Hecate
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| Hecate | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Title | |
| Goddess of Magic & Witchcraft | |
| Goddess of Crossroads | |
| Goddess of Obscurity | |
| Vital Statistics | |
| Gender | Female |
| Family | Perses (father) Asteria (mother) Circe, Lou Ellen and Lamia (daughters) Alabaster C. Torrington (son) Mother of the Empousa |
| Status | Immortal |
| Eye Color | Green |
| Hair Color | Dark |
| Height | Any height |
| Other | |
| Affiliation | Olympians Titans (formerly) |
| Weapons | Magic |
| Species | Goddess Titaness |
| Home | Olympus (The Last Olympian) The Underworld |
| Greek/Roman form | Trivia |
| Appearances | The Sea of Monsters (mentioned) The Battle of the Labyrinth (mentioned) The Last Olympian (mentioned) The Lost Hero (mentioned) The Demigod Diaries |
| Actor | None |
| Quests | None |
Hecate is the daughter of the Titans Perses and Asteria. She is the Greek goddess of magic, sorcery, witchcraft, crossroads, trivial knowledge, and necromancy. She is also represents the dark side of the moon or the Harvest Moon. She is also associated with many things including childbirth, nurturing the young, gates, walls, doorways, and sometimes even change. She can stay on Olympus, in the deep sea, in the Underworld, and also on Earth. Her Roman Counterpart is Trivia.
Contents |
History
Hecate was the daughter of Perses and "gold-wreathed" Asteria (the starry night), and her sway extended over earth, heaven, and the Underworld, for which reason she is represented in works of art as a triple divinity, having three female bodies, all young and beautiful, and united together.
Hecate was among the few Titans who supported Zeus and the Olympians in the Titanomachy and thus was allowed to retain her authority once the Olympians came into power. For her support, Zeus gave Hecate a share in all three realms of the cosmos for which she was known as the goddess of crossroads.
Hecate had little organized worship as she was more commonly found on the outskirts of the old myths than playing an active part in it. However, Hecate did play a major role in the abduction of Persephone. After the abduction, it was Hecate who told the frantic Demeter what had become of her daughter. After the dispute between her mother and husband was settled, Hecate became Persephone's confidante when she was in the Underworld. Thankful for their friendship, Hades honored Hecate as a prominent and permanent guest in the Underworld.
She now presides over all practices connected with witchcraft and enchantments, haunts sepulchers, at crossroads, and lonely spots where murders have been committed. She is connected with the appearance of ghosts and specters, to possess unlimited influence over the powers of the lower world, and to be able to lay to rest unearthly apparitions by her magic spells and incantations.
She also participated in the first Giant War, seen immolating a giant named Clytius, with her torches.
Devotion to Hecate was especially favored by the Byzantines for her aid in having protected them from the incursions of Philip of Macedon. Her symbols were the crescent and star, and the walls of her city were her proveance.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
The Sea of Monsters
Hecate does not formally appear in the book, but is mentioned to be the mother of Circe.
The Battle of the Labyrinth
Hecate does not formally appear, but it is mentioned by Dionysus that she has gone over to Kronos' side. She also sends two of her empousai (Kelli and Tammi) to attack Percy Jackson.
The Last Olympian
It is mentioned that Hecate uses her magic to cloak New York City and prevent mortals from entering or leaving. She also sends magical lights towards Olympus, though the nature of these lights are unknown as the wards of Olympus and Aeolus' wind minions repel them quickly.
At the end of the book, Hecate's cabin at Camp Half-Blood is under construction, along with those of many other minor gods. Her cabin is made of magical stones that, if dropped, would either explode or turn everyone within a half mile radius into a tree.
The Heroes of Olympus
The Lost Hero
It is revealed that Hecate is the mother of Lou Ellen.
The Demigod Diaries
Son of Magic
The goddess makes her first appearance and it is revealed by Alabaster C. Torrington, one of her most powerful children, that she was forced to rejoin the Olympians in order to keep them from killing him. She also lost more children in the Second Olympian War than any other god. When Lamia, who has allied herself with Gaea comes to kill Alabaster, Hecate steps in and saves them from each other's magic. She decides to restore Alabaster's companion, Dr. Howard Claymore, in Mist form so that he may watch over her son while he is in exile.
Personality
A lover of solitude, Hecate's true nature is very much unknown. She spends a great deal of time in the Underworld, being a close friend of Hades and Persephone especially. She apparently resented not being honored by the demigods since she supported Kronos in The Second Titan War. Since her children have been given their own place at Camp Half-Blood, she has given up her grudge against Olympus, but seems protective and worrisome of her children, many of whom were lost, captured, or embittered by the experience of the second Titanomachy.
Appearance
According to Rick Riordan's website, Hecate is usually dressed in dark robes, holding twin torches (all the better to see you and burn you with, my dear). She is accompanied by a she-dog and a polecat, which used to be her enemies before she morphed them into animals. In later times, Hecate was pictured as a woman with three heads, or three entirely different forms for morning, noon and night. In The Demigod Diaries, she is described as being dressed in white robes with ornate silver designs, like runes or alchemy symbols. Her dark hair barely came down to her shoulders. There is a green shimmer that surrounds her like an aura. Her face is like a Greek statue - pale, beautiful, and ageless.
Trivia (Roman Goddess)
Hecate can change into her Roman counterpart of Trivia. As Trivia, she becomes more disciplined, militaristic and warlike. While Greeks envisioned her as powerful and mysterious being, for the Romans she was the 'Queen of Ghosts' because of her role of guarding the borders between the human world and the realm of the dead. She may or may not have children or descendants at Camp Jupiter near San Francisco.
Abilities
She has the standard powers of a goddess. She also has abilities specific to her, including:
- Mystiokinesis: As the goddess of magic, she has divine authority and absolute control over magic.
- Necromancy: As the goddess of necromancy, she has divine authority and absolute control over the dead.
- Control over the Mist
- In mythology, Zeus gave her power in all three major realms (sky, sea, and the Underworld)
Family
Hecate is the daughter of Perses and Asteria.
Children
| Partners | Children |
| Helios | Circe |
| Mr. Ellen | Lou Ellen |
| Mr. Torrington | Alabaster Torrington |
| Unknown | Lamia |
Other Relatives
- The sorceress Medea is descended from Hecate.
Trivia
- The English word "trivia" stems from Hecate's Roman counterpart, Trivia.
- Despite her children in the book series, Hecate was a virgin goddess in most stories, although her children may have been conceived in a unique way, like Athena's are.
- Trivia refers to obscure knowledge which Hecate/Trivia presided over.
- Dogs are her sacred animal.
- She is symbolized by twin torches, a key, rope, dagger, and three crossroads.
- Her name means "will" but at the same time, if we consider her name's spelling and pronunciation, it means her that operates from afar, her that removes or drives of, the far reaching one or the far darter.
- According to Roman Mythology, her Roman counterpart, Trivia, used to kidnap young maidens, whom she later changed into Nymphs.
- Hecate appears as a character in William Shakespeare's play Macbeth.
- Hecate is seen both as a Titan and an Olympian goddess.
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