Mar 22, 20239 min read

Working The Pantheon

When it comes to my Hellenistic path I find myself working with multiple gods at various times in my spiritual journey. Some of those I work with are by choice while others appear during times of uncertainty. But what is it like working with a whole pantheon of gods and how does it differ from working with just a few? For myself, I see it as a divided sector with the gods in the Hellenistic pantheon. The ones I have devoted myself to differ from the ones I work with when I feel the call. Now, this may not be the case for others as we all know each god has its own uses and needs. Sometimes we think more about what some gods can do for us than others when searching for the right fit. When it comes to the greek gods there is not a shortage of gods to work with. As some of the gods are from the age of titans while the rest come from the age of the Olympians. Each division had its own offspring and some of the elder gods transitioned in with the new. But we must not to forget about the demigods and those who were turned into gods upon their death. So as you can see many gods can be found within the great temples of the greek pantheon.

The path I walk with these gods is not in the light of reconstructionism due to my belief in the evolution of spirituality in a modern context. But one thing I do acknowledge is the mythos in which the gods have been shared. Along with learning the importance of the celebrations that honored them. Many of the traditions around these gods were due to the geographical location in which they appeared in and the ruling nature of the god. For instance, Poseidon is the god of the sea, so of course more coastal areas will work on appeasing this god. When it comes to worship it would differ from individual to individual. As we know the classification of one's financial status would dictate what one could acquire. Meaning the quality of items presented to the gods would vary on the individual's financial means. Just as they would for us in the modern world, each of us gives what we can to appease the gods we work with.

When it comes to working with the Greek pantheon it comes in stages depending on the need and the season. As the gods I have devoted myself to are considered underworld or better known as "Theoi Khthonioi" or Chthonian gods by the Greeks. This means a lot of the work I do within my practice centers around the dead. But even though these are the energies I have the most connection to I find myself strolling the pantheon. In my spiritual room, I have two main altars One in Dedication to Hekate and one to my lord Hades. As I share this room with my husband who is a follower of Athena, I find myself being called to her altar for the protection she provides within my home. There have been many times I have been working on pieces that center around my spiritual path that she has inspired. So even though I do not directly work with Athena like my husband I respect her for the presence she brings into my home. There are many great debates among our community of what energies gods like one to work with and should never be worked together.

When it comes to me working with gods that do not have an altar within my space I use Hekate's altar as she is the gateway to all. Whenever I am at her altar, I will talk to the goddess about the need to work with the selected god. Giving to her offerings and asking for guidance to help aid me in creating a connection between them and me. There are many stories within the Hekateian community of Hekate's ability to guide us to gods inside and outside of our practice. As she is the mother of witchcraft and finds the purpose in all forms of magick. The easiest way to see it is as the mother of networking with the gods. Once lessons are learned they return to our mother unless she has deemed they are a perfect match for who she guided them to. There have been many times in my journey when I have been led to other paths and gods. Only to discover it was what I needed to continue my spiritual progression. Even in the space of the greek gods I have been introduced to mythos and gods, I have not heard of. But once I do my research and acquire information about them it gives me a guide to who to call upon in situations. Which is a valuable tool when working the pantheon. But are there other ways to work the pantheons in which we find ourselves called to?

Finding A System

When it comes to working with your pantheon and the gods within it, you need a system that works for you. Some will choose a god per year to dedicate to and focus on working with those energies. While others may have the whole pantheon displayed upon one altar allowing it not to be dedicated to one but to all. One must also ask themselves when building a system is it higher vibration deities they are working with or lower?

Space

Once you find out what energies you wish to work with and the system in which you use to work with those energies. You need to think about the space in which you will be working with these energies. It's easy to say erect an altar and make it go from there, but not each of us has the same privilege of space or spiritual acceptance. Sometimes we may be hindered due to the influence of community ideology. Giving you a feeling that you are not doing enough or giving enough to your gods. Yet keep in mind it is your spiritual practice and connection that connects you to these gods. A god will not shame you for the size of your altar or its ability to be transported.

Representation

When we think about altars we normally think of a statue to represent the deity or deities we work with. For some, this can feel like a great burden due to financial ability and yet we see it mentioned so often. As someone who has worked with the gods for over 20 plus years, For the first fifteen years, I had no statues of my gods. Instead, I found ways to represent them via the means available. In my teens I would write their symbols upon rocks I had found in my area of the land I lived on. In my twenties, I used pictures and art that I created to represent the gods and their place within my home. It wasn't until the end of my twenties did I get the first statue that I hold dear. In all that time I did not have a less connection with the gods as they knew my journey with them.

Time

Now that we have the basic groundwork of our pantheon system we can now work on the time aspect. When it comes to time it is connected partially to the system structure we set up but is also about the time we spend working with the energies. The time in which you are dedicated to one god is up to you and your journey with them. But one must remember that sometimes in your journey you will spend more time with one than others. Sometimes this can be due to personal choice or the need for those energies within our lives. You can choose to dedicate to working with energies for a season, a month, or a year as stated above. When we open ourselves to work with multiple gods it can be overwhelming only when we let it. Yet the importance of knowing them and the energies they offer gives more knowledge than any book can give. Many times the knowledge we have lost to time comes around again. Many people have the same experiences with the same gods. While others experience something new and when explained to others it can be a struggle. It's because we get used to what is the norm and put these gods into little boxes that make sense for us to comprehend.

Battle Of The Gods

When it comes to working the pantheon, there are instances one must be aware of when working with multiple energies at one time. It's not uncommon to see practitioners calling upon multiple gods at once for help. But one must also be aware of the relationships that the gods have with one another. For instance, you wouldn't call upon Aphrodite and Eos together as per the mythos aphrodite was jealous of Eos because she had captivated Ares. Aphrodite cursed Eos to only fall in love with mortal men from that point on. But mortal men didn't last long with Eos due to the fact that she would last forever while they would grow old and die. So as you could see calling upon Eos light to eradicate dark times while calling upon aphrodite to bring love into your life could cause conflicting energies.

Another reference of this type of rivalry would be the same for Athena and Ares. Both are gods of war yet the aspects of Ares are something that Athena does not like. If we look into the mythos of Diomedes known as the trojan war. But if I were to expand upon this from my personal experience in my walk of the pantheon. When it comes to working with both Hades and Ares for example these are two energies I find conflicting. The reason I say this is based on some personal issues I have faced as I am devoted to Hades. At one point in time, I did my walk across the pantheon to work with Ares. But every time I found myself working with ares I would have issues. I did some divination on the matter asking my gods I devote to for some insight and when I got to hades. It was shown that he was not pleased with me working with Ares, Therefore I moved onwards after thanking Ares for his time. You may find yourself in similar situations where you work with another god or goddess and things seem wrong. There may not be mythos to back the conflict of energies to help aid as to why. In these times one must take what they get from the experience and detail the experience.

Conclusion

In conclusion to this I would like to add that we each have different experiences in the gods we walk with. Each one of us has opinions on others and to think the gods would not have the same is being a bit blindsided. You may find in your walk of the gods that some gods may not want to work with you. When it comes to these types of things do not judge yourself on why and how comes. Instead, see it as if you are not ready for the wisdom in which they have to display at this time. In life, you will find people who walk the path in which you do whose experiences may reflect or differ from your own. Be aware that the journey each of us takes is individualized and should not be a rate of comparison for what we find true. Know that society may not hold you path in the same regard as you and some may have ill experiences from it. When we are faced with moments of ridicule for the path we walk. We must remember that they do not speak for your experience with the gods. Some may have started upon one path and transformed to another. To those of you who have do not forget the value that all gods hold in time and in the hearts of many others. Just because it's not the path you walk upon does not mean it is one that you must speak upon. Each of us hears the call of the old gods and the manifestations they bring into our lives. If you would not like others to dictate or ridicule your path then why would you place the same among others? In this world, we each are guided blindly into the darkness of spirituality. Finding parts of light upon our path to guide us back to the soul home that vibrates with us. Be kind to one another and remember no matter if you are on the same path or different paths we all are one in the eyes of the universe.