Could Hekate be my matron goddess?

[AlexandraMoon]

Hi all! My name is Alexandra. Friends and family usually call me Lexi for short, and I like my Wiccan name to be Alexandra Moon. I have felt a connection to the moon my whole life, and have numerous drawings from my childhood to show for it. I even wear a silver crescent moon charm around my neck to protect me. I have recently had many dreams involving a crescent moon and last night dreamt I held a piece of paper over a flame and it burst into a huge fire. I know Hekate was often depicted carrying a torch? Could this be connected to Hekate in some way?

Also, I grew up with two beautiful Himalayan cats. They were part of the family, seriously - we thought of them as our equals! And as we should, they were amazing, beautiful creatures. Since their passing I dream of them constantly. (They have been gone for about six years now? Perhaps even longer.) I have asked my mom and dad if they ever dream of them, and they say they have not. We all miss them dearly, and my mother is especially sad that she doesn't get to see them in her dreams. I feel they are trying to speak to me. I know they are. I know Hekate has ties to necromancy and the underworld. What do you guys think? Thank you so much for your help! ♥ Blessed be! ♥

[Siona]

I think if Hekate is the first who jumps to mind for you, then that is probably a good place to start! However, there are a few more possibilities you might want to consider, as well.

For example, it's possible that the cats might be coming to act as spirit guides, without being related to a deity. In that case, it might be worth looking at the first part alone, fire and the crescent moon. Artemis is another goddess who is often shown carrying a torch, and she has closer ties to the crescent than Hekate. Artemis' sacred day would have been the sixth day of the lunar cycle, where Hekate's was the last day (the Greek lunar cycle ended on the day we now consider to be the new moon, where it is not visible at all).

But going back to viewing it all as related, Bast also comes to mind. She was a goddess who had close ties to cats, as well as the sun and fire in classical Egyptian religion. However, when the Greeks came they associated her with the moon, the crescent in particular. I'm sure there are other deities who have ties to these things, as well.

Like I said, if Hekate is who comes to mind there's probably a reason for that, and it's definitely worth exploring that possibility, but there are also some other options you might want to have a peek at, and see if additional things jump out at you.

[AlexandraMoon]

Yes I was hoping for some other suggestions before making a definite descision, so thank you so much! I'm going to continue my research. ♥ I do feel a definite connection with Hekate, but Bast and I share many characteristics as well. More so than Artemis. I've always been very against hunting, so I'm not sure about Artemis for this reason. She seemed to have quite a passion for the sport.

[Nightwatcher]

Merry Met!

Lady Artemis (she's my main deity) does love the hunt, but she also loves animals in general. She never hunted more then she needed and she always showed those she hunted utmost respect. So it's cool if you're against hunting but she was respectful about it.

I actually feel this sounds more like Bast then Lady Hecate (I work with her sometimes). She is not associated with the crescent moon but the dark/new moon. She DOES carry torches but since it was a piece of paper that caught fire and not a torch... :/ Maybe look into Bast and Lady Hecate, see what draws you in more. And meditate of course. ^-^

Blessed Be.

[Siona]

I've always been very against hunting, so I'm not sure about Artemis for this reason. She seemed to have quite a passion for the sport.

You don't have to be a literal hunter to be a devotee of Artemis, some see the hunt as symbolic, and as another example some modern devotees also find it more fitting to hunt with a camera rather than with a bow, depending on where they live. Artemis also has many other aspects to her, so some find themselves focusing more on those at times.

I actually feel this sounds more like Bast then Lady Hecate (I work with her sometimes). She is not associated with the crescent moon but the dark/new moon. She DOES carry torches but since it was a piece of paper that caught fire and not a torch... :/

Sorry to nit-pick, but again, Bast only became associated with the moon during the Greek occupation of Egypt, when they started to apply their own religious ideas (the moon as feminine) to the Egyptian religion - because they saw Bast as Artemis, despite their many differences. (This is one of the Greek-Egyptian associations that never made much sense to me.) Bast was strictly a solar goddess for thousands of years, so I think it's important not to overlook that - many of her functions dealt with that solar aspect. One of her titles is Lady of Flame, which relates back to the sun again, but I'm not aware of her ever being shown or described as carrying a torch or paper that's on fire?

[Nightwatcher]

I actually feel this sounds more like Bast then Lady Hecate (I work with her sometimes). She is not associated with the crescent moon but the dark/new moon. She DOES carry torches but since it was a piece of paper that caught fire and not a torch... :/

Sorry to nit-pick, but again, Bast only became associated with the moon during the Greek occupation of Egypt, when they started to apply their own religious ideas (the moon as feminine) to the Egyptian religion - because they saw Bast as Artemis, despite their many differences. (This is one of the Greek-Egyptian associations that never made much sense to me.) Bast was strictly a solar goddess for thousands of years, so I think it's important not to overlook that - many of her functions dealt with that solar aspect. One of her titles is Lady of Flame, which relates back to the sun again, but I'm not aware of her ever being shown or described as carrying a torch or paper that's on fire?[/quote]

Oh no, it's not nit-picking to me; I only have a vague knowledge of the Egyptian pantheon so I'm fine with being corrected! XD No worries. Yeah, now that you mention it, the Sun kind of feel more right when I read it...