Beautiful legends and legends about the ancient gods, when people lived in harmony with nature, and in everything that happened saw the divine cause and design, to this day excite the imagination of creative people. The goddess Aphrodite, the most beautiful inhabitant of Olympus - this article is devoted to her.
Who is Aphrodite?
The influence of neighboring peoples, as well as trade with other countries, left an imprint on the beliefs and religion of the ancient Greeks, sometimes merged similar cults and existing gods were enriched with new characteristics. Who is Aphrodite in Greek mythology - historians and archaeologists believe that the cult of the Cyprian goddess was originally of Semitic origin and brought to Ancient Greece from Ascalon, where the goddess Aphrodite was called Astarte. Aphrodite enters the pantheon of the 12 main gods of Olympus. Spheres of influence and functions of the goddess:
- fertility of nature;
- at its discretion gives people the beauty;
- patronizes the lovers, the conclusion of marriages and the birth of children;
- voluptuousness;
- love;
- sensuality;
- sends erotic fantasies and dreams;
- punishes those who reject the feeling of love.
What does Aphrodite look like?
With the advent of the cult of the goddess of love, a leap in the development of art took place: the Greeks began to pay great attention to the reproduction of the naked body in paintings, murals and sculpture. The goddess Aphrodite, at the initial stage, differed from the images of other gods of the Greek pantheon in that it was completely naked. Appearance of the goddess spoke for herself:
- beautiful, with long hair the color of gold maiden;
- delicate and delicate features;
- eternally young;
- graceful and graceful as a doe;
- eyes of a color of emeralds.
Attributes of Aphrodite:
- A golden cup of wine - a man who drank from the cup, became immortal and acquired eternal youth.
- Belt of Aphrodite - bestowed a sexual charm and enhanced the attractiveness of the person who put it on. In myths, Aphrodite sometimes gave a belt for the use of other goddesses at their request to seduce husbands or lovers.
- Birds are pigeons and sparrows, a symbol of fertility.
- Flowers - a rose, a violet, a narcissus, a lily - symbols of love.
- Apple is the fruit of temptation.
The goddess of beauty Aphrodite is often accompanied by companions:
- nymphs are the spirits of nature;
- choruses - the goddess of time and order in nature;
- Eros - a deity-archer afflicting arrows of love;
- the charites, the goddesses of joy and joy, serve the goddess, dress her in beautiful outfits, and comb her golden hair.
Aphrodite - Mythology
Myths, according to which Aphrodite appeared Ancient Greek goddess, interpret this event differently. The traditional way of birth, described by Homer, where the mother of Aphrodite is the nymph of Dion, and the father himself is the supreme thunderer Zeus. There is a version in which the goddess's parents are the goddess Artemis and Zeus - as the union of the male and female beginnings.
Another myth, more archetypal. Goddess of the Earth Gaia was angry with the husband of the god of Heaven of Uranus, from which horrible children were born. Gaia asked Kronos' son to scold his father. Kronos cut a sickle with the genitals of Uranus and threw them into the sea. A white foam was formed around the cut off organ, from which appeared the adult goddess of love. This event happened about Fr. Kiefer in the Aegean Sea. The wind brought her to the sea shell to Cyprus, and she went ashore. The choirs wore a gold necklace, a diadem and took him to Olympus, where the gods looked at the goddess in amazement and everyone wanted to take her as his wife.
Aphrodite and Ares
Aphrodite in Greek mythology is known for her love, among her beloved and gods and mere mortals. Historical sources indicate that the husband of Aphrodite, the god of the blacksmith's craft, Hephaestus, was lame and did not shine with beauty, so often the goddess of love consoled in the arms of the manly and warlike Ares . Once, Hephaestus wishing to convict Aphrodite in connection with the war god bound a thin bronze net. In the morning, waking up, lovers found themselves confused network. Hephaestus in retaliation invited wishing to stare at the naked and helpless Aphrodite and Ares.
From love with the god of destruction and war, the children of Aphrodite were born:
- Phobos - God sowing fear. A faithful companion of his father in the battles.
- Deimos is the personification of the horror of war.
- Eros and Anteros are twin brothers, responsible for attraction and mutual love.
- Harmony - patronizes a happy marriage, a life of unity and harmony.
- He is a god of fiery passion.
Aphrodite and Adonis
Aphrodite - the Greek goddess has known in love and the anguish of suffering. The beautiful youth Adonis, who surpassed even the beauty of the gods of Olympus, conquered the heart of Aphrodite at first sight. The passion of Adonis was hunting, without which he did not understand his life. Aphrodite accompanied her lover and herself was carried away by the hunt for wild animals. One rainy day, the goddess could not go with Adonis to hunt and asked him to heed her pleas for herself, but it happened that the dogs of Adonis attacked the track of a wild boar and the young man hastened in anticipation of prey.
Aphrodite felt the death of her beloved, went to his search, piercing through the thickets, all the thorns and sharp stones wounded by thorns and sharp stones, the goddess found Adonis, the fang of a small boar, left breathless with a terrible ragged wound. In memory of the beloved of drops of his blood, Aphrodite created an anemone flower, which became her attribute. Zeus seeing the mountain of the goddess, agreed with Hades that Adonis spends half a year in the realm of the dead-this time is winter, the awakening of nature personifies the time when Adonis reunites with Aphrodite for six months.
Apollo and Aphrodite
The myth about Aphrodite, the most beautiful of the goddesses of Olympus, is opposed to the myths about Apollo, which personifies the most beautiful of the divine Greek pantheon. Apollo - the sun god is dazzling in its beauty and loving. Aphrodite's son, Eros, fulfilling the will of his mother, often struck his arrows with the brilliant Apollo. Apollo and Aphrodite were not lovers, but were some kind of standards of male and female beauty , reflected in the Hellenic art of sculpture.
Athena and Aphrodite
The goddess of Greece, Aphrodite, decided to try herself in some other craft, other than love, and opted for spinning. Athena, the goddess of war and craft, found the goddess behind a spinning wheel, from which her indignation was limitless. Athena considered this an encroachment and interference in her spheres and powers. Aphrodite did not want to quarrel with Athena, apologized and promised not to touch the spinning wheel any more.
Aphrodite and Venus
The ancient goddess Aphrodite so much liked the bellicose Romans that they adopted the cult of Aphrodite and called it Venus. The Romans considered the goddess to be their ancestor. Guy Julius Caesar was proud and constantly mentioned that his family comes from a great goddess. Venus Victorious was revered as giving victory to the Roman people in battles. Aphrodite and Venus are identical in function.
Aphrodite and Dionysus
Dionysus - the god of fertility and winemaking, in vain sought the favor of Aphrodite for a long time. The goddess often consoled herself in random connections, and luck smiled at Dionysus. The son of Dionysus and Aphrodite, Priap, who appeared as a result of a fleeting fascination, was so ugly that Aphrodite abandoned the child. The huge genitalia of Priapus, with which the vindictive Hera gave him, became a symbol of fertility among the Greeks.
Aphrodite and Psyche
Ancient Greek Aphrodite had heard about the beauty of the earthly woman Psyche and decided to ruin her, sending Eros to strike Psyche with an arrow of love for the ugliest of men. But Eros himself fell in love with Psyche and made it his own, sharing with her bed only in total darkness. Psyche, who was summoned by her sisters, decided to look at her husband while he was asleep. She lit the lamp and saw that Eros herself was in her bed. A drop of wax fell on Eros, he woke up and left Psyche furiously.
The girl is looking for a lover around the world and is forced to turn to the mother of Eros Aphrodite. The Goddess gives the poor girl the impossible tasks: sort out different types of grains dumped in one huge pile, get the golden fleece from the mad sheep, get water from Styx and in the underground kingdom get the drug to treat the burn of Eros. With the help of the forces of nature, Psyche cope with difficult assignments. The recovered god of love, touched by care, asks the gods of Olympus to legalize the marriage with Psyche and grant her immortality.
Aphrodite and Paris
"Apple of discord" is the most ancient Greek myth of Aphrodite, Athena and Hera. Paris, the son of the Trojan king Priam, amused himself by playing the flute and admiring the beauty of nature, when he suddenly saw that the messenger of the gods Hermes himself was approaching him, and with him the three great goddesses of Olympus. With all the rapidity, Paris flew from fear, but Hermes hailed him, saying that Zeus tells him to judge the youngest of the most beautiful goddesses. Hermes handed Paris a golden apple with the inscription "The most beautiful".
The goddesses decided to bribe Paris with gifts to receive the fruit. Hera promised Paris power and rule over Europe and Asia. Athena promised eternal glory among the sages, and victories in all battles. Aphrodite approached and affectionately promised the love of the most beautiful of mortals - Helen the Beautiful. Paris, who wished Elena, gave the apple of discord to Aphrodite. The goddess helped to steal Elena and patronized their union. For this reason, the Trojan War broke out.
Aphrodite and Poseidon
Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was not indifferent to the god of the sea element of Poseidon, who was lusting after her when she saw her naked in bed with Ares, the moment they were caught in the net of Hephaestus. Aphrodite, for shaking the feelings of jealousy in Ares, answered Poseidon with a mutual flash of short-lived passion. The goddess gave birth to Poseidon the daughter of Rhoda, who became the wife of Helios - the solar deity.