Hades God Of The Underworld  

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Hades God Of The Underworld Cover
HADES, in Greek mythology, is the god of the dead. He was the son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea and the brother of Zeus and Poseidon. When the three brothers divided up the universe after they had deposed their father, Cronus, Hades was awarded the underworld. There, with his queen, Persephone, whom he had abducted from the world above, he ruled the kingdom of the dead. Although he was a grim and pitiless god, unappeased by either prayer or sacrifice, he was not evil. In fact, he was known as lord of riches, because both crops and precious metals were believed to come from his kingdom below ground.

The underworld itself was often called Hades. It was divided into two regions: Erebus, where the dead pass as soon as they die, and Tartarus, the deeper region, where the Titans had been imprisoned. It was a dim and unhappy place, inhabited by vague forms and shadows and guarded by Cerberus, the three-headed, dragon-tailed dog. Sinister rivers separated the underworld from the world above, and the aged boatman Charon ferried the souls of the dead across these waters.

Somewhere in the darkness of the underworld Hades' palace was located. It was represented as a many-gated, dark and gloomy place, thronged with guests, and set in the midst of shadowy fields and an apparition-haunted landscape. In later legends the underworld is described as the place where the good are rewarded and the wicked punished.

Lesser Known Facts About Hades God Of The Underworld:

Hades, also called Aidoneus, was the sun of Rhea and Cronus (the lord of the Titans who ate everyone, including his own family, eventually). Fortunately, Hades was saved by his brother Zeus, who later gave Hades the underworld as his share of an inheritance. He was married to Persephone, who was condemned by Zeus to spend one third of each year in the underworld with Hades, for eating the fatal Palmagranate seeds (which was the symbol of marriage). Hades has also been portrayed as Pluto. Homer said that to pray to him, one struck the ground with bare hands or rods. Black ewes or rams were sometimes sacrificed to him. Plants sacred to the God of the Underworld will always be Cypress and the Narcissus, and of course, the mint plant, which reminds him of a special Nymph.

written by Nella

Further reading (free e-books):

Benjamin Rowe - The Book Of The Seniors
Aleister Crowley - The Soul Of The Desert
Albert Pike - The Book Of The Words

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