Although she is more usually thought of as a goddess of magic and witchcraft now days, that was actually only one of the goddess Hekate's many diverse roles to the ancient Greeks. She was the only Goddess able to travel at will between all three realms, the Underworld, Earth and Olympus. Two of her many titles, Propolos ("the attendant who leads") and Phosphoros ("the light-bringer"), refer to her role as a torch-bearing psychopomp, a role she shared with Hermes.

In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, Hekate is present as protector and guide for both the descent and the original return of Persephone to the Underworld, with the implication she thereafter accompanied Persephone annually between Hades and the upper world. This was probably reflected in the Eleusian Mysteries with Hekate in her role as Propolos guiding Persephone back each spring. In later literature she regularly guided the spirits of the dead up from the Underworld, whereas Hermes generally took the role of leading the dead down to the Underworld.