An Introduction to Hekate
Hekate, Goddess of Magic, Witchcraft, the Moon, Necromancy, is believed to be not just a Goddess of the Underworld, but the living world as well. She also has dominion over crossroads, hidden knowledge, home protection, herbs, plant medicine and flowers. According to the Ancient Greek text by Hesiod, Theogony “Hecate, whom Zeus, Cronus’ son, honored above all others: he gave her splendid gifts - to have a share of the Earth and the barren sea, and from the starry sky as well she has a share in honor, and is honored most of all by the immortal gods.”
From what we can see historically, Hekate was a Goddess that was highly revered and given reign over three realms by the God of Gods. Hekate is well known to be as the triple goddess due to her association with the waxing, full and waning moon, but also some equate Hekate to the Mother, Maiden and Crone figure. She is a powerful Goddess, yet she also is a kind Goddess that will aid you in your path that you have chosen as a witch. Some of the main things you can focus on when working with Hekate when just starting off is
- Finding your path
- Protection of your home & loved ones
- Communion with the dead
- Spirit work
- Shadow work
Associations with Hekate you may find when calling on her when beginning to build a relationship with her are items such as,
- Keys
- Torches
- Lanterns
- Black dogs
- Crossroads
- The Moon
- The Crone
- Snakes
- The colors black & purple
- The #3
- The tarot card “The Moon”
- Strophalos Wheel
There are superstitions that when Hekate is near dogs will begin to bark for what seems to be no reason.
Once you begin to see signs that Hekate is responding to you and is willing to engage, a great thing to do would be to leave an offering at a crossroads during the New Moon. Rituals, offerings and spellwork during the New Moon is the perfect time to connect with Hekate since that is the phase of the moon associated with her. Some examples of offerings you can leave at the crossroads are,
- Mead
- Wine
- Cakes
- Mediterranean fruits
- Locally sourced fruits
- Keys
- Bones
- Plants, such as Mugwort
- Blood
You can also honor Hekate on the last day of the month or on the Night of Hekate, which is November 16th every year.
Lastly, an important step to making that initial connection with Hekate is creating an altar dedicated to her. On your altar you can have a statue of her or something that symbolizes her, plants associated with her and even images of animals associated with her. Some colors you can use to decorate your altar are,
- Purple
- Black
- Orange
- Yellow-Orange
- Red-Orange
Use these scents of incense at your altar such as,
- Cinnamon
- Honey
- Myrrh
- Mugwort
- Lime
- Lemon Verbena
- Queen of the Night
Finally, some great crystals and gems that Hekate would love to have at her altar include,
- Sapphire
- Silver/Gold
- Moonstone
- Black Tourmaline
- Black Onyx
- Hematite
- Smoky Quartz
Hopefully this introduction helps give you an idea of who Hekate is and how to begin following her. Thanks for reading!