Worship on a Budget

No one likes to be that person who feels like they are being left behind and lacking something in their worship because they struggle with poverty. That you can’t go and buy icons and extravagant, or even comparatively decent, offerings. As someone who has spent considerable time in that situation here are some tips.

1. Make your own icon. Find a recipe for salt dough clay. Paper-mache it. Get air dry clay. If you have access to a printer, print a picture you like. Be creative. Shoot get a bowl and fill it with sacred symbols you have for said deity.

2. Offering bowls can be kitchen bowls, or anything. It can be grandmas chipped teacup you inherited. They dont have to be replica vessels you have not a prayer to afford yet.

3. Olive oil lamps are most cost efficient than candles. Make the switch. An easy lamp can be made from a heavy mason jar with a hole cut in the lid for a wick.

4. Swallow your pride and earnestly offer what you have. A portion of your meal. A spoon of cornmeal. Rice. Use staples in your house. Bread is a perfect one we take for granted. A tablespoon of honey in water can make a libation in a pinch. Or maybe a spoonful of tea or coffee.

5. Experiment with burning different herbs you have for incense.

6. Performance such as dance, song, athletics etc are all time attested simple offerings. Poetry is good.

7. Realistically while we would love to grace worship areas with flowers, it is often not possible financially. Invest in silk ones so you  can save pennies for real flowers on special festival days/occassions. Silk flowers can easily be perfumed.

 

 

Apulu

It goes without saying that it has been interesting in working with creating an Etruscan cult with very little information. I largely draw on how I would imagine Greek sources would be interpreted when arriving to Etruria from Greece. There is little doubt to my mind that the name is closely related to the Thessalian name for Apollon as Apullun as produced by Plato, but the cult of the god is highly influenced by Doric and outside influences (as per we see many similarities with Uni to both Hera and she is directly associated with Astarte).

With Apulu there are a few distinct cult features that we see. The laurel, the staff (often in form of a laurel branch), serpents and wolves. There is little focus on Apulu with the kithara which is more often shown with his twin as per Doric cult. The close connections of Apulu with the tomb also shares many Doric associations. The closeness of Apulu and Uni in inscriptions may imply a close relationship with Hera and Apollon in Crete where he is the son of that goddess (although other source material dealing with Doric Crete is that he is the son of Corybas who was transformed into a great dragon). It is probable that Apulu’s cult has a stronger Doric element than Ionian. The wolfish and draconic Apollon who rules purifying streams and keeps harbors, lord of storms and tombs, all-seeing god of ripening and decay. Protector of life and destroyer of life.

While Apulu did eventually gain more solar influences in his cult, it is these above that capture the heart of my relationship with him even when worshipping him as Apollon before when I honored him as the grandson of the celestial dragon Koios, and the wolfish god who with great winds destroys all which is before him. The Echidna-like sepent beings serve him. Yet he is a god who preserves life too and feasts upon that which would bring famine and death before its time.

So I call him my wolfish lord, I call him too first among all dragons, king of dragons.

Cassandra card

What I consider the other side if the Sibyl card, the Cassandra card is when due to your own actions the blessings of the gods turn against you. To be cast out, to be unheard, and ultimately be consumed and lead to your own destruction.

Please consider being a sponsor for the Oracle of the Serpent 🙂

Latest cards: the Twins and He Lights the Way

Sharing the more recent cards. Please see previous blog post to see how you can get in on investing in direct sponsorship of the Oracle of the Serpent 🙂

How to support Oracle of the Serpent

With the failing of the kick starter as an all or nothing thing, I decided to write here a proposition for those who genuinely want to support getting this done on time. Honestly I gave plenty of time for painting through the summer. What I need is at minimum to be able to purchase canvas and paint (several colors I am now dangerously low on).

So how do you do it? Paypal me at lykeiabotanica@gmail.com and email me at the same address regarding you donation.

Aside from decks which will be mailed after the deck is completed, all other rewards will be mailed within 2 weeks of receiving donation (sometimes less time depending on what all you are getting). All rewards for receiving cards I will keep track of and you will be emailed when the decks are ready to mail.

$10- there is no reward other thank you for helping me buy 1 canvas 🙂

$25- you get a print of any of the currently completed cards.

$40- reserve a signed copy of the deck

$60- reserve a deck and get a print

$80- all of the above+photo pendant necklace.

$125- upgrade to gold trimmed (possibly limited edition gilded) deck

$150- upgrade deck plus upgrade pendant to silver medallion.

$250-all upgrades plus upgrade your print to an original painting out of what is available (you can wait to decide until they are all painted, but keep in mind if there is one you *really* like it is first come first served on claiming. I will list all those unclaimed when the cards are done)

Thank you everyone for you support and those who pledged in the kickstarter that sadly never jumped off the ground. If supporters don’t mind doing this direct sponsorship I think you will ultimately find it satisfactory. You will of course gave my sincerest thanks

Please stay in tune via Facebook page Oracle of the Serpent to keep the easiest updated on the progress of the cards! I will if course keep posting cards here as well.

Oracle of the Serpent Kickstarter

For some time I have been slowly working my Apollo Oracle cards, doing one card at a time through my own efforts and from individual card sponsors. Since I would love to have the deck ready for release by October I decided to put up a kickstart. It is an all or nothing Kick start. If it fails it will exponentially affect the release date by likely a couple years. Sponsorship allows me to devote more time for creating.

The unique thing about this deck is that it us a combination of inferring representations via cult names and referring to myths to unpack the meanings of the cards. Even this is valuable as there us no one absolute way to read these. I will be providing a booklet with suggested interpretations. It heavily relies on the reader. As this deck deals most directly with Apollon and his relationship with other gods this deck will likely be useful for those who perform divination in service to him.

Doing as little as pledging the reduced cost of a deck at 40.00 (will likely be a bit higher when sold afterward) will do so much to help this get going.

There are of course many tiers with goodies for pledging.

Something I am currently working. Have been for a while but doing so in a more official basis for anyone who may be interested.

Icons for underprivileged worshipers Charity

Lykeias Botanica (my shop) will begin a service called Icons for Under privileged worshipers Charity. I will put my own money into it, 10% of my profits and be open to donations.

This charity is designed to accumulate funding to provide (1) 8-10 inch statue of deity of their choice plus shipping. Once appropriate funding and shipping has been achieved the person at the top of the wait list will receive an email confirming their selection and to inquire what icon they would like made.

With so many lacking the means for religious supply, as an iconographer I wanted to put something within reach of those who have little. But as I cannot fund it by myself this also depends on generous contributions for the lengthy and expensive process if making terracotta icons.

Much of time will be donated, therefore the mark to raise per statue is going to be about 50.00 plus shipping vosts..between 20.00-30.00 domestic, more for international. It will just depend on whose next on the list.

If you would like to donate send money via PayPal to lykeiabotanica@gmail.com

Every 2 weeks I will post an update where donations are sitting.

If you would like to be put on the waitlist please email me at lykeiabotanica@gmail.com with following questions answered:

Name?

Why would you like to be on the list?

Valid contact info?

It is that easy. This is 100% dependant on honesty of applicants and generosity of coworshipers.

Clearance 6 inch painted icons

$35 each plus $10 domestic shipping, $15 international shipping
From left to right: Tethus(Tethys), Uni, Menvra and Diana

Clearance Icon Sale!!

To make room for new stock the following items are up on 50% or more clearance. Everything listed is grouped by shipping cost category. The listed prices with the items does not include the shipping. You will have to calculate the item plus the shipping of the category. For any purchases you want to make please email me directly at lykeiabotanica@gmail.com

$10 shipping category. All 6 inch icons in this category are 30.00 each plus shipping

1. Dis Pater

2. Apollon Smintheus

3. Thanatos

4.  Hermanubis

5. Juno Moneta

6.  Morghanna

 

$15 shipping category

1 Ariadne 10 inch statue $25 SOLD

2 Pythia Oracle 8×10 $25

3 Apollon Karneios 8×10 $25

4 Artemis Eurynome 8×10 $25

 

$20 shipping category

1 Mountain Mother/Rhea 9×11 $30.00

2 Semele 9×11 $30

4 Ariadne 9×11 $30

5 Sobek 9×11 $30 SOLD

6  Hera 10×10 $25

7 Jupiter 10×10 $25

8 Fulfuns/Dionysos 9×11 $30 SOLD

9 Queen of Heaven 12 inch $35

 

$24 shipping category

1 Persephone 16×20 $60 SOLD

2 Serapis 16×20 $45

3 Ares 16×20 $40

4 Hera 16×20 $50

5 Taweret 12 inch $50 SOLD.

 

 

category $35 shipping

Hathor 12×24 $70

 

Apollon to Apulu, Hellenic to Etruscan

Over the last year I have been going through a dynamic change that was spurred by repeatedly oracles telling me to turn to my ancestral Etruscan traditions. Easier said than done given information available. I had tap danced around them through my history with both Hellenic and Roman Polytheisms, but never actually went there. Needless to say this experience, especially with the Hellenic in regards to borrowed gods like Apollon (as Apulu), and possibly Turan from Aphrodite Ourania, it has been a fruitful experience giving me considerable information, background and experience to draw upon. The best result has been that I have connected in stronger bonds with a number of gods that had been trying to click but failing on the Hellenic end. It has also been a time of discovering familial gods such as the case with Turan and Uni (and Apulu will be added to that for my children and descendants via his close connection to our household through my vows to him). I marked this transition be renewing my original summer vows to Apollon at winter solstice to Apulu.

In February I celebrated not only the natal day of Apulu, but also the marital ceremony of Uni with Tinia. in March was a festival of Turan as lady of rivers in honor of the spring thaw. On the 1st I honored the marriage of the hearth and tomb by celebrating the nupitals of Apulu Suri with the hearth goddess, daughter of the sun, Cautha. My weekly schedule is all over the place that is relationship dependent.

Sunday=Apulu Suri, Cautha and Usil (sun god) as a divine family

Monday= Apulu, Diana/Artumes and Uni for the new week/keeping the young

Tuesday= Hercle and Menvra as a matched pair, sometimes including Apulu too

Wednesday= free day/ random deity as needed. Open for Turms.

Thursday= Tinia and Uni (king and queen of heaven)

Friday= Turan and Uni (love and bonds of the family)

Saturday= Tethus, Nethuns and Diana (bodies of water on earth, manifestation of water on the earthly level as nurturing and destroying force)..sometimes including Fulfuns