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Myths of Demeter Demeter’s birth: In Hesoid’s Theogony a myth that explains the origin of the Gods like the Cosmogony that explains the origin of the world. This explanation of the Theogony will focus on the origin of Demeter. In the Theogony first came Chaos the chasm, where primordial beings arose (Powell 82). Then came Gaea who was mother earth who bore Uranus asexually (Hesoid 126). Uranus was the sky and Gaea was locked in perpetual intercourse with him. They produced 6 male and 6 female titans; among them were Rhea and Cronus (Powell 84). Gaea and Uranus offspring couldn’t come into the light because Uranus hated his offspring (Powell 85). All the children were locked in their mother’s womb, Gaea. Cronus cut off Uranus genitals and broke sky away making it above the Earth and finally separating Gaea and Uranus (Hesoid 175). Cronus became the first king and feared that one of his children would overthrow him as prophesized by Gaea and Uranus ((Hesiod, 453). Cronus married his sister Rhea and bore Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus. Cronus ate all his children except Zeus because Zeus was saved by his mother (Hesiod, 453). Zeus freed his siblings including Demeter. Demeter and her siblings battled in the Titanomachy and defeated their father Cronus (Powell 95). Eventually Demeter’s brothers Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon split the rule of the world among them. Demeter and her sisters became mother goddesses. Demeter is the goddess of Grain and the rich harvest that is associated with the cycle of life of agriculture. Demeter is one of the twelve Olympians that have a dual nature to be able to give life and take it away. Demeter and Persephone Zeus and Demeter had a daughter named Persephone. Persephone called kore that is a parthenos, unmarried virgin. One day Persephone was playing outside with the daughters of Oceanus (Homer 4). Persephone picked the narcissus flower that would open a chasm in the Earth (Homer 8). The myth tells how Hades, god of the underworld and her uncle rose out of the chasm, abducted and carried her away to be his bride. Hades had previous permission from Zeus to take Persephone (Homer 3). Demeter searched for Persephone for nine days holding a pair of torches asking anyone if they knew where her daughter was but no one spoke out (Homer 42). Demeter filled with so much sorrow could not eat and on the tenth day a ray of sun broke through the clouds. Demeter pitied by Helius told her that her own brother Hades took her daughter and the union blessed by Zeus (Powell 239). Demeter filled with grief and betrayed by her own brothers left Mount Olympus and disguised herself as an old woman dressed in dark robes (Powell 239). Demeter in her guise sat at a place where fresh water resided in Eleusis. One day four beautiful sisters were fetching water, saw Demeter and sympathized with her (Powel 240). They took Demeter to their mother Metaneira and there Demeter became the nanny to the queen’s son (Powell 241). Demeter decided to give the baby immortality. Every night Demeter would hold him over the fire to burn away his mortal parts but one night Metaneira witnessed the event and screamed (Powell 242). Demeter called her a fool and shed her disguise revealing her true glory (Powell 243). Metaneira knew she offended Demeter and quickly erected a temple in her honor (Powell 243). Demeter goddess of fertility placed a plague on the earth refusing to let anything grow (Powell 244). Zeus realizing that Demeter was starving the people tried to persuade her to let the grains grow by offering glorious gifts (Powell 244). Demeter refused still distraught that her daughter Persephone was not by her side. Finally Zeus had to abide and persuade Hades to return Persephone to her mother (Powell 244). Hades agreed but tricked Persephone into eating the fruit of the underworld before her return to her mother. Persephone naïve ate the pomegranate seed of the underworld (Powell 245). This was a sacred union between Hades and Persephone which she had to spend 1/3 of the year in the underworld and 2/3 of the year with Demeter. Demeter had no choice but to abide by the fate of her daughter and grieves part of the year letting nothing grow on the earth. When 3 Persephone returns Demeter is rejoiced and the harvest is plentiful. This myth is an agricultural allegory that explains the seasons of the earth (Powell 249). Demeter’s mother Rhea told her to hurry up and let the crops grow and let the mortals survive. Demeter heeded her mother’s advice knowing that Persephone could not be at her side forever (Powell 248). Demeter explained the rites of her cult to the kings which included Triptolemus, Diocles, Eummolpus, and Celeus (Powell 248). She instructed Triptolemus to teach humankind the art of agriculture. Demeter’s cult the Eleusinian Mysteries grew from this and offered anyone that followed her cult a happy afterlife (Powell 250). Demeter and Poseidon When Demeter was searching for her daughter Persephone, she was pursued by Poseidon (Powell 160). Demeter changed into a mare and ran to Arcadia. Poseidon finding out that he was tricked decides to change into a stallion (Powell 160). Poseidon then has his way with Demeter and gets Demeter pregnant. They bore a horse Arion who later in myths saves the hero Adrastus in the Seven against Thebes myth (Powell 160). They also had a daughter that named Despoine who was worshipped by the Arkadians (Pausanias, 8. 37. 1.) Demeter was furious at Poseidon and still mourning her daughter turns the water black (Photius, 190). This myth is etiological and explains the horse-headed statue of Demeter at the Peloponnesus (Powell 160). Demeter and Tantalus Tantalus invited the Gods to a banquet and offered his son Pelops as sacrifice. He chopped Pelops into little pieces and offered it as a dish (Powell 540). The Gods all recognized the dish was human flesh but Demeter still grieving for her daughter Persephone ate the dish (Powell 540). Demeter was so blinded by her grief didn’t even think about the reality around her. Zeus had Pelops pieces put back into the pot and out came a child without his shoulder because Demeter ate it. Hephaestus master craftsman fashioned an ivory shoulder (Powell 540). Bibliography Atsma , Aaron J.. Theoi Greek Mythology. N.P. 2000-2011. Web. 20, July 2013.http://www.theoi.com/ Bulloch, Anthony Ancient Greek Mythology. Department of Classics, University of California, Berkeley. 2003-2013. Web. 20, July 2013. < http://www.greekmyth.org/> 3 Hephaestion, Ptolemy, New History Book 3 (summary from Photius, Myriobiblon 190) (trans. Pearse) (Greek mythographer C1st to C2nd A.D.) Hesiod, Theogony 453 ff (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or 7th B.C.) Homer. Homeric Hymn 2 to Demeter 1 ff (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C7th or 6th B.C.) Pausanias, Description of Greece 8. 37. 1. Theoi Greek Mythology. N.P. 2000-2011. Web. 20, July 2013. < http://www.theoi.com/Olympios/DemeterFamily.html#Poseidon> Powell, Barry B. Classical Myth. Trans Herbert Howe. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2012. Print Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 1. 29-33 (trans. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) 3