| Hades is the lord of the dead and ruler
of the nether world, which is referred to as the domain of Hades or, by
transference, as Hades alone. He is the son of Cronus and Rhea. When the
three sons of Cronus divided the world among each other, Hades was given
the underworld, while his brothers Zeus and Poseidon took the upperworld
and the sea respectively. He ruled the underworld together with
Persephone, whom he abducted from the upperworld. Zeus ordered him to
release Persephone back into the care of her mother Demeter, but before
she left he gave her a pomegranate. When she ate it, it bound her to the
underworld forever/
Hades sits on a throne made of ebony,
and carries a scepter. He also has a helmet, given to him by the Cyclopes,
which makes him invisible. Hades rules the dead, assisted by various
(demonic) helpers, such as Thanatos and Hypnos, the ferryman Charon, and
the hound Cerberus. Many heroes from Greek mythology have descended into
the underworld, either to question the shades or trying to free them.
Although Hades does not allow his subjects to leave his domain, on several
occasions he has granted permission, such as the time Orpheus requested
the return of his beloved Eurydice.
Hades possesses the riches of the earth, and is referred to as 'the
Rich One'. Possibly also because, as Sophocles writes, 'the gloomy Hades
enriches himself with our sighs and our tears'. Of all the gods, Hades is
the one who is liked less and even the gods themselves have an aversion of
him. People avoided speaking his name lest they attracted his unwanted
attention. With their faces averted they sacrificed black sheep, whose
blood they let drip into pits, and when they prayed to him, they would
bang their hands on the ground. The narcissus and the cypress are sacred
to him.
Other names include Clymenus ('notorious'), Eubuleus ('well-guessing')
and Polydegmon ('who receives many'). |
|
| Related information |
|
Pronunciation
{hay'-deez}
Etymology
"Unseen"
| |
