Ways of Worship: Eris

Eris is the Goddess of chaos, strife, and discord. Her Roman form is Discordia. There are many variants on who her parents might be. Some say it was just Nyx who gave birth to her, while others claim it was Nyx and Erebus. Some still think it was Zeus and Hera. She had many children, mainly thought to be Dysnomia, Atë, Lethe, Limos, Algos, Hysminai, Makhai, Phonoi, Androktasiai, Neikea, Pseudea, Logoi, Amphilogiai, and Horkos.

In lore, Eris was the goddess who started the Trojan War. She was angry she wasn't invited to a grand feast or wedding in some versions, so she created a golden apple with the inscription "for the fairest" or "kallisti" in Greek. Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera all claimed to be the true owner of the apple and so they got a mortal named Paris to judge. All three Goddesses promised him gifts if he chose them but he decided to award the apple to Aphrodite who promised him the most beautiful wife, Helen of Sparta. Helen was already married to King Menelaus of Sparta and when Paris claimed his prize, it quickly sparked the Trojan War.

WARNING: This myth contains content that might be triggering to some. Please skip ahead to the next section.

In the myth of Polytekhnos and Aedon, Eris was once again the cause of a tragedy. Polytekhnos and Aedon were madly in love and claimed their love even surpassed that of Hera and Zeus. Hera, hearing this declaration, became enraged and sent Eris down to cause discord between the two. Polytekhnos was fishing and Aedon was weaving when Eris found them. The Goddess declared that whoever finished their task last had to find a female servant for the other. When Aedon won, Polytekhnos found and raped her sister. He then disguised the sister and gave her to Aedon. When Aedon found out, she cut up Polytekhnos's son and fed the bits to him. The Gods were very displeased at the two's actions so they turned them into birds.

Altar, Offerings, and Symbols

General Symbols: Golden apple, a circle with a K in it

Plants: Apple

Gemstones/Metals: Gold

Color: Gold, black, grey

Not much is known in the way of symbols or offerings for Eris. Anything you associate with chaos, strife, and discord or as the opposite of harmony would probably be acceptable. If you're interested in learning more about her worship or things that might be associated with her, then look into Discordianism.

Prayers

Things to Pray for: discord in someone else's life or relationships, strife, chaos, discord, disruption in an organization, disruption of a political viewpoint, anarchy

Prayers Sing now, my muse, of the Goddess of Chaos,Arising from primeval Quantum foam born,Goddess of Entropy, Goddess of Anarchy,She who creates and destroys innumerable cosmosIn the gap between dawn and the rise of the sun,She who dances between unseen fractal dimensions,In a small still place all enfolded in storm,Lover of Death and Lover of Life,

She dances a dance on the edge of a knife,Singularity bound, in a teardrop of light,Immortal Chaos wreathed with broken planets and dust,Thy name is Eris, world shattering Goddess,

The sound of a bell in an dark empty cavern,The scent of a rose in a room long abandoned,The dance of the motes in the eye of the Goddess,The touch of a breeze in the heat of the noon,The taste of wine from an ancient tombMost terrible and most beautiful name of the Goddess, Eris!

Invocation Homage to thee, O Eris, at thy beautiful chaos. Of all that is Sweet, of all that is Bitter, thou hast domination over all. Hail Eris!Hail Discordia! O divine madness, self-created, self-anointed, self-serve, thou art Goddess of Heaven, and Earth, thou did create beings celestial and terrestrial. Live thou in me, and I in thee, O thou Golden Apple of the Sun!