I was just gonna let this one go, but…
In response to this post:
As a Hellenic Polytheist and devotee of Aphrodite for a few decades now, I am a bit offended by this “spell”. The reason? It intimates- perhaps in ignorance- that deities are merely pretty names to be called upon whenever one wants something- no matter how petty, and with no regard to if you have a relationship with that deity in the first place. That is sort of like saying “oh like, neighbour so and so has a nice name; I don’t know them, but I am going to go ask them to give me $500.” Why would that neighbour- or by extension of the analogy, deity- be inclined to do something for someone with whom they have no relationship? (I call this the Veruca Salt mindset of magick dabbling, they want their Oompah Loompah right now!; it fits in with that odd sense of automatic entitlement we are seeing so much of these days- and not merely in pagan & magick communities.)
Furthermore, the spell doesn’t give anything to Aphrodite (i.e. votive offerings- “spell components to do not necessarily equal votive offerings) in return for ordering her to get rid of some hair; even her basic nature is ignored- did the poster actually study any of Aphrodite’s myths from any decent sources? (A mere thank you to an amorphous goddess that you have no prior relationship with is perfunctory and rude, and what does the pentagram have to do with Aphrodite?) The “spell” doesn’t treat her with respect- even if you don’t believe in the reality of deity, the practitioner should at least treat treat said deity as if they believe in their literal, powerful existence in order to give the “spells” willed impetus. Certainly the author tried hard to make the “spell” sound as if she personally were devoted to Aphrodite and perhaps she is trying to build that relationship, but how does this help the person who has no clue about this particular Goddess? Maybe some more information is in order?
Of course, there are those out there who don’t see the deities as real but instead see them as interchangeable aspects of one big omniscient deity (part of Jesus? An aspect of Yahweh? A mythical* Yahweh-like “great goddess”?) and think it is just dandy to treat deities as cosmic lapdogs to be summoned, commanded and used as if they were items on a multi-cultural takeout menu. But in that case, again the question comes back to: “if you don’t think said deity is real and powerful, why bother calling upon them?” After all, not all magick is deific, theurgic- there are other forms of thaumaturgy one can use that aren’t focused on deity. Sadly for most of the people dabbling in magick there just isn’t much out there that appeals to the newbie mindset beyond very silly paperbacks and low-content websites. It usually takes years of hands on training & practice in tried and true traditions & systems to know that there are other methods and practices out there- a step that most newbies and dabblers sadly don’t get to.
One last point- the magick of hair removal has already been achieved- great brains over the ages and in many cultures have come up with solutions to removing hair. The magick lies in finding one that works for you and having the diligence to use it correctly. Sometimes the magick is so simple as to be unrecognizable in this “quick fix, no effort” world we live in.
* Mythical as based upon the premise in the terrific book by Cynthia Eller The Myth of the Matriarchal Prehistory: Why an Invented Past does not give Women a Future
Thus endeth the snark for today from a crotchety old devotee of Aphrodite and long-time practitioner of magick in many systems. ;-)
As a Hellenic Polytheist and devotee of Aphrodite for a few decades now, I am a bit offended by this “spell”. The reason? It intimates- perhaps in ignorance- that deities are merely pretty names to be called upon whenever one wants something- no matter how petty, and with no regard to if you have a relationship with that deity in the first place. That is sort of like saying “oh like, neighbour so and so has a nice name; I don’t know them, but I am going to go ask them to give me $500.” Why would that neighbour- or by extension of the analogy, deity- be inclined to do something for someone with whom they have no relationship? (I call this the Veruca Salt mindset of magick dabbling, they want their Oompah Loompah right now!; it fits in with that odd sense of automatic entitlement we are seeing so much of these days- and not merely in pagan & magick communities.)
Furthermore, the spell doesn’t give anything to Aphrodite (i.e. votive offerings- “spell components to do not necessarily equal votive offerings) in return for ordering her to get rid of some hair; even her basic nature is ignored- did the poster actually study any of Aphrodite’s myths from any decent sources? (A mere thank you to an amorphous goddess that you have no prior relationship with is perfunctory and rude, and what does the pentagram have to do with Aphrodite?) The “spell” doesn’t treat her with respect- even if you don’t believe in the reality of deity, the practitioner should at least treat treat said deity as if they believe in their literal, powerful existence in order to give the “spells” willed impetus. Certainly the author tried hard to make the “spell” sound as if she personally were devoted to Aphrodite and perhaps she is trying to build that relationship, but how does this help the person who has no clue about this particular Goddess? Maybe some more information is in order?
Of course, there are those out there who don’t see the deities as real but instead see them as interchangeable aspects of one big omniscient deity (part of Jesus? An aspect of Yahweh? A mythical* Yahweh-like “great goddess”?) and think it is just dandy to treat deities as cosmic lapdogs to be summoned, commanded and used as if they were items on a multi-cultural takeout menu. But in that case, again the question comes back to: “if you don’t think said deity is real and powerful, why bother calling upon them?” After all, not all magick is deific, theurgic- there are other forms of thaumaturgy one can use that aren’t focused on deity. Sadly for most of the people dabbling in magick there just isn’t much out there that appeals to the newbie mindset beyond very silly paperbacks and low-content websites. It usually takes years of hands on training & practice in tried and true traditions & systems to know that there are other methods and practices out there- a step that most newbies and dabblers sadly don’t get to.
One last point- the magick of hair removal has already been achieved- great brains over the ages and in many cultures have come up with solutions to removing hair. The magick lies in finding one that works for you and having the diligence to use it correctly. Sometimes the magick is so simple as to be unrecognizable in this “quick fix, no effort” world we live in.
* Mythical as based upon the premise in the terrific book by Cynthia Eller The Myth of the Matriarchal Prehistory: Why an Invented Past does not give Women a Future
Thus endeth the snark for today from a crotchety old devotee of Aphrodite and long-time practitioner of magick in many systems. ;-)