The reason we eat cake is because it honors the goddess Artemis, who is the deity of the moon, which is also why cakes are round. If they saw us now they would most likely be horrified.
Honoring a goddess with a holy moon-shaped offering is a far cry from a phallic shaped cake for a bachelorette party, but hey, they’re delicious and who doesn’t want an excuse to eat something terrible for your whenever you can?
The reason candles are on cakes also has to do with the moon. The Greeks tried to emulate the glow of the moon. This is also why we make a wish when we blow them out.
While the Greeks would get on their knees and do some serious praying before blowing out the candles, the tradition stuck and turned into a semi-serious tradition of making a wish on a birthday.
So next time you’re eyes are snapped shut and you’re hopelessly wishing for Justin Bieber to walk through the door, remember that four thousand years ago someone was probably doing the same thing for Artemis!
