Page 20 - Kallima spiritual Centre - Newsletter - September-October 2020

God of: The Underworld and the Dead & Riches. Symbols: Scepter, Key, Chariot Cornucopia, Cyprus Tree Parents: Father ‐ Cronus ‐ God of the Harest Mother ‐ Rhea ‐ Goddess of the Earth Children: Macaria - Goddess of a Blessed Death, Melinoe - Goddess of Ghosts and Spirits & Zagreus God of Hunting and Rebirth. Consorts: Persephone Goddess of Spring Growth and Queen of the Underworld. Siblings: Poseidon - God of the Sea, Zeus - God of the Sky, Demeter - Goddess of the Harvest, Hestia - Goddess of the Hearth, Hera - Goddess of Marriage and Chiron the Centaur - God of Healing.
Hades was the god of the underworld and the name eventually came to also describe the home of the dead as well. He was the oldest male child of Cronus and Rhea.
Hades and his brothers Zeus and Poseidon defeated their father and the Titans to end their reign, claiming rulership over the cosmos. They agreed to split their rule with Zeus becoming god of the skies, Poseidon god of the sea and Hades god of the underworld.
Hades was the king of the underworld and god of the dead. He presided over funeral rites and defended the right of the dead to due burial. Hades was also the god of the hidden wealth of the earth, from the fertile soil with nourished the seed-grain, to the mined wealth of gold, silver and other metals.
Despite being a major god, Hades does not appear as often as the other Olympians in Greek art. This is not surprising, considering that death was a subject that people would normally avoid. Hades is so infrequently depicted in art that there are no strict rules as to how this deity ought to be represented.
Nevertheless, there are certain attributes that allow one to identify this god, including a scepter and key, both of which are symbols of his dominion of the Underworld, and a cornucopia (horn of plenty), which points to his role as a god of wealth. It may be mentioned that Hades’ role as a god of wealth is often overshadowed by his role as the god of the dead.
Another unmistakable attribute of Hades is Cerberus, his three-headed dog. The Greeks believed that Cerberus guarded the gates of the Underworld, devouring anyone who attempted to leave, while preventing the living from entering Hades’ realm.
It was Love -
By far the most important story of Hades is the abduction of Persephone, Demeter’s daughter. That was one of the few times Hades traveled above ground. The reason, naturally, was love: he fell for Persephone. However, Persephone didn’t want to give in easily, so Hades devised a plan to claim her.
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As Persephone was gathering flowers with her maidens at the Nysian plain, he caused an indescribably beautiful flower to suddenly bloom before her. When Persephone reached out to pluck it, the ground under her opened and Hades appeared before her, all dreadful and majestic in his four-horse golden chariot and took her with him to the Underworld.
Demeter, the goddess of fertility, was so distressed at the absence of her daughter, that she started fasting and wandering aimlessly. Finally, after nine days, Hecate told her what happened. After the All-Seeing Helios confirmed the event, Demeter left Olympus as an act of protest against the injustice done to her.
With her gone, the earth was as barren and infertile as a desert. One year passed, and the gods started worrying that the famine would wipe out humanity. So Zeus sent all the gods, one by one, to beg Demeter to come back, promising her all kinds of gifts and functions. She wanted none; the only thing she wanted was to see her daughter once again. So, Zeus had no choice but to send Hermes to Hades with the request that he return Persephone to Demeter. He complied, but only after tricking Persephone to eat 6 pomegranate seeds before leaving. This ensured that she would remain bound to his kingdom eternally.
Now, both sides had no choice but to accept Zeus’ compromise: Persephone would spend 6 months of the year with her mother,and the other 6 months of it with Hades in the underworld. This is the part of the year which corresponds with the Autumn and winter months: they say that Demeter retreats from Olympus to her temple at Eleusis to grieve the absence of Persephone which makes the land of the earth die. When Persephone comes back to her mother in spring, Demeter is happy once again and the earth starts to grow and flourish once more until Persephone has to leave again.