Honoring Hekate

by Hekatatia

In addition to Hekate’s Suppers (detailed in above) there are many things one can do to honor Hekate on a regular basis. First you may want to erect an altar in your home. This can take the form of the ancient hekataia, which should be placed either outside your front door or right inside it depending on your living situation. The shape it takes is up to you – place it on a shelf, a table, the floor, in a garden bed next to your front door, etc. This is an altar focusing on her role as protector and key bearer, so you may choose to decorate it along that theme. Be sure to ‘feed’ the hekataia with regular offerings, no less than once a month but preferably more frequently. You can speak a prayer to her as you enter or leave your home, passing by the hekataia, and may even leave a small offering at this time.

Hekate is a diverse Goddess with many attributes, as seen in her epithets and hymns. A good way to get to know her is to focus on one attribute at a time and to break the hymns down to small portions you focus on bit by bit. I suggest a minimum of one week for each but a month also makes a nice period and ties in well with her monthly dinners! You may also tie this in with the season or time of year – for example, winter is a very dark season in Britain and I like to focus on her light bringing capabilities as the dark season drags on into February seeming without end. Some may prefer to focus on darker functions in the dark seasons and lighter in the light – there is no right or wrong. Find out what works for you.

If you’d like to do something special to honor Hekate or feel closer to her here are a few suggestions:

*Provide a loving home to a dog in need or volunteer at a shelter. Dogs are sacred to Hekate and are closely linked to her in many ways.

*You can care-take an abandoned or deserted place – whether urban or rural. A lonely stretch of river front or woods, an empty city lot, an abandoned house in your neighbourhood…Hekate frequents these places and because they are deserted doesn’t mean they must be covered in trash.

*Take a walk at night and focus on Hekate as you do. You may try saying her name aloud, reciting a hymn, or praying to her while you walk. Modern street lights stand in for her torches, offering light and protection among the dark stretches of road. In my experience, if you take the time to notice, her presence is fully palpable along the road.