Persephone

Persephone is the Queen of the Underworld, who remains below the earth nine months out of year.

Blessings

Haides can be a distant and frightening God to some, but Persephone is approachable, since there is still something about the upper world about her. Her separation from her mother Demeter leads to her coming into her own power and maturity. She offers comfort and solace to those who have died, or lost someone, and she aids in the transition from life to death. She can also help us with other important transitions in our lives. Her Mysteries give hope of a better fate in the afterlife. She protects us against magic and violence, and she can help us to achieve psychological wholeness.

God Of

  • The Underworld

Primary Cult Centers

  • Eleusis
  • Syracuse

Epithets

  • Agne – Pure
  • Despoina – Mistress
  • Epaine – Awesome
  • Kore – Maiden

Symbols

Torch, Crown, Stalks of grain, Pomegranate, Asphodelos

Animals

Pigs

Sacrifices

Narcissus, Pomegranate, Poplars, Willow, Pigs

Festivals

  • Skira (12 Skiraphorion (June-July)) –
  • The Greater Mysteries (Boedromion 14-21 (September-October)) –
  • Thesmophoria (11-13 Puanepsion (October-November)) –

Ways to honor

Give comfort to those who have lost a loved one. Appreciate the gift of life, and how fragile and precious it is. Donate money or time to rape crisis counseling. Create a balance between the different roles you play in your life. Work with your psychological “shadow.”

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Articles

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Ancient Hymns and Texts

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Modern Hymns and Devotions

Primary Sources

  • Apollodorus’ Library 1.1.5-1.2.1, 1.5.1-3, 1.6.1, 2.5.12, 2.6.1, 3.12.2, 3.6.8, 3.7.1, 3.12.1, 3.14.7
  • Aollodorus’ Epitome1.23, 3.14.4
  • Apollonius Rhodius’ Argonautica
  • Aristophanes’ Women Celebrating the Thesmophoria
  • Euripides’ Helen 1301-1368
  • Hesiod’s Theogony 767-774, 908-911, 965-974
  • Homer’s Iliad 9.457, 9.568
  • Homer’s Odyssey 5.125-128, 10.492-495, 10.510, 11.213-218, 11.225-257, 11.632-635
  • Homeric Hymn to Demeter 2, 13
  • Hyginus’ Fabulae 83, 141, 146, 147
  • Hyginus’ Poetica Astronomica 2.4, 2.25
  • Ovid’s Metamorphoses 5.341-571, 6.118-119, 8.738-878, 9.422-423
  • Pausanias’ Description of Greece 1.13.8, 1.14.3, 1.37.2, 2.5.8, 8.15.1-4, 8.25.2-8, 8.37.6-9, 8.42.1-13

Links

Modern Books

Persephone