Daily Devotional: December 13th

Ides

Prayer for Ides

Jove, sovereign of the vast celestial dome,

On Ides' threshold, thy presence does loom.

In the mid-month's embrace, with thunderous might,

Thy benevolence and justice take flight.

On the Ides, when the moon is bright,

Jove, we honor, in the soft moonlight.

With each lunar phase, thy influence clear,

Guiding the months, with celestial cheer.

In the midst of calendars, thy mark profound,

Ides' moments with thy grace are crowned.

Jove, the keeper of cosmic order and sway,

In the month's heart, thy blessings convey.

On this Ides, as time's river flows,

Jove, in gratitude, our reverence shows.

In celestial dance, where planets align,

Thy majesty, eternal and divine.

Daily Meditation

"Justice and order, therefore, prescribe for the immortals who come before us the rules about their management of us, so that they may devise measures for us that reduce our wickedness here below and can turn us around to them. They are concerned for us as with fallen relations.”

—Hierocles of Alexandria

Commentary on the Golden Verses 18-21

The gods care for human souls as we would for fallen relations, which is to say, family members who have fallen into hardship. The gods are forgiving and tasked with leading us toward the good. They lead by encouragement and goodness. They carry within themselves the means to free us of our vices and banish anything that plagues us. Align with them, ask them for their blessings and favors, and obey them, and they will free you from your bonds.

Monthly Ascesis: Repentance

"Repentance is the beginning of philosophy"

—Hierocles

“Repentance is often seen as a particularly Christian idea, but philosophers were quite fond of reminding people to repent. Pythagoras, in particular, suggests two ways that we can begin to repent and take a better inventory of who we are. The word ‘repent’ is related to the Latin word for regret. The idea is that we should look over our actions and judge them if they are unworthy. However, the Greek word for repentance is metanoia, which means the transformation of the mind. Platonic repentance is about creating an inner change that leads us back to a life of holiness in harmony with the divine.

Pythagoras says we should “do nothing shameful, neither in the presence of others nor privately; Thus, above all things, sit as a judge over [ourself].” This suggests we should watch our actions, and when we do something wrong or shameful, we should repent, that is, regret that action. If we never do this or shun it as a practice, we effectively say we have no reason to regret our actions. However, regretting an action is recognizing an area where we fell short of our ideals. If we never regret or repent, we make any spiritual or ethical growth impossible. This is why Hierocles, commenting on Pythagoras, says, “repentance is the beginning of philosophy.””

Excerpt from Ascesis: The Handbook of Platonic Practice

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