Hymns by Pat Dunn Jr. To the King and Queen of Heaven and Earth It was no good mind of man that came Forth with thunder, riding the wind, But the breast of God, the brow subtle flesh It was, and Goddess too, Lord and Lady together, Friends of humans, They, and in Their hands Holding aloft the Fruits of Plenty and the Bolts of Law. Hail unto you! God of Gods and Goddess of Goddesses! All-father, All-mother, creator and destroyer Unto you is the glory of the Earth complete, Unto you is all praise given, whether known or not, And unto you, all sacrifices find their eventual way. Lord and Lady, Zeus and Hera, Father, Mother I sing the praises of Your Holy Names today! To Lord Apollo Oh, Pythian, Oh Delphian Oh, far shooting Apollo, whose arrows Span the entire World with Light and Truth I am your devout Priest today, and I sing Your praises in this song, that You may hear How Your glory is spread about the Earth, Like a blanket, the bright folds of it pulled tight That we may rest in your beauty and song, Oh, Golden Lyre, strike with Your Golden Fingers And play for us, Bright God, a song of truth, For we are thirsty for Your ministrations, God of all Beauty, of Men and Healing, Give us a dose, Holy Lord, of the medicine Which will cure us of our lethargy! You, Great God, we sing of today, Let it be said that you are great among the cities And in the country, among mountains and trees, We sing Your songs, there are no other songs But Yours, dear well-loved and radiant Lord! Hail to you, Apollo! To Artemis You, Sister of the Far Darter, You, Born of Leto along with Your brother, In a place where Light Never Shines, I sing to you now, and ask for You To listen to my song, oh Lady Who loves the arrows of the hunt, You who darts in and out, killing All kinds of animals for their meat, You, the chaste, the holy and the pure, I sing of. Lady of the moonlight, Beyond the reach of Aphrodite, foam born. I sing to you, Holy White Goddess, That You may grant us fruitful hunting, For those things we chase through the wilderness Of life, and a good aim, with the darts of our minds, That we may strike things clearly, Thus do I sing to You, and know you hear, Hail, Artemis, Lady of Moonlight! To Ares Oh, brave, oh Manly, oh Ares Of the bare limbs, of the tight iron, Of the chest plate and clanging sword, Holy God of terrible War, I sing to you God of strength, god of courage, all things Need the power of Your might, And thus I sing, saying, come unto us And give unto us the manly courage of war, The brazen throated cry of victory, The unshaven valor of struggling men, Oh, sweat, oh blood, oh God, To you the glory of victor belongs, Warlike one, with terrible brute force you fight And win against all kinds of foes. Hail, Ares, though You make us tremble, We do homage unto You! To Athene You, protectress of the Cities, we do worship, That you come and grant unto us victory in Battle, For such is Your office, bright Queen Of Wisdom and Strategy, You who struck The mighty Ares a brazen blow with spear, And parried not with shield, You, Athene, We call upon, that You come and help us here, Where we sing of You, of Olympians the Goddess Whose Wisdom and War is known all over the world, by many names. Come, oh head born Goddess, Whom no man bore, but woman only, You, immaculate, terrible, come and hear As we pray unto you, Bright Goddess, Hail, Athene, of Olympus we sing! Hephaestos Skillful clanging, deep within the Earth, Hephaestos! You make and bend and craft All things the Gods use and the heroes too! I sing to You, and pray, let me craft my songs With an echo of your clanging skill, Smith, Let my words be as Your net, which caught up The Goddess in the arms of Ares, for all To see and make sport of, come Lord! Grant me this gift; grant me this request, I ask it in the names of the Gods, and praise Your name beyond all endings! Hail, Hephaestos, flaming God of craft! To Aphrodite Oh milk-limbed Lady, Ares' lover Wife of stout Hephaestos, come and hear The songs I sing of You. You burn up men And women too with inner fire, You bend and twist the wills of those Who think they cannot love, and laugh The laugh of wind in tree limbs at their joy. You, with Your zona, embrace the Earth And give us love and pleasure tonight, That we may sing Your name in ecstasy. Philotes follows You, and Eros too, Called love and lust, these two, These holy two, come join and dance With us tonight, and fold the Earth In love for everyone, Oh Goddess I clasp Your knees and kiss The roundness of Your thigh. Hail Aphrodite! To Hermes You swift and clever God, like wind or thought You whirl round the Earth on wings of light, I sing to You, and ask that You should grant A boon to us, a clever tongue, a safe traverse, A quick and ready wit. You youthful God, Who as a child stole Apollo's calves, and made Them to walk backwards, just to fool the God, I call to You, because I love Your name, And need Your aid, oh come, and join me here. I sing to You, Swift Footed God, Hail Hermes! To Demeter Oh gentle goddess, I whisper awe of You, You walked the Earth in sorrow, yet gently gave Your mysteries to us, in sorrow generous, We sing to You, Mother of the Earth, And all thereon, oh lady of the corn, we sing. Nourish us, encircle us, and make Our bodies strong, that we might learn your keys Which you once gave, then took away. Demeter, grave and gentle lady, we sing your praise. Hail Demeter! To Poseidon Earth shaker! City breaker! Rumbling God Of oceans deep, You strike The land with Your triton, and shake The Earth beneath us. Emotions Boil like the sea You own, oh God Of deep and hidden depths, we sing! We do adore You, Terrible Ancient God, One moment calm, the next enwrapped in wrath. How can a human, so like that, not love The God that we all mirror, though with flaws, For we in wildness might shake our house, While you in wildness will crack the land. All Hail Poseidon! To Hestia Calm and silent Goddess, I see you sit Before a fireplace And calmly knit You sing a song of warmth, Of peace and joy And all around your feet A girl and boy Play games that children love, You set aside Your work and join their games They smile wide. And round about the room A circle glows With gentle warmth of home It blocks out woes. Hail Hestia Sweet, We adore You, We sleep within Your arms, O Hail to You! To Zeus, Breaker of Mountains Your hoary head will nod, and hairs will wave To crush the mountains down, and nations test, While suns shine in Your eyes, O ancient God, Of ancient force, to You we sing this hymn. Your power is so great, a single breath May raise a valley, knock a mountain down, May smash a nation, bless a joyous house, May give us fear, or awe to be beloved Of You, so great a God. The World Hails! To Hera, Queen of Gentle Rains I hold an apple up, and sing Your praise, The mystery hereof, is clasp within, and shines A star -- within each seed, You dwell, my Queen. How can I sing aright Your modesty and power? How can a human bard reveal the love he feels For You, oh Ancient Goddess, Immortal, fresh And pure! We sing Your praise, for life you give And always gave; how can we take from You, And not give back our love, My Queen? All Hail Hera, of the Gentle Rains, we sing! To Mark All hail, Hero of my Heart, Brother's Hero, you Who through a thick and poison fog breathed life, Yet breathed it well, my Brother, Hero, Friend, I hymn That you, in Hades' realm, might hear! I offer honey, friend, and fruit full red and ripe, I cut and lay beneath your sacred tree, and say: Give me your strength of will, your purpose, love And honor too, my Brother, Hero, Ancestor, while I Water your Memory's Tree with tears, that you Might be more nourished there, in the wraps you earned, My Brother, Friend, and Hero, to you I hymn! Chaire Mark! To Julian the Blessed Amid the Gods you dwell, well-wise pontiff Of all the pagans, to you I sing and offer voice That you might bless endeavors, give to pass The will of Gods, that we not perish thus, That worship returns and is complete, as once It was beneath your scepter, Emperor Julianus, To you this enagisma, and a song besides! Hail Julian!