Hebe: Goddess of Youth & Hope - Goddess of Aquarius Season
Goddess Hebe: The Cup-Bearer to the Gods
Hebe is known as The Goddess of Eternal Youth, or sometimes The Goddess of Spring. As the Goddess of youth and innocent beauty she personifies renewal, hope, bright prospects, inspiration, spiritual guidance and sustenance.
She is often depicted in her Maiden form drawing pure water from mountain springs with one vessel and pouring the nectar into the cup to serve the Gods on Olympus.
One of her earlier titles was Ganymeda, which means ‘Gladdening Princess.’ She was the daughter of Zeus and Hera, and she had the good fortune to have the ancient goddess Gaia, Mother Earth as her nurse - Gaia is Hebe’s great-grandmother.
As the youngest of the gods, it was Hebe’s job to keep the rest of the Gods on Olympus eternally youthful. She happily took her esteemed place, virtuously attending to the Olympian gods refilling their cups with her ambrosia - the nectar of vitality and youth.
Hebe is connected to the astrological sign of Aquarius (20th Jan - 19th Feb) and is often depicted as the personification of this zodiac sign. Both in her Cup-Bearer symbology mirroring that of the Aquarian Water-Bearer and that she embodies many of the Aquarian themes and ideals: the humanitarian Waterbearer is commonly known for their original, bright, inspired and innovative outlook and the desire for renewal and invention after the earthy consolidation, commitment and tradition-tending of Saturnian Capricorn season.
Fixed Air sign Aquarius is also ruler of the 11th House, the House of Friendship and Hopes & Wishes and the capacity for fulfilling our dreams - also mirroring Hebe’s domains, making her an ideal Goddess to work with during the Aquarius season (and any time of year if you are an Aquarius sun/moon/rising or would like to connect to this Archetype further).
Aquarius is associated with The Star major arcana Tarot card which is a card of promise, hope, and new beginnings - again mirroring Hebe’s themes. In this version of the card, from The Celestial Tarot by Kay Steventon and Brian Clark, the Star is representative of Hebe as Aquarius:
Here is an excerpt from the corresponding booklet:
" To the ancients, Aquarius was the power of the flowing, often flooding, water. The Star represents both strands of Aquarius; it heralds the revolutionary new way of being after a period of turmoil or suppression and is also representative of a wellspring of hope and renewal. Aquarius' innovative and creative new vision pours forth like manna from heaven, a welcome downpour after the disruption and chaos of The Tower (card 16). In the Celestial Tarot, Hebe pours forth the invigorating waters recycled from the abundant springs of life over mankind. She symbolises renewal, hope, bright prospects, inspiration, and spiritual guidance. The Star is the light of the higher self and it is Hebe the heroic anima who illuminates inner darkness and heralds the dawn of a hope filled future."
- The Celestial Tarot by Kay Steventon and Brian Clark
HEBE’S MYTHOLOGY
As goddess of eternal youth, it is Hebe who greets the apotheosised heroes on their entrance into Olympus, presenting to them the cup of Nectar which immediately restores them to the first bloom of youthfulness and beauty, and endows them with immortality as the reward of victorious combats.
She possesses the powers of precognition and restoring youth to gods and to mortals alike - a power that was exclusive to her. She also has the ability to fly at great speed, occasionally in art being depicted with wings similar to Iris and Nike.
She was prayed to by warriors who needed the vitality of youth before going into battle. One example of this is found in the story of Iolaus, who was the former charioteer of Heracles. In his old age, he prayed to Hebe before a fight with Eurystheus, asking to be young again for just one day - a wish that Hebe granted.
When the warrior hero Heracles ascended to spiritual divinity he was rewarded with Hebe as his wife. As the hero’s partner, she embodied the heroic anima, or the feminine spirit that sustains life and offers immortality. Once she was married she was succeeded in her role as Cup-Bearer by the youth Ganymede.
Hebe was also worshipped as a goddess of pardons, forgiveness and mercy, and freed prisoners would hang their chains in her sacred grove at Phlius.
WORKING WITH HEBE:
As the Goddess of Aquarius, the Water-Bearer Hebe, pours the water of life from her urn as the cosmic life-force, carrier of creative energy and knowledge, as well as purification through renewal. She was seen as the true gift of purification - after ego had died its true death, she is the portion of consciousness that awakens the Divine Feminine. Both water and the urn, vase, cup or chalice are symbols associated with Goddesses/ the Divine Feminine.
Hebe is the aspect of the goddess that allows the heroic self to feel immortal. She allows us the brief window to glimpse our eternal essence - that undying part of our souls, our divine spark that continues to be reincarnated in various personalities lifetime after lifetime. In her role as the Keeper of Ambrosia she encourages us to seek that connection to our immortal soul but to also get in touch with our youth and innocence - not in an artificial sense, by trying to cling on to youth in body and appearance (as we are so encouraged to in Western culture) but instead to connect to the youthful and innocent spark of our soul which is ageless - the work of connecting to our inner child (not necessarily the part of us that was a child earlier in this lifetime but simply a sense of the spirit of our soul’s eternal Inner Child Archetype - a connection to our innocence, youthfulness, originality and inventiveness.)
Hebe is all that is good and uplifting in the world - she is a true giver like the humanitarian Aquarius. She can support us to feel less wearied and jaded as she looks forward and sees a clean slate and limitless possibilities for all. She is a Goddess who can help us connect again with a sense of hope and restored faith in our vision for the future. Through divine sustenance, Hebe empowers our spirit and restores our ideals. As the guidance from the Hebe card instructs in the Ancient Feminine Wisdom deck by Kay Stevenson & Brian Clark:
“Hebe implies that many worldly trials have been faced and a critical phase is passing. Hebe ushers in a period of calm when dreams and potentials can be nourished. As the light of the Higher Self, she dispenses heavenly manna in our earthbound lives, renewing hope and faith in the future. An emotional drought is ending and the heart is opening up to the possibility of relationship. New projects widen life’s horizons, and a period of spiritual renewal lies ahead.”
RITUALS TO WORK WITH HEBE/ FOR AQUARIUS SEASON
Try this JOURNALING RITUAL around Hebe/Aquarius themes:
What would bring me energetic nourishment, sustenance & vitality right now?
What do I need to let go and forgive myself for?
What do I need to reconnect to my sense of innocence and youthful vitality? / What activities can I do to reconnect to my inner child?
What areas of my life / habits are in need of purification/renewal / What needs a refresh / where can I innovate more?
What are my hopes and wishes for this year ahead? (If that’s difficult to connect to - where have I lost a sense of hope and why? What do I need to restore it?)
Where can I let go of the past and embrace a clean slate and limitless possibility?
Where can I be more giving?
What new projects do I wish to start?
DRINK MORE WATER/ NOURISH YOUR BODY WITH MORE HEALTHY LIQUIDS Aquarius is an air sign but it’s symbol is the Water-Bearer and in Latin, Aquarius literally means “water-carrier,” from the Latin aqua meaning “water. The two squiggly lines that symbolise Aquarius are also believed to depict waves (although some say they’re air waves given Aquarius is an air sign). Either way, use this opportunity before and around Imbolc /the lead-up to Spring to do a gentle detox in preparation for spring with more nourishing soups, stews and bone broths
PURIFY YOUR MIND-BODY-SOUL WITH YOGA - try Kundalini yoga and Kapalabhati Pranayama breathing in particular for some potent body (and ego!) purification
SUMMARY:
Themes: hopes, wishes, renewal, regeneration, purification, spiritual sustenance, inspiration, innovation, new ideas, destiny, higher consciousness, vision, innovation, revolution
Other related Goddesses: Arianrhod (Welsh Goddess of the Stars, Moon, Fertility, Rebirth, Reincarnation and the Silver Wheel), Coventina (Wishes, Water, Purity & Innocence), Astraea (Star Goddess/The Star Maiden, Innocence, Purity), Ushas (Goddess of Dawn in the Vedas)
Chakra: SOUL STAR (Above the Crown Chakra)
Symbols: Pitcher & Cup, Fountain of Youth, Eagles, Ivy
Flower: The Hebe flower
Crystals: Clear Quartz, Aquamarine
Associated Zodia: Aquarius (fixed air)
Associated Tarot: The Star
Time of Year: Middle of Winter - between Yule and Imbolc