Tag Archives: nyx

Mother Nyx and Why You Should Never Ask Me About Ancient Egypt

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A while back, I wrote that, while I have immense respect for Mother Nyx, I didn’t really give Her much explicit worship. I didn’t feel it was my place to do so, and so I kept a fair distance and only offered what I knew to be Her due. There is nothing wrong with that, because that’s as it should be —anyway, ask the Orphics what could happen if you deny one of your deities Their fair measures.

Since that moth landed on me last week, Eros has been bugging me to give more to Mother Nyx.

This is what I get for ignoring pop culture.

Of course, I just had to do a search on the Internet and, hoping to find, you know, real information, found a lot of this, instead. I’ve read the synopsis of the series on Wikipedia, and oh dear, I have a feeling that, if i read these books, I’d get the same kind of impression off of these books that Stoney321 got off of Twilight (considering she, apparently, grew up Mormon). Just reading the plot description on the Internet encyclopedia that everybody hates to love, I get the impression that the women who wrote this meant well, but I don’t get a genuine Nyx vibe off of some of the pertinent excerpts I managed to find at all; of course, those were on the tablet, and I’m not going to fight to try and C&P anything on that thing, and I don’t care enough to look it up on the desktop. I might still eventually read them, if only “for the lulz”; seriously, it’s like a weird hybrid of Harry Potter, Twilight (complete with Magical Natives!), and Percy Jackson (without even half the homework completed), and twice as long as either series. There’s going to be something deliciously stupid about this crap.

In other news, I’ve grown really frustrated with Tumblr. I’m going to keep doing Hellenic Problems and How I See Eros, but I’m going to stay away from any pagan / polytheist blog that focuses too hard on “issues”, cos frankly, I’ve come to the conclusion that all the “Social Justice” talk on Tumblr is just as much based on UPG as a good third of what I post here. Sure, there’s a lot that seems pretty basic and is stuff anybody with any sense can learn pretty easily, but after a certain point for each “issue”, the only polite thing to do is just let the people affected by those issues most to discuss it amongst themselves, because if you have comparative “privilege” in that area (like being apparently white and / or a gender-normative male, for example), nothing you say is going to go over well with everybody in that group, no matter which “side” you take, you’re basically saying some-one’s UPG is more valid than another’s —and the only time a person can really make that call is when they’re actually affected by the topic in question.

You know, it’s like “Don’t ask an Apollonian about the mysteries of Persephone; ask some-one versed in the mysteries of Persephone, but take heed, cos if you ask five different Persephone people, you run the risk of getting up to twenty different answers”. I’m a bit of a people-pleaser, and there are times when it genuinely distresses me when I realise that, no matter what I say, I’m going to make someone unhappy; the only times it doesn’t matter is “when I know I’m right”, and we all know that when I know I’m right, I’m infallibly right —if you don’t think so, that’s your problem. ;-) I’m rarely too staunch about my own rightness unless it’s about factual correctness.

Of course, then there’s my taste in music, which is just inherently superior to yours. But I don’t preach to the unbelievers, I just pity them.

Related to all that Tumblr drama, I realised I was going to make some people very unhappy, indeed, if I decided to say any more than I did on the colours of ancient Egyptians. Thankfully, nobody’s tried to hand my ass to me, but all things considered, I have science on my side. See, I grew up in a predominantly Black and very low-prole neighbourhood; now, I know this doesn’t make me an expert on all things Black, but I like to think that I have a slightly better understanding understanding of poor urban Blacks than your average white boy about my age and of similar education, but it’s still probably not going to measure up to what some activists would like. On the other hand, I had an Egypt phase as a kid —fair enough— and the “Egyptian race controvery” has fascinated me since high school, so I get very interested in any studies of Egyptian mummy DNA and other mummy genetic studies. There are a LOT of Egyptian mummies with Caucasoid hair types, just about as many as there are mummies with Black African hair types, and yes, I’ll trust that a geneticist will be able to tell the difference with his microscopes and shit better than a blogger who, at best, might have photos to accompany one’s speculation.

This is not white-washing; no more than that famous photo of an Afghani girl with dark red hair and bright green eyes.

* The leading consensus on the “race” of ancient Egyptians is that the “indigenous” population of Egypt has remained relatively consistent in this last three thousand years —people get a bit paler the further north you go, and darker the further south you go.
* The aristocratic classes in Egypt have variously been Nubian, Persian, Greek, and others. Egypt is pretty much a rainbow of skin-colours no matter where in the country you go, no matter what point in time you visit.
* Sure, there’s no reasons for modern depictions of various Egyptian deities to be pale, but there’s really no reason they need to be dark, either. That’s kind of what happens where an ancient culture, such as Egypt, defines “race” as “the culture one is a part of”, and that culture has all sorts of people, with all sorts of skin colours, eye colours, hair colours, and hair textures. Egypt is in North Africa, which is one of those regions like the Middle East and Central Asia, where people has historically just all fucked until they were the same colour; well, actually that’s not how those alleles work, what happens in those regions, and pretty much always has (especially in pre-modern eras), is that it’s been so diverse for so long, that there’s a far greater variation of skin-colours and other features typically “racialised” (like the shape of nose, brow, etc…), that even within the same family, there can be a wide array of “racial” features.

By the way, have I mentioned this week yet that I’m needing a circle punch so that I can keep working? I have? Ah well, I’m mentioning it again.

Nyx UPG

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Since I found this, something hit me:

Probably naughtier than it looks…

“Aphrodite Melainis (Μελαινις)” is a name of Nyx, not necessarily Aphrodite Herself. I’ve found no relevant mythology or surviving anecdotes that clearly link Aphrodite with nighttime and / or lunar aspects. Thespian warriors had shields bearing a crescent moon, in honour of the mother of Eros, Whom Thespians honours since their pre-history if you think Herodotus can be trusted. Aphrodite was a later import to Boeotia, and while blemding deities was no uncommon thing to the Hellenes, looking at what survives of mythology that is clearly traceable to Boiotia, especially Thespiae in specific, there’s no indication that adopting Aphrodite as Eros’ mother was very widespread in Boeotia, even in cases where Their cults became linked in the region.

Ergo, “Aphrodite Melainis” is a euphemistic name for Nyx. Think like how Hades is occasionally regarded as “Zeus of the Underworld”.

I’ve been tossing this around in my head for a while, but was given the OK to put it to print early this evening (it’s still evening for me!) when a luna moth landed on my shoulder on the smoking deck at the bar. Wish I had a picture, but she was there, looked at me, and then left.

You never forget a face….

30 Day Paganism Meme: Day 14 ~ Pantheon – Nyx & Kybele/Gaia

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I tend to regard Nyx and Kybele not as two names for the same Goddess, but as two distinct types of Mother Goddess. Whether “Kybele = Rhea”, I really am not sure, but I know that those who dismiss Kybele’s cult as “foreign” carefully don’t mention that Rhea’s cult is of Minoan origin. There’s also the fact that in Boeotia, Kybele in specific was regarded as a wife or consort of Pan — and if getting a Husband Whose cult can be traced to the Hellenic mainland is good enough to make the Kypriot Aphrodite “Hellenic enough”… Really, some people are major weiners about this, when it’s all really quite logical.

My comprehension of Kybele is also a tad outside the modern “Hellenic mainstream”, and (at least based on what I’ve s-far concluded in my studies of Boeotian traditions), probably closer to an ancient Boeotian understanding — if not a perfect match to Boeotian thought (at least for some poleis), then close enough to be likely accepted, should I finally get that phone booth back in working order. I don’t see Kybele as a match to Rhea, but Gaia, though I honour Gaia and Kybele differently. Let’s compare this Goddess to a a sort of Borg-like entity — They are distinct, but clearly share a consciousness. Where Gaia is the literal Earth, and a living organism, and a Goddess, She’s also rather impersonal1 — this is where Her Kybele form is necessary and also a distinct form for Her consciousness. As Pindar reports of Thebes, I too see Her as a mate of Pan.

As much as Kybele is a nurturing and deeply feeling Mother Goddess, one Who will cuddle you into Her many bosoms, She will sit you down and tell you very frankly what it is. She’s a Goddess of opposites — She’s both a physical and spiritual being, She’s a Goddess of wild things (and indeed, mated with a god of wild things) but Her crown is a city’s walls, and (perhaps most tellingly) Her mythos tell the story of the first surgical “correction” of an Intersex infant because a few gods were offended and disgusted. In part for Her origin mythos, and in part for the story of Attis, Her son, going mad and ritually castrating Himself, Her cult, in ancient times, maintained a priest/ess caste of biological men who willingly submitted to a ritual castration and adoption of feminine identities (and, in modern times, this is often interpreted as having been a haven for trans women and male-assigned genderqueer people — but this is a modern Anglocentric culture’s interpretation, I know of nothing that survives of writings from this priestly caste that articulates their own gender identities), which has given Kybele a special reverence to many transgender and intersex individuals. Unlike Eros, Hermes, and many other Trickster deities, She doesn’t exist in the liminal, in-between spaces — she simultaneously exists on both sides of a divide. Like all mothers, She can be both your greatest ally and worst enemy.

Many modern Pagans and Polytheist have this ridiculously romanticised vision of “nature” and the “natural world”. This idea that an untamed forest is a place of kindness, that the planet will just “give” everything needed to Herself and the creatures that live on Her surface. They forget that Gaia throws tantrums — or, if those fits are acknowledged, it’s always with the adage that “we humans deserve it” — forgetting the ill impact these fits have on other living things. While Gaia tends to eventually sort out Her droughts, and blights, and hurricane devatstations, these events still have impacts on plant life, animal life, human life, and even Her own face. It seems only logical to me that Gaia and Kybele are the same soul — They’re clearly a Goddess of opposites.

Nyx, too, is a Mother Goddess, but also not. She’s the mother of Eros, a creative force, mother of Eris, The Oneroi, the Moirai, Furies and so many other Daimones, but this is not a mother Goddess as we mortals understand the concept.

Queen Alexandra (1844–1925) — widow of Edward VII and mother of George V.

Queen Alexandra (1844–1925) — widow of Edward VII and mother of George V.

It’s like the difference between a fan (short for “fanatic”) and one who just likes something. She’s a goddess Who’s a mother, and She is of great importance to the Gods (on what I gather is a personal level for Them), but at best, we can only catch glimpses, occasional nuggets of how amazing a force She is. She’s a deity for deities — She will graciously accept our worship and sacrifices, but the greatest title Hellenes have ever had for Her is a Goddess of Night — and yet, poetry and hymns exist, and continue to be written for this other Great Mother, whom we’ve only seen in snaps. In comparison, She’s like the Queen Mother to most Amerikans — obviously, she’s of some great importance to some people, obviously a mother, but damned if anybody but very few will ever figure out exactly what she actually does and why she’s treated with such reverence, since she’s clearly not the same as the Queen Regent (reigning queen).

That said, I obviously lack a personal relationship or deeper understanding of Nyx — and unless Eros changes His mind, I won’t need to know any time soon. She’s His mother, via parthenogenesis — She was born with his zygote already inside Her when She and Erebos were formed from Khaos. She’s a Deity that all other Deities hold in great esteem. She inspires the occasional mortal burst of insight to Her nature. That’s good enough for now.

1: But as with all polytheist topics, your mileage may vary.

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30-Day Paganism Meme: Day 2, Beliefs – Cosmology

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From the World English Dictionary:

cosmology (kɒzˈmɒlədʒɪ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]

—n
1. the philosophical study of the origin and nature of the universe
2. the branch of astronomy concerned with the evolution and structure of the universe
3. a particular account of the origin or structure of the universe: Ptolemaic cosmology

So, because I’m not a astro-physicist, I’m mainly going to concern myself with Def. 1 & Def. 3. I’m also going to state outright that this is my own personal interpretation, based largely on Hesiod, but other bits are taken from other places (some of which originally started as “Unverified Personal Gnosis”, but later elevated to “Confirmed Personal Gnosis” when I stumbled upon primary sources that described it).

…

First there was Khaos, void, absense of being. Some think She was literally nothing, a cosmic blank slate that anything could spontaneously generate itself in, but that makes no sense, because everything comes from something — I think She looked a little bit more like a Shoggoth, with Everything inside of Her, everything that was to come immediately after Her, and everything that wouldn’t happen for millions of years, like you and I, we were all just little randon strands of DNA floating about within her, waiting to happen — even, and including Eros and the Moirai, for nothing seems more chaotic than Love and Fate.

Now Khaos, like most feminine beings, soon found Herself lonely, as She was all that existed, but She also knew that She had this great wealth of everything in the universe within Her, even all that is still unknown to us mortals. She had but only one thing to do to relieve Her loneliness: Unleash the universe; and She took this task with great joy when it occurred to Her that She was not only without distinguishable form, but also Timeless and Eternal — unleashing the universe wouldn’t destroy Her, but it would simply let it all grow and evolve and enjoy Her gift of the Universe with Her. It was then that She evolved into Kosmos, for everything that was once one with Her formless form now was one in its own right, even if most of it had aeons to go to find its form.

The first to form from the gift of Khaos were Nyx and Erebos (Night & Darkness), the former female, the latter male, though otherwise identical, and within Nyx was an egg, and with the companionship She had from Erebos, and from the others who soon arose from Khaos’ gift —Gaia, Tartaros, The Moirai— the egg was born, and quickly broke open, and from it, full-formed, came Eros, who took His shell, intending to make a great gift from its pieces.

With Eros in Their presence now, Nyx and Erebos saw each-other as beautiful, and soon used what was in Them to create Hemara and Aither (Day & Light), and soon followed Eris, Nemesis, Moros, the Keres, Thanatos and His twin Hypnos, The Oneroi, and others, for the Moirai had already started Their work, which neither mortal nor immortal can ever go against, and the time for joys to come from darkness is always fleeting. From Gaia came Ouranos, who She created to be Her mate, and the two soon bore the Titan Gods and Goddesses, the Kyklopes, and the Hekatonkheires (storm giants). The Titans loved Their mother, and so They gave Her great things: Helios gave Her the Sun, so that Hemara would visit all of Her surfaces, and Selene gave Her the Moon, so that Nyx would visit the alternating surfaces.

The thing with the Titans and Olympians, you probably already know, and so the scaly things came first, and as the furry things were being discussed, Eros took His old shell pieces and gave Gaia the gift of the feathery things, because now that there were so many deathless ones, His heart was filled with joy, and so He invented song, even though later, the Moirai would decide that it was Apollon and the Mousai who would perfect song through Man.

When Aphrodite was born of the blood and semen Khronos cut from Ouranos’ groin, Eros and Himeros were there to receive Her.

…and there’s about where I’m brain-farting on all else, and it’s starting to turn more into theogeny than cosmology.

To wrap up, we’re in the Hesiodic Bronze Age, if I’m to be believed; and maybe I shouldn’t be believed, cos I got distracted yesterday and put off doing this today until I was high on malnourishment? Feel free to ask me anything that seems important to you that isn’t addressed cos I trailed off there.

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[poetry] To Eros

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First-born Theos, son of maiden Nyx,
Born before your presence caused
She and Erebos
To see the beauty in each-other.
Born by parthenogenesis,
You inspire creation.
Everything ever gestated
Is indebted to you,
Lord Eros,
Eternal ephebos,
Giver of passions.
Immortal ephebos hiera,
My Divine beloved,
Giver of
My mortal lovers.
When blood was spilled
From the loins of Oranos,
Fall into the water did His seed as well,
And from there,
In the waters before you,
Sprang forth Kypris,
She who is foam-risen,
Your equal in power
And beauty,
And inspiring love
Among both Gods and men.
Your surrogate family when
Dark-haired Nyx
Seems so very far away.
Almighty Lord Eros,
Hear your adoring suppliant’s prayers,
And lead him on a path of
Passion,
Creation,
And love
Both mortal
And Immortal