Hades and Persephone
Persephone: Goddess the harvest and fertility,. She is the queen of the underworld, wife of Hades, daughter of Zeus and Demeter.
Hades: God of the underworld, wealth and keeper of lost souls.
Hecate: Goddess of love, beauty and procreation.
Demeter: Goddess of agriculture, fertility, sacred law and the harvest.
Zeus: God of the sky and thunder. He chief deity in the Hellenic pantheon. Considered the ruler, protector, and father of all gods and humans.
Helios: God of the sun.
Gaia: The Earth is a goddess representing nature, motherhood, fertility, creation, and destruction.
This story alike many others has been told and retold a thousand ways. In some iterations it’s a tale of trauma, a kidnapping and deceit. In others it’s a love story through and through. I think the truth lies somewhere in between, so that’s how I’ve written it for you today.
Persephone as we know her today goddess of harvest and fertility has been know by many other name. She was also called Kore, which means “maiden”. Daughter of Demeter and Zeus she grew up to be a lovely girl attracting the attention of many gods. Key among them was Hades.
Hades, who left the underworld early, fell in love with Persephone at first sight. He immediately went to Zeus to ask for her hand in marriage. Zeus who had previously promised him a marriage to one of his daughters. Knowing that Demeter would never agree to her daughter marring the God of the Underworld, Zeus had a plan. He did not want to offend his brother with a refusal so instead told Hades to kidnap Persephone and take her to the underworld. He nether gave or withheld his consent.
Days later Persephone is picking flowers in a meadow: roses, crocus, and beautiful violets. When a beautiful and rare narcissus, which was grown as a lure from Gaia, as a favor to Zeus. Persephone, unable to resist such wonder stretched out her hands to pluck the flower from the earth when the ground around her opened up.
Out of the Roaring ground Hades ascended riding on a golden chariot pulled by immortal horses. He seized her. She left behind only her screams, but no one heard her cries. The Underworld swallowed them up, and Persephone was gone from the Earth. In a distant cave her screams echoed upon the ears of Hecate but, when she ran to the maidens aid, found no sign of her.
When Persephone did not return from her trip to the meadow, Demeter was worried. She approached Zeus who gave her no answer, so she took to the earth, searching for her daughter. For nine days she did nothing but wander the earth. Hecate came to her aid, torches in hand, she came with a message for Demeter. “Lady Demeter, bringer of hôrai, giver of splendid gifts, which one of the gods who dwell in the sky or which one of mortal humans seized Persephone and brought grief to your philos thûmos? I heard the sounds, but I did not see with my eyes who it was. So I quickly came to tell you everything, without error.”
Together Demeter and Hecate approached Helios, who sees everything. Helios explains to Demeter that Hades had been the villain who had abducted her daughter. Helios had watched the ground swallow up her daughter to the Underworld.
Consumed by grief and fury Demeter roamed the earth, she shunned all other gods and forgoing all her responsibilities. The earth fell into an eternal winter.
Eventually she ended up in Celeus' palace in Eleusis, having taken the form of an old woman named Doso. Celeus gave her a place to stay, not knowing she was the goddess Demeter it was a great kindness.
As a gift to Celeus, for his hospitality, Demeter planned to make his son Demophon a god, anointing with Ambrosia, breathing gently upon him while holding him in her arms. She was slowly making him immortal by burning his mortal spirit away in the family hearth every night.
One night, when Metaneira, Celeus’ wife saw this, horrified she raised an alarm. In response, Demeter revealed her true identity and demanded a temple be built in her honour. Once the temple was completed, Demeter withdrew from the world and lived inside it.
Crops no longer grew and famine spread across the earth. The cries of humanity so loud that they could be heard on Mount Olympus. Zeus was no longer able to ignore the desperate cries and enlisted Hermes with the task of venturing to the Underworld to bring Persephone back to her mother.
Back in the Underworld Hades treated Persephone with every kindness, stressing only gentle words to her. Her created beautiful gardens filled with flowers in her honor. She was treated as a true queen of the Underworld. During her time there Persephone had refused to eat even bread. She deeply missed her mother.
Hades caught wind of the stirs on Mount Olympus and readied a carriage to take his love home. However before she leaves Hades takes a moment to take her hand. “Go, Persephone, to your mother”, he consoles her asking her not to be upset and at the same moment reminding her that as queen of the underworld she will be queen of queens. Persephone is conflicted, she rejoices to see her mother once more but the kindness and compassion Hades has shown her leaves an equal mark. Hades hands her twelve pomegranate seeds to fuel her though her journey, a kind gesture on the surface, but it was a trick non the less. For if a god or mortal eats the food of the Underworld they must return. With that the horses sped away leaving Hades and the Underworld in their wake, Persephone arrives home.
Demeter is overjoyed bringing the first Spring upon the earth. Fragrant flowers erupt, blossoming all around them. The cold and misty helms of darkness diminish. Mount Olympus was euphoric. The god and goddesses all celebrated her return to the land of the living. Hecate approached them, she welcomed back the daughter of Demeter. From that day forward, the Lady Hecate became Persephone’s attendant.
Persephone tells her story to Demeter with excitement, she speaks of it as though it were a wonderful adventure. When she was asked where she would like to live she told Zeus and Demeter that she would like to stay in the Underworld with her husband.
Demeter was furious and after a heated discussion Demeter made it known to all, that if she was to return to the Underworld, so would her wrath upon the earth. Never again making the earth fertile. Demeter insists that Persephone must stay on Mount Olympus. But, Persephone had eaten six pomegranate seeds given to her by Hades.
Zeus decided that Persephone would spend one third of the year in the realm of the Underworld with Hades. She would then return to Mount Olympus to be with her mother. This agreement did not please either Hades or Zeus but both parties agreed that it was fair. Unwillingly Demeter agrees, though in the winter months, when Persephone is in the Underworld she plunges the world into cold darkness once more.
Persephone and Hades have a wonderful loving relationship, they fiercely defend one and other throughout mythology. For one third of the year Persephone rules beside Hades. Then, in the springtime she returns to her mother and the land of the living, bringing with her life and fertility.