The ancient Greeks had a lunar based calendar as did much of
the world. The official ritual calendar varied from city state to city. What we
know the most about comes from the Athenian Festival Calendar. Though they have
different festivals that come around each year what seemed the most important
of all were the monthly festival cycles that started at the beginning of each
month.
The first thing to look at is that
the New Year started with the first new moon after the summer solstice. Second
is that that Greek day began with the setting of the sun, not with the rising
of it. Each new moon was then celebrated and termed Noumenia, new moon Day. In
some cases this was not the first day of the festival cycle for the new moon. Some
of the city states used the four days preceding the new moon to honor the Chthonic
Deities and land spirits, this was done for three days, then the last day of
the old month to was for giving offering to Hekate, which were usually done in
private.
Each day thereafter for eight days
had specific deities or entities associated with its celebration with the
acceptation of the 5th day where there seems to have been a day of
rest. Then the cycle would begin again with the changing of the moon.
In ADF we adapt many of the ancient
customs to our modern ways of worship. The Hellenic culture is very near and
dear to my heart so I wanted to bring some of the deeper aspects of their
customs into my spiritual path. I have taken the previous understanding of the
Athenian Calendar and Lunar Festival cycle modify it, creating my own personal set
ritual schedules to work into my monthly devotion cycle.
I begin just after sun set. As was
the custom I start all my rituals in this cycle giving offerings first to
Hestia, the Hearth Goddess, for first offerings in the home go to her. From
there I perform the rituals I have written in standard ADF ritual format. As it
was standard practice to honor Zeus before all gods I have written the rituals
so that he is the first Kindred of Occasion in all these rituals.
The Libation Hymn in the ritual was
heavily influenced by Aeschylus’ Queen Mother, Atossa, in Persians (vv.607-99),
she using an invocation and hymn to call forth her dead son, much of which is
very beautiful. When I read through her call to her son there just seemed to be
very ‘right’ about it. It also was very Greek in its offering to the dead and
would be fitting for the gods as well. Here is the Libation Hymn I wrote that
was so inspired by Queen Atossa:
Libation Hymn:
Great Ones, Shining Gods and
Goddesses,
I come to you as in times of
old, bringing libations, gifts to honor and soothe:
To you all that have come, to
all that heard my call I give you these gifts;
White milk, sweet to drink
from the animal sacred Hermes, the cow;
Golden honey, the
distillation of the bees that work on sweet Persephone’s blossoms;
Holy water brought from the
source a pure spring domain of the Nymphs;
This refreshing, unmixed
drink from the ancient vine, its mother Demeter the Goddess of all growing
things, the gift to human kind from Beloved Dionysus;
And the fragrant fruit of the
pale green olive that lives its abundant life among the leaves and light of
Helios, the gift of Athena to her people;
These gifts I give to you in
love and in respect, in friendship and kinship.
Might Ones accept my
offerings!
The following is the schedule I use
for the version of an ADF Athenian Noumenia. If you are interested in seeing
the rituals themselves you can visit our Protogroves site. They will be listed
under RESOURCES/GENERAL RITUALS.
4 Days before
Noumenia (New Moon Festival)
Chthonic Day 1:
Chthonic Land Deities, Nymph’s and Nature Spirits
Chthonic Day 2:
Chthonic Sea Deities, Nymph’s and Nature Spirits
Chthonic Day 3:
Chthonic Sky Deities, Nymph’s and Nature Spirits
Hekate’s Deipnon (Last Day Before the New Moon):
Celebration for Hekate
Noumenia (New Moon
Festival of New Moon): Celebration for Selene, Apollon Noumenios, and
the Ancestors
Agathos Daimon (2nd
Day of New Moon): Celebration for the
Good Spirits
Birthday of Athena
& the Graces (3nd Day after Noumenia):
Aphrodite, Hermes,
Herakles & Eros (4rd Day after Noumenia):
5th Day is taken off
Birthday of Artemis
(6th Day after Noumenia):
Birthday of
Apollon (7th Day after Noumenia):
Poseidon (8th
Day after Noumenia):
Sources:
The Sacred and Civil Calendar of the Athenian Year, by Jon
D. Mikalson, Princeton
University
The Oxford
Classical Dictionary, ed. By S. Hornblower and A. Spawforth, Oxforth University
Arcana Mundi, by Georg Luck, Johns Hopkins 1985
Hellenion: http://www.hellenion.org
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