ASTEROID & MYTHICAL GODDESSES

Hekate is a goddess whose origins can be traced back to ancient Greek religion, with possible roots in the Carians of southwest Asia Minor. 

She has also been associated with the Egyptian goddess of fertility and childbirth, Heqet, who, like Hecate, was also associated with Heka, the god of magic and medicine.

She was known as the daughter of Titan Perses and the nymph Asteria and became a powerful figure with dominion over the heavens, earth, and sea.

According to Hesiod, she held sway over many things:

Whom she will she greatly aids and advances: she sits by worshipful kings in judgement, and in the assembly whom she will is distinguished among the people. And when men arm themselves for the battle that destroys men, then the goddess is at hand to give victory and grant glory readily to whom she will. 

Good is she also when men contend at the games, for there too the goddess is with them and profits them: and he who by might and strength gets the victory wins the rich prize easily with joy, and brings glory to his parents. 

And she is good to stand by horsemen, whom she will: and to those whose business is in the grey discomfortable sea, and who pray to Hecate and the loud-crashing Earth-Shaker, easily the glorious goddess gives great catch, and easily she takes it away as soon as seen, if so she will. 

She is good in the byre with Hermes to increase the stock. The droves of kine and wide herds of goats and flocks of fleecy sheep, if she will, she increases from a few or makes many to be less. 

So, then, albeit her mother's only child, she is honored amongst all the deathless gods. And the son of Cronos made her a nurse of the young who after that day saw with their eyes the light of all-seeing Dawn. So from the beginning she is a nurse of the young, and these are her honours.

Hekate is most commonly represented holding torches to illuminate multiple paths, keys to the crossroads, or dogs, symbolizing her role as a protector of the household and a guide through the night. 

More modern depictions show her in a triple form, representing her ability to see in all directions of the crossroads, emphasizing her connection to boundaries and transitions, making her a guardian of thresholds and a mediator between different realms, much like the messenger Hermes. 

In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter (600 BCE), Hekate is referred to as "tender-hearted", an epithet referencing the disappearance of Persephone, as she assisted Demeter with her search for her daughter after her abduction by Hades. 

Hekate became Persephone's companion on her yearly journey to and from the realms of Hades, serving as a psychopomp. Because of this association, Hekate was one of the chief goddesses of the Eleusinian Mysteries, alongside Demeter and Persephone, according to Charles Edwards. 

There was a temple dedicated to her near the main sanctuary at Eleusis, says, Mary Bachvarova, in a May 2010 publication, "Hecate: An Anatolian sun-goddess of the underworld". 

Hekate offers a powerful foundation for integrity built on five core virtues: Justice, Temperance, Courage, Wisdom, and Compassion, what the Greeks called Eudaimonia: A dynamic pathway to an authentic, flourishing life. 

Integrity is the active process of doing the right thing when no one is looking, so to align our inner principles with your outward actions. 

Hekate's most fundamental teaching involves choice and accountability for that choice. 

She illuminates all paths at the crossroads; however, never chooses for us. We are left to contemplate, reflect on every potential outcome before owning our decision.

This is the catalyst for the greatest personal growth. 

This integrity extends outward through Xenia, the ancient and sacred Greek principle of hospitality. Xenia requires us to treats all strangers with inherent respect and generosity. By doing so, we weave our own virtues into the collective. 

She is much like Saturn, the teacher and task master of the zodiac. Nothing is given, especially a purposeful life by Hekate. It's earned through the conscious application of the aforementioned virtues and bearing responsibility for our own choices. 

And so, we face ourselves in the mirror of experience.