The Curse of Cassandra

Born to King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy, Cassandra was said to be the second most beautiful woman in the world. Her beauty was compared to Aphrodite and Helen of Troy. As she matured, Apollo took notice of her. He became enamored and eventually gave her the ability to foresee the future. In alternative versions, Cassandra spent a night in Apollo’s temple where the temple snakes licked her ears clean so she was able to hear the future. However in all accounts of the stories, Cassandra never returned Apollo’s love. In turn, Apollo cursed her. He allowed her to keep her gift of prophecy but made it so no one would ever believe her. Eventually, this drove her mad. Cassandra was the Greek embodiment of irony because of her deep understanding for the future and powerlessness to make a difference.

Titanomachy

The Titanomachy, or better known as the War of the Titans, was a ten-year battle fought between the Titans and the Olympians. The Olympians are the gods that many now attribute with Greek Mythology such as Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon. However, before the Olympians were in power, the Titans reigned. They consisted mainly of Cronos, Oceanus, and Hyperion. Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon were the son’s of Cronos who devoured the latter two immediately after their conception (see here for more detail).

The war began when Zeus wanted to stop the terrible reign of his father Cronos. Advised by Gaia, Zeus freed the three monstrous Cyclopes from the depths of Tartarus. As a reward, the Cyclopes gave lightning and thunder to Zeus to wield as weapons, and in later accounts also created Hades’ helmet of darkness and Poseidon’s trident. As the ten years went on, there was no permanent damage that could be done since all the gods and titans were immortal. However, eventually the Titans were overpowered by the Olympians and were imprisoned within Tartarus. Only a few Titans were spared such as Prometheus. It is said that Cronos was eventually released by Zeus and was assigned to rule over the Isles of the Blessed, where the spirits of heroes went after death.

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Eros (Cupid) and Psyche

Eros has a few names but the most common of them all is his English name, Cupid. Born as the son of Aphrodite and Ares, Eros was a mischievous child with wings. He carried a bow with golden arrows that caused anyone who was shot with it to fall in love with the first thing they saw. As for Psyche, she was a woman so beautiful that Aphrodite herself began to grow jealous. Because men were doting on Psyche constantly, they began to forget about pleasing and praising the goddess instead. Angered by this, Aphrodite orders Eros to shoot Psyche with his arrows in order to make her fall in love with an ugly creature such as a donkey. Eventually, Eros agrees and sneaks into Psyche’s room while she sleeps. He draws his arrow back but right before he releases, he begins to feel pity for Psyche. Eros’s presence awakens her and startles him causing the arrow to graze his arm instead. He begins to fall in love with her and can no longer complete the initial task. When he returns to his mother, he explains the incident and Aphrodite is furious. She forbids him to see Psyche again and places a curse on Psyche. The spell strips away any chance of Psyche finding love because although every man finds her beautiful, they no longer desire her as a wife. Heartbroken, Eros swears he will not fire any of his arrows until the curse is removed. Without Eros’s arrows, the Earth becomes a sad and barren place without love. Because of this, the temple of Aphrodite begins to fall leaving the goddess no choice but to allow Eros to see his love. Due to the lack of suitors for their daughter, Psyche’s parents begin to grow concerned and take her to see an oracle. The oracle states that she must be left on a mountain for her beauty was so great, it was not meant for mortal men. They take the oracle’s advice and leave Psyche on a mountain. Eros then claims her as his own and she is taken to a beautiful palace where invisible servants wait on her every day. The only condition is that she may not sleep with any lamps on at night when Eros returns. After some time passes, Psyche brings her sisters to her palace. Jealous of her extravagant life, her sisters trick Psyche into being curious enough to keep a lamp on. That night, Psyche lights a candle and sees she has been with a god the entire time. Her hand begins to tremble and wax drips onto Eros, awakening him. Angered by the distrust, he flies away. Psyche, heartbroken and distraught, searches for her love. She eventually finds Demeter, the goddess of the harvest, who advises her to confront Aphrodite herself. When Psyche does this, Aphrodite gives her three tasks to complete before she allows Eros to see her again. Having been away from Psyche for a while, Eros begins to miss her terribly. Aphrodite first orders Psyche to separate all the grains in a large basket of mixed kinds before nightfall. An ant takes pity on Psyche, and with its ant companions, separates the grains for her. Next, Aphrodite tells her to go to a field where golden sheep graze and to retrieve some golden wool. A river-god tells Psyche that the sheep are vicious and strong and will kill her so Psyche waits until the afternoon when they are asleep and completes the task. Finally she is ordered to retrieve a box of beauty from Persephone in the underworld. While this proved to be a daunting task, she completes it. However, once Psyche is in possession of the box of beauty, she is overcome with curiosity and opens it up. Instead, the contents of the box are not beauty, but an eternal sleep. Right after Psyche is overcome with the eternal sleep, Eros appears and saves her. He then has Zeus grant her immortality so that he may marry a mortal. Psyche and Eros get married and have a daughter named Hedone, which translates to “pleasure” or “bliss”.

Hello Greek Mythology Scholars…

Fuckyeahgreekmyths has been hiatus for a little while. Things have been hectic, so forgive me for being away. There are plenty of myths to come. As an announcement, fuckyeahgreekmyths will now be taking requests for myths and gods. If you have a certain story or character you would like to afford more clarity in, please locate the “Myths and Gods Requests” link in the lower left hand corner and submit your request. However, please allow some time for adequate research and I will do my best to post about your topic. Hope to hear from you!

Prometheus and Man

Everyone should be grateful to Prometheus. After all, he created man. As the story goes, Prometheus was a titan who was spared from Tartarus for not having participated in the battle between the Titans and the Olympians. Him and Epimetheus were given the task to create man. Prometheus shaped man from clay and Athena breathed life into the figures. Epimetheus was assigned to give creatures of the earth certain traits such as swiftness, strength, fur, and wings. However, when it came time to give man traits, all the good qualities had already been given away so Prometheus gave man fire. Because Prometheus’s family had been banished to Tartarus, he grew to love man more than the gods. So when Zeus decreed that man must present a portion of each animal to be scarified to the gods, Prometheus decided to trick Zeus. He created a selection of beef hidden inside an ox’s stomach (food hidden inside a displeasing exterior), and the bull’s bones wrapped completely in “glistening fat” (something inedible hidden inside a pleasing exterior) and asked Zeus to pick one. Zeus chose the bones within the fat. This decided that the man would keep the meat and burn the bones as an offering to the gods. Angered from being tricked, Zeus hid fire away from man. In turn, Prometheus stole the fire and returned it to man but was punished severely by Zeus. For eternity, Prometheus was to be chained to a rock in Caucasus, where his liver was eaten by a great eagle everyday only to have the organ grow back at night due to his immortality.

Khaos (Chaos)

Name: Khaos (Chaos)

Offspring of: Nothing- Arose from the abyss.

Children: Gaia, Tartarus, Erebus, Nyx, and Eros

Occasionally referred to as a goddess, Khaos is the creator of all. The Titans and Olympians eventually came to being as a result of Khaos. The name literally translates to “the gap”, meaning the gap between heaven and earth. Khaos was the mother of Gaia (the Earth) and other substances of air. Khaos is also the grandmother of the Moirae, better known as The Fates.

“Ere land and sea and the all-covering sky were made, in the whole world the countenance of nature was the same, all one, well named Chaos, a raw and undivided mass, naught but a lifeless bulk, with warring seeds of ill-joined elements compressed together. No Titan [Helios the Sun] as yet poured light upon the world, no waxing Phoebe [Selene the Moon] her crescent filled anew, nor in the ambient air yet hung the earth, self-balanced, equipoised, nor Amphitrite’s [the Sea’s] arms embraced the long far margin of the land. Though there were land and sea and air, the land no foot could tread, no creature swim the sea, the air was lightless; nothing kept its form, all objects were at odds, since in one mass cold essence fought with hot, and moist with dry, and hard with soft and light with things of weight.”

-Ovid, Metamorphoses 1. 1 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.)

Melpomene & The Muses

Within Greek Mythology there are 9 muses. They are essentially the goddesses who inspire literature, science, and the arts. Believed to be the source of knowledge and creativity, Clio, Thalia, Erato, Euterpe, Polyhymnia, Calliope, Terpsichore, Urania, and Melpomene were the muse sisters.

Melopmene in particular was initially born as the Muse of Life. However, when she and Zeus had a child, Hera (Zeus’s wife) placed a curse on her and she became the Muse of Death. Later, Melpomene slept with Zeus once more and this time, bore him a son again. Once discovered by Hera, she became enraged. In her anger, she made Melpomene infertile and turned her into the Muse of Tragedy. It is said that Melpomene is the love of Zeus’s life.

A way to identify Melpomene in art is the tragedy mask she holds which is used in tragic plays.

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Pygmalion and Galatea

Artists and their work can be viewed as a forbidden love. As beautiful as a work of art may be, there will never be life within it. This is the case for Pygmalion and his statues. He is a sculptor who creates beautiful pieces in Aphrodite’s image. One day he makes a statue so beautiful, he falls in love with it. In his mind, the carved piece of ivory is flawless. He begins to see the imperfections of every woman he encounters and realizes he will never want another woman. He begins to treat it as if it were a real woman and lays with it every night. However, because this sculpture isn’t alive, he prays every night to Aphrodite to have a woman as perfect as his piece of art. As hard as he prayed, Aphrodite did not grant him anything. Eventually, a festival in the name of the goddess was held. Pygmalion decides one last time he will pray to her. Instead, this time he goes to the temple of Aphrodite and asks for his wish. She finally begins to see he will be lonely for the rest of his life unless she takes pity on him and grants his wish. Pygmalion returns to his home heartbroken and distraught. He begins to cry on his statues shoulder and as he does, her skin begins to soften. He kisses her and she begins to turn into a real woman and they are in love. He names her Galatea, which means “she who is as white as milk” due to the paleness of her skin which once was ivory.

The Myth of Medusa

The story of Medusa is common knowledge: a woman with a head of snakes who can turn you into stone with a single glance. However, what is less known is why she was turned into her infamous form. In classical mythology, Medusa is one of three Gorgon sisters. Stheno, Medusa, and Euryale, were children of the ancient marine deities, Phorcys and his sister Ceto. Out of all three, Medusa was the only one subject to mortality. She was once a stunningly beautiful young woman with a magnificent head of hair and was courted by many suitors. Poseidon soon became enamored with Medusa’s beauty and while she was praying in Athena’s temple, he raped her. Medusa begged Athena for help but the goddess was disgusted that the sanctity of her temple had been violated in such a way. To ensure Medusa was never to experience mans urges again, Athena turned her into a hideous being with snakes as hair and the destructive power to turn anyone who looked directly at her into stone due to her unsightly appearance. 

The Lotus-Eaters

While some have their drug of choice, The Lotus-Eaters prefer to stay natural. In an island near North Africa, are a race of people who are dominated by the lotus plant called the Lotus-Eaters, also known as lotophagi or lotophaguses. When the lotus is consumed, it causes a state of peaceful sleep and apathy brought on due to the narcotic elements within the lotuses. In the Odyssey, Odysseus speaks of how the north winds blew him and his men off course as they were rounding Cape Malea, the southernmost tip of the Peloponnesus, headed westwards for Ithaca. They drifted on for nine days and on the tenth, they found the island of the Lotus-eaters. They landed to rejuvenate their health and after they did, Odysseus sent three men to check on the native inhabitants on the island. Instead of being hostile, they offered the men the lotus flower to eat which was so delicious that the men forgot about home. They no longer cared to go back or do anything but eat the flower. After Odysseus realized this, he dragged the men back onto the ship though they wept bitterly and Odysseus warned the rest of the men not to eat the lotuses. You may also be familiar with the film “Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief” where they portrayed the den of the Lotus-Eaters as a casino in Las Vegas.