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Hecate
Hecate or Hekate, , ; grc-dor, Ἑκάτᾱ, Hekátā, ; la, Hecatē or . is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depicted as three-formed or triple-bodied. She is variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, night, light, magic, witchcraft, the Moon, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, graves, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery.Seyffert, s.vHecate/ref>d'Este, Sorita & Rankine, David, Hekate Liminal Rites, Avalonia, 2009. Her earliest appearance in literature was in Hesiod's ''Theogony'' in the 8th century BCE as a goddess of great honour with domains in sky, earth, and sea. Her place of origin is debated by scholars, but she had popular followings amongst the witches of Thessaly and an important sanctuary among the Carian Greeks of Asia Minor in Lagina. Her oldest known representation was found in Selinunte, in Sicily. Hecate was one of several de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diana (mythology)
Diana is a goddess in Roman and Hellenistic religion, primarily considered a patroness of the countryside, hunters, crossroads, and the Moon. She is equated with the Greek goddess Artemis, and absorbed much of Artemis' mythology early in Roman history, including a birth on the island of Delos to parents Jupiter (mythology), Jupiter and Latona, and a twin brother, Apollo,''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. though she had Diana Nemorensis, an independent origin in Italy. Diana is considered a virgin goddess and protector of childbirth. Historically, Diana made up a triad with two other Roman deities: Egeria (mythology), Egeria the water nymph, her servant and assistant midwife; and Virbius, the woodland god. Diana is revered in modern neopagan religions including Roman polytheistic reconstructionism, Roman neopaganism, Stregheria, and Wicca. In the ancient, medieval, and modern periods, Diana has been considered a triple deity, m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greek Underworld
In mythology, the Greek underworld, or Hades, is a distinct realm (one of the three realms that makes up the cosmos) where an individual goes after death. The earliest idea of afterlife in Greek myth is that, at the moment of death, an individual's essence (''psyche'') is separated from the corpse and is transported to the underworld. In early mythology (e.g., Homer's ''Iliad'' and ''Odyssey'') the dead were indiscriminately grouped together and lead a shadowy post-existence; however, in later mythology (e.g., Platonic philosophy) elements of post-mortem judgment began to emerge with good and bad people being separated (both spatially and with regards to treatment). The underworld itself— commonly referred to as Hades, after its patron god, but also known by various metonyms—is described as being located at the periphery of the earth, either associated with the outer limits of the ocean (i.e., ''Oceanus'', again also a god) or beneath the earth. Darkness and a lack of sunlig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empusa
Empusa or Empousa (; ; ''plural'': ''Empousai'') is a shape-shifting female being in Greek mythology, said to possess a single leg of copper, commanded by Hecate, whose precise nature is obscure. In Late Antiquity, the empousai have been described as a category of phantoms or spectres, equated with the lamiai and mormolykeia, thought to seduce and feed on young men. In antiquity The primary sources for the ''empousa'' in Antiquity are Aristophanes's plays (''The Frogs'' and ''Ecclesiazusae'') and Philostratus's ''Life of Apollonius of Tyana''. Aristophanes The Empusa has been defined in the Sudas and by Crates of Mallus as a "demonic phantom". with shape-shifting abilities. Thus in Aristophane's plays she is said to change appearance from various beasts to a woman. The Empusa is also said to be one-legged, namely, having one brass leg,). or a donkey's leg, thus being known by the epithets Onokole (Ὀνοκώλη) and Onoskelis (Ὀνοσκελίς) which they mean "Donke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asteria (Titaness)
In Greek mythology, Asteria or Asterie (; grc, Ἀστερία or Ἀστερίη, Astería/Asteríē, of the stars, starry one) is a daughter of the Titans Coeus (Polus) and Phoebe and the sister of Leto. According to Hesiod, by the Titan Perses she had a single child, a daughter named Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft.Hesiod, ''Theogony'409–11 Apollodorus1.2.4/ref> Other authors made Asteria the mother of the fourth Heracles and HecateAccording to Musaeus as cited by a scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius's ''Argonautica'3.467/ref> by Zeus. Asteria is notable for her pursuit by the amorous god Zeus, who desired her. In order to escape him and his advances, she transformed herself into a bird and then a wandering island. When her sister Leto, impregnated by Zeus, went into labour, Asteria was the only place on earth willing to receive her, defying Hera's orders that forbade Leto any shelter. After Apollo and Artemis were born on her, the island received the name of Delos, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ereshkigal
In Mesopotamian mythology, Ereshkigal ( sux, , lit. "Queen of the Great Earth") was the goddess of Kur, the land of the dead or underworld in Sumerian religion, Sumerian mythology. In later myths, she was said to rule Irkalla alongside her husband Nergal. Sometimes her name is given as Irkalla, similar to the way the name Hades was used in Greek mythology for both the underworld and its ruler, and sometimes it is given as Ninkigal, lit. "Lady of the Great Earth". Ereshkigal was only one of multiple deities regarded as rulers of the underworld in Mesopotamia. The main temple dedicated to her was located in Kutha, a city originally associated with Nergal, and her cult had a very limited scope. No personal names with "Ereshkigal" as a theophoric element are known. In the ancient Sumerian poem ''Inanna#Descent into the underworld, Inanna's Descent to the Underworld'', Ereshkigal is described as Inanna's older sister. However, they were not commonly associated with each other. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scylla
In Greek mythology, Scylla), is obsolete. ( ; grc-gre, Σκύλλα, Skúlla, ) is a legendary monster who lives on one side of a narrow channel of water, opposite her counterpart Charybdis. The two sides of the strait are within an arrow's range of each other—so close that sailors attempting to avoid Charybdis would pass dangerously close to Scylla and vice versa. Scylla is first attested in Homer's ''Odyssey'', where Odysseus and his crew encounter her and Charybdis on their travels. Later myth provides an origin story as a beautiful nymph who gets turned into a monster. Book Three of Virgil's ''Aeneid'' associates the strait where Scylla dwells with the Strait of Messina between Calabria, a region of Southern Italy, and Sicily. The coastal town of Scilla in Calabria takes its name from the mythological figure of Scylla and it is said to be the home of the nymph. The idiom "between Scylla and Charybdis" has come to mean being forced to choose between two similarly danger ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of Australia). The Moon is a planetary-mass object with a differentiated rocky body, making it a satellite planet under the geophysical definitions of the term and larger than all known dwarf planets of the Solar System. It lacks any significant atmosphere, hydrosphere, or magnetic field. Its surface gravity is about one-sixth of Earth's at , with Jupiter's moon Io being the only satellite in the Solar System known to have a higher surface gravity and density. The Moon orbits Earth at an average distance of , or about 30 times Earth's diameter. Its gravitational influence is the main driver of Earth's tides and very slowly lengthens Earth's day. The Moon's orbit around Earth has a sidereal period of 27.3 days. During each synodic period ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marzanna
Marzanna (in Polish), Morė (in Lithuanian), Marena (in Russian), Mara (in Ukrainian), Morana (in Czech, Slovene and Serbo-Croatian), Morena (in Slovak and Macedonian) or Mora (in Bulgarian) is a pagan Slavic goddess associated with seasonal rites based on the idea of death and rebirth of nature. She is an ancient goddess associated with winter's death, rebirth and dreams. In ancient Slavic rites, the death of the Goddess Marzanna at the end of winter becomes the rebirth of Spring of the Goddess Kostroma (Russian), Lada or Vesna representing the coming of Spring. Some medieval Christian sources such as the Czech 13th century Mater Verborum compare her to the Greek goddess Hecate, associating her with sorcery. 15th century Polish chronicler Jan Długosz likened her in his ''Annales'' to Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture (together with another Slavic goddess Dziewanna). Lithuanian, Latvian and some Estonian sources, dated between the 13th and 14th century, note the worsh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Circe
Circe (; grc, , ) is an Magician (paranormal), enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion. She is either a daughter of the Titans, Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse (mythology), Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vast knowledge of potions and herbs. Through the use of these and a magic wand or staff, she would Shapeshifting, transform her enemies, or those who offended her, into animals. The best known of her legends is told in Homer's ''Odyssey'' when Odysseus visits her island of Aeaea on the way back from the Trojan War and she changes most of his crew into swine. He manages to persuade her to return them to human shape, lives with her for a year and has sons by her, including Latinus and Telegonus (son of Odysseus), Telegonus. Her ability to change others into animals is further highlighted by the story of Picus, an Italian king whom she turns into a woodpecker for resisting her adv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Absyrtus
In Greek mythology, Absyrtus (Ancient Greek: Ἄψυρτος) or Apsyrtus, was a Colchian prince and the younger brother of Medea. he was involved in Jason's escape with the golden fleece from Colchis The Absyrtides were named after him. Family Absyrtus was the son of Aeëtes, king of Colchis and a brother of Medea and Chalciope. His mother is variously given: Hyginus calls her Ipsia, Hesiod and the '' Bibliotheca'' call her Idyia,In Hesiod. ''Theogony960'' Idyia was the wife of Aeetes and the possible mother of his children including Absyrtus. Apollonius calls her Asterodeia, a Caucasian Oceanid and others Hecate,Diodorus Siculus4.45.5/ref> the Nereid Neaera or Eurylyte. A tradition followed by Pacuvius,Cicero, ''De Natura Deorum'3.48/ref> Justin, and Diodorus, provided Aegialeus as the name of the son of Aeëtes who was murdered by Medea. Absyrtus was also called Phaethon by the sons of the Colchians because he outshone all the youths. Mythology Early years As a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Perses (Titan)
In Greek mythology, Perses (; grc, Πέρσης, Pérsēs, 'destroyer') is the son of the Titan Crius and Eurybia, and thus brother to Astraeus and Pallas.Hesiod, ''Theogony,'375Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheca''1.8 Ancient tradition records very little of Perses other than his marriage and offspring, his role largely being purely genealogical, existing merely to provide a parentage for other, more important figures. Etymology His name is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''perthō'' ( – "to sack", "to ravage", "to destroy"). Mythology Hesiod describes Perses as "eminent among all men in wisdom." He was wed to Asteria, the daughter of Phoebe and Coeus, with whom he had one child, Hecate, honoured by Zeus above all others as the goddess of magic, crossroads, and witchcraft. He might be the Perses that is the father of Chariclo, the wife of Chiron, in some versions. He was confused with another Perses (the son of the sun god Helios and Perse), who was made the father of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medea
In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, appearing in Hesiod's ''Theogony'' around 700 BCE, but best known from Euripides's tragedy ''Medea'' and Apollonius of Rhodes's epic ''Argonautica''. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress and is often depicted as a priestess of the goddess Hecate. Medea plays the archetypal role of helper-maiden, aiding Jason in his search for the Golden Fleece by using her magic to save his life out of love. Once he finished his quest, she abandons her native home of Colchis, and flees westwards with Jason, where they eventually settle in Corinth and get married. Euripides's 5th-century BCE tragedy ''Medea'', depicts the ending of her union with Jason, when after ten years of marriage, Jason abandons her to wed King Creon's daugh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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