Aphrodite
Aphrodite · Goddess of Love, Beauty, and Desire
Greek goddess of love, beauty, desire, and fertility. Two accounts of her birth coexist: born of sea foam from the severed genitals of Uranus, or daughter of Zeus and Dione. Her beauty enthralls gods, mortals, and beasts alike, and her arrows of love often determine tragic fates in myth.
Origin
Per Hesiod's Theogony, she rose from sea foam where Cronus cast the genitals of his castrated father Uranus. In Homer she is daughter of Zeus and Dione. Forced into marriage with lame Hephaestus, she famously took Ares as her lover.
Features
- Young goddess of unmatched beauty
- Accompanied by doves, sparrows, swans, and dolphins
- Roses, myrtle, and the golden apple as symbols
- Wears the kestos himas — a magical girdle of irresistible allure
Stories
Patron of marriage and love; couples and lovers gave offerings. Her golden apple sparked the Judgment of Paris and thus the Trojan War. As goddess of fertility, she was invoked in agricultural rites.
Related
Poseidon
Poseidon · Greek God of the Sea — Earth-Shaker and Lord of Horses
Hermes
Hermes · God of Travel, Trade, Thieves, and Messengers
Zeus
Zeus · King of Olympus — God of Sky and Thunder
Hades
Hades · Greek God of the Underworld — King of the Dead
Apollo
Apollo · God of Sun, Music, Prophecy, and Healing
Ares
Ares · Greek God of War and Slaughter
Hera
Hera · Queen of Olympus — Goddess of Marriage
Artemis
Artemis · Goddess of the Hunt, Moon, and Maidenhood
Athena
Athena · Goddess of Wisdom, Strategy, and Craft
Freya
Freya · Norse Goddess of Love, Fertility, War, and Seiðr
Odin
Odin · Allfather of Norse Myth — God of Wisdom, War, and Death
Thor
Thor · Norse God of Thunder — Protector of Mankind