About

A Beginner's Guide to Hellenic Polytheism

The Paian Project

παιάν : an epithet of Apollon; a physician or healer; a song to the gods in thanks or victory; a solemn chant; a prayer or hymn

Paian | Παιαν is a devotional research project dedicated to offering Hellenic Polytheists a foundational primer of Ancient Greek Religion and worshiping the Ancient Greek Gods, which readers may build on or discard at their discretion.Though Paian | Παιαν is traditional in nature, it is not the purpose of this project to take a stance on the arbitrary divide between Reconstructionism vs. Revivalism, but rather to use the term "traditional" to distinguish those practices rooted in historical precedence from the adapted contemporary practices that result from a living religion, whether inspired by personal interactions with the gods or in an effort to fill in the gaps where historical sources fail. My aim is only to provide context. Your praxis is between you and your gods.

I offer this devotional work to the community in reciprocity as my thanks, so that those that come after may begin their way with fewer obstructions. Do ut des. I give so that you may give. May this project serve you well on your journey. 


                                                                                                                                                                       χαίρε
                                                                                                                                                                                        

 - Kay Alexandria

What is Hellenic Polytheism?

Temple relics in Delphi, by Dori

Hellenic Polytheism is the modern term for the reconstruction and/or revival of the Ancient Greek Religion and the worship of their many gods (which depending on the time period may include some Egyptian and Roman gods). The Ancient Greeks never had a name for their religion. Worshiping the gods and performing rites and rituals was just what everyone did (with regional differences). So natural it didn't need a name, it was simply custom. In the current wider community, Hellenic Polytheism is a neutral and widely accepted term for the religion we all practice together.

Those that identify as Hellenic Polytheists may also be called Hellenists, a term which means 'of or relating to Greek history, language, culture', but more commonly in English refers to a Classicist who specializes in Ancient Greece. This has led to some recent confusion amongst newcomers mistakenly referring to themselves as "Hellenes" or "Hellenics" which is an ethnonym for Greek peoples translated literally as "Greek". Thus Hellenic Polytheism translates literally to Greek-Many-God(s), meaning you can be a Hellenic Polytheist or a Hellenist, but not Hellenic or a Hellene (unless you are in fact Greek).

There is no "one true path" when it comes to this religion. Ancient Greece resisted a Panhellenic orthodoxy. Instead, there were a generic set of ritual and worship principles, an orthopraxy, supplemented by rich philosophical traditions and The Mysteries. There were many theologies to pick and choose from, and worshiping alongside someone with a conflicting theology didn't matter when everyone rinsed their hands in the same lustral waters (an Ancient Greek euphemism for community). There has always been and always should be a great deal of flexibility for belief in Hellenic Polytheism. 


Hellas (n.) = Greece

Hellene (n.) = a Greek person

Hellenist (n.) = a specialist in ancient Greece; a person from the Hellenistic Age

Hellenistic (adj.) = The Hellenistic Period (323 BCE - 31 BCE); of Hellenists

Hellenic (adj.) = of Greece, especially culture

Hellenism (n.) = Literally "Greek-ism"; Modern Greek culture; Greek culture in Hellenistic times; of Greek thought & customs; classical ideals of Greece

Hellenic Polytheism (n.) = The worship of the ancient Greek gods, literally "belief in many Greek Gods"


Does that mean you have to identify as a Hellenic Polytheist? Nope! Hellenic Polytheism is just a popular label a large percentage of the community have gathered under. We rinse our hands in the lustral waters symbolically and literally shared with our communities. If we worship the gods together, and follow the same basic ritual norms (you will find very quickly that there are very few hard and fast 'rules'), the different names we may use for our religion or how we identify in it are all the same at heart. 

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Authors & Contributors

Author

Kay Alexandria
(she/they)

I am a queer writer and artist currently based in Denver, CO who spends all their free time hyper-fixating on Ancient Greek Religion and Mythology, but especially the festivals! I started the pages that would eventually become this project in 2020 when I first began my journey into Hellenic Polytheism and found myself frustrated again and again by the lack of reliable, accessible, and well-cited sources of information for this religion. Most of the quality information out there is not free, some is quite expensive, while others are out-of-print and difficult to find. At the same time there is an overwhelming surplus of misinformation with misattributed, dubious, or no historical backing. And just to add to the confusion, anxiety inducing debates arguing for the removal of modern traditions that actually have historical backing, or arguing orthodoxically for historical traditions that actually don't; or bickering over what is or isn't reconstruction or revival when more often than not they are in fact one and the same.

What started as a self-study (going back to the primary sources, digging through mountains of books and journals, taking copious notes, and editing, revising, re-reading, re-writing) eventually became the foundations for The Paian Project. I wanted to fill a need I felt in the community for an easier and confident start into Hellenic Polytheism, so newcomers can spend less time digging through tomes (not everyone finds that as enjoyable as I do, apparently) and more time on what matters: the joy of having the gods in our lives.

Most of my research over the last couple years has been heavily focused on Athenian Festivals, and will continue to be, but as I consolidate more of my research Paian will balance out to include all the essential beginner information in general (see 'In the Works...' for what I have in mind). The Project will continue developing from there! While I work really hard to ensure everything I post is thoroughly researched and accurate, I am not an expert. My degrees are in English with a focus in Creative Writing & a minor in Art, not Ancient Greece. If you see an error I encourage you to communicate that. Ultimately I hope one day Paian will become a collaborative and peer-reviewed research project.

See Kay's Linktree >

Acknowledgments

Heartfelt thanks to all those who helped me on my spiritual journey to deepen my relationship with The Gods, and to my friends who not only humored my requests for obscure citations and resources but spent hours chasing them down. Thank you for all the time and energy spent on me over the years.

My eternal thanks to my community for absolutely everything. My life and praxis would be entirely different without you and it is a debt I'll never be able to repay. Thank you for the endless spirited discussions, support, and kindness you've shown me. You know who you are. And special thanks to these individuals who went out of their way to contribute their resources and insight:

Adrexia

Agido

Aliakai

Dori

Fel the Blithe

Kaz

Updates (v.3.3)

v.3.3 - Feb. 12, 2025

v.3.2 - Jan. 12, 2025

v.3.1 - Jan. 1, 2025

v.2.3 - Dec. 19, 2024

v.2.2 - Dec. 6, 2024

v.2.1 - Nov. 25, 2024

v.2 - Aug. 4, 2024

v.1 - July 12, 2023