Salutations to the Aetole,
The great stormy maiden of the forest,
Salutations to the Admetus,
The great goddess who shall never be tamed.
Born of the thunder's blaze,
And of the protectress of young,
You are eternally youthful,
Your skin is as fair as the wanning moon.
You are the forever virgin,
Slender and lithe,
With a height great,
You are the epitome of a maiden's independence.
Your hair is dark as as tree's bark,
Flowing like the northern wind,
Thy eyes are deep as the midnight sky,
Blazing with the wisdom of ages.
You are called the Agrotera,
The goddess who is of the hunt,
She who hurls javelins at the sinners,
Thus Akontistera is her other name.
You are the matchless protectress,
Like thy mother remarkable,
You heed to every mother in labour,
Protecting both her and the child.
You are the magnificent archer,
That is why you are named Aphetura,
Your bows are silver like the moonlight,
With which you protect us day and night.
You are the powerful Bousbatos,
Your strength akin to that of a raging bull,
Your feet is slender like the deer,
Thus the poets named you Elapheaea.
You are the healer of every soul,
You single touch can purge purge all sins,
Thou shall rage the entire nature,
If thy followers are harmed in any facet.
You are a woman's chastity,
And the severity of her ferocity,
Your gaze shall raze the world to the ground,
If a woman's honour has been looted.
You are the paragon of the Supreme,
One of its greatest, most robust form,
You are the epitome of womanly perfection,
She who is both demure and dangerous.
You are the mother of beasts,
The giver and coercer of every disease,
You made the world as we know it,
Giving it glory in form of life.
Thus here ends the hymn to the great lady,
She who is the magnanimous guardian of the cosmos,
May she guide us in every peril of life,
That is my wish to her.
***
(Old Version)
Like an arrow;
Sharp and determined,
Agile and lithe,
She moves across the forest naming it her own,
Artemis.
Like a deer;
Demure when required,
But would never tolerate impudence, Injustice against a maiden,
Artemis.
Like the moon;
Sacred and stunning,
Radiant and revered,
Eternally a virgin she is,
Artemis.
Like a sword;
Deadly and merciless,
If you invoke her rage,
Artemis.
***
Note; Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and Leto and the twin sister of Apollo. She was the patron and protector of young girls and was believed to bring disease upon women and relieve them of it. Artemis was worshipped as one of the primary goddesses of childbirth and midwifery along with Eileithyia. Much like Athena and Hestia, Artemis preferred to remain a maiden and is sworn never to marry.
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities, and her temple at Ephesus was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Artemis' symbols included a bow and arrow, a quiver and hunting knives and the deer and the cypress was sacred to her.
Personally, I think quite highly of her. Not only she teaches us, the young girls to stand up for ourselves, but also be self-reliant and to never tolerate injustice against us or anyone who we see. She is truly an inspiration.
***
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Forgotten ✓
Poetry"My heart resides in these pages." A collection of nonfiction poetry about the magnificent and benevolent gods of the past told through the eyes of a mortal girl millions of years younger than them. "What I hate, is the smallness of mind, the lack...
