Mindfully Stylish 🌷

This morning, I felt like Herakles must have done after one of his many trials. Bloody knackered. I could barely peel myself from the bed. I lay there feeling every limb weighing like lead, finally lunging for something that the mighty Herakles probably wouldn’t have ~ my phone, Spotify and Taylor Swift. Do we like her new album? Personally I love it, and Opalite (which, funnily enough, is a song about overcoming depression) is the one track that will always, always inspire me to get up and brush my teeth, which is something of a relief because this weekend I slept for 30 hours, no kidding.

My anxiety has reached its peak, bolstered by the cold sweetness of an easy peel clementine and a lukewarm mug of black coffee with cinnamon syrup because I don’t have any milk. It’s dispiriting. Syrup saves it.

I really don’t know that much about the Labours of Herakles, which I should considering I have a degree in Classical Studies. I’ve always wondered about that ~ you can’t say ‘I have a Classics degree’ because then everyone who actually has a Classics degree would say ‘YOU CAN’T SAY YOU HAVE A CLASSICS DEGREE YOU DIDN’T DO LATIN AND GREEK’ and you know what – fine, tradition – you win, I take my hat off to the Establishment, I don’t have a Classics degree. But you know what I now spend my life honouring the Ancient Greek pantheon as a Hellenist witch so there. Anyway, back to the Labours of Herakles. The reason I bring this up is because I am currently sitting melting in my very own 21st century lion skin ~ a faux fur leopard print coat ~ I didn’t actually slay an animal for its pelt but I did buy it myself from ASOS no less. I almost plucked up the courage to go outside but I am struggling to channel the courage of Herakles to go and buy bread. I wonder if, when He faced the Nemean Lion, instinct kicked in and he was so rushed with adrenaline that he forgot to be scared and thus won the fight? Can I harness my fear in the quest for a doughy gluten-ous loaf? Right, I’ve got my trainers on and my mind has gone quiet for a moment. I’m heading out. Wish me luck. When I get back we’ll chat about Herakles, the Big H, Papa Kles. Okay I’m actually going now. Bye.

WELL. That was an experience. I doubt Herakles would have puffed and pulled and panted so much up the hill although he would probably have appreciated the Golden Crispy Beef Flavoured Corn Snacks I’m currently devouring as substitute for protein in my diet. There’s something so comforting about crisps isn’t there? Haven’t got round to making a coffee yet but I’ll get there.

I can’t tell if I’m depressed or if it’s just Scorpio season. It’s almost over and, although it’s been enlightening and very humbling to kind of sink into the darkness, I’m ready to come out now. I’m quite looking forward to being in the Season of the Healer, Chiron, which I really need. I feel like the three-headed dog Cerberus licking his wounds after encountering Herakles in the Underworld. Or indeed like Herakles after seeing a giant three-headed dog, which can’t have been ideal.

So, let’s talk about the Twelve Labours of Herakles. I find these Labours particularly interesting because they all involve Hera, the Queen of the Gods, sending Herakles on a series of seemingly impossible tasks, namely to defeat or obtain a magical animal or plant. Hera hoped to kill Herakles because he was an illegitimate son of her husband, the King of the Gods, Zeus, who had an affair with the mortal woman Alcmene and thus Herakles was living proof of Zeus’ deceit. The Twelve Labours included slaying the Nemean Lion, a mythical lion that lived in Nemea and could not be killed by mortal weapons (Herakles blocked up the mouth of its cave instead and, entering from the other opening, strangled it to death with his insane strength) and capturing and bringing back to the World of the Living Cerberus, the aforementioned three-headed dog that guards the entrance to the Underworld, preventing any mortals to leave or enter without permission.

It strikes me as slightly odd that no one questioned why there were so many distressingly aggressive oversized or many-headed creatures running around everywhere but then that’s life, isn’t it? You can’t swing a diabetic cat these days without knocking into some severely depressed, misunderstood omnivore wearing a clown mask over their own soul.

So back to the Labours. Herakles completed all twelve, like the legend he is. But then something unfortunate happened ~ he was given a poisoned tunic by his second wife (I know, poor love, I hate it when the shops don’t have non-bio) and, having put it on, was burned so badly that he built his own funeral pyre and flung himself upon it. In witchcraft, the element of Fire is seen as purifying, cleansing and, ultimately, transformative ~ and, for Herakles, it was certainly this. His immortal soul was deified and joined the Gods and Goddesses in the skies up above, marrying Hebe, the Goddess of Youth, with whom he fathered two children.

This is a map of the constellation named after Herakles – ‘Hercules’ – the Romanisation of Herakles. Hercules was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy (pronounced ‘Tolemy’ – love this name) and remains among our 88 modern day constellations. This formation is said to be Herakles himself fighting the dragon of the Hesperides, Draco, ‘holding his lion skin in his left hand and a club in his right’. Or, indeed, subduing Cerberus as depicted in this fascinating astrological postcard from circa 1825:

And so, through pain and trial and tribulation, our soul grows and transforms and if we take a moment to look up at the sky on a clear night we might just be lucky enough to see a heavenly acknowledgement of our plight immortalised in the stars where one day I hope our souls will all return. In the meantime, whilst trying to find an ending to this I am waiting impatiently for my Heinz Chicken and Mushroom Soup to cool down so my tongue doesn’t burn. UGH WHAT IS LIFE. Here’s a little ritual if you’re in a similar mood and would like to honour Herakles the Dude… Don animal print.

And go clubbing.

Hope you have a good time.

In Love&Light, FS XOX