selene greek mythology

In fact, there were several female deities who shared this domain. How Did Uranus get its Name as Per Greek Mythology? Selene was one of the daughters of the Titan gods Hyperion and Theia and the sister of the sun god Helios and the goddess of the dawn Eos. This might have had a role in the later identification of Selene with Hecate, who was, after all, the goddess of witchcraft and spells. In memory of the beautiful Endymion, the fly still grudges all sleepers their rest and annoys them. The moon was thought to influence people in other ways, as well. E.g., Thucydides, Histories 7.50.4; Tacitus, Annals 1.28.1ff. Chiswick House, London, UK. Homeric Hymn 32.313, trans. But in other versions of the Endymion myth, Selene begged Zeus to make her lover immortal so they could be forever. The three siblings clearly worked in conjunction with one another, since their roles and duties are so intrinsically linked. SELENE was the Titan goddess of the moon. In rarer traditions, she is the daughter of the Titan Pallas. [114] From Pausanias, we learn that Selene and Helios also framed the birth of Aphrodite on the base of the Statue of Zeus at Olympia. Seln) was also the ancient Greek word meaning moon. The etymology is uncertain, but it appears to be related to the Greek word (slas, light) and the Proto-Indo-European word *l(o)uksneh- (moon), from which we also derive the Latin word for moon, luna. -Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 10. The Greeks (like many other ancient peoples) were notoriously terrified of eclipses, viewing them as signs of the gods displeasure.[3]. It is unclear how much of a choice Endymion himself may have had in the matter, although there are versions of the myth which say that Endymion had fallen in love with the beautiful moon goddess as well and asked Zeus to keep him in a state of eternal sleep so that he could be with her forever. "[2][150][151], The ancient Greeks called Monday "day of the Moon" ( ) after her. Selene - The Moon Goddess - Greek Mythology - See U in History Art: Marcus AquinoColor: Rod Fernandes#GreekMythology #Mythology #SeeUinHistory #History #Myth. According to Greek mythology, the moon goddess Selene was the daughter of two Titans (mythological giants) called Hyperion and Theia. [143] The idyll opens with the girl ordering her maid to bring potions and magical utensils, followed by an invocation to Selene and Hecate, and finally the rather lengthy spell itself; once she finishes her spell, the girl recounts to Selene of how she met and was betrayed by her lover, and calls upon the goddess to witness and help her, hence the love tail is woven into the love spell. She had two siblings, Helios and Eos. [75] Cicero seems to make Selene responsible for Endymion's sleep, so that "she might kiss him while sleeping". However, in the science fiction book The First Men on the Moon by H.G. (Also, the name of the Titan Goddess Phoebe and an epithet of Artemis.). The pair could also have been the parents of the beautiful and vain Narcissus, for whom the Narcissus flower is named, according to Nonnus, the Greek epic poet of the Roman era. While other goddesses were associated with the night in more general terms, Selene was believed to be the embodiment of the moon herself. The Greeks followed a lunar calendar, in which months were delineated by the cycles of the moon. She was descended . [102], Plutarch recorded a fable-like story in which Selene asked her mother to weave her a garment to fit her measure, and her mother replied that she was unable to do so, as she kept changing shape and size, sometimes full, then crescent-shaped and others yet half her size. [142] In Theocritus' second Idyll, a young girl invokes Selene in a love-spell. Everything We Know About the Greek Goddess of Agriculture, Aphrodite Facts: Awesome Facts about the Goddess of, Interesting Facts about Athena: Greek Goddess of Knowledge. By all accounts, Selene seemed to have played a major role in this war. [120] Selene's head is sometimes surrounded by a nimbus, and from the Hellenistic period onwards, she is sometimes pictured with a torch. In many cases it rested on her brow or jutted out on either side of her head like a crown or horns. [37] Other accounts give still other parents for Selene: Euripides has Selene as the daughter of Helios (rather than sister),[38] while an Aeschylus fragment possibly has Selene as the daughter of Leto,[39] as does a scholium on Euripides's play The Phoenician Women which adds Zeus as the father. In Greek mythology, Selene was the Titan goddess of the moon. Selene was the Greek goddess of the moon. Selene, the goddess of the moon, has two siblings: Eos, the goddess of the dawn, and Helios, the sun god. Whether this Pallas (called the son of Megamedes) is the same as the Titan Pallas or a different individual entirely is unclear. Robert S. P. Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden: Brill, 2009), 2:131819. [5], Selenes moon chariotsimilar to the sun chariot of her brother Helios and the dawn chariot of her sister Eoswas probably her most distinctive and consistent attribute. The lunar goddess was also important for her influence over female fertility cycles and childbirth. [95], Anaxagoras also reports that the Nemean lion was said to have fallen from the moon. While we often think little of the moon today, in the ancient Greek world the moons cyclical movement through the sky played a central role in their concept of time. Multiple sources say that she had a hand in the creation of the Nemean Lion, whether that was only Selene working on her own or in conjunction with Hera. [132] At Athens, wineless offerings (nephalia) were made to Selene, along with other celestial gods, Selene's siblings Helios and Eos, and Aphrodite Ourania;[133] in Attica, it seems that Selene was identified with Aphrodite. For centuries, those affected by mental illness were referred to as lunatics.. Deciphering the Role of Helios, the Sun God of Greek Mythology. Some even said that the Nemean Lion, as the offspring of Selene, had originally fallen from the moon.[30]. With his sister, the Titaness Theia, Hyperion fathered Helios (the Sun), Selene (the Moon) and Eos (the Dawn).. Hyperion was, along with his son Helios, a personification of the sun, with the two sometimes . Her lunar sphere or crescent was either a crown set upon her head or the fold of a raised, shining cloak. She also had a statue, alongside Helios, in the public marketplace of Elis. Attributes to the Byrgos Painter, ca. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Selene had a relationship with the god Pan, according to Virgil. Not only was she the goddess of the moon, but she was considered a personification of the moon itself and that was how she was portrayed by many of the old poets and writers. [23] She was, however, the subject of one of the thirty-three Homeric Hymns, which gives the following description: And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged[24] Moon. Selene, daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia, was the personification of the moon. The Greek word for the moon was also the word used to delineate the months. Selene was said to have several consorts but the man that the goddess of the moon was most linked with was the mortal Endymion. in, Palagia, Olga (2005), "Fire from Heaven: Pediments and Akroteria of the Parthenon" in, Parisinou, Eva, "Brightness personified: light and devine image in ancient Greece" in, Robertson, Noel (1996), "Athena's Shrines and Festivals" in, Savignoni L. 1899. Altes Museum, Berlin, Germany. Diodorus of Sicily, Library of History 3.57. The Origin of Hotdogs, The History of Boracay Island in The Philippines. Many of Selenes epithetsincluding (agl, gleaming), (pasiph, all-shining), and (tanyspteros, long-winged)reflected her lunar qualities and other distinctive attributes. Although Endymion slept for eternity, many sources said Selene continued to see him. Even if he were sleeping, he would not be parted from the goddess he loved by death. The Story of Selene. Two of these were Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, and Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft. Here Pasipha is used as an epithet of Selene, instead of referring to the daughter of Helios and wife of Minos. They included: The lunar goddesses sometimes worked together. A womans fertility was said to be influenced by the cycles of the moon, a belief that gave English the word menses, and under Selenes influence women were said to have an easier time in childbirth than they did during the day. [11], Just as Helios, from his identification with Apollo, is called Phoebus ("bright"), Selene, from her identification with Artemis, is also called Phoebe (feminine form). Although Zeus had taken many mortal lovers, the goddess of the moon had been abandoning her duties and could cause chaos if she continued. Often when one god supplanted another in a particular domain, the stories that involved that god were changed to reflect this. Quintus Smyrnaeus makes Selene, by her brother Helios, the mother of the Horae, goddesses and personifications of the four seasons; Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. Whatever his profession, the handsome young man frequently slept beneath the open sky. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! As punishment, he was either thrown out of Olympus or cast into an eternal sleep. There are a few different versions of the myth. Even though she, along with her siblings, was a Titan goddess because of her parentage, the three of them became quite central to the Greek pantheon and were accepted as Greek gods themselves after the fall of the great Titans. Selene (probably) and Helios adorned the east pediment of the Parthenon, where the two, each driving a four-horsed chariot, framed a scene depicting the birth of Athena, with Helios and his chariot rising from the ocean on the left, and Selene and her chariot descending into the sea on the right. As Luna, she had temples at Rome on the Aventine and Palatine hills. iPhone History: A Timeline of Every Model in Order It was also believed to influence many aspects of their personal lives and even the actions of the gods. Secretive and shy, she enjoys flitting silently through the night with a pearl-white or silvery chariot. It was devoted to Selene, under the name Pasiphae, and to Helios. [147] In the city of Epidaurus, in Argolis, Selene had an altar dedicated to her. For other uses, see, Detail of Selene from a Roman sarcophagus, A winged Selene seems to be unique to this. Though Selene, as the moon, was undeniably important to the ancient Greeks, there are very few descriptions of her in literature. [32], Selene was rarely worshipped, at least in earlier periods of ancient Greek history. Updates? Hesiod, Theogony 371ff; Apollodorus, Library 1.2.2; etc. Her fifty daughters with Endymion marked the fifty lunar months that passed between celebrations of the Olympiad. . Surviving descriptions of Selene's physical appearance and character, apart from those which would apply to the moon itself, are scant. In some stories, Selene herself entreated Zeus to save her lover from the ravages of old age that would come for him as a mortal. The great English Romantic poet John Keats wrote a poem about the mortal, entitled Endymion, with some of the most famous opening lines in the English language. Athena, also spelled Athene, in Greek religion, the city protectress, goddess of war, handicraft, and practical reason, identified by the Romans with Minerva. According to Hesiod's Theogony, her parents were the Titans Hyperion and Theia; her brother was Helios, the sun god (sometimes called her father); her sister was Eos (Dawn). Let's take a closer look at her story. Several lovers are attributed to her in various myths, including Zeus, Pan, and the mortal Endymion. With Zeus she is the mother of Pandeia goddess of dew. [45] Selene and Zeus were also said to be the parents of Nemea, the eponymous nymph of Nemea, where Heracles slew the Nemean Lion, and where the Nemean Games were held. [59] Though the moon chariot is often described as being silver,[60] for Pindar it was golden. Selene was not the only lunar goddess of the Greeks. Hecate and her followers, for example, asked Selene for her cooperation in their magic. [84] Selene's participation in the battle is evidenced by her inclusion in the Gigantomachy frieze of the Pergamon Altar, fighting against Giants next to her siblings Helios and Eos and her mother Theia in the southern frieze. [104] Zeus agrees, urged by Selene's complaints and having long intended to deal with the philosophers himself. Her sister Eos was the light of dawn and their brother Helios drew the chariot of the sun across the sky each day. At that time, he did not wish for the sun to rise for three days and sent instructions to Selene via Hermes so it should be so. Selene also has several other names. Oil lamp fragment with the head of Selene, early classical period, Muse de Die. Selene was represented on the pedestal of the throne of Zeus at Olympia, riding on a horse or a mule; 12 and at Elis there was a statue of her with two horns. [116] Pausanias also reports seeing stone images of Helios, and Selene, in the market-place at Elea, with rays projecting from the head of Helios, and horns from the head of Selene. As the moon, Selene occupied an important place in popular religion. Selene was so enamored of the young man that she left the sky to see him more closely. It did not take long for Zeus to notice something was amiss. [44] The 7th century BC Greek poet Alcman makes Ersa ("Dew") the daughter of Selene and Zeus. 3. These three lunar goddesses were all important to the Greeks in different ways but it was only Selene who was considered the moon incarnate herself. Lunacy takes its name from Selenes Roman counterpart, Luna. Selene is probably most famous for her love of Endymion, a handsome young man from Asia Minor (though some said that he was from Elis). 500450 BCE. Helios was one of the Titans, son of Hyperion and Theia and brother of Eos (the Dawn) and Selene (the Moon ). The Greek word Phoebe means bright and the word Cynthia means from Mount Cynthus which was said to be the birthplace of Artemis. 200 (cited in the scholia on Aristophanes Frogs 1033); Orphica frag. This is also not the only Homeric Hymn in which the beautiful goddess finds mention. Every evening, Selene ushered in nightfall and then drove her chariot through the night before giving way to dawn. [72] A scholiast on Apollonius says that, according to Epimenides, Endymion fell in love with Hera, and Zeus punished him with eternal sleep. Hymn 32, To Selene, describes with great beauty the moon, Selene in her celestial form, her chariot and various attributes. The moon goddess was said to have had several lovers, including Zeus and the wild god Pan. The most important of Selenes symbols was her moon chariot. Certain types of insanity were said to be brought on by the moons influence, and it was believed that Selene had the power to create lunacy with purpose. But unlike other night goddesseslike Nyx, Hecate, and sometimes even ArtemisSelene represented the moon itself. Selene was more than just a lunar goddess, she was the embodiment of the moon and its light. There are different versions of this story. [8], Selene began appearing in the visual arts around the early fifth century BCE. Omissions? Their daughter Eos was the first to appear each day. 573 Bernab. In ancient Greek mythology, Selene, is the Titan goddess of the moon and is said to drive her glowing chariot powered by beautiful white horses across the sky each night. Selene and Endymion, fresco on ceiling by Giuseppe Antonio Orelli, circa 1730-1770, Palazzo Riva. [78] In his dialogue between Aphrodite and Eros, Lucian also has Aphrodite admonish her son Eros for bringing Selene "down from the sky". Myth Early History Selene was the daughter of the titans, Hyperion and Theia, sister to Helios (the sun) and Eos (dawn). 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