Asebeia (Ancient Greek: ἀσέβεια) was a criminal charge in ancient Greece for the "desecration and mockery of divine objects", for "irreverence towards the state gods" and disrespect towards parents and dead ancestors.
The antonym of asebeia is eusebeia (εὐσέβεια), which can be translated as "piety".
[3][4] Every single citizen, including a third party, could bring this charge (graphē asebeias) to the Archon basileus.
The trials were publicly held at the Heliaia and were split into two steps: first the jury (heliasts or dikastes) voted on whether the accused was guilty; if the majority found them guilty, because the laws did not prescribe a fixed punishment, the jury at the Heliaia would then decide on the punishment.
[23] Outside Athens, asebeia was possibly seen as a wrong state of mind rather than a crime.