The Poseidonia – Ancient Greek Festival of Poseidon – Winter Solstice

 

 

In ancient Greece calendars deviated from city state to city state but more often than not the month named in honour of the ancient Greek god of the sea; Poseidon, fell at the time of the winter solstice on the twenty first of December; a time of numerous wild celebrations and drunken debauchery.

The winter solstice was also a time in ancient Greece when the kallikantzaroi; mischievous Greek Christmas goblins who lived underground, emerged to wreak havoc on homes and villages.

According to the Attic calendar (sometimes called the Greek calendar, only one of many ancient Greek calendars), the first month of the New Year in ancient Greece was July (Hekatombaiōn).

The twelve months were all named after gods, goddesses and festivals, the sixth month, which corresponds with today’s December/January, was dedicated to the Greek god, Poseidon, one of the Twelve Olympians, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses, his Roman equivalent is Neptune.

 

 

Poseidon became lord of the sea following the defeat of his father, Cronus, when the world was divided amongst his three sons; Zeus was given the sky, Hades the Underworld and Poseidon the sea, with the Earth and Mount Olympus belonging to all three.

 

The Attic calendar or Athenian calendar

 

Summer   (Θέρος)

 

1.Hekatombaion (Ἑκατομβαιών) July/August

2. Metageitnion (Μεταγειτνιών) August/September

3. Boedromion (Βοηδρομιών) September/October

Autumn   (Φθινόπωρον)

4. Pyanepsion (Πυανεψιών) October/November

5. Maimakterion (Μαιμακτηριών) November/December

6. Poseidon (Ποσειδεών) December/January

Winter   (Χεῖμα)

7.Gamelion (Γαμηλιών) January/February

8. Anthesterion (Ἀνθεστηριών) February/March

9. Elaphebolion (Ἑλαφηβολιών) March/April

Spring   (Ἔαρ)

10. Mounichion (Μουνιχιών) April/May

11. Thargelion (Θαργηλιών) May/June

12. Skirophorion (Σκιροφοριών) June/July

 

Poseidonia of Aegina

 

 

The month of Poseidon, in ancient Greece, today’s December/January; honouring not only the god Poseidon but also the winter solstice, was the most looked forward to month of the whole year, when, on the island of Aegina, one of the most important festivals was celebrated.

The festival, named the ‘Poseidonia’ was a veritable sixteen days of debauchery, a festival, second only, to the decadent Dionysia festival, similar to the Roman festival of Saturnalia and als said to be the ancient Greek origins of Christmas.

Wine flowed freely, women were abundant and there was much giving of gifts, some of them of the very personal sort indeed, only to be expected I suppose, after all, Poseidon, with his large following of nymphs and nymphets, was well known for his, how shall I call it, his virility?

 

 

The ‘Poseidonia’ festival became so popular that the original sixteen days was extended, depending on whose version you read, to two months and was celebrated every year not only on the island of Aegina but all over ancient Greece.

The climax of this festival was the practice of the rites of Aphrodite (Venus), the ancient Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, passion and procreation, a sort of free for all, anything goes carry on.

 

 

The festival of Haloea

 

 

Each year, in ancient Greece, on the 26^th of the month of Poseidon, after the end of the harvest, at Eleusis, the site of the Eleusinian mysteries, or the Mysteries of Demeter and her daughter, Persephone, a festival, including a parade for Poseidon, was held, called the Haloea.

 

 

 Haloea was customarily an exclusively women’s festival, sacred to not only Demeter but also to Dionysus, god of wine, it was anticipated that all women would be present at the Haloea, funnily enough; the men had a legal and moral duty to finance their wives’ expenses for these jollies.

The Haloea would probably have been held the day on which the women were to be initiated into the Eleusinian mysteries.

The ‘Arkhontes’, male authorities of the mysteries, would have prepared a banquet for the women, consisting of of cereals, fish, fruit, and cakes in the shape of both male and female ‘parts’.

No meat was allowed, or pomegranates, the fruit which drew Demeter’s daughter, Persephone back to the Underworld.

When the banquets were to the ‘Arkhontes’ satisfaction, they left the women alone to celebrate the joys of being a woman, a sort of ‘women only symposium’.

 

 

The Haloea, similar to the “Thesmophoria”, the ancient Greek harvest festival in honour of Demeter which involved freedom of speech, shall we say, dirty jokes and insinuative conversations and wine by the urn.

 

 

The highlight of one year’s unforgettable ‘Poseidonia’ celebrations, was when, Phryne, an ancient Greek courtesan (hetaira), from the fourth century BC, whose real name was Mnesarete (Μνησαρέτη, who, because of  her yellowish complexion was called Phrýne, meaning toad, a name often used for courtesans and prostitutes, let down her hair and swam naked in  the sea.

 

 

After the party, it was no holds barred, the men who had been waiting eagerly in the wings were allowed to join in the fertility celebrations and were rewarded for their patience by the women who, one by one, chose a man as a lover for the night.

A priest and priestess, posing as Demeter and Persephone, enviously looked on.