Some Stuff from Yesterday...

I’m late posting this today, because I was traveling longer than expected–there was an hour wait between buses at one point that became two hours due to the fact that one time for a bus was posted in one place, but the real time was posted in another that I wasn’t aware of until the bus had left moments before. I had not slept more than five minutes in the day before all of that happened, so I really needed a nap more than anything when I returned this afternoon, and I did at least have that for a few hours. Now, on to more work…

But, I wanted to do one of several posts talking about what happened yesterday. (And, I have other posts planned for this week, too, including an Olympics debrief.)

So, I traveled down to Seattle yesterday via various buses, and arrived on time. Soon after, I met up with Michael Sebastian Lvx, a co-religionists and Mystes of Antinous. We talked a lot (as ever!), and planned what we’d be doing for our observances of Natalis Dianae that night, as well as a further operation involving Pancrates/Pachrates of Heliopolis.

It’s been a rather long time since I’ve done formal ritual with other people, and realized how enjoyable it is and how much I’ve missed it; but, part of this was also enjoyable in a further way for me because myself and Lvx are of similar mind in certain respects, including being total “choristers,” as it were–almost all of the things we did involved music rather than simple speech…and, that made all the difference. Normally, I’d be sick of just reading a whole pile of prayers, texts, and the like, even if I’d written them and liked them a lot; but, this was almost all music–not always “the best,” and some of it had never been done before so that’s understandable. But, on the whole, it was good, and it worked. (And it was also sort of fun to be able to say “This is in Devotio Antinoo,” and have the other ritual participant be able to flip right to it and follow along!)

The rough outline of what we did was as follows:

1) Prayers to Wepwawet, Hekate, and Ianus (from Devotio Antinoo)
2) Invocation of the Obelisk of Antinous–chanted, with accompanying vowel chanting (from Devotio Antinoo)
3) Presentation of Food and Incense Offerings to the Various Gods (with sung processional acclamations)
4) Sung Prayer to Antinous (which got him there)
5) Sung Prayer to Polydeukion (which also got him there, and was the first time I’ve done it in front of another person…it was hard not to totally cry for it, and I think that was the best “performed” part of the ritual, at least for me…it’s also available in A Garland for Polydeukion)
6) Hymn to Diana for Natalis Dianae (from Devotio Antinoo and also in The Phillupic Hymns)
7) A New Song for Virbius (given below)
8) Honoring the Tetrad with both recited selections from All-Soul, All-Body, All-Love, All-Power on Antinous, Polydeukion, Herakles, the Dioskouroi, Vertumnus, and Diana–all of whom are parents or grandparents of the Tetrad!–and also the “Carol of the Tetrad”
9) The Prayer Against Persecution (from Devotio Antinoo and also in The Phillupic Hymns), which Michael chanted in a very beautiful and effective way
10) The Antinoan Petition (from Devotio Antinoo)

We then had a short interval while we prepared for our work with Pancrates/Pachrates of Heliopolis, on which more in a future post, perhaps.

Here’s what the main altar looked like soon after we began:

I had hoped to have been able to write some more new poetry for the occasion yesterday, but I didn’t have time to do so before I left, unfortunately. However, and very interestingly, I got the idea for a song for Virbius while on the bus, and while at the bus station before getting on the next bus, I started to write it (during which time a woman complimented me on my penmanship!), and then the bus came, and I got on it…and still continued to write, while the bus was moving, and didn’t get sick! That never happens…I can’t read, write, or do much of anything on a bus except listen to music, so this was very strange, and I think the Muses and/or Hermes were all with me when it happened.

I do have to admit, though, the tune isn’t mine (like almost all of the tunes I use!), and I must take a few moments to give credit to who it actually is from: the ever-fabulous S. J. Tucker, who is a Luperca in the Ekklesía Antínoou amongst many other things, including an awesome person and someone I’d say is a friend! I’ve been listening to a lot of her music over the last three months, and the song in particular upon which I based my new one is “Dryad’s Promise,” one of the most beautiful “lost love” songs I think I’ve ever heard–to a tree! It’s from the album Mischief, which she recorded with the equally-awesome group Tricky Pixie. Here it is:

So, of course I can’t top her amazing voice or the beautiful lyrics; but, I thought it appropriate as a basis for the story of Virbius, as I decided to tell it. Here’s my lyrics.

Virbius

Hippolytus came to the grove at Lake Nemi
brought there by Diana who loved him so dear–
Poseidon had slain him, but Asklepios revived him
to be a god year after year;
She sang “Know, Hippolytus, know…
Know that I’ve favored you all of this time;
though you spurned Aphrodite, your hunting is pleasing
so you’ll serve in my grove, king divine.”

He married Aricia, a nymph of the forest
and Rex Nemorensis they called him, it’s true;
soon his son named Virbius was set to succeed him
and Diana, she favored him, too–
She sang, “Grow, young Virbius, grow…
Grow to a priest and a hunter in time;
for your father was great, but I think you’ll be greater
and you’ll serve in my grove, king divine.”

Egeria’s spring ran by the shores of Lake Nemi
and the nymph who loved Numa was beautifully fair,
but young Virbius the hunter saw her glory while bathing
and drowned in the lake as he stared;
She sang, “No, young Virbius, no!
You’ve died for a glance at this beauty so fine
but I know in your heart you were true as my priest-king,
so you’ll still be with me, king divine.”

On the Ides every August, in Rome and Aricia,
on the shores of Lake Nemi, and Lanuvium, too
let us honor Virbius, first Rex Nemorensis
and give praise to great Diana, true:
We sing, “Though, sweet Virbius, though
you started in mortal Hippolytus’ line
your virtue and beauty brought Diana’s graces
and you reign with her now, king divine…
you reign in Nemi’s grove, king divine.”

*****

I shall have more in the near future, hopefully!