Equinox is the Latin phrase for “equal night” and refers to those two days in the year when day and night are closest in length. Both equinoxes are “high days” for ADF and in the broader Neopagan “wheel of the year,” marking the beginning of spring and fall on most modern calendars. Although the word for these days comes to us from Latin, one of the most-beloved stories about the changing seasons comes to us from Greece and is associated with the “Eleusinian mysteries,” which predate the classical Greek pantheon.
Eleusinian Trio of Persephone, Triptolemus and Demeter
The longer Homeric Hymn to Demeter contains the oldest and fullest version of this story: how Zeus gave Demeter’s daughter Persephone to his brother Hades, who lured her with beautiful flowers before snatching her away to the underworld to be his wife. While disguised, grieving and searching for her daughter, Demeter was treated kindly at Eleusis, establishing the Eleusinian mysteries there after Persephone’s return. In keeping with ADF custom, spring equinox services in Vancouver will focus on a single “hearth culture.” This equinox that hearth culture shall be Hellenic or Greek, drawing from the two homeric hymns to Demeter. Beings of the occasion shall be Persephone and Demeter, with Hermes as Gatekeeper.
Services shall be held at 2pm on Saturday, March 26, with the preritual briefing at 1:30. (Please note that this is one hour later than usual) Spring foods, handicrafts and anything handmade or composed toward a harmonious home life are appropriate offerings with which to celebrate the promise and return of spring.
In addition to its famous “explanation” of spring, the longer homeric hymn to Demeter is a rich text with various interpretations and possible readings about the rights of parents, the social power of women, rewards for hospitality, mutual obligation and making piece with necessities such as in-laws or adult children. The shorter homeric hymn to Demeter, by contrast, is basically a single line.
Δημήτηρ᾽ ἠύκομον, σεμνὴν θεάν, ἄρχομ᾽ ἀείδειν,
αὐτὴν καὶ κούρην, περικαλλέα Περσεφόνειαν.
χαῖρε, θεά, καὶ τήνδε σάου πόλιν: ἄρχε δ᾽ ἀοιδῆς.
Hail, goddess! Keep this city safe, and govern my song.
For more information.
- A brief, pre-ritual introduction to ADF cosmology
- The longer Homeric Hymn to Demeter at Project Perseus
- Plainer text version (without Greek options)
- Wikipedia articles on Demeter, Persephone and the Eleusinian Mysteries
We hope that you will be able to join us for March 26 services on the grounds of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Vancouver, 4505 East 18th Street, Vancouver WA 98661. Because of our morning planting with Friends of Trees, the pre-ritual briefing will be held at 1:30 pm with ritual at 2pm. Please dress to be outdoors and bring a “camp chair” if you would rather not stand for the better part of an hour.
Χαῖρε, θεά, καὶ τήνδε σάου πόλιν: ἄρχε δ᾽ ἀοιδῆς!
Vancouver Druids US 