Hekate & Food – History and Modern Practices - Alexia Moon Torchbearer Essay

Food has taken an important role in religious and magical paths since Ancient Times, being in the center of several religious festivities and rituals, such as the Eucharist in Christianity or as a part of several pagan rituals such as the Wiccan “Cakes and Ale”. We can see the importance of food in our practices when many of our offerings, in Modern Polytheism, are food-based, either cooked by ourselves or gathered from the earth. As such, the worship of the Goddess Hekate is not indifferent to importance of food, and neither were the ancient Greeks.

We have several instances, both in myth and in archeological and historical records, in which food was mentioned as being offered to the Gods (Theoi). One such example is the myth of Prometheus in which the Titan convinced Zeus to allow humans to offer only a portion of a sacrificed animal instead of the whole animal, leading to the Gods being given the fat and bones of sacrificed beasts, instead of the tender meat. Food is our sustenance and what allows us to survive as we do and, therefore, it is normal that we offer it to the Gods, since when we give offerings and sacrifices, we do so by giving and sacrificing that which is most important to us.

When it comes to the worship of Hekate this is no different. Food is one of the most known types of offerings that were made in ancient times and, even today, several of Her followers choose to give food offerings in the form of cakes, drinks or ingredients associated with the Goddess. One of the main events associated with Hekate is the Deipnon. This event takes place on the night before the New Moon (the beginning of a new month in the Attic Calendar) and it was done in Hekate’s honor. Deipnon is the evening meal and is usually the largest meal of the day, however on the eve of the New Moon cakes and drinks were prepared to be offered to Hekate and the restless dead that accompany Her, as an offering so that She may help protect and clean their homes from negative energies and “Miasma”.

The most common foods associated with Hekate are garlic, eggs, fresh cheese, almonds, wine, seasonal fruits, olive oil and milk. Additionally, there are some references to baked goods that were left out for Hekate namely Magides (which is a type of cake or loaf), Psammeta (a sacrificial cake) and the amphiphon which is a small flat cheesecake that was left outside surrounded by torches. These food offerings would be left at crossroads and outside of the house so that, during the night of the Dark Moon (New Moon’s eve) the Goddess Hekate and Her horde of restless dead could find and consume the offerings. In fact, in “Hekate Liminal Rites” we can see that this was one of the hardest practices for the Christian Church to stop and we have records that indicate that this was still being practiced up until the eleventh century CE.

In today’s practice we can still see the importance of food in the worship of the Ancient

Gods and Goddesses as many different types of offerings and foods are given unto them. Hekate is no different: Even in current times, many practitioners celebrate the Deipnon and cook several types of foods such as cakes and other dishes to present as offerings to the Goddess of the Crossroads.

While some of us might not be able to leave our offerings on crossroads or even replicate the ancient recipes (some of which are lost to time) we are still able to honor the Goddess Hekate by adapting to modern times and using our current foods. Usually, it is recommended to try and give offerings of food which would’ve been easy to naturally find around the Mediterranean and that are associated with Hekate (which we’ve listed before) since that is the focal point of this practice of worship of the Goddess Hekate. However, given that Her worshippers are now scattered across all continents, such task might be hard, and it is totally acceptable to adapt to local foods, depending on your practice and preferences.

Many practitioners opt to search the available records for which types of baked goods were given to the Goddess and to recreate those, to the best of their abilities, creating their new modern takes on Magides or amphiphon, and presenting them to the Goddess on the Deipnon. In this case, like the author Márcia Silva says on her book, it is not only the fact that the practitioner is cooking an historically accurate (or as accurate as possible) copy of the food that was given to the Goddess in Ancient Greece, it is also the fact that the practitioner is devoting their time and effort into creating something for the Deity. There are many things that we offer our Deities and to the Goddess Hekate, and one of the best things that we can give is our time. As mortals, our time is limited and accounted for, as such the fact that we are willing to take a portion of our time, every month, to create something that we are going to, wholeheartedly, give to the Goddess on her celebration is a sacrifice in itself.

On a more personal note, and strictly out of my own UPG, I also recommend adding to your diet several foods or ingredients that are associated with Hekate and to do so with the knowledge and the intent that they are there to remind you of Hekate’s presence and importance in your life and to connect you with the Goddess on a daily basis. It is a simple action, one that many of us might already be doing unconsciously, but it will allow for a small presence of Hekate outside of our regular worship spaces, bringing Her to our everyday life. Personally I tend to use a lot of garlic and onion in my recipes and will draw sigils and other symbols with olive oil while prepping the pan. I also do many food offerings at my altar, cook cakes and other recipes associated with the Goddess and do regular olive oil offerings as libations.

As we can see, food can take an important role in our religious and spiritual path and,

specifically, on our devotion to the Goddess Hekate. Whether it be through the celebration of the Deipnon, the recreation of cakes and foods associated with the Goddess or by adding Her correspondent ingredients to your everyday diet, there are many ways in which your spiritual relationship with Hekate can be enhanced and developed through food, and I hope this text was of help in your journey!

Alexia Moon

Sources

d'Este, S., & Rankine, D. (2009). Hekate: Liminal Rites. England: Avalonia.

Members, C. o. (n.d.). Moon Magic & Hekate. Retrieved from Covenant of Hekate: https://www.hekatecovenant.com/moon-magic

PROMETHEUS. (n.d.). Retrieved from Theoi: https://www.theoi.com/Titan/TitanPrometheus.html

Silva, M. (2020). Bruxaria Hekatina: O Caminho da Bruxa com a Deusa Hekate. Independent Publishing.