Paian | Παιαν
A Beginner's Guide to Hellenic Polytheism
What's New?!
Feb. 12, 2024
The Antesteria is the oldest festival of Dionysos and a festival celebrating life and death with the gift of wine. Mainly a new-wine and flower festival, it was also a rite of passage for the young and the dead were believed to roam.
Learn about the ancient Athenian festival for Dionysos and his wine heroes! How it was celebrated, why, and all the myths associated with it!
Jan. 1, 2024
12 of the most common questions beginners like to ask. Allow me to ease the newbie-anxiety.
The About Page
Dec. 6, 2024
Learn everything about The Paian Project, what Hellenic Polytheism even is, a bit about me and what I have in mind for Paian!
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Nov. 25, 2024
A quick intro to all the major gods. Over time this section will be expanded.
Top Posts
Posted Aug. 4, 2024
Check out the Athenian Festivals for this year! A working reference for a traditional year of worship with all essential information on how to celebrate the festivals and which dates they fall on this year for the US, including Sacred Days & annual sacrifices!
Every month there are recurring days that are sacred to different gods - the most important being the Noumenia, the first day of the new lunar month.
The Annual Attic Festivals & Sacrificial Days for the gods with summaries on who they're for, what they're about, & how to celebrate.
How the lunar calendar counts days & overlaps with our modern calendar can be really confusing. Here is a breakdown for how it all works.
A list of books on Ancient Greek Religion, myths, poetry, and the like to get you started.
In the Works...
The Paian Project is working hard to bring all the essential information a beginner Hellenic Polytheist might need to start a fulfilling relationship with the gods. There are already years of content planned, but here are some things you can look forward to that are currently in the works!
An Entire Rites & Rituals Section
A helpful guide for worshipping the gods and all the ritual basics: altars, offerings, prayers, khernips, miasma, death rites and more. Just don't expect it all at once!
Eventually this section will include an entire library of freely available sample rituals to celebrate the festivals and other rites.
More Gods!
The summaries were just the beginning (and there are more of those to come too!) I'll gradually release more detailed pages on individual gods, starting with the Athenian 12 and going from there. The pages will include all their sacred days and festivals, how to celebrate, their main myths, and more. But be warned: this goal will take a while!
Athenian Festivals
For a handful of our festivals we are fortunate enough to have more information than a simple summary can hold. Read about the history of the festivals, the myths behind them, and how to celebrate!
The goal is to focus on these upcoming festivals first with more to follow in the new lunar year:
Gamelia | Jan 27, 2025 ✖️
Anthesteria | Feb 10-12, 2025 ✔️
Thargelia | May 4-5, 2025
Spartan Festivals
Sadly the Spartan religious calendar and their rites are mostly lost to history, but we are fortunate to have some information about some of their most important festivals: the Gymnopaedia, the Karneia, and the Hyakinthia.
Want to help me get these pushed out faster?
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Photo Credits
Footer Icons by Phoenix Dungeon & Talha Dogar