Aphrodite

Beloved Aphrodite, goddess who grants to us
the greatest of joys, the harshest of sorrows,
the sharpest of pleasures, the dearest of pains.
Aphrodite, freshest of Olympos' flowers,
your lightest touch can turn the hearts of men toward love;
with voice sweet as honey, sweet as wine, you speak
words of persuasion, we hear and heed, rapt in wonder.
O Aphrodite, grace and beauty surround you,
where you pass, the roses bloom, with sweetest scent
and sharpest thorn: with reckless hands we grasp them.
Aphrodite, born of blood in the cold salt sea,
born of the fallen sky, goddess whose kindness
can be so brutal, whose cruelty we cherish,
blessed are your children, blessed those you favor,
blessed those who have felt your might, blessed those
who dwell in your domain. Aphrodite, honored one,
incomparable one, with each breath I praise you.