Also called Astraea (later linked), Justitia (Roman).
Their story
Dike is one of the Horae, a daughter of Zeus and Themis. Hesiod says that when she is dragged about by bribe-eating judges, she sits beside her father and tells him of their wrongdoing, and the city pays for it. The poet Aratus tells how she lived among humans in the golden age, then withdrew to the hills, and at last left the earth to become the constellation of the Maiden.
Best times to give to them
- Before judging or deciding for others
- At the autumn equinox, when Virgo gives way to Libra, in modern practice
What they like being given
- Fresh water
- Bread
- A promise to act fairly
How to honour them
- Speak up when someone is being treated unjustly.
- Weigh both sides before you decide.
How they can help you
- Fairness
- Standing up for others
- Honest dealings
Symbols
- scales
- staff
- the constellation Virgo
Sources
- Hesiod, Theogony 902
- Hesiod, Works and Days 213-285
- Aratus, Phaenomena 96-136
More Greek goddesses
- Hera Queen of heaven and guardian of marriage
- Athena Grey-eyed goddess of wisdom and craft
- Artemis Lady of wild things and the hunt
- Aphrodite Foam-born goddess of love and beauty
- Hestia Goddess of the hearth and the home fire
- Demeter Mother of the grain and the harvest
- Persephone Queen of the underworld and the returning spring
- Hecate Keeper of crossroads and keys