#the suppliant maidens

[dijeh]

The Suppliant Women, Aeschylus

trans. Ian Johnston

[apiswitchcraft]

greek god epithets

this post includes zeus, hera, athena, demeter, ares, hephaestus, and poseidon. for part two including hades, persephone, hekate, aphrodite, hermes, apollo, artemis, and dionysus click here

epithets are surnames (as <god's name> <epithet>) used to call upon the greek gods without saying their name directly. the epithet that you choose often corresponds to the purpose you are invoking them for

ZEUS:

-OMBRIUS/HYETIUS/APHESIUS= of the rain

-SCOTITAS= the dark/murky

-CERAUNIUS= of the thunderbolt

-ASTRAPAEUS= of the lightning

-CATAEBATES= the descending

-LABRANDEUS= the furious/raging

-ICMAEUS= of moisture

-CONIUS= of the dust

-MAEMACTES= the boisterous

-EVENEMUS= of fair winds

-LIMENOSCOPUS= the watcher of sea havens

-BASILEUS/CORYPHAEUS= the king/chief/ruler

-HYPATUS/HYPSISTUS= the supreme

-CTESIUS= of the house/property

-HERCEIUS= of the courtyard

-BULAEUS= of the council

-AMBULIUS= the counsellor

-TELEUS/ZYGIUS= of marriage

-MOIRAGETES= the leader of the Fates

-CLARIUS= of the lots

-SEMALEUS= the giver of signs (like clairvoyant messages)

-MECHANEUS= the contriver

-COSMETES= the orderer

-THEUS AGATHUS= the good God

-EPIDOTES= the giver of good

-PLUSIUS= of wealth

-PHILIUS= of friendship

-XENIUS= of hospitality/strangers

-HICESIUS= of suppliants

-PHYXIUS= of refuge

-PALAMNAEUS= the punisher of murderers

-CATHARSIUS= of ritual purification

-PROSTROPAEUS= the turner of pollution

-APEMIUS= averter of ills (ailments)

-SOTER= the savior/deliverer

-MILICHIUS= the gracious/merciful

-PANHELENIOS= of all the Greeks

-LAOITES= of the people

-POLEIUS= of the city-state

-SOSIPOLIS= the city-savior

-ELEUTHEREUS= of freedom

-CHRYSAORUS= of the Golden Sword

-STATIUS/AREIUS= of war/the warlike

-STHENIUS= of strength/the strong

-TROPAEUS= turns to flight/who defeats

-PHYXIUS= puts to flight/banishes

HERA:

-PAIS= the girl

-NYMPHEUOMENE= the betrothed bride

-TELEIA= the (adult) woman/the goddess of marriage

-CLEIRA= the widow

-GAMELIA= of marriage

-ATAUROTE/PARTHENOS= the virginal

-ZYGIA= presider over marriage

-HENIOCHE= of the chariot

-ANTHEA= of the flowers

-ARGOEA= of the ship Argo

-HYPERCHEIRIA= whose hand is above

-BASILEIA= the queen

ATHENA:

-NIKE= victory

-AREIA/PALLAS= of war/the warlike

-ZOSTERIA= girded in armor

-STHENIAS= of strength/the strong

-POLEMODOCUS= the war sustaining

-HIPPIA= of horses

-CHALINITIS= bridler of horses

-ERYMA= the defender

-SOTEIRA= the savior

-ALALACOMENEIS= the protectress

-POLIAS= of the city

-POLIUCHUS= the city protectress

-POLIATIS= the keeper of the city

-ERGANE= the worker

-PAEONIA= the healer

-HYGEIA= of good health

-ALEA= of escapes to refuge

-AMBULIA= the counsellor

-PRONOEA= of foresight

-APATURIA= the deceiver/of deception

-MACHANITIS= contriver of plans

-OXYDERCES= the sharp sighted

-CORYPHASIA/CORYPHAGENES= relating to the head (like her birth)

-PARTHENUS= the virgin/maiden

-CORIA= the maiden

-XENIA= of hospitality (especially to strangers/foreigners)

DEMETER:

-CHTHONIA/DEO= of the earth

-CHLOE= the green/the first shoots

-EPOGMIA= of the furrows

-ANESIDORA= she who sends forth gifts

-PLUTODOTIRA= the giver of wealth

-CARPOPHORUS/MALOPHORUS= bearer of fruit

-THERMASIA= of warmth/heat

-MEGALA THEA= the great Goddess

-MEGALA MATER= the great Mother

-THESMOPHORUS= the bringer of law

-THESMIA= of the laws

-PROSTASIA= the patron/leader

-PANACHAEA= of all the Greeks

-ERINYS= of fury/wrath

-MELAENA= the black

-LUSIA= the bathing/purifying

-HORAPHORUS= the bringer of season

-POLYPHORBUS= the all nourishing/bountiful

-AGLAOCARPUS= the giver of goodly fruit

-AGLAODORUS= the bestower of splendid gifts

-CALLISTEPHANUS= the beautifully crowned

-EUSTEPHANUS= the lovely crowned

-EUCOMUS= the lovely haired

-XANTHE= the blonde/golden-haired

-CYANOPEPLUS= the dark veiled/cloaked

-CALLISPHYRUS= the beautiful

-CHRYSAORUS= of the golden blade

-DIA THEA= the bright Goddess

-SEMNE= the holy/revered

-HAGNE= the pure/chaste/holy

-ANASSA/POTHIA= the queen

-POTHIA THEAON= the queen amongst goddesses

-CYDRA THEA= the glorious/noble goddess

-ORGIA= of religious orgies

-MYSTERIA= of mysteries

ARES:

-THERITAS= the beastly/brutish

-HIPPIUS= of the horses

-APHNEIUS= the abundant

-GYNAECOTHOENAS= feasted by women

-MIAEPHONUS= the blood stained/bloody

-LAOSSOUS= he who rallies men

-BROTOLOEGUS= the manslaughtering

-ANDREIPHONTES= the destroyer of men

-CHALCEUS/CHALCOCORUSTES= of the bronze/armed with bronze

-TEICHESIPLETES= the stormer of cities

-AATUS POLEMOEO= insatiate of fighting/war

-ENCHESPALUS= spear-brandishing

-RHINOTORUS= shield/flesh piercing

-OXYS= the sharp/piercing

-THOOS= the swift/fleet

-THURUS= the violent/furious

-OBRIMUS= the strong/mighty

-DINUS= the terrible/fearsome

-ENYALIUS= the warlike

-CHRYSOPELEX= of the golden helm

HEPHAESTUS:

-CLYTUS= the renowned/famed

-PERICLYTUS/AGACLYTUS= the very famed/the glorious

-CLYTOMETIS/CLYTOTECHNES= famed for crafts/skills

-POLYTECHNES= of many skills

-POLYPHRON= the ingenious/inventive

-POLYMETIS= resourceful

-AETHALOIS THEUS= the sooty god

-CHALCEUS= the bronze/copper smith

-CYLLOPODIUM/AMPHIGYEIS= referring to his disability

POSEIDON:

-BASILEUS= the king/lord

-PELAGAEUS= of the sea/marine

-AEGAEON= of the Aegeon sea

-PROSCLYSTIUS= who dashes against

-ASPHALIUS= who secures safe voyage

-EPOPTES= the overseer/watcher

-GAEOCHUS= the holder of the earth

-ENNOSIGAEUS= shaker of the earth

-HIPPIUS= of the horses

-HIPPOCURIUS= the horse tender

-PHYTALMIUS= the plant nurturer

-GENETHLIUS= of the kin/the kindred

-DOMATITES= of the house

-LAOITES= of the people

[lightofraye]

Christmas Music (Day Seventeen of Twenty-Five)

Céline Dion - Ave Maria Ave Maria! Maiden mild! Oh, listen to a maiden's prayer For thou canst hear amid the wild This thou, this thou canst save amid, despair We slumber safely until the morrow Though we've by man outcast reviled Oh, maiden, see a maiden's sorrow Oh, Mother, hear a suppliant child! Ave Maria Ave Maria, gratia plena Maria, gratia plena Maria, gratia plena Ave, ave dominus Dominus tecum The murky cavern's air so heavy Shall breathe of balm if thou hast smiled Oh, maiden, hear a maiden pleading Oh, Mother, hear a suppliant child Ave Maria

Ave Maria, gratia plena Maria, gratia plena Maria, gratia plena Ave, ave dominus Dominus tecum

[sunnyapollonjabrigidotter]

✨️🧿♾️📚📒🎲🙌🍵

My most favourite goddess from childhood, since a very curious child indeed, and a knowledge seeker... (altho somewhat lazy, & more with the literature & languages, & sciences too, but not that much..)

hope ill be able to connect with you...

ill definitelly take my time, but i somewhat very subtly feel you through my every steps in learning... help me be for real a focused determined & gain successes in all that i want, a thing of which is the study of Anatomy... help me godess maintain the focus i need...

Happy Niketeria...

Hymn to Goddess Nike

XXXII. TO VICTORY [NIKE]

The Fumigation from Manna.

O Powerful Victory [Nike], by men desir'd, with adverse breasts to dreadful fury fir'd,

Thee I invoke, whose might alone can quell contending rage, and molestation fell:

'Tis thine in battle to confer the crown, the victor's prize, the mark of sweet renown;

For thou rul'st all things, Victory [Nike] divine! And glorious strife, and joyful shouts are thine.

Come, mighty Goddess, and thy suppliant bless, with sparkling eye, elated with success;

May deeds illustrious thy protection claim, and find, led on by thee immortal Fame.

Source theoi.com

& also a Hymn to Athena

XXVIII. TO ATHENA

[1] I begin to sing of Pallas Athene, the glorious goddess, bright-eyed, inventive, unbending of heart, pure virgin, saviour of cities, courageous, Tritogeneia. From his awful head wise Zeus himself bare her arrayed in warlike arms of flashing gold, and awe seized all the gods as they gazed. But Athena sprang quickly from the immortal head and stood before Zeus who holds the aegis, shaking a sharp spear: great Olympus began to reel horribly at the might of the bright-eyed goddess, and earth round about cried fearfully, and the sea was moved and tossed with dark waves, while foam burst forth suddenly: the bright Son of Hyperion stopped his swift-footed horses a long while, until the maiden Pallas Athene had stripped the heavenly armour from her immortal shoulders. And wise Zeus was glad. And so hail to you, daughter of Zeus who holds the aegis! Now I will remember you and another song as well. Source

More infos on: reddit

&

Baring of the Aegis

[libidomechanica]

“Not much; for I”

She deemed deare born to be ruined.     His warlike lemonade. You must say, ’t would challenge, few     words went through which last stood resign; forgive if I have the     hard old king across the world an end, and thankfulness! Till     one ray the foremost in

between which Darcy and Elizabeth     speak of poetry, I most humble Maid: then what     it teaches—Heaven of Heaven is throng: with gentlemen     to supersede all warblers here a creature swear that play!     Shortly and sweetly sing;

and looks could pull and bodies,—That’s     the men, the sun. Returning besides. Hang it with fingers     reaching with beating trade; and marble and banking house that     hasten the floor; and either know not what of insolence     and college turned, and the

back just as a lynx, and sacrifice:     the man! Its hands with his arms and knocking at the times     and tumbled Beds, or brew fierce beams they are, careless what happens     to you, to your own neighborhoods. Soft Sounds, Your Grace salute     her wanton meryment.

If you that Candide found what     the gate at this fifth canto meet us light. That you and     you shalt reuiued be, that is— the Ladies stare! Her lives, who will     wail thee, not unespied, fortune led him, and there I set     my fathers by mad ears

believers, but little Hearts the     troubles you took such constant had been? This wreckage. I love     her. Look you’ cried my father pat me frae his door, my friend,     if they were fitter for hire of thy loving best, for to     kiss the moon. The various

hues, as is the World imagine,     ye, when a boy was he? Soon would he, that went. Now turning,     and a magnify, and armor should prize the views to     Things, I sing—This Verse to C ⸻ l, Muse! Like me, then each,     according to touch that to

say: but when there comes back safe ride     with all things great place was so fair; as secret knowledge of     our graves! But not see, if she suppliant and others in the     world mammoth bulked in ice, not scorned be of craft coloured     with like Chianti wine!

Cone to the Greeks’ love of offspring’s     naturally pour the wine and Children do in the worst: all     will be snatched a maiden; wilt thou shalt be laid below my     rage, and never having no equals, nothing in the House     of Christ whose step all sweetnesse

planteth! Stretch with care, I have     a home, the end of words your worlds, beyond the rivers, your     should strike a single sweetness of thy kind: nor have these greater     price were vanish’d hand, but as fast holding earth is a     tomb! And wild scatter delight,

without found such exaggeration     strong darts but had nothing in her eyes, her alone.     I see some grandame’s Whistle blew; the Gnome could ever     follow us: who knows! You must follow us: who know     my breast. But only husband,

you speak as I was famous,     too, with scars, still come on Psyche’s colours from Day’s detested     Day, which might speak; and there is a cause why your better     mother like a rivell’d Flower. Apple reddens never     why I’m not breathe but be

no scream from tigress robb’d of all     their please long day, and Stand, which fill’d apace, I hold it under     head, while Hampton’s Ecchos, wretched Maid! Not much; for I     knew how to serve more than power to place upon his chinne.     Am I in you, yet

let the other Pasty than of     Thine to subdueth! Is to pick it—for hart, each Silver Bound,     and kings. Juan was granted half human, all is said to me.     Together and I, in my License is it nothing: god     slays Himself a man, stir

in me to infuse or wit, or     grace a double majesty shoulders the red drops are these     are the Lock, this the sea’s red vintage melts the mazy Ringlets     of her, they came; the Sphere, seize on all the Kidde to     What stream that all this gauze?

[betterinthedarkblog]

Take as an ally justice. Choose the side of the gods.

Aeschylus, The Suppliant Maidens

[ss3890]

20-Day Deity Challenge courtesy of @broomsick : LINK

Didn’t have a lot of free time to delve terribly deep into this today, but there were a few snippets I found:

1.) HECATE, PERSEPHONE, & DEMETER

Hecate’s depiction in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter is perhaps her most well-known literary appearance. In the hymn, Hecate and the sun god, Hyperion, hear Persephone’s cries when Hades abducts her. After Demeter had searched for her daughter for nine days, Hecate came to her on the tenth with a torch in her hands.

The goddess told Demeter all she had heard but did not know who had taken her daughter. Once Persephone was reunited with Demeter, Hecate embraced the girl. She would become Persephone’s companion in the underworld when the girl returned to Hades each year. A standard iconographic reference to this myth is Hecate carrying a torch.

I feel this myth highlights Hecate’s compassion and willingness to guide others. She did not have to tell Demeter anything, nor does she have to escort Persephone in and out of the Underworld every year or stay to keep her company - yet she chooses to, because she enjoys it.

These three have also been assigned the Maiden, Mother, and Crone aspects of femininity - reflected in a lot of Hecate’s iconography. The triple-deity aspect is not unique here, however. In fact it’s common in many pantheons. There’s something deep and primal that us humans have been keying in on and calling by different names.

Hecate is just one of those names.

2.) HECATE AND ARTEMIS:

The name of Hecate or Ἑκατη means “worker from afar” from the Greek word hekatos. The masculine form Hekatos is a common epithet used for Apollo. According to scholars, this Apolline epithet links Hecate to Artemis, a goddess with similar spheres of influence. The goddesses were characterized in much the same fashion.

Both goddesses were generally portrayed as wearing hunting boots, carrying torches, and accompanied by dogs. They were often conflated to make a dual goddess, for example in Aeschylus’ Suppliants. In Aeschylus’ play, the two goddesses are called to as one by the chorus. This consolidation of the goddesses occurs again in Aristophanes’ Frogs (1358f), in which the character of Aeschylus invokes the goddesses.

On top of Maiden/Mother/Crone aspects, Hecate has been conflated with other moon deities such as Artemis and Selene.

It has been theorized that Artemis was separated from the whole to focus on more ‘positive’ aspects of the goddess, while darker aspects were given to Hecate. I found this very interesting…as someone deeply interested in Hecate, but not so much in Artemis on her own.

When making the decision to conceive, I knew that my child would be connected to the moon. Sure enough, it didn’t happen until I was fertile on a full moon, and her due date is on another one - a full lunar eclipse, actually. I knew immediately, without a shred of doubt, what her name would be: Artemisia.

And she will, without a doubt, become the brighter part of me.

3.) HECATE AND SACRED ANIMALS:

Ancient authors, such as Ovid and Pausanias indicate that dogs – particularly black dogs – were sacrificed to the goddess. Scholars have also suggested that Hecate’s association with dogs points to her role as a goddess of birth. This is because dogs were also the sacred animals of other birth goddesses, such as Eileithyia and Genetyllis.

In later antiquity, Hecate’s dogs became associated with the restless souls of the dead who accompanied the goddess. The myth of Queen Hecuba’s metamorphosis into a dog is linked to the goddess Hecate. According to the legend, Odysseus received Hecuba as his captive after the fall of Troy. But the Trojan queen murdered a Thracian king on her voyage to Greece. As punishment, Hecuba was transformed into a black dog and became the companion of Hecate.

I’m not entirely convinced that Hecate taking Hecuba on as a transformed companion was a punishment. Her home had fallen, she was now a prisoner, and was certainly going to be punished at the hands of her captives. (I’d murder a man, too. This woman was angry.) Companion animals, especially dogs, are typically treated fairly well and honestly I’d rather be an animal at the side of a goddess than a subjugated queen in the hands of men.

It was probably a mercy, but that’s my own projection on the matter.

Another sacred animal of the goddess Hecate was the polecat or weasel. According to the myth told by Antonius Liberalis, Alcmena’s midwife Galinthias had deceived the gods during the birth of Heracles. While seeing Alcmena in labor pains, Galinthias went to the goddess of childbirth, Eileithyia, and the Fates – who prolonged the labor as a favor for Hera – told them the child had been born. In retribution for deceiving the gods, Galinthias was transformed into a polecat. Hecate pitied her transformation and appointed Galinthias as her servant and companion.

Here we see another act of compassion from Hecate - taking on unfortunate souls as companions. She has a deep association with the marginalized, vulnerable, and those outside of the mainstream for very good reasons.

A lovely article that highlights her timeless relevancy and modern resurgence can be found HERE

[paganimagevault]

Aphrodite Epitragia 1st C. BCE - 2nd C. CE. Agate onyx cameo. National Archeological Museum of Naples. Inv.-Nr. 25845/13. Georg Lippold, Gemmen und Kameen, Stuttgart 1922, plate 24, 5.

"Often, when one finds this epithet of Aphrodite, it is in reference to the many iconographical depictions of her riding a goat. Such depictions seem to appear towards the end of the Classical era and refer to her role as Pandemos, especially in Athens, which Plutarch explains in Theseus, 18:

“When the lot was cast, Theseus took those upon whom it fell from the prytaneium and went to the Delphinium, where he dedicated to Apollo in their behalf his suppliant’s badge. This was a bough from the sacred olive-tree, wreathed with white wool. Having made his vows and prayers, he went down to the sea on the sixth day of the month Munychion, on which day even now the Athenians still send their maidens to the Delphinium to propitiate the God. And it is reported that the God at Delphi commanded him in an oracle to make Aphrodite his guide, and invite her to attend him on his journey, and that as he sacrificed the usual she-goat to her by the sea-shore, it became a he-goat (‘tragos’) all at once, for which reason the Goddess has the surname Epitragia.” (trans. Bernadotte Perrin)

At first glance, it is hard to see how Aphrodite Epitragia relates to Aphrodite Pandemos or even the Aphrodisia. According to Plutarch, Aphrodite Epitragia places herself as Theseus’ personal guide in the journey that would lead him to accomplish the synoikismos (lit. “coming together” of cities) and establish the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos, which is at the heart of the Aphrodisia.

While the depictions of Aphrodite riding a goat appear quite early on in Athenian history, the epithet “epitragia” only appears in later sources, one being the quote cited above from Plutarch, and the other being an inscription on one of the seats in the Theater of Dionysus, also dated from the 2nd century AD, probably the seat reserved for the clergy in charge of Aphrodite’s cult under this epithet.

And this is, honestly, quite curious. If Aphrodite riding a goat was, until the turn of the millennium, mostly an iconographical and artistic depiction referring to her role as Pandemos, it is surprising to see that the cult of Aphrodite Epitragia had a clergy, as attested by the presence of the seat in the theater, and it mostly raises the question of the purpose of the cult. Was it different from the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos? If that was the case, how so? Was the cult of Aphrodite Epitragia always there despite the fact we have no trace of it before the 2nd century AD? etc.

In L’Aphrodite grecque, V. Pirenne-Delforge interprets Epitragia as a guide in the sexual coming of age of Theseus. In the same manner that another legend associates the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos as a patron the sexuality of young people through the opening of a brothel under Solon (6th century BC), the Thesean version would represent Aphrodite foreshadowing the metamorphosis of Theseus from a child to a man with the miraculous change from a she-goat to a he-goat. V. Pirenne-Delforge also points out that the image of Aphrodite riding a goat is not exclusively used to refer to Pandemos, as it is the case on ex-votos where she is represented in her Ourania aspects as well.

Still according to the same author, both the epithet and the iconographical trope seem to have been more akin to a protection than an actual representation of the Goddess, popularized by the sculpture of Scopas in Elis, which represented Aphrodite in this manner (unfortunately lost to us). This conclusion can only be reevaluated if we find depictions of Aphrodite Epitragia that were made before the 4th century BC."

-taken from thegrapeandthefig wordpress & Plutarch's Life of Theseus

[dijeh]

The Suppliant Women, Aeschylus

trans. Ian Johnston

[mydarlingsunshine]

In praise of Sulis

(Adapted from Orphic Hymn #8 to Helios)

Hear, golden Goddess, whose eternal eye

with broad survey illumines all the sky,

self-born, unweary'd in diffusing light,

and to all eyes the mirror of delight.

Maiden of the seasons, holy star,

from darkness hope comes beaming from afar,

with thy right hand the source of morning light,

and with thy left unconquered queen of night.

Your march agile and vigorous, radiant sun,

round heaven's course with haste and might you run.

Foe to the wicked, but the good soul's guide,

o'er all steps to the good you do preside.

With precious waters, Shining Queen, tis thine,

to gift unto the world healing divine.

Mother of ages, guide of prosperous deeds,

holy seer, from whom clear sight proceeds,

Sulis Invicta, all-seeing, bearing light,

source of existence, pure and fiery bright,

friend of crops, immortal queen of years,

strong and warm, whom ev'ry power reveres.

Great eye of heaven and the starry skies,

fated with eternal flame to set and rise,

dispensing justice, truth from you dost stream,

the world's great star, and o'er all supreme.

Faithful defender, and the eye of right,

of days the ruler, and of life the light.

From sacred springs pour blessings great and pure,

to each soul peace, and for each ill a cure.

Propitious on these humble labours shine,

and bless thy suppliants with life divine.

[violetmoondaughter]

Selene

Hear Goddess Queen, bearer of divine light, Bull horned Mene, wandering in the night air, torch bearer, Maiden by stars surrounded, waxing and waning, female, and male, shining, lover of horses, mother of time, bearer of fruits, radiant, splendid queen of night, all-seeing power, bedecked with starry light, lover of vigilance, in peace rejoicing and joyful night, fair lamp of night, bestower of grace, bringing fulfilment, ornament of night, queen of stars, decked with a large veil, moving in circular motion, wise maiden. Come, blessed goddess prudent, starry, bright, come, moony lamp, with chaste and splendid light, shine on these sacred rites with prosperous rays, and pleased accept thy suppliants mystic praise.

[thegrapeandthefig]

Aphrodite Epitragia: beyond Aphrodite Pandemos

Often, when one finds this epithet of Aphrodite, it is in reference to the many iconographical depictions of her riding a goat. Such depictions seem to appear towards the end of the Classical era and refer to her role as Pandemos, especially in Athens, which Plutarch explains in Theseus, 18:

"When the lot was cast, Theseus took those upon whom it fell from the prytaneium and went to the Delphinium, where he dedicated to Apollo in their behalf his suppliant's badge. This was a bough from the sacred olive-tree, wreathed with white wool. Having made his vows and prayers, he went down to the sea on the sixth day of the month Munychion, on which day even now the Athenians still send their maidens to the Delphinium to propitiate the god. [2] And it is reported that the god at Delphi commanded him in an oracle to make Aphrodite his guide, and invite her to attend him on his journey, and that as he sacrificed the usual she-goat to her by the sea-shore, it became a he-goat (‘tragos’) all at once, for which reason the goddess has the surname Epitragia." (trans. Bernadotte Perrin)

At first glance, it is hard to see how Aphrodite Epitragia relates to Aphrodite Pandemos or even the Aphrodisia. According to Plutarch, Aphrodite Epitragia places herself as Theseus' personal guide in the journey that would lead him to accomplish the synoikismos (lit. "coming together" of cities) and establish the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos, which is at the heart of the Aphrodisia.

While the depictions of Aphrodite riding a goat appear quite early on in Athenian history, the epithet "epitragia" only appears in later sources, one being the quote cited above from Plutarch, and the other being an inscription on one of the seats in the Theater of Dionysus, also dated from the 2nd century AD, probably the seat reserved for the clergy in charge of Aphrodite's cult under this epithet.

And this is, honestly, quite curious. If Aphrodite riding a goat was, until the turn of the millennium, mostly an iconographical and artistic depiction referring to her role as Pandemos, it is surprising to see that the cult of Aphrodite Epitragia had a clergy, as attested by the presence of the seat in the theater, and it mostly raises the question of the purpose of the cult. Was it different from the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos? If that was the case, how so? Was the cult of Aphrodite Epitragia always there despite the fact we have no trace of it before the 2nd century AD? etc.

In L’Aphrodite grecque, V. Pirenne-Delforge interprets Epitragia as a guide in the sexual coming of age of Theseus. In the same manner that another legend associates the cult of Aphrodite Pandemos as a patron the sexuality of young people through the opening of a brothel under Solon (6th century BC), the Thesean version would represent Aphrodite foreshadowing the metamorphosis of Theseus from a child to a man with the miraculous change from a she-goat to a he-goat. V. Pirenne-Delforge also points out that the image of Aphrodite riding a goat is not exclusively used to refer to Pandemos, as it is the case on ex-votos where she is represented in her Ourania aspects as well.

Still according to the same author, both the epithet and the iconographical trope seem to have been more akin to a protection than an actual representation of the goddess, popularized by the sculpture of Scopas in Elis, which represented Aphrodite in this manner (unfortunately lost to us). This conclusion can only be reevaluated if we find depictions of Aphrodite Epitragia that were made before the 4th century BC.

Further reading:

Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge, L’Aphrodite grecque. Contribution a l’etude de ses cultes et de sa personnalite dans le pantheon archaique et classique, 1994

[splendidemendax]

So while Aeschylus remained a classic both in the schools and among later practitioners of the dramatic art (including Naevius, Ennius, Accius, Pacuvius, and Seneca in Rome), familiarity with his work at first hand seems to have become increasingly limited, even in the schools. Some of his plays certainly were much better known than others, and the selection of seven plays that we possess was probably made in the second century CE: from that point on, the other plays ceased to be copied and thus eventually were lost to posterity. At Byzantium (Constantinople, today Istanbul), three plays in particular were most widely copied, the triad consisting of Prometheus Bound, The Seven against Thebes, and The Persians. The other four plays fell into almost complete neglect, and two of them (The Suppliant Maidens and The Libation Bearers) are preserved in only one manuscript copy. It is sobering to realize that without this one manuscript, we would not possess the complete Oresteia trilogy. —Mark Griffith and Glenn W. Most, "Introduction to Aeschylus" in Aeschlyus I, 3rd ed. (emphasis mine)

i cannot express to you the feelings that textual transmission histories like this inspire in me.

like, the things we lost we lost over a millennium ago; the things we have were saved by chance; the trends and tastes that motivated people in the second century ce changed what we know and how we think about art that was already over five hundred years old when they were reading it.

[gone-arai]

Daimones Part 1: Children of Zeus

In Greek mythology, there are various personified spirits called daimones. Eventually this word evolved into what we now know as “demon” (a word with negative connotations), but daimones weren’t necessarily “evil” spirits. Most of these daimones are the children of Nyx, Eris, or Zeus. In general, the daimon children of Zeus are personifications of morally good concepts, while the children of Nyx and Eris represent the malevolent forces which plague humans. Some daimones (like Hebe, the goddess of youth, or even Eris herself) were full fledged gods, while others were mere personifications with no mythology or cult.

Children of Zeus

Moirai: perhaps better known as the Fates, these three goddesses are the daughters of Zeus and Themis. Sometimes the Moirai were instead called children of Nyx.

Horai: goddesses of the seasons, these three goddesses (Dike, Eunomia, and Eirene) also represent the concepts of justice, lawful conduct, and peace respectively. They are the daughters of Zeus and the titan Themis.

Elder Kharites: goddesses of grace and beauty, these three goddesses (Algaia, Euphrosyne, and Thalia) were the daughters of Zeus and the Okeanis Eurynome. They represented glory, merriment, and festivity respectively. I have an in-depth post about the Elder and Younger Kharites here.

Litai: the personified spirits of prayers were the daughters and ministers of Zeus, and their opposite was Ate, the spirit of delusion. Homer calls them kourai or maidens rather than the daughters of Zeus, but it is likely they were thought of as his daughters seeing as he was the honorary father of all the theoi.

Hebe: the daughter of Zeus and Hera, Hebe is the goddess of youth as well as Hera’s cupbearer and the wife of Herakles.

Aletheia: the personification of truth was also, according to some, a daughter of Zeus. According to Aesop’s fables, she was created by Prometheus.

Kairos: the spirit of opportunity, Kairos is the youngest of Zeus’ divine sons. He was often represented with a long lock of hair hanging from his forehead, suggesting opportunity could be grasped only as it approached.

Likely Children of Zeus

Pistis: trust, honesty, and faith. She was one of the good spirits who escaped from Pandora’s box, abandoning humankind. 

Eusebeia: piety, wife of Nomos. 

Nomos: law, husband of Eusebeia. Dike was sometimes called their daughter, although Nomos was usually just an aspect of Zeus.

Dikaiosyne: righteousness, closely related to Dike

Kalokagathia: nobility and goodness, associated with Arete

Epidotes: ritual purification, assuages the wrath of Zeus Hikesios (god of suppliants). He was an attendant of Apollon at Delphi, but also appeared as an epithet of Hypnos.

Hormes: effort, impulse, and eagerness, especially in battle. He was worshipped at Athens as the virtue of industrious effort. 

Ekekheiria: truce, cessation of hostilities, closely related to Eirene. She was worshipped at Olympia when a general armistice was declared across Greece for the Olympic games.

Agon: contest and struggle, worshipped at Olympia. It is possible he is the same as Zelos (rivalry).

Praxidike: exacting justice, one of the Praxidikai along with her daughters Homonia (unanimity) and Arete (virtue). She is also the mother of Ktesios (spirit-protector of the household), although he is more often an epithet of Zeus.

Peitharkhia: obedience and following commands. She is the mother of Eupraxia (good conduct).

Soter & Sotera: male and female personifications of safety. These titles are more often used as epithets of gods like Zeus and Dionysos.

[piristephes]

May Zeus grant that it go well with us.  For Zeus’ desire is hard to trace:  it shines everywhere, even in gloom, together with fortune obscure to mortal men

Aeschylus, Suppliant Maidens.

[thehistoricalgods]

Happy Genesia, everyone.

Today is one to honour the dead and your ancestors.

Remember to meet them in your thoughts and minds.

“And may they worship forever the gods who possess the land with native honours of laurel bough held aloft, and oxen slain, even as their fathers did before them.

“Since reverence for parents stand written third among the statues of Justice, to whom honour supreme is due.”

— Aischylos, Suppliant Maidens (703-8)