"[30], While Greek anthropomorphic conventions of art generally represented Hecate's triple form as three separate bodies, the iconography of the triple Hecate eventually evolved into representations of the goddess with a single body, but three faces. [169] Researcher Samuel Fort noted additional parallels, to include the cult's focus on mystic and typically nocturnal rites, its female dominated membership, the sacrifice of other animals (to include horses and mules), a focus on the mystical properties of roads and portals, and an emphasis on death, healing, and resurrection. She is variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, night, light, magic, protection from witchcraft, the Moon, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, graves, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery. Some think this deity is Athirat/Ashratu under her Ugaritic name. "Hekate: Representations in Art", Hekate Her Sacred Fires, ed. On the night of the new moon, a meal would be set outside, in a small shrine to Hecate by the front door; as the street in front of the house and the doorway create a crossroads, known to be a place Hecate dwelled. Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 4. Hordern, J. H. Love Magic and Purification in Sophron, PSI 1214a, and Theocritus Pharmakeutria. The Classical Quarterly 52, no. The Uraeus is a symbol for the goddess Wadjet. While disclaiming all his paternal care for Cordelia, Lear says, "The mysteries of Hecate and the night, [137], In the syncretism during Late Antiquity of Hellenistic and late Babylonian ("Chaldean") elements, Hecate was identified with Ereshkigal, the underworld counterpart of Inanna in the Babylonian cosmography. "[162] This theory of the Roman origins of many European folk traditions related to Diana or Hecate was explicitly advanced at least as early as 1807[163] and is reflected[dubious discuss] in etymological claims by early modern lexicographers from the 17th to the 19th century, connecting hag, hexe "witch" to the name of Hecate. [16] The concept of Athirat, Anat and Ashtart as a trinity and the only prominent goddesses in the entire region (popularized by authors like Tikva Frymer-Kensky) is modern and ignores the large role of other female deities, for example Shapash, in known texts, as well as the fact El appears to be the deity most closely linked to Athirat in primary sources. [51], Hecate was said to favour offerings of garlic, which was closely associated with her cult. the biblical Asherah) in 1941. [6], Her epithets include "Mistress of All the Gods", "Lady of the Stars of Heaven", "Beloved of Ptah", "Great of magic, mistress of the stars", and "Eye of Ra, without her equal". In Early Modern English, the name was also pronounced disyllabically (as /hk.t/) and sometimes spelled Hecat. Sekhmet is not even a primordial deity like Chaos, Ananke, or a creator deity like God from the Bible, and yet she has dominion over almost all aspects of human existence. 79, n. 1. also Ammonius (p. 79, Valckenaer), Betz, Hans Dieter, ' The Greek Magical Papyri in Translation: Including the Demotic Spells, Foreign Influence on Ancient India, Krishna Chandra Sagar, Northern Book Centre, 1992, Household and Family Religion in Antiquity by John Bodel and Saul M. Olyan, page 221, published by John Wiley & Sons, 2009, d'Este & Rankine, Hekate Liminal Rites, Avalonia, 2009. Subsequent studies tried to find further evidence for equivalence of Qetesh and Asherah, despite dissimilar functions and symbols. These statues are rarely discovered in complete form. "Many have been caught by the obvious resemblance of the Gr. [7] In the post-Christian writings of the Chaldean Oracles (2nd3rd century CE) she was also regarded with (some) rulership over earth, sea, and sky, as well as a more universal role as Savior (Soteira), Mother of Angels and the Cosmic World Soul. In the Michigan magical papyrus (inv. The cult of Sekhmet declined in the New Kingdom. Good is she also when men contend at the games, for there too the goddess is with them and profits them: and he who by might and strength gets the victory wins the rich prize easily with joy, and brings glory to his parents.
11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses | Britannica Osiris, one of Egypt's most important deities, was god of the underworld. "[27] A 6th century fragment of pottery from Boetia depicts a goddess which may be Hecate in a maternal or fertility mode. Iusaas (Egyptian) Izanami-No-Kami (Shinto-Japanese) Mawu (West African) Nammu (Mesopotamian) Neith (Egyptian) Nu Kua (Chinese) Nut (Egyptian) White Buffalo Calf Woman (Native American) Yhi (Australian) Crones/Wise Women Baba Yaga (Slavic) Black Annis (Celtic) Cailleach (Celtic) Greine (Celtic) Hecate (Greek) Hel (Norse/Germanic) Oya (Santeria) Antoninus Liberalis used a myth to explain this association: Aelian told a different story of a woman transformed into a polecat: Athenaeus of Naucratis, drawing on the etymological speculation of Apollodorus of Athens, notes that the red mullet is sacred to Hecate, "on account of the resemblance of their names; for that the goddess is trimorphos, of a triple form". 647. However, there were distinct war gods (Ares), gods of strategy (Athena), and gods of death (Hades). From the abundant number of amulets and sculptures of Sekhmet discovered at various archaeological sites, it is evident that the goddess was popular and highly important. Her name is the Greek form of an ancient Egyptian word for "throne." Isis was initially an obscure goddess who lacked her own dedicated temples, but she grew in importance as the dynastic age progressed, until she became one of the most important deities of ancient Egypt. Memphis and Leontopolis were the major centers of the worship of Sekhmet, with Memphis being the principal seat.
Neith - Origins, Family, Meaning, Symbols & Powers Lesko Barbara (n.d) The Great Goddesses of Egypt, University of Oklahoma Press, [1] Marcia Stark & Gynne Stern (1993) The Dark Goddess: Dancing with the Shadow, The Crossing Press.
Isis: Mother Goddess of Ancient Egypt - Learn Religions Every culture has esoteric practices, knowledge, and deities to represent both. [13][89] There was an area sacred to Hecate in the precincts of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, where the priests, megabyzi, officiated. Looking at Egypt, Isis is the only deity that one can conceive of as being esoteric because she brought back her husband from the dead. Regarding the nature of her cult, it has been remarked, "she is more at home on the fringes than in the centre of Greek polytheism. In the Amarna period, Amenhoteps name was systematically erased from inscriptions of the thrones, then methodically re-inscribed at the end of the 18th dynasty.[2]. [95] In Thrace she played a role similar to that of lesser-Hermes, namely a ruler of liminal regions, particularly gates, and the wilderness. Fairbanks, Arthur. It remained common practice in English to pronounce her name in two syllables, even when spelled with final e, well into the 19th century. Adopted by the pharaohs as a symbol of their own unvanquishable heroism in battle, she breathes fire against the kings enemies. [125] Another theory is that Hecate was mainly a household god and humble household worship could have been more pervasive and yet not mentioned as much as temple worship. 2. https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-sekhmet, 3. Egypt is perhaps the only pantheon to have all of these responsibilities attributed to one deity. "Beyond Erekigal? At Athens, it is said there stood a statue of Hecate Triglathena, to whom the red mullet was offered in sacrifice. Later poets and historians looked to Diana's identity as a triple goddess to merge her with triads heavenly, earthly, and underworld (cthonic) goddesses. "[60] This suggests that Hecate's close association with dogs derived in part from the use of watchdogs, who, particularly at night, raised an alarm when intruders approached. Beginning during the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, a Semitic goddess named Qetesh ("holiness", sometimes reconstructed as Qudshu) appears prominently.
The Triple Goddess: Symbol & Meaning of the Maiden, Mother, Crone [164] Such derivations are today proposed only by a minority[165][166] The pharaohs wore the uraeus as a head ornament: either with the body of Wadjet . An Exciting Provocation: John F. Millers Apollo, Augustus, and the Poets. Vergilius (1959-) 58 (2012): Wycherley, R. (1970). It is difficult to distinguish Sekhmet from other feline goddesses, especially Bastet. "[34] The sacrifice of dogs to Hecate is attested for Thrace, Samothrace, Colophon, and Athens. In Sanskrit it's Medha, in Greek Metis, and in Egyptian she is Ma'at herself. There was also a shrine to Hecate in Aigina, where she was very popular: Of the gods, the Aiginetans worship most Hecate, in whose honour every year they celebrate mystic rites which, they say, Orpheus the Thrakian established among them. [28], Hecate was a popular divinity, and her cult was practiced with many local variations all over Greece and Western Anatolia. Hecate was known by a number of epithets: Hecate has been characterized as a pre-Olympian chthonic goddess. Chapter in the book The Goddess Hekate: Studies in Ancient Pagan and Christian Philosophy edited by Stephen Ronan. She became merely an aspect of Mut, Hathor, and Isis. So, then, albeit her mother's only child, she is honored amongst all the deathless gods. In Neopaganism, the triple goddess appears in the form of three aspects of womanhood, representing the maiden, the mother, and the crone. He gave her splendid gifts, to have a share of the earth and the unfruitful sea. Phoenix, 24(4), 283295. Her name literally means She who is powerful or One who has control. "[92] She was most commonly worshipped in nature, where she had many natural sanctuaries. From whom we do exist and cease to be, Dogs, with puppies often mentioned, were offered to Hecate at crossroads, which were sacred to the goddess. He goes on to quote a fragment of verse: In relation to Greek concepts of pollution, Parker observes. Circle for Hekate: volume 1. Qetesh is a goddess of Semetic origin. Hecate was one of several deities worshipped in ancient Athens as a protector of the oikos (household), alongside Zeus, Hestia, Hermes, and Apollo.
In Mythology, what is the Triple Goddess? - Cultural World "[22] In particular, there is some evidence that she might be derived from the local sun goddesses (see also Arinna) based on similar attributes.[23]. In Egyptian-inspired Greek esoteric writings connected with Hermes Trismegistus, and in the Greek Magical Papyri of Late Antiquity, Hecate is described as having three heads: one dog, one serpent, and one horse. While many researchers favour the idea that she has Anatolian origins, it has been argued that "Hecate must have been a Greek goddess. Her breath is said to be the hot desert winds. [81] Shrines to Hecate were often placed at doorways to homes, temples, and cities with the belief that it would protect from restless dead and other spirits. Additional possible triads are Artemis, Selene, and Hecate or Persephone, Demeter, and Hekate. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Sekhmet represented the Lower Nile region (north Egypt). [3], Due to lack of clear references to Qetesh as a distinct deity in Ugaritic and other Syro-Palestinian sources, she is considered an Egyptian deity influenced by religion and iconography of Canaan by many modern researchers, rather than merely a Canaanite deity adopted by the Egyptians (examples of which include Reshef and Anat). [citation needed], The spelling Hecat is due to Arthur Golding's 1567 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses,[24] and this spelling without the final E later appears in plays of the Elizabethan-Jacobean period. Different myths interchangeably call Sekhmet an angry manifestation of Hathor or Hathor and Bastet as docile manifestations of Sekhmet. Qetesh's sexuality led to a natural association with the Egyptian goddess Hathor. [7] However, it is clear that the special position given to Hecate by Zeus is upheld throughout her history by depictions found on coins of Hecate on the hand of Zeus[127] as highlighted in more recent research presented by d'Este and Rankine. Artemis would have, at that point, become more strongly associated with purity and maidenhood, on the one hand, while her originally darker attributes like her association with magic, the souls of the dead, and the night would have continued to be worshipped separately under her title Hecate. Her temple was known for its triple-towered temple or 'Magdala.' Much imagery in the gospels regarding the Marys corresponds with the worship of Mari-Anna-Ishtar. [28], Hecate's cult became established in Athens about 430 BCE. [82] Likewise, shrines to Hecate at three way crossroads were created where food offerings were left at the new Moon to protect those who did so from spirits and other evils. Memphis was the main region of her cult. [Hekate] teaches the, Although usually the daughter of Hyperion and Theia, as in, Magliocco, Sabina. Sekhmets father is Ra. An annual festival was celebrated in honor of Sekhmet. The Origin of Hotdogs, The History of Boracay Island in The Philippines. [103] The Deipnon is always followed the next day by the Noumenia,[104] when the first sliver of the sunlit Moon is visible, and then the Agathos Daimon the day after that. [27] Farnell states: "The evidence of the monuments as to the character and significance of Hecate is almost as full as that of to express her manifold and mystic nature. She was also the patron of physicians and healers. "page21 (image of Hecate attended by a dog)", "CULT OF HEKATE: Ancient Greek religion", "Travels in Greece and Turkey: Undertaken by Order of Louis XVI, and with the Authority of the Ottoman Court", Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities (1898), Claviger, "Baktria, Kings, Agathokles, ancient coins index with thumbnails", "No Fear Shakespeare: Macbeth: Act 2, Scene 1, Page 2", Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. The son of Cronos did her no wrong nor took anything away of all that was her portion among the former Titan gods: but she holds, as the division was at the first from the beginning, privilege both in earth, and in heaven, and in sea.[122]. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. 10. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Gods of Death The History of Guns, Greek Mythology: Stories, Characters, Gods, and Culture, Aztec Mythology: Important Stories and Characters, Greek Gods and Goddesses: Family Tree and Fun Facts, Roman Gods and Goddesses: The Names and Stories of 29 Ancient Roman Gods, The Dark Goddess: Dancing with the Shadow, https://arce.org/resource/statues-sekhmet-mistress-dread/#:~:text=A%20mother%20goddess%20in%20the,as%20a%20lion%2Dheaded%20woman, https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-sekhmet, Skadi: The Norse Goddess of Skiing, Hunting, and Pranks, Druids: The Ancient Celtic Class That Did It All, iPhone History: A Timeline of Every Model in Order, US History Timeline: The Dates of Americas Journey, Ancient Civilizations Timeline: The Complete List from Aboriginals to Incans, Why Are Hot Dogs Called Hot Dogs? [63], Thanks to her association with boundaries and the liminal spaces between worlds, Hecate is also recognized as a chthonic (underworld) goddess. [13] In association with her worship alongside Apollo at Miletus, worshipers used a unique form of offering: they would place stone cubes, often wreathes, known as (gylloi) as protective offerings at the door or gateway. The triple moon symbol, also called the triple goddess symbol, is represented by two crescent moons flanking a full moon. The goddess is carved with a Uraeus raising at her forehead, holding a papyrus scepter (the symbol of lower / north Egypt), and an ankh (giver of fertility and life through the annual flooding of the Nile). Great honor comes full easily to him whose prayers the goddess receives favorably, and she bestows wealth upon him; for the power surely is with her. For to this day, whenever any one of men on earth offers rich sacrifices and prays for favor according to custom, he calls upon Hecate. The concept of Athirat, Anat and Ashtart as a trinity and the only prominent goddesses in the entire region (popularized by authors like Tikva Frymer-Kensky) is modern and ignores the large role of other female deities, for example Shapash, in known texts, as well as the fact El appears to be the deity most closely linked to Athirat in primary Supporters of this etymology suggest that Hecate was originally considered an aspect of Artemis prior to the latter's adoption into the Olympian pantheon. [12], The arguments presenting Qetesh and Asherah as the same goddess rely on the erroneous notion that Asherah, Astarte and Anat were the only three prominent goddesses in the religion of ancient Levant, and formed a trinity. The Triple Goddess is arguably the most important deity in the vast majority of Pagan and Wiccan pantheons. The tale is preserved in the Suda. The Mistress and Lady of the tomb, gracious one, destroyer of rebellion, mighty one of enchantments, 7. 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Hecate | Myth & Symbols | Britannica There is no standard version of the Egyptian pantheon. [10] In what appears to be a 7th-century indication of the survival of cult practices of this general sort, Saint Eligius, in his Sermo warns the sick among his recently converted flock in Flanders against putting "devilish charms at springs or trees or crossroads",[62] and, according to Saint Ouen would urge them "No Christian should make or render any devotion to the deities of the trivium, where three roads meet". Many of her statues can be found in museums and archaeological sites, and her presence testifies to the historical and cultural importance of this goddess.
Goddess Crystals - Crystal Vaults [3], A passage from the Book of the Dead reads, superior to whom the gods cannot be . This narrative is often cited to explain her epithet as Protector of Maat. Sekhmets bloodlust is so out of hands that, according to narratives inscribed in the royal tombs at Thebes, Ra ordered his priests at Heliopolis to obtain red ochre from Elephantine and grind it with beer mash. So from the beginning she is a nurse of the young, and these are her honours. However, have you ever come across a single deity, who is not the creator or primordial deity, and yet presides over opposing qualities?
Kek and Heqet: Egyptian Frog Gods Who Inspired A Meme - Realm of History [2][3][4] Her earliest appearance in literature was in Hesiod's Theogony in the 8th century BCE[5] as a goddess of great honour with domains in sky, earth, and sea. 1. [26], Hecate was generally represented as three-formed or triple-bodied, though the earliest known images of the goddess are singular. I worship Hekate but have not worked with her personally. Heqet - The Egyptian Frog Goddess It should be noted that in spite of popular culture, the 'connection' of Kek to frogs is quite obscure, given the ambiguous nature of primordial gods in Egyptian mythology. Apollonius of Rhodes, in the Argonautica mentions that Medea was taught by Hecate, "I have mentioned to you before a certain young girl whom Hecate, daughter of Perses, has taught to work in drugs. The number three has a long history of mythical associations and triple deities are common throughout world mythology. The lion-headed goddess Sekhmet is the most represented deity in most Egyptian collections worldwide. He is told to sweeten the offering with a libation of honey, then to retreat from the site without looking back, even if he hears the sound of footsteps or barking dogs. [58], It was probably her role as guardian of entrances that led to Hecate's identification by the mid fifth century with Enodia, a Thessalian goddess. Hecate's Deipnon is, at its most basic, a meal served to Hecate and the restless dead once a lunar month[102] during the New Moon. [98] According to Hesychius of Miletus there was once a statue of Hecate at the site of the Hippodrome in Constantinople. When the center of power shifted from Memphis to Thebes during the New Kingdom, her attributes were absorbed into Mut. While spinning them, they call out unintelligible or beast-like sounds, laughing and flailing at the air. It is presumed that the latter were named after the tree because of its superiority for both bows and poison. [8][9], On a stele representing the deity, Qetesh is depicted as a frontal nude (an uncommon motif in Egyptian art, though not exclusively associated with her), wearing a Hathor wig and standing on a lion, between Min and the Canaanite warrior god Resheph. by Patricia Monaghan, which is a very comprehensive encyclopedia of Goddesses; Dictionary of Gods and Goddesses. According to a New Kingdom story, as 'Lady of the Sycamore', she heals the eye of Horus with milk from a gazelle. [123], Hesiod's inclusion and praise of Hecate in the Theogony has been troublesome for scholars, in that he seems to hold her in high regard, while the testimony of other writers, and surviving evidence, suggests that this may have been the exception. [29][28] Some hekataia, including a votive sculpture from Attica of the 3rd century BCE, include additional dancing figures identified as the Charites circling the triple Hecate and her central column. Martha Ann & Dorothy Myers Imel (1993) Goddesses in World Mythology: A Biographical Dictionary, Oxford University Press, 5. A round stone altar dedicated to the goddess was found in the Delphinion (a temple dedicated to Apollo) at Miletus. Sekhmet is believed to have 4000 names that described her many attributes. Mooney, Carol M., "Hekate: Her Role and Character in Greek Literature from before the Fifth Century B.C." He noted that the cult regularly practiced dog sacrifice and had secretly buried the body of one of its "queens" with seven dogs. Qetesh is also the name used in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith, and confirmed to be the humanoid species (also known as "soul-stealers") of Ruby White (the episode's villain) who feeds off excitement and heightened emotion and have stomachs that live outside their bodies. Marcia Stark & Gynne Stern (1993) The Dark Goddess: Dancing with the Shadow, The Crossing Press. "[135] This appears to refer to a variant of the device mentioned by Psellus.[136]. [76] Karl Kerenyi noted the similarity between the names, perhaps denoting a chthonic connection among the two and the goddess Persephone;[77] it is possible that this epithet gives evidence of a lunar aspect of Hecate. Though such gifts varied in value and substance, it is nevertheless clear that the kings, chiefs, and Ollam of the Tuatha D Danann all drew their power . Lionesses are rarely depicted in the pre-dynastic period of Egypt yet in the early pharaonic period the lioness goddesses are already well established and important. That dynasty follows expulsion of occupying foreigners from an intermediary period.
Serket - World History Encyclopedia The initiates supposed that these things save [them] from terrors and from storms. In ancient Egyptian mythology, Horus injured his left eye during his battles with the god Set, and thus his left eye represents the waxing and waning of the moon. All of that information has been concised so far in this article. Her earliest known representation is a small terracotta statue found in Athens.
The Faces of the Goddess. The Triple Goddess is arguably the most | by Here I disclaim all my paternal care" (The Arden Shakespeare, King Lear, Page no.165), In 1929, Lewis Brown, an expert on religious cults, connected the 1920s Blackburn Cult (also known as, "The Cult of the Great Eleven,") with Hecate worship rituals. 394 K), Antiphanes, in Athenaeus, 358 F; Aristophanes, Plutus, 596. The yew was associated with the alphabet and the scientific name for yew today, taxus, was probably derived from the Greek word for yew, toxos, which is hauntingly similar to toxon, their word for bow and toxicon, their word for poison. 4060 in. [19][20], Modern egyptologists, such as Christiane Zivie-Coche, do not consider Qetesh to be a hypostasis of Anat or Astarte, but a goddess developed in Egypt possibly without a clear forerunner among Canaanite or Syrian goddesses, though given a Semitic name and associated mostly with foreign deities.[21]. She was worshipped as a nature goddess, and a goddess of sacred ecstasy and sexual pleasure. We have very little information about Sekhmet from historical sources available, at least to the general public. She was worshipped widely in Lower Egypt as a great Mother Goddess in the Predynastic Period (c. 6000- c. 3150 BCE) and so is among the older deities of Egypt. [85], The earliest definitive record of Hecate's worship dates to the 6th century BCE, in the form of a small terracotta statue of a seated goddess, identified as Hecate in its inscription. Hecate was associated with borders, city walls, doorways, crossroads and, by extension, with realms outside or beyond the world of the living.
World Goddesses List | 350+ Names Sorted by Responsibility The possibility of not to be, of returning to nothingness, distinguishes Egyptian gods and goddesses from deities of all other pagan pantheons.[1]. Aradia in Sardinia: The Archaeology of a Folk Character. And when men arm themselves for the battle that destroys men, then the goddess is at hand to give victory and grant glory readily to whom she will. It is possible that the representation of a triple Hecate surrounding a central pillar was originally derived from poles set up at three-way crossroads with masks hung on them, facing in each road direction. [59], This function would appear to have some relationship with the iconographic association of Hecate with keys, and might also relate to her appearance with two torches, which when positioned on either side of a gate or door illuminated the immediate area and allowed visitors to be identified. Minor Shrines in Ancient Athens. This can be compared to Pausanias' report that in the Ionian city of Colophon in Asia Minor a sacrifice of a black female puppy was made to Hecate as "the wayside goddess", and Plutarch's observation that in Boeotia dogs were killed in purificatory rites. Because of this association, Hecate was one of the chief goddesses of the Eleusinian Mysteries, alongside Demeter and Persephone,[1] and there was a temple dedicated to her near the main sanctuary at Eleusis. Lucius Apuleius in The Golden Ass (2nd century) equates Juno, Bellona, Hecate and Isis: Some call me Juno, others Bellona of the Battles, and still others Hecate. Moreover is Qadesh, also called Qwynn, a character in Holly Roberds' fantasy novel "Bitten by Death", published in 2021. The crone symbolizes elderly women and the wisdom which comes with aging. She received honor also in starry heaven, and is honored exceedingly by the deathless gods. [130] All these elements betoken the rites owed to a chthonic deity. The priest (waeb Sekhmet) would recite prayers to the goddess along with the practicalities performed by the physician (sunu). 7), dated to the late 3rd or early 4th century CE, Hecate Erschigal is invoked against fear of punishment in the afterlife. Ankh This ancient Egyptian hieroglyph means life or living. [13], R. S. P. Beekes rejected a Greek etymology and suggested a Pre-Greek origin. Here, Hecate is a mortal priestess often associated with Iphigenia. Archaeologists have discovered approximately 700 larger-than-life granite statues of Sekhmet dated to the reign of Amenhotep III (18th Dynasty). ", deEste, Sorita. [14] This has been suggested in comparison with the attributes of the goddess Artemis, strongly associated with Apollo and frequently equated with Hecate in the classical world.