Who is Hecate?
Hecate is a goddess of ancient Greece. Around 700 BC Hesiod gives her a long passage in the Theogony: Zeus honors her above all others and grants her a share of earth, sea and sky.
Source: Hesiod, Theogony, lines 411 to 452.
What are the symbols of Hecate?
Her symbols are torches, keys, the crossroads and dogs. In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter she arrives with a torch in her hands. The Orphic Hymns call her the keeper of the keys.
Sources: Homeric Hymn to Demeter, lines 51 to 53; Orphic Hymn 1 to Hecate.
Why is Hecate the goddess of the crossroads?
In Athens, images of Hecate stood at crossroads and in front of house doors. The sculptor Alcamenes was the first to make her as 3 figures standing back to back. The Romans called her Trivia, goddess of the 3 ways.
Sources: Aristophanes, Wasps, line 804; Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.30.2.
Why do dogs belong to Hecate?
Since antiquity, dogs have been seen as her companions. In Theocritus the dogs howl through the town because Hecate stands at the crossroads.
Source: Theocritus, Idyll 2, lines 35 and 36.
What is Hecate's Deipnon?
At the new moon, Athenians set out a meal for Hecate at the crossroads, the Deipnon. In 388 BC Aristophanes mocks the poor who fetch this food in his comedy Plutus.
Source: Aristophanes, Plutus, lines 594 to 597.
What is the Night of Hecate on November 16?
Nowadays many witches celebrate a Night of Hecate on November 16. There is no ancient source for this date; the custom is modern.
What role does Hecate play in Wicca?
In many Wiccan circles Hecate is seen as the Crone of the Triple Goddess, beside the Maiden and the Mother. This threefold division is modern: Robert Graves spread it in 1948 in “The White Goddess”.
Source: Robert Graves, “The White Goddess” (1948).
What does Hecate have to do with Samhain?
Samhain on October 31 is the festival of the ancestors and the threshold to the dark half of the year. Because Hecate watches over thresholds and the night, some witches call on her at this time.
What does Hekether have to do with Hecate?
Hecate is a goddess of antiquity. Hekether is an app for Wicca, the moon and the Wheel of the Year, and its name echoes Hekate. The app's library has an entry on Hecate, which belongs to Hekether Pro.
Samhain with Hekether
Before Samhain, Hekether opens a sheet with preparation, ritual and afterglow, plus the Samhain spread with 3 cards. Both without a purchase.
