GERMAN SCIENTISTS ARE AFRAID TO DECANT THIS BOTTLE OF ANCIENT ROMAN RED WINE

SCIENTISTS in Germany would love to decant a bottle of Ancient Roman red wine which has been aging for more than 1,600 years ... but they are afraid to open the bottle.

The sealed glass bottle was found in a Roman tomb in 1867 and put on display at the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in the western German city of Speyer.

Museum directors fear that a moment's carelessness could shatter the bottle, destroying its priceless content. Though scientists would like to test it to figure out exactly how old the wine is and where it comes from, as well as perhaps seeing how it tastes – cracking it open is out of the question. 

"It's not clear what would happen if air gets into the wine," said Ludger Tekampe, who heads the department responsible for storing it. 

There's also the danger that, after all this time, it could have become poisonous, although scientists suspect the alcohol would not be dangerous, but just taste disgusting.

In any event, the ultra-old wine has survived a lot, including ancient drinkers, handling on its way to the museum, and two world wars, with nary a problem. 

Tekampe said he hasn't observed any changes in the wine or its container in his 25 years at the museum, the bottle appears to have been carefully constructed by the Romans to prevent the wine from decomposing.

"The content is remarkably stable," Tekampe said. 

Still he's the only one who handles the bottle. Everyone else is just too afraid.

"I held the bottle in my hand twice during renovations. It was a strange feeling," Tekampe said.

A TRANSLATION OF THE HIEROGLYPHS ON THE OBELISK OF ANTINOUS

IN ancient times, Antinous was known as a miracle worker. His worshipers prayed to him for miracles, oracles, visions and answers to problems in their daily lives.

The Egyptian hieroglyphs on the OBELISK OF ANTINOUS state clearly that Antinous answers the prayers of all who call upon him through dreams and visions, for example.

This document, written in crumbling hieroglyphs on an obelisk of red granite, is the only authentic fragment which remains from the Ancient Religion of Antinous. It is believed to have been authored by Hadrian, or a high priest, proclaiming the Egyptian basis of the Ancient Religion of Antinous.

It vividly proclaims the Religion of Antinous, and it is the only document through which the voice of Antinous speaks directly. If it was written by Hadrian, then it is what the founder of the Religion of Antinous wished to convey to us.

The translation below is based on extensive work using the only scholarly book in existence which provides a full transliteration of the hieroglyphic inscription. This book was published in Germany in 1994 by German scholars and so their translation is of course in German — not English. An authoritative English translation has never existed — until now.

The inscription liberally employs deliciously "Egyptiany" puns and euphemisms which are very difficult to translate. For example, Antinous is described as having "festively decorated eyes" and those words have been used in all previous English translations, based on the German. But other scholars cited in the book's appendices point out that "festively decorated eyes" is an idiomatic expression not to be taken literally. In fact, they argue, it means it is not necessarily HIS eyes which are decorated, but rather it is OUR eyes which are adorned by the vision of his loveliness. Through His eyes He dazzles us. So it really means "He is dazzling in beauty of the eyes" — which is what we have decided to use.

The inscription also shows how difficult it was for the Egyptians to translate Greek and Roman concepts into hieroglyphs. For example, the Egyptians had no word for "hippodrome" since a stadium for chariot-racing was an alien concept to the Egyptians. So the inscription calls it "a horse-whipping place" which, while being colorful, is perhaps a bit misleading. So, after careful consideration, we have decided to use the word "arena" in that passage.

One insight which comes from reading the glyphs (which are incised right-to-left) is the realization that the text begins on the East Face (the Rising Sun) and proceeds clockwise right-to-left around the obelisk. Hitherto, the order of the faces was assumed to be East-West-North-South. But we are convinced the Egyptians meant the text to be read East-South-West-North, in one continuing narrative. Thus, the faces follow like pages in a book. For the first time in 1,800 years, the new translation below makes the narrative sense clear.

Starting with the East Face, we see references to Ra-Herakhte, the Rising Sun.

Next comes the South Face, which is the direction of the Source of the Nile, the source of all life, and the inscription discusses the tomb and the establishment on this Earth of the Sacred City of Antinoopolis.

Then comes the West Face, which is the direction of the setting sun and the Underworld. The inscription speaks of the deeper Mystery Teachings of the religion and how the guardians of the Gates of the Underworld permit Antinous to pass through unheeded.

Finally, we come to the North Face, which is directed to the Circumpolar Stars which the Egyptians called "The Imperishables". These stars and constellations around the Pole Star Polaris never set below the horizon — they never die. The Egyptians believed those "Imperishables" were in fact the gods and pharaohs. Accordingly, the inscription speaks of the miracles which Antinous performs by virtue of the fact that he is indeed one of these "Shining Ones" and by virtue of the fact that the magical force of creation ("the semen of the First God") truly is in his body.

The Obelisk of Antinous is the most important document of the new Religion of Antinous, it is the only vestige of the original religion, a sacred inscription without parallel, but its origin and purpose remain completely veiled in mystery, as is everything that remains of Antinous.

---

THE OBELISK OF ANTINOUS

EAST FACE
(Towards the Newborn Sun)

Antinous the God, His heart in rapture
At Having come to know His True Form
And at Having seen His father Ra-Harakhte,
It is Antinous who brings forth this prayer.

Thus His Heart Proclaims:
Ra-Harakhte, supreme among the gods,
He who hears the prayers of the Gods and Men,
Of the Transfigured and the Dead,
Hear also the plea of Hadrian,
Who stands before you!

As recompense for all he has done
For me, Antinous, your beloved son,
Generously reward Hadrian,
Lord of Both Upper and Lower Egypt,
Who founded a magnificent new religion
In the temple shrines for all people,
Which has pleased the Gods!

And he is called "Beloved of Hapy and All the Gods,"
The Lord of Crowns, Hadrianus Caesar

May he have Eternal Life, Prosperity and Sanctity
Throughout all time like Ra,
Blossoming and rising anew
Throughout the ages!

He is Our Lord,
The ruler of all lands,
The Noble Augustus!

The Lords of Egypt bow to him,
And the Barbarians are vanquished
Beneath his feet,
As it has always been
Under the rulers of Upper and Lower Egypt.

They come into being by the utterance of his word,
His might extends to the far reaches of the realm
And the four corners of the Earth!

Bulls mate in rapture with cows
And bring forth their young for Hadrian,
To please his heart and that of his great and beloved Queen,
The Mistress of Upper and Lower Egypt and all its cities,
Sabina Sebaste Augusta!
May she have Eternal Life, Prosperity and Sanctity forever!

Hapy, progenitor of the gods,
On behalf of Hadrian and Sabina,
Arrange the inundation in fortuitous time
To make fertile and bountiful the fields
Of Both Upper and Lower Egypt!

SOUTH FACE

(Towards the Source of the Nile)

Antinous the God is here!
He rests in this place
Which is in the Border Fields of Our Lady Rome.

In all Sacred Places of Egypt
He is recognized as Divine.

Temple shrines are raised to Him,
And He is revered as a God
By the oracles and priests
Of Upper and Lower Egypt,
Indeed by all the people of Egypt!

The City of Antinoopolis was named in His honour,
Populated by the Greeks of Egypt
As well as priests from the temples of Egypt,
And those who have come to this place
With the promise of splendours beyond all measure.

A Temple to Antinous the God,
Who is among the Shining Ones of Heaven,
Is located in this city
Built of good white stone,
Surrounded by sphinxes and statues
And innumerable columns
Like those Temples erected
By Our Ancient Ancestors
And also like those of the Greeks.

All Gods and Goddesses
Give Him the Breath of Eternal Life
That He might breathe
As One Who Is Eternally Young!

WEST FACE
(Towards the Underworld)

Antinous the God,
Who is among the Shining Ones of Heaven,
Has been transfigured into a God of Eternal Youth,
Perfect of countenance,
Who is dazzling in beauty of the eyes,
Whose heart is full of heroic joy
Since He received the order of the Gods
At the hour of his death.

Every ritual of the Book of the Hours
Shall be repeated for him
Along with each of His Mysteries.

His Word shall be spread to the whole world.
His teaching shall be a never-ending river
Of admonition, inspiration and mystery.

Nothing comparable has been conferred
On any mortal man before now,
Just as with His altars, His temples
And His sacred images.

All by virtue of the Truth
That He breathes the Breath of Eternal Life.
And His magnitude comes into being
In the hearts of all men.

Lord of Hermopolis,
Lord of the Sacred Words, Thoth!
Take the Soul of Antinous
And make it Eternally Young
At every moment of every night,
And every day, for all Eternity!

Love for Him fills the hearts of His followers
And the Awe of HIM is with all.
His believers raise their voices in praise
When they worship Him.

He takes His seat in the Hall of the Justified,
The Illuminated and the Exalted,
Who are in the entourage of Osiris
In the Kingdom of the Underworld,
For the Lord of Eternity finds Justice in Him!

Through the Gods
His Word endures upon the Earth,
Because He fills their hearts with joy!

He is able to enter any place he wishes.
The guardians of the gates
Of the Kingdom of the Underworld
Say "Praise to You" to Him...
They loosen their bolts
And throw open their gates before him...
Millions of years long...daily...
As his duration of life is as the sun,
Never in eternity elapsing!

NORTH FACE

(Towards the Circumpolar Imperishables)

Behold, Antinous the God is Here,
Who is among the Shining Ones!

An arena was erected in His sacred city in Egypt
Antinoopolis, which was named for Him,
Being for the champions from all lands of the Earth,
For the rowing teams and the runners
And for the masters of the arts
Of the Lord of Sacred Words, Thoth.
And they are awarded glorious prizes
And wreaths and rewards of plentiful riches.

Offerings are brought daily upon His altars.

He is honored in praise by the artists of Thoth
In accordance with His glory.

He strides forth from his resting place
To His innumerable temples
All across the earthly realm.

He hears the prayers of all those who call out to Him,
And He cures the afflictions of those in need
By sending healing visions while they dream.

Once He has accomplished His work among the living,
He takes every shape that His heart desires,
For the semen of the First God
Truly is in His body!

THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR MARTYR SAINTS OF MALE-MALE LOVE

ON this day, the origin of the folk belief that "Friday the 13th" is an unlucky day, the Religion of Antinous remembers the Knights Templar.

The proud and courageous brotherhood known as the Order of Knights Templar, who were sworn to protect pilgrims traveling to the Holy Land, were accused of Heresy, Idolatry and Sodomy, and were arrested on Friday the 13th of October in the year 1310 in France.

Although they had fought valiantly during the Crusades, and even stayed behind, sacrificing themselves to guard the retreat of Christian refugees during the fall of Acre in 1291, the order was condemned by the Pope and handed over to the envious King Philip the "Fair" of France, who coveted their land and immense wealth.

The Knights had adopted the heresy of Catharism which was basically a form of Gnosticism with Manichean influence, that had perhaps been introduced to them in the Holy Land where it flourished under the Moslems.

The Cathars believed that Jesus had descended to the material plane to undo the rule of the God of Israel, and that he had liberated mankind from the law of Moses and the natural order, through salvation in his name.

The Cathars believed that the body, and life itself, was the creation of the Evil One, who claimed to be the "Creator of the Universe."

They did not recognize the authority of the Church and believed that homosexuality was sacred because it was a form of love which did not result in procreation (locking humans in a cycle of earthly incarnations).

Following the Platonic ideal of Venus Urania, the Cathars believed that Brotherly Love was more in keeping Christ's teaching than the love between husband and wife.

The Knights Templar, whose seal depicted two knights riding on one horse, quite openly advocated this philosophy. But the Papal accusation claimed that they took this to the extreme of sodomy, requiring new initiates to perform the Kiss of Shame, by which they kissed the buttocks and phallus of the Grand Master of the Order.

They were also accused of abandoning Christianity and worshipping a demon called Baphomet, a hermaphroditic, goat-headed idol whose name implied secret knowledge.  

Other accusations were leveled against the Knights. But Heresy, Satanism, and Sodomy were the crimes which essentially led to their downfall. 

Of course most of this information was obtained through torture. But one can only wonder at the consistency that characterizes their confessions. 

On this night, the Grand Master Jacques de Molay and thousands of  Templars were arrested, tortured, condemned and subsequently Burned at the Stake. From then on, Heresy, Devil worship, and Homosexuality were indistinguishable in the eyes of the Inquisition, perhaps because they were indeed interconnected. 

Homosexuality, however, had not been a significant threat to Christendom until it was connected with a diabolical plot to overthrow the order of society and of the Church. This was the beginning of Our Burning Times, and over the course of the next 400 years, thousands of homosexuals were officially and publicly condemned and burned or otherwise executed as an act of faith that, through our extermination, the Church was protecting the world from the Forces of Evil which we embodied.

For their courage and sacrifice, we praise the Order of the Knights Templar as Heroic Martyr Saints of the Religion of Antinous, as the Sacred Band of the Middle Ages, and we recognize their secret god Baphomet as an incarnation of our beloved Dionysus, a manifestation of Homo Deus, and of Our Beautiful God Antinous.

MATTHEW SHEPARD SAINT OF ANTINOUS

ON this sad day we honor a young gay man who was brutally murdered: Matthew Shepard, who died at 12:53 am on Monday, October 12th, 1998.

He was brutally assaulted because he was gay, on the night of October 7, by two men who had lured him to a secluded place outside of Laramie Wyoming. 

His attackers tied him to a fence, beat him and left him for dead in the freezing cold. 

He was found the following evening by a cyclist. 

By the time help arrived, he had slipped into unconsciousness.

The death of Matthew Shepard awakened the world to the persecution that homosexuals have endured for centuries. His beauty, youth and innocence affected everyone, and spoke for the hundreds of others who in recent years have died similar deaths without being noticed.

Matthew Shepard is a Sacred and Holy Martyr of Homosexuality, he died an innocent because he was gay. He died a death that so many others have suffered, but his death changed the world.

He was 22 years old, very near the age of Antinous and, like Antinous, his beautiful face, humble origin, and tragic death have had a great impact on the future of homosexuality in our society.

We consecrate his memory and pray for him, that he will guide and protect us in our hour of danger, and bring an end to the violence and hatred that he suffered.

ANTINOUS HAS TWO SPIRITS

IN October millions of people in the United States of America celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day as an alternative to Columbus Day.

Antinous the Gay God is the divine essence of homosexuality ... the magico/spiritual gay spark in the Ancient Blood of humanity ... from the Olduvai Gorge ... across the Caucasus ... into Europe ... over mountains and deserts to the Far East ... over land bridges and in outrigger canoes to Australasia ... and the Americas! 

That gay spiritual spark flows in the veins of all of us ... but it shines most brightly in the Two Spirit People ... who have suffered so terribly for living magico/spiritual lives ... and who are re-kindling that spark today ... that it might shine brighter than ever.

Antinous the Gay God has Two Spirits ... but One Heart. Antinous dances with Two Spirits around the world. Antinous lives in the heart of Two Spirits everywhere ... the healers, medicine people and musicians. 

Antinous adherent Jack Baker offers this poem to all Gay and LGBT Two-Spirit, that they take pride in that name! 

TWO-SPIRIT

Two-Spirit never forget who you are.

A light to this world as bright as a star.
You are born as healers to humanity.
Together we can cure its insanity.
Mother Earth gave you this gift.
Of two-spirits to heal this rift.
Once seen as sacred and pure.
Now a sinner the Abrahams abhor.
Persecuted you are but strong is your heart.
Shine a light to the world to pave this new start.
Two-Spirit you are the visionaries of earth.
Through your sacred guidance we will see a rebirth.

TODAY IS INTERNATIONAL COMING OUT DAY

THIS international event is in celebration of the joy of revealing to the world our sexuality. 

It is an international event that gives people the opportunity to come out as an act of spiritual and political courage, in defiance of all who would deny homosexuals our human rights. 

The first National Coming Out Day was held on October 11, 1988, it was in commemoration for the 1987 March on Washington. 

In its full essence it is a political statement, meant to call out to our brothers and sisters to publicly state that they are homosexual to all those who do not already know. 

Flamen Antonius Subia says:

We acknowledge the spiritual implication of this event as profoundly significant to the religion of Antinous and of the mysterious nature of Homo Deus. As an act of Liberation and as a vision promotion of our presence and numbers, we solemnly dedicate ourselves to public declaration of our sacred sexuality on this day.

THE ANTINOUS 'CAR MASCOT' ORNAMENT

IT has taken 100 years, but this elegant frosted glass "car mascot" has finally found its way ... despite many detours in the road ... to a place of honor in the Hollywood Temple of Antinous.

Perhaps a René Lalique original, this frosted glass car grill radiator ornament would have been illuminated by a tiny light bulb. Standing proudly 15 centimeters (6 inches) tall, it was a very elegant way to personalize a car and to give "The Finishing Touch" to a very elegant motor car.

Glass car mascots came in many forms ... birds, leopards/jaguars, deities ... but an Antinous car mascot gave a subtle hint as to which way the car's bachelor gentleman liked to steer.

This particular car mascot was the subject of fierce bidding on eBay in March 2012 ... with number Antinous followers on both sides of the Atlantic bidding frantically to get it.

In the end, PETER FISKE of Palm Springs California won it for "a couple of hundred dollars," as Peter announced when he formally presented the car mascot to ANTONIUS SUBIA during ceremonies consecrating Peter as a Priest of Antinous in September 2026.

Now the frosted glass Antinous car mascot is a sacred relic in the Hollywood Temple of Antinous. 

ANCIENT ROMAN SPORTS FANS USED MAGIC TO HELP THEIR TEAMS

IN the ancient world, sports fans and athletes turned to magic to empower them against their foes … and this was particularly true in the ancient athletic world of charioteering.

Hundreds of curse tablets, amulets and magical recipes survive today.

They reveal that magic in the ancient Mediterranean was often tied to the world of sports.

In the late Roman Mediterranean, factions of charioteers existed instead of football teams.

Each faction was named after the colors draped onto their horses and worn by the charioteers. There were the Blues, the Greens, the Reds and the Whites. 

They drove four horse chariots called quadrigae both in the hippodrome at Rome’s Circus Maximus and the one at Constantinople. 

There were many other chariot racing venues throughout the Roman empire and fans of these factions became quite attached to their color and the star charioteers on them.

Love for their faction and a desire to help their team to victory frequently led athletes, faction managers, and fans to seek out magical methods in order to snatch victory from the other faction.

A curse tablet from 3rd Century AD Carthage notes: "Bind the horses whose names and images on this implement I entrust to you; of the Red [team]: Silvanus, Servator, Lues…bind their hands, take away their victory…Now, quickly."

Another, found on the Via Appia outside Rome, even mentions a charioteer's mother: 

"I invoke you… so that you may help me and restrain and hold in check Cardelus and bring him to a bed of punishment, to be punished with an evil death, to come to an evil condition, him who his mother Fulgentina bore." 

Many within the Greco-Roman world may have written out a curse themselves, but most likely hired a magician to help them with the process I have sketched below:

A. Know Your Curse Types: There were generally five types of curse tablets in antiquity:

1. litigation or judicial curses (e.g. those used against someone prosecuting you in court)

2. business or trade curses (e.g. those curses used to bring down, say, a rival amphora supplier)

3. erotic curses (e.g. the ever-popular love spells)

4. restitution and punishment curses (e.g. those waged against a thief)

5. defixiones agonisticae (agonistic "binding" curses concerning competitions. These are also called κατάδεσμοι).

Frequently, defixiones were used to bind an athletic enemy … their hands, their feet, their mouths … and keep them from movement. 

Often, they wished for a charioteer to fall off their chariot and be dragged by the horses behind it before they could take their knife and cut themselves out of the reins they tied to their bodies.

B. Pick Your Material Wisely: In the ancient world, most curse tablets were made out of lead. It was easy and relatively cheap to procure the material (particularly in Athens, where the silver mines that produced the bi-product were nearby).

Lead was often used in antiquity for magical purposes: oracles, votives, incantations and curse tablets. 

Many curse tablets are written on thin pieces of lead, then had nails used to pierce them.

Sometimes, locks of hair or other identifying features of an enemy were also wrapped into the curse before being buried.

C. Curses Have Power But Need To Be Activated: It is notable that many of the curses from these ancient tablets seem to have an oral component attached to them. Performance carried empowerment. Names had an innate power that was activated by speaking them aloud and by inscribing them. 

A number of magical papyri, called the Papyri Graecae Magicae, reveal that curses were often activated through the oral performance of incantations and perhaps a sacrifice. 

The visual presentation of the written curse was also important; many have triangular shapes and accompanying depictions of the person being cursed or the magical deities being invoked.

Frequently, there is also the use of somethng which is called a palindrome παλίνδρομος … which is Greek for "running back again" and carried power in its symmetry. These words retained potency whether read from right to left or left to write. 

The use of the magical palindrome Ablanathanalba was popular particularly on curses and amulets, and medical evidence from the early 3rd Century AD suggests that the word Abracadabra was used as an "activating word" in antiquity, before becoming highly popular in the medieval period. 

D. Geography Is Key To Curse Potency: If there is one thing archaeologists know, it is that geography matters in the context of ancient magic. Boundary zones and "liminal" areas are the most magical spaces where one can access the chthonic gods that live underground and who are being spoken to. 

That is why we find many curse tablets buried near doorways, in graves, in wells and baths, and on the boundary lines outside sports venues such as the hippodrome. 

Some curse tablets, such as the famous one from around 400 BC found buried in a grave at the Kerameikos Sanctuary, also had leaden representations of the people they wished to curse before being buried. 

Collectively, the curse tablets addressing charioteering and other sports events in the ancient world, such as wrestling, reveal that all sports fans wanted what they couldn't and can't have: the power to sway the outcome of a competition.

Magic was a way to give agency to those that felt powerless to control the future: powerless to retain the love of another, powerless to control the outcome of a court case, or perhaps powerless to effect the outcome of a key race of the Greens against the Blues. 

WE JOYOUSLY CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL LESBIAN DAY

ON October 8th we joyously celebrate International Lesbian Day!

Lesbian Day is a great opportunity to highlight the achievements of queer women, and the challenges all LGBT people face. 

Antinous is the loving god of ALL of us and lesbians put the L in LGBT.

SAINT SERGIUS AND SAINT BACCHUS

OCTOBER 7th the Religion of Antinous honors St. Sergius and St. Bacchus, Christian patron saints of male-male love.

They were inseparable officers in the Roman army stationed in Syria during the reign of Emperor Maximian, who was fond of them and honored them repeatedly, which gave rise to jealousy in the court. 

A rival denounced Sergius and Bacchus, accusing them of not venerating the ancient gods of Rome, and of being Christians. When summoned to sacrifice to the genius of the Emperor, as was the Roman custom, Sergius and Bacchus refused.

They were imprisoned and subjected to a long series of tortures aimed at forcing them to sacrifice to the gods. They were stripped of their uniforms and made to walk through the streets wearing the clothing of women, a strange form of humiliation not usually inflicted on Christians, but a sign that their sexuality was being used to mock the saints.

Bacchus was beaten to death, but Sergius proved to be considerably  stronger than any torture that the Pagans could subject him to. When he was on the verge of surrender, and in despair, the spirit of Bacchus appeared to him and said: 

"Why do you grieve and mourn, brother? If I have been taken from you in body, I am still with you in the bond of union — Hurry then, yourself, through beautiful and perfect confession to pursue and obtain me."

Sergius was so strengthened that he could not be compelled to betray his faith, and the pagans chopped off his head.

For their strength and for the valor of their love for one another, and because for so many centuries they have remained the champions of homosexual love and devotion, we honor the Christian Saints Sergius and Bacchus as saints of the Religion of Antinous.

NOMINATIONS FOR SAINTHOOD 2026 NOW BEING ACCEPTED BY OUR PRIESTS

THE time has come to Nominate Gay Saints of Antinous for 2026.

Before making a nomination, please check the current LIST OF SAINTS to be sure that your suggestion is not listed already.

All nominations will be considered, but as a reminder, our traditional criteria is as follows:

I. A Nominee for Sainthood must be:

    1. A person who is no longer alive.

    2. A person who was known to be Gay or reasonably suspected to have been Gay or bisexual to a significant degree.

    3. A person who made a notable contribution to gay society or human society in general.

II. A Nominee for the category of Martyr Saint should be:

    1. Any gay person who committed suicide or was the victim of gay violence.

III. A Nominee for the category of Venerable Saint can be:

    1. Any person who was not gay, or whose homosexuality is uncertain, but who made a significant contribution to gay society or gay spirituality that we feel deserves to be recognized in an official capacity.

IV. Members of Ecclesia Antinoi, and those they love may be nominated for passage on the Barque of Millions of Years.

The deadline for nominations is October 25th, any nominations made after that date will have to be added to the nomination list for 2027.  Discussion is open to all considering the qualifications of any nomination.  The Priesthood of Antinous will make the final decision...an announcement will be made on October 30th, and a ceremony of consecration will proceed that evening.

May the Saints of Antinous be with us,

Watch over us,

And guide us to Antinous Consciousness.

Antonivs N. Svbia

Flamen Antinoalis

WE RAISE A TOAST TO ANTINOUS AT THE AURA PLACIDUS WINE FESTIVAL

OCTOBER 5th is Aura Placidus, the autumnal feast of Dionysus, deity of liberation and ecstatic transcendence over death as symbolized by divine intoxication. 

Aura Placidus means "gentle breeze" and today is a day to simply enjoy a day of rest. 

For Dionysus, it was a day of rest after the gathering of the grapes and preparing them for fermentation ... and maybe having a taste or two, just to see how it was getting on.

The Aura Placidus was celebrated with singing, dancing and games ... and with much feasting and drinking.

Antinous traditionally has been identified with Dionysus "Twice Born" of mortal woman and divine radiance. 

Antinous/Dionysus reminds you that you are HOMOTHEOSIS ... Gay Man Godliness Becoming the Same in Divine Radiance.

Today we take a break, sit back, and toast Antinous/Dionysus the divine liberator!

ON WORLD ARCHITECTURE DAY WE HONOUR HADRIAN'S PANTHEON

THE first Monday in October is World Architecture Day and Hadrian's Pantheon is one of the most magnificent examples of architecture the world has ever seen. 

Hadrian's Pantheon brings tears to your eyes. Imagine being with ANTONIUS SUBIA as he describes the monolithic columns each carved from a single stone from Egypt ... "as if he could snap his fingers and have such columns appear here" ... and the marble in the interior coming from every corner of Hadrian's vast empire.

Then you stand under the oculus ... the eye of the cosmos ... the most spiritual architectural element anywhere.

ANTINOUS LOVED ANIMALS

OCTOBER 4th is World Animal Day #WorldAnimalDay.

Here, we see how Antinous harvests grapes as a dog looks up at him adoringly, and who can blame it? 

This is the Lanuvium bas-relief. Its inscription describes a group loosely translated as the Companions of Antinous.

The inscription says Antinous was born on November 27th. That is how we know his birthday. 

Join Antinous in loving all creatures!

O Dia Mundial dos Animais: Antinous e cão no basuário Lanuvium. Junte-se a Antinous em amar todas as criaturas! ... El Día del Animal o Día Mundial de los Animales: Antinous y perro en el basrelief de Lanuvium. ¡Únete a Antinoos para amar a todas las criaturas! #worldanimalday  🐶🦊🦁🐵🐔🐥🐼🐷🐨🐸🐝🐞🐍🐌🦋🐙🐠🐁🐢🐯🦇🐫🐳🌍❤️

THE FESTIVAL OF THE TOMB OF OSIRIS

THE 3rd of October is the feast of the Netjer Arriving at Abydos (site of the Tomb of Osiris) in Egypt which we commemorate because Antinous has always been equated with Osiris as deity of transcendence over death.

This Egyptian festival is part of the re-enactment of the legend of Isis and Osiris.

Today the body of Osiris would be brought by boat up the Nile accompanied by Isis, Nephthys and other mourners, priests and priestesses to the ancient burial site of Abydos. It was here that the Mystery of the death of the god, and his burial, took place.

This represented the triumph of Osiris over death. An effigy of Osiris was removed from his temple and processed along the Nile to the jubilation of crowds lining the river banks.

Not many people realized that there is a symbolic Tomb of Osiris which was a pilgrimage site for millions of Egyptians over the centuries.

Many Egyptians even designed their own tombs to be a REPLICA TOMB OF OSIRIS.

Just as people make pilgrimages to the Ganges, Mecca, Lourdes and other sites today, the Ancient Egyptians made pilgrimages to Abydos to make offerings.

Many pharaohs also built symbolic tombs at Abydos in addition to their actual tombs in Thebes, Memphis and elsewhere.

Antinous died before reaching Abydos. Did Hadrian weep at the mysterious Osireion Tomb Of Osiris behind this temple? Did he bury Antinous in this most holy of Egyptian cities? Is the Lost Tomb of Antinous hidden in the "wadi" (arroyo) on the edge of the western desert where so many Egyptians buried their loved ones to be close to Osiris? 

The Tomb of Osiris is a subterranean chamber fed by an underground channel from the nearby Nile, which created a moat inside the chamber. The chamber was accessed by priests via a long, dark passageway.

A mound of earth covered the tomb, symbolizing the original mound which rises out of the cosmic depths in the Egyptian creation myths. 

The mound, which is a feature of illustrations in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, is thought to be the inspiration for the first pyramids.

But that raises the controversial issue of the true age of the Tomb of Osiris, an issue hotly disputed by experts.

At nearby Antinoopolis, archaeologists have detected a "deliberately buried" structure with ground-penetrating radar in February and suggested it could be an OSIREION ... symbolic Tomb of Osiris ... raising hopes that this could be the Lost Tomb of Antinous.

BLESSED ORPHEUS THE GOD

 

"Three times the sun had ended the year, in watery Pisces, and Orpheus had abstained from the love of women, either because things ended badly for him, or because he had sworn to do so. 

"Yet, many felt a desire to be joined with the poet, and many grieved at rejection. 

"Indeed, he was the first of the Thracian people to transfer his love to young boys, and enjoy their brief springtime, and early flowering, this side of manhood." 

- Ovid: the Metamorphoses 

~SVBIA

ANTINOUS AND THE ORPHIC MYSTERIES

ON THIS DAY, October 1st, the beginning of the holy month of the Sacred Nights of Antinous, we venerate Orpheus. 

Antinous our God was initiated into the cult of Orpheus so that his teachings became part of the Religion of Antinous, and therefore we receive the salvation that Orpheus accomplished through our god Antinous, the New Dionysus.

It is on this date that the Religion of Antinous remembers the blessed heritage of The Orphic Mysteries, into which Hadrian and Antinous were both initiated.  

The Orphic Mysteries teach that human souls are divine and immortal but doomed to live (for a period) in a "grievous circle" of successive bodily existences through reincarnation. 

This belief that each of us is divine and immortal — Man-Godliness-Becoming-One — is the mystery which Flamen Antinoalis Antonius Subia calls HOMOTHEOSIS. 

By welcoming this divine force instead of rejecting it, we take the first step away from our instinctive animalistic fearful self on the long road to becoming a Shining One of Heaven.

Hadrian and Antinous must have known by heart the story of Orpheus in the Underworld: Orpheus was the son of Apollo and the muse Calliope, and from his father he received the Lyre and the gift of music. 

So powerful was the music of Orpheus that he could tame the hearts of beasts and birds and his song enchanted even the trees and stones.

He was one of the Argonauts who, together with Jason, retrieved the Golden Fleece. Returning from the journey, he married Euridice, but the marriage was short-lived because while fleeing the Shepherd God Aristaios (ironically also often depicted as a form of Antinous in ancient times), who was attempting to rape her, she was bitten by a snake hidden in the grass and died. 

Orpheus was so overwhelmed with grief that he used his powers of enchantment to travel to the underworld to bring back his wife.

His music soothed the three-headed dog, and gained his entry into the dark hall of Hades and Persephone. There he sang to the rulers of the underworld, and his song touched the cold heart of the Lady of Death. Persephone decreed that he could lead his wife out of hell provided that he did not turn to see her following.

Orpheus, singing as he went, very nearly succeeded, but at the last moment, at the very gate of darkness, he turned and saw his wife vanish back into oblivion.

Flamen Antinoalis Antonius Subia tells the rest of the story, and why it is important to us:

From that moment Orpheus was a changed man, he became a priest of Dionysus, and gave himself over to intoxication, completely shunning the company of women, and separating himself from the customs of the world. Orpheus is said to have been the first to sanctify homosexuality as an indulgence that frees the soul from  continued reincarnation through the procreation of the flesh. His journey through the underworld gave him a deep detestation of death that he developed into a new philosophy. Orpheus taught that we were all children of the fallen star Dionysus-Zagreus, who had been torn to pieces by the Titans and consumed by them so that his light was mingled throughout their flesh. Zeus struck the Titans down with his lightning and from their ashes arose mankind, fashioned by Prometheus.
So that we will never suffer the fate of passing into the realm of Hades, Orpheus taught that we must restrain our titanic nature and restore the purity of our godliness, we must become Bachkoi, which is that we must become Dionysus again. A pure life, free from murder, including blood sacrifice and the eating of meat is required, and we must undergo initiation into the blessed rites which he inaugurated.
Although part of the religion of Dionysus, the Orphic cult was limited to men. Orpheus wrote volumes of sacred poems that comprised the heart of his new religion. The Orphic cult was a combination of the freedom and indulgence of Dionysus, tempered with the high-minded nobility of Apollo.The Orphics denied the world and set their minds on the inner light of Dionysus so as to liberate the soul from imprisonment within the flesh.

You can see the parallels between the story of Orpheus and Eurydice and the true-life story of Hadrian and Antinous. The emperor mourned and wept and sought to bring his Beloved Boy back to the world of the living. 

Hadrian's route through the Underworld was of a purely spiritual nature. He recognized that Antinous had always been Divine — a fact which is a tenet of The Orphic Mysteries. He decided to establish a religion which would enable the followers of Antinous to become aware of their own Divine Nature and to become one with ANTINOUS THE GAY GOD.

It is indeed ironic that this beautiful religion was born out of Hadrian's inconsolable grief. But the divine regenerative sacred force of this phenomenon is the secret behind the Tarot Trump called Death.

Death occurs in so many forms. We experience Death in some form every day of our lives. Loss of job. Loss of a lover. Loss of a friendship. Loss of money or status. Loss of confidence in ourselves ....

Your grief can be the powerful Gnosis which makes you remember that you are the musician. You are the dancer. You are that which has died and entered the Underworld. You are also that which rises re-born bright and shining like the dawn sunrise.

It is the process (because it is a process and not a method) which Flamen Antinoalis Antonius Subia calls HOMOTHEOSIS ... "Gay-Man-God-Becoming-the-Same-As-Gay-Man-God."

'TOTALITER ALITER'

THE TALE OF THE TWO PRIESTS OF ANTINOUS

(From THE MEMOIRS OF AN ANCIENT PRIEST OF ANTINOUS by Ernest Gill)

TWO PRIESTS  of Antinous at the Temple of the Blessed Boy in Rome had devoted their lives to the Good God and were getting on in years.

As young men they had become priests together.

Their love for each other was symbolized and enhanced by their love for Antinous. Together, they had lived out their lives at the great Temple of Rome under the most exalted Priest Nikias.

Nikias of Rome was the author of a famous inscription in Greek which addresses Antinous as NEOS HERMES the "New Hermes" who conveys the deceased through the portals of death into transcendent light. A great Antinoo-Hermeticist, Nikias had taught them much about the triumph of Antinous over death.

And now, as toothless old men, they were approaching the final stage of their earthly priesthood. Both men were frail and ill. They knew death was imminent.

But they were unafraid, for they were confident that they would be re-united in death through the grace and love of the Most Great and Good God whom they had served so faithfully all their lives.

But how exactly would that re-union occur? The ancient texts spoke of the Barque of Millions of Years sailing across the heavens towards the Star of Antinous. But that was the Egyptian imagery, and these priests were both Romans and had only ever served in the Antinous Temple of Rome.

The Rome Temple would of course place their death masks in niches in a special area of the temple dedicated to former priests.

Incense and prayers would be offered to them. Would their shades inhabit those niches?

Would Antinous welcome them in Hades, despite the fact that Antinous the Boy God had come from Bithynia in Asia Minor?

Would their souls be reincarnated as some Eastern mystics believed? Would they hover between heaven and Earth or perhaps be consigned to spending part of the year in the underworld and part of it as lemurs roaming the Earth?

They weren't afraid. But they were exceedingly curious to find out. Confidentially, they believed amongst themselves that they would sail with Antinous aboard the Boat of Millions of Years —  a perpetual journey which would never end. But they weren't sure ....

They had spent years perfecting their meditation skills and, without false modesty, they could claim to be masters at the art of trance vision travel. They both knew that the Egyptian hieroglyphs had told the truth in promising that Antinous speaks through dreams and visions. They also knew how to send psychic messages to each other, and had done so on many occasions.

So they made a deal. He who was the first to die would appear to the other in a dream and reveal what the afterlife was like.

As accomplished as they were, they nonetheless knew that such astral communication must be as succinct and simple as possible.

So they agreed that, if the afterlife was as they had envisioned it, the deceased would appear to his friend and utter the word TALITER meaning "exactly so" as they had expected it to be.

And if it was not as they had imagined, the deceased would say ALITER meaning "different" from what they had expected.

The fateful day came not long afterward, and the surviving priest lit incense and recited prayers before the niche mask of his beloved friend and fellow priest.

That night, almost immediately after his head touched his pillow, his deceased friend appeared to him. He was no longer old and sick and frail. He was as young and handsome as the day they had entered the temple. And he was smiling and clearly very excited and seemed to have forgotten the agreed-upon words.

"Taliter or aliter, which is it?" the sleeping priest asked his departed friend.

The friend smiled bigger than ever and said: TOTALITER ALITER — "totally different" — and still beaming with joy, he turned and vanished into golden light.

THESE SEVEN ANCIENT PRIESTS DEVOTED THEIR LIVES TO ANTINOUS

IN many religions the number seven is sacred ... Christians honor the Seven Archangels on September 29th … but (typically) apocryphal texts and regional denominations can't agree on the lists of seven. The big four are certain: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and Uriel, but after that things get a bit iffy. 

Depending on which "church" is involved the seven may include: Raguel, Sariel, Baracael, Ieadiel, Sealtiel, Peliel, Gamael, Jerahmeel, Izidkiel, Hanael or Kepharel.

Oh and at least one list includes Lucifer, the fallen angel.

In Santeria Las Siete Potencias Africanas (Seven African Powers) are the best known and most powerful Orishas of the Yoruban pantheon. There are endless variations worldwide.

Many Protestants, of course, denounce all mention of angels, potencias or even saints as idolatrous, further confusing the situation for many modern seekers.

The Religion of Antinous has no "angels" (fallen or otherwise) in the Judeo/Islamic/Christian sense.

But the Romans depicted many ascendant souls as having wings and assisting in elevating mortal humans to attain celestial realms.

By sacred synchronicity, we know the names of Seven Ancient Priests of Antinous. They are:

JULIUS FIDUS AQUILA, Epistrategos and Architect of Antinoopolis.

ARISTOTIMOS, Priest of Delphi.

HOSTILIUS MARCELLUS, Priest of Corinth.

ISIDORUS DIDYMUS, Priest of Alexandria.

NICIAS, Priest of Rome.

PUBLIUS SUFENAS LUPERCUS, Fratriarch and Eunostos, Naples.

MARCUS DOMITIUS EUPHEMUS, Mysteriarch, Bithynion-Claudiopolis

There were many other priests, of course. But alas, their names went unrecorded.

We have no portraits of any of these Seven Ancient Priests. And their mortal appearance is of little importance.

Priest Hernestus wears prayer beads and a bracelet with seven charms and beads representing the Seven Ancient Priests. He prefers to think of them transcending Time and Space ... serving as mediators in modern guise for all of us.

Rather than worshiping mythical angelic beings, we honor these seven human beings of flesh and blood who really lived and who devoted their lives to Antinous. 

They were priests of Antinous ... we honor them ... men who lived and breathed and who remind us that angels come in many guises ... angels are all around us in our everyday lives.