Circe: Witch Icon and Sorceress

Written by: Stephanie M, a priestess of Hecate and local devotee of Circe.

Casting spells with her dogs out!

You’ve probably heard the name Circe. She had a big role in Homer’s The Odyssey where she turned Odysseus’ crew into pigs. And that’s what most people remember about her; but she is much more than that and her story has much farther reach.

She is the foremost Sorceress in Greek mythology with her being a daughter of Helios, the Titan who embodies the Sun, as well as her mother being a water nymph (herself the daughter of the Titan Oceanus). Her siblings were Aeetes the King of Colchis (and the father of Medea) and Pasiphae the Queen of Crete and the mother of the Minotaur. As you might guess, with those siblings and relatives, Circe had a lot of connections with another Greek myth—that of Jason and the Argonauts.

In the myths, she had an extraordinary knowledge of herbs and potions and lived on the island of Aeaea, which is where Odysseus found her. One of her most feared powers was that of transmogrification—turning men into horrid beasts such as woodpeckers, pigs, wolves, or lions! She used her powers on Scylla and turned her into a monster out of jealousy.

On the other side of that coin though, she was able to remove a blood curse from Jason, Medea, and the Argonauts after Medea killed her brother to keep her father from following them after they stole the Golden Fleece. In her role as Priestess, she was an advisor to Odysseus and gave him the tools he needed to both safely pass Scylla and reclaim his kingdom.

Circe is referred to as a 'sorceress' which differentiates her from being a witch (or the Goddess of Witches, like her niece Hecate). As a Titan, Circe also has her own power and does not petition others to come to her aid in her workings. That said, she also had to learn to work with the herbs she used—that knowledge was not innate to her, but she was able to use her own power in conjunction with those herbs to achieve a greater effect. Additionally, Circe embodies the idea that one cannot cure unless one also knows how to harm.

Although a Titan and thus a Goddess, there is very little in the myths and history that shows a formal worship of Circe. From her stories however, it would seem that she could be called on to help a person remove negativity from their life as she helped Medea and Jason. Perhaps she could be petitioned to help with change, as She changed men’s forms or for advice on a way forward as she helped Odysseus.

Offerings might include bundles of herbs, herbal teas, or candles that would speak to her heritage as daughter of the Sun. Please just make sure that the herbs are animal and pet-friendly (she clearly loves animals) and never leave a candle unattended.

For more information, check out The Odyssey by Homer; Circe, by Madeline Miller (fiction but weaves together myths into a book that reads like an autobiography), and Greek mythology especially anything with the Minotaur and Jason and the Argonauts.