MYTHOLOGY & FOLKLORE
The Creation of the World and the first order to punish Uranus, Gaia asked her Titan
Divinities
Creation myths are a fundamental part of
all religions and mythologies. They explain how the
world was created, and they lay the foundations for
a well-formed mythology. In some cultures, the
story of creation is concrete and well-recorded such
as in the Book of Genesis used by the Abrahamic
faiths.
However, in ancient Greece, the creation
myths, as with many other Greek myths, vary
drastically between different traditions. Hesiod
provides the most complete and well-known
creation myth, while the Homeric tradition creates
a bridge between an older tradition and Hesiod.
The Orphic tradition, or Orphism, provides a very
different account of the creation of the world and
mankind.
THE CREATION OF THE WORLD
Hesiod & The First Creation Myth
The first complete account of the Greek
creation myths can be found in Hesiod’s Theogony,
in which he describes the creation of the world, the
gods, and mankind. This poem is the most
prominent of the three, as well as the longest-
written story of the creation myths.
Starting with a hymn for the Muses, the
Theogony tells the story of the Universe starting
from when there was just one primordial condition,
to the creation of women. Hesiod’s other poem,
Works and Days, contains myth about the creation
of man and woman, but it is not, as a whole, a
creation myth.
STORY:
In the beginning, there was only Chaos, the
primordial condition. The prominence of Chaos as
the primordial condition and preceding the
primordial beings is significant mythologically and
later philosophically. From Chaos emerged
Gaia/Gaea (Earth), Tartarus (Underworld), Eros
(Desire), Erebus (Darkness), and Nyx (Night).
They then created the rest of the primordial beings,
such as Hemera (Day), Uranus (Sky or Heavens),
and Pontus (Sea). Among other, her children
included the hateful Moros (Fate), Ker (Doom),
Thanatos (Death), Hypnos (Sleep), Oneiroi
(Dreams), Geras (Old Age), Oizus (Pain),
Nemesis (Revenge), Eris (Strife), Apate (Deceit),
Philotes (Sexual Pleasure), Momos (Blame), and
Hesperides (the Daughters of the Evening).
Gaia took her son, Uranus, as her husband
and gave birth to the Twelve Titans, three One-
Eyed Cyclopes, and the three Hundred-Handed
Hecatoncheires. Uranus imprisoned the
monstrous children, which greatly angered Gaia. In
children to attack their father with a sickle. This
began the cycle of sons overthrowing fathers,
known as the ‘Succession Myth’. The ‘Succession
Myth’ is repeated several times in the Theogony, as
well as within Greek mythology.
Kronos, the youngest Titan, castrated and
overthrew his father on behalf of his mother, and
the Titans took their place as the rulers of the
universe. When Kronos castrated his father,
‘Uranus’ genitals fell into the sea and
transformed into sea foam. From this sea foam
emerged Aphrodite, at either the island of Cythera
or Cyprus, which were centers of worship for the
goddess.
Kronos and Rhea then had six children:
Hestia, Poseidon, Hera, Hades, Demeter, and
Zeus. Just as he overthrew his father, Kronos knew
that one of his children was fated to overthrow him
and the Titans as the rulers of the universe. In order
to prevent this, Kronos devoured his first five
children once born, much to the anger of Rhea.
She, along with Gaia who was angry that
Kronos kept his monstrous siblings imprisoned,
hatched a plan to overthrow him. When Zeus was
born, Rhea hid herself on Crete, leaving the new-
born child to be raised by the nymphs of the island
and gave Kronos a rock (called: Omphalos) to
swallow instead. Zeus was raised by the nymphs
Adrasteia and Ida, and the she-goat Amalthea, he
quickly grew into a handsome youth in a cave on
the Cretan Mount Ida. When the time came, he left
Crete to ask his future wife, the Titaness Metis
(Wisdom), for an advice on how to defeat Cronus.
`She answered by preparing a drink
indistinguishable from Cronus’ favorite wine but
designed to make him vomit for ages. Zeus
disguised himself as the god’s cupbearer and, after
a while, successfully slipped Metis’ drink to Cronus.
Eventually, with the help of other Titans,
Rhea and Zeus forced Cronus started vomiting and
s`pilled out all of Zeus’ five siblings, but only after
throwing up the stone, called Omphatos, of the
Navet, the stone was later set up at Delphi by two
eagles Zeus sent to meet at the center of the world.
Overwhelmed with gratitude, Rhea’s children –
H`estia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon –
recognized Zeus as their leader.
Zeus and his siblings, along with Gaia’s
monstrous children, battled the Titans in what is
known as the Titanomachy. The war lasted ten
years and ended with the establishment of the
Olympian gods as rulers over the heavens and
earth. The Titans who sided with the Olympian
gods were rewarded, while the rest were thrown
into Tartarus. Atlas became the Titan’s leader and
led his armies to many victories.
 At one point, it even seemed that Zeus
would be defeated. However, at the advice of Gaea,
he went to Tartarus and released the Cyclopes and
Hecatoncheires. In gratitude, the Cyclopes provided
Zeus with his signature thunderbolt; they also made
a trident for Poseidon and a helmet of invisibility
for Hades. The tables had turned.
The Titanomachy is a continuation of the
‘Succession Myth’, as Zeus overthrows his father.
According to this tradition, Zeus was fated to be
overthrown by his son through Metis, which he
circumvented by swallowing her and birthing
Athena himself.
THE CREATION OF HUMANKIND
Prometheus and Epimetheus were spared in
imprisonment in Tartarus because they had not
fought with their fellow Titans during the war with
the Olympians. They were given the task of creating
man. Prometheus shaped out of mud, and Athena
breathed life into his clay figure. Prometheus had
assigned Epimetheus the task of giving the
creatures of the earth their various qualities, such as
swiftness, cunning, strength, fur, and wigs.
Unfortunately, by the time he got to man
Epimetheus had gave all the good qualities out and
there were none left for man. So Prometheus
decided to make man stand upright as the gods did
and give them fire.
Prometheus loved man more than those in
the Olympians, who had banished most of his family
to Tartarus. So when Zeus decreed that man must
present portion of each animal they sacrificed to
the gods, Prometheus decided to trick Zeus. He
created two piles, one with the bones wrapped in
juicy fat, and the other with the good meat hidden in
the hide. He then bade Zeus to pick. Zeus picked the
bones. Since he had given his word Zeus had to
accept that as his share for future sacrifices. In his
anger over the trick he took fire away from man.
However, Prometheus lit a torch from the sun and
brought it back again to man. Zeus was enraged
that man again had fire. He decided to inflict a
terrible punishment on both man and Prometheus.
To punish man, Zeus had Hephaestus create
a mortal of stunning beauty. The gods gave the
mortal many gifts of wealth. He then had Hermes
give mortal a deceptive heart and a lying tongue.
This creation was Pandora, the first woman. A
final gift was a jar which Pandora was forbidden to
open. Thus completed Zeus sent Pandora down to
Epimetheus who was staying amongst the men.
Prometheus had warned Epimetheus not to accept
gifts from Zeus but, Pandora’s beauty was too great
and he allowed her to stay. Eventually, Pandora’s
curiosity about the jar she was forbidden to open
becomes too great. She opened the jar and out flew
all manner of evils, sorrows, plagues, and
misfortunes. However, the bottom of the jar held
one good thing – hope.
Zeus was angry at Prometheus for three
things: being tricked on sacrifices, stealing fire for
man, and for refusing to tell Zeus which of Zeus’
children would dethrone him. Zeus had his servants,
Force and Violence, seized Prometheus, take him
to the Caucasus Mountains, and chain him to a
rock with unbreakable adamanite chains. Here he
was tormented day and night by a giant eagle
tearing at his liver. Zeus gave Prometheus two ways
out of this torment. He could tell Zeus who the
mother of the child that would dethrone him was. Or
meet two conditions: First, that immortal must
volunteer to die or Prometheus. Second, that mortal
must kill the eagle and unchain him. Eventually,
Chiron, the Centaur agreed to die for him and
Heracles killed the eagle and unbound him.
THE UNDERWORLD
Hidden deep within the bowels of the earth and
ruled by the god Hades and his wife Persephone,
the Underworld was the kingdom of the dead in
Greek mythology, the sunless place where the souls
of those who died went after death. Watered by the
streams of five rivers (Styx, Acheron, Cocytus,
Phlegethon, and Lethe), the Underworld was
divided into at least four regions: Tartarus
(reserved for the worst transgressors), the Elysian
Fields (where only the most excellent of men
dwelled), the Fields of Mourning (for those who
were hurt by love), and the Asphodel Meadows
(for the souls of the majority of ordinary people).
THE GEOOGRAPHY OF THE UNDERWORLD
*ENTRANCES*
According to Homer, the Underworld was
located beyond the earth-encircling river of Ocean,
at the far western end of the world. However, some
other authors inform us that there were quite a few
places within the known world one could use as
portals to enter the kingdom of the dead:
 A cavern near the ancient town of Tenarus -
Situated at the tip of the middle promontory of
Peloponnese (known back then as Cape
Tanaerum, and called Cape Matapan today), the
cave exists to this very day; it was through this
cave that Heracles dragged Cerberus out of
Hades and Orpheus tried to bring Eurydice
back to the world of the living.
• The bottomless Alcyonian Lake at Lerna -
Guarded by the fearsome Hydra, the Alcyonian
Lake was supposedly used by Dionysus to
enter the Underworld and search for his mother
Semele; some even say that Hades abducted
Persephone in its very vicinity.
• The volcanic Lake Avernus - Located in
southern Italy near the city of Naples, Avernus
was sometimes used as a synonym for the
 Underworld in Roman times; it is through a
cave found near this lake that Aeneas descends
to the Underworld in Virgil’s “Aeneid.”
*RIVERS*
By all accounts, the Underworld was a chill and
shadowy place, watered by the streams of five
infernal rivers:
• The Styx - Circling the Underworld seven times,
Styx was the river of hatred and unbreakable
oaths; the gods are often depicted as taking
vows by its waters.
• The Acheron - The river of sorrow and pain,
black and deep.
• The Cocytus - The river of lamentation and
wailing.
• The Phlegethon - The river of fire, possibly
leading to the depths of Tartarus.
• The Lethe - The river of oblivion and
forgetfulness, out of which the dead souls are
obliged to drink so that they can forget their
earthly lives in preparation for a possible
reincarnation.
UNDERWORLD’S STRUCTURE
The Underworld was divided into at least four
different regions:
*TARTARUS*
The infernal regions of ancient The name
was originally used for the deepest region of the
world, the lower of the two parts of the
underworld, where the gods locked up their
enemies. It gradually came to mean the entire
underworld. In “The Iliad” Zeus claims that
Tartarus is “as far beneath Hades as heaven is
above earth” and that it “is the deepest gulf beneath
the earth, the gates whereof are of iron and the
threshold of bronze.” Originally the dungeon of the
rebels against the divine order (the Cyclopes and
the Hecatoncheires during the reign of Cronus,
and the Titans once Zeus came to power),
Tartarus eventually ended up housing the worst of
perpetrators, destined here to eternally endure
punishments fitting their earthly crimes. Some of
Tartarus’ most famous inhabitants were Sisyphus,
Tantalus, Ixion, and Tityos.
*THE FIELDS OF MOURNING*
As we read in the “Aeneid,” the Fields of Mourning
are reserved for the souls of those “whom ruthless
love did waste away;” here, they “wander in paths
unseen, or in the gloom of dark myrtle grove: not
even in death have they forgot their griefs of long
ago.” Curiously enough, almost all of the fields’
inhabitants mentioned by Virgil are women:
Phaedra, Procris, Pasiphae, Evadne, Laodamia,
and, of course, Dido.
*THE ASPHODEL MEADOWS*
We don’t know that much about the Asphodel
Meadows – it could have been a realm of utter
neutrality – but we do know that it is there that
Odysseus meets the shade of Achilles in Homer’s
“Odyssey.” “Grieve not at all that thou art dead,
Achilles,” says Odysseus unto him, pointing out to
the great hero that he is blessed to rule mightily
among the dead of this region. “If I could choose,”
replies Achilles memorably, “I would rather be a
paid servant in a poor man's house and be above
ground than king of kings among the dead.”
*THE ELYSIAN FIELDS*
Strangely enough, other authors place
Achilles in a wholly different realm of the
Underworld called Elysium (or the Isles of the
Blessed – if the two are one and the same), where
only the most exceptional mortals were privileged
with a life free of toils and pains. Ruled by either
Rhadamanthus or Cronus (or both), Elysium was
a land of eternal sunlight and rosy meadows,
inhabited by the likes of Cadmus, Peleus, and
Menelaus.
THE JOURNEY OF A SOUL AFTER DEATH
*HERMES*
Upon death, a soul was led by Hermes near the
entrance of the Underworld, where a ferry awaited
to carry it across either the Acheron or the Styx.
*CHARON*
This ferry was rowed by Charon, the infernal
boatman tasked with taking the souls of the dead to
the Underworld proper. Only those who could pay
the fare with coins (obols) placed on their eyes or
under their tongue when buried, were granted
passage; the rest remained trapped between two
worlds. (Aeneas was only able to enter the
Underworld once his guide, the Cumaean Sybil
showed Charon a golden bough, Aeneas’ gift for
Persephone.)
*CERBERUS*
After the boat ride, the souls entered through the
gates of the Underworld; the gates were guarded by
the multi-headed dog Cerberus, who allowed
everyone to enter, but none to leave.
*THE JUDGES*
The souls then appeared before a panel of three
judges, Rhadamanthus, Minos, and Aeacus, who
passed sentence based on the mortals’ deeds during
their previous life. Most souls seem to have ended
up in the neutral zone, the Asphodel Meadows; for
better or for worse, others were singled out for
special treatment.
WHAT IS MYTH?
Mythology is a collection of stories that a particular
culture or society believes or once believed to be
true. These myths often involve gods, supernatural
beings, and heroes, and they attempt to explain
things like the origins of the world, natural
phenomena, and the mysteries of life and death.
*NARCISSUS*
Narcissus: A strikingly beautiful young man who is
the son of the river god Cephissus and the nymph
Liriope.
Echo: A nymph who falls deeply in love with
Narcissus. She was cursed by Hera to only repeat
the words of others and could not express her love
for Narcissus.
Liriope: Narcissus’ mother, a beautiful nymph. She
was told by the seer Tiresias that her son would live
a long life, as long as he never recognized himself.
Cephissus: Narcissus’ father, a river god.
Tiresias: A blind prophet who tells Liriope that
Narcissus will live a long life, as long as he never
recognizes himself. His prophecy comes true in a
tragic way.
Narcissus, in mythology, was a youth
renowned for his striking beauty that even he himself
could not resist. The story goes that he was the son
of the river god Cephissus and the nymph Liriope.
His mother was told by a seer that he would have a
long life, provided he never recognized himself.
As he grew, he became an incredibly
beautiful young man that many fell in love with, but
he rejected all advances, leaving a trail of
heartbroken admirers. One of them was the nymph
Echo, who was cursed to only repeat the words of
others and could not express her love for Narcissus.
One day, while Narcissus was hunting, he
stopped to drink from a pool and saw his own
reflection in the water. He fell deeply in love with it,
not realizing it was his own reflection. Unable to
leave the beauty of his reflection, he eventually died
at the pool, turning into the flower that now bears
his name.
THEME: The Myth of Narcissus is self-love and
vanity taken to an extreme. Narcissus is so
enamored with his own reflection that he can’t tear
himself away, leading to his own death. This
extreme self-obsession is so destructive that it not
only harms Narcissus, but also those around him,
like Echo, who suffers from unrequited love.
It is reflected in the term “narcissism,” which is
derived from Narcissus’ name and refers to
excessive self-admiration and self-centeredness.
The story serves as a cautionary tale about the
dangers of excessive self-love and the importance
of caring for others.
SYMBOLISM: The Narcissus flower, also known
as daffodil, is a national symbol in a few countries.
In Wales, the daffodil is traditionally worn on St.
David’s Day. This association came about because
the Welsh for daffodil and for leek (a far older
national emblem) are very similar, and over time,
the beautiful daffodil became a popular emblem to
wear.
In China, the Narcissus is a symbol of good fortune
and prosperity. It’s especially significant during the
Chinese New Year, where it’s believed that if the
Narcissus blooms on New Year’s Day, it will bring
extra wealth and good fortune throughout the year.
In Iran, the Narcissus is a symbol of love and it’s
often used in Persian literature and poetry to
symbolize the eyes of the beloved.
MORAL: The tale serves to remind us of the
importance of balance in self-love and the value of
connecting with others. It cautions us against
becoming so self-absorbed that we lose touch with
the world and people around us. The value of
empathy, a reminder of the importance and
understanding in our relationship with others.
FLOWER MYTHS
*HYACINTHUS*
• HYACINTH IS A FLOWER LILY SHAPED AND
DEEP PURPLE OR CRIMSON.
• HYACINTH IS A VARIANT FORM OF THE
GIVEN NAME “HYACINTHE.” THE NAME IS
DERIVED FROM A GREEK WORD MEANING
THE BLUE LARKSPUR FLOWER OR THE
COLOUR PURPLE.
• HYACINTH IS SAID TO FLOW FROM THE
GREEK NAME HYACINTHUS, CARRIED BY A
CHARACTER IN GREEK LORE WHOSE
HANDSOME LOOKS FANNED A FLAME IN
APOLLO'S HEART.
STORY:
HYACINTHUS WAS KNOWN FOR HIS
EXCEPTIONAL BEAUTY AND ATHLETIC ABILITIES.
HE CAUGHT THE ATTENTION OF BOTH. APOLLO,
THE GOD OF MUSIC AND PROPHECY. ZEPHYRUS,
THE GOD OF THE WEST WIND. BOTH GODS
BECAME INFATUATED WITH HYACINTHUS AND
COMPETED FOR HIS AFFECTION. HYACINTHUS
WAS AMUSED BY ZEPHYRUS HE FLIED ACROSS
THE SKY.
WITH APOLLO, HYACINTHUS WAS
REJOICED WITH THE SONGS PLAYED BY THE
BRILLIANT GOD. THE BOY AND THE GOD BECOME
QUITE INTIMATE. HYACINTHUS SPEND HIS DAYS
BESIDE THE GOD OF MUSIC DOING ALL SORTS OF
THINGS. REALIZING THAT HE HAVE BEEN LEFT
OUT ZEPHYRUS.
 ONE DAY, APOLLO AND HYACINTHUS
DECIDED TO THROW THE DISCUS. AFTER
PREPARING HIMSELF TO THROW IT, APOLLO
LAUNCHED THE DISCUS WITH INCREDIBLE
STRENGHT. THE DISCUSS REACH A STUNNING
HEIGHT. HYACINTHUS IS READY TO CATCH IT,
WHICH DISTENDED AT HIGH SPEED. BUT THE
JEALOUS ZEPHYRUS, SUDDENLY CHANGING IT’S
TRAJECTORY. THE DISC FELT TO THE GROWN AND
AFTER THE REBOUND, HIT HYACINTH’S HEAD
WITH VIOLENCE.
APOLLO RUNS TO RESCUE THE BOY WHO
MADE TREASURE SO MUCH. THE GOD TRYING TO
USE HIS POWER TO SAVE HYACINTH’S LIFE, BUT
NOT EVEN A MIGHTY APOLLO COULD CHANGED
HYACINTH FAITH TRACED BY THE MORE EYE. THE
BEAUTIFUL BOY DIED BY APOLLO’S ARMS.
BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS STARTED TO
SPROUT WHERE HYACINTH’S BLOOD DROPS FELL.
APOLLO FELT GUILTY FOR ENDING HYACINTH’S
LIFE AND THE PICK OF HIS YOUTH AND THEN
TRIBUTE TO HIS FRIEND. THE GOD WROTE HIS
MOST BEAUTIFUL SONGS, WHICH WERE ALSO THE
SADDEST AND MOST MELANCHOLIC. BUT WITH
THE ARRIVAL OF SPRING THE GOD REJOICED,
BECAUSE THE BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS BORN OF
THE YOUNG’S BLOOD REAPPEARED AND THIS
CAME TO BE KNOWN BY THE NAME OF
HYACINTH. THE MYTH OF HYACINTHUS IS A
TRAGIC TALE FROM GREEK MYTHOLOGY.
THEME: LOVE, JEALOUSY AND DEATH
SYMBOL: SYMBOLIZES REBIRTH, GIVEN THAT
HYACINTHUS WAS REBORN AS FLOWER. IT
REPRESENTS THE POWER OF THE GODS, LOVE
AND THE TRANSIENT NATURE AND BEAUTY OF
LIFE.
MORAL LESSON: COULD BE SEEN AS A WARNING
AGAINST JEALOUSY AND RIVALRY. IT TEACHES US
THAT JEALOUSY CAN LEAD TO DISASTROUS
CONSEQUENCES. AND REMINDING US TO CHERISH
WHAT WE HAVE WHILE WE HAVE IT.
*ADONIS*
ADONIS IS A FIGURE IN GREEK
MYTHOLOGY KNOWN FOR HIS EXCEPTIONAL
BEAUTY AND HIS ASSOCIATION WITH BOTH LOVE
AND TRAGEDY. HE WAS ORIGINALLY
WORSHIPPED IN PHOENICIA (WHICH IS NOW THE
MODERN-DAY LEBANON) BUT HE WAS ADOPTED
BY THE GREEKS LATER.
ADONIS WAS BORN TO THE MORTAL
PRINCESS MYRRHA (ALSO KNOWN AS SMYRNA).
MYRRHA'S FATHER, KING CINYRAS,
UNWITTINGLY FELL IN LOVE WITH HIS
DAUGHTER DUE TO A CURSE OF APHRODITE.
APHRODITE, THE GODDESS OF LOVE AND
BEAUTY, WAS ANGERED BY MYRRHA'S PRIDE AND
VANITY. IN SOME VERSIONS OF THE MYTH,
MYRRHA CLAIMED TO BE MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN
APHRODITE HERSELF. MYRRHA BECAME
PREGNANT WITH ADONIS. TO ESCAPE HER
FATHER'S WRATH, SHE WAS TRANSFORMED INTO
A MYRRH TREE, IN TREE FORM, SHE GAVE BIRTH
TO ADONIS.
ADONIS GREW INTO AN
EXTRAORDINARILY HANDSOME YOUNG MAN, AND
BOTH THE GODDESS APHRODITE (VENUS IN
ROMAN MYTHOLOGY) AND THE GODDESS
PERSEPHONE FELL IN LOVE WITH HIM. THIS LED
TO A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE TWO GODDESS
OVER HIS AFFECTIONS. ZEUS, THE KING OF THE
GODS, INTERVENED AND DECREED THAT ADONIS
WOULD SPEND ONE-THIRD OF THE YEAR WITH
APHRODITE, ONE-THIRD WITH PERSEPHONE,
AND THE REMAINING THIRD ON HIS OWN.
ADONIS WAS A SKILLED HUNTER AND
OFTEN WENT INTO THE WOODS TO PURSUE
GAME. TRAGICALLY, HE WAS MORTALLY
WOUNDED BY A BOAR DURING ONE OF HIS
HUNTS, A FATE OFTEN ATTRIBUTED TO HIS
FAILURE TO HEED APHRODITE'S WARNINGS
ABOUT THE DANGERS OF THE HUNT.
APHRODITE WAS DEVASTATED BY
ADONIS' DEATH, AND HIS BLOOD, WHICH SPILLED
ON THE GROUND, GAVE RISE TO THE ANEMONE
FLOWER, SYMBOLIZING LOVE AND MOURNING.
THE MYTH OF ADONIS IS OFTEN ASSOCIATED
WITH THE CHANGING OF THE SEASONS, WITH HIS
TIME SPENT WITH APHRODITE REPRESENTING
SPRING AND SUMMER, AND HIS TIME WITH
PERSEPHONE IN THE UNDERWORLD
SYMBOLIZING AUTUMN AND WINTER. THE
ADONIS MYTH IS A TALE OF BEAUTY, DESIRE, AND
THE TRANSITORY NATURE OF LIFE, OFTEN SEEN
AS A REFLECTION OF THE CYCLE OF NATURE AND
VEGETATION.
THEME: THE CYCLE OF LIFE AND DEATH, AND
THE TRANSIENT NATURE OF BEAUTY.
SYMBOL: SIMILAR TO THE HYACINTHUS MYTH, IS
THE ANEMONE FLOWER. THE ANEMONE FLOWER,
THEREFORE, SYMBOLIZES THE FLEETING NATURE
OF LIFE AND BEAUTY, AND THE CYCLE OF BIRTH
AND DEATH.
MORAL LESSON: ACCEPTANCE OF THE NATURAL
CYCLE OF LIFE AND DEATH. THIS TEACHES US
THAT NO MATTER HOW MUCH WE MIGHT WISH
TO HOLD ONTO YOUTH AND BEAUTY, OR LIFE
ITSELF, EVERYTHING HAS ITS NATURAL CYCLE
AND MUST COME TO AN END.
LOVE AND ADVENTURE
*ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE*
The story of Orpheus and Eurydice is one of
the most tales in Greek mythology. Orpheus of
Thrace was the son of the god Apollo and the muse
Calliope. He was renowned for his musical talents
with a lyre and fell in love with the beautiful
Eurydice.
One day, Eurydice was wandering in the
forest with nymphs when the shepherd Aristaeus
spotted her. When Eurydice rejected the shepherd’s
advances he pursued her and during her efforts to
escape she was bitten by a poisonous snake and
killed.
Utterly broken by his wife’s death, Orpheus
turned to music and moved the gods with his
mournful tunes. With the protection of the gods,
Orpheus descended into the underworld in search
of his wife, managing to bypass both the souls of the
dead and the mighty three-headed dog Cerberus,
who took a liking to his music.
Orpheus presented himself before Hades -
the god of the dead in Greek mythology – and his
wife Persephone and greatly moved them with a
sorrowful tune. Hades permitted Orpheus to
retrieve his wife from the underworld on the
condition that he lead her out without turning to
look at her.
However, as they ascended from the
underworld, Orpheus could not hear Eurydice
stepping behind him and grew anxious that the
gods had fooled him. He lost his faith and looked
behind him. Consequently, Eurydice was returned
to the underworld and Orpheus was forced to
return without her.
Orpheus could not bear to live without his
wife and called for his own death in song. His wish
was granted, either by wild beasts who tore him
apart, or the Maenads (female followers
of Dionysus. In another version, Zeus struck him
dead with a lightning bolt.
*PYGMALION AND GALATEA*
In one version of the Greek myth,
Pygmalion, son of Belus, fell in love with Aphrodite,
the goddess of love, lust, pleasure, and procreation.
However, Aphrodite refused to sleep with him.
After being rejected, Pygmalion made an
ivory image of Aphrodite and laid it on his bed. He
prayed to the goddess for pity. Aphrodite answered
his prayer and entered the ivory statue breathing
life into the statue-turned-woman who would be
known as Galatea.
Galatea bore Pygmalion Paphus and
Metharme. Paphus, who succeeded Pygmalion, was
the father of Cinyras who founded the city
of Paphos in Cyprus.
*ALCYONE AND CEYX*
The beautiful Alcyone was the daughter of
Aeolus, the Greek god of the wind, and Enarete. She
was the devoted wife of Ceyx, king of Trachis in
central Greece, who was the son of Eosphorus,
(Morning Star), and his partner Philonis. Ceyx was a
just ruler who took great care of the well-being of
his subjects. The exceptional physical beauty of the
couple, as well as the profound love they had for
each other, even gained the admiration of the gods.
THE HUBRIS
The couple was happily married in Trachis,
and they often used to playfully call on another
Zeus and Hera. However, this behavior caused the
fury of Zeus, the father of the gods, who regarded it
as audacity and stepping out of the human
boundaries. Therefore, Zeus patiently waited for
the right time to punish the young couple who
dared to consider themselves godlike.
Ceyx was deeply troubled by some strange
events that took place in his kingdom and was
mourning over the death of his brother, Daedalion,
who was also transformed into a hawk by the god
Apollo. Therefore, he decided to consult the oracle
of Apollo in Ionia. In order to do that, he had to
cross the Aegean Sea, something that his wife
Alcyone tried to dissuade him from doing, claiming
that sometimes the winds were uncontrollable and
extremely dangerous. She also tried to persuade
Ceyx to take her with him; by he could not bear
putting his beloved wife through unnecessary
danger.
THE NEMESIS
The father of the gods decided that this was
the perfect opportunity to punish the couple for
their sacrilege. Launching a thunderbolt, he created
an immense and unstoppable hurricane that
engulfed the ship, which began to sink. Realizing
that his end was near before he drowned Ceyx
prayed to the gods to allow his body to be washed
ashore so that his wife Alcyone could find it and
perform the proper funeral rites. Ceyx’s father,
Eosphorus, watched from the skies unable to help
his son who was grasping for his final breaths.
THE ATONEMENT
While Ceyx was away, Alcyone prayed day
and night to the gods for the safe return of her
husband. Hera was profoundly moved by her
sorrow and decided to send a messenger to her to
inform her about the tragic fate of Ceyx. Thus,
Morpheus, son of Hypnos, appeared in Alcyone’s
dream, informing her about the tragic
circumstances concerning the shipwreck and the
death of her husband.
Being profoundly shocked, Alcyone rushed
to the sea, beating her breasts and tearing her
garments. She then located the body of her beloved
husband and performed the proper rites for his
death. However, since she was unable to live
without him, she threw herself in the sea and were
drowned, determined to see Ceyx once again in the
kingdom of the dead. Even the gods of Olympus
were moved by the profound love of Alcyone for
her husband, a love that defeated death himself. So
in the end, Zeus decided to transform the couple
into Halcyon birds.
*EROS AND PSYCHE*
Psyche was the youngest daughter of a king.
She was the most beautiful of all three. So much so,
that there were rumors she may be a goddess, or
even Aphrodite herself, and people worshipped
Psyche instead of the goddess. Aphrodite was
offended by this, and she sent her son, Eros, the god
of intense desire and love, to shoot her with an
arrow and force her to fall in love with something
hideous, as punishment.
Eros did fly to the palace to do his mother’s
bidding, but he scratched himself on the arrow and
fell in love with her instead. He flew away without
shooting Psyche, who carried on without being able
to fall in love. Her father eventually asked the
Oracle for a prophecy and was distressed when he
was told Psyche would love a dragon-like creature
of fire that even the gods feared.
Quickly, they decided to sacrifice Psyche by
leaving her at a tall mountain in a ‘marriage’ of
sorts, to the horrid creature. From there, the
Zephyr, the god of the north wind, transported her
to Eros’ palace.
Psyche lived happily there, even though her
husband never appeared. Because her sisters were
jealous, they manipulated her into Eros’ bedroom
and peek at him. She did so, but accidentally burned
him with the lamp’s oil, and he fled.
Aphrodite vowed revenge, and kept the
lovers separated. Psyche had to go through several
trials to earn the right to see her husband again,
even though Eros eventually opposed this. Eros had
to escape Aphrodite, to go find Psyche and stop
Aphrodite’s revenge. They lived happily ever after.
PSYCHE - Soul
CUPID - love
Cupid carries two kinds of arrows, or darts, one
with a sharp golden point, and the other with a
blunt tip of lead. A person wounded by the golden
arrow is filled with uncontrollable desire, but the
one struck by the lead feels aversion and desires
only to flee.
*APOLLO AND DAPHNE*
In Greek Mythology, APOLLO was the God
of Light. It was Apollo’s job to pull the sun across
the sky in his 4-horse chariot every day. He has also
been referred to as the God of music, poetry, art,
medicine, knowledge, plague and archery. Apollo
was the son of ZEUS (the God of Thunder)
and LETO. He had a twin sister, ARTEMIS, who was
the Goddess of Hunting.
Apollo was also famous for being
an oracular god, and had two cults in Delphi and
Delos. People would come from all over the world
to learn from Apollo what their future held. It was
believed that, as the God of both medicine and
plague, Apollo could heal people as well as cause
disease by shooting people with his arrows.
Daphne was a Naiad Nymph in Greek
Mythology, and was the daughter of a river god. She
was famous for being incredibly beautiful and for
catching the eye of Apollo. However, Daphne was
determined to remain unmarried and untouched by
a man by the rest of her life.
Greek Mythology states that Apollo had
been mocking the God of Love, EROS (also known
as CUPID). In retaliation, Eros fired two arrows:
a gold arrow that struck Apollo and made him fall
in love with Daphne, and a lead arrow that made
Daphne hate Apollo. Under the spell of the arrow,
Apollo continued to follow Daphne, but she
continued to reject him. Apollo told Daphne that he
would love her forever.
Daphne turned to the river god, Peneus,
and pleaded for him to free her from Apollo. In
response, Peneus use metamorphosis to turn
Daphne into a laurel tree. Apollo used his powers
of eternal youth and immortality to make Daphne’s
laurel leaves evergreen. It’s believed that Daphne
has to sacrifice her body and turn into a tree as this
was the only way she could avoid Apollo’s sexual
advances.
*ALPHEUS AND ARETHUSA*
In Greek mythology, Arethusa was a
beautiful nymph and companion to the moon
goddess, Artemis. When Arethusa unknowingly
bathed in a river of the river god, Alpheus, she had
also inadvertently seduced him as he was overcome
by Arethusa’s beauty.
Arethusa, wanting nothing of his advances,
fled. Some accounts of the legend claim she was
chased across all across the seas, while others say
she was forced to regularly change her appearance
to fool Alpheus, who was determined to claim his
prize.
Relentlessly pursued, her only option was
to seek the aid of Artemis. Arethusa was
transformed into a stream and fled into the earth,
but even here, she could not escape the river god.
Making her way to the sea, Arethusa found herself
consumed by Alpheus as his water mingled with
hers, enveloping her within his lustful grasp
forever.
*ENDYMION AND SELENE*
The myth of Selene and Endymion is about a
rare female pursuit. The moon goddess, Selene, falls
in love with the mortal Endymion. Endymion is said
to be a shepherd, a hunter, or a king. Selene visited
her sleeping love in the night as she rode her moon
chariot across the night sky. She would come down
to earth just to be with the beautiful Endymion.
Selene wished to be with Endymion forever
so she asked Jupiter to grant her lover eternal sleep
so that she may visit him every night. Other
translations claim that it was Endymion’s choice to
remain unchanged and forever asleep.
*BAUCIS AND PHILEMON*
Philemon and Baucis, in Greek Mythology,
a pious Phrygian couple who hospitably received
Zeus and Hermes when their richer neighbours
turned away the two gods, who were disguised as
wayfarers. As a reward, they were sved from a flood
that drowned the rest of the country; their cottage
was turned into a temple, and at their own request
they became priest and priestess of it. Long after,
they were granted their wish to die at the same
moment, being turned into trees. Among literary
sources the story is found only in Book VIII
of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, but it reflects folktale
motifs found in many cultures.
TROJAN WAR
The Trojan War was fought between Greeks
and the defenders of the city of Troy in Anatolia
sometime in the late Bronze Age. The story has
grabbed the imagination for millennia but a conflict
between Mycenaeans and Hittites may well have
occurred, even if its representation in epic
literature such as Homer's Iliad is almost certainly
more myth than reality.
The Trojan War has defined and shaped the
way ancient Greek culture has been viewed right up
to the 21st century CE. The story of gods and heroic
warriors is perhaps one of the richest single
surviving sources from antiquity and offers insights
into the warfare, religion, customs, and attitudes of
the ancient Greeks.
Paris & Helen
The main source for our knowledge of the
Trojan War is Homer's Iliad (written sometime in
the 8th century BCE) where he recounts 52 days
during the final year of the ten-year conflict. The
Greeks imagined the war to have occurred some
time in the 13th century BCE. However, the war
was also the subject of a long oral tradition prior to
Homer's work, and this, combined with other
sources such as the fragmentary Epic Cycle poems,
give us a more complete picture of what exactly the
Greeks thought of as the Trojan War.
The Trojan War, in Greek tradition, started
as a way for Zeus to reduce the ever-increasing
population of humanity and, more practically, as an
expedition to reclaim Helen, wife of Menelaus, King
of Sparta and brother of Agamemnon. Helen was
abducted by the Trojan prince Paris (also known as
Alexandros) and taken as his prize for choosing
Aphrodite as the most beautiful goddess in a
competition with Athena and Hera at the wedding
of Peleus and Thetis. Menelaos and the Greeks
wanted her back and to avenge Trojan impudence.
The Greek Army
The coalition of Greek forces (or Archaians
as Homer often calls them) was led by King
Agamemnon of Mycenae. Amongst the cities or
regions represented were Boiotia, Phocia, Euboea,
Athens, Argos, Corinth, Arcadia, Sparta, Kephalonia,
Crete, Rhodes, Magnesia, and the Cyclades. Just how
many men these totalled is unclear. Homer states
an army of 'tens of thousands' or rather more
poetically 'as many [men] as the leaves and flowers
that come in springtime'.
Amongst the Greek warriors were some
extra special heroes, leaders who were the greatest
fighters and displayed the greatest courage on the
battlefield. Also, they often had a divine mother or
father whilst the other parent was a mortal, thereby
creating a genealogical link between the gods and
ordinary men. Amongst the most important were
Achilles, Odysseus, Ajax, Diomedes, Patroclus,
Antilokus, Menestheus, and Idomenus.
The Greeks were aided by several of the
Olympian gods of Greek religion. Athena, Poseidon,
Hera, Hephaistos, Hermes, and Thetis all gave direct
or indirect help to the Greeks in Homer's account of
the war. The gods had their favourites amongst the
men fighting down on the plains of Troy and they
often protected them by deflecting spears and even
spiriting them away in the heat of battle to put
them down somewhere safe, far from danger.
The Trojan Army
The Trojan army defending the great city of
Troy, led by their king Priam, had assistance from a
long list of allies. These included the Carians,
Halizones, Kaukones, Kikones, Lycians, Maionians,
Mysians, Paionians, Paphlagonians, Pelasgians,
Phrygians, and Thracians.
The Trojans, too, had their semi-divine
heroes and these included Hector (son of Priam),
Aeneas, Sarpedon, Glaucus, Phorkys, Poulydamas,
and Rhesos. The Trojans also had help from the
gods, receiving assistance during the battle from
Apollo, Aphrodite, Ares, and Leto.
Key Battles
Most of the Trojan War was in a fact a
protracted siege, and the city was able to resist the
invaders for so long principally because its
fortifications were so magnificent. Indeed, in Greek
mythology, the walls of Troy were said to have been
built by Poseidon and Apollo who, after an act of
impiety, were compelled by Zeus to serve the
Trojan King Laomedon for one year. There were,
though, battles outside the city where armies
fought, sometimes with chariots, but mostly by men
on foot using spears and swords and protected by a
shield, helmet, and armour for the chest and legs.
War waged back and forth across the plains of Troy
over the years, but the really exciting battles seem
to have been reserved for the final year of the siege
and the following are a selection of the highlights.
Paris v Menelaus
Tiring of indecisive battles, Menelaus
offered to fight Paris in single-combat and so settle
the issue of the war. Agreeing to this, the two
warriors drew lots to see who would have first
throw with their spear. Paris won and threw first
but his spear landed harmlessly in the shield of
Menelaus. The Greek king then threw his weapon
with tremendous force and the spear went through
the shield of Paris and carried on through to pierce
his armour. If Paris had not swayed at the last
moment, he would surely have been killed outright.
However, Menelaus was not finished and with his
sword he struck a fearful blow on the Trojan
prince's helmet. The sword shattered, though, and
fell in pieces into the dust. Menelaus then grabbed
Paris' helmet with his bare hands and proceeded to
drag him from the field. Choking as his helmet strap
wrapped around his neck, Paris was only saved
through the intervention of Aphrodite who broke
the helmet strap and, covering the prince in a thick
mist, spirited her favourite back to the safety of his
perfumed bedroom.
Hector v Ajax
The meeting of the two great heroes echoes
that of Menelaus and Paris. Each throw their spears
but to no effect. Hector then threw a large rock at
the Greek, only for him to fend it off with his shield.
Ajax then returned the favour with an even bigger
rock, smashing Hector's shield. They then drew
their swords and closed for mortal combat but
were each stopped by their comrades who called
for an end to the fighting as night was approaching.
Displaying the code of honour for which the good
old days were famous, the two warriors even said
goodbye on friendly terms by exchanging gifts,
Hector giving a silver-hilted sword and Ajax giving
a splendid purple belt.
The Greek Ships Attacked
Following a tremendous day of fighting,
Hector led the Trojans in an attack on the very
walls of the Greeks' camp. Breaking through the
gates, the Trojans sent the Greeks fleeing in panic
back to their ships. However, as Zeus was
momentarily distracted by the charms of Hera,
Poseidon stepped in to encourage the Greeks who
rallied and forced the Trojans to retreat. Then the
tide of battle changed again and, with the support of
Apollo, an inspirational Hector, in his finest hour,
once more beat the Greeks back to their ships
where he sought to set them ablaze.
Patroclus Falls
Invincible Achilles was quite simply the
greatest warrior in Greece, or anywhere else for
that matter. Much to the Greek's frustration,
though, he sat out most of the final act of the war in
a big sulk. Agamemnon had stolen his female war-
booty Briseis and consequently, the hero refused to
fight. Agamemnon at first doesn't seem to have
been too bothered about losing his temperamental
talisman but as the Trojans started to gain an upper
hand in the war, it began to look like Achilles would
be needed if the Achaians were to actually win the
protracted conflict. Accordingly, an increasingly
desperate Agamemnon sent an appeal to Achilles
with promises of vast treasure if he would only re-
join the conflict. These Achilles refused but with the
Greek camp under attack, Patroclus appealed to his
mentor and great friend Achilles to rejoin the
conflict and, when he still refused, Patroclus asked
for permission to wear Achilles' armour and lead
the fearful Myrmidons himself. Achilles, on seeing
one of the Greek ships already ablaze, reluctantly
gave his consent but warned Patroclus to only repel
the Trojans from the camp and not pursue them to
the walls of Troy.
Before he could enter the fighting, though,
Achilles needed new armour and this was provided
by his divine mother Thetis who had Hephaistos,
the master craftsman of Olympus, make him the
most magnificent set of armour ever seen. Using
bronze, tin, silver, and gold, the god made a massive
shield which depicted a myriad of earthly scenes
and all the constellations. So too, he made a
dazzling, gold-crested helmet for the hero.
Resplendent in his shining armour, Achilles, still
mad with rage, predictably routed the Trojans who
fled in panic behind the safety of their city walls.
Hector v Achilles
Hector alone remained standing outside the
walls but at the sight of the awesome Achilles on
the rampage, even his nerve gave way and he made
a run for safety. Achilles, however, gave chase and
pursued the Trojan prince three times around the
city walls. Finally catching him, Achilles killed his
quarry with a vicious stab of his spear in Hector's
throat. Achilles then stripped the body of its fine
armour and, tying Hector by the ankles to his
chariot, Achilles dragged the body back to the Greek
camp in full view of Priam standing atop the
fortifications of the city. This was a shockingly
dishonourable act and against all the rules of
ancient warfare.
Having avenged the death of Patroclus,
Achilles arranged funeral games in his fallen
friend's honour. Meanwhile, Priam entered the
Greek camp in disguise and begged Achilles to
return the body of his son that he might be given
proper burial. Initially reluctant, the emotional
pleas of the old man were finally heeded and
Achilles consented to return the body. Here the
Iliad ends but the war still had a few more twists of
fate to turn.
The Trojan Horse & Victory
The war involved several more exciting
episodes including Achilles' fight with and killing of
the Ethiopian King Memnon and the Amazon
Penthesilea who both came to the aid of the
Trojans. Achilles was even said to have fallen in
love with the beautiful Amazon just at the moment
he killed her with his spear. Achilles himself met his
destiny and was killed by an arrow to his only weak
spot, his ankle, shot by Paris and guided by Apollo.
Odysseus and Ajax squabbled over the hero's
magnificent armour and Ajax went mad with
disappointment when he lost out on the prize.
Slaughtering a herd of sheep he thought were
Greeks, he fell on his sword in a messy and
pointless suicide. Philoktetes got revenge for
Achilles by fatally shooting Paris with the legendary
bow of Hercules. Finally, Odysseus even managed to
get into the city in disguise and steal the sacred
Palladion statue of Athena.
The final and decisive action was, though,
the idea of the wooden horse. Odysseus, inspired by
Athena, thought up the ruse to get a body of men
inside the walls of Troy. First, the Greeks all sailed
off into the sunset leaving a mysterious offering to
the Trojans of a gigantic wooden horse which in
reality concealed a group of warriors within. Just to
make sure the Trojans took the horse within the
city, Sinon was chosen to stay behind and tell a cock
and bull story about the Greeks having given up and
left a nice present. The Trojans did take the horse
inside the city walls but whilst they were enjoying a
drunken celebration of their victory, the Greeks
climbed out of the horse, opened the city walls for
the returning Greek army, and the city was sacked
and the population slaughtered or enslaved. Helen
was taken back to Argos and of the Trojan heroes
only Aeneas escaped to eventually set up a new
home in Italy.
Victory had its price though. Due to their
pitiless ravaging of the city and its people and even
worse, outrageous sacrilegious acts such as the
rape of Kassandra, the gods punished the Greeks by
sending storms to wreck their ships and those who
did eventually return were made to endure a
protracted and difficult voyage home. Even then,
some of the Greeks who did make it back to their
homeland only did so to face further misfortune
and disaster.
You Gotta Know These Trojan War Heroes
Greeks
 Agamemnon: The king of Mycenae,
Agamemnon shares supreme command of the
Greek troops with his brother, Menelaus. An
epithet of his, “king of heroes,” reflects this
status. As a commander, however, he often
lacks good public relations skills, as shown by
his feud with Achilles (book 1) and by his ill-
considered strategy of suggesting that all the
troops go home (book 2). Upon his return
home, Agamemnon is murdered by his wife,
Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus.
 Menelaus: The king of Sparta, Menelaus is the
husband of Helen, the cause celebre of the war.
He tries to win Helen back by fighting Paris in
single combat, but Aphrodite carried Paris off
when it seemed that Menelaus would win.
Despite his notionally equal say in commanding
the troops with his brother Agamemnon, in
practice Agamemnon often dominates.
 Achilles: This “swift-footed” warrior is the
greatest on the Greek side. His father is Peleus,
a great warrior in his own right, and his mother
is Thetis, a sea nymph. The consequences of
Achilles’ rage at Agamemnon for confiscating
his geras (prize of honor) are the subject of the
Iliad. Achilles kills Hector, but is killed by a
poisoned arrow in the heel, the only vulnerable
place on his body.
 Patroclus: Achilles’ foster brother and closest
friend. Although Patroclus is a formidable hero,
he is valued for his kind and gentle nature.
Patroclus is killed by Hector while wearing the
armor of Achilles.
 Ajax the Great: This prince of Salamis is the
son of Telamon. He once fights all afternoon in
single combat with Hector; since neither one
can decisively wound the other, they part as
friends. Ajax’s most glorious achievement is
fighting the Trojans back from the ships almost
singlehandedly. He commits suicide after the
armor of Achilles is awarded to Odysseus rather
than to himself.
 Diomedes: In his day of glory, Diomedes kills
Pandarus and wounds Aeneas before taking on
the gods. He stabs Aphrodite in the wrist and,
with Athena as his charioteer, wounds Ares in
the stomach. Along with Odysseus, he also
conducts a successful night raid against King
Rhesus.
 Odysseus: This son of Laertes is known for his
cleverness and glib tongue. His
accomplishments include a successful night raid
against King Rhesus, winning the armor of
Achilles, and engineering the famous Trojan
Horse. His ten-year trip home to Ithaca (where
his wife, Penelope, awaits) is the subject of the
Odyssey.
 Nestor: The king of Pylos, he is too old to
participate in the fighting of the Trojan War, but
serves as an advisor. He tells tales of “the good
old days” to the other heroes.
Trojans
 Hector: The son of Priam and Hecuba, he is
probably the noblest character on either side. A
favorite of Apollo, this captain of the Trojan
forces exchanges gifts with Ajax after neither
can conquer the other in single combat. He kills
Patroclus when Patroclus goes into battle
wearing the armor of his friend, Achilles. Killed
by Achilles to avenge the death of Patroclus, he
is greatly mourned by all of Troy. Funeral
games take place in his honor.
 Paris (sometimes called Alexander): Also the
son of Priam and Hecuba, he is destined to be
the ruin of his country. He fulfills this destiny by
accepting a bribe when asked to judge which of
three goddesses is the fairest. When he awards
Aphrodite the golden apple, Aphrodite repays
him by granting him the most beautiful woman
in the world; unfortunately, Helen is already
married to Menelaus. Known less for hand-to-
hand fighting than for mastery of his bow, he
kills Achilles with an arrow but dies by the
poisoned arrows of Philoctetes.
 Priam: The king of Troy and son of Laomedon,
he has 50 sons and 12 daughters with his wife
Hecuba (presumably she does not bear them
all), plus at least 42 more children with various
concubines. Neoptolemus, the son of Achilles,
kills him in front of his wife and daughters
during the siege of Troy.
 Hecuba (or Hecabe): The wife of Priam, she
suffers the loss of most of her children but
survives the fall of Troy. She is later turned into
a dog.
 Andromache: The wife of Hector and mother of
Astyanax, she futilely warns Hector about the
war, then sees both her husband and son killed
by the Greeks. After the war she is made
concubine to Neoptolemus, and later marries
the Trojan prophet Helenus.
 Cassandra: This daughter of Priam and Hecuba
has an affair with Apollo, who grants her the gift
of prophecy. Unable to revoke the gift after they
quarrel, Apollo curses her by preventing
anyone from believing her predictions. Among
her warnings is that the Trojan horse contains
Greeks. After Troy falls she is given to
Agamemnon, who tactlessly brings her home to
his wife Clytemnestra. Clytemnestra and her
lover Aegisthus then kill Agamemnon and
Cassandra, leaving Agamemnon’s son Orestes
(egged on by his sister Electra) to avenge the
deaths and kill Clytemnestra and Aegisthus.
 Laocoon: Yet another son of Priam and Hecuba,
this priest of Apollo shares Cassandra’s doubt
about the merits of bringing the Trojan horse
into the city. “Timeo danaos et dona ferentes,”
he says (according to Vergil), “I fear the Greeks,
even bearing gifts.” Later, while sacrificing a
bull, two serpents from the sea crush both him
and his two young sons. The death of Laocoon is
often blamed on Athena (into whose temple the
serpent disappeared) but was more likely the
act of Poseidon, a fierce Greek partisan.
 Aeneas: This son of Aphrodite and Anchises
often takes a beating but always gets up to
rejoin the battle. Knocked unconscious by a
large rock thrown by Diomedes, he is evacuated
by Aphrodite and Apollo. He succeeds the late
Hector as Trojan troop commander and
survives the fall of Troy, ultimately settling in
Italy. His son Iulus founds Alba Longa, near the
site of Rome. That bloodline is the basis of Julius
Caesar’s claim to have descended from Venus.
NORSE MYTHOLOGY
Who were the Norse?
• The Norse were tribes that inhabited Northern
Europe, specifically Norway, Sweden,
Finland, and Denmark.
• Historically, the Norse were know by the term
“Viking” and were famous for their raids along
the British Isles and continental Europe.
How Do We Know What We Know?
• Norse myths existed only in oral form while
they were central to religious belief. They were
written down after Northern Europe had
become Christian.
• However this presents a few problems:
– There is no coherent body of literature
showing the myths and legends
– There could possibly be alterations due
to the influence of Christianity
– The “fictionalization” of stories which
originally had religious importance
– There was a wide time span, wide
geographical range, and many different
sub-cultures.
RECORDED SOURCES
• There are some sources that were recorded and
we are pretty sure have not been altered.
• Prose Edda and Poetic Edda are where most of
our ideas about the Norse religion come from.
• However, unlike most myths, we know exactly
who wrote these Eddas…Snorri Sturluson in
the 13th century.
NORSE CREATION MYTH
• Ginnungagap was the great emptiness before
there was a world, or any living things in it.
• Far to the South of the Ginnungagap was the
fiery realm of Muspell.
• With its long, hot rivers full of poison and vast
lakes of fire, nothing could grow in Muspell.
• Slowly, over years and years and years, the fiery
blasts from Muspell began to melt the icy
mountains of Niflheim.
• Out of the melting ice, the giant Ymir emerged,
the first being of the vast Ginnungagap.
• Next to him there emerged a cow from the ice.
• The cow licked the salt from the ice mountains
and Ymir drank the cow’s milk.
• The cow licked away entire mountains of ice.
Slowly she licked the ice from two more beings,
this time the god Buri and his goddess wife.
• They had a son named Bor, and his son was
named Odin, who became the king of all the
gods.
• Ymir was cruel and brutal.
• Odin and the other gods could no longer abide
by his evil acts and together the gods slew him.
• Ymir’s huge body formed the earth. His blood
became the sea, his flesh became the land, his
bones the mountains and his hair the trees.
• Odin and the other gods formed the sky with
his skull, held up by four towering pillars.
• Odin gathered sparks from the fiery depths of
Muspell and created the sun and moon and set
them in the sky.
• As the sun and moon shone over the new world
in the Ginnungagap, the ice began to melt and
plants and trees began to grow.
• The greatest tree of all was the Yggdrasil,
which grew in the very center of the earth.
• Its roots penetrated into the bottom of creation
and its leaves reached the very top of the sky.
• Odin was satisfied with the new world, and
named it Midgard, ‘The Middle Land’.
• On one of his walks, Odin found two fallen
trees, an ash and an elm.
• He lifted them from the mud and formed the
first man and woman from them.
• Odin breathed life into the beings, gave them
reason and feelings, hearing and sight.
• He named the man Ask and the woman Embla.
From these two sprang the entire human race.
• The humans had the task of looking after
Midgard, while the gods ascended to Asgard
(their realm in heaven).
• Ymir’s giant sisters were still mourning his
death and were looking for a way to take their
revenge on the gods who killed him.
• They gathered at the foot of Yggdrasil and
began carving lines into it.
• Each line was a human life, filled with twists
and turns, beginning with a man’s birth, and
ending with his death.
• At the end of each line they made a deep cut to
ensure that humans would never be as
powerful as the gods.
• These spells were so powerful that not even
Odin could do anything to change them.
• Thus Yggdrasil became known as ‘The Tree of
Life’ and humans knew death and suffering in
their world.
DIFFERENT DEITIES
• There were actually two distinct division
among the gods of Norse mythology.
• The Aesir make up the principle gods of the
pantheon and were connected to power and
war.
• The Vanir appear to mainly be connected to
cultivation and fertility.
• Over time both groups would merge with the
Aesir gods being the dominate.
NINE WORLDS
There were nine separate worlds to the Norse that
made up the cosmos.
• Midgard (where the humans dwelt)
• Asgard (this is the capitol of the Norse Gods
and where most of the myths take place).
• Hel (the underworld)
• The other six worlds are referred to, but play no
big part in the major myths.
VALHALLA
• Odin’s Hall
• The home of those slain gloriously in battle.
• There idea of heaven where you prepared to
fight at the end of the world.
GODS AND GODDESSES
*ODIN*
• Chief God
• God of wisdom, war, battle and death (among
other things)
• Had one eye. Gave an eye for wisdom
• Odin’s weapon of choice was a spear (Gungnir)
and he rode Sleipnir (an eight-legged horse).
*FRIGG*
• Wife of Odin
• Patron of marriage, motherhood and fertility.
• Plays little part in the myths.
*THOR*
• Son of Odin
• Red Haired and Bearded
• God of thunder (as well as lightening, wind and
rain) and war.
• Weapon of choice was a special crafted war
hammer, Mjolnir.
• Hammer was crafted by the dwarfs of Asgard.
*SIF*
• Golden haired wife of Thor. FORCES OF CHAOS
• Fertility goddess • There are several forces that are constantly
• Plays little part in the myths. fighting the gods but among them only six are
prominent.
*TYR* – Frost Giants
• God of single combat and heroic glory. – Fire Giants
• Bound the great wolf Fenrir. – Loki
• One hand (lost the other to the wolf Fenrir) – Loki’s three children
• Bravest of the Gods.
LOKI
*HEIMDALL* • God of Mischief
• Guardian of the Gods • Odin’s brother
• Watches over the Bifrost Bridge (connects the • Prankster
worlds together). • Has three child who are the greatest monsters
• Could see perfectly for hundreds of miles in the in the known world.
day or night.
• Needed no sleep. *FENRIR*
• Blows his warning horn if trouble approaches • A massive wolf
• Will only blow his horn once in all the myths. • Capable of breaking any bonds
• Special bond was made by the gods and Tyr
*FREYR* bound the monster.
• One of the most important Norse Gods
• God of Fertility Jörmungandr (World Serpent)
• Carried a magic sword • A massive snake with venomous breath.
• Cast down into the oceans of Midgard where he
*FREYA* became so large his body circled the world
• Goddess of love and fertility. • The arch-enemy of Thor
• The most beautiful of the goddesses
• Patron of crops and childbirth. *HEL*
• A female with half a face like a beautiful woman
*BALDR* and the other half of her face like a corpse.
• God of innocence, joy, beauty and peace. • Ruler of Hel (the place), the Viking underworld.
• Odin’s second son. • Companion her hellhound Garm.
• Invulnerable to everything, except mistletoe
• Killed by his blind brother Hoor, who was RAGNAROK
tricked by Loki • The Viking Armageddon
• Death begins the prophecy for the end of the • Introduced by the birth of Loki’s three children.
world • Triggered by the death of Baldr.
• Fought during three consecutive winters.
*HOOR/HOD*
• God of winter and darkness LOKI’S PUNISHMENT
• Blind • Punished for the death of Baldr, Loki is tied to
• Tricked by Loki into killing Balder a rock where a snake spits its venom onto his
face everyday.
*VIDAR* • However a great earthquake will break all the
• God of Silence bonds in the universe and the battle of
• God of Revenge Ragnorak will begin.

*ULLER* FINAL BATTLE

• God of the Winter. • Brandishing the Sword of Vengeance, Surtr (the
• Always dressed in animal furs. great fire giant) will burn all 9 worlds of the
• Patron of the western mountains. Norse universe.
• The fire will destroy everything, including
*VALKYRIE* himself
• Goddess of combat • Thus ends the world
• Rode over the battlefields to choose those slain
gloriously in battle. THE END
• They choose who got to go to Valhalla.
• Although Surtr destroys the world, this is not
the end.
• The earth reemerges and the sons of the gods as
well as two humans (a male and female)
emerge from Yggdrasil and begin to repopulate
the world.
• A newer and a fairer sun will arise symbolizing
the completion of a perfect world.

HEROES
*SIGURD/SEIGFRIED THE DRAGON SLAYER*
• Sigurd the Dragon Slayer is the hero of the
anonymous 13th century Icelandic prose epic,
Völsunga saga, based on legends of Old
Scandinavian folk culture.
• Slays the dragon Fafnir to claim a dragon’s
hoard.

*BEOWULF*
• An Anglo-Saxon hero chronicled in the epic
poem Beowulf from the 8th century.
• Kills three monstrous beings: Grendel,
Grendel’s Mother, and a Dragon.
• Embodies the ideals of the Norse culture.
• Considered the first piece of written literature
of what would become English.

Interesting Jeopardy side note…

- Our days of the week are named for the Norse
gods:
 Sunday – The Sun’s Day
 Monday – The Moon’s Day
 Tuesday – Tyr’s Day
 Wednesday – Odin’s Day
 Thursday – Thor’s Day
 Friday – Freya’s Day
 Saturday – Saturn’s Day