My own Ekatia Deipna

I had been living in Athens for about three weeks, still almost unable to believe it. As I sat in my friend A’s car, I looked out at the streets, imagining how everything I was seeing might have been in the past.“Here was the Ilissos,” she said, and at once the mysteries once celebrated in Athens came to my mind, siblings of the Great Mysteries of Eleusis. The Acropolis, rising in front of me, competed for my attention, pulling me once more into its spell…But one thought lingered: Where were Hekate’s temples in Athens?

That night, I said nothing. I hardly knew the people around me, and my Greek was non-existent—as was my English.Slowly, my wife Galena and I began to discover some interesting places, dedicated to her or connected to her through Artemis, and we placed them on our “to do” list: Vravrona, Eleusis—of course, number one—the statue on the Acropolis… small scattered places weaving her hidden net.Hekate had brought us to Greece, and we felt almost a duty to repay her by visiting every ancient place once dedicated to her worship.

Not finding any great temple to her made us sooner or later ask our friend A.

Where was Hekate in Athens?

My friend at the wheel looked at me with great seriousness and replied:“Hekate? Where was Hekate? She was in the streets! In every house! Why would the goddess need grand temples, when she was already in each of our homes?”

The great temple of Hekate was woven house by house, crossroads by crossroads, in an endless network of power and devotion that turned the whole city into her sanctuary.I could not help but laugh—there I was, searching for marble columns, when Hekate did what she always does: settle within us, understand the soul and human needs in a way few deities can…

Sanctuary Amaimaketon Basilian in Athens

From then on, I began to focus on celebrating the new moons. The famous Hekate’s Suppers (Deipna Ekate) that held such power they survived into our own time, to do the same again: once a month, when the moon disappears from the sky, she weaves her web. This time not only in Athens, but across the entire world.

A friend once gave me a recipe that I later adapted, and I cook it whenever I can for my ritual with the goddess.I take boneless white fish and add the offerings connected with her—at least the ones that can be cooked: usually bay leaves, saffron, salt, pepper, honey, and a few boiled eggs. I also add some potatoes or kitharakia (a small Greek pasta), and bake it for about forty minutes. Before placing it in the oven, I pour in a glass of water, saying:“I honour you in the fire of my home, under the warmth of Hestia.I honour you, sovereign of the crossroads of the world, weaver of the cosmos, Axis Mundi of our story.I honour you and my ancestors, and those who now walk the earth without light—so that it is you who may brighten their shadows.”

When the food is ready, I always set aside two plates: the first for Hekate, the second for the Ancestors.We eat the rest, sharing with the goddess this moment of communion and offering.And before the new sun rises, we take these two plates to the nearest crossroads, along with some coins to honour Hermes as well.We leave—and never, ever look back. That is how my friend taught me, and that is how we still do it.

Last Ekateia Deipna with Andrea Angelos in her Sanctuary Hekate Angelos in London

This is a private celebration, more from our own oikos than from the Sanctuary Amaimaketon Basilian, but I wanted to share it here with you all, in case it may inspire your sacred devotion to the goddess who has given us so much.

Hail Hekate, goddess of light, Soteira, who guides our steps and protects us through change!

Hail Hekate, who always is, who always will be, who walks beside us!

Hail to you, Hekate, who carry the light, and are light for those who have none.

Hail Hekate, torchbearer and guardian of the crossroads.

May these words inspire you to weave your own bond with her, wherever you are. In honouring Hekate, we honour also the unseen threads that connect us all in her sacred web.

Hail Hekate!