Hecate

Hecate, Hekate (Hekátē), or Hekat was orginially a goddess of the wilderness and childbirth originating from Thrace. Due to popular cult following as a mother goddess her persona was integrated into Greek and Egyptian culture where she ultimately achieved her more modern connotations as a goddess of sorcery and her role as the ?Queen of Ghosts.?

Symbols

Objects

Traditionally, Hecate is represented as carrying torches, very often has a knife, and may appear holding a rope, a key, a phial {{fact}}, flowers {{fact}}, or a pomegranate {{fact}}.

Related Topics:
Phial - Pomegranate

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The torch is presumably a symbol of the light that illuminates the darkness, as the Greeks secured Hecate in her role as the bringer of wisdom. Her knife represents her role as midwife in cutting the umbilical cord (possibly symbolized by the rope), as well as severing the link between the body and spirit at death. This may be the origin of the traditional ritual knives of witches. The Key is significant to Hecate's role as gatekeeper, being the one who could open the doors to sacred knowledge. The Orphic Hymns list her as the "keybearing Queen of the entire Cosmos." The pomegranate was seen by the Ancient Greeks as the fruit of the Underworld, though it was also used as a love-gift between Greek men and women. This may be because a pomegranate was eaten by Persephone, binding her to the Underworld and to Hades.

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Important to note is the similarity of symbols and objects held by Hecate and other Dark-Mother-Goddesses the world over. Most often, symbols like the knife and rope represented the Dark Mother's ability to cut loose the bonds of the physical realm, thus showing her as midwife and nurse not only to children but to the dying as well.

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In Ancient Greece, she was also associated with a serpentine maze around a spiral, known as Hecate's wheel (the "Strophalos of Hecate", verse 194 of Isaac Preston Cory's 1836 translation of the Chaldean_Oracles). The symbolism referred to the serpent's power of rebirth, to the labyrinth of knowledge through which Hecate could lead mankind, and to the flame of Life itself: "The life-producing bosom of Hecate, that Living Flame which clothes itself in Matter to manifest Existence" (verse 55 of Cory's translation of the Chaldean_Oracles).

Related Topics:
Chaldean_Oracles - Serpent

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Animals

The she-dog is the animal most commonly associated with Hecate. She was sometimes called the 'Black she-dog' and black dogs were once sacrificed to her in purification rituals. At Colophon in Thrace, Hecate might be manifest as a dog. The sound of barking dogs was the first sign of her approach in Greek and Roman literature. Her festival in mid-August, celebrated by sacrificing black bitches to ward off the stormy season, gave rise to the expression "the dog-days of summer". The frog, significantly a creature that can cross between two elements, is also sacred to Hecate. As a triple goddess, she sometimes appears with three heads-one of a dog, horse, bear or dog, snake or lion.

Related Topics:
Dog - Frog

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During the Medieval period in western Europe, Hecate was reverenced by witches who adopted parts of her mythos as their goddess of sorcery. Because Hecate had already been much maligned by the late Roman period, Christians of the era found it easy to blacken and villify her image. Thus were all her creatures also considered "creatures of darkness"; however, the history of creatures such as ravens, night-owls, snakes, scorpions, asses, bats, horses, bears, and lions as her creatures is not always a dark and frightening one. (For more, please see Jacob Rabinowitz's work, "The Rotting Goddess".)

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In modern wicca, neo-Paganism, and goth culture all wild animals are sacred to Hecate. Creatures of darkness, such as ravens, owls, and snakes represent her the most. Dragons have been included in this list more recently, but are not a traditional Greek association with this goddess. Several images of Hecate show her holding a snake because snakes have long been connected with chthonic powers and the powers of Life, Death, and Rebirth {{fact}}.

Related Topics:
Wicca - Neo-Paganism - Goth culture - Raven - Owl - Snake - Dragon - Chthonic

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Plants and Herbs

The yew, cypress, hazel, black poplar and willow are all sacred to Hecate. The leaves of the black poplar are dark on one side and light on the other, symbolizing the boundary between the worlds. The yew has long been associated with the Underworld.

Related Topics:
Yew - Cypress - Hazel - Black poplar - Willow

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The yew has strong associations with death as well as rebirth. A poison prepared from the seeds was used on arrows, and yew wood was commonly used to make bows and dagger hilts. The potion in Hecate's cauldron contains 'slips of yew'. Yew berries carry Hecate's power, and can bring wisdom or death. The seeds are highly poisonous, but the fleshy, coral-colored 'berry' surrounding it is not. If prepared correctly, the berry can cause visual hallucinations. (Reference was requested for this: there are many books to cite, but the best would be "Witchcraft Medecine" by Ratsch et al. See below.)

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Many other herbs and plants are associated with Hecate, including garlic, almonds, lavender, myrrh, mugwort, cardamon, mint, dandelion, hellebore, and lesser celandine. Several poisons and hallucinogens are linked to Hecate, including belladonna, hemlock, mandrake, aconite (known as hecateis), and opium poppy. Many of Hecate's plants were those that can be used shamanistically to achieve varyings states of consciousness.

Related Topics:
Garlic - Almond - Lavender - Myrrh - Mugwort - Cardamon - Mint - Dandelion - Hellebore - Lesser celandine - Hallucinogen - Belladonna - Hemlock - Mandrake - Aconite - Opium poppy

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For more on this subject, there is a brilliant work by Muller-Ebeling, Ratsch, and Storl named "Witchcraft Medecine". It can be difficult to get but it is well worth the effort.

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Places

Wild areas, forests, borders, city walls and doorways, crossroads, and graveyards are all associated with Hecate.

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The moon is sacred to Hecate.

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