The Helpful Hag

Heroes need help.  It's one of the great truths found in stories across all genres and media types.  No one can go through life alone, whether it's ordinary mundane life...or the sort of life that involves an epic quest with armies opposing you.  That help can come in many forms: a sidekick, like Batman and Robin; a raid group taking on a difficult boss in a video game; a group of friends supporting one another, like in Friends; an adorable animal companion.

Fairy tales are full of helpers such as these.  Sometimes it's a talking animal.  In other stories, it's the fairy godmother.  But another archetype appears time and time again: The Helpful Hag.

Rarely named in any stories, the Helpful Hag is most often a little old lady by the side of the road.  I've also referred to her as the Kind Crone, or the Wizened Wise Woman.  She fits into the category of the Donor, an individual who provides the protagonist with aid.  Joseph Campbell recognized the Crone when encountering the first stages of a hero's journey, when they meet with someone who provides them with help of some sort.

There are several fairy tales in which three sons all set out on the same quest.  They each, along the way, encounter an old crone begging on the side of the road.  This woman is described as wizened, ugly, a poor beggar with nothing to offer.  The first two brothers refuse to share their bread with her.  The youngest, considerably kinder than his kin, splits his meal with the hag.

This is where the hag shows her true nature.  Her begging is a test; for those who show her kindness, she provides aid.  Sometimes this is a magical item.  More frequently, her aid comes in the form of advice.

But for those who spurn her request for help...well, let's take a look at one of the more famous fairy tales to see how that turns out.

The opening scene of Disney's Beauty and the Beast shows how the prince spurned the offer of a rose from a wizened old woman.  Irked by his lack of manners, she revealed that it had been a test.  In fact, the old hag was actually a beautiful, powerful enchantress.  For his rudeness, the prince was transformed into a Beast.

So the Helpful Hag is not only a benefactor towards do-gooders in fairy tales - she is also a test, to see if a character is worthy of her help.

There are a lot of myths that could serve as the origin of the Helpful Hag character.  Let us look first at Greek mythology.  Demeter spent some time wandering the earth disguised as a mortal, while she was searching for her missing daughter.  During that time she became a nursemaid for a young boy.  Seeing that the boy and his family were good, she attempted to make the boy immortal.  Unfortunately, this involved holding him in a fire - something his parents didn't take too kindly to when they burst into the room.  Demeter is one example of a Helpful Hag.

Another can be found in the Fates - or the Norns, the Moirai, or any other name you care to call them by.  Appearing in Celtic, Norse, Greek, Roman, and many other mythologies, the Fates are three women.  One is the Maiden; one is the Mother; one is the Crone.

But another example of a Helpful Hag is not actually a wizened old woman at all...but, instead, an old man.  He frequently traveled the earth under the name of High.  While there, he would offer his aid to great heroes on quests.  This man was the Norse god Odin.

Now, Norse mythology has been the basis of inspiration for a number of authors (myself included).  One such author created a character based heavily upon Odin in his mortal disguise - someone who could aid the protagonist, but never be the main character himself.

This is all a very roundabout way to confess that yes, I am comparing Gandalf to a Helpful Hag.

Can you guys think of any story examples of the Kind Crone?  Little old women offering aid abound in stories of all sorts.  One of my absolute favorite examples is from Diana Wynn Jones' Howl's Moving Castle.  Jones recognized the archetype of the Helpful Hag and turned it onto its head.  The main character spends most of the book convinced that she can't be the main character, because she's too old to go off and have adventures - so instead, she must be the helper to everyone else.  What a surprise for her when she discovers the truth!

I'll be back next week!

The Maiden Pure

In today's post, we're going to be talking about sex.  Or, rather, the lack of it.  Well...actually, a little bit of both.  One of the most common archetypes for a female in fairy tales, mythology, and quite a few stories in general is that of the virgin.  Another term for this is the maid/maiden, though this is seen as somewhat archaic in modern vernacular.

A lot of archetypes are pretty heavily gendered.  It's common to see a man be the Prince Charming, but a female Charming makes no appearance in fairy tales.  Likewise, females are frequently laid under sleeping curses, but you'd be hard pressed to find an old story with a man succumbing to such a spell.  The virgin is no exception to this gender rule - within stories, nine times out of ten the archetypical virgin is a female.  There are several reasons for this.  Firstly, a maiden's maidenhood was seen in many cultures as a symbol of purity and innocence.  That's why bridal gowns are white, why Christ was born to a Virgin, and why unicorns are supposed to be attracted to only virgins.

A girl's virginity was (and still is, in some cultures) fiercely guarded until her wedding night, where she was expected to give her innocence to her husband.  On the flip side, a male was expected to have some sort of sexual prowess before his wedding.  Some cultures did not consider a boy a man until he had lain with a woman.  Virginity was something to be praised in women, but in men?  Well, let's just say that the creators of The 40-Year-Old Virgin recognized this archetype and made their male-led film a comedy for a reason.

These stereotypes are alive and well in fairy tales and mythology alike.  Most females in the stories are innocent, delicate creatures.  When they are strong or gifted warriors, they are portrayed as unattainable (more on that in a little bit).  The men, on the other hand, usually tend to embody machismo - another word for hypermasculinity.  (Not every hero falls into the category of the uberman.  Some are less than martially skilled, and instead succeed in their quests thanks to compassion, generosity, wits, and intellect - but this is another archetype.  There's quite a few heroes who fall under this umbrella, but far more who are strong, manly, dragon-slaying types.)  So: All of this to explain why the archetype of today's post is about female characters.

What is the role of the virgin in most fairy tales and myths?  Well, that depends.  There's really three different categories that the maiden falls into.  she can be in need of saving, an innocent figure to be protected at all costs.  She can be unattainable, someone whose goodness and virtue makes her desirable in the eyes of all, but whose vows of chastity keep her from being had.  Lastly, she can be a sacrificial virgin, whose innocence is something to be taken by force.

Frequently, more than one of these categories is at play within a story.  A very commonly used narrative involves a virgin being offered as a sacrifice to some sort of monster.  The hero must rescue her (and this rescue usually winds up with her falling in love with him).  This combines both the virgin in need of saving and the sacrificial virgin archetypes.  This combination can be traced back to Greek mythology, where Andromeda was chained to a rock and offered as a sacrifice to a sea monster.  She was rescued by the hero Perseus, who she later went on to marry.

Another frequent narrative combination is the unattainable virgin whose maidenhood is sacrificed by force.  Before we talk about the prevalence of the rape of virgins in Greek mythology, it's worth examining three of the goddesses of that pantheon.  Athena, Hestia, and Artemis were known as the Virgin Goddesses.  Each had taken a vow of virginity, and (despite the efforts of several men and gods) held true to those vows.  As I mentioned before, Athena and Artemis were both portrayed as skilled warriors - and both were unattainable to men.  The followers of Artemis were likewise expected to be unattainable, and took vows of chastity.  The penalties for breaking these vows were steep: They usually cost the lives of these women.

Unfortunately, followers of Artemis were punished for losing their maidenhood even if they were raped.  There are far too many stories of girls being stalked and taken by hunters, only for the girls to be shapeshifted into a bear, or struck down  by the gods in some other way.  There's also a fair number of stories about virgin nymphs being chased by the gods (usually Zeus, though several others were guilty of the same) or satyrs, and choosing to turn themselves into a tree for all eternity rather than lose their virginity.

(Yeah, Greek mythology can be pretty screwed up.)

(Hestia's Roman counterpart, Vespa, required her priestesses to remain virgins throughout their service to her; this was the reason behind their names, the Vestal Virgins.  If a priestess lost her virginity, she was punished by being buried alive.  It was believed that Rome itself could fall if the fire of Rome, tended to by the priestesses, went out - and that the flame could go out if a priestess forsook her vows.)

Fairy tales play upon these themes.  Use of them can be made to imply that a female is a virgin without ever saying as much.  For instance, Rapunzel being kept locked in her tower, jealously guarded and kept away from all men by a witch.  Disney's Jasmine is another example, kept locked inside her palace by the Sultan, naive and innocent to the ways of the world.  This narrative trick sets the girl up as someone to be protected, rescued, or otherwise cherished, and gets the audience rooting for them.  It also makes any man trying to force the poor innocent thing to marry him (*cough*Jafar*cough*) automatically seem villainous.

History and legends have also made use of these themes - in particular, that of vampires.  Modern stories usually overlook the virgin part, but many older vampire tales had the good ol' Count sucking on the neck of a maiden.  The vampires in The Dresden Files find that maidens make the sweetest meals.  Part of this obsession with virginity in one's meals stems from the tale of Elizabeth Bathory, a woman frequently associated with vampire stories due to her preference for bathing in the blood of virgins.  Since doing this involves the murder of something considered innocent and pure, those who bathe in virgin blood are portrayed as some of the most evil around, on par with Cruella de Vil (I'm looking at you, Evelyn Poole).  This is the same reason that Voldemort was considered so evil for killing unicorns to take their blood.

The use of the virgin archetype within modern media has drastically decreased as social standards and expectations have changed.  Modern concepts of romance, increases in female rights, and the free love period all served to make it more acceptable for women to be as sexually free as men.  With these changes came a drastic decrease in the portrayal of the majority of female protagonists being maidens.  That being said, it's still a lot more common to have a female character be a virgin than a male.  This is true in movies, tv shows, and books alike.  However, exceptions do exist.  Take Jon Snow from Game of Thrones.  One of my favorite Dresden Files characters is a macho man, boasting about his experiences with the ladies...at least, until a vampire outs him as a virgin!  Boy, talk about awkward.

However, this also means that this archetype can now be used as a trope much more frequently - by which I mean that it can be played for comedy.  I mentioned The 40-Year-Old Virgin previously, in which the virgin narrative was played for laughs.  A film released in the same year, Her Minor Thing, flipped the trope on its head by having a female and her attempt at losing her virginity be the main plot point.  It can also be used for a plot twist - Buffy and Angel consummating their relationship, and the loss of her virginity leading to the resurgence of Angel's dark side, is a great example of this.

But perhaps my favorite version of the virgin narrative being played as a trope occurred in a movie I watched last night (which, I'll admit, is the reason I'm doing this post today).  Spoiler warning!  In Cast a Deadly Spell, a girl's virginity is fiercely guarded by her father, despite the best efforts of her libido.  It is eventually revealed that it hasn't been fatherly affection guiding his actions; instead, he wants to use her as a virgin sacrifice to usher in the Old Gods and allow all manner of Lovecraftian horrors to devour the world.

The girl is bound, gagged, and offered up to summon the Old Gods.  Luckily for the world, the girl had surrendered her virginity hours earlier to an attractive police officer.  Displeased by the father's attempt to pass the sacrifice off as a maiden, the Old Gods devour him instead and retreat, leaving the world safe.  Talk about flipping the narrative on its head!

What examples can you guys think of in modern stories?

The Great Flood

Greetings all!

Today's post is actually an old essay of mine from a mythology class.  With a little bit of tweaking, I felt that it fit for this blog's theme.  Without further ado, let's jump into the myth of the great flood!

In many cultures across the world stories are told about a great flood that all but wipes out humanity.  The stories vary depending on the locale, but all of them have much in common, leading one to wonder where these stories originate.  Some common themes include the great flood itself, and the fact that a god normally comes to warn a worthy human of the coming disaster.

In the Bible a great flood is depicted as God's wrath upon the world. Mankind had fallen into evil, and most were corrupt. God, looking down upon them, decided that He had had enough. He warned a man named Noah, one of the few good men left, and told him to build a great Ark that would carry he, his family, and two of every animal on the world - one male and one female. When the flood came Noah was prepared, and he and his family were saved.

A similar story is found in the writings of many Greek scholars, though all have a slightly different take on it. During what is known as the Age of Iron, mankind became so corrupt that Zeus looked down upon them with loathing. He swore to destroy them and called upon a great flood of waters to do so. Ovid and others speak of two humans surviving aboard a raft, but it is Apollodorus who offers an interesting perspective. He claims that the man, Deucalion, was warned by his father Prometheus that the flood was coming. Prometheus bade him build a great ark with which to escape, and Deucalion did so. He and his wife Pyrrha escaped because of this, and were instrumental in the repopulation of the earth.

The Sumerian myth of Ziusudra dates back to the old Babylonian Empire. The tablet it is inscribed upon speaks of a man named Ziusudra.  The god Enki, lord of the sea, warns that a great flood is coming. Ziusudra is told to build a boat to survive the waters. He complies.  Though much of the tablet is lost, it is obvious that he survives from the last part of the tablet, where he may be found prostrating himself before the gods as thanks for his survival.

In Hindu mythology the god Matsya appears to the first man, named Manu, and warns him that a great deluge is coming to destroy the earth. Manu is told to build a great boat to house his family and animals, who will later repopulate the world.  He obeys.

You can see that a powerful god bidding a man to build a boat to save himself and his family is a somewhat common theme against numerous mythologies. The trend continues in many other stories from many different cultures; the Qur'an and the Epic of Gilgamesh are but two of many that exist.

For me, the most interesting part of these stories is the fact that they originate from so many different places. While I am leery to believe that only two people survived to repopulate the earth, the number of cultures that reference the flood leads me to believe that it may have happened. The fact that cultures that had little to no interaction all bear the same myths fascinates me. Did such a disaster truly happen? The evidence of seashells and fishbones scattered beneath what is now solid ground across many countrysides leads me to wonder.

I hope you guys enjoyed this!  And if you're near an area where flooding is expected, please, stay safe.

Posts for the next several weeks are likely to be a bit shorter than usual.  I sprained my hand, and typing is somewhat difficult (and painful) with my thumb immobilized by a brace.  I do apologize for the inconvenience.  I'll do my best to keep my posts interesting, whatever their length!

I'll see you next week!

The Sunchild

Hey guys!  I apologize for the lateness of this post, as well as the lack of pictures.  I'll do my best to add them in the next day or two.  I suffered a hand injury at work, which is making typing difficult, and also wound up helping out a friend who was in the ER.  Thanks for bearing with me, and again, I'm sorry.

Today's story can be found in The Grey Fairy Book, and has its origins in a Greek fairy tale known as Maroula.

There once was a woman who had no children. She begged the Sun to send her a daughter, promising that he could reclaim the girl when she turned twelve. The Sun gave her a child named Letiko.

Letiko and her mother lived happily until the girl turned twelve, at which point the Sun reminded the woman of her bargain. She attempted to hide the girl from the Sun, blocking all light from entering her house. In her haste she forgot to block the keyhole. A beam of sunlight entered the house and took Letiko. The woman mourned fiercely.

The girl was taken back to her father's house. He often sent her on tasks, but she took a very long time on them. She would sit and cry instead of completing them.  Her tears were because she missed her mother so much.

One day her father followed her on one of her tasks, curious as to why she took so long at them. Overhearing her sorrowful weeping, he decided to send Letiko back to her mother. He tasked two hares with escorting the girl back to her earthly home. Though a lamia attempted to kill and eat the girl on the trip, they managed to make it back to the village.

A dog, a cat, and a cock who lived in the village all announced that Letiko had returned, but her mother refused to believe it, still caught up in her grief. Only when the girl was before her did she accept the truth. The hares were rewarded for returning her daughter to her. Letiko and her mother lived the rest of their days together in happiness.

Thanks for reading through my Fairy Tales Without Dead Moms (Or Wicked Stepmothers!) series!  These are some of the stories which show that good mothers do exist in fairy tales – and even sometimes survive the whole tale!  Which one was your favorite?  Do you know of any that I missed?  Let me know in the comments!

I plan to return to mythology for a while after this.  I'll see you then!

Hephaestus: Revenge of the Blacksmith

Hello all!

It has recently been brought to my attention that I have never done a post about Hephaestus. This is an enormous oversight on my part, because Hephaestus is one of my favorite deities. After Hades, Hestia, and Hermes, he's my favorite in the Greek pantheon. (...It appears that all of my favorites begin with the letter H. Interesting.) At any rate, Hephaestus is awesome. So, without further ado: Here's a post about him!

The origins of Hephaestus are somewhat unique among the gods. One of the more popular stories out of Greek mythology is the birth of Athena. She sprang out of Zeus' head, fully formed. As such, Athena was born of only one parent.

Hephaestus' birth is somewhat similar, and in fact stemmed from the creation of Athena.

You may recall that Hera, the wife of Zeus, has never been particularly content with her husband's philandering ways. In fact, she frequently goes out of her way to make the lives of her spouse's various mistresses exceptionally miserable. You can probably guess that she was rather wrathful that Zeus had a child without her.

So Hera did the natural thing – she conceived a child all by herself, and gave birth to him. That'll show Zeus!! – right?

(Yeah, I don't really understand her reasoning either.)

Unfortunately, the child – Hephaestus – was born with a deformity. It is frequently listed as shriveled or curled feet. When Hera saw her son, she was horrified by his deformity. She picked him up and flung him off of Mount Olympus, winning the Mother of the Year award in the process.

Hera rejects her son.

(Can you see why I have serious issues with Hera?)

Hephaestus somehow survived the fall. He was taken in by nymphs and raised. Hephaestus grew to be a very talented craftsman – specifically, blacksmithing.

When Hephaestus grew up, he got his vengeance upon his mother. He forged a special golden throne and had it shipped to Olympus for Hera. When the goddess sat in it, she found herself unable to move!

Though the gods tried everything they could think of, they were unable to free Hera. (I'm sure some of the pantheon were rather amused by her difficult circumstances. Hera was not always the most popular goddess.) Eventually they reached out to Hephaestus, hoping that the god who had built the chair would be able to free her from it. However, the crippled deity refused. In his mind, his mother had received her just comeuppance.

Always.

Hera was only freed when Dionysus, god of wine and partying, got Hephaestus drunk and convinced him to release his mother from her chair-y prison.

Interestingly enough, Hera is not the only deity to be imprisoned in a creation of Hephaestus:

Aphrodite, goddess of love, became the consort/spouse of the blacksmithing god.  It was an interesting mix; she, who was named the most beautiful of all the goddesses by Paris of Troy, married to a god so misshapen that his own mother tried to kill him out of disgust.  The marriage was brought about by Zeus and Hera, and it was not a happy one.  Aphrodite frequently cheated on her husband.  One of her adulterous lovers was none other than Hephaestus' own brother, Ares.

When Hephaestus found out about the affair, he crafted more than just a plan.  He created a chain of magical links, and bound them above Aphrodite's bed.  The next time she and Ares started going at it, the trap was sprung.  The lovers found themselves wrapped in chains, naked and unable to move.  Hephaestus found them shortly thereafter.

(The most PG picture I could find of the affair.  However!)

(Look at his face!  That is one fed-up god.)

Hephaestus dragged them before the rest of the gods.  They were humiliated, and made to pay a fine for their crime.

His disability may have caused him hardship, but Hephaestus rose above it to join the other Olympians in the home of the gods.  Though many viewed him as hideous, his craftsmanship was gorgeous and second to none.

And that, my friends, is Hephaestus.

I hope you enjoyed the post!  It is my last one for the next several weeks.  As a reminder, I am going on temporary hiatus because I'll be out of the country.  I shall return mid-July, ish.  Take care all, and I'll see you upon my return!

Ganymede: Beauty and Cups

Alright, so today's post was going to be about a totally different topic, but then I had a package show up this morning with this little cutie:

This is Ganymede, a plush version of a bird from Blizzard's video game Overwatch.  Ganymede is the friend of a giant robot named Bastion.  If you feel like having your heartstrings tugged, I'd highly suggest watching the story of their friendship in this video.

Why am I telling you about Overwatch?  Well, Blizzard has a tendency to utilize mythology in their video games.  (So much so that I did an entire series of posts on the myths of World of Warcraft!)  Sometimes they put references to entire myths within their story; at other times, all they draw on is a name.

Ganymede is one such name.

In Greek mythology, Ganymede was a mortal who drew the attention of the mighty god Zeus.  The young lad lived the life of a shepherd.  One day, Zeus looked down from Mount Olympus and happened to see Ganymede.  The human was the most beautiful he had ever seen, and Zeus just had to have him.

Now, Zeus isn't exactly known for his self control.  As soon as he saw Ganymede he transformed himself into an eagle, swooped down, picked the lad up, and carried him off to the home of the gods.

Most of Zeus' conquests come to a tragic end.  The story of Ganymede is quite different, in that the boy was actually granted immortality.  He became the cup bearer of the gods, keeping their glasses full during feasts.

In fact, Zeus is actually at his most compassionate in the story of Ganymede.  Usually the god only thinks of himself, but for some reason he took notice of the grief of Ganymede's father at the kidnapping of his son.  Zeus sent the lad's father a gift of two mighty horses.
(Okay, so horses might not make up for a stolen child - but still, it's more than Zeus normally does for grieving families!)

Two quick facts about Ganymede:

It is said that Zeus made the lad into a constellation - Aquarius.  Aquarius has been associated with drinks in several different mythologies.  The Egyptians viewed it as connected to the Nile River.  The Mesopotamians considered Aquarius to be the constellation of Enki/Ea, holding a vase filled with water.

Usually when Zeus has sex with a character in mythology, it's pretty obvious.  Of course, that's because he usually gets them pregnant.  It's been debated whether or not Zeus' relationship with Ganymede was sexual.  I won't jump into that debate, but I can tell you that 1) Hera, Zeus' wife, was exceptionally jealous of Ganymede and his beauty. 2) Of the four moons that Galileo discovered of the planet Jupiter, three are named after Zeus' mistresses - Io, Callisto, and Europa.  The fourth is named Ganymede.

I hope you guys enjoyed this post!  Any Overwatch players out there?

See you next week!

The Hounds of Hel

Today we're going to be looking at several different mythologies: Egyptian, Greek/Roman, and Norse. All of these mythologies have their similarities, but the one I'm focusing on today is their portrayal of dogs. All of these cultures have myths associating dogs with the afterlife. In particular, all of them have named dogs who serve as guardians to the afterlife.

Ready? Let's get started.

The Egyptians worshiped a deity named Anubis.  Anubis has the body of a man and a canine head. The Egyptians often associated Anubis with graveyards. Although he is sometimes depicted as escorting dead souls to the afterlife, the deity's role is primarily that of a gatekeeper and judge. The Egyptian afterlife, ruled over by Osiris, is guarded by Anubis. To enter into the afterlife, a person's heart was placed on a scale opposite the feather of truth.

 

 

If the scales balanced out, or the heart was lighter, Anubis judged them worthy and allowed them into the afterlife. If the heart was heavier, however...well, then the person was unworthy. They were tossed aside to be devoured by a sort of hippo-crocodile-lion thing (it's as unpleasant as it sounds).

Let's change cultures, shall we?

Perhaps the best known Hound of Hel is the Greek Cerberus. Frequently depicted with three heads (though sometimes with only two), Cerberus is the fearsome hound who guards the entrance to the Greek afterlife. His master is Hades.

 

 

Cerberus prevents the living from entering or exiting the underworld, but there are a few times where he has failed in this task. Hercules himself bested Cerberus, and was therefore allowed to leave the underworld. Music is as effective on the hound as brawn, however. The great poet Orpheus was able to enter the underworld in search of his dead wife by playing his harp, lulling Cerberus into letting him pass.

 

(Three headed dog? Harp? Can't imagine why that sounds familiar!)

 

The Romans also included Cerberus in their myths, one of a few characters whose names did not change. Roman mythology adds another person to the list of those who have made it past the guard dog of the underworld: Aeneas. In this story by Virgil, Cerberus is bested not with strength or with music, but with treats. Every dog likes a good treat, right? Turns out a barley cake soaked in mead is the way to this giant puppy's heart.
 

So Egyptian, Greek, and Roman mythologies all have dogs who guard the gates of the underworld. This could be explained by the proximities of the cultures to one another. After all, all three mythologies share quite a few similarities. But the Norse culture is pretty far from the Mediterranean. Because of this, I find it fascinating that they have:

Garm!

 

Garm is the guardian of Hel, the Norse underworld for those who did not die a valiant death. His mistress is Hel herself. Garm is described as a fearsome hound whose fur is coated in blood. When Ragnarok comes, Garm will do battle with Tyr, and both will die in battle.

Most interesting to me is the fact that Garm can be calmed...by being given a piece of bread. Sounds pretty similar to the Roman take on Cerberus! Dogs and their treats, right?

What do you guys think? Know of any other cultures that have dogs connected to the underworld?

Bacchus/Dionysus: Wine and a Good Time...Mostly

Today's post is going to be about both a Roman god and a Greek one, because I realized belatedly that I hadn't talked before about Dionysus, the Greek god of wine.  Most of the stories I know for the Roman god Bacchus apply to his Greek personality, so I thought I'd do a post that covered both.

I believe I've mentioned Dionysus in a few posts, though I never actually talked about just him.  Dionysus is one of what I like to refer to as "the party gods".  My mythology teacher referred to he and Aphrodite as being gods of, essentially, "sex, drugs, and rock and roll."  What I hope you take from this is that Dionysus is primarily the god of a good time.  He rules over the vine and the grape...and, of course, the wine that comes from the grape.

Bacchus is the Roman form of Dionysus, and he is likewise the god of drinking and partying.  Celebrations and festivals in worship of Bacchus were called "bacchanalia", a word which translates to "a drunken revelry".  I've heard it used in various TV shows (usually British in nature) to describe carousing around college campuses.  Minus the hangover in the morning, Dionysus/Bacchus sounds like a pretty good god to worship...right?

Well...kind of.

The devotees of this god are shown in the story to be a little crazy.  In fact, I seem to recall some comments in my mythology class about them acting like they were on PCP, and it's not far off.  This is best shown by an old Greek play about Dionysus called The Bacchae, which I shall try to highlight below.

Dionysus was the son of Zeus and a mortal woman named Semele.  Zeus, up to his usual tricks, had taken a different form when he bedded the human.  He was quite fond of Semele, and one day when she begged him for a favor he promised one to her without waiting to hear what it was.

Big mistake.

Semele desired to look upon Zeus' true face - a desire fanned by a jealous Hera, wife of Zeus, who was unamused to see her husband keeping yet another mistress.  The true forms of the gods are too much for any mortal to behold.  Zeus was compelled to keep his word, but doing so caused Semele to spontaneously burst into flame.

The child in Semele's womb, Dionysus, was saved, and Zeus sent him to be raised by a group of nymphs.  However, the boy god always remembered his mother fondly.

The main premise of The Bacchae is Dionysius returning for vengeance upon his mother's family, none of whom believed her when she said she had become pregnant by Zeus.

Now, the female followers of Dionysus are called maenads.  They are the ones who miiight be on drugs.  Their devotion to the god makes them insanely strong, fast, and willing to do anything in his name.

For the first part of his vengeance, Dionysus makes his three aunts his loyal servants, turning the naysayers into maenads.  These women are royalty, supposed to be quite haughty and civilized...but in the name of the god they quite literally tear animals to pieces with their bare hands.

But wait!  There's more!

The current king of the city is Pentheus, the son of one of Dionysus' aunts.  He doubts in the stories of Dionysus' divinity, and of the wooing of Semele (if it can be called that) by Zeus.

The story of vengeance is long and complicated, for Dionysus plays mind games with Pentheus throughout the play to attempt to make him recognize the god as divinity.  In the end, as Pentheus is beginning to realize that maybe Dionysus truly is a god, Dionysus sics his female relatives upon him.

Pentheus is torn limb from limb by his own mother, who then proudly carries her son's decapitated head back to her own father.  She presents her "trophy" to him and is confused when he is horrified instead of pleased - besotted in her devotion to Dionysus, the woman thinks the head is that of a mountain lion she has slain.

Still confused, she hangs it up on display and calls for Pentheus to come and marvel at her kill...at which point Dionysus allows his powers to wear off of her, so that the woman can see that she murdered her own son in the most violent fashion imaginable.

The story ends with Dionysus' three aunts being sent off into exile.  Dionysus declares that his grandfather and his wife shall be turned into snakes to complete their punishment.

The god's vengeance is complete.

Most people think of Dionysus - and, by extension, Bacchus - as being the god of a good time.  This is accurate.  However...neither one is a god you want to cross.

If you get a chance, I'd hugely recommend reading The Bacchae.  It's a fascinating play, very well written, and I quite enjoyed it.

I'll see you guys next week!

Mythology in Pop Culture

Hey guys! So tomorrow I'm going to be doing a panel on mythology at my local community college. I needed to type up all of my notes for it, and it struck me as I was doing so that my presentation would make a pretty good blog post. Because of that, you get to read what I'm talking about tomorrow – which is the way that mythology influences pop culture.

Let's start by taking a look at comics, shall we?

Obviously, there's Thor. I wish I could quote Stan Lee and say “ 'nuff said”, but there's actually more to talk about. In both the comics and the myths, Thor is the Norse god of war and storms; Loki is a trickster trying to bring about the downfall of the gods; the Bifrost is a rainbow bridge; and Odin is the king of the gods. Odin is also the god of wisdom. In the myths he has two ravens who fly around the world and tell him everything that they see. One of my favorite parts about Marvel's movie is that in the first Avengers, two ravens fly by when Thor and Loki are arguing – a very nice reference to the original myths!

Although the comics and movie adaptations are awesome, there are quite a few differences between them and the original myths. For one thing, the mythological Thor isn't all that bright. He mostly just wants to hit things with his hammer.

 

Then you have Sif, who is a goddess of fertility and the harvest – she's definitely not a warrior. Perhaps the biggest difference is that Thor and Loki aren't actually brothers! In the myths, Loki is the sworn blood brother of Odin.

Thor may be the most obvious representation of mythology in modern comics, but he's not the only one. Let's move away from him and take a look at the DC comics.

First, you have Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is an Amazonian princess. Some of her origin stories say that Wonder Woman is the daughter of Zeus, king of the Greek gods and lord of the skies. That's right – Wonder Woman is a demigod.

 

Then you have Superman. His story has close ties to the Christian and Jewish faiths – and those ties were written deliberately. There's a story in the book of Exodus about a baby named Moses. During the time period in which Moses was born, the Pharaoh of Egypt had enslaved the Jewish population. Their numbers kept growing, and the Pharaoh feared revolt, so he ordered all baby boys to be killed. To save Moses, his mother put him in a basket and sent him floating down the river. He was adopted by the Pharaoh's daughter and raised by a family not his own. Eventually, Moses grows up to save his people.

Now let's look at Superman's origin story. He was born on a world that's about to be destroyed. His parents put him in a little space-cradle and sent him away to save his life. The cradle carries him to Earth, where he is raised by an adoptive family. Superman goes on to save the world – many, many times.

(This photo was just too hilarious to not share!)

There's definitely some similarities between the two stories – and, like I said, they were put there deliberately. The writer and artist of the original Superman stories were both Jewish. The character of Superman first appeared around the time of World War II, when Jews were facing horrific persecution. Superman's creators wanted to create a figure of hope for their people, so they wove the story of Moses into the character of Superman. Pretty cool, right?

Let's turn away from comics and take a look at another aspect of popular culture. I'm a huge fan of video games – how about you? Do any of you guys play World of Warcraft?

Mythology has influenced a lot of video games, but WoW is a treasure trove of mythology. I can think of about half a dozen different mythologies that show up in World of Warcraft, and that's just off the top of my head – I'm sure there are a lot more. One of those mythologies appears as soon as you go to make a character – the druid.

 

Druids have their origins as sort of priests in Celtic mythology. In the myths they have close ties to nature, and are often depicted as shapeshifters. In various stories druids turn into wolves, bears, boars, swans, and a myriad of other things.

In World of Warcraft the druid class' powers are tied to nature – sun, moon, and plants. Like their mythological counterparts, druids are shapeshifters. These are a few of their various forms.

 

 

Another mythological influence in WoW can be seen heavily in the race of the Trolls. The religion and culture of the Trolls are based on myths from Latin America. An area in WoW called Zul'Drak provides the best example of this. Take a look at the architecture: This is a temple in Zul'Drak.

 

This is the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, found in the Aztec city of Teotihuacan.

 

 

One of the most prevalent figures in Latin American mythology is the god Quetzalcoatl. He appears in the pantheons of several different Latin American cultures, including the Aztec. Quetzalcoatl translates to “the plumed serpent”, meaning a snake covered in feathers.

 

 

Creatures that match this description appear in many places in WoW.

 

 

Let's travel from Zul'Drak and Latin America to the Storm Peaks and the Norse.

 

 

This zone is perhaps the most obvious portrayal of mythology in World of Warcraft – they barely even changed the names! First you have the val'kyr, servants of the Lich King who raise the dead to join his evil army. In Norse mythology the valkyrie are choosers of the slain. They raise worthy dead warriors to a hall called Valhalla, where they have a huge drinking party until the end of days.

Perhaps the most amusing nod to mythology in this zone are the characters of Loken and Thorim. Loken is a nefarious trickster trying to bring down Thorim. Thorim has a hammer named Krolmir.

 

(Thorim with Krolmir)

 (Thor with Mjolnir)

Hmm.

I'd like to look at another genre influenced by mythology: Fairy tales.

How many of you have seen or read Sleeping Beauty? You know the story: a girl is cursed and falls into a 100-year sleep; a wall of roses grows up around her; a dashing prince finds her and wakes her up with a kiss.

Now let me tell you the story that I think inspired Sleeping Beauty – an old Norse saga called the Story of Sigurd.

I mentioned valkyries when I was talking about WoW. In addition to being choosers of the slain, valkyries were also able to influence the outcomes of mortal battles. When the Story of Sigurd begins, a young valkyrie named Brynnhilda has been ordered by Odin, king of the gods, to let one specific side win a battle. Instead, she allows the other side to win.

Not a good mistake to make when your boss is king of the gods.

To punish Brynnhilda, Odin locks her away in a castle and curses her to sleep until a man comes along and wakes her up. She will then marry this man. Odin does take some pity on Brynnhilda – he raises a wall of fire around the castle, so that only a truly brave man will be able to reach her.

That's right. Odin is Maleficent.

 

 

(They even have matching birds!) 

Brynnhilda is eventually woken up by a man named Sigurd, and the two fall in love. Unfortunately, unlike in Sleeping Beauty, the duo do not live happily ever after. Sigurd is given a potion that makes him forget about Brynnhilda. He marries someone else, and his brother-in-law finds and marries Brynnhilda. The jealous valkyrie talks her husband's brothers into killing Sigurd. She then kills herself by jumping onto Sigurd's funeral pyre.

Yeah, Norse stories aren't really known for their happy endings. If it makes you feel any better, a horse was found missing from the stables and a stablehand said he saw Sigurd and Brynnhilda riding off into the sunset together.

But I digress. The Story of Sigurd differs vastly from Sleeping Beauty in its ending, but the core concepts are pretty darn similar.

 

 

Let's look now at one of my favorite parts of modern pop culture: Star Wars.

Is anyone else totally psyched for the new movie? Because I sure am!

Anyway, Star Wars has some of its roots in Arthurian legend. You have a bunch of knights running around trying to save the galaxy from evil. They help the innocent, protect the weak, and are generally seen as virtuous – at least, until they turn evil themselves. That's pretty similar to King Arthur and his knights, right?

Well, Star Wars also has heavy ties to Buddhism. Let's take a look at the Jedi Code, which states:

There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

There is no death, there is the Force.

In Buddhism there is a concept called The Four Noble Truths. These truths state that:

1. There is suffering.
2. Suffering is caused by desire and ignorance.
3. Suffering can be ended by putting aside one's desires.
4. The fourth noble truth details an Eightfold Path to enlightenment, which leads to the end of suffering and desire. This path includes moral conduct, meditation, and wisdom.

I see a lot of Buddhism in the Jedi Code. If you give up emotion, you will not suffer, so you will be at peace. Ignorance can cause suffering, so it follows that knowledge can prevent suffering. Without passion, one will not desire, so one will not suffer from their desires.

So...I guess the Jedi are a sort of Knight/Buddhist monk hybrid?

 

I hope you guys found this interesting! I really love seeing how mythology influences pop culture, and the way that pop culture adapts mythology to suit its own needs. What have you watched (or read, or played, or heard) that you can see mythological ties in?

Lovesick Sneak Peek

Hey guys!  I believe I promised you something exciting this week!

I announced several months ago that my second book, Lovesick, would be coming out later this year.  I am pleased to report that it will be coming out a month sooner than I had anticipated, so look for it on Amazon in mid October!  (Don't worry, I'll do a post as soon as it comes out.)

For today, I'd like to give you an exclusive sneak peek at Lovesick.  Without further ado, here is the first chapter!

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

Flynn Carter sat in front of his computer, his office darkened around him.  The screen glared brightly at him as the black cursor blinked in white emptiness, taunting him with his failure.

It should have been so easy; the first novel was the one that ought to have caused him problems.  He had started off with some cheesy supernatural romance novel, knowing that there was a market for it.  The publishers had leapt on the story and the populace had loved it.  Flynn was given his big break, and knew that he could now write anything he wanted - it would be so much easier to get it published as an already successful author.

That had been over a year ago.  He had enjoyed a few months off and then sworn to the reporters that something new and even better was coming.  A deadline had been set, and he had sat down and prepared to write.

And then - it struck.  The dreaded writer's block.

Now Flynn sat before his computer, with only two weeks left before he was supposed to hand something over to his agent.  He had tried everything, from historical action to sci-fi mystery, and even another paranormal romance like his first.  Nothing clicked; no story seemed as good as his first book, and that had been terrible.  He was stuck, and swiftly running out of time.

His watch chirped three and Flynn cursed softly, running a hand through his slick black hair.  His page stared blankly at him, the cursor still silently mocking him from its emptiness.  Flynn groaned as he leaned back, wishing that the inspiration he had once felt would return to him.

There was a soft knock on the front door, and Flynn blinked.  He looked again at his watch, verifying the time, and then glanced incredulously down the hall towards the door.  Perhaps he was imagining things.

Flynn heaved a sigh and turned back to his monitor, refusing to call it a night until he had written something, however bad.  He reached for the keyboard -

Again there came a knock on the door, this time more insistent.  Flynn turned to look at it, grumbling to himself.  He obviously was not imagining things, which made this an all-time low for the reporters.  Sure, they had ambushed him before, but never this late - or rather, this early, he corrected himself.  Maybe if he ignored them they would go away, buying him a little more time before he had to admit his failure.  Logically speaking he should be asleep at three in the morning, right?  Hopefully they would take his silence as a sign of his slumber.

Flynn turned to his computer once more, determined.  Perhaps he would write a story about a nosy reporter who got caught up in nasty business and received their comeuppance...it was a better idea than some he'd had, and the thought of it filled him with a certain vindictive pleasure.  He reached for the keyboard again -

A fist pounded hard on his door several times, and Flynn let out a loud curse.  He shoved back his rolling chair so hard that it hit the bookshelf on the opposite wall and stood, seething as he walked towards the door.  This reporter was going to get what was coming to him, that was for sure.  Flynn was not amused at being bothered this late, and he would make sure that he made that clear.  Flynn flung open his door with murderous intent...and found his tirade brought up short.

Before him stood the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.  Her auburn hair fell in gentle waves to her slender waist, and her long white dress showed off her tanned skin.  A simple golden band wrapped its way up her forearm, perfectly matching the metal of her intricately woven belt.  Her bodice was low cut but tasteful, a thin chain necklace dangling just low enough to make Flynn wonder.  Her lips were full, her cheekbones stunning.  Wide olive eyes gazed at him without any hint of self-consciousness.  If the woman wore any makeup, it was subtle enough to not be noticeable - but Flynn doubted she wore any.  She simply didn't need it; she was honestly perfect.  Had she been a character in his book, Flynn could not have described her in any way to make her seem more beautiful.  Even her bare feet added to her elegance and mystery.

Flynn finally realized that he was staring and blinked.  "You're not a reporter," he guessed.

She threw back her head and laughed, which did interesting things to her neckline.  Flynn fought to keep his focus on her face.  "Indeed not, Flynn Carter.  But I do very much wish to interview you."

He frowned, disappointed.  "I'm sorry, lady, but maybe another time.  It's pretty late."

She pouted, just a little, and Flynn's heart skipped a beat.  "I understand, but I really do need to talk to you.  You see, I'm in terrible trouble."

Flynn raised an eyebrow.  "I don't know how I can help you, then.  I'm just a writer."

The woman breathed a sigh.  "Oh, you're much more than that, Flynn.  Please, can we not sit down?"  She breezed past him and glided into his apartment as though she owned it, and Flynn didn't even try to stop her.  He was obviously hallucinating - why not just let it play out?  He nudged the door shut behind him as he followed her into the living room.

The woman was already stretched out and lounging on the couch when he entered, and Flynn gingerly sat across from her, afraid that any sudden moves would make her disappear.  She smiled languidly at him as he settled down, and once again he had to blink and force himself to stay focused.

"What kind of trouble are you in, my lady?" he asked.

She beamed at him.  "Ooh, such a gentleman!  Well, it is a matter of some delicacy.  You see, my son has been stolen, and I fear that you are the only one who will believe me."

Flynn's eyes widened, his disappointment at her motherhood - and possible husband - outweighed by his concern.  "If your son has been kidnapped, then you should be talking to the police!  I'd be happy to take you down to the station -"

She shook her head, her hair flowing behind her as she did so.  "No, you still don't see.  Perhaps it would be simpler if you knew who my son is.  His name is Eros."

The writer frowned as his mind turned.  The name was familiar, but he couldn't think where he knew it from.  The woman leaned forward as if she sensed his confusion.  "Yes, Eros - but you might know him better by his Roman form, Cupid.  And I, noble sir, and Aphrodite."

Flynn felt his eyebrows climb as she settled back onto the couch.  For some reason his subconscious had decided to introduce him to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love.  Well, fine - this was a story just begging to be told, and he wanted to see where his hallucination led him.  "Alright, sure.  Who took your son?"

She beamed and clapped her hands.  "Oh, I just knew you would believe me!  But you see, that's the thing.  I don't know who took him.  All I know is that he disappeared a week ago, and I'm terribly worried.  None of the other gods know anything - or if they do they're keeping quiet."

Flynn frowned and leaned forward in his chair, struggling to channel some mystery novel hero.  What would they do in this situation?  What would Nathan Fillion do?  "Well, it's true that I believe you, but how do you think I could possibly help?" he hedged.

Her smile grew.  "Ah, but that is the easy part!  You will be my champion.  I'm going to send you on a quest.  We gods have been doing that for quite some time now, you know."

"Hold on - I'd love to help you, but I don't think I'm qualified for a quest-"

She cut him off.  "Oh, nonsense!  Besides, I doubt you'll be alone.  Other heroes always seem to show up to help on quests like this.  I just need you to be the one to lead the quest; you see, you possess the mind of a writer, always dissecting and looking for plot and motivation.  You'll be able to get to the bottom of this, I just know it!"
Flynn stared at her incredulously.  "And just where would you suggest I start looking for a stolen god?"

Aphrodite frowned delicately, not seeming to catch his sarcasm.  "Well, that is the question!  I don't know who took my son, but it must have been someone of some power.  I would think another god the mostly likely suspect, maybe even one of the other pantheons.  I'm afraid I just can't think who would do this to me!  Unless..."

"Unless?" he prompted eagerly.

She bit her lip, a move that made her look incredibly vulnerable.  "Well, you see - you do know the myths, don't you?"

Flynn nodded.  "I'm a bit rusty on my Greek mythology, but I remember the basics."

She bestowed an angelic smile upon him.  "Oh, good!  That will help considerably.  Well, you see, I have a husband - Hephaestus.  I was forced into the marriage, and neither of us have made it too easy on the other.  I'm afraid that Eros isn't his son...and I wonder if Hephaestus might be behind all of this."

The writer frowned, his mind turning.  "Where would I find Hephaestus?  And why not confront him yourself?"

Aphrodite gave a shudder, her eyes widening with fear.  "Oh, but he is a brute!  I don't know what I could do if he was the one who took my baby...and I'm afraid I don't know where to look.  You would need to have some way of contacting him, I suppose.  Perhaps someone in the Order?"

"What Order?  And what am I supposed to do if it is him?  I can't exactly take on a god!"
The goddess covered her mouth.  "Oh, I'm so embarrassed!  I haven't mentioned the Order yet?  Well, no need to worry, I'm sure someone will be along soon to explain it to you.  You'll need this, by the way."  Daintily she slipped off her bracelet, handing it to Flynn.  He stared in surprise as it changed from a feminine gold band to a thick masculine watch, almost an exact match of the one he wore.  Aphrodite smiled at him as he gawked at her.  "Don't worry, dear, that should help you.  As to what you should do when you find the kidnapper, well - as I said, I doubt you'll be alone.  And now I really must be off!"

Flynn stood as she headed for the door, his mind full of questions.  "Wait, but - please, I don't understand!"
She turned to him and gave him a stunning smile - literally stunning, as it stopped him in his tracks.  "You will understand soon enough.  Be well, Flynn; and please, find my son.  You're my only hope."

Flynn stared helplessly as she closed the door, shutting herself out of his apartment.  The room seemed dark without her there, as though all of the beauty had left with her.  Flynn hesitated for a moment before he made up his mind and flung open the door, determined to get some answers - only to find the outside hallway empty.  All that was left was the subtle scent of her perfume.

The writer heaved a sigh and closed his door, leaning against it as he slowly sunk to the floor.  This was definitely the most interesting dream he'd had in quite some time, and he couldn't wait to write it all down when he woke up.  This would make a great story!  Still, Flynn wished it made a little more sense.  He had too many questions and not enough answers - and he had absolutely no idea where to start.

He frowned, his eyes closed as he tried to sort things out.  What was this Order she had mentioned?  Who was going to explain it to him, and what, exactly, where they going to explain?  How in the world were other people going to join his quest when he himself didn't fully understand what the quest was?

Flynn opened his eyes and fingered the watch she had given him, eventually slipping it on in place of his old one.  It seemed to glow with a rainbow light, and Flynn ran a finger across the watch's prismatic glass face before standing.

Flynn blinked as he looked around.  It wasn't just the watch that shone with all the colors of the rainbow - it was his entire apartment.  The author stared as the beams grew more solid, the colors more vibrant.  A sort of cheer seemed to fill the air, though not nearly so strong as the emotions the goddess had brought with her.

The writer frowned, struggling to remember the name of the goddess who ruled over the rainbow image he saw before him.  Isis? he thought.  No, no Isis - "Iris!  Is that you?"

The rainbow shimmered and a sound like a thousand soft windchimes filled the air.  Flynn gazed in wonder as the rainbow before him solidified into a gate, which swung open to reveal a glimmering opalescent bridge that arced into the ceiling.  A pair of shoes appeared at the top, walking down slowly to reveal black slacks, a casual shirt with a flannel jacket overtop, and a head of curly black hair.  The man smiled shyly at Flynn as he descended, a glass pan that smelled strongly of cinnamon held out in front of him.  Flynn backed up, more to give the stranger room to get off of the bridge than out of fear.  At this point, he was way too interested to be afraid.

"Hello," the man said as he stepped into the living room, the rainbow bridge slowly fading behind him.  He seemed completely calm, as if he found himself transported by a rainbow goddess to a stranger's living room all the time.  Maybe he did, mused Flynn, as the man held out his hand.  "My name is Tom."

I hope you guys enjoyed chapter one of Lovesick!  I'd love to hear what you thought of it - please comment below or email me!  Your input is always appreciated.  As I said before, Lovesick will be coming out October of this year.  If you guys haven't read the first Chosen of the Gods book, Hammerfall, you can find links to Amazon and Barnes & Noble on the right.  Thank you for your support!

I'll be back with an Intro to Arthurian Legend next week.  I hope you have a wonderful week, and I'll see you then!

Hestia: Hearth and Home

Hey guys! I hope you’re all doing well. I’ve got a short post today, ’cause it’s my dad’s birthday and I want to spend time with him.

This post is about a Greek goddess: Hestia. Hestia is a very interesting character in Greek mythology. She rules over the hearth, the home, and is a goddess of family and architecture.

 

(Hestia is often associated with fire.  This is because she rules over the hearth.  Do you guys have a fireplace, or know someone who does?  Those stones in front of it are called hearthstones - the fireplace itself is known as the hearth.)

Comparing her to some of the other Greek gods, you might think she isn’t too special - after all, what good is the home when Apollo commands something as powerful as the sun, or Poseidon the sea?

The answer: very.

Hestia was one of the first gods to be born. Her siblings include Zeus (ruler of the sky), Poseidon, Hades (god of the dead), Hera (queen of the gods), and Demeter (commands plants). All of these are pretty powerful gods. Hestia? She was the firstborn of them.

I always loved that the Greeks thought of Hestia as being more important than the later gods. She came before war, before love, before the sun...that tells you that the Greeks thought very highly of home.

You don’t see very much of Hestia in Greek mythology. She was tied to her hearthstone - Mount Olympus - and so rarely featured in the myths. What little we do see of her shows a goddess who wasn’t afraid of any of the gods. Poseidon and later Apollo both try to marry her; Hestia turns them down. Any human who rejected the suit of a god generally got raped or turned into something horrible - but Hestia gets away with it. She is known as one of the virgin goddesses because she, like Athena and Artemis, took an oath of virginity - thus declaring herself no servant of Aphrodite, goddess of love.

That’s about the extent you see of Hestia in the myths, save for a few references to her. Records of ancient Greek life tell more of her story. Sacrifices were routinely offered to the gods by the Greeks, often accompanied by prayers for that god’s favors. When in a house, the first sacrifice always went to Hestia - she came before more powerful gods such as Zeus!

My favorite part about the Percy Jackson book series was always Hestia’s role in events. I love that she was overlooked, almost forgotten - but, in the end, she was the most powerful of all of the gods.

There’s a line from World of Warcraft that I’d like to end today’s post with; it seemed appropriate. The game features a race called Pandaren who are very mellow and easy-going. They have a line that seems to describe Hestia’s role in the pantheon pretty well:

“Friends. Family. These are what matter most.”

I’ll see you guys next week.

Demeter, Persephone, and Hades

Hey guys! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. I for one did! I got to go to Phoenix Comicon and meet two of my favorite actors - Jason Momoa and Karl Urban.  There were a ton of awesome costumes and vendors.  I'm definitely planning on returning next year!

(Me killing Sauron.  Definitely a highlight of the con!)

While I was gone, this blog got views from its 20th country! Thanks, Taiwan! That was wonderful to come home to.

I’m here today to talk a little bit more about Greek mythology. I was looking back through my Greek posts and I wound up re-reading the one I did for Hades. I was so busy defending his character that I actually didn’t fully go into the myth involving Persephone! Luckily, I was already planning on talking about Demeter today - it was easy to add Persephone’s story to hers, since the two are definitely intertwined. Of course, I can’t tell their story without also talking about Hades.

So, to begin with: This is Demeter.

Demeter is the Greek goddess of the harvest. A night spent with Zeus (who is king of the gods, and Demeter’s brother...creepy, I know) produced a daughter named Persephone.

This is Persephone.

Persephone followed in the footsteps of her mother. She’s the goddess of spring and vegetation, amongst other things.

Both of these goddesses are beautiful. They’re associated with flowers, plants, and any form of crop. (I actually just realized that Demeter is basically my arch nemesis - I’m gluten intolerant, and she’s the goddess of grain! WHY, Demeter? WHY?!) The goddesses are often depicted as holding these things, and are normally shown in daylight.

This is Hades.

Hades is the Greek god of the Underworld. He rules over the dead, and he seldom leaves his kingdom - which is dark, often considered depressing, and definitely not full of beautiful growing things.

Thanks to Zeus, these three characters end up wrapped up in a tale of drama. Ready for it? Let’s get started, then!

As usual, all of the problems began with Zeus. Being the father of Persephone, Zeus had the right to determine who she would marry. The king of the gods chose to betroth her to his brother, Hades. This was all very well and good - except that Zeus failed to mention Persephone’s betrothal to Persephone or Demeter!

Because of this, Persephone was taken unaware when Hades came to claim her. She was out picking flowers when he pulled up on his chariot, grabbed her, and dragged her down to the Underworld.

(As I mentioned in my Hades post - not an uncommon practice in those times, despite the bad rap it gets him nowadays.)

Demeter was frantic at her daughter’s disappearance. She searched the entire earth for Persephone, but ultimately found no sign of her. One place that she searched was the region of Eleusis. Demeter stayed in the home of the king for some time, disguised as an old servant. In gratitude for his hospitality, she sought to make the king’s son immortal. Unfortunately, this process required bathing him in ambrosia and then holding him over the fire. The queen walked in during this process and screamed, interrupting the ceremony. (Imagine seeing a crazy old lady smiling and cooing as she holds your baby over an open fire. I’d probably have screamed too!)

Despite being unable to carry out her original plan, Demeter still took care of Eleusis. She taught its people how to plant and harvest grain before she left.

Interestingly enough, the story of Demeter at Eleusis sparked a mystery religion. Mystery religions in ancient Greece differed from the normal belief in the gods. Typical prayers were accompanied by a sacrifice, and the supplicant expected to get immediate results from their prayer. Crops need water? Pray to Zeus and it will rain! Looking for love (in all the wrong places)? Call upon Aphrodite and you’ll find it! Prayers focused on immediate gain, and didn’t give a lot of thought to what would happen in the next life.

Mystery religions were quite different. Instead of promising a gain in the mortal life, they offered a better afterlife. Demeter’s mystery religion was called the Eleusinian Mysteries, and it wasn’t the only mystery religion in ancient Greece. Another revolved around Isis, an Egyptian goddess. Interestingly enough, both goddesses have myths in which they bring people back from the Underworld - this likely was the reason people thought they could better the afterlife.

Anyway, back to the main myth!

While Demeter was searching for her daughter, Persephone was languishing in the Underworld. She refused to eat or drink anything, and longed for living things. Poor Hades tried his best, but his wife just wasn’t interested in him.

Eventually the other gods began to take notice - largely because of humanity. With the goddess of spring trapped in the Underworld, and Demeter focused only on her search for Persephone, plants began to die.  Eventually all the crops failed, and the world was plunged into an endless winter. Unable to find Persephone, Demeter mourned for the loss of her daughter. It didn’t matter to her if the world died - hers already had.

Depending on which version of the story you read, a god or goddess associated with the sun or moon sometimes tells Demeter that Persephone was taken by Hades. This leads her to confront Zeus. In other versions, Zeus himself steps in and speaks to Demeter, pleading with her to stop the endless winter. Without crops, the mortals have no food; without food, they will die; without mortals, who will worship the gods? (Yeah, Zeus is pretty self-centered.)

Either way, Demeter is pissed off when she finds out that Zeus gave Persephone to Hades without telling her. She refuses to allow plants to grow so long as her daughter remains in the Underworld. Try as he might, Zeus can’t get her to change his mind. Eventually he caves in and sends Hermes to the Underworld to bargain with Hades.

Now, imagine you’re a lonely guy. You live alone, and no one (living) ever comes to see you. You’re an introvert, so you never leave your house. Then, one day, your brother comes to see you! He tells you that he’s found this really pretty girl, and that she’s going to be your wife. Imagine she comes and the two of you get married, and you’re living together, and she’s kind of sad but at least you’re not alone anymore.

Then imagine that your brother sends someone (he can’t even come to tell you himself, the jerk) to tell you that the girl’s mom is really mad and wants her back. And your brother - who technically is your boss as well - wants you to give up your wife.

I’ve mentioned in my post about Hades that I think he’s a pretty swell guy. He doesn’t argue, like I would. He doesn’t say no. Imagine if he did - Zeus probably couldn’t change his mind, and Hades is just as powerful as Zeus. What does he care if everyone on the earth is going to die? That just means Hades will get more subjects and become more powerful! But, no. He’s too good of a guy. He doesn’t want the power. Instead, Hades says that he’ll give up Persephone on one condition: she can’t have eaten anything in the Underworld.

(This is actually a pretty common condition in mythology. Eating or drinking food in the Underworld often ties you to that realm, so it’s something you don’t want to do. Japanese mythology warns of it, as does Mesopotamian. Similar instructions apply to the land of the fae in Celtic mythology.)

Unfortunately for Persephone, she had eventually caved in and eaten a few seeds from a pomegranate. Depending on the myth, she did this in secret hoping that Hades wouldn’t notice; or, Hades gave her the pomegranate and tricked her into eating the seeds.

I’m more inclined to believe the former, given that poor Persephone must have been starving from months without food, but hey.  That picture was just too adorable to not post it.

Despite Persephone not meeting Hades' condition for release, he still lets her go. It isn’t a permanent release, however. Persephone is required to return for a few months each year; these months match the number of pomegranate seeds she ate.

During the months when Persephone is on earth, the plants grow and the flowers bloom. Spring, summer, and fall happen as normal thanks to Persephone’s reunion with Demeter. However, each year when Persephone returns to the Underworld Demeter mourns her loss. The plants die, and winter overtakes the world.

I hope you enjoyed the story! I love the myth, and I loved the pictures I was able to find for it. I feel bad for everyone within the myth, though; Hades gets all the blame and only has a wife for a few months out of the year, Demeter is miserable and has to go through her child being kidnapped, and Persephone is kidnapped and held against her will! Seriously, people! All of that could have been avoided if Zeus had just told his daughter and Demeter about her engagement! Or, you know, if he had actually confessed once Persephone went missing! But no, the king of the gods had to let Demeter wander around in grief for months before saying anything - and then it was only for his own selfish reasons.

You might notice that I really dislike Zeus.

I’m planning on doing a post about Norse mythology next week, but after that I'm open to suggestions. Got a myth you’d like to see (or a fairy tale?)? Let me know in a comment below, or hit me up in an email! Same goes for any questions or comments on this post.

I’ll see you guys next week!