PGM IV. 2714 – 2784 Invocation of Hekate

“Come, giant Hekate, Dionne’s guard, / O Persia, Baubo Phronue, dart-shooter, unconquered Lydian, the one untamed, sired nobly, torch-bearing, guide, who bends down proud necks, Kore, hear, you who’ve parted / gates of steel unbreakable. o Artemis, who, too, were once protectress, mighty one, mistress, who burst forth from the earth, dog-leader, all-tamer, crossroad goddess, triple-headed, bringer of light, august / virgin, I call you fawn-slayer, crafty, o infernal one, and many formed. Come, Hekate, goddess of three ways, who with your fire-breathing phantoms have been allotted dreaded roads and harsh/ enchantments. Hekate I call you with those who have died without a wife and children, hissing wildly, yearning in their hearts “(but others say, “with forms of winds”). /

“Go stand above her (NN) head and take away from her sweet sleep. And never let eyelid come glued to eyelid, but let her be sore distressed with wakeful cares for me. / And if she lies with someone else in her embrace, let her thrust him away and take me in her heart. 

Let her abandon him at once and stand before my door subdued in soul at longing fro my bed of love./ But you, o Hekate, of many names, o Virgin, Kore, Goddess, come, I ask, O guard and shelter of the threshing floor, Persephone, O triple-headed goddess, who walk on fire, cow-eyed BOUORPHORBÊ PANPHORBA PHORBARA AKTIÔPHI ERESCHIGAL / NEBOUTOSOUALÊTH beside the doors, PYPYLÊDEDEZÔ and gate-breaker; Come Hekate of fiery counsel, I call you to my sacred chants. MASKELLI MASKELLÔ PHNOUKENTABAÔTH OREOBAZAGRA who burst forth from the earth, / earth mare, OREOPÊGANYX MORMORON TOKOUMBAI”, 

“In frenzy may she (NN) come fast to my doors, forgetting children, and her life with parents, and loathing all the race of men and women except me (NN), but may she hold me alone and come subdued in heart by love’s great force. THENÔB TITHELÊB ÊNÔR TENTHÊNÔR. / Many-named One, KYZALEOUSA PAZAOUS; wherefore, KOLLIDÊCHMA and SAB set her soul ablaze with unresting fire. 

Both ÔRIÔN and MICHAÊL who sits on high: you hold the seven waters / and the earth, keeping in check the one they call the great serpent, AKROKODÊRE MOUISRÔ CHARCHAR ADÔNAI ZEUS DÊ DAMNAMENEUS KYNOBIOU EZAGRA”. 

“IÔ, all-powerful goddess/ and IÔ all-guarding one; IÔ all-sustaining One, ZÊLACHNA: and SAAD SABIÔTHE NOUMILLION NATHOMEINA, always KEINÊTH, stalwart THÊSEUS ONYX, prudent DAMNAMENEUS, / avenging goddess, strong goddess, rite of ghosts, Persia SEBARA AKRA. Haste quickly. Let her now stand at my doors”.

¤ The Initial Invocation ¤

´δεῦρ᾽, Έκάτη, γιγάεσσα, Διώνης ή μεδέουσα, Περσια, Βαυβώ, Φρούνη, ἰοχέαιρα, ἀδμήτη, Λύδη, ἀδαμάστωρ, εὐπατόπρεια, δᾳδοῦχε, ήγεμόωη, κατα<καμ>ψυψαύχενε, Κούρη · κλῦθι, διαζεύξασα, πύλας ἀλύτου ἀδάμαντος, Ἅρτεμι, ῆ καἰ πρόσθεν ἐπίσκοπος ἦσ<θ>α, μεγίστη, πότνια, ῤηξίχθων, σκυλακάγεια, πανδαμάτειρα, εἰνοδία, τρικάρανε, φαεσφόρε, παρθένε σεμνή· σ ἐ καλῶ, ἐλλοφόνα, <δο>λόεσσα, Ἀυδναία, πολύμορφε·
δεῦρ᾽, Έκάτη, τριοδῖτι, πυρίπνοα φάσματ᾽ ἒχουσα χἀτ ἒλαχες δεινάσ μέν ὀδούς, χαλεπἀς δ᾽ ἐπιπομπάς· τἀν Έκάταν σε καλῶ σὐν ἀποφθιμένοισιν ἀώροις, κεἲ τινες ἦρὠων ἒθανον ἀγὐναιοἰ τε ἂπαιδες, ἂγρια συριζοντες, ἐπἰ φρεσι θυμὀν ἒδοντες ( οί δἐ · ἀνέμων εἲδωλον ἒχοντες)·

– PGM IV. 2714-2734

Come! Hekate, giantess, Dione’s guard, Persia, Baubo, Phroune (frog), arrow-shooter, unconquered, Lydian, indomitable, noble-born, torch-bearer, queen, bender of proud necks, Kore; hear me, you who parts the adamantine gates, Artemis you are also guardian, Great one, Mistress, bursting forth from the earth, leader of dogs, all powerful, Einodia (goddess of the crossroads), triple-headed, light-bringer, sacred virgin. I invoke you, fawn-slayer, astute-one, Aidonia (Underworld Goddess), you of many forms.

Come, Hekate, of the three ways, you who with your fire-breathing phantoms oversee the dreaded paths and harsh enchantments.

Come Hekate, I invoke you with those who have untimely perished and those heroes who have died wifeless and childless, whose souls hiss wildly with yearning hearts.

¤ The Second Invocation ¤

ἀλλἀ σύ, ὦ Έκἀτη, πολυώνυμε, παρθένε, Κούρα, <ἐ>λθέ, θεά, <κ>έλομαι, ἂλωος φυλακἀ καἰ ἰωγη, Περσεφόνα, τρικάρανε, πυρίφοιτε, βοῶπι, βουορφορβη, πανφόρβα, φορβαρα · Ἀκτιωφι, Ἐρεσχιγάλ Νεβουτοσουαληθ · παρά θυραις πυπυληδεδεζω ῤηξιπύλη τε. δεῦρ᾽ Έκάτη, πυριβουλε, καλῶ σε ἐπ᾽ ἐμαἶς ὲπαοιδαῖς · μασκελλι μασκελλω · φνου κενταβαωθ · ὀρεοβαζάγρα ῤηξιχθων ἲπποχθων · ὀρεοπηγανύξ · μορμορον τοκουμβαι (κοινόν) · μαινομένη ἠ δ(εῖνα)

– PGM IV. 2746 – 2755

But you, Oh Hekate, of many names, virgin, maiden; come Goddess, I invoke you, guardian of favor and shelter. Persephone, triple-faced, fire-walker, cow-eyed, BOUORPhORBÊ, PANPhORBA, PhORBARA • AKTIÓPhI ERESChIGAL NEBOUTOSOUALÊTh • One beside the gates PUPULÊDEDEZÓ and gate-breaker.

Come, Hekate, of flaming council, I invoke you with these incantations.

MASKELLI MASKELLÔ PhNOUNKENTABAÔTh OREOBAZAGRA RÊXIChThÔN HIPPOChThÔN PYRPÊGANYX MORMORON TOKOUMBAI

The second invocation introduces the first voces magicae of the spell. Missing from the Betz translation are the half-stop(•) punctuation marks that divide the first string into two sets; upon further examination these sets are thematically grouped.

Phorbas and its cognates(i.e. Phorba, Phorbe, Phorbantia, etc.) appear frequently in the PGM and in many spells directly related to Hekate. The root meaning of this word is tied to the bounty of the earth and particularly with pastures, fodder and grazing animals. Sophocles used the term φορβας γαια (“bountiful earth”) while describing the healing, fecund and nurturing properties of the land; and it has also been used as a metaphor for prostitution. Given the bovine nature of the word βου, BOUORPhORBÊ may mean something along the lines of “bountiful-cow” or “nurturing-cow”, while PANPhORBA could translate as “all-nurturer.” The dual meaning of phorbas as ‘nurturing’ and ‘prostitute’ along with the epithets of “virgin” and “maiden” speak to the paradoxical themes of maiden-mother and virgin-whore. These dichotomies are very interesting and resonate with the the near-eastern goddesses of Ishtar, Inanna and Astarte; while – of course – conjuring images of the Thelemic Babalon.

The second set of voces magicae is a triad of names Aktiophis-Ereschigal-Neboutosoualêth that appear frequently in magical literature. Aktiophis is one of the “many names” of Hekate and according to Hopfner it is also an epithet of Selene. The roots of the name are ακτις (“ray” or “beam”) and οφις (“serpent”). Ereschigal is the Babylonian underworld deity who is frequently identified with Hekate as in PGM LXX. 4-25 where Hekate-Ereschigal is invoked with the Ephesia grammata of the Idaen Dactyls – to which we will return shortly. Lastly, the name Neboutosoualêth has unclear origins but is likely related to the Babylonian god of wisdom and writing Nebo, whom the Greeks equated with Hermes. Together, Ereschigal-Nebo may have represented a pseudo-Babylonian interpretation of the frequent Hekate-Hermes pairing in the magical literature.

The reference to “the gates” also deserves mention. Here Hekate “stands besides” them and is also the “gate-breaker.” In the first invocation, Hekate is identified as she “who parts the adamantine gates.” These are none other than the πυλαι Αιδαο, the adamantine gates to the underworld described by Homer and others separating the world of the living from the realm of the dead. Hekate is the gatekeeper of this threshold – not only having the power to open this gate but also to break its boundaries and therefore bring forth the spirits of dead into the world of the living. She arrises from the liminal depths together with “those who have untimely perished and those heroes who have died wifeless and childless, whose souls hiss wildly with yearning hearts.” These are her “fire-breathing phantoms”, her legions of underworld spirits, ancestral heroes, and the restless dead…spirits that are intimately linked to the necromantic, goetic and magical practices of antiquity.

This invocation segment fittingly ends with the Maskelli Masellô formula. Betz attempted to translate portions of the formula so that ῤηξιχθων is rendered as “who burst forth from the earth” and ἲπποχθων as “earth mare.” Both epithets speak to the underlying theme of Hekate as an ancestral “giantess” and leader of chthonic spirits. As we discussed previously, the Maskelli Maskello formula is intimately linked to Hekate and to the goetic practices of the Idaean Dactyls.

¤ The Third Invocation ¤

θενωβ · τιθεληβ · ηνωρ · τενθηνωρ · τολυώνυμε, κυζαλεουσα παζαους. διὀ καλλιδηχμα και ψαβ᾽ φλέξον ἀκοιμήτῳ πυρί τἠν ψυχἠν τῆς δεῖνα. και Ὠρίων καἰ ό ἐπάνω καθήμενος Μιχαήλ · έπτἀ ύδάτων κρατεῖς καἰ γῆς, κατέχων, ὂν καλέουσι δράκοντα μέγαν ακροκοδηρε μουϊσρω Χαρχαρ Ἀδωναί, Ζεῦ δη Δαμναμενεῦ κυνοβι ου εζαγρα · κοινόν. Ἰὠ πασικράτεια καἰ Ἰὠ πασιμεδέουσα · Ἰὠ παντρεφέουσα Ζηλαχνα · και σααδ · σαβιωθη · νουμιλλον · ναθομεινα · ἀεἰ κεινηθ · ἂλκιμος Θησεὐς ονυξ, περίφρον Δαμναμενεύς, ἀμυναμένη, αλκυια θεά, νέκυια, Περσία σεβαρα, ακρα. σπεῦδε τάχιστα, ἢδη ἐπ᾽ ἐμαῖσι θύραισι παρέστω᾽ (Κοινον).

– PGM IV.2765 – 2784

THENÔB TITHELÊB ÊNÔR TENTHÊNÔR. Many-named One, KYZALEOUSA PAZAOUS. Wherefore, KALLIDÊCHMA and PSAB of unresting burning fire and Orion and Michael seated above. You who hold power over the seven waters and the earth, summoner of the great serpent

AKRODÊRE MOUISRÔ CHARCHAR ADÔNAI, ZEU DÊ DAMNAMENEU, KYNOBI ON EZAGRA .

IÔ all-dominator and IÔ all-protector.IÔ one all-nurturer. ZÊLACHNA and SAAD SABIÔTHE NOUMILLON NATHOMEINA always KEINÊTH, brave THÊSEUS ONYX, prudent DAMNAMENEUS, avenging web-spinning goddess, Mistress of the dead (Nekuia), Persia, SEBARA AKRA.

This third invocation is by far the most complex. It contains various unique and unprecedented voces magicae and seemingly out of nowhere we find elements of the Abrahamic tradition with the archangel Michael and later the Hebrew god-name Adonai. Needless to say, such inclusions in magical texts speak to the early polytheistic roots of the Semitic religion whose divine figures could exist and be employed side by side with Greek, Egyptian and Babylonian gods.

Orion is also called forth by name, but here we find a clear connection to Artemis who is conflated with Hekate throughout this spell and several others in the PGM. A common motif in Greek mythology was Orion, the ancestral giant and great hunter, becoming the lover of the goddess of the hunt who was responsible for both his death and his immortalization amongst the stars. The hero-cult of Orion was widespread throughout the Grecian mainland of Boeotia and the inclusion of his name in a Hekate invocation speaks to her role as that liminal gatekeeper and intermediary between the living and the ancestral mighty dead.

There is one entity that is called forth here and appears to be the primary focus of this segment of the spell. This is the “great serpent.” No other animal on earth is as universally endowed with the powerful and evocative symbolism of the serpent. Since our remote prehistoric past, snakes were associated with the mysteries of life and death; and were naturally adopted by many cultures as totems for the magical, oracular and healing arts. From the practices of household shrines to the local and regional temples of the ancient mediterranean, serpents were understood as the emissaries to the underworld and the preferred form taken by the ancestors and the oracular spirits of dead heroes. Atop this rich symbolism, the serpent of this spell is the given the epithet of μεγαν indicating not just a creature of large size, but more than likely a specific entity of great mythological importance.

The Betz edition translates the line έπτἀ ύδάτων κρατεῖς καἰ γῆς, κατέχων, ὂν καλέουσι δράκοντα μέγαν as “you hold the seven waters and the earth, keeping in check the one they call the great serpent.” He translates καλέουσι twice and uses it to modify the beginning and end of the line as both “hold” and “keeping in check.” Additionally, καλέουσι is frequently used in the magical papyri to denote a summoning or invocation. A more literal translation is thus “the seven waters and the earth, master over, summoner of the great serpent”…similar meaning, but read as such it identifies Hekate as the one with the power to invoke – not just restrain – this “great serpent.”

The voces magicae that follow invoke and shed light on the identity of this serpent. AKRODÊRE is a combined form of the formula AKROUROBORE KODÊRE that appear throughout the magical papyri. The meaning of AKROUROBORE is “eater of the tip of your tail”, a reference to the Ouroboros and giving us an immediate symbolic form for this “great serpent.”  MOUISRÔ is also a partial formula. The full formula is SERPOT MOUISRÔ as it appears in PDM xiv and in the Leyden Papyrus. Griffith and Thompson suggest that this is a phonetic spelling of Egyptian Srp.t m3y sr (“Lotus, Lion, Ram”) – a reference to the daily path of the sun from rise to noon to set as Re-Khepri-Atum. This daily motion of the sun speaks to the same principle of cyclic time and the perpetual rhythms of life and death embodied by the Ouroboros serpent. The word CHARCHAR resonates with numerous sounds from the 100-letter name of the Typhon and other voces magicaeused in spells calling upon him. As we have discussed in prior posts, the Typhon of the PGM is more aligned to the primordial serpents of the Orphic-Pythagorean traditions than to the demonized monster of olympic mythology. This Graeco-Egyptian Typhon is described as a demiurge as well as a martial and storm god and shares much in common with the Semitic ADÔNAI and the Greek ZEUS. DAMNAMENEUS is the name of one of the Dactyls and forms part of the inscribed Ephesia Grammata on the cult image of Artemis in Ephesus.  KYNOBIOUEZAGRA, is obscure. In Preisendanz it appears as three words KYNOBI OU EZAGRA. The only other instances of words with similar sounds in the PGM is Oreobazagra and its variants (i.e. Aôrio zagra, etc.) of the Maskelli Maskello formula.

The epithets “all-dominator”, “all-protector”, and “all-nurturer” resonate with the Phorba and cognates of the second invocation examined earlier. More importantly; however, the sequence Ἰὠ πασικράτεια καἰ Ἰὠ πασιμεδέουσα · Ἰὠ παντρεφέουσα appears almost verbatim on the bronze Pergamon triangular tablet that depicts Hekate with the epithets of Διὠνη´, ᾽Φοιβίη´, and ´Νυχίη´. This tablet was undoubtedly part of a magician’s toolkit and it is believed to have functioned as a manifestation base either for invoking spirits or animating objects.

It is very likely that this portion of the spell is rather incomplete and has undergone changes and additions over time. The truncated formulae suggest this as do the inclusions of other divine names with no precedent (i.e. THENÔB TITHELÊB ÊNÔR TENTHÊNÔR). Indeed, Betz notes that the lines 2764-2784 “retain some traces of hexameters, but only the last line comes close to being a complete line.” In this last segment Hekate is never invoked directly, there are only indirect references to her via the epithets Nekuiaand Persia. I suppose that one could even claim that this final passage is predominately an invocation to the “great serpent” – not Hekate – and is thus out of place in the greater context of this spell.

However, throughout the PGM Hekate is identified as a serpent (drakaina) and encircled by serpents (zônodrakontis, opheoôplokamos, etc.). She is paradoxically called forth as goddess of life (pantrephô, paggennêteira, etc.) and of death (i.e. nekuia, etc).[26] Her connection to the Ouroboros serpent is quite apparent both symbolically and literally – one of her epithets is in fact aôroboros (‘devourer of the prematurely dead’) linking the two linguistically as well. Intimately linked to this “great serpent” and many other aspects of serpent symbolism, Hekate asserts her role as the quintessential goddess of liminality and the mediator to that primordial and ancestral power that governs the rhythms of nature and the cycles of life and death.

There is also a common magical technique to consider here. Invocations such as the Stele of Jeu (PGM V. 96-172) and the Invocation of Typhon from PGM IV. 154-285 reach a magical crescendo when the ritualist self-identifies with the target of the invocation and speaks as that deity. This ritual apotheosis heralds the moment at which the practitioner wields the necessary authority to manifest their desire – whether to call forth a spirit to appear or to successfully cast a spell. I believe that the invocation of this serpent power via the AKRODÊRE string of voces magicae, with all its deep symbolism of earth-energy, time, life and death marks this moment. The practitioner identifies Hekate as the one with “power over the seven waters and the earth, summoner of the great serpent” and then proceeds to self-identify with the goddess by themselves becoming the “summoner of the great serpent” and reciting the AKRODÊRE invocation.