Bellona (2015)

Today I honor Bellona, though I did celebrate it later on in the day. I went out with my mother shopping and I picked up a offering to give to her. I did pray to her this morning for strength. Bellona is the Roman goddess of War, taking that title from the Greek Athena. I feel the need to honor her as strength in face of those that would insult my religion and those that make religion look bad in general, is needed.

I have been praying to Bellona for a couple of days now and I have found that the goddess has given me something that I haven't had in a long time, inner strength and courage. I'm going to add her to my Roman altar. I hope that you all have a good day and may Bellona watch over you.

Having to Create My Own Rituals

So today is the second day of June and I was thinking about the topic of rituals. I have noticed that there aren't a lot of places where you can find Roman rituals. And that is what, I think, hurts a lot of people that are trying to honor their gods. Being a Roman Revivalist means creating your own rituals and doing them. Since the time to honor Bellona is tomorrow I'm going to be working on a ritual for her.

I don't honor Bellona, but with what is going on over there in the Middle East. I believe that honoring her is a good idea. I will also be praying more to Mars so that the side of good will win over the forces of darkness and evil. I find that creating my own rituals is so very important for my spiritual growth and development. So I'm going to write my own rituals to certain gods that are going to be honored.

I believe this is an important step in my life.

Kalends (June 2015), Juno Moneta, Mars, Tempestatibus, Carna

So this is the beginning of the month of June and I hope that your month will be wonderful. We start off by honoring the Kalends, which are honored at the beginning of each month. This one is the Kalends to Juno. Each month a Kalends is devoted to each god or goddess of the Roman pantheon, the important ones. So I will be offering what I can the Kalends for Juno. Below are four other Roman holidays that are celebrated.

Juno Moneta

Sacred to Juno Moneta (Juno the Warner), the aspect of Juno who warns of impending disasters and harmful events. It was her sacred geese who warned the Romans of the impending attack by the Gauls in 363 a.u.c. (389 BCE)

Mars

This day is sacred to Mars. It is the anniversary of the dedication of the Temple of Mars near the Capena gate.

Tempestatibus

Sacred to the Tempestates, Goddesses of weather and storms in particular.  (note: June 1st is the beginning of the hurricane season. I wonder if the Romans knew this long before the modern world picked it up? Hum, makes me wonder. Or did Nova Roma put this up? Don't know.)

Carna

Sacred to Carna, Goddess of door hinges as well as bodily health. She has the power to ward off stirges (vampires) from babies who are left in their cribs unattended. On this day prayers are offered to her for the health of the liver, heart, and other internal organs. She receives on this day offerings of bean-meal and bacon fat, which were thought to promote bodily health and robustness.


I hope that you all have a good day and may the gods bless you during the month.

When Rituals Aren't Needed

So yesterday I was having one of those days. Well mainly because my brother his getting is body ready for getting up early in the morning as he now has a job. Thank you Fortuna! Well I didn't have anything to offer the gods in the form of food. It's getting a bit rough the last couple of days before the third. So I decided to just pray.

Prayer is a great substitution for ritual. It's personal and private. It still helps us connect to the divine and it tells the gods that your grateful for the little things that you have been blessed with. Rituals are not always needed. Just getting up and doing things is a ritual in itself. Little things really help as far as your connection to the gods.

Personally Roman religion, for me, isn't about the rituals. It's about connecting yourself to your ancestors, trying to understand how your ancestors believed, and trying to bring a bit of that into your own life. The Roman altar does help, along with rituals, but prayer is the most powerful form of devotion that we have. It puts us on the ground level of who we are and it makes us humble.

Relying on the divine for that spiritual connection is so important in our daily lives. Removing the divine is wrong and turns you into a god yourself.  And we don't need those kinds of people around. Have a great day and a great month to come.

Why I Chose to Be a Roman Revivalist

Yesterday was the last Roman holiday of the month of May and I was setting and thinking about rituals that groups have that they won't share, or rituals that they have created themselves and use. This has led me to the belief that the only way that Roman Paganism can survive is if there is a revival of the religion. And I'm not talking about bringing it into the realm of the occult or what Wicca does, but a revival of rituals that bring the gods into the here and now.

A couple of months ago I discovered a term called Roman Revivalist. It means reviving the Roman religion and having modern rituals that can be used. I believe this to be so important to the continuing of the religion. We need to have our own rituals and we need books out there that are written by those that practice the religion. And I'm not talking about what Nova Roma does, but rituals that anyone can follow.

Now I will agree that some rituals will be long, but some will be short. The revival of the religion has come and it will take brave souls to see it finally enter the 21st century.

Ambarualia (May 2015)

So it's time for another Roman holiday. This one I'm getting from the Nova Roma site as I've been a member of them for two years. Enjoy and have a great remainder of your week.

The Ambarvalia is the ritual purification of the fields, and as such it is connected with such agricultural deities as Ceres, Bacchus, Mars, et cetera. It is the "beating of the bounds", when the boundaries between fields were purified by a procession of sacrificial animals, the suovetaurilia. It was both a public and a private rite, and the private rite is described by Cato:

A procession of a pig, sheep, and ox are led around the land, and the following words spoken:

"That with the good help of the Gods success may crown our work, I bid you Manius, to take care to purify my farm, my land, my ground with this suovetaurilia, in whatever part you think best for them to be driven or carried around."

Wine is sacrificed to Janus (always called upon first to open the lines of communication between men and the Gods) and Jupiter. The celebrant continues:

"Father Mars I pray and beseech you that you may be propitious and well disposed to me, our home, and household, for which cause I have ordered the offering of pig, sheep, and ox to be led 'round my field, my land, and my farm, that you might prevent, ward off, and avert diseases, visible and invisible; barrenness and waste; accident and bad water; that you would permit the crop and fruit of the earth, the vines and shrubs to grow great and prosper, that you would preserve the shepherds and their flocks in safety and give prosperity and health to me and our house and household. To this intent, to the intent of purifying my farm, my land, my ground, and of making an expiation, deign to accept the offering of these suckling victims."

Both the animals and spelt cakes are then sacrificed to Mars. (In the modern practice, store-bought pork, mutton, and beef are deemed to be acceptable substitutes for live animals, and may in fact be omitted altogether in favor of merely sacrificing the grain-cakes.) If the sacrifice has gone well (i.e., no unfavorable omens are seen), the area within the boundaries set by the procession of the sacrificial animals is deemed to have been purified. If ill omens are seen, the sacrifice must be repeated with the words

"Inasmuch as you were not pleased by the offering of that pig (or sheep, or ox, or cake), I make atonement with this pig (or sheep, or ox, or cake)."

The rites of purification are now complete, and a general celebration to Mars, Bacchus, and Ceres commences. No ill-omened words may be spoken, and no work is to be done by man or animal. A general feast is then held.

Back Again

I know that it's been many months since I was on. And I'm sorry about not being on as much as I wanted to. So being back blogging means being back practicing. I took a break from practice because I was getting confused by what I was reading. There was really no ritual that I could do that I would even understand. And not understanding something isn't a good thing.

I finally found a ritual that I could do and so I'm going to do a ritual tonight. I really need to get back to doing these rituals, or spend time, everyday. That's how you develop your spiritual life and how you connect to the divine. I hope that you all come back and give me positive feedback. Thanks.

Late Post: Festival of Ceres (February 2015)

Sorry about the last post but the second was the Festival of Ceres, the goddess of grain. Not really must to talk about but Ceres is where we get the name Cereal from. She was the Roman version of Demeter and had the same job within the Roman pantheon. We are still in the middle of the festival that started at the beginning of the month and won't end until the fourteenth of this month. I hope that everyone is having a good beginning of the month and sorry about the last post.

Kalends (February 2015)

So we start off the month by honoring the Kalends. The Kalends were honored at the beginning of the month. Now this month the Kalends aren't connected to a certain god or goddess. So I would just pray and ask them to watch over you and protect you during the month. February has plenty of holiday's and thus I will be doing plenty of blog posts. I hope that your February will be wonderful and may the gods watch over you.

Aral Pacis (January 2015)

So this is the last holiday of the month and I hope that your month has been good and the gods have blessed you. I know that they have been very kind to me and have given me so much help and protection in my life. I hope that February will be just as good as this month has been.

Aral Pacis

Sacrifice of the Ara Pacis (Altar of Peace) erected by Emperor Augustus.

Sorry about the small amount of information, but I'm using the Nova Roma site and they don't give you much as the way of information.

Castor Polluci ad Forum (January 2015)

Okay, time for another blog post. Thanks everyone for reading my blog and for any future comments that you might have for me. I really appreciate it.

Castor Polluci ad Forum

Aniversary (dies natalis) of the dedication of the temple of Castor and Pollux (the Dioscuri) at the Forum, which took place in 484 BCE. This temple was vowed after they have helped to secure Rome's victory over the army of the expelled King Tarquinius Superbus at Lake Regillus. The twins were seen watering their horses , still covered in sweat, by a man to whom they announced that the Romans had won the battle before even the Romans at the scene were convinced that they had won.

I hope that you all have a good one and may the gods bless you.

Concordiae (January 2015)

The subject of today's post is the Roman holiday of Concordiae. Below is some info about this holiday.

Aniversary (dies natalis) of the re-dedication of the Temple of Concordia, which stands below the Capitoline Hill, near the Tabularium. This temple was rebuilt by Tiberius in 7 AD out of the spoils of defeated Germany, and it was re-dedicated on 10 AD.
According to the tradition the original temple was dedicated in fulfillment of a vow made by Furius Camillus in 367 BCE, upon the end of the revolt that opposed plebeians and patricians. Nevertheless, it is not certain whether this temple was ever built. Probably the temple rebuilt by Tiberius was the one that the Senate ordered L. Opimius to build in 121 BCE after the death of Caius Gracchus. Whatever the truth, the dies natalis of the older temple was almost certainly July 22.

I hope that you all have a good one and have a wonderful remainder of your week.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Carmentalia (January 2015)

The first one was on the 11th. This one is the second one and it's today. The reason that the two days are separate is due to the nature of these two goddess, Porrima and Postverta. I hope that your first day was good and I hope that today is good. I'll see you around.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Idibus (January 2015)

This post focuses on the Idus of each month. This one is sacred to Jupiter and I will be pouring libation to him this month. Even though I've been a cultus for nearly two years the Idus still confuse me. Was their a Idus for each god for each month? Or is it the same god for each month? I'm looking forward to finding out if that's the case and which answer that I get.

I hope that you all have a good one and may Jupiter protect you and your family.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Carmentalia, Iuturnal (January 2015)

This is going to be, sorry, another short post. This one is about the Carmentalia and Iuturnal. Since today is the 11th day of the month of January, then we turn our attention to these two.

Carmentalia

The Carmentalia is a two day festival in honour of Carmentis, a Goddess of childbirth and Prophecy. Into her shrine, it is unlawful to bear leather, for it reminds death and the slaughter of animals (Ovidius, "Fasti", 1.628ss). The prayers offered to her invoke the mysterious Carmentes (Goddesses Porrima and Postverta) who preside the birth. Porrima presides the birth when the baby's head comes first. Postversa presides the birth when the feet of the baby come first (Aulus Gellus, "Attic Nights", 16.16.4). Some interpret those Goddesses as presiding destiny, one presiding over the past and the other over the future, being thus associated with Ianus to whom the month of Ianuarius is sacred (Ovidius, "Fasti", 1.65; Macrobius, Saturnalia, 1.7.20).

Today, the Flamen Carmentalis, assisted by the Pontifices, offers sacrifice at the shrine of Carmenta, which stays next to the Porta Carmentalis near the Capitol. The two days of the Carmentalia are separated by an impair number of days (the second day is on January 15), which is specially pleasing to the Gods.

Iuturnal

Festival of Iuturna, Goddess of fountains and prophetic waters. Arnobius says that she is the spouse of Fontus (Arnobius, "Adversus Nationes", 3.29). Today, those charged with the adduction of waters celebrate the aniversary of her temple, at the place where the Aqua Virgo (Virgin Water) aqueduct stands at the Campus Martius (the Aqua Virgo was built by Agrippa in 19 BC).

I hope that you all have a good one and may the gods watch over you.

HAIL THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Agonalia (January 2015)

So today's blog post is going to be about the Roman holiday of Agonalia. This is going to be a short post, as most of my future posts will be. I hope that whatever information that I do give will help you out.

Agonalia

In the Agonalia of Ianuarius, Ianus must be appeased.  The Rex Sacrorum sacrifices a ram to Ianus at the Regia.
The Agonalia is also celebrated on March 17th (Agonium Marciale), May 21st, December 1th. These are sacred to Mars (or Liber Pater?), Vediovis, and Sol Indiges, respectively.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

The History of Statuary in Rome

So today's blog is about the history of statuary in Rome and my belief on how much harder it would of been to destroy Roman religion if there hadn't been anything to smash and burn. One of the great things about learning the history of the people that your father's family came from is that you find out things that you normally would never find out. The history of statuary in Rome is one of them.

It seems that the Romans didn't believe, or condone, their gods to be made into human form. They considered their gods beyond that and therefore statuary was something that wasn't allowed. In-fact I'm sure that many didn't even approve of what we now find in Roman ruins as appropriate. It was only until the Imperial period that we find statuary in people's homes and in public buildings. I believe that if the Romans had stuck to not having statues then the early church wouldn't of had anything to destroy.

Of course one must also understand that this practice of not having their gods in form wouldn't last long with their exposure to not only Greek but the Etruscans. Statues were brought over from Greece and reused in Roman temples. So for someone that's a practicing Roman Revivalist you can have the option of not having statuary at all. It's not something that you must have and I believe that it goes in-line with early Roman thought about their gods in form.

Of course most do have statues, but, as I said, it's not needed to be a Roman Revivalist.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Nonis, Vicae Potae (January 2015)

So today's blog post covers two noted observances, though I only honor one. The first one is Nonis and the other is Vicae Potae. Nonis for this month is just a edict that the Rex Sacrorum did to fix feasts. I don't know if this is something that is done every year or something that was done in ancient times. Anyway, I'm not observing it but I'm noting it. The second one has a bit of history to it and that's the Vicae Potae. I'm giving some information about it below.

Vicae Potae

Anniversary (dies natalis) of the shrine of Vica Pota on the Velia, near the family house of the Valerii in early times. Vica Pota is an old Roman goddess, whose name is thought to be derived from vincere (to conquer) and potiri (to get possession of); she is therefore identified with Victoria, who later overshadowed the older deity.

A lot of deities that were adopted by the Romans ended up overshadowing the older deities, or spirits, that the Romans had observed. It's interesting that this happened and I wonder if any of the Romans observed the older deities that had been worshiped before the news ones came and took their place. Have a good day and may the gods smile down upon you.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Ritual Purity in Roman Religion

So today's post is about ritual purity in Roman religion. And we can talk about both ancient and modern forms of Roman religion and it will all be connected to each other. I asked this question on Facebook about this and someone told me, well a couple of people told me, that you can't be unclean, as a woman, and be able to do your rituals. Now I encountered this when I was in Kemeticism and it was the same thing. You can't do your rituals if your bleeding.

Now this might seem to be a putting down of women, telling them that they can't commune with the gods because their bleeding. But this isn't true. We all feel unclean when we're bleeding, if we're women, and no amount of modern chemicals will take away from the fact that you are unclean. So this is a case when ritual purity becomes a major part of your religion and spiritual practices. Purifying yourself after you bleed should be the most important thing.

It tells the gods that your now clean and can partake in your duties as a member of your faith. This 'separation' from rituals was done back in ancient times and it's done today. Now there will be those that will say that the gods don't mind if your bleeding, we don't live in the past. I agree that we don't, but I think that it's up to the woman to decide if she's going to do things the way that Roman women did or do things the way that new pagans do. I personally do it the way that Roman women did.

It gives the whole spiritual practice that 'feeling' that you can't get when you do things the way that you want to. It also allows me time to pray to the gods, without feeling as though it's the same old same old thing. Just spending time with the gods is a ritual, a ritual that doesn't require anything other than yourself. Today I'm buying some stuff to cleanse my body so that I can return to ritual practice. It's going to be very interesting.

I'll see you next time and thanks for reading.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!

Beginning of a New Year

Today marks the beginning of the New Year and I'm so excited that it's arrived. Since this is the month of January there are several deities that are honored during this time and I will be talking about them one by one.

The first one is Janus

Janus is honored on the first month of the year because he's the god with two faces. The left face represents the old year and the right face represents the new year. We pray and give him offerings in hopes of having a good year. This is known as Kalendis Januaris. He's also honored during the Anno Novo. Here some info about that one.

This is the New Year day. Ianus, who is bifrons (with two faces looking at opposing directions) looks back at the past year and looks ahead at the arriving new year. When Ovidius asks Ianus why the year does not start in Spring (as it did in remote times), Ianus answers that "midwinter is the beginning of the new Sun and the end of the old one. Phoebus and the year take their start from the same point" (Ovidius, Fasti, I.149 seq.). This day is a day of vows and gifts, when one should only say words of good augury.

After a procession through the city to the Capitol, each Consul inaugurates his magistracy sacrificing to Iuppiter, Iuno, Minerva and Salus pro salute rei publicae et senatus (for the health of the Republic and the Senate) white heifers nourished on the Faliscan plains which have never known the yoke, for these heifers had been promised one year before by the previous Consules during the regular public vows (Vota Publica). These regular vows are then renewed for this year (during the Empire the regular vows were made on January 3) with the promise of a new sacrifice to Iuppiter, Iuno, Minerva and Salus pro salute rei publicae et senatus on the next January 1. The people throws coins during the vows to bring good luck.

The Rex Sacrorum sacrifices to Ianus.

Vediove

Vediove is a anniversary of the dedication of the temple of Vediovis in the island of the Tiber. This is Jupiter in his cathotic form, though he is sometimes referred to as a younger version of Jupiter. 

 

Aesculapio

 Anniversary (dies natalis) of the dedication of the temple of Aesculapius in the island of the Tiber. Aesculapius is a God of health whose propitiation is important to start well the new year.

Even though I can't give an offering to them, I will be praying and asking them for their blessings for the coming year. I think that it's important that we find a way to honor the gods without breaking the rules about cleaniness. I hope that you all have a good one, a good year, a good month, and a good remainder of your week.

HAIL TO THE GODS OF ROME!!!!