Introducing some of Hellenic mythology's lesser known Gods

Everyone knows and loves the Twelve Olympians. Heck, everyone knows and loves all Olympians. there are many Theoi, however, that often get overlooked. Today I wanted to introduce a few of the lesser known Theoi to you, if you haven't heard of Them already. I am a firm believer that all the Theoi deserve praise and knowledge of them is the first step towards that goal.


Nereus
Nereus (Νηρευς) is the old man of the sea, and the God of the sea's rich bounty of fish. He dwells in the depths of the Aegean with his wife Doris and his fifty Nereid daughters. Like many of the other sea-Gods Nereus is a master shapeshifter, and speaks with prophetic voice. He is considered a very wise and very old God and the ancient Hellenes depicted him as an old man with a wooden staff accompanied by a host of his Nereid daughters. Sometimes he was depicted with a coiling fish tail in place of legs.

Khionê
Khionê (χιών) is one of the nymphs, a daughter of Boreas, God of the north-wind, and Oreithyia, the lady of mountain gales. Khione is the Goddess of snow. Her name bears a direct link with the ancient Hellenic word for snow: khiôn.

The Astra Planeti
The Astra Planeti (Αστηρ Πλανητων) are the Gods of the five wandering stars or planets. They are named Phainon (the planet of Kronos), Phaethon (the planet of Zeus), Pyroeis (the planet of Ares), Eosphoros (the planet of Aphrodite), and Stilbon (the planet of Hermes). In Hellenic vase painting they were depicted as youths diving into the river Okeanos with the rising of Helios.

Hebe
Hebe (Ἡβη) is the Goddess of youth and the cupbearer of the Gods who served ambrosia at the heavenly feasts. She is also the patron Goddess of the young bride and an attendant of Aphrodite. Her father is Zeus and her mother is Hera. Her husband is the hero Hēraklēs.

Aniketos and Alexiares
Aniketos (Ανικητος) and Alexiares (Αλεξιαρης) are the sons of Hebe and Hēraklēs. Together, They guard the Gates of Olympos and presided over the defence of fortified towns and citadels. Their names mean respectively 'the unconquerable one' and 'he who wards off war'.

Phobos and Deimos
Phobos (Φοβος) is the God of fear, dread and terror, and his twin-brother Deimos (Δειμος) the god of panic fear, flight and battlefield rout. They are sons of Ares and Aphrodite and often accompany their father into battle, driving His chariot and spreading fear in Their wake. As sons of Aphrodite the twins also represented the fear of loss. In classical art the two were usually represented as youths. Phobos was sometimes depicted with a lion or lion-like head.

Iapetos
Iapetos (Ιαπετος) is one of the Titan Gods, sons of Ouranos and Gaia. He is one of four brothers who hold heaven and earth apart. Iapetos Himself was no doubt the pillar of the west, a position which was later and more obviously held by His son Atlas. He may have been regarded as the Titan God of the mortal life-span and His sons Prometheus and Epimetheus were represented as the creators of mankind and other mortal creatures.

Harmonia
Harmonia (Ἁρμονια) is the Goddess of harmony and concord. As a daughter of Aphrodite, she presides over marital harmony, soothing strife and discord; as a daughter of Ares, she represented harmonious action in war. Late Hellenic and Roman writers ascribe cosmic harmony to Her. Her counterpart is Eris.

• Monday, May 4, 2020
  Alexiares ancient Hellenic culture Aniketos Aphrodite Ares astronomy Deimos Harmonia Hebe Hēraklēs Iapetos Introduction series Khionê Mythology 101 Nereus Phobos

Phobos and Deimos rule the world

Phobos (Φοβος) is the God of fear, dread and terror, and his twin-brother Deimos (Δειμος) the god of panic fear, flight and battlefield rout. They are sons of Ares and Aphrodite and often accompany their father into battle, driving His chariot and spreading fear in Their wake. As sons of Aphrodite the twins also represented the fear of loss.

I have been feeling the influence of Phobos and Deimos the last few years. I think the whole world is. Elections that swing to the far right, the 'angry white men', the daily terrorist attacks everywhere in the world. Two days ago, some asshole drove his car into a group of people crossing London Bridge. At least forty were injured and five killed. The attacker then attempted to enter the Houses of Parliament, stabbing a police officer as he tried to force his way in. He was shot and killed by police.

This was by far not the only attack this month alone. Somalia, Cameroon, Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Mexico, France, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Turkey, Mali, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Yemen all saw attacks by a wide variety of war and religious extremist parties. The death toll is around the 400 mark in March alone.

People are afraid but I think... I think they are also getting angry. Angry at the right source this time, not at their local governments or refugees but at the people committing these acts of violence. They see now, with Trump's continued idiocy and the uselessness of the screaming right wing, that their anger might have been misplaced.

Full disclosure: I do not like England's Prime Minister Theresa May. I hold her almost personally responsible for the flusterfuck that Brexit will be. But in the wake of the London Bridge attack, I saw in her the voice that's rising more and more: the voice not of fear but of someone fed up with lunacy. Her voice was echoed on the streets, by people interviewed. England will not be afraid and it will not bent to the will of the extremists.

Perhaps the sentiment that is rising now is Phobos and Deimos' influence too: with a fear of loss comes a courage to defend. When exposed to terror enough, one can become almost immune. When flight and fear don't bring safety, people are only left with the option to stand tall. I hope we will feel more of that in the times ahead. I hope we will become stronger in the light of all of this horror. I hope we will become wise.

The people of The Netherlands voted for our own personal Trump, but they voted much more for everyone else. On the whole, on March 15, we voted for the status quo and stability. France is next, then Germany and both have their own national Trumps. Here is to hoping that enough exposure to Phobos and Deimos will have made these voters courageous, unyielding, and immune to the right wing's manipulative message of fear.

I pray for this, and feel a strong debt to those who died to harden us. We owe it to them to do better. Vote better. Act better. I am proud of the Dutch and how they voted. I am proud of the Brits who refuse to break. I am proud of the Belgians who survived a year since their subway bombings and speak of hope. Perhaps we need Phobos and Deimos for that, but I do hope their reign comes to an end soon.

• Friday, March 24, 2017
  current affairs Deimos personal Phobos

Introducing some of Hellenic mythology's lesser known Gods

Everyone knows and loves the Twelve Olympians. Heck, everyone knows and loves all Olympians. there are many Theoi, however, that often get overlooked. Today I wanted to introduce a few of the lesser known Theoi to you, if you haven't heard of Them already. I am a firm believer that all the Theoi deserve praise and knowledge of them is the first step towards that goal.


Nereus
Nereus (Νηρευς) is the old man of the sea, and the God of the sea's rich bounty of fish. He dwells in the depths of the Aegean with his wife Doris and his fifty Nereid daughters. Like many of the other sea-Gods Nereus is a master shapeshifter, and speaks with prophetic voice. He is considered a very wise and very old God and the ancient Hellenes depicted him as an old man with a wooden staff accompanied by a host of his Nereid daughters. Sometimes he was depicted with a coiling fish tail in place of legs.

Khionê
Khionê (χιών) is one of the nymphs, a daughter of Boreas, God of the north-wind, and Oreithyia, the lady of mountain gales. Khione is the Goddess of snow. Her name bears a direct link with the ancient Hellenic word for snow: khiôn.

The Astra Planeti
The Astra Planeti (Αστηρ Πλανητων) are the Gods of the five wandering stars or planets. They are named Phainon (the planet of Kronos), Phaethon (the planet of Zeus), Pyroeis (the planet of Ares), Eosphoros (the planet of Aphrodite), and Stilbon (the planet of Hermes). In Hellenic vase painting they were depicted as youths diving into the river Okeanos with the rising of Helios.

Hebe
Hebe (Ἡβη) is the Goddess of youth and the cupbearer of the Gods who served ambrosia at the heavenly feasts. She is also the patron Goddess of the young bride and an attendant of Aphrodite. Her father is Zeus and her mother is Hera. Her husband is the hero Hēraklēs.

Aniketos and Alexiares
Aniketos (Ανικητος) and Alexiares (Αλεξιαρης) are the sons of Hebe and Hēraklēs. Together, They guard the Gates of Olympos and presided over the defence of fortified towns and citadels. Their names mean respectively 'the unconquerable one' and 'he who wards off war'.

Phobos and Deimos
Phobos (Φοβος) is the God of fear, dread and terror, and his twin-brother Deimos (Δειμος) the god of panic fear, flight and battlefield rout. They are sons of Ares and Aphrodite and often accompany their father into battle, driving His chariot and spreading fear in Their wake. As sons of Aphrodite the twins also represented the fear of loss. In classical art the two were usually represented as youths. Phobos was sometimes depicted with a lion or lion-like head.

Iapetos
Iapetos (Ιαπετος) is one of the Titan Gods, sons of Ouranos and Gaia. He is one of four brothers who hold heaven and earth apart. Iapetos Himself was no doubt the pillar of the west, a position which was later and more obviously held by His son Atlas. He may have been regarded as the Titan God of the mortal life-span and His sons Prometheus and Epimetheus were represented as the creators of mankind and other mortal creatures.

Harmonia
Harmonia (Ἁρμονια) is the Goddess of harmony and concord. As a daughter of Aphrodite, she presides over marital harmony, soothing strife and discord; as a daughter of Ares, she represented harmonious action in war. Late Hellenic and Roman writers ascribe cosmic harmony to Her. Her counterpart is Eris.

• Thursday, September 24, 2015
  Alexiares ancient Hellenic culture Aniketos Aphrodite Ares astronomy Deimos Harmonia Hebe Hēraklēs Iapetos Introduction series Khionê Mythology 101 Nereus Phobos