Hecate, Greek goddess of the crossroads; drawing by Stephane Mallarmé in Les Dieux Antiques, nouvelle mythologie illustrée (Paris, 1880).

Hecate, Hekate (Hekátē), or Hekat was originally a goddess of the wilderness and childbirth originating from Thrace, or among the Carians of Anatolia (Burkert 1985 p171). Popular cult venerating her as a mother goddess integrated her persona into Greek culture as 'Εκατη. In Ptolemaic Alexandria she ultimately achieved her connotations as a goddess of sorcery and her role as the ‘Queen of Ghosts’, in which guise she was transmitted to post-Renaissance culture. Hecate was carefully attended: "For to this day, whenever any one of men on earth offers rich sacrifices and prays for favour according to custom, he calls upon Hecate. Great honour comes full easily to him whose prayers the goddess receives favourably, and she bestows wealth upon him; for the power surely is with her". Hesiod emphasizes that Hecate was an only child, the daughter of Asteria, a star-goddess who was the sister of Leto, (the mother of Artemis and Apollo). Grandmother of the three cousins was Phoebe the ancient Titaness who personified the moon. Hecate was a reappearance of Phoebe, a moon goddess herself, who appeared in the dark of the moon. His inclusion and praise of Hecate in Theogony is troublesome for scholars in that being at the time a relatively minor and foreign goddess, he seems fulsomely to praise her attributes and responsibilities in the ancient cosmos. It is theorized (Johnston, Restless Dead) that Hesiod’s original village had a substantial Hecate following and that his inclusion of her in the Theogony was his own way to boost the home-goddess for unfamiliar hearers. As her cult spread into areas of Greece it presented a conflict, as Hecate’s role was already filled by other more prominent gods in the Greek pantheon, above all by Artemis, and by more archaic figures, such as Nemesis. There are two versions of Hecate that emerge in Greek myth. The lesser role integrates Hecate while not diminishing Artemis. In this version (Johnston, Restless Dead), Hecate is a mortal priestess (commonly associated with Iphigeneia) who scorns and insults Artemis, eventually leading to her suicide. Artemis then adorns the dead body with jewelry and whispers for her spirit to rise and become her Hecate, and act similar to Nemesis as an avenging spirit (but solely for injured women). Such myths where a home god sponsors or ‘creates’ a foreign god were widespread in ancient cultures as a way of integrating foreign cults. Additionally, as Hecate’s cult grew, her figure was added to the myth of the birth of Zeus (Johnston, Restless Dead) as one of the midwives that hid the child, while Cronus consumed the deceiving rock handed to him by Gaia. The second version helps to explain how Hecate gains the title of the ‘Queen of Ghosts’ and her role as a goddess of sorcery. Similar to totems of Hermes—herms— placed at borders as a ward against danger, images of Hecate, as a liminal goddess, could also serve in such a protective role. It became common to place statues of the goddess at the gates of cities, and eventually domestic doorways. Over time, the association of keeping out evil spirits, lead to the belief that if offended Hecate could also let in evil spirits. Thus invocations to Hecate arose as her the supreme governess of the borders between the normal world and the spirit world (Johnston, Restless Dead). Eventually, Hecate’s power resembled that of sorcery. Medea, who was a priestess of Hecate, used witchcraft in order to handle magic herbs and poisons with skill, and to be able to stay the course of rivers Citation needed, or check the paths of the stars and the moon. Implacable Hecate has been called "tender-hearted", probably because she was concerned with the disappearance of Persephone, and addressed Demeter with sweet words when the goddess was distressed. Although she was never truly incorporated among the Olympian gods, the modern understanding of Hecate is derived from the syncretic Hellenistic culture of Alexandria. In the magical papyri of Ptolemaic Egypt, she is called the she-dog (or bitch), and her presence is signified by the barking of dogs. She sustained a large following, though, remaining a goddess of protection and childbirth. In late imagery she also has two ghostly dogs as servants by her side. In modern times Hecate has become a prevalent figure in women’s religions, and a version of Hecate has been appropriated by Wicca and other modern magic-practising religions.

Nowadays...

In modern times, she has become popular in Paganism and Wicca, largely due to her association as the goddess of sorcery.

Hecate as a goddess of Magic. Hecate is not seen as a necessarily benevolent goddess, and her favor is often seen as fickle. Hecate is thought to grant magical power to those who please her, and sometimes punish those who displease her. Examples of punishment may include inflicting madness in some cases, or sickness, posion, and disease in others. However Hecate is not thought to be malevolent, and to those who gain her favor she is thought to grant boons, including relief from pain, ease in child birth, the curing of disease and physical ailments, and (some believe) unnatural longevity.

In regard to unnatural longevity, some believe that Vampires (Also spelt Vampyr) and other immortals may exist among us as examples, but it's worthy of note that no such immortal has ever been found outside of various myths and works of fiction. Hecate is believed by many to be unconcerned with mortals unless they earn her attention, reserving most of her favor for innately magical beings and favoring her Nymphs above all else.

Worship of Hecate can take many forms. In some cases animal sacrifices have been alleged. Most modern pagans very actively discourage the practice of animal sacrifice, in part due to fear of being associated with Satanism and in part due to concerns for the humane treatment of animals.

Hecate is thought to favor those who show conviction, commitment, and adoration for her, which leads many to conduct chanting and prostration in hopes of gaining favor and magical power. The most common forms of worship include prostration, chanting adoration for Hecate, fasting, the collecting of lanterns, the burning of oils and incense, and the burning and bread and other foods as sacrifices. According to some pagan Hecate is worshipped by both men and women evenly.