Invocations of Hecate

Heacate - William Blake

Porphyry preserves the following hymn (translated in Johnston Hekate Soteira p. 140):

I come, a virgin of varied forms, wandering through the heavens,
bull-faced, three-headed, ruthless, with golden arrows,
chaste Phoebe bringing light to mortals, Eileithyia;
bearing the three symbols of a triple nature.
In the aether I appear in fiery forms
and in the air I sit in a silver chariot;
Earth reins in my black brood of puppies.

ἥδ’ ἐγώ εἰμι κόρη πολυφάσματος, οὐρανόφοιτος,
ταυρῶπις, τρικάρηνος, ἀπηνής, χρυσοβέλεμνος,
Φοίβη ἀπειρολεχής, φαεσίμβροτος Εἰλείθυια,
τριστοίχου φύσεως συνθήματα τρισσὰ φέρουσα·
αἰθέρι μὲν πυρόεσσιν ἐειδομένη εἰδώλοις,
ἠέρα δ’ ἀργεννοῖσι τροχάσμασιν ἀμφικάθημαι·
γαῖα δ’ ἐμῶν σκυλάκων δνοφερὸν γένος ἡνιοχεύει.

The author of the third-century CE Refutation of All Heresies (4.35) preserves the following hymn:

Approach, you of the netherworld, of earth, of heaven, Bombō!
You by the wayside, at the crossroads, light-bearer, night-wanderer,
Enemy of light, friend and companion of night,
Rejoicing in the bark of pups and in bright red blood,
Lurking among the corpses and the tombs of the dead,
Lusting for blood, bringing terror to mortals,
Grim one, Ogress, Moon – you of many forms,
May you come gracious to our immolations!

Νερτερίη, χθονίη τε καὶ οὐρανίη μολὲ Βομβώ·
εἰνοδίη, τριοδῖτι, φαεσφόρε, νυκτεροφοῖτι,
ἐχθρὴ μὲν φωτός, νυκτὸς δὲ φίλη καὶ ἑταίρη,
χαίρουσα σκυλάκων ὑλακῇ τε καὶ αἵματι φοινῷ,
ἂν νέκυας στείχουσα κατ’ ἠρία τεθνηώτων,
αἵματος ἱμείρουσα, φόβον θνητοῖσι φέρουσα,
Γοργὼ καὶ Μορμὼ καὶ Μήνη καὶ Πολύμορφε·
ἔλθοις εὐάντητος ἐφ’ ἡμετέρῃσι θυηλαῖς.

The Orphic Hymn to Hecate, translated by Athanassakis and Wolkow:

Lovely Hekate of the roads and of the crossroads I invoke.
In heaven, on earth, then in the sea, saffron-cloaked,
tomb spirit reveling in the souls of the dead,
daughter of Perses, haunting deserted places, delighting in deer,
nocturnal, dog-loving, monstrous queen,
devouring wild beasts, ungirt and repulsive.
Herder of bulls, queen and mistress of the whole world,
leader, nymph, mountain-roaming nurturer of youths,
maiden, I beseech you to come to these holy rites,
ever with joyous heart, ever favoring the oxherd.

Εἰνοδίαν Ἑκάτην κλήιζω, τριοδῖτιν, ἐραννήν,
οὐρανίαν χθονίαν τε καὶ εἰναλίαν, κροκόπεπλον,
τυμβιδίαν, ψυχαῖς νεκύων μέτα βακχεύουσαν,
Περσείαν, φιλέρημον, ἀγαλλομένην ἐλάφοισι,
νυκτερίαν, σκυλακῖτιν, ἀμαιμάκετον βασίλειαν,
θηρόβρομον, ἄζωστον, ἀπρόσμαχον εἶδος ἔχουσαν,
ταυροπόλον, παντὸς κόσμου κληιδοῦχον ἄνασσαν,
ἡγεμόνην, νύμφην, κουροτρόφον, οὐρεσιφοῖτιν,
λισσόμενος κούρην τελεταῖς ὁσίαισι παρεῖναι
βουκόλωι εὐμενέουσαν ἀεὶ κεχαρηότι θυμῶι.