Theogony

  • The Theogony is a poem by Hesiod (c.700 BCE) written in the epic dialect of Ancient Greek, and is considered to be the Source of Greek Mythology.
  • The Theogony is a Cosmogony describing the origin of the Universe and the origin and genealogy of the Greek Gods.

The First Gods

  • The creation of the Earth began with the creation of four Gods:
    • Chaos (Chasm)
    • Gaia (Earth)
    • Tartarus (Darkness)
    • Eros (Desire)

The Second Generation

  • Chaos (Chasm) produced:
    • Erebus (Darkness)
    • Nyx (Night) who together produced:
      • Eather (Brightness)
      • Hemera (Day)
  • Gaia (Earth) produced:
    • Uranus (Sky)
    • Ourea (Mountains)
    • Pontus (Sea)

The Children of Gaia and Uranus

  • The Twelve Titans
  • The Cyclopes: Brontes, Sterpes, and Arges.
  • The Hecatoncheires (The hundred handed ones): Cotus, Briareos, and Gyges.

The Children of Gaia and Uranus’ Blood, and Uranus’ Genitals

  • Cronus castrated Uranus who’s blood landed on the earth producing:
    • Erinyes (the furies), the Giants and the Meliai.
  • Cronus threw Uranus’ genitals into the sea which transformed into:
    • Aphrodite.

Descendants of Nyx

  • Children of Nyx alone:
    • Moros (Doom), Ker (Destiny), Thanatos (Death), Hypnos (sleep), the Oneiroi (Dreams) Momus (Blame), Oizys (Pain), Hesperides (Daughters of Night), the Moirei (Fates), the Keres (Destinies), Nemesis (Retribution), Apate (Deceit), Philotes (Love), Geras (Old Age), and Eris (Discord).
  • Children of Eris alone:
    • Ponos (Hardship), Lethe (Forgetfulness), Limos (Starvation), the Algea (Pains), the Hysminai (Battles), the Makhai (Wars), the Phonoi (Murders), the Androktasiai (Manslaughters), the Neikea (Quarrels), the Pseudea (Lies), the Logoi (Stories), the Amphillogiai (Disputes), Dysnomia (Anarchy), Ate (Ruin) and Horkos (Oath).

Descendants of Gaia and Pontus

  • After Uranus had been castrated Gaia united with Pontus (Sea) to produce Sea Gods, Sea Nymphs and Sea Monsters: they had 4 children:
    1. Nereus (the Old Man of the Sea), he married the Oceanid Doris (one of the 3,000 sea nymph daughters of the Titans, Oceanus and Tethys) and produced:
      • the Nereids (50 sea nymphs) including Amphitrite, Thetis, Psamathe.
    2. Thaumas married Ekectra, another Oceanid, and they produced:
      • Iris (Rainbow) and two Harpies, Aello and Ocypete.
    3. Phorcys
    4. Ceto
      • Phorcys and Ceto married each other to produce the two Graiae (grey witches):
        • Pemphredo and Enyo.
      • They also produced three Gorgons:
        • Sthenno, Euryale and Medusa.
        • Medusa mated with Poseidon:
          • When Perseus cut off Medusa’s head, Pegasus (a winged horse) and Crysaor (a warrior) were born.
            • Crysaor married another Oceanid, Callirhoe to produce the three headed monster:
              • Geryon.
              • It’s uncertain, but they may also have produced the half-nymph, half-snake Echidna.
      • Ceto and Phorcys last offspring was a serpent or dragon who guarded the Golden Apples, unnamed by Hesiod, but called Ladon by Appollodorus.

Descendants of Echidna and Typhon

  • Gaia and Tartarus also mated to produce Typhon: Typhon married Echidna and produced three monsters:
    • Orthus, (two headed dog guarding Geryon’s cattle)
    • Cerberus (three headed dog with a snake as a tail)
    • The Hydra (multi-headed monster)
  • All three were either killed or captured by Hercules as part of the Twelve Labours of Hercules.

Descendants of the Titans

  • The Titans married each other:
  • Oceanus and Tethys produced:
    • 3,000 river Gods including Nilus (the Nile), Alphaeus and Scamander.
    • 3,000 sea nymphs called the Oceanids, including Callirhoe, Clymene, Doris, Electra, Eurynome, Idyia, Metis, Perseis and Styx.
  • Thela and Hyperion produced:
    • Helios (Sun), Selene (Moon) and Eos (Dawn).
  • Crios and Eurybia produced:
    • Astraios, Pallas and Perses.
  • Eos and Astraios produced:
    • the winds: Zephyrus, Boreas and Notos. Eosphoros (the Dawn bringer meaning the morning star Venus), and the Stars.
  • Pallas and Styx produced:
    • Zelus (Envy), Nike (Victory), Cratos (Power) and Bia (Force).
  • Coeus and Phoebe produced:
    • Leto and Asteria. Asteria married Perses and produced Hecate.
  • Cronus and Rhea produced:
  • Iapetos married Clymene (Oceanid) and produced:
    • Atlas, Menoetius, Prometheus and Epimetheus.

Children of Zeus and his Seven Wives

  1. Zeus and Metis (Oceanid) produced:
    • Athena. Then Zeus swallowed Metis to prevent his being overthrown.
  2. Zeus and Themis (Titan) produced:
    • The three Horae (Seasons): Eunomia (Order), Dike (Justice) and Eirene (Peace).
    • The three Morai (Fates): Clotho (Spinner), Lachesis (Allotter) and Atropos (Unbending).
  3. Zeus and Eurynome (Oceanid) produced:
    • The three Charites (Graces): Aglaea (Splendour) who married Hephaestus, Euphrosyne (Joy) and Thalia (Good Cheer).
  4. Zeus and Demeter (Olympian and his sister) produced:
    • Persephone.
  5. Zeus and Mnemosyne (Titan and his aunt) produced the nine Muses:
    • Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melomene, Polymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia and Urania.
  6. Zeus and Leto (Titan and his aunt) produced:
  7. Zeus and Hera (Olympian and his sister) produced:
    • Hebe, Ares and Eileithyia.
  8. Zeus then gave birth to Athena by himself, from his head.
  9. Hera was so annoyed she produced Haephestus (God of fire) all by herself.

Other descendants of divine fathers

  • Poseidon and Amphitrite (Nereid) produced:
    • Triton.
  • Ares and Aphrodite produced:
    • Phobos (Fear), Deimos (Terror) and Harmonia (Harmony).
  • Zeus and Maia (daughter of Atlas) produced:
    • Hermes.
  • Zeus and Alcmene (mortal) produced:
  • Zeus and Semele (mortal) produced:
    • Dionysus, who married Ariadne.
  • Helios and Perseis (Oceanid) produced:
    • Circe and Aeetes, who married Idyia (Oceanid) and produced Medea.

Children of divine mothers with mortal fathers

  • Demeter and Iasion (mortal) produced Plutus.
  • Harmonia and Cadmus (mortal) produced Ino, Agave, Autonoe and Polydorus.
  • Eos (Dawn) and Tithonus produced Memnon and Emathion.
  • Eos (Dawn) and Cephalus produced Phaeton.
  • Medea and Jason (of the Argonauts – mortal) produced Medius.
  • Psamathe (Nereid) and Aeacus produced Phocus.
  • Thetis (Nereid) and Peleus produced:
  • Aphrodite and Anchises (mortal) produced Aeneas.
  • Circe (daughter of Helios) and Odysseus produced Agrius and Latinus.
  • Calypso (daughter of Atlas) and Odysseus produced Nausithoos and Nausinous.

Prometheus

  • Prometheus was the son of Iapetus (Titan) and Clymene (Oceanid).
  • Prometheus and other men, met with Zeus and the other Gods at Mekone, to decide how to divide the Sacrifice between them. Prometheus decided to try and trick Zeus.
  • Prometheus slaughtered an ox and created two piles: He hid the valuable fat and meat in the ox’s stomach. Then he took the less valuable bones and disguised them under a layer of fat.
  • Prometheus then asked Zeus which pile he would prefer. Zeus pretended to be fooled and chose the bones disguised by fat.
  • It was then decided men would offer the bones as a sacrifice to the Gods, and keep the meat and fat for themselves.
  • Zeus decided to punish Prometheus by denying Man the use of fire. But, Prometheus stole the fire from Mount Olympus, hidden in a fennel stalk, and gave it to Mankind.
  • Zeus decided to punish Mankind by commanding Haphaestus and Athena to create Pandora, the first woman, to make the lives of men insufferable. Pandora is given many skills by the other Gods, but in particular a jar (Pandora's Box), which when men opened released insufferable pain, disease and sickness bringing death to men. Up to then Man had been Immortal.
  • Zeus also punished Prometheus by chaining him to a cliff. Every day, an eagle would eat his liver, which would grow again, only to be eaten the next day. Eventually, he was saved by Heracles, the son of Zeus.

 

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