Interesting question. I'm reminded how often I note that the fundamentalist followers of most monotheistic branches often have similar personalities (though of course the rampant shaming & repression surely come into play here).
A couple decades ago, I decided to bring a conscious devotion of Athena into my practice. My intention was to bring more reason & discipline into my life/psyche; I'd realized that my prior (admittedly ham-handed) devotion to ancient nature gods had left me lacking in both qualities. I don't personally know anyone else who's made the same move, so I can't speak to broad trends, but I feel like it did have a lot of the intended effect. In retrospect, she probably started me down the path to the Western Esoteric Tradition & Druidry that I follow today. An unintended consequence, I'd say, is that I used to have more patience for general ignorance, whereas now I'm driven absolutely bonkers by, e.g., the rampant -isms out there (racism, sexism, classism, etc.). Definitely an Athena quality -- keep in mind she's got a temper -- but it could also just be me getting older.
She & her owl are tattooed on my wrist so definitely still part of my everyday life, though my conscious devotions are less regular these days. If you open yourself up to her, I genuinely believe she'll be there to guide you in unexpected directions.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2022-07-18 09:04 pm (UTC)A couple decades ago, I decided to bring a conscious devotion of Athena into my practice. My intention was to bring more reason & discipline into my life/psyche; I'd realized that my prior (admittedly ham-handed) devotion to ancient nature gods had left me lacking in both qualities. I don't personally know anyone else who's made the same move, so I can't speak to broad trends, but I feel like it did have a lot of the intended effect. In retrospect, she probably started me down the path to the Western Esoteric Tradition & Druidry that I follow today. An unintended consequence, I'd say, is that I used to have more patience for general ignorance, whereas now I'm driven absolutely bonkers by, e.g., the rampant -isms out there (racism, sexism, classism, etc.). Definitely an Athena quality -- keep in mind she's got a temper -- but it could also just be me getting older.
She & her owl are tattooed on my wrist so definitely still part of my everyday life, though my conscious devotions are less regular these days. If you open yourself up to her, I genuinely believe she'll be there to guide you in unexpected directions.