The Wild Hunt (https://wildhunt.org/tag/polytheism/page/6)
“Have I been understood? Dionysus against the Crucified!” —Nietzsche, final line of Ecce Homo
On Jan. 3, 1889, Nietzsche witnessed a horse being whipped in the streets of Turin, Italy. He embraced the horse and collapsed to the ground, and was subsequently accosted by two policemen.
In the heart of Melbourne, Australia, Markos Gage works and lives creating public art inspired by mythology and his own personal spirituality. Gage identifies as an Hellenic polytheist, Dionysian artist, and Bacchic Orphic. He said, “I’m a devotee to Dionysos and claim some kind of initiation into his mysteries. I identify these mysteries as Dionysian Artist.” Gage grew up in Frankston, and was reared by his mother and grandmother.
The Polytheist community is vast. Cultures around the world celebrate versions of polytheistic worship and commune with the Gods as a way of life. Modern polytheistic practices are just as wide of a range as in any other time in history. There are many contextual differences, nuances, cultures, beliefs, stories, and practices that fall under a very large umbrella of Polytheism. The strength of any community is enhanced and yet challenged by the variety of diversity it faces.
Now that the season has turned and we are nearing the end of the 2015, we look back, one last time, to review the year. What happened? What didn’t happen? What events shaped our thoughts or guided our actions? In our collective worlds, both big and small, what were the major discussions?
Acknowledgement and thanks to the spirits of the land and the water, to the Nisqually and other Coast Salish-speaking peoples on whose sovereign land we were uninvited guests, to my ancestors, to my gods, and to the ancestors and deities and other allies of the humans at the conference. Thanks to my friend and traveling companion. Thanks to all those who showed me hospitality and friendship, and to the organizers of the conference: Niki Whiting, P. Sufenas Virius Lupus and Rhyd Wildermuth. The Many Gods West (MGW) gathering was held at the Governor Hotel in Olympia, Washington from July 31st to August 2nd. Over the course of the weekend, 180 humans attended, along with innumerable gods and spirits and crows and other kinds of beings.