Deep Ties

                                                                           Goddess Hera - Shutterstock Here, the wife of Zeus, is considered the Queen of Mount Olympus. She is the goddess of wedlock, women and family.  Hera was the daughter of the Titans, Cronus and Rhea, which also makes her the sister of  Zeus. Her siblings were, thus, Hades, Poseidon, Demeter, Hestia and Zeus himself.  Hera was the watchful and possessive wife of a husband prone to myriad adulterous affairs and illegitimate children. She could be vindictive and dangerous. According to Pausanias, Zeus fell in love with Hera. When she left him and set out on her own, he created a mighty storm, turned himself into a cuckoo and sat on her lap. Hera shielded him with her cloak and kept him as a pet. Once the storm abated...

  Instagram Zeus was incensed when Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to mankind. He ordered Hephaestus, the divine blacksmith, to create the first woman, the bringer of all evil into the world. Once Hephaestus had done so, all the gods granted Pandora, for that was her name, various gifts. Athena dressed her up in an ornate veil, garlands and a silver crown, Aphrodite granted her grace and wiles and Hermes presented her with the gift of speech, naming her Pandora. Pandora has been reviled in mythology for possessing a deceitful nature. Prometheus rejected her, but his brother Epimetheus accepted her as his wife, despite his brother’s warning not to accept any gift from Zeus. TikTok Epimetheus, Pandora's husband - Greek Mythology As a wedding gift, Zeus gave Pandora a jar or a box which contained ‘countless plagues.’ Pandora’s curiosity made her willfully open the box, which was exactly what Zeus wanted for he considered her ‘an unnatural abomination’. The moment s...

  Orion - Paleothea Orion was the grandson of the Cretan king, Minos, the creator of the labyrinth, and the son of Euryale, the Gorgon and Poseidon, the god of the sea. This also made him the nephew of Zeus, the king of the gods. Orion was a tall, well-built demigod who stood head and shoulders over any man. He was also the greatest hunter who could beat anyone with his club or sword. It is also believed that he represented strength, good luck and spiritual intuition. The myth goes that Artemis, the goddess of the Moon, hunting and virginity, was attracted to the strong and handsome Orion. She fell in love with him, but since she had taken a vow of virginity, she remained chaste. Her brother, the sun god, Apollo, was wary of the relationship as he did not want her to break her vow. There are two versions of the way he got rid of Orion.                                           ...

                                                                                                      YouTube Narcissus, a hunter from Thespine, is known in Greek mythology for his remarkable beauty, the son of a river god and a nymph. It is believed that Cephissus took advantage of Liriope and as a result was born this boy, “beautiful even as a child”. After the baby was born, Liriope consulted the blind prophet, Tiresias, as she was concerned about his future. Tiresias told her gravely that the boy would enjoy a long life only if he never “came to know himself”, an enigmatic utterance which tragically came true. Narcissus was aware of his striking looks. However, he rejected advances from men and women. When Narcissus was sixteen,...

  King Midas - Freepik Midas was the ruler of Phrygia, who dwelt in an opulent palace, with everything he wanted at his fingertips. He lived with his beautiful daughter, and they enjoyed a life of abundance. Midas thought that his greatest happiness came from his wealth and spent entire days admiring and counting his gold coins. He would cover himself in gold and obsess over his possessions, not realising how this obsession could lead to dire consequences. One day, Dionysus, the Greek god of revelry and wine passed through Midas’ kingdom. One of his companions, a satyr named Silenus, was exhausted and decided to take a nap in the exotic rose gardens that flanked the kingdom. He was discovered there by Midas who invited him into his palace and entertained and took care of him for ten days and nights. At the end of the period, he took him back to Dionysus, who was grateful for the king’s kindness to his companion, and granted him a wish. Midas immediately asked for everything he touc...

              Paleothea Leander or Leandros (Lion Man) was a young leader from Abydos. One day, he attended a festival where he came across the modest and beautiful Hero, who was a priestess of the goddess Aphrodite, and hence, lived in chastity. Leander fell in love with her at first sight. He used his charm and his wiles to make her respond to his advances. As Hero lived in Sestos, there was a whole sea, the Hellespont, which separated Europe from Asia, and the lovers as well. Every night, Leander would swim across the sea, guided only by a lamp that Hero would keep alight on the top of her tower. Thus, a whole summer went by with the lovers falling even more deeply in love.                                                        Hero Guiding Leander - The Eclectic Light Company One stormy night, Leander set out...