Aphrodite   af ruh DY tee

Goddess of Love

According to Hesiod (Theogony, line 190), when Kronos (Cronos) had cut off his father’s members, he tossed them into the sea. The immortal flesh eventually spread into a circle of white foam... from this foam, Aphrodite was created. Her name literally means foam-born. She was attended by Eros (the primal god of Love) and Himeros when she was first born but when she stepped ashore on the island of Kypros (Cyprus) she was a “modest and lovely Goddess”, since known as the Lady of Kypros. Her gentle domain was intended to be “the sweetness of love” and “the whispering of girls” but her adventures, and the adventures of her children, caused as much misery and bloodshed as any of the immortals (except for Ares (the god of War) and Athene (Athena), they thrived on the sanguine).

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Aphrodite in The Trojan War

Her love of Alexandros (a.k.a. Paris) helped move the Trojan War into it’s bloodiest and saddest phase. The Trojans and the Achaians, (Greeks), agreed that Menelaos (Helen’s Achaian husband) and Alexandros (Helen’s Trojan lover) would fight for Helen, and her possessions, in single combat. The assembled armies swore oaths that they would abide by the results of the duel and all declared an end to their nine year quarrel. The duel began . . . (Iliad, book 3, line 380) Alexandros was dealt a deadly blow and should have died on the battlefield, but Aphrodite covered him in mist and removed him to his perfumed bedchamber, unharmed. Aphrodite then went to Helen (Iliad, book 3, line 426) and threatened to encompass her with “hard hate” if she did not go to Alexandros and comfort him.

The Trojan War was, of course, not Aphrodite’s fault but her love for Alexandros, and her meddling caused considerable misery and death among both armies. Later (Iliad, book 5, line 311), Aphrodite, once again, entered the fray to save the life of her son Aineias (Aeneas). As she was shielding her staggering son from the thunderous assault of Diomedes, she was wounded in the hand. Athene, another meddler in the Trojan War, had given Diomedes the power to see the immortals on the battlefield. She advised him (Iliad, book 5, line 129) to avoid all the gods except Aphrodite, “her at least you may stab”. Diomedes lunged at Aphrodite and his pitiless bronze spear tore through the robe that the Graces had carefully woven and cut the flesh of her immortal palm. The blood of the gods, ichor, poured darkly on her perfect skin (Iliad, book 5, line 340) as she fled the battlefield and went to Mount Olympos (Olympus) to seek comfort from Dione. Zeus advised her, No, my child, not for you are the works of warfare. Rather concern yourself only with the lovely secrets of marriage... (Iliad, book 5, line 428).

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Aphrodite and Ares (Love and War)

In The Odyssey of Homer (book 8, line 266), the singer, Demodokos, tells the tale of how Aphrodite and Ares secretly laid together in the bed of her husband, Lord Hephaistos (Hephaestus), the smith of the gods. Helios (the Sun) secretly observed the lovers and told Hephaestus. The smith went to his work and devised clever fastenings that would ensnare and hold the lovers in an unbreakable trap. The careless lovers fell into the trap and Hephaestus stood before the other Olympians and demanded his gifts of courtship be returned. Only after Poseidon (Lord of the Sea) offered to pay the adulterer’s damages if Ares defaulted would Hephaestus loose the bonds. After being freed, Aphrodite went to her sacred precinct on the island of Kypros where she was bathed by the Graces and Ares went Thraceward. Seeing the two lovers in the indignity of the snare, Apollon asked Hermes how he would feel in such a situation. Hermes answered that he would suffer thrice the number of bonds if only he could share the bed of Aphrodite the Golden (Odyssey, book 8, line 342).

She is often confused with the Roman goddess, Venus.

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Aphrodite in The Iliad (listed by book and line)

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Aphrodite in The Odyssey (listed by book and line)

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