Theia Mania

The Haloa was one of the agricultural fertility festivals that was celebrated at Eleusis. It took place in the month of Poseidaon (November/December). According to Bronze Age Eleusis and the Origins of the Eleusinian Mysteries by Michael B. Cosmopoulos, it was “a festival in honor of Demeter (and Kore) and Dionysos, celebrated exclusively by women. It was presided by a priestess and included offerings of food and drink, but no blood sacrifices. The festival had a strong fertility character, as replicas of both male and female genitalia made of dough were placed in full view and the priestess whispered sacred words to the ear of the participants.” According the scholia on Lucian, the priestess whispered into the women’s ears incitements to adultery.