Friday, April 22, 2011

Thargelia

The Thargelia honors the birthday of Apollon and Artemis. It is a purification festival, where one or more dolls are consecrated as a Pharmakhos (scape-goat) and passed around the circle during ritual. The participants place all of their negativity magically upon the doll(s), which are then burned.

This ritual is followed by a spiritual bath (where blessed waters are poured over the heads of individuals so that Apollon can grant healing. When purification has been achieved, offerings of cakes are given to Apollon and Artemis. A traditional offering, called thargeloi, would be bread with vegetables baked into it. As a modern adaptation, sometimes vegetable calzones are offered.

Thargelia 2011

Thargelia 2012

Thargelia 2013

Thargelia 2014

Thargelia 2015

Thargelia 2017

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