, she had many half siblings since he had multiple affairs. Hephaestus, Ares, Athena, Artemis, Apollo, Hermes, Dionysus and Persephone were all her half siblings, and she didn’t have any direct siblings

Aphrodite’s Lovers

Hephaestus is her husband

Ares is her most prominent affair

Anchises, a mortal with whom she gave birth to Aeneas

Adonis, a handsome young man who was killed by a boar while hunting and was lamented by women at the festival of Adonia. (britannia)

Dionysus

Zeus

Hermes

Phaethon

Posideon

Butes

Aphrodite’s Children

From the mortal Anchises, Aeneas, a mythical hero of Troy and Rome, and Lyrus/Lyrnus.

From Butes, Eryx, Meligounis and several more unnamed daughters.

Hymenaios, Iacchus, Priapus, the Charites (Graces: Aglaea, Euphrosyne, Thalia) from Dionysus

Phobos, Deimos, Harmonia, the Erotes (Eros), Anteros, Himeros, Pothos from Ares

Hermaphroditos, Priapus from Hermes

Rhodos from Posideon

Beroe, Golgos, Priapus (rarely) from Adonis

Astynous from Phaethon

Priapus from Zeus.

Peitho from an unknown father. Though Peitho is also considered one of Aphrodite’s epithets.

Epithets

“…she is Cythereia, she of Cythêra; and Cypria, she of Cyprus, where at Paphos she had her great sanctuary. Living in islands her way was ever on the sea.”

-Jane Harrison Myths of Greece and Rome

Aphrodite Urania (also spelt Ourania)

Aphrodite Pandemos

Venus Genatrix

Peitho, meaning persuasion,

Philommeidḗs, which means "smile-loving", but is sometimes mistranslated as "laughter-loving".

Cypris and Cythereia for her association of Cyprus and Cythera

On Cyprus, Aphrodite was sometimes called Eleemon

In Athens, she was known as Aphrodite en kopois ("Aphrodite of the Gardens”)

At Cape Colias, a town along the Attic coast, she was venerated as Genetyllis "Mother".

Aphrodite Euploia ('of the fair voyage')

Across the Greek world, she was known under epithets such as:

undefined

The Spartans worshipped her as:

undefined

Misc Notes

Many of the epithets are names or titles from various cults that worshipped Aphrodite.

Prostitutes identified Aphrodite as their patron deity.

A male version of Aphrodite known as Aphroditus was worshipped in the city of Amathus on Cyprus. Aphroditus was depicted with the figure and dress of a woman, but had a beard and was shown lifting his dress to reveal an erect phallus. This gesture was believed to be an apotropaic symbol, and was thought to convey good fortune upon the viewer. Eventually, the popularity of Aphroditus waned as the mainstream, fully feminine version of Aphrodite became more popular, but traces of his cult are preserved in the later legends of Hermaphroditus.

It’s likely that Aphrodite was brought over from the Eastern Mediterranean, hinting to Phoenician goddess Astarte or the near Eastern goddess Inanna (Ishtar).

The Petra Tou Romaniou also named “Aphrodite’s Rock” is a sea stack said to be a marker of where she was born. This rock is by a beach in Paphos, Cyrpus.

She was specifically the protectress of city magistrates.

Correspondences

Disclaimer - Not all of these are traditional or historic correspondences nor do they need to be. However, any correspondence that can be considered traditional will be marked with a (T).

Rocks/Stone/Crystals/Metals

Rose Quartz

Pearl

Aquamarine

Sapphire

Silver

Rose Gold

Gold

Sea Glass

Herbs/Plants

Roses (T)

Myrtle flowers(T)

Apples (T)

Pomegranates (T)

Rosemary

Animals

Dove (T)

Sparrows (T)

Water Fowls including swans, geese, and ducks (T)

Possible Dolphins, as she is often depicted with them.

Symbols

Conch shell (T)

Mirror (T)

Girdle (T)

Offerings

Statues or art of her

Incense (T)

Cakes or pastries (T)

Chocolate

Candles (T)

Strawberries

Traditional items like roses, wine, myrtle, apples, and pomegranates seeds. (T)

Jewelry

Olives, Olive oil, or olive branches (T)

Praise, just tell her how cool and how pretty she is!

Pretty things

Makeup

Honey

Acts of Devotion

Write or recite poetry about Aphrodite (T)

Read hymns written for her/create your own! (Here's Sappho's Hymn to Aphrodite) (T)

Practicing self care, dedicating that good energy to her

Dressing up/putting on an outfit that makes you feel attractive

Glamour spells

Putting on makeup inspired by her

Sex magic (proceed with caution)

Celebrate Adonia (T)

Research her history and mythology. (You can make notes from this post if you'd like, check out the links below, or feel free to do your own research!)

Keep in mind that these are only some ideas for offerings and correspondences! Items and activities that connect you to her in a more personal way are just as good, and often better, than those you find on the internet. As with any relationship, feel it out, ask questions, and be attentive and receptive!

References and Further Reading

Aphrodite - Britannia

Aphrodite (Venus) - Myths of Greece and Rome by Jane Harrison (via Sacred-Texts)

Poems of Sappho collection by J.B. Hare (via Sacred-Texts)

Aphrodite - World History Encyclopedia

Aphrodite - Theoi Project

Aphrodite - Wikipedia

Aphrodite - Greekmythology.com

Aphrodite Made Me Do It by Trisha Mateer

#deity guide #aphrodite #witchcraft #pagan #deity work #Aphrodite Deity #Venus Deity #Aphrodite Deity Guide #Aphrodite worship #hellenism #polytheism #grimoire #Coin's Grimoire

1K notes · View notes