Adonis & Aphrodite - The God &The Goddess of Love
and Beauty - The Legends of Mythology
We often listen to the comparison of Bollywood actor Hrithik
Roshan to a Greek God synonymous to male beauty referring to Adonis.
I have inserted some of the interesting classic and box-office images of reigning Indian Bollywood God and Goddesses.
Hope the above photos do justice
to the God and Goddesses of contemporary world to the mythical genre men and
women of yore who arouse passion, love and beauty. The images of Adonis and Aphrodite available
are the handiwork of some of the painters and sculptors.
The Greek or Roman Mythology is full of interesting and popular fables of the ancient world. The Clash of Titans and the Star Wars.
“Myth” is derived from the Greek
word mythos, which can mean tale, or story, and that is essentially what
a myth is: a story.
Myth in a sense is the highest
reality, and the thoughtless dismissal of myth as fiction or a lie is the most
barren and misleading definition of all.
The most common association of
the words “myth” and “mythical” is with what is incredible and fantastic.
Let us take a glimpse of the most
beautiful, magical and exciting world of Gods and Goddesses of the ancient
mythologies of Greek and Roman.
The ride I suggest is an aerial
route of the mythical world on the Aphrodite’s chariot the wings of her white swans through the clouds and sky often
embarking on the forest, mountain, valleys and gardens.
The roller coaster ride of joy
and sadness depicted in the Mythology, I am sure definitely will be of your
interest and amusing which gives me inspiration to write this epic Blog.
Both Adonis and Aphrodite are Greek and Venus is the Roman counterpart of
Aphrodite.
We shall also separately discuss
some of the commonly used words from the Greek mythologies like Midas Touch,
Pandora’s Box, Fable of Aesop and an ode to Music, the story of melodious love
and symphony of great musician Orpheus who moved even rocks and trees towards
him with his lyre and music other than the amused Gods themselves.
One will bound to go crazy
remembering and identifying the various gods and goddesses of the mythologies
and their relevant portfolios. I make an
attempt to show below the family tree of Mythlogical gods and goddesses, both
Greek and Roman.
The Twelve Olympians:
Zeus, Hera, and their Children
THE OLYMPIAN DEITIES
GREEK NAME (ROMAN EQUIVALENT)
APHRODITE (VENUS)
APOLLO
ARES (MARS)
ARTEMIS (DIANA)
ATHENA or ATHENE (MINERVA)
DEMETER (CERES)
DIONYSUS or DIONYSOS (BACCHUS)
HADES (PLUTO)
HEPHAESTUS or HEPHAISTOS (VULCAN)
HERA (JUNO)
HERMES (MERCURY)
HESTIA (VESTA)
POSEIDON (NEPTUNE)
ZEUS (JUPITER)
- The fourteen major deities are listed above,
alphabetically.
- Zeus is the supreme god and his wife is Hera; they are
king and queen, father and mother of gods and mortals.
- Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades are the trinity who control
the important spheres of power: Zeus, god of the sky, Poseidon, god of the
sea, and Hades, god of the Underworld.
- Apollo has the same name for both the Greeks and the
Romans.
- The fourteen deities are reduced to a canon of twelve
Olympians: Hestia is removed from the list and so is Hades, whose home is
not Mt. Olympus but the Underworld.
The underworld means the world of
dead souls and the upper world means the real world of living.
Both the mythologies are rich
with volumes have been written about each and every god and goddess, their
subjects and their lives and morals.
The fight for power
and possession of beauty triggers war amongst the gods.
The clash of the
titans resulted in star wars.
Let us explore the inception, the
birth and life and love of the title owners Adonis and Aphrodite.
Greek mythology – ancient Greece
– the most interesting and popular mythology of the ancient world.
APHRODITE was the great Olympian
goddess of pleasure, joy, beauty, love and procreation. She did not have any other job than love
making which she did in abundance. Many
gods and mortals were attracted to her and she was the object of desire. At times she had her own pick and Hares and
Adonis was amongst them.
Eros or Cupid the archer god who was the favorite son of his
mother Aphrodite makes Aphrodite to fall in love with Adonis with his arrow of
desire which was physical and not intellectual.
The Cupid’s arrow of love and lust originated from this.
The birth of Adonis and Aphrodite –
The birth of Adonis and Aphrodite is interesting and novel.
Adonis is born from
the unison of father and daughter after daughter Myrrah’s maid makes her father
drunk and in the drunken frenzy in the cover of darkness he makes love to his
daughter and she gets pregnant. Myrrah was attracted to her father and lusted
after him. Myrrah’s maid witnessing her
desire and to save her from committing suicide helped her to get her father drunk
and lose his senses and gets him involved in the sexual act. When this fact was known to the father King
Cinyras, he becomes angry and chases to kill Myrrah. Aprodite comes to the rescue of Myrrah and turns her into a tree – the popular
Myrrah tree. In fact the incest was
masterminded by Aphrodite due to the jelousy caused by the remarks of Myrrah’s
mother that Myrrah is more beautiful than Aphrodite. When the king shoots an arrow into the tree
the tree trunk opens up and give birth to Adonis. Adonis
grew up as a most handsome boy and
was synonymous with male beauty.
He was a hunter and Aphrodite loved him.
Aphrodite neglecting heaven, prefers Adonis to heaven, and so she holds close to his
ways as his companion, and forgets to rest at noon-day in the shade, neglecting care of her sweet beauty. She goes through the woods,and over mountain ridges and wild fields,rocky and thorn-set, bare to her white
knees. Love make people do crazy things. The loving and caring Aphrodite
cautioned Adonis to keep away from the animal who does not get scared of
him. One day while hunting Adonis pierce a wild boar with a spear and
panicks when the wild boar did not get afraid of him and chased him and it
injures him with his deep tusk. After hearing the dying groans of Adonis, Aprodite reaches the forest
riding on her swans and medicate the nearly dead Adonis. The goddess ordained that from his blood a
flower, the anemone, should arise. Here is allegorized the important recurrent
theme of the Great Mother and her lover, who dies as vegetation dies and comes
back to life again. Celebrations
honoring the dead and risen Adonis share similarities with Easter celebrations
for the dead and risen Christ. Adonis'
death and resurrection, symbolic of the yearly cycle of vegetation, were widely
celebrated in ancient Greece in the midsummer festival of "Adonia".
When Adonis was a child Aphrodite
put him in a chest and given custody to the queen of dead Persephone. When the boy grew up Persephone got attracted
to his beauty and refused to Aphrodite to part with him. The other gods intervened the issue and asked
to keep custody of Adonis four months with Peresphone and four months with
Aphrodite and balance four months to be spend as per wish of the boy which
Adonis opted to spend with Aphrodite.
Aphrodite’s birth was
from the severed genital of Uranus by Heidos and thrown into the sea. She emerged as the godess of beauty from the sea - a la
Bo Derek in the Hollywood Movie “10”.
Aphrodite the celestial nymphet the goddess
of love emerging from the sea foam (aphros) as the Venus of beauty (Venus is
the
Roman goddess - a la Aphrodite).
She was the most beautiful Goddess of love and
beauty. She was considered to be goddess
of love, passion, fertility and lust. She makes love in abundance to mortal men and
many gods were fallen for her beauty.
Married to Hephaestus, she had a clandestine adulterous affair with Hares and loved Adonis
as well. There are interesting stories
like her husband caught her red handed with Hares and he invited other gods to
witness the adultery committed by them and both Hares and Aphrodite were
chained and then Hares was fined for the
act of adultery and was later released.
The story goes like even the gods got aroused after seeing Aphrodite in
the act and was not really interested to punish her and was lenient in the
punishment meted out to Aphrodite and Hares.
We know that
Aphrodite arose amidst the foam (aphros) in the ocean and thus named Aphrodite. Aphrodite was the epitome of beauty.
Midas Touch –
The midas touch is the "golden touch".
In modern days if we say someone has the
“Midas touch” we mean that everything
they do is successful or profitable.
In Greek legend, King Midas was found
and brought back to health a satyr who had passed out in his gardens. After
returning the satyr to the god Dionysus, he was granted one wish. The greedy king
asked for the ability to turn anything he touched into gold. At first he loved
the gift and rejoiced. When he had a feast prepared, though, he tried to eat
and his food turned into solid gold!
Even with his touch his only daughter turned into a golden statue. Only then did Midas realise he would starve
to death and lose his lovely daughter asked to be relieved of the power.
Pandora’s Box -
In classical
Greek mythology, Pandora was the first woman on Earth. Zeus ordered Hephaestus to create her. So he did, using
water and earth. The gods endowed her with many gifts: Athena clothed her, Aphrodite gave her beauty, Apollo gave her musical ability, and Hermes gave her speech.
According to
Hesiod, when Prometheus stole fire from heaven, Zeus
took vengeance by presenting Pandora to Prometheus' brother Epimetheus. Pandora's
box is an artifact in Greek mythology, taken from the myth of Pandora's
creation in Hesiod's Works and Days. The
"box" was actually a large jar given to Pandora
("all-gifted", "all-giving"). Pandora opens a jar
containing death and destruction like war, famine, misery, sadness, jealousy,
greed, many other evils which were released into the world. She hastened to
close the container, but the whole contents had escaped except for one thing
that lay at the bottom – Elpis (usually translated
"hope", though it could also mean "expectation") before she
could close the jar the bug “Hope” too was
released into the world.
In the
modern usage Pandora’s Box associates with all the trouble that may brew from the
starting of an endeavor or expectation of ensuing problems by opening a case or
issue.
Aesop’s Fable
-
Aesop was an Ancient Greek writer who lived in the 6th
century BC in Athens, Greece.
Aesop is known about the
myths he wrote, referred to as
Aesop’s Fables.
One of the most famous legends tells that during a feast, the lord (master)
of Aesop too boldly stated that he would drink the sea. If he couldn’t he would
lose all his wealth. The next morning, realizing his claim was impossible to
complete, he called Aesop.
The slave quickly realized the trouble his master was in and promised
that he would help save his dignity and honor.
Both men went to the seashore to face a noisy crowd, gathered to see how the
stupid man would “drink the sea”.
Aesop explained to the people that his master could “drink” the sea, but for
the rules to be met all the water from the rivers and lakes, flowing into the
sea, should be removed.
Needless to say, nobody was able to separate the sea, and the master saved
his wealth and honor. As a reward Aesop received his freedom.
Orpheus - an ode to Music
One of the most soul stirring story of
ancient Greek mythology is the story of great musician Orpheus who went
underworld to rescue his love, his wife.
The story of Orpheus and Eurydice is the ultimate tragic
love story whose love could not be consummated.
Orpheus is known as the most
talented music player of the ancient times. It is said that god Apollo was his
father, from whom took his extreme talent in music, and the Muse Calliope was
his mother. He was living in Thrace, on the northeastern part of Greece.
Orpheus had a divinely gifted voice that could charm everyone who heard it.
When he was presented first the lyre as a boy, he had it mastered in no time at
all. The myth says that no god or mortal could resist his music and even the
rocks and trees would move themselves to be near him.
Orpheus used to spend much of his
early years in the idyllic pursuits of music and poetry. His skill had far
surpassed the fame and respect of his music. Humans and beasts alike would be enchanted by
it and often even the most inanimate of objects would yearn to be near him.
Well into his youth he had mastered the lyre and his melodious voice garnered
him audiences from near and afar. It was at one such gathering of humans and
beasts that his eyes fell on a wood nymph. The girl was called Eurydice, she
was beautiful and shy. She had been drawn to Orpheus enamored by his voice and
such was the spell of beauty in music and appearance that neither could cast
their eyes off each other. Something inexplicable tugged the hearts of the two
young people and soon they fell dearly in love, unable to spend a single moment
apart. After a while, they decided to get married. Their wedding day dawned
bright and clear. Hymenaios, the god of marriage, blessed their marriage and
then a great feast followed. The surroundings were filled with laughter and
gaiety. Soon the shadows grew large, signaling an end to the revelry that had
lasted much of the day and the wedding guests all took leave of the newly-weds,
who were still sitting hand-in-hand and starry eyed. They soon both realized
that it was time they were on their way and departed for home. However, things would soon change and grief
would ensue happiness. There was one man who was despising Orpheus and desired
Eurydice for his own. Aristaeus, a shepherd, had plotted a plan to conquer the
beautiful nymph. And there he was, waiting in the bushes for the young couple
to pass by. Seeing that the lovers were approaching, he intended to jump on
them and kill Orpheus. As the shepherd made his move, Orpheus grabbed Eurydice
by the hand and started running pell-mell through the forest. The chase was
long and Aristaeus showed no signs of giving up or slowing down. On and on they
ran and suddenly, Orpheus felt Eurydice stumble and fall, her hand slipping
from his grasp. Unable to comprehend what had just happened, he rushed to her
side but stopped short in dismay, for his eyes perceived the deathly pallor
that suffused her cheeks. Looking around, he saw no trace of the shepherd for
Aristaeus had witnessed the event and had left. Few steps away, Eurydice had
stepped on a nest of snakes and had been bitten by a deadly viper. Knowing that
there was no chance of survival, Aristaeus had abandoned his try, cursing his
luck and Orpheus.
After the death of his beloved wife, Orpheus
was no more the same carefree person he used to be. His life without Eurydice
seemed endless and could do nothing more than grief for her. This is when he
had a great but yet crazy idea: he decided to go to Underworld and try to get
his wife back. Apollo, his father, would talk to Hades, the god of the
Underworld, to accept him and hear his plea. Armed with his weapons, the lyre
and voice, Orpheus approached Hades and demanded entry into the underworld.
None challenged him. Standing in front of the rulers of the dead, Orpheus said
why he was there, in a voice both mellifluous and disquieting. He played his
lyre and sang out to King Hades and Queen Persephone that Eurydice was returned
to him. Not even the most stone-hearted of people or Gods could have neglected
the hurt in his voice. Hades openly wept, Persephone's heart melted and even
Cerberus, the gigantic three-headed hound guarding the entry to the underworld,
covered his many ears with his paws and howled in despair. The voice of Orpheus
was so moving that Hades promised to this desperate man that Eurydice would
follow him to the Upper World, the world of the living. However, he warned
Orpheus that for no reason must he look back while his wife was still in the
dark, for that would undo everything he hoped for. He should wait for Eurydice
to get into the light before he looked at her. With great faith in his heart
and joy in his song, Orpheus began his journey out of the underworld, joyful
that he would once again be reunited with his love. As Orpheus was reaching the
exit of the Underworld, he could hear the footfalls of his wife approaching
him. He wanted to turn around and hug her immediately but managed to control his
feelings. As he was approaching the exit, his heart was beating faster and
faster. The moment he stepped on the world of the living, he turned his head to
hug his wife.
Unfortunately, he got only a
glimpse of Eurydice before she was once again drawn back into the underworld.
When Orpheus turned his head, Eurydice was still in the dark, she hadn't seen
the sun and, as Hades had warned Orpheus, his sweet wife was drowned back to
the dark world of the dead. Waves of anguish and despair swept over him and
shuddering with grief he approached the Underworld again but this time, he was
denied entry, the gates were standing shut and god Hermes, sent by Zeus,
wouldn't let him in.
The heart-broken musician was wandering
disoriented, day after day, night after night, in total despair. He could find
no consolation in anything. His misfortune tormented him, forcing him to
abstain from contact with any other woman and slowly but surely he found
himself shunning their company completely. His songs were no more joyful but
extremely sad. His only comfort was to lay on a huge rock and feel the caress
of the breeze, his only vision were the open skies. And so it was that a group
of irate women, furious for his scorn towards them, chanced upon him. Orpheus
was so desperate that he did not even try to repulse their advances. The women
killed him, cut his body into pieces and threw them and his lyre into a river.
It is said that his head and his lyre floated downriver to the island of
Lesvos. There the Muses found them and gave Orpheus a proper burial ceremony.
People believed that his grave emanated music, plaintive yet beautiful. His
soul descended down to Hades where he was finally reunited with his beloved
Eurydice.
The biblical semblance in the Book of Genesis – The
analogy of “Not looking back” -
If you observe the above myth
closely, you will find a comparison between this ancient Greek myth and a scene
from the Bible. The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is similar to the story of
Lot. The analogy of "not looking back" is of great importance to both
stories. In the Book of Genesis, when God decided to destroy Sodom and
Gomorrah, two cities drowned in sins, he ordered a good man, Lot, to take his
family and leave the area. God told them to head for the mountains without
looking back the city being destroyed. While they were leaving the city, Lot's
wife couldn't resist and turned around to see the burning cities. She was
immediately transformed into a pillar of salt! This may be inferred as a direct
and terrifying consequence of disobedience towards God.
The Greek and Roman Mythologies
make amusing read and an engaging view to the mesmeric world of epitome of
beauty, creativity, the love sagas and one would make an adventurous trip in pursuit of joy, happiness and
realization of world order with the legends of mythology.
