Aether and hemera6/28/2023 As a primordial god, she played an essential role in shaping the universe and birthing several other important primordial gods. These primordial gods each represented a different aspect of existence, together they formed the building blocks of the early universe. According to Greek mythology when the universe first came into being the primordial gods were there, fully formed. Gaia: The Greek Earth Goddess Had No Tolerance for Cruel Family Members.The Unshakeable Power of Zeus, Prime Mover of Ancient Greek Deities.For the most part, the most well-known and most commonly worshiped historically were the Olympians (Zeus, Hera, Hades, etc.) Before these came the Titans and before these came Protogenoi. Greek mythology consists of several different generations of deities. A goddess so powerful Zeus himself feared her. Take Nyx, the Goddess of the Night for example. However, the minor players in Greek mythology are often some of the most interesting but also the most overlooked. This is great, anything which encourages an interest in history should be nurtured. Most people have heard of Zeus, Hades, and Hercules for example, courtesy of Disney. Greek mythology has seeped into pop culture in such a way that most people these days have at least a passing knowledge of the big names. In addition, the female version of Aether was Aethra although objections have been raised by scholars pointing out that this is the name of one of the Oceanids (legendary oceanic nymphs) or a Titaness.The Ancient Greek pantheon of gods is large and can be hard to keep track of. And lastly, the third air was Erebus, the dark fog, which was located deep under the earth and engulfed the lands of the dead.Īether and Hemera were said to be associated with gladness whereas their parents Erebus and Nyx were closely linked to sadness. The second or middle air was Chaos, the pale haze that surrounded the world of mortals. From top to bottom the first air was Aether, the high and majestic blue mist covering the mountain peaks as well as the sun, the moon, and the stars. That high part of the atmosphere is his dominion and in the old days, it was believed that only the gods could breathe his air. Aether’s standingĪether is the omnipotent divine entity that resides above the world of humans, holding that bright blue – barely visible – side of the sky. In other texts, he is the father of Uranus or the son of Erebus and Nyx, and the brother of Eros and Metis. Other sourcesĪ general opinion is that Aether seems either an easy deity to attest or a difficult one regarding his true genealogy. Aether also mated with Terra and fathered many children: Anger, Arrogance, Deception, Fear, Fight, Forgetfulness, Incest, Mourning, Lying, Oath, Pain, Quarrel, Self-indulgence, Sloth, Vengeance, Ocean, Pontus, Tartarus, Themis, the Titans, and the three Furies. Hyginus on the other hand said that Chaos and Caligo (Mist) created Aether, Erebus, Dies and Nox (Night), in which Aether and Dies were the parents of Terra (Earth), Caelus, and Mare (Sea). According to Cicero Aether and Dies (Day) were the parents of Caelus (Sky). The Romans also proposed different genealogies for Aether. Another suggestion in the Orphic Tradition states that Chaos and Chronus were the first entities, and Chronus was the father of Aether and Eros. Aether was the first primordial god, who brought forth the cosmic egg that Phanes (a mystical ancient deity that created new life) hatched from. The Orphic texts speak of Chronus (Time) giving birth to Aether, Chaos and Erebus. James Basire, 1730–1802, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
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