Today's Festival
Today we celebrated the Delphinia, the festival honoring Apollon Delphinios, who sends his dolphins to guide travelers safely home.
We began with a brief centering and visualization of traveling flanked by dolphins as we circumambulated the altar. Thusia was a baguette, and theoxenia included (dolphin-safe) tuna casserole, fresh veggies, popcorn, and jelly beans. Libations were made from fruit-flavored sparkling water.
Recipe
Dolphin-safe tuna casseroleIngredients:
2 cans albacore tuna
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
3/4 of a bag of egg noodles, cooked & drained
1 bag of frozen sweet corn
~ 1 cup whole milk
3 handfuls of crushed cheddar cheese & bacon potato chips
Directions:
Throw everything except the chips in a casserole dish.
Mix well.
Sprinkle the crushed potato chips across the top.
Bake at 400F for 20minutes.
Activity/Class
After theoxenia, in honor of the modern tradition that today also marks Apollon's return to Delphi, we learned about tasiomancy using Greek coffee grounds. While this is a more modern practice than ancient, it is currently a common form of divination in Greece.Notes from class:
·
Origins obscure (Turkish, Greek, Armenian)
·
Plain white cup & saucer
·
Papagolos coffee boiled in briki (βρηκη)
·
Querent drinks coffee down to sediment (never
read for yourself)
·
Put saucer on top of cup, flip cup over, give it
5 min
·
Can put relevant items (ring for relationship,
coin for money) on the bottom of the cup while you wait
·
Anything by the handle is the present for the
querent
·
Beyond that lies the future
·
If sediment doesn’t fall off, you’re holding on
to something too much
·
If it falls right off, your problems are leaving
quickly
·
Shapes formed by negative space around the
grounds are the divinatory message
Something learned from today's class: The coffee had been boiled prior to ritual,
and the class was done after theoxenia, so it had been sitting for quite a bit
longer than it should have. This
resulted in the sediment not wanting to exit the cup in a timely manner. The coffee should really be drunk by the
querent while hot, and then read right away.
Sources:
Hiereios Timotheos' experiences in Greece.Lyle, J. & Khan, A. (2000). The cup of destiny. London: Eddison Sadd Editions.
Coming up
| Festival | HTAZP Date(s) | Gregorian Date(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Olympieia | 16 Delphinion | April 24 |
| Adonia | 23 Delphinion | May 1 |
| Thargelia | 15 Thargelion | May 22 |
| Panaphobeia | 29 Thargelion | June 5 |
| Philokhoria | 21 Philokorion | June 26 |
| Anadikia & Hephestaia | 27-29 Philokhorion | July 1-3 |
Until next time, may the blessings of the Gods be with you.
