Eleusinia

The oldest celebration in Eleusis. Some people think that Eleusina and Mysteries of eleusis are the same celebration. Eleusinia were the oldest and biggest celebration of Hellas. Aristotle writes that Eleusinia were a big event before all the other events of his time. When Eleusinia started they were organized every five years. Then, three more years added and they were called Big Eleusinia. Sport games, musical competitions, horse races were a part of the celebration in order to honor and thank the Goddess for the food she gave to people through the land.
Sports was a main way to honor a Goddess in ancient times. So athletes were honoured. The winners earned ear from Rhario Pedio,the first place that Triptolemos had cultivated.

Chloeia and Kalamaia

Demeter had blessed the land of Eleusis and of Athens. People had noticed that and they created celebrations in Her honour. Chloeia and Kalamaia were that kind of celebrations.Chloeia were celebrated when the ear and barley started to grow and the land was full of chloe (grass). Persephone was honoured too. Kalamaia were celebrated when the barley was made its seeds. The hierophant with the minister lead a pomp of people according to old tradition.

Proerosia

Before autumn tillage sacrifices were done to Demeter. This celebration established when the Oracle of Apollo in Delphoi ordered it, because famine or limos had happened and people died. Atheneans took the oracle and they deciced to do sacrificies in the name of Hellenes. This celebration saved people that year, the famine stopped and Proerosia became a scheduled celebration.
The important thing was the dedication of the first fruits of the earth, and animals, to the Goddesses, an act full of meaning.

Aloa

Aloa was another celebration in which the minister of Eleusis and the general sacrificed to Demeter and Persephone and to other Gods. It took place in Poseidaion (January). In that celebration, women only had the right to enter a room full of fruits and wine and sweets in shapes of penus and vagina. After drinking, they talked dirty. Aloa represented the fertility of the earth.

Thesmophoria

Thesmophoros is a basic epithet of Demeter. In hellenic thesmos is the law and phoros is the one who brings. So Thesmophoros Demetra is the Goddess who brings and keeps the laws and things in order.

According to the hellenic tradition of Eleusis, Demeter taught people the art of agriculture and the Mysteries.Their teachings had lessons of organization of a town and how people should behave to all living things. The principles of civilization were spead by Triptolemos.

The main purpose of Thesmophoria was to ask the Goddess to bless the land and people with fertility. Women were participated and did the magickal acts, because they are more connected with fertility than men.

Thesmophoria were connected with marriage too, as a celebration of fertility. Demeter was protecting mothers and wifes. Only women could be initiated in these Mysteries. The Mysteries took place in Athens, Piraeus, Alimos, Eleusis and in other towns. The duration was three days. The first day was called anodos or kathodos, the second nestia and the third kalligenia. Women could not have sex. They spend the nights laying in sheep skins. Those acts represented the pain of Demeter when her daughter was abducted. The third day, Persephone arrived and happiness to. The religious custom of the celebration was odd. Items of fertility were thrown in a deep hole and after a period of time,women went down and took the leftovers, put them in altars and burnt them. Another custom was the dirty talking in rememberance of Iamve and Bauvo, women who tried and made Demeter laugh. The triad of Thesmophoria is Euvouleas Zeus, Demeter, Persephone.