Hestia, Greek Goddess of the sacred fire, was once known as "Hestia, Chief of the Goddesses" and "Hestia, First and Last". Hestia was the most influential and widely revered of the Greek goddesses. Hestia's counterpart was the Roman Goddess Vesta.
Though the goddess Hestia was once the most important of the Greek goddesses, she (like her counterpart, the Roman goddess Vesta) is virtually unknown today. Her name, Hestia, means “the essence”, the true nature of things.
Scholars often refer to the goddess Hestia as "the forgotten goddess". Say the name Hestia (or Vesta) and few recall anything about them. Because of the goddess Hestia’s association with hospitality, the word Hestia can be found mostly in the names of inns and restaurants, making some people wonder if “Hestia” is the name of a franchise.
Unlike the other Greek goddesses, Hestia does not have a "story" . . . there were few adventures to record about her. The goddess Hestia simply "is".
Few images of the goddess Hestia exist. A very "private person", her symbols, the sacred flame and the circle, are usually used to represent Hestia in works of art.
Hestia's brief stories, retold here, are too scanty to instruct us. It is her traits, not her actions, that most define her. The goddess Hestia is usually defined by description in which she is praised for these virtues: mild, gentle, forgiving, peaceful, serene, dignified, calm, secure, stable, welcoming, and, above all else, well-centered.
Persona:
- Goddess of the hearth
- Psychic oracle
- Embodies independence
- Embodies self-sufficiency
- A mystic
- A Goddess of sacred intentions
- Personifies the archetype of the self
- Has a spiritual focus
- Can be introverted and meditative
- Has the ability to enjoy solitude
- Has a sense of spiritual meaning
- Homemaker
- Domestic
- Ritualistic
- Can lack a social persona
- Can be emotionally distant
- Goddess of insanity
"Act as if everything you think, say and do determines your entire life - because in reality, it does!"
