Ostara _ rituals, recipes, & lore for the spring equinox ( PDFDrive )

The Celebration of Springtime Deities
When working with deities at this time of year, we are best suited by choosing
ones that embody the spirit of life and renewal. Traditionally at this time of year,
maiden goddesses have reigned and been honored, while the attention of the
gods goes to the young virile male gods. Those associated with the spring,
animals, rebirth, and hunting have been celebrated the most.
In Ancient Greece, Dionysus and Persephone were both celebrated as the
deities of spring. Dionysus, a god of plants, grape vines especially, was said to
be in terrible pain throughout the winter months. In spring his strength would
return with the flowering of the earth. (Ireland’s Druidschool)
Persephone, the daughter of Demeter who was goddess of the crops and
harvest, was kidnapped by Hades. Demeter was so upset over her missing
daughter, she was unable to tend to the crops, which began to die off. Zeus sent
Hermes to speak with Hades about releasing Persephone so that the crops would
not completely die off and the people would be able to live. Hermes brokered a
deal with Hades that allowed Persephone to return to her mother in the spring for
six months. After her time was up, she would return to the underworld to live as
Hades’s queen each year. Demeter, delighting in the return of her daughter,
ensures that each spring the flowers are blooming in order to greet Persephone
on her return.
Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of beauty, love, pleasure, and procreation, was
said to have flowers spring up at her feet as she walked on the land when first
rising from the foam of the sea. She is connected to the generative powers of
nature and therefore is highly connected to the spring as the earth comes back to
life. Some considered her the mother of all living things and each spring she
births the world into life again.
Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty, is associated with cultivated
fields and gardens and is seen as the Roman equivalent of Aphrodite. Her
association with the cultivated fields and gardens ties her into the spring theme
of new beginnings, whether this is new beginnings relating to the vegetation of
the earth or the figurative vegetation of the soul. Two temples dedicated to
Venus existed, one in Lavinium and the other at Ardea. (Lindemans)