Hi Friend,
Some origin-story writing that I'm in the midst of at the moment has brought me to the ancient Greek story of Demeter/Persephone/Hecate.
It is one of many old stories about a heroine who falls into some kind of an underworld; one of many stories that explain winter; one of many stories where Zeus exhibits some of the uglier aspects of the patriarchy; one of many stories about a profound mother-daughter connection; one of many stories about how full, unabashed expression of grief can change the world.
And then, with the autumnal equinox right around the corner (it’s on Monday!), I realized that some of the most famous Eleusinian Mysteries and related storytelling of the ancient Greco cult of Demeter and Persephone (based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Eleusis in ancient Greece) occurred close to the Autumnal Equinox.
From what I can gather, the "Greater Mysteries" - a ten-day celebration/ritual/festival/gathering that included both public and private for-initiates-only initiatory ritual definitely took place at around this time of year, in the month of Boedromion, which is around the end of our September/October. Some (but not all) sources link it to the Autumnal equinox.
And then, as different clients and I have been talking about their Autumnal Equinox rituals, this particular myth keeps showing up.
(Oh - and if you want to have a one-off call with me on mythos and ritual for yourself or your community as we enter a season with a lot of rituals, ceremonies, family time, and reckonings, you can book one with me any time before mid/december.)
This is the first year im leaning into this myth at this season.In general, during the autumn equinox, I tend to lean more into themes of balance and 'harvest as celebration' and local cultural diversity. But since this story has been knocking on my own psychic-journeying-portal recently, and since it has felt relevant to others as well, Im sharing it with all of you. so.... here's a refresher on a classic western myth, and some inquiries for your circles of various kinds.
And if you want to join us for a (free) Fall Equinox Circle: Demeter, Persephone and Hecate, on Monday Sept 22 at 2pm, please do sign up here!
It happened in the time before this time, which wasn't all that long ago....
Persephone (the maiden of the triple-headed archetypal goddess figure) is out gathering flowers in the midst of the woods/fields. A particularly gorgeous narcissus flower catches her attention - some say it has a hundred blossoms of such dazzling beauty that it is no wonder that it drew her towards it! - and she went to pick it. As she was reaching over, Hades, the King of the Underworld, reached out and grabbed her and pulled her under the ground.
She cried out. And her cry was heard.
Her cry was heard by her mother, Demeter, (the mother of the triple-faceted Goddess), the Goddess of the harvest and fertility and of Sacred Law, who was near to her, just out of sight, in another field.
And her cry was heard by Hecate (whom some say is the crone of the triple-faceted Goddess), who, being a Goddess of the Night and of the Moon, was deep in her own cave. She is also known as the Goddess of the Crossroads, who is accompanied by dogs and befriended by snakes, and is known by many as the Goddess of the Witches, and of Craft, and of Magic. Neither Goddess had seen where Persephone had gone, but they both knew that she had, indeed, gone.
And so Demeter begins her epic search for her daughter: high and low, around and about. With each passing moment, her grief expanded and grew and swelled and outpoured. For many days and many nights, she searched and searched and searched. In her grief and her anger, the crops began to wither.
Some say it was Hecate who suggested they ask Helios, God of the Sun, who sees everything that happens during the daytime, what had happened to her, Persephone. Helios had indeed seen Hades come and take Persephone. Helios also told them that Zeus had fully supported and given permission to his brother Hades to take his daughter, Persephone to be abducted. It seems that zeus never thought to tell Demeter about this arrangement and had no intention of getting his daughter out of the underworld.
Some say that Helios told Demeter that there was nothing she could do about it; she should just leave well enough alone and accept the ‘fact’ that Persephone was gone and to 'move on' with her life.
Demeter was having none of that.
Her grief and mourning continued.
And as they did, the crops withered and died, and the humans had no food for themselves. Which meant they had no food to offer the Gods. Including to Zeus.
We could say that Demeter withdrew her consent. She refused to perform her job. She said no. And there were consequences to her no.
We could say that her grief changed the world. Both the physical/ natural world and the relationships within the patriarchy in which she herself was embedded.
For the other gods got quite upset at not having the humans offer them offerings. They pressured Zeus to change his mind. Peer pressure is quite effective, even amongst the most elite of elites, the gods themselves. And Zeus wanted people to keep gifting him offerings as well. So he relented and told Hades to release Persephone.
The way I learned this story, Demeter and Hecate (and of course her dogs) and Helios all went together into the kingdom of the Underworld to rescue Persephone. Though some say it was only two of them.
And it was Baubo, a Goddess even older than Demeter and Hecate, who is herself a giant labia, who consoled Demeter and made her laugh before she went into the underground. The medicine of laughter and of Eros should not be underestimated. (I did a cool podcast on this part of the story).
I heard it said that it was Hecate who bore the torches, and it was she who would later accompany Persephone, for she knew the ways of the Underworld. The three dieties find Persephone and bring her out again, and thus the Earth was renewed and Spring came.
Because of the seeds of the underworld Pomegranate that Persephone had eaten, she would have to return to the Underworld every year, and during that time the Earth would be barren, while she was the Queen of the Underworld, and then she would return, and Spring would enliven the world of the humans.
It is in this story of the search, the descent, and the ascent, that the rituals of Greater Mysteries of Elusianian revolve around (aided, most likely, with some Poppy and possibly other local plant medicine extracts...).
As with any myth, we can turn it around, and look at it from different characters’ perspectives.
Here are a few inquiries you might want to explore, perhaps for yourself or perhaps for others. As I said, you might want to book a call to talk more about any of these dimensions for rituals/mythological inquiry you are interested in exploring. Or join our circle.
When was a time (and perhaps now is the time) when you or your people experienced being abducted against your desire? Maybe it was an outer force. Maybe it was an inner force; some part of your own psyche that pulled you under?
When was a time when you were searching, searching for a beloved who had been taken from you?
When was a time (is now the time?) when you withdrew your consent? From the patriarchy/institution/family structure that was harming Creation?
When was a time when you realized that the Great Mother was searching for you, because She loved you so much and would not let you dwell in the underworld forever?
When was a time when the unexpected subterranean experience led to your own capacity for differentiation from the Mother.... and thus the ability to become your own person?
When was a time when you stood at the crossroads and helped another find her way?
What happens if you play with some of the genders here -how does that shift the story for you?
Is there a Zeus character in your life that you are particularly infuriated with right now?
What does it mean to embrace the upcoming descent into winter for you this year?
What stories/myths are finding their way into your field these days?
Blessings upon the mysteries-
Sara Jolena
