Everyone knows the Gods of Olympus. We all know Zeus and his queen, Hera, Poseidon, and Hades, but what about the lesser-known gods? Greek Mythology is extremely complex and has many gods that no one is ever mentioning.
Love is the most important thing in the world, the thing that gives life purpose. Naturally, there was a god in Ancient Greece for Love, and that was Eros (Cupid for Romans). We find out from Hesiod that he is “Fairest of the deathless gods''. In early accounts, he is presented as Aphrodite’s companion, but later he is described as her son, a naughty boy, and worse. He is represented blindfolded and in attendance upon him was Anteros, the avenger of slighted love or even the opposite of love. He was also a companion for Himeros, the god of Longing and Hymen, the god of the Wedding Feast.
Hebe was the Goddess of Youth, daughter of Zeus and Hera, and wife of Hercules. In some stories, she is represented as a cupbearer to the gods.
There were also in Olympus two bands of lovely sisters, The Graces, and The Muses. The Graces were three: Aglaia (Splendor), Euphrosyne (Mirth), and Thalia (Good Cheer). They were the daughters of Zeus and Eurynome, a child of the titan Ocean. Except in a story Homer and Hesiod tell that Aglaia married Hephaestus, they are not treated as separated personalities, but always together, a triple incarnation of grace and beauty. They “give life its bloom” and were “queens of the song” together with The Muses. The Muses were nine in number, daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, Memory. At first, they were described as one entity, but later each had her special field.
● Clio was Muse of History
● Urania was Muse of Astronomy
● Melpomene was Muse of Tragedy
● Thalia was Muse of Comedy
● Terpsichore was Muse of Dance
● Calliope was Muse of Epic Poetry
● Erato was Muse of Love-Poetry
● Polyhymnia was Muse of Songs to the Gods
● Euterpe was the Muse of Lyric Poetry.
The Muses had 3 mountains: Helicon, Pierus in Pieria, and of course Olympus. They were companions of Apollo, God of Truth and the man they inspired was sacred far beyond any priest. As the idea of Zeus became loftier, two august forms sat beside him: Themis, which means “Right or Divine Justice'' and Dike which is “Human Justice”. They never became real personalities, just like Nemesis (usually translated as “Righteous”) and Aidos (difficult to translate; it means reverence and the shame that holds men back from wrongdoing, but it also means the feeling a prosperous man should have in the presence of bad luck ) never did.
Editor
Alexia Popescu
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