We know that the Titan Cronus was Hades’ father, and his mother was a Titan Rhea. It is the ruler of the underworld, Hades, that we’ll be focusing on today. Hades and his brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, decided that they would divide their new kingdom’s control amongst each other, with Zeus ruling the sky, Poseidon the ocean, and Hades having the rule of the underworld. Shortly after the Olympians defeated their father, Cronus, the reign of the Titans came to an end ushering the new rule of the Olympians. Watch out for the king that lay underground.” “The collector of souls surrounded by screams, Cerberus, the three-headed dog, guarded the entrance to the underworld and prevented anyone from returning to the world of the living. The ghosts of the dead were escorted by HERMES, the messenger god, to the boatman Charon who ferried across the Styx, an underground river, on those ghosts who could pay the fare. Another name for Hades was Polydegmon (“receiver of many guests”) on account of the multitudes who had died and come to his kingdom. He forcibly married Persephone, Demeter’s daughter.Īt the division of the universe after the overthrow of their father, Zeus took the sky, Poseidon the sea, and Hades the underworld the earth was shared among them. He was the son of CRONUS and RHEA and the brother of Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, Demeter and Hestia.
HADES (whose name means “the unseen”) was the Greek god of the underworld, the realm of the dead. Conclusion Who is Hades in Greek Mythology?.However, his staff is similar to the one owned by the Greek god of healing and medicine, Asclepius. Why? Hermes was not associated with healing. The medical profession adopted the caduceus as its symbol, and it can often be seen in pharmacies. To the medieval alchemist, this represented the reconciliation of two opposing qualities or elements, which was one of the aims of alchemy. The two serpents are shown to be fighting, yet as they are wrap around the staff they are believed to be in equilibrium. The two snakes were thought to symbolize chaos. In alchemical symbolism, the caduceus represents the elemental, or prime matter. Source: Metropolitan Museum of Artīecause of the association with Hermes Trismegistus, the caduceus became associated with magic and above all, with alchemy. He has a traveller’s hat ( petasos) and coat ( chlamys). Messenger of the gods, Hermes had winged boots and grasps his staff ( kerykeion) in his hand. Considered a great orator, Hermes and his caduceus became the symbol of orators. Hermes was believed to have invented coinage, so his staff was often used to symbolized commerce. It was also used to symbolize the planet Mercury in late antiquity. Over time, the staff began to represent all the trades and professions associated with the gods Mercury and Hermes. Hermes Trismegistus, an ancient Graeco-Egyptian author who wrote many hermetic texts associated with spells and magical powers, was also believed to use a caduceus. The Roman god Mercury also had a caduceus, also regarded as a symbol of peace or diplomacy. It was widely believed that his staff could determine if a person died well, or had a terrible death, which was of extreme importance in the ancient world.
The herald of the gods was a powerful figure in his own right. If Hermes touched a person who was awake, the person would fall asleep. The staff was also thought to have magical properties. It was known to the ancient Greeks as a Kērykeion and became a symbol of peace used by those involved in making peace, such as diplomats and messengers.
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