| Greek deities series |
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| Primordial deities |
Theprimordial deities ofGreek mythology are the first generation ofgods andgoddesses. These deities represented the fundamental forces and physical foundations of the world and were generally not actively worshipped, as they, for the most part, were not given human characteristics; they were insteadpersonifications of places orabstractconcepts.
Hesiod, in hisTheogony, considers the first beings (afterChaos) to beErebus,Gaia,Tartarus,Eros andNyx. Gaia andUranus, whose severed genitals created the goddess Aphrodite from sea foam,[1] in turn gave birth to theTitans, and theCyclopes. The TitansCronus andRhea then gave birth to the generation of theOlympians:Zeus,Poseidon,Hades,Hestia,Hera andDemeter. Theyoverthrew the Titans, with thereign of Zeus marking the end of the period of warfare and usurpation among the gods.
Hesiod'sTheogony, (c. 700 BC) which could be considered the "standard" creation myth of Greek mythology,[2] tells the story of the genesis of the gods. After invoking theMuses (II.1–116), Hesiod says the world began with the spontaneous generation of four beings: first aroseChaos (Chasm); then cameGaia (the Earth), "the ever-sure foundation of all"; "dim"Tartarus (the Underworld), in the depths of the Earth; andEros (Love) "fairest among the deathless gods".[3] (Although in other myths, Eros was the name ofAphrodite's andAres's son.)
From Chaos cameErebus (Darkness) andNyx (Night). And Nyx "from union in love" with Erebus producedAether (Light) andHemera (Day).[4] From Gaia cameUranus (Sky), theOurea (Mountains), andPontus (Sea).[5]
InHesiod's creation myth,Chaos is the first being to ever exist. Chaos is both seen as a deity and a thing, with some sources seeing chaos as an endless void of nothingness from which the universe sprang.[6] In some accounts Chaos existed first alongside Eros and Nyx,[6] while in othersChaos is the first and only thing in the universe. In some stories, Chaos is seen as existing beneathTartarus.[6] Chaos is the parent toNight andDarkness.[7]
Gaia was the second being to be formed, right after Chaos, inHesiod's theogony, and parthenogenetically gave birth toUranus (who would later become her husband and her equal), theSea, and to the highMountains.[8]
Gaia is amother earth figure and is the mother of the titans, while also being the seat on which they exist.[6] Gaia is the Greek Equivalent to the Roman goddess,Tellus / Terra. The story of Uranus' castration at the hands ofCronus due to Gaia's involvement is seen as the explanation for why the Sky and Earth are separated.[9] In Hesiod's story, Earth seeks revenge against Sky for hiding her children theCyclopes deep within Tartarus. Gaia then goes to her other children and asks for their help to get revenge against their cruel father; of her children, only Cronus, the youngest and "most dreadful" of them all, agrees to do this. Gaia plans an ambush against Uranus where she hides Cronus and gives him thesickle to castrate Uranus. In the spots where his blood hit the earth, monsters and creatures grew including theErinyes, theGiants, and theMelian nymphs.[10]Cronus goes on to have six children with his sister,Rhea; who become theOlympians. Cronus is later overthrown by his son,Zeus, much in the same way he overthrew his father. Gaia is the mother to the twelveTitans:Oceanus,Coeus,Crius,Hyperion,Iapetus,Theia,Rhea,Themis,Mnemosyne,Phoebe,Tethys, andCronus.[7]
Later in the myth, after his succession, Uranus curses Cronus so that his own son (Zeus) will overthrow him, just as Cronus did to Uranus. To try to prevent this, Cronus swallows all of his children as soon as they are born. Rhea seeks out help in hiding her youngest son, Zeus, Gaia hears her distress and gives her a perfectly infant shaped rock that weighs and looks the same as a baby to give to Cronus. Zeus later goes on to defeat his father and become the leader of theOlympians.
After Zeus's succession to the throne, Gaia bears another son withTartarus,Typhon, a monster who would be the last to challenge Zeus's throne.[10]
Uranus and Gaia have three sets of children: theTitans, theCyclopes, and theHecatoncheires.
Tartarus is described byHesiod as both a primordial deity[11] and also a great abyss where theTitans are imprisoned. Tartarus is seen as a prison, but is also whereDay,Night,Sleep, andDeath dwell, and also imagined as a great gorge that is a distinct part of the underworld. Hesiod tells that it took nine days for the Titans to fall to the bottom of Tartarus, describing how deep the abyss is.[12] In some versions Tartarus is described as a "misty darkness"[9] where Death, Styx, and Erebus reside.
Eros is the god of love in Greek mythology, and in some versions is one of the primordial beings that first came to be parentlessly. In Hesiod's version, Eros was the "fairest among the immortal gods ... who conquers the mind and sensible thoughts of all gods and men."[7]
In some variations of Hesiod's Theogony,Nyx (Night) is told as having black wings; and in one tale she laid an egg inErebus from whichEros sprang.[13] One version of Hesiod's tale tells that Night shares her house with Day in Tartarus, but that the two are never home at the same time.[12] However, in some versions Nyx's home is whereChaos andTartarus meet, suggesting to the idea that Chaos resides beneath Tartarus.[9]
Many of Nyx's children were also personifications of abstract concepts. A list of them, which varies by source:
| Greek Name | Roman Equivalent | Description | Hesiod[14] | Cicero[15] | Hyginus[16] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aether | Aether | Light | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Apate | Fraus | Deceit | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Deimos | Metus | Fear | ✓ | ||
| Dolos? | Dolus | Guile | ✓ | ||
| Eleos | Misericordia | Compassion | ✓ | ||
| Epiphron | Epiphron | Prudence | ✓ | ||
| Eris | Discordia | Discord | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Eros | Cupid | Love | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Euphrosyne | Euphrosyne | Good Cheer | ✓ | ||
| Geras | Senectus | Old Age | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hemera | Dies | Day | ✓ | ✓ | |
| TheHesperides | Hesperides | Nymphs of the evening | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hybris | Petulantia | Wantonness | ✓ | ||
| Hypnos | Somnus | Sleep | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Ker | Letum | Destiny | ✓ | ✓ | |
| TheKeres | Tenebrae | Violent Death | ✓ | ✓ | |
| TheMoirai | Parcae | Fates | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Momus | Querella | Blame | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Moros | Fatum | Doom | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Nemesis | Invidentia | Retribution | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Oizys | Miseria | Pain | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Oneiroi | Somnia | Dreams | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Philotes | Amicitia/Gratia | Love | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ponos | Labor | Hardship | ✓ | ||
| Sophrosyne | Continentia | Moderation | ✓ | ||
| Styx | Styx | Hatred | ✓ | ||
| Thanatos | Mors | Death | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Hyginus also includes Epaphus and Porphyrion among Nyx's children. Some accounts also includeHecate (Crossroads and Magic) among Nyx's children.[17][18]
Aether, Hemera, and Eros are Nyx's only children who are among the primordial gods. Hesiod says Nyx and Erebus together had Aether and Hemera, but Nyx had the other children on her own. Cicero and Hyginus say Nyx had all her children with Erebus.
InVirgil'sAeneid, Nox is said to be the mother of theFuries byHades.[19]
Some authors made Nyx the mother ofEos, thedawn goddess, who was often conflated with Nyx's daughter Hemera.[20] When Eos' sonMemnon was killed during theTrojan War, Eos madeHelios (thesun god) downcast, and asked Nyx to come out earlier so that she would collect her son's dead body undetected by the Greek and the Trojan armies.[21]
Nyx's daughter Eris went on to have many children of her own who were also personifications of abstract concepts:[22]
| Greek Name | Roman Equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Algos | Dolor | Pains |
| Amphillogiai | Altercatio | Disputes |
| Androktasiai | Androktasiai | Manslaughters |
| Atë | Atë | Ruin |
| Dysnomia | Dysnomia | Anarchy |
| Horkos | Jusjurandum | Oath |
| Hysminai | Pugnae | Battles |
| Lethe | Oblivio | Forgetfulness |
| Limos | Fames | Starvation |
| Logoi | Logoi | Stories |
| Machai | Machai | Wars |
| Neikea | Altercatio | Quarrels |
| Phonoi | Phonoi | Murders |
| Ponos | Labor | Hardship |
| Pseudea | Pseudea | Lies |
Theancient Greeks entertained different versions of the origin ofprimordial deities. Some of these stories were possibly inherited from the pre-Greek Aegean cultures.[23]
TheIliad, anepic poem attributed toHomer about theTrojan War (an oral tradition ofc. 700–600 BC), states thatOceanus (and possiblyTethys, too) is the parent of all the deities.[24]
Philosophers ofClassical Greece also constructed their ownmetaphysical cosmogonies, with their own primordial deities:
Scholars dispute the meaning of the primordial deities in the poems of Homer and Hesiod.[34] Since the primordials give birth to the Titans, and the Titans give birth to the Olympians, one way of interpreting the primordial gods is as the deepest and most fundamental nature of the cosmos.
For example,Jenny Strauss Clay argues that Homer's poetic vision centers on the reign of Zeus, but that Hesiod's vision of the primordials put Zeus and the Olympians in context.[23] Likewise, Vernant argues that the Olympic pantheon is a "system of classification, a particular way of ordering and conceptualizing the universe by distinguishing within it various types of powers and forces."[35] But even before the Olympic pantheon were the Titans and primordial gods. Homer alludes to a more tumultuous past before Zeus was the undisputed King and Father.[36]
Mitchell Miller argues that the first four primordial deities arise in a highly significant relationship. He argues that Chaos representsdifferentiation, since Chaos differentiates (separates, divides) Tartarus and Earth.[37] Even though Chaos is "first of all" for Hesiod, Miller argues that Tartarus represents the primacy of theundifferentiated, or theunlimited. Since undifferentiation is unthinkable, Chaos is the "first of all" in that he is the firstthinkable being. In this way, Chaos (the principle of division) is the natural opposite of Eros (the principle of unification). Earth (light, day, waking, life) is the natural opposite of Tartarus (darkness, night, sleep, death). These four are the parents of all the other Titans.
Laërtius, Diogenes,"The Seven Sages: Pherecydes" ,Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, vol. 1:1, translated byHicks, Robert Drew (Two volume ed.), Loeb Classical Library, § 119...There are, according to Empedocles, four ultimate elements, four primal divinities, of which are made all structures in the world—fire, air, water, earth.
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