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Iambe, She-Who-Limps-Along.
Y*MBA
Alternate meanings: Abuse, Indecent-Speech.
[to Whom the twenty-first day of October, day 294, is dedicated]
Geography/Culture: Greek.
Linguistic Note: this name is derived from Greek iambos.
Description: Goddess of satire, lampoon, bawdyness and pornographic humour; She Who brings relief of tension by provoking laughter; Consoler of those in distress; Inspirer of iambic verse; Matron of buffoons and comedians; She Who is associated with the Eleusian Mysteries.
Some say She is a Maiden Goddess, some say a lame Crone Goddess.
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Iambe is sometimes concieved of as the Maiden aspect of a triple Goddess
with Mother Demeter, Barley-Mother
and Crone Baubo, Soother
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To Whom Sacred: kykeon (a drink made of water, flour and mint, or some say, water, wheat or barley meal and pennyroyal); wine; dildo; iambic meter (iamb, a metrical foot consisting of a short syllable followed by a long -- in quantitative verse, or an unstressed syallable followed by a stressed -- in accentual verse, conveying a limping quality).
Festival: She is associated with the Thesmophoria festival.
Male Associates: consort, Dysaules, House-Where-it-is-Not-Good-to-Dwell, (though some say this is a name Demeter gave to Celeus). Sons: Triptolemos, Threefold-Warrior, (or Thrice-Daring), a cowherd, Eumolpos, The-Sweet-Singer, a shepherd, and Eubouleus, a swineherd.
Titles/Variants, etc:
- Orphic tradition called Iambe, She-Who-Limps-along, Baubo, Soother, below.
- See also Italian Befana, Buffoonish-Hag, -- perhaps a related concept.
- Associated with Demeter, Barley-Mother, in the Eleusian Mysteries.
- Some say Daughter of Echo, Ringing-in-the-Ears.
- Some say Daughter of the mortal Metaneira, She-Who-Lives-Among-Maidens, below.
- Iambe is associated with Thesmophoros, Law-Giving, in the Thesmophoria festival.
Source: GF.GM/106; Graves GMv1/90, 95; RHJ.HGM/92, 100
Baubo, Soother.
B9BO
Alternate meaning: Belly.
Geography/Culture: Orphic.
Description: Old dry-nurse Goddess of belly laughter and suggestive jokes; She Whose obscene gestures have a magical value; She Who groans as if in travail and produces Demeter's own son, Iacchus, 'Boistrous-Shout', from under Her skirts.
To Whom Sacred: kykeon; Baubo figurines (usually legs upholding a belly, or womb which is also Her head); harp (which the figurines sometimes hold).
Titles/Variants, etc:
- Also called: Iambe, She-Who--Limps-Along, above.
Source: KC.GG/242-44; MP.BGH/42
Metaneira, She-Who-Lives-Among-Maidens.
M]T*NAR1
Geography/Culture: Greek.
Description: She and Her consort were the couple who entertained Demeter hostpitably when She came in disguise to Eleusis.
Male Associates: consort, Celeus, King of Eleusis.
Titles/Variants, etc:
- Daughter of Amphictyonis, President-of-Neighbors, (in Her masculine form).
- Some say mother of Iambe, She-Who-Limps-Along, above.
worked on: October, June 1995; August 1991; June, July 1990.
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