Edited by Rebecca Buchanan and the Editorial Board of Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Price: $12.99 (paperback)
Publication Date: 20 March 2013
Place of Publication: Asheville, North Carolina
ISBN: 978-1482682854 / 1482682850
Pages: 238 pp
Binding Type: US Trade Paper
Trim Size: 5.5″x8.5″
Metalsmith. Fire-Tamer. Forge-Master.
Bronzeworker. Weaponsmaster of the Gods.
The Lame One. The Ugly God.
Friend of Humanity.
He is Hephaestus, the Divine Craftsman. Patient, stout-hearted, and clever, he is the Master of all Metals, the Holy Engineer. Celebrated for his wondrous creations, he is also pitied and teased for his lameness, his unsightly appearance, his estrangement from his family, and his marriage to lovely Aphrodite.
But Hephaestus is not a God to be underestimated or ill-used — a reality understood by his modern devotees. In the pages of this anthology you will find poems, prayers, essays, artwork, and rituals glorifying the Divine Mechanic. Some of his devotees see his hand in the engineering marvels of the Industrial Age and the hardware of the Information Age. Others see his handiwork in the heavens or hear his rumblings deep in the earth. Still others see lessons to be learned in his reconciliation with his mother, Hera, and his very nature as a “disabled” God.
And so we sing:
Hail Hephaestus
Flame-Hearted
Soot-Faced
Ever-Resourceful
God
Harnessing Fire may be purchased in paperback format through Amazon in paperback and for the Kindle; and through Barnes and Noble. All of the proceeds from Harnessing Fire – as well as many of the other volumes in the Bibliotheca Alexandrina series – will be used to help promote the revival of the worship of the ancient Gods, with a portion of the proceeds given to a worthy charitable organization in their name. So, not only will you be getting a wonderful book about the modern worship of Hephaestus – but your money will be going to do good work and help the revival of ancient polytheistic religions.
ATTENTION Librarians, Teachers and Retailers: Harnessing Fire is also available at reduced cost for academic institutions, lending libraries (public and private) and retailers. Check our online store, or email baeditor@gmail.com with any questions.
We are rebuilding the Library of Alexandria one book at a time!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Frontispiece: “Hephaestus” by Krysta S. Roy — ii
Dedication: Orphic Hymn LXVI — ix
Introduction — 1
Holy by Sophie Reicher — 2
Hephaistos’ Hammer by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus — 7
The Smith by Diotima Sophia — 11
Musings on the Metalsmith by Jason Ross Inczauskis — 12
“Hephaestus” by Chris Parent — 14
The Anvil of Hephaestus by Fern GZ Carr — 15
The Bath of Hestia by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus — 16
Hephaestus and Volcanus: The Well-Tempered Fire and the Earth’s Warmth by Hélio Pires — 18
Volcanic Carrots by Cynthia Gallaher — 28
Prayer to Hephaestus I by Rebecca Buchanan — 30
A Spark Kindled by Krysta S. Roy — 31
A Helping Hand by Hélio Pires — 32
Song of Hephaistos by Amanda Sioux Blake — 44
“Hephaestus” by Alayna Lemmer — 46
The Lord of Forms by Jason Ross Inczauskis — 47
Rite to Hephaestus by Natasha Handy — 49
The Hermit: Hephaistos by Iona Miller — 50
A Meditation on Hephaistos by Quintas Poppaeus Sabinus — 93
Prayer to Hephaestus by Alma Alexander — 95
Prefatory to a Prayer to Hephaestus by Rebecca Buchanan — 96
Gods Playing Poker by Jason Ross Inczauskis — 97
Refuge by Diotima Sophia — 123
To Hephaistos by Amanda Sioux Blake — 128
Hephaestus by Ted Taylor — 129
hephaestus now by Rebecca Buchanan — 131
C&H at Carquinez Strait by Phillip Barron — 132
Salt by Rebecca Buchanan — 133
Hephaestus: An Acrostic by T.J. O’Hare — 149
Pandora’s Tackle Box by Paul Lamb — 150
Homoeroticism and Hephaistos: A Modern “Myth” by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus — 163
“Aphrodite-Charis” by Damian Chavez — 173
Coppersmith by Paridhi Agarwal — 174
The Golden Net by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus — 175
Hephaestus at the Forge Shows His Back Room by James B. Nicola — 183
The Mirror by Diotima Sophia — 184
Vulcan Restored by Don Russ — 188
Adamant by Jennifer Lawrence — 190
The Goading of Hephaestus by Melia Suez — 192
Hephaestus to Aphrodite by William F DeVault — 195
Cast Away by Jason Ross Inczauskis — 197
The Reconciliation of Hephaistos and Hera: Katallageia by Amanda Sioux Blake — 200
Limping Olympians: Divinity and Disability by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus — 206
Hephaestus by Reverend Allyson Szabo — 213
Appendix I: Epithets and Festivals of Hephaestus — 215
Appendix II: Our Contributors — 216
About Bibliotheca Alexandrina — 226
Current Titles — 227
Forthcoming Titles — 228
Back Cover Image: “Forge” by P.T. Helms
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