Progress pictures of a modern temple to Pan being built in Arcadia, Greece. The guy spearheading the project is archaeologist Evangelos Bexis, and when it's complete it will be painted with vibrant colors, just as all temples were in ancient times.

Nature is healing, and Pan returns to Arcadia. Praises and glory to the deathless gods!

the kids online safety act passed the u.s. senate.

long story short (for anyone who hadn't heard of this before) the kids online safety act, aka kosa, is a bill that will censor online content and resources for lgbtq matters, reproductive healthcare, activism (INCLUDING PALESTINE AND LIKELY OTHER CRISES GOING ON LIKE IN CONGO OR SUDAN), mental health, etc. everywhere--its effects likely won't be contained to just america.

today, july 30th, 2024, the senate passed it 91-3. it has officially moved to the house of representatives.

is this a pretty massive setback? yes. do you have every right to be scared, sad, angry, or whatever else about this happening? absolutely. but should you give up hope completely? NO!

even though kosa passed the senate, the house is on break/august recess at the moment. we have around an entire month to get emails, calls, and faxes in to house reps, maybe more depending on when they decide to vote on it.

should it pass the house and get signed into law, we still have a whole 18 months before it actually goes into effect. this is plenty of time for digital rights orgs (e.g. fight for the future, the electronic frontier foundation) and other groups that oppose it to file a lawsuit against it. even if, worst-case scenario, it flies through the house immediately after the recess ends, we can still fight this up to march 2026.

so, yes, remember what's at stake here, but also remember that it's not over yet. we lost a battle, not the war.

below are some resources to learn more about kosa and how to contact your reps (first link) a page that lets you directly contact progressive house reps, sign an open letter opposing the bill, and view others' testimonies against it (second link):

FIGHT. FIGHT. FIGHT.

Why was this started in the first place.

So russian and belarusian athletes are banned from competing under their countries' flag for the war in Ukraine but Isreali athletes are still allowed to compete under Isreali's flag despite Isreal's genocide being 4 times as deadly as the Ukrainian invasion?? Fuck Isreal. Fuck Russia. Fuck the Olympic Committee. Free Palestine. Free Ukraine.

I really will never get how some people make ai generated images for their deities.

It's so weird. Sometimes, I'll see ai images of Hypnos when I'm looking for things related to him, and it always ends up making me feel super uncomfortable.

You're letting an ai take away the beauty in making something for your deity? Letting a soulless machine put zero love into it and steal from others? And you think the gods would like it?

Sorry for how ranty this is. I really hate ai "art," and seeing people use it as an offering is so off-putting to me.

Zeus by Romain de Tirtoff (“Erté”) (1981)

In regards on how Dionysus was portrayed in this year's Olympics's ceremony, i would like to start a petition to start portraying Dionysus in general as a handsome, charismatic man.

It's time to stop glorifying this false image of him (drunk, useless, laughing stock) so let's make a start, here's how i draw him for example:

I’m not that good of an artist 🤷‍♂️but yk

I also can’t do digital 😭🙏

Considering AI actively steals art and art styles from artists across the world- this is an insanely wild take. Bonkers, even. Dionysus would absolutely NOT condone the literal plagiarism of AI.

“Breaking boundaries” darling, plagiarism and subsequently, AI, is breaking LAWS. The only reason these companies are getting away with it is because there are currently no guidelines and AI specific laws in place to protect artists from having their work stolen. AI is so new that no one has been able to wrangle it all in and gotten these companies under control- which will never if when people like you keep saying everything is fucking fine.

REAL HARDWORKING PEOPLE ARE LOSING THEIR LIVELIHOODS BECAUSE OF AI!!

Stop defending this shit and absolutely don’t pin any Art-centric God to it. NONE of them would condone AI the way it is.

YES THANK YOU

as an artist myself I've literally left entire platforms because I didn't want my art to get scraped and put into someone's database

also speaking only from a personal perspective here (I'm gonna be talking about a personal spiritual experience I've had with Dionysus, so grain of salt and all that):

right before I started worshipping Dionysus, I was very depressed and had given up on my art...I did doodles every once in a while but I didn't really believe in my own ability as an artist anymore (and the increasing prevalence of AI "art" didn't help)

but do you know one of the first things Dionysus encouraged me to do once I started worshipping him?

he asked me to CREATE

he didn't care how "good" I thought it was, he just wanted me to draw, to write, to create things with my own mind, hands and heart

and now after a few years of taking his advice to heart, I feel like I can actually draw and create art again, and oh my gods has it been so healing for me...and now I'm even trying out new art forms I never would have even considered a possibility for myself, like singing and music!

my pfp is actually a devotional drawing I made for him

I don't like the idea of people speaking for the Gods, no matter how close they are with them...but this is the one thing I have no doubt in my mind about

Dionysus is not an AI algorithm, he is the erratic beating of the heart, the deep pleasure that comes from crafting something from nothing, the ecstasy of creative self-expression - we break boundaries when we reach down and splash our souls onto our paintings, our writing, our sculptures, our music, our dancing

Dionysus would want you to create 🍇🙏🏽

Firstly, thank you for sharing your experiences, WineDarkGod. It is such a big issue in today's world. My friend is literally dropping out of art school due to his fear of AI art's popularity, and that, in and of itself, is fucking devastating. People need to understand that AI art is ruining art for their fellow human beings. Every time you support AI art, you're actively discouraging human artists from creating and sharing their creations. Fuck you if you think it's ok to ruin an entire industry just to get your kicks. Find a different form of entertainment; it's straight up not that hard.

I think OP also misses that point that AI can't be "creative". It isn't creativity if you are plugging a prompt into a machine - that bases itself entirely on stolen art from others, btw - and post a fucked up mishmash of various art styles. OP, you are not "working hard" to create a "masterpiece" for Lord Dionysus; you are typing a sentence on a computer and waiting for a machine to do the work for you. How is that creation? How can you possibly consider that a form of creative self-expression? You aren't doing anything; you're just sitting behind a computer screen and waiting for the AI to steal from artists for you.

You are blatantly wrong, OP. I don't speak for the gods - I don't think anyone does - but this opinion is the most blatantly ignorant and uneducated take I have ever heard from a fellow worshipper of Dionysus. AI being creative lmao, you might as well say that you're washing your laundry by hand when you put in it a washing machine. Absolutely fucking ridiculous.

(((This goes without saying, but please do not harass this person)))

(Putting it in big, fancy font, since you did, too. Maybe it'll emphasize something??? Not sure why you chose to do that, but I figured it'd be respectful if I did the same.)

Adding to Khaire's defence- not against OP in particular, but as a rant in general against AI:

As an artist, I detest AI-generated imagery. We shouldn't have to fear our work being stolen just because we dare to put it online- WHICH WE OFTEN DO IN ORDER TO PROMOTE OURSELVES AND TRY TO EARN A LIVING WITH OUR VERY REAL, HARD-EARNED ART SKILLS. From an independent artist perspective, it's demoralising and sickening and can have a very real impact on one's ability to earn income, though thankfully plenty of people are wising up to AI 'art' and how to spot it. From a client's perspective, it's equally disappointing- if you go into a commission expecting genuine hand-drawn work, only to find out you got scammed of your money by some person typing a prompt into an AI generator, you'll of course be rightfully pissed! From the perspective of a follower of Apollo, it's much the same; it feels insulting to follow a god associated with art and humanities, and to learn there are people out there using AI crap in their devotional materials.

MAKING ART IS THE CORE OF HUMANITY. The capitalist desire to make everything 'perfect' and 'epic' seems to have shredded people's will to actually make an effort to make art. You don't ever have to be 'good' at it if you don't want to be- you're absolutely allowed to just doodle, make crappy clothes patterns, make weird clay figurines, write 'cringe' poetry or fanfic, whatever. All of that is 100% good and natural. And if you do want to get good- there are so many resources out there! Internet tutorials, many of them free! Books on every art topic you can imagine- if you can't buy them, visit your local library! Seek out local classes and instructors! Just last year, I got very lucky and earned a Cert III in Screen and Media (basically, digital art) because our premier offered free spots in certain TAFE courses- look around to see if you, too, can grab a chance for similar accessible education in your area! If possible, vote in local politicians who want art education to be made more accessible! EVERYONE'S ART SKILLS CAN BE DEVELOPED. I don't believe there's much to the idea of natural talent, or if it does exist, it doesn't hold a candle to the extraordinary progress of skill you can see through your own hard work and study. I sometimes get told I'm 'talented', but in reality, I've just been drawing since I could hold a pencil: first it was my mum who taught me more advanced skills, because she's an artist too, and then I just kept practising and learning relentlessly forever. Don't dismiss and crap upon that hard work. Either work on your own skills if you want beautiful art, or commission a real artist. You'll be so much more satisfied, either way.

Just... have faith in your own efforts, and support real artists. Please.

Say no to AI-generated crappery.

(Again- this is my additional personal rant against AI. Like Khaire said, let's not personally harass folks. My rant is here for educational and anti-AI purposes).

@luxapollo

Okay so while I don't agree with @stalkerofthegods going into someone's asks to give their personal opinion on how that person chooses to practice their deity worship and such (really inappropriate) I think that @blackbacchus999 should have checked their profile, noticed that this person is 14 years old and either ignore the ask or just politely advise them to worry about their own practice.

Ultimately, if you dislike someone's specific practice, just keep scrolling.

Hell, block them if you must.

And when responding to asks, check their bio to get an idea of where they're coming from, weed out trolls etc.

Hey Theic, I understand your point of view, I dont think you should discredit my word due to my age, its not relevant, I would super appreciate if you stop discrediting everything.

They used ai, I was wondering why, they had full full ability to not reply, my age does not matter, I was asking, u can see I haven't replied at all to this, I wanted to know why Bacchus was using AI to honor a creativity god. I understand it being 'inappropriate; but to have a platform is to have influence, and to have influence is to have people question, I was wondering, I got my answer, I left, Bacchus hasn't even mentioned me, they were getting angry with people replying to the post, I personally don't like AI but im not going to discredit someones practice for using it. I never replied, I was asking out of curiosity, I completely agree with blocking someone, but if someone has a platform and the question isn't offensive I think you should ask it, and they had every right to just ignore it, like how I had the right to block them.

IM STILL WORTH MY EXPERIENCE EVEN IF I AM 14, IT DOESN'T FUCKING MATTER IN A SITUATION LIKE THIS.

I understand if I'm getting ur intentions wrong (I hope.) because I will promptly delete this post, I respect you so so much theic, you don't understand, I look to u as a elder, but I really don't wanna be brought into this more, I hope we can continue being friends, I made this pissed off, Im sure I'm getting it wrong, ill be deleting this in like 3 minutes but I HAD to say something. Its not even really forward to you, I'm just getting tired of having my experiences and my religion snatched right out of my hand due to my age, much love.

I appreciate you and ur experiences, but I can't just sit here, simply as a person who has gone through SO much to worship, I love the gods as much as I love the oxygen in my blood, I have gone through so much and I continue to, If that's what your referring to.

I understand I asked you for help, which was a mistake, I'm so sorry, it won't happen again, but if u look at my deep dives, my posts u can see that I'm still worth my experiences. I have knowledge beneath my skin tbh at this point /j

@stalkerofthegods

You asked why I'm using AI to honor a creative god. The answer is simple: I honor the gods in everything I do. But that's not really what you asked. You expressed your hate and tried to tell me what the gods don't like. Everyone's practices are different. Everyone honors the gods differently. AI is just another way I honor the gods. It's a form of technology and art, fitting right into Hephaestus' realm. @theic-manic never said your opinion didn't matter or your experiencs. Your age was mentioned because you shouldn't discriminate against others' ways of practicing. And its usually kids that are the ones who just to disrespect because they dont understand the diverse ways of practices. That's all.

I didn't have to reply, but I'm all for educational debates—it's about learning and respecting each other. Have you seen the posts against me? I've been called names just because I honor the gods through AI art. People have honored the gods through wars and death, yet I'm being insulted for my approach. But I'll end it here. I just wanted everyone to know that @theic-manic never said your opinion or experiences didn't matter because you're 14.

I know, I said 'Its not even really forward to you, I'm just getting tired of having my experiences and my religion snatched right out of my hand due to my age, much love.' and okay, much love, I shouldn't have said anything, but whatever, I hope u and ur practice goes good, much...likes...to u..and I'm not, but ok! I'm nor sorry or anything but u keep yapping yapington

@stalkerofthegods

Thank you and I chant that the gods smile upon you... And nobody can ever snatch that from you, that belongs to you and the gods!!

Io Euoi 🍷 🍷 🍷

im glad we can come to..a...erm..agreement, but I'm not taking back what I said and I never will, it was a glee to have a debate! may the gods...see..you!

Yes I'm sure the gods appreciated our passion we showed over our practices.. I wouldn't expect you to take anything back... Stand on yours!! The gods see us!!! Thank you for being willing to reach an agreement, I'm all for those who honor the gods..

I'm not really influincal, I merely have 300 followers, Im sure me agreeing won't stop anything, Im glad your passionate, may you see the truth in your words.

Thank you!!!! Sometimes all it takes is one follower to change the world!!!

im not following u?

@blackbacchus999 If you support Ai, AND your black. What do you think about the new Ai video of SONYA MASSEY. The Ai video shows her throwing the water on the cop and him shortly shooting her after. They made the video to mock her death and made it seem like it was her fault. Ai can also expose private data as well. Due to this, peoples addresses, location, family, and yourself will be leaked. They’re many videos going around saying that the people who use Ai will most likely make inappropriate videos of children due to Ai and images as well. It’s very dangerous for all people. I’m not trying to fight with you, I’m trying to understand your point of view on WHY you think this is okay? But you disrespecting them is not okay, in any situation. We’re REAL PEOPLE. Not Ai. They have a point. A very valid point, and it seems like you’re the only one being disrespectful. They’re good people with good intentions.

FIFA has just delayed a decision on a Palestinian bid to suspend Israel from international soccer until after the Paris Olympics, claiming that both parties had requested more time to submit their positions.

the palestinian olympic team in paris 🇵🇸

i can't stop making these

Real asf

Hera is the Goddess of marriage. Of course women who were cheated on would tell their stories through her. Ancient Greece was patriarchal. Of course the stories portrayed her as overly jealous, punishing other women instead of her husband. Zeus is a high male authority figure. Of course he is going to sleep with lots of women and boys in myths. Getting away with rape? Cheating on his wife? Doesn't sound that surprising to me.

The abduction of Persephone is about the changing of the seasons and how mothers feel when they are separated from their mothers through marriage. How common was it to get the girl's consent when she's getting married? Probably just an arrangement between fathers. Hell, how old were the girls?

The myths are reflections of the Greeks, not the gods. Gods are the characters of the stories. I do believe that the Greeks communicated with them through divination. I do believe that their religions were real. But we shouldn't forget that written texts can be messed with for political or social reasons. These are not holy books. We need to consider them carefully.

Statuette of Apollo (100 BCE – 1 BCE)

Getty Villa, Gallery 216, Roman Treasury

Apollo stands in an s -shaped pose, inspired by the late Classical work of the Greek sculptor Praxiteles. The sculptor presents the harmony of features in the human body, emphasizing Apollo's youthful, muscular torso by carefully framing it with drapery. A dynamic, sinuous line extends from Apollo's upraised arm through his torso and left leg, on which he rests his weight. Apollo's long hair hangs loosely around his head and neck.