husbandry, of shepherds, and seers, who, as father of Romulus, was the
progenitor of the Roman people. He was the son of Jupiter and Juno. He
loved, and was beloved by Venus. The wolf and the woodpecker were sacred
to Mars.
=Marsyas= (_mar’si-as_).--A satyr who, having found the flute which
Minerva had thrown away because it distorted her features whilst playing
it, rashly challenged Apollo to a musical contest. Apollo played upon
the cithara and Marsyas upon the flute, and the Muses were the umpires.
They decided in favor of Apollo, who then bound Marsyas to a tree and
flayed him alive in accordance with the conditions of the
contest--namely, that the victor should do what he pleased with the
vanquished.
=Medea= (_mē-dē´a_).--Daughter of Æëtes, king of Colchis; celebrated for
her skill in magic. She assisted Jason in obtaining the Golden Fleece
(see “Argonautæ”), and accompanied him to Greece. She effectually
stopped her father’s pursuit by killing her brother Absyrtus (_q.v._),
and strewing his body cut in pieces on the seashore. See “Jason.”
=Medusa= (_me-dū´sa_).--See “Gorgons.”
=Megæra= (_me-gē´ra_).--See “Furiæ.”
=Megin-giord.=--A magic belt worn by the god Thor. He once proposed to
show his strength by lifting great weights, but when challenged to pick
up the giant’s cat, he tugged and strained, only to succeed in raising
one paw from the floor, although he had taken the precaution to enhance
his strength as much as possible by tightening his belt Megin-giord.
=Meleager= (_mel-e-ā´ger_).--Son of Œneus, king of Calydon; was one of
the Argonauts, and also the leader of the heroes who took part in the
celebrated Calydonian boar hunt. See “Calydon.”
=Melicerta= (_mel-i-ser’ta_), or =Melicertes=.--Son of Ino and Athamas.
When Athamas was seized with madness he pursued Ino and Melicertes, who
in order to escape had to throw themselves into the sea, whereupon both
were changed into marine deities. Ino becoming Leucothea, and Melicertes
a sea-god, called by the Greeks Palaemon, and by the Romans Portunus.
=Melos= (_mē´los_).--An island in the Ægean Sea, and the most
southwesterly of the Cyclades. It is now called Milo, and here was found
the celebrated statue known as the “Venus of Milo.” See “Venus.”
=Melpomene= (_mel-pom’en-ā_).--The muse of tragedy. See “Musæ.”
=Memnon= (_mem’nōn_).--The handsome son of Tithonus and Aurora; was king
of the Ethiopians. He went to the aid of Priam, king of Troy, towards
the end of the Trojan war, but was slain by Achilles. His colossal
marble statue at Thebes (which, however, in reality represented the
Egyptian king Amenophis) when struck by the first rays of the rising sun
was said to emit a sound resembling that of a plucked string.
=Menelaus= (_men-e-lā´us_).--Son of Atreus, the husband of the beautiful
Helen and father of Hermione; king of Lacedæmon (or Sparta), younger
brother of Agamemnon. Paris (_q.v._), having been promised the most
beautiful woman in the world for his wife, sailed to Greece under the
protection of Venus, and was hospitably received in the palace of
Menelaus at Sparta. Here he succeeded in carrying off Helen, and thus
arose the Trojan war, the object of which was to recover Helen. In the
Trojan war Menelaus met Paris in single combat, and would have killed
him had he not been carried off in a cloud by Venus. After the death of
Paris, Helen married his brother Deiphobus, who was barbarously put to
death by Menelaus at the taking of Troy. Helen secretly introduced
Menelaus into the chamber of Deiphobus, and thus became reconciled to
him. Menelaus and Helen then sailed away from Troy, and after eight
years’ wandering about the shores of the Mediterranean finally reached
Sparta, where they passed the rest of their lives in peace and wealth.
=Mentor= (_men’tor_).--The faithful friend of Ulysses.
=Mephistopheles.=--One of the seven chief devils in the old demonology,
the second of the fallen archangels, and the most powerful of the
infernal legionaries after Satan. He figures in the old legend of _Dr.
Faustus_ as the familiar spirit of that magician. To modern readers he
is chiefly known as the cold, scoffing, relentless fiend of Goethe’s
_Faust_, and the attendant demon in Marlowe’s _Faustus_.
=Mercurius= (_mer-kū´ri-us_), or =Mercury= (_mer´kū-ri_), called Hermes
(_her´mēz_) by the Greeks.--Son of Jupiter and Maia; the messenger of
the gods, and the god of commerce and gain. As the herald of the gods,
he was the god of eloquence. He was the god of prudence and cunning,
also of fraud and theft. Being the messenger of the gods, he was
likewise looked upon as the god of roads who protected travelers; and
was the god of music and of chemistry, hence the words _hermetic_,
_hermetically_ (sealed). He was employed by the gods to conduct departed
souls to the lower world. He invented the lyre, which he first made by
stretching strings across the shell of a tortoise. The palm tree, the
tortoise, the number 4, and several kinds of fish were sacred to him. He
is generally represented with a hat having two wings; a pair of winged
sandals, which carried him with the speed of wind across land and sea;
and, as messenger of the gods, he carries in his hand a wand or
_caduceus_ (_ka-dū´se-us_), having two serpents intertwined at one end
of it.
=Meriones= (_mē´ri-o-nēz_).--The charioteer of Idomeneus, and one of the
bravest heroes in the Trojan war.
=Mermaids.=--Wave maidens of northern mythology and classed with nymphs
in Grecian and Roman. They were generally represented as young and
beautiful virgins, partially covered with a veil or thin cloth, bearing
in their hands vases of water, or shells, leaves, or grass, or having
something as a symbol of their appropriate offices. They were attendants
of the gods.
=Meru.=--In Hindu mythology a sacred mountain, eighty thousand leagues
high, situated in the center of the world. It is the abode of Indra, and
abounds with every charm that can be imagined. The Olympus of the
Indians.
=Merope= (_mer´o-pē_).--Daughter of Atlas, one of the Pleiades.
=Metis= (_mē´tis_)--_lit._ wisdom, prudence (Gr.).--Daughter of Oceanus
and Tethys, and the first wife of Jupiter. Fearing that she might give
birth to a child who should become more powerful than himself, Jupiter
swallowed her. Afterwards Minerva sprang from his head.
=Midgard.=--In Scandinavian mythology the name given to the earth. Out
of the giant’s flesh they fashioned Midgard (middle garden), as the
earth was called, which was placed in the exact center of the vast
space, and hedged all around with Ymir’s eyebrows, which formed its
bulwarks or ramparts. The solid portion of Midgard was surrounded by the
giant’s blood or sweat, which now formed the ocean, while his bones made
the hills, his flat teeth the cliffs, and his curly hair the trees and
all vegetation.
=Midgard Sormen= (earth’s monster).--The great serpent that lay in the
abyss at the root of the celestial ash. Child of Loki.
=Milo.=--The modern name for the island of Melos (_q.v._).
=Mimir.=--In Scandinavian mythology the god of wisdom. Also god of the
ocean, which is called “Mimir’s well,” in which wit and wisdom lay
hidden, and of which he drank every morning from the horn Gjallar.
=Minerva= (_min-er´va_); called Athena (_a-thē´na_), Pallas Athene
(_pal´las_), or simply Pallas, by the Greeks.--The goddess of wisdom, of
the arts and sciences, of poetry and of spinning and weaving, and the
protectress of agriculture. She was also a goddess of war. She was the
daughter of Jupiter and Metis (_q.v._). She was the protective deity of
Athens, which was so named in honor of her (Athena): see “Athenæ.” The
owl, serpent, cock and olive tree were sacred to her.
=Minos= (_mī´nos_).--(i) Son of Jupiter and Europa, brother of
Rhadamanthus, king and lawgiver in Crete, and after death one of the
three judges of the shades in the infernal regions (the other two being
Rhadamanthus and Æacus). (ii) Grandson of the former, likewise king of
Crete, the husband of Pasiphaë and the father of Ariadne and other
children. His son Androgeos (_q.v._) having been shamefully treated by
the Athenians, he made war against the latter and compelled them to send
every year to Crete, as tribute, seven young men and seven maidens to be
devoured by the Minotaur. This Minotaur was a terrible monster, with the
head of a bull and the body of a man, the offspring of Pasiphaë and a
bull. It was kept in a labyrinth constructed by Dædalus, but was slain
by Theseus (_q.v._), with the help of Ariadne, the daughter of Minos.
=Minotaur= (_mī´no-tawr_)--_i.e._ the bull of Minos (Lat.).--See
“Minos.”
=Minyæ= (_min´i-ē_).--The Minyans, an ancient Greek race dwelling in
Thessaly. The Argonauts, being mainly Minyans, are called Minyæ.
=Mithras= (_mith´ras_).--The sun-god of the Persians.
=Mjolnir.=--From mythology of northern lands. The name of Thor’s
celebrated hammer--a type of the thunderbolt--which, however far it
might be cast, was never lost, as it always returned to his hand; and
which, whenever he wished, became so small that he could put it in his
pocket.
=Mnemosyne= (_nē-mos´i-nē_)--_i. e._ memory (Gr.).--The mother of the
Muses.
=Moakkibat.=--A class of angels, according to the Mohammedan mythology.
Two angels of this class attend every child of Adam from the cradle to
the grave. At sunset they fly up with the record of the deeds done since
sunrise. Every good deed is entered ten times by the recording angel on
the credit or right side of his ledger, but when an evil deed is
reported the angel waits seven hours, “if happily in that time the
evil-doer may repent.”
=Moloch.=--A god of the Phœnicians to whom human victims, principally
children, were sacrificed. Moloch is figurative of the influence which
impels us to sacrifice that which we ought to cherish most dearly.
=Momus= (_mō´mus_).--The god of mockery and censure.
=Mona= (_mon´a_).--The isle of Anglesey; sometimes supposed to be the
isle of Man. It was one of the chief seats of the Druids.
=Moneta= (_mon-ē´ta_).--A Roman surname of Juno as the protectress of
money.
=Mopsus= (_mop´sus_).--The name of two soothsayers, one being the
prophet of the Argonauts, and the other the son of Apollo and Manto. He
contended in prophecy with Calchas (_q.v._), whose superior he proved
himself to be.
=Morpheus= (_mor´fe-us_).--The son of sleep and the god of dreams. The
name signifies (Gr.) the fashioner, moulder, so called from the shapes
he calls up before the sleeper.
=Mowis.=--The bridegroom of Snow, who (according to American Indian
tradition) wooed and won a beautiful bride; but when morning dawned,
Mowis left the wigwam, and melted into the sunshine. The bride hunted
for him night and day in the forests, but never saw him more.
=Musæ= (_mū´zē_).--The Muses, daughters of Jupiter and Mnemosyne, were
nine in number, and presided over the different kinds of poetry, the
arts and sciences. Their names and special attributes were as follows:
(i) Calliope (_kal-lī´o-pē_), the muse of epic poetry; (ii) Clio
(_klī´ō_), of history; (iii) Erato (_er´a-tō_), of erotic poetry and
mimic imitation; (iv) Euterpe (_ū-ter´pē_), of lyric poetry; (v)
Melpomene (_mel-pom´en-ē_), of tragedy; (vi) Polyhymnia
(_pol-i-him´ni-a_), of the sublime hymn; (vii) Terpsichore
(_terp-sik´o-rē_), of choral song and dancing; (viii) Thalia
(_tha-li´a_), of comedy; and (ix) Urania (_ū-rā´ni-a_), of astronomy.
The favorite haunt of the Muses was Mount Helicon in Bœotia, where were
the sacred fountains of Aganippe and Hippocrene. Mount Parnassus was
also sacred to them.
=Myrmidones= (_mer-mid´on-ēz_), or =Myrmidons= (_mer´mid-ons_).--A
people of Thessaly, under the rule of Achilles, whom they accompanied to
Troy.
=Myrtilus= (_mer´til-us_).--Son of Mercury, and charioteer of Œnomaus.
See “Pelops.”
=Mysterious Three, The.=--In Scandinavian mythology were Har “the
Mighty,” the “Like-Mighty,” and the “Third Person,” who sat on three
thrones above the rainbow. Then came the Æsir, of which Odin was chief,
who lived in Asgard (between the rainbow and earth); next came the
Vanir, or gods of the ocean, air, and clouds, of which deities Niörd was
chief.
=N=
=Naiades= (_nā´i-a-dēz_), or =Naiads= (_nā´yadz_).--The nymphs of
freshwater. See “Nymphæ.”
=Naraka.=--The hell of the Hindus. It has twenty-eight divisions, in
some of which the victims are mangled by ravens and owls; in others they
are doomed to swallow cakes boiling hot, or walk over burning sands.
=Narcissus= (_nar-sis´us_).--A beautiful youth, inaccessible to the
feeling of love. The nymph Echo fell in love with him, but, her love not
being returned, she pined away in grief (see “Echo”). In order to punish
him, Nemesis made him see his own reflected image in a fountain,
whereupon he became so enamored of it that he gradually pined away until
changed into the flower that bears his name.
=Nausicaa= (_naw-sik´a-a_).--Daughter of Alcinous, who conducted
Ulysses, when shipwrecked on the coast of Scheria (an island), to her
father’s court.
=Neleus= (_nē´lūs_).--Son of Neptune and the nymph Tyro; king of Pylos,
in Peloponnesus, and father of Nestor (_q.v._).
=Nemea= (_ne-mē´a_).--A city in Argolis, near which Hercules slew the
Nemean lion.
=Nemesis= (_nem´e-sis_)--_i. e._ vengeance (Gr.).--The goddess of
retribution, who brings down all immoderate good fortune. She was also
regarded as the goddess who punished crimes. She was the daughter of
Night, and was represented as a crowned virgin, of great beauty and
grace, with a whip in one hand and a pair of scales in the other.
=Neoptolemus= (_ne-op-tol´em-us_).--Son of Achilles and Deidamia. He was
also called Pyrrhus (_pir´us_), on account of his reddish hair (Gr.);
his other name, Neoptolemus, which signifies _New-to-war_ (Gr.), having
been given to him because he _came late to Troy_. He displayed great
valor at Troy, and was one of the heroes concealed in the wooden horse
(see “Troy”). He slew Priam and his daughter Polyxena. At the
distribution of captives Andromache, the widow of Hector, fell to his
lot, and he took her to Epirus. He married Hermione, the beautiful
daughter of Menelaus and Helen, but was slain by Orestes, to whom she
had been previously promised.
=Neptunus= (_nep-tū´nus_), or =Neptune=; called Poseidon (_po-sī´don_)
by the Greeks.--The god of the sea and other waters, the brother of
Jupiter, and husband of Amphitrite. His palace was in the depth of the
sea, near Ægæ, in Eubœa, where he kept his horses with brazen hoofs and
golden manes, which drew his chariot over the waves of the sea. His
celebrated contest with Minerva for the possession of Athens is narrated
under “Athenæ.” In the Trojan war he sided with the Greeks. He not only
created the horse, but also taught men the art of managing horses by the
bit and bridle. The symbol of his power was a trident, or spear with
three prongs, with which he called forth or hushed storms, shook the
earth, etc. Besides the trident, his attributes are the dolphin and the
horse.
=Nereides= (_nē´re-i-dēz_ or _nē-rē´id-ēz_); the Nereids
(_nē´-re-ids_).--The fifty daughters of Nereus and Doris. They were the
marine nymphs of the Mediterranean (see “Nymphæ”). Thetis, the mother of
Achilles, was a Nereid.
=Nereus= (_nē´rūs_).--Son of Pontus and Gæa, and husband of Doris,
father of the fifty Nereids. He dwelt at the bottom of the sea, and was
regarded as the wise old man of the sea. Like other marine divinities,
he was supposed to have the power of prophesying the future, and of
appearing to mortals in various shapes. The Ægean Sea was his
empire--possibly the whole of the Mediterranean.
=Nessus= (_ness´us_).--A Centaur who was slain with a poisoned arrow by
Hercules (_q.v._).
=Nestor= (_nes´tor_).--Son of Neleus and king of Pylos. He was famous
among the heroes before Troy for his wisdom, justice and eloquence. In
early life he was a distinguished warrior, and took part in the fight
between the Centaurs and the Lapithæ, and was one of the Calydonian
hunters and one of the Argonauts. He is said to have lived through three
generations of men. He safely reached Pylos again after the fall of
Troy.
=Nicneven.=--A gigantic and malignant female spirit of the old popular
Scottish mythology. The hag is represented as riding at the head of
witches and fairies at Hallowe’en.
=Nidhogg.=--The dragon that gnaws at the root of Yggdrasil, the tree of
the universe in Scandinavian mythology.
=Niflheim.=--Mist-home of old Norse mythology. The region of endless
cold and everlasting night, ruled over by Hela. It consists of nine
worlds, to which are consigned those who die of disease or old age. This
region existed “from the beginning” in the north, and in the middle
thereof was the well Hvergelmir, from which flowed twelve rivers.
=Niobe= (_nī´o-bē_).--Daughter of Tantalus and wife of Amphion, king of
Thebes. Having seven sons and seven daughters, she imprudently boasted
of her superiority to Latona, who had but two children--Apollo and
Diana. The latter, indignant at her presumption, slew all her children
with their arrows. Niobe herself was changed into a stone.
=Niord.=--The Scandinavian sea-god. He was not one of the Æsir. Niord’s
son was Frey (the fairy of the clouds), and his daughter was Freyja. His
home was Noatun. Niord was not a sea-god like Neptune, but the spirit of
water and air. The Scandinavian Neptune was Ægir, whose wife was Skadi.
His temples were near the seashore and all aquatic plants belonged to
him.
=Nisus= (_nī´sus_).--A friend of Euryalus (_ū-rī´a-lus_).--The two
accompanied Æneas to Italy, and perished in a night attack on the
Rutulian camp.
=Nix.=--Little creatures not unlike the Scotch brownie and German
kobold. They wear a red cap, and are ever ready to lend a helping hand
to the industrious and thrifty.
=Nokomis.=--Daughter of the moon, American Indian myths. Sporting one
day with her maidens on a swing made of vine canes, a rival cut the
swing, and Nokomis fell to earth, where she gave birth to a daughter
named Wenonah.
=Nornir=, or =Norns=.--The three fates of Scandinavian mythology, past,
present, and future. They spin the events of human life, sitting under
the ash-tree Yggdrasil which they carefully tend. Their names are Urda
(the past), Verdandi (the present), and Skuld (the future). Besides
these three Norns, every human creature has a personal Norn or fate. The
home of the Norns is called in Scandinavian mythology Doomstead.
=Notus= (_nō´tus_) (Gr.); called Auster by the Romans.--The south or
southwest wind.
=Nox= (_noks_); called Nux (_nūks_) by the Greeks.--Night, daughter of
Chaos.
=Numitor= (_nū´mi-tor_).--A king of Alba, grandfather of Romulus and
Remus.
=Nymphæ= (_nim´fē_), or =Nymphs=.--Lesser female divinities supposed by
the Greeks to dwell in the sea, springs, rivers, grottoes, trees and
mountains. They had distinctive names, according to their habitat, as
follows:
(i) The sea-nymphs, which were divided into two classes--the Oceanides
(_ō-se-an´id-ēz_), or Nymphs of the Ocean, who were daughters of Oceanus
(_ō-sē´an-us_); and the Nereides (_nē´re-id-ēz_ or _nē-rē´id-ēz_), or
Nereids (_nē´re-ids_), the nymphs of the Mediterranean, who were the
daughters of Nereus.
(ii) The nymphs of fresh-water (rivers, lakes, brooks or springs);
called Naiades (_nā´i-a-dēz_), or Naiads (_nā´yads_).
(iii) Oreades (_o-rē´ad-ēz_), the nymphs of mountains and grottoes.
(iv) Napææ (_na-pē´ē_), the nymphs of glens.
(v) Dryades (_drī´ad-ēz_), or Dryads, and Hamadryades
(_ham-a-dri´ad-ēz_), the nymphs of trees; these nymphs died with the
trees that had been their abode, and with which they had come into
existence.
=Nysa= (_nī´sa_).--A city in India, where Bacchus was brought up.
=O=
=Oceanus= (_ō-sē´an-us_).--Son of Heaven and Earth, the god of the water
that was supposed to surround the whole earth, the husband of Tethys,
and the father of all the river-gods and water-nymphs of the whole
earth. The ancient Greeks imagined the earth to be flat and circular,
and to be surrounded by a river, which flowed perpetually around it, and
which they called Oceanus. It was the great Outward Sea, opposed to the
Inward or Mediterranean.
=Odhærir.=--In Scandinavian mythology the mead or nectar made of
Kvasir´s blood, kept in three jars. The second of these jars is called
“Sohn,” and the third “Bohn.” Probably the nectar is the “spirit of
poetry.”
=Odin.=--The king of gods and men, and the reputed progenitor of the
Scandinavian kings. He corresponds both to the Jupiter and the Mars of
classical mythology. As god of war, he holds his court in Valhalla,
surrounded by all warriors who have fallen in battle, and attended by
two wolves, to whom he gives his share of food; for he himself lives on
wine alone. On his shoulders he carries two ravens, Hugin (mind) and
Munin (memory), whom he dispatches every day to bring him news of all
that is doing throughout the world. He has three great treasures,
namely, Sleipnir, an eight-footed horse of marvelous swiftness; Gungnir,
a spear, which never fails to strike what it is aimed at; and Draupnir,
a magic ring, which every ninth night drops eight other rings of equal
value. The German tribes worshiped Odin under the name of “Woden.” The
fourth day of the week, Wednesday, was sacred to him.
=Odur.=--In Scandinavian mythology, husband of Freyja, whom he deserted.
He abandoned his wife on her loss of youth and beauty, and was punished.
=Odysseus= (_od-is´sūs_).--The Greek form of Ulysses, king of Ithaca,
whose return from Troy to Ithaca forms the subject of the Odyssey. See
“Ulysses.”
=Œneus= (_ē´nūs_).--King of Pleuron and Calydon, in Ætolia, husband of
Althæa, and father of Meleager, Deianira, and other children. During his
reign the boar that laid waste the lands of Calydon gave rise to the
celebrated Calydonian boar hunt.
=Œnone= (_ē-nō´nē_).--Wife of Paris of Troy, before he carried off
Helen.
=Oileus= (_o-ī´lūs_).--King of the Locrians, father of the lesser Ajax,
and one of the Argonauts.
=Olympia= (_o-lim´pi-a_).--A plain in Elis, where the Olympian games
were held. In the plain was the sacred grove of Jupiter, which contained
the masterpiece of Greek art--the colossal statue of Jupiter by Phidias.
The Olympic games were held every four years, this interval being called
an Olympiad.
=Olympus= (_o-lim´pus_).--A mountain range on the boundary of Macedonia
and Thessaly, of great height, and consequently regarded as the abode of
the gods. Once the giants tried to reach heaven, and to do so piled
Mount Pelion on Mount Ossa (both being high mountains in the
neighborhood of Olympus); but Jupiter used his thunderbolts against
them, and, with the assistance of Hercules, destroyed them all, and
buried them under Mount Ætna.
=Omphale= (_om´fa-lē_).--A queen of Lydia, whom Hercules served as a
slave a short time. She put on his lion´s skin, and carried his club,
whilst he donned woman´s attire and spun wool.
=Ops.=--Wife of Saturn, the goddess of plenty and fertility, and
especially the patroness of husbandry.
=Oreades.=--See “Nymphæ.”
=Orestes= (_o-res´tēz_).--Son of Agamemnon and Clytæmnestra, who, on the
murder of Agamemnon, after his return from Troy, by Clytæmnestra and her
paramour Ægisthus, was saved from the same fate by his sister Electra.
He went to Strophius, king of Phocis, who was the husband of his aunt
Anaxibia. Here he formed a memorable friendship with Pylades
(_pī´la-dēz_), the king’s son. Later he avenged his father’s death by
slaying his mother and Ægisthus; but was, in consequence, seized with
madness and wandered from place to place. Apollo told him he could
recover from his madness only by bringing the statue of Diana from the
Tauric Chersonesus. Accordingly he set out, in company with his friend
Pylades; but on their arrival they would have been sacrificed by the
Tauri (_q.v._) to Diana had not Orestes’ sister Iphigenia, who was the
priestess of Diana, recognized him and intervened in time to save their
lives. All three then escaped with the statue of the goddess. After this
Orestes became king of Mycenæ, his father’s kingdom, and married the
beautiful Hermione, daughter of Menelaus and Helen (of Troy), after
slaying Neoptolemus (_q.v._).
=Orion= (_o-rī´on_).--A handsome giant and hunter. He was beloved by
Diana, which so displeased Apollo that he asserted that she was unable
to hit, with one of her arrows, a distant point he showed her in the
sea. This point was the head of Orion, who was swimming in the sea. Thus
Orion perished, and he was placed among the stars, where he appears as a
giant with a girdle, sword, a lion’s skin, and a club.
=Orlog.=--A god of Norse fable personifying the eternal law of the
universe, from whose decree there was no appeal.
=Ormuzd.=--The name of the supreme deity of the ancient Persians, and of
their descendants, the Parsees and Ghebers. He is an embodiment of the
principle of good, and was created by the will of the great eternal
spirit, Zervan-Akharana, simultaneously with Ahriman, the principle of
evil, with whom he is in perpetual conflict. Ormuzd is the creator of
the earth, sun, moon, and stars, to each of which he originally assigned
its proper place, and whose various movements he continues to regulate.
=Orpheus= (_or´fe-us_).--A pre-Homeric poet, son of Œagrus and Calliope,
lived in Thrace, and accompanied the Argonauts in their celebrated
expedition. He played so skillfully on the lyre, which had been
presented to him by Apollo, and which he had been taught to play by the
Muses, that not only were wild beasts made tame, but even the rocks and
trees moved from their places to follow him. He married the nymph
Eurydice (_ū-rid´is-ē_), who died from the bite of a snake. He followed
her into the lower world, where his beautiful strains of music even
suspended the punishment of the wicked. Pluto promised to yield back his
wife to him on the condition that he did not look back until he arrived
in the upper world again. At the very moment, however, of passing the
fatal bounds, Orpheus glanced back to see if she were following him, and
just beheld her snatched back into the infernal regions. His grief for
the loss of Eurydice was such that he treated all the Thracian women
with contempt, and they in revenge, during the Bacchanalian orgies, tore
him to pieces.
=Ortygia= (_or-tij´i-a_).--The ancient name of Delos, where Apollo and
Diana were born.
=Osiris= (_o-sī´ris_).--A great deity of the Egyptians, husband of Isis.
The ancients differ in opinion concerning this celebrated god, but they
all agree that as ruler of Egypt he took care to civilize his subjects,
to improve their morals, to give them good and salutary laws, and to
teach them agriculture. He was worshiped under the form of an ox.
=Ossa= (_os’sa_).--A celebrated mountain in the northeast of Thessaly,
near Mount Olympus. When the giants tried to scale heaven, they heaped
Pelion, another mountain, on Ossa in order to reach the lofty mount
Olympus, on the top of which Jupiter and the other gods dwelt.
=P=
=Pæan= (_pē´an_)--_lit._ “physician” (Gr.).--The name of the physician
of the gods. Later the name was transferred to Apollo, and afterwards it
was applied to a choral song, hymn or chant addressed to Apollo, and
also to a war song before battle or after a victory.
=Pagasæ= (_pag´a-sē_), or =Pagasa=.--A maritime town of Thessaly, where
the Argo (see “Argonautæ”) was built.
=Paimosaid.=--In American Indian myths a walking thief, especially one
who walks through cornfields about harvest time to pluck the ears of
maize or corn.
=Palæmon= (_pal-ē´mon_).--A sea-god; originally called Melicerta
(_q.v._).
=Palamedes= (_pal-a-mē´dēz_).--Son of Mauplius, and one of the Greek
heroes who sailed against Troy. Having exposed Ulysses (_q.v._) when he
feigned madness in order to avoid going to Troy, the latter, who was
famous for his craft, revenged himself by contriving to get a letter,
purporting to be written by Priam, king of Troy, concealed under
Palamedes’ bed. Ulysses then accused Palamedes of treachery, the fatal
letter apparently established the charge, and Palamedes was stoned to
death by the Greeks. Palamedes is credited with having added four
letters--θ, ξ, χ, φ--to the original Greek alphabet of Cadmus, and also
with the invention of quoits, dice, lighthouses, measures, scales, etc.
=Pales= (_pal´ēz_).--The Roman protecting deity of flocks and shepherds.
=Palici= (_pal-ī´sī_).--Twin sons of Jupiter and the nymph Thalia. They
were worshiped in Sicily, in the neighborhood of Mount Ætna.
=Palinurus= (_pal-i-nū´rus_).--The pilot of Æneas, who fell into the sea
off the west coast of Lucania.
=Palladium= (_pal-lad´i-um_).--Properly any statue of Pallas--_i. e._
Minerva; but the Palladium was an ancient image of the goddess at Troy,
on the preservation of which the safety of the city was supposed to
depend. Ulysses and Diomedes succeeded in carrying it off and afterwards
took it to Greece. See “Troy.”
=Pallas= (_pal´las_).--The Greek name of Minerva (_q.v._).
=Pan.=--The chief god of shepherds and flocks; son of Mercury, and the
inventor of the syrinx or shepherd’s flute. He was also god of woods, in
which he dwelt, and occasionally appeared suddenly before travelers,
whose consequent fright was hence called “Panic fear.” Pan is usually
represented as a being with horns, puck-nose and goat’s legs and feet.
=Pandarus= (_pan´da-rus_).--A celebrated archer in the Trojan army.
=Pandora= (_pan-dō´ra_)--_lit._ “giver of all” (Gr.).--A beautiful
woman, made by Vulcan at Jupiter’s command, _who received presents from
the gods_--hence her name. She was the first woman on earth, and was
designed to work the ruin of man in revenge for Prometheus having stolen
fire from heaven and thus benefited mankind against the will of Jupiter.
Venus adorned her with beauty, Mercury endowed her with boldness and
cunning, and the gods, each and all, provided her with a combination of
destructive powers wherewith to work out the ruin of man. Thus provided,
Mercury took her to Epimetheus (_i. e._ afterthought), who made her his
wife, forgetting, till _too late_, that his brother Prometheus (_i. e._
forethought) had strictly enjoined him not to receive any gifts from the
gods. Pandora brought with her from heaven a box containing every human
ill, which, with feminine curiosity, she opened, and out of it they all
flew, to afflict mankind, Hope alone remaining.
=Paphos= (_paf´os_).--A town in Cyprus; the chief seat of the worship of
Venus.
=Parcæ= (_par´sē_).--The Fates; called by the Greeks Moiræ
(_moy´rē_).--They were three in number; and their names were:
(i) Clotho (_klō´tho_), the spinner of the thread of life.
(ii) Lachesis (_lak´e-sis_), the disposer of lots in life.
(iii) Atropos (_at´ro-pos_)--_lit._ “the inflexible”--the fate that
cannot be avoided. To these mighty goddesses both gods and men must
submit. Sometimes Atropos is represented as cutting the thread of life
spun by Clotho.
=Paris=, usually called Alexander (_lit._ “defending men”) in the
_Iliad_. The second son of Priam, king of Troy, and Hecuba. He was
brought up on Mount Ida by a shepherd, who gave him the name Paris. He
was afterwards called Alexander on account of the bravery he displayed
in defending the flocks and shepherds. He married Œnone (_ē-nō´nē_), the
daughter of the river-god Cebren. He soon deserted her, however, in the
following manner: At the marriage of Peleus and the Nereid Thetis all
the gods, with the single exception of the goddess of Discord, were
invited. Annoyed at being thus passed over, she threw among the guests a
golden apple--usually called the Apple of Discord--with the inscription,
“To the fairest.” Three were claimants for it--Juno, Venus and Minerva.
Jupiter ordered Mercury to take the three goddesses to Mount Ida, and
submit the matter to the judgment of the shepherd Paris, hence giving
rise to the celebrated “Judgment of Paris,” which has formed the subject
of so many masterpieces of art. In order to influence him in their favor
severally, Juno promised him the sovereignty of Asia, Minerva renown in
war, and Venus the most beautiful woman in the world for his wife. Paris
decided in favor of Venus, and awarded her the golden apple. He then,
under the guidance of Venus, sailed for Greece, to the court of
Menelaus, king of Sparta, whose wife, Helen, was the most beautiful of
women. He succeeded in carrying Helen off, and so gave rise to the
famous Trojan war, as all the chiefs in Greece joined with Menelaus in
an expedition to fetch her back from Troy (see “Helena”). Paris fought
with Menelaus before the walls of Troy, and would have been slain by
him, had not Venus interposed and carried him off in a cloud. He was
killed by the celebrated archer Philoctetes, who shot him with one of
the poisoned arrows of Hercules. When wounded he returned to his
long-neglected wife Œnone, and requested her to heal the wound; but she
refused, and he died in consequence. Œnone soon repented, however, and
put an end to her own life. During the Trojan war Paris killed Achilles
(_q.v._).
=Parnassus= (_par-nas´sus_).--A high mountain in Phocis (Greece), with
two peaks, sacred to Apollo and the Muses. Near it was the town of
Delphi; and on the mountain was the famous Castalian spring, also sacred
to Apollo and the Muses, in which the Pythia, the priestess, at Delphi,
used to bathe.
=Parthenopæus= (_par´then-o-pē´us_).--Son of Meleager and Atalanta, and
one of the “Seven against Thebes.”
=Parthenope= (_par-then´o-pē_).--One of the Sirens (_q.v._), and the
name of an ancient city forming the site of the present city of Naples
(Neapolis).
=Pasiphae= (_pā-sif´a-ē_).--Daughter of the Sun and Perseis, wife of
Minos and mother of Androgeos, Ariadne and Phædra; also of the Minotaur
(see “Minos”).
=Patroclus= (_pa-trok´lus_).--The beloved friend of Achilles. Whilst
Achilles remained inactive during part of the Trojan war, Patroclus was
allowed by Achilles to lead the latter’s Myrmidons against the Trojans
at a critical time. Achilles, in order to enhance the effect, equipped
him with his own armor and arms. Patroclus, whom the Trojans supposed to
be Achilles himself, drove them back to the walls of Troy, where,
however, he was slain by Hector. To avenge his death, Achilles quickly
reappeared in the field, and slew Hector in single combat.
=Pauguk.=--Name given to the great power, death, in American Indian
mythology.
=Pau-Puk-Keewis.=--In American Indian folk-lore a mischievous magician,
who is pursued by Hiawatha, goes through a series of wonderful
transformations in his endeavors to escape, and finally becomes an
eagle.
=Peboan.=--In American Indian folk-lore the personification of winter in
form of a great giant who shook the snow from his hair and turned water
into stone by his breath.
=Pegasus= (_peg´a-sus_).--The winged horse which sprang from the blood
of the Gorgon Medusa, when her head was struck off by Perseus (_q.v._).
It was named Pegasus from _the springs_ of Ocean, near which Medusa was
killed. With a blow of his hoof he caused the fountain of the Muses
(Hippocrene) to spring from Mount Helicon. Bellerophon rode him when he
slew the Chimæra (_ki-mē´ra_).
=Peleus= (_pē´lūs_).--Son of Æacus, king of the Myrmidons in Thessaly,
husband of Thetis and father of Achilles. The Nereid Thetis, who was his
second wife, had the power, possessed also by Proteus, of assuming any
form she pleased, a power she exercised in order to escape from Peleus.
But the latter, having been taught by Chiron, held the goddess fast till
she promised to marry him. At their marriage all the gods, save one,
were present, and the uninvited one, the goddess of strife, threw the
celebrated golden apple among the guests (see “Paris”). Peleus survived
the death of his famous son Achilles.
=Pelias= (_pe´li-as_).--King of Ioclus, in Thessaly. In order to get rid
of his nephew Jason, who claimed the throne, he sent him to fetch the
golden fleece, thus giving rise to the celebrated expedition of the
Argonauts (see “Argonautæ”). When Jason returned with Medea, the latter
persuaded the daughters of Pelias to cut him in pieces and boil him,
with the idea of thus restoring him to youth and vigor. In this way he
perished. See “Jason.”
=Pelion= (_pē´li-on_).--A lofty range of well-wooded mountains in
Thessaly. The giants heaped it on Mount Ossa, in their attempt to scale
heaven (see “Ossa” and “Olympus”). The Centaur Chiron dwelt in a cave
near its summit. The Argo (see “Argonautæ”) was built from timber felled
here.
=Pelops= (_pē´lops_).--Son of Tantalus, king of Phrygia, father of
Atreus and Thyestes, grandfather of Agamemnon and Menelaus. When a boy
he was cut in pieces and boiled to make a savory dish to set before the
gods, whom Tantalus, the favorite of the gods, had invited to a repast;
but the gods would not touch it, and ordered Mercury to again put him
into a caldron, whereby he was restored to life. Being driven out of
Phrygia, he went to Elis, a province of Peloponnesus, and there obtained
the hand of Hippodamia, daughter of King Œnomaus, whom he succeeded on
the throne. He afterwards became so powerful that the whole peninsula
was called after him “the island of Pelops.” In order to gain Hippodamia
(_hip-po-da-mī´a_) he had first to engage in a chariot race with Œnomaus
(_ē-nom´a-us_), a condition which the latter imposed on every suitor for
his daughter’s hand, as an oracle had declared that he would be killed
by his son-in-law. His horses being swifter than those of any mortal,
many a suitor had suffered death, the stipulated penalty of defeat.
Pelops, however, bribed Myrtilus, the charioteer of Œnomaus, to remove
the linchpins of his master’s chariot, the bribe being the promise of
half the kingdom. In the race the wheels of Œnomaus’ chariot soon came
off, and Œnomaus was thrown out, and killed. Pelops thus gained
Hippodamia, but was unwilling to keep faith with Myrtilus, whom he threw
from a cliff into the sea.
=Penates= (_pē-nā´tēz_).--Old Latin guardian deities both of a household
and of the state. The images of these gods were kept in the penetralia
(_pen-e-trā´li-a_)--that is, the _innermost_ or central part of the
house. The Lares (_q.v._) formed part of the Penates. On the hearth a
perpetual fire was kept up in their honor, and the table, which was also
sacred to them, always contained the salt-cellar and offerings of first
fruits for them.
=Penelope= (_pe-nel´o-pē_).--The wife of Ulysses; celebrated for her
constancy to her husband during his twenty years’ absence from Ithaca.
She was the daughter of Icarius and Peribœa, of Sparta, and was won by
Ulysses in the following way: Her father promised her to the suitor who
should win a foot-race; but when Ulysses was the successful competitor
her father tried to persuade her not to leave him. Ulysses left her free
to act as she pleased in the matter, whereupon she covered her face with
her veil to hide her blushes, and thus intimated that she preferred to
accompany him as her husband. By Ulysses she became the mother of an
only child, Telemachus. During Ulysses’ long absence she was the object
of much undesired attention on the part of a host of importunate
suitors, who declared that Ulysses must surely be dead. Penelope at last
promised to make a selection of one of their number to be her husband as
soon as she had finished a robe she was making for Ulysses’ aged father,
Laërtes (_lā-er´tēz_). This was only a ruse (generally referred to as
“Penelope’s web”), however, to put them off, as she undid every night
the work done during the day. At last the secret was betrayed by one of
her servants, and she was importuned more than ever. Ulysses now arrived
home after twenty years’ absence at Troy and his subsequent celebrated
wanderings, and came at first disguised as a beggar to see how the land
lay. Having soon ascertained his wife’s noble fidelity, he still further
tested her by getting her to promise her hand to the suitor who could
draw his bow. This none of them could do, so Ulysses took it up and slew
them all. He then made himself known to Penelope, and went to see his
aged father.
=Peneus= (_pē-nē´us_).--The principal river of Thessaly, which flows in
the valley of Tempe, between Mount Pelion and Mount Ossa, into the sea;
also the river-god, who was the father of Daphne and Cyrene.
=Penthesilea= (_pen-thes-i-lē´a_).--The young and beautiful queen of the
Amazons, who fought against the Greeks before Troy, and was slain by
Achilles.
=Pentheus= (_pen´thūs_).--Grandson of Cadmus, whom he succeeded as king
of Thebes. He was opposed to the introduction of the worship of Bacchus
into his kingdom, and in consequence was torn to pieces by his mother
and her sisters, who in their Bacchic frenzy imagined him to be a wild
beast.
=Perdix= (_per´diks_).--The nephew of Dædalus (_q.v._), the inventor of
the chisel, saw, compasses, etc.
=Peri.=--Peris are delicate, gentle, fairy-like beings of eastern
mythology, begotten by fallen spirits. They direct with a wand the pure
in mind the way to heaven. These lovely creatures, according to the
Koran, are under the sovereignty of Eblis; and Mohammed was sent for
their conversion, as well as for that of man.
=Persephone= (_per-sef´on-ē_).--The Greek name for Proserpina (_q.v._).
=Perseus= (_per´sūs_).--Son of Jupiter and Danaë (_q.v._). His most
heroic deed was the slaying of the Gorgon Medusa, which he accomplished
in the following manner: With the aid of Mercury and Minerva he
possessed himself of the winged sandals, the magic wallet, and the
helmet of Pluto, which rendered the wearer invisible, and further
received from Mercury a sickle, and from Minerva a mirror. Thus
provided, he rose into the air and made his way to the abode of the
Gorgons. He found them asleep, and cut off with the sickle the head of
Medusa, looking at her terrible form in the mirror, as a single glance
would have immediately changed him into stone. Perseus placed her head
in the magic wallet, which he carried on his back, and escaped in safety
from the pursuit of the two other Gorgons, the helmet rendering him
invisible. He then proceeded to Æthiopia, where he slew the sea-monster,
and saved and married the beautiful Andromeda (_q.v._). The latter
having been previously promised, however, to her uncle Phineus, he and
several armed companions made their appearance at the nuptials, and
endeavored to carry off the bride; but Perseus brought out Medusa’s
head, and they were all turned into stone. Perseus afterwards gave the
head of Medusa to Minerva, who placed it in the middle of her
breastplate or shield. In fulfillment of the oracle he accidentally
killed his grandfather Acrisius (_q.v._) with a quoit. He is said to
have founded Mycenæ.
=Phæaces= (_fē-ā´sēz_).--A fabulous people represented in the _Odyssey_
as inhabiting the island of Scheria (afterwards Corcyra; now Corfu), and
famous as sailors. Alcinous (_q.v._) was their king.
=Phaethon= (_fā´e-thon_)--_lit._ “the shining” (Gr.).--Son of the sungod
(Apollo) and Clymene (_klī´men-ē_). Having obtained permission from his
father to drive the chariot of the sun across the heavens for one day,
he drove so near the earth that he almost set it on fire, his strength
being insufficient to keep the horses in the right track. Consequently
Jupiter hurled him down with a thunderbolt into the river Padus (Po).
=Phaon= (_fā´ōn_).--A boatman at Mytilene, who, originally an ugly old
man, was made young and handsome by Venus, whom he had carried across
the sea without payment. Sappho (_q.v._) thus fell in love with him,
and, on her love not being returned, threw herself into the sea.
=Philoctetes= (_fil-ok-tē´tēz_).--A very famous archer, a friend of
Hercules, who gave him at his death the poisoned arrows without which
Troy could not be taken. In the tenth year of the Trojan war he was
specially fetched from Lemnos, where he had been detained by a wound, by
Ulysses and Diomedes. On arriving at Troy, Æsculapius or his sons cured
his wound. He slew Paris and other Trojans.
=Phlegethon= (_fleg´e-thon_)--_lit._ “the blazing” (Gr.).--A river in
the lower world, which ran with fire instead of water.
=Phœbe= (_fē´bē_).--A feminine form of Phœbus (_lit._ “the bright one”);
applied to Diana, the sister of Apollo, as the goddess of the moon.
=Phœbus= (_fē´bus_)--_lit._ “the bright one” (Gr.).--An epithet applied
to Apollo as the god of the sun. See “Apollo.”
=Phœnix= (_fē´nix_).--(i) A fabulous bird described as being as large as
an eagle; its head finely crested with a beautiful plumage, its neck
covered with gold-colored feathers, its tail white, and its body purple
or crimson. (ii) Son of Amyntor, the teacher of Achilles, and his
companion during the Trojan war.
=Phorcys= (_for´sis_), or =Phorcus= (_for´kus_).--A sea-god, father of
the Gorgons and of the Grææ.
=Phrixus= (_frix´us_).--Son of Athamas and Nephele. Athamas having
neglected Nephele (_nef´el-ë_), and married Ino, the latter persuaded
him to sacrifice Nephele’s son Phrixus to Jupiter. Nephele, however,
enabled her two children, Phrixus and Helle, to escape by means of a ram
with golden fleece, the gift of Mercury, which carried them through the
air. Helle fell into the sea (see “Helle”), but Phrixus arrived safely
in Colchis, the kingdom of Æëtes (_q.v._). Here he sacrificed the ram to
Jupiter, and gave its golden fleece to Æëtes, who suspended it to an oak
tree in the grove of Mars. To fetch this golden fleece the famous
expedition of the Argonauts (see “Argonautæ”) was undertaken.
=Picus= (_pī´kus_).--Son of Saturn and father of Faunus. He was changed
by Circe into a woodpecker, because he did not requite her love. The
Romans regarded the woodpecker as a prophetic bird, sacred to Mars.
=Pieria= (_pī-er´i-a_).--A district of Macedonia, in the north of
Greece; celebrated as one of the earliest seats of the worship of the
Muses, who are hence called Pierides (_pī-er´id-ēz_). Hence the
following lines:--
“A little learning is a dangerous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring.”
Pope’s _Essay on Criticism_.
=Pirene= (_pī-rē´nē_).--A noted fountain at Corinth, at which
Bellerophon caught Pegasus.
=Pirithous= (_pī-rith´o-us_).--Son of Ixion, whom he succeeded as king
of the Lapithæ; famous for his friendship with Theseus. When Pirithous
was invading Attica he was opposed by Theseus, king of Athens, for whom
he soon conceived feelings of admiration, which afterwards deepened into
a lasting friendship. At the marriage of Pirithous with Hippodamia
(_hip-po-da-mī´a_) the bride was seized by a drunken Centaur, and thus
arose the celebrated fight between the Centaurs and Lapithæ (_q.v._), in
which, with the assistance of Theseus, Pirithous and the Lapithæ came
off victorious. On the death of Hippodamia, Pirithous conceived the bold
project of carrying off Proserpine, wife of Pluto. Accordingly the two
friends descended into the lower world, but were seized by Pluto and
chained to a rock, where they both remained till Hercules visited that
region. Hercules then delivered Theseus, who was suffering punishment
merely on account of his friendship for Pirithous; but the latter he
left to his fate.
=Pleiades= (_plē´ya-dēz_).--The seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione
(_plē´yo-nē_).--They were the virgin companions of Diana, and when
pursued by Orion were changed into doves and placed among the stars.
=Pluto= (_plū´tō_).--The god of the nether world; originally called
Hades (_hā´dēz_), the name Pluto (_lit._ “wealth”) being applied to him
because corn, the _wealth_ of early times, was sent from beneath the
earth as his gift. He was the son of Saturn and Rhea, brother of Jupiter
and Neptune, and the husband of Proserpine. He possessed a celebrated
helmet, which rendered the wearer invisible, and which Perseus (_q.v._)
borrowed when he went to slay the Gorgon Medusa. Black sheep were
sacrificed to him. Pluto was also called Dis (_dīs_) and Orcus
(_or´-kus_).
=Plutus= (_plū´tus_).--The god of wealth; represented as blind.
=Pluvius= (_plū´vi-us_)--lit. “rain-bringing” (Lat.).--A surname of
Jupiter, to whom sacrifices were offered in times of drought. See
“Jupiter.”
=Pollux.=--See “Castor.”
=Polyhymnia.=--See “Musæ.”
=Polyphemus= (_pol-i-fē´mus_).--Son of Neptune; was one of the
celebrated Cyclops living in Sicily. He was a huge monster, having but
one eye in the center of his forehead, and ate human flesh. Being
rejected by the nymph Galatea in favor of Acis, he crushed the latter
under an enormous rock. Ulysses, during his wanderings on his journey
homeward after the fall of Troy, was driven upon Sicily, and at once
seized by Polyphemus, who shut him and his companions in the great cave
in which he dwelt. In the evening he drove his flock into the cave,
closed the mouth of the cave with a heavy rock, and ate two of Ulysses’
companions for his supper. The next morning he led his sheep out to
pasture, closing the mouth of the cave after him. The wily Ulysses then
contrived and successfully carried out the following plan of escape:
When the monster returned in the evening, Ulysses offered him some wine
he had brought with him, and gave him enough to make him intoxicated.
Polyphemus asked Ulysses his name, and the latter gave that of Noman.
The giant then fell asleep, whereupon Ulysses and his companions, having
made everything ready, bored out his eye with a red-hot piece of timber.
Polyphemus roared out, and the other Cyclops dwelling on the island came
to the mouth of the cave and inquired what was the matter; Polyphemus
replied that _no man_ had injured him, whereupon they all went away.
Even now, however, Ulysses could not escape, the cave being closed by
such a heavy rock, and had to wait till the following morning.
Polyphemus then removed the rock, but sat by the opening and felt the
back of each sheep as it passed out. Ulysses, whose name is synonymous
with craft itself, had foreseen this, however, and he and his six
companions safely passed out by clinging to the wool on the bellies of
the sheep. They then made their way to their ships, and quickly put out
from the shore. When a little way out Ulysses derided Polyphemus,
whereupon the latter threw several immense rocks after him, one of which
nearly struck his ship. See _Odyssey_, Book IX.
=Polyxena= (_pol-ix´en-a_).--Daughter of Priam and Hecuba. She was
beloved by Achilles, and sacrificed at the grave of the latter by his
son Pyrrhus.
=Pomona= (_pō-mō´na_).--The goddess of fruit and fruit trees. Her name
is derived from Lat. pomum, fruit (of any kind).
=Ponemah.=--In American Indian mythology the name of the land of the
future life, or the spirit land.
=Portunus= (_por-tū´nus_), or =Portumnus= (_por-tum´nus_).--The
protecting god of harbors.
=Poseidon= (_po-sī´don_).--See “Neptune.”
=Priam= (_prī´am_).--Son of Laomedon, the famous king of Troy at the
time of the Trojan war. The name Priam (Gr.) means the Chief, or Leader.
He was the husband of Hecuba, and the father of Paris, Hector,
Deiphobus, Cassandra, Polyxena, etc. On the capture of Troy he was slain
by Pyrrhus, the son of Achilles.
=Priapus= (_pri-ā´pus_).--Son of Bacchus and Venus. The god of
fruitfulness in general, and the protector of flocks of sheep and goats,
of bees, of the vine, and of all garden produce.
=Procas= (_prō´kas_).--King of Alba Longa, and father of Numitor and
Amulius.
=Procne= (_prok´nē_).--Sister of Philomela (_q.v._).
=Procris= (_prō´kris_).--Wife of Cephalus (_q.v._).
=Procrustes= (_prō-krus´tēz_)--_lit._ “the Stretcher” (Gr.).--The name
of a famous robber of Greece, who used to make all his captives fit into
his iron bed, either by cutting pieces off their legs if they were too
long, or by stretching them out if they were too short. He was slain by
Theseus.
=Prometheus= (_pro-mē´thūs_)--_lit._ “Forethought” (Gr.).--Son of the
Titan Iapetos, brother of Epimetheus (_ep-i-mē´thūs_), or
“After-thought.” The great benefactor of mankind, in spite of Jupiter.
He stole fire from Olympus (heaven), and was the inventor of many arts,
especially of working in metal and clay, whence he is said to have made
man from clay. As a set-off against these advantages, Jupiter gave
Pandora (_q.v._) to Epimetheus. He also chained Prometheus to a rock,
where in the daytime an eagle consumed his liver, which grew again
during each succeeding night. From this perpetual torture he was
delivered by Hercules, who killed the eagle.
=Proserpina= (_pro-ser´pin-a_); usually called =Proserpine=
(_pros´er-pīn_); called by the Greeks Persephone
(_per-sef´on-ē_).--Daughter of Jupiter and Ceres, and queen of the lower
world. Her father, unknown to her mother, promised her to Pluto, who
carried her off by causing the earth to open beneath her as she was
gathering flowers. In consequence of this, Ceres did not allow the earth
to bring forth any fruits, and Jupiter was obliged to send Mercury into
the lower world to fetch Proserpine back. Pluto allowed her to go, but
first gave her a pomegranate to eat. Having thus eaten in the lower
world, she was obliged to spend one-third of the year with Pluto,
remaining during the other two-thirds with her mother (see “Ceres”).
Pluto and Proserpine ruled over the souls of the dead in the lower
world.
=Proteus= (_prō´tūs_).--A sea-god who had the power of assuming any form
he pleased. He tended the flocks (seals) of Neptune, and at midday rose
from the sea and slept in the shade of the rocks. At such times he was
much sought after, his prophetic powers being highly valued. When seized
by the person wishing to consult him, he, in order to escape, assumed
several different shapes in succession; but, if firmly held, he speedily
returned to his original form, and prophesied.
=Psyche= (_si´kē_)--_lit._ “the soul” (Gr.).--The following beautiful
story shows in an allegorical manner how the human soul is purified by
misfortunes and prepared for the enjoyment of true and lasting happiness
hereafter: Psyche was the youngest and most beautiful of the three
daughters of a king, and by her beauty excited the jealousy of Venus.
The goddess consequently ordered Cupid to inspire her with love for some
utterly unworthy object; but instead of doing this Cupid himself fell in
love with her. He accordingly visited her every night, leaving her
always at daybreak. Her jealous sisters, however, made her believe that
her midnight lover was a monster, and accordingly she one night brought
a lamp while Cupid was asleep, and was astonished to behold the lovely
god. In her excitement she let fall a drop of hot oil on the shoulder of
Cupid, and so awoke him. He blamed her for her mistrust, and fled. In
misery Psyche now wandered from temple to temple, inquiring after her
lover, and at length came to the palace of Venus. Here she was treated
with great severity and compelled to perform hard and menial tasks,
which would have overcome her had not Cupid secretly and invisibly
sustained her. At length she overcame the jealousy of Venus, and,
becoming immortal, was united to Cupid forever. In works of art Psyche
is represented as a maiden with the wings of a butterfly.
=Pukwana.=--The smoke from the calumet or peace pipe among American
Indians. The pipe was made from stone found near the headwaters of the
Mississippi. A quarry, located near the mountains, was famous among the
Indians, who had made the adjacent territory neutral ground. Here they
came and provided themselves with pipes. To apply the stone to any other
use than that of pipe-making would have been sacrilege in their mind.
From the color, they even fancied it to have been made, at the great
deluge, out of the flesh of the perishing Indian.
=Puk-Wudjies.=--The pygmies of American Indian folklore; little wild men
of the woods.
=Pygmalion= (_pig-mā´li-on_).--King of Cyprus, who became enamored of an
ivory statue which he had made. Venus having answered his prayer to her
to breathe life into it, he married the maiden.
=Pylades= (_pi´la-dēz_).--Nephew of Agamemnon, and celebrated as the
friend of Orestes (_q.v._). He married Electra, the sister of Orestes.
=Pyramus= (_pī´ra-mus_).--The lover of Thisbe (_q.v._).
=Pyrrhus= (_pir´us_).--See “Neoptolemus.”
=Python= (_pi´thon_).--The famous serpent produced from the mud left
after the subsidence of the deluge of Deucalion. It was slain near
Delphi by Apollo, who founded the Pythian games to commemorate the
victory.
=Q=
=Quirinus= (_kwi-rī´nus_).--The name of Romulus after his deification.
=R=
=Rachaders.=--In Indian mythology the second tribe of giants or evil
genii, who had frequently made the earth subject to their kings, but
were ultimately punished by Siva and Vishnu.
=Radegaste.=--In Slavonic mythology a tutelary god of the Slavi. The
head was that of a cow, the breast was covered with an ægis, the left
hand held a spear, and a cock surmounted its helmet.
=Ragnarök= (twilight of the gods).--The day of doom, when the present
world and all its inhabitants will be annihilated. Vidar and Vali will
survive the conflagration, and reconstruct the universe. In Scandinavian
mythology the belief is taught that after this time the earth or realm
will become imperishable and happiness sure.
=Rahu.=--In Hindu mythology the demon that causes eclipses. One day Rahu
stole into Valhalla to quaff some of the nectar of immortality. He was
discovered by the Sun and Moon, who informed against him, and Vishnu cut
off his head. As he had already taken some of the nectar into his mouth,
the head was immortal; and he ever afterward hunted the Sun and Moon,
which he caught occasionally, causing eclipses.
=Rakshas.=--Evil spirits in Hindu myths, who guard the treasure of
Kuvera, the god of riches. They haunt cemeteries and devour human
beings; assume any shape at will, and their strength increases as the
day declines. Some are hideously ugly, but others, especially the female
spirits, allure by their beauty.
=Ravana.=--According to Indian mythology, was fastened down between
heaven and earth for ten thousand years by Siva’s leg, for attempting to
move the hill of heaven to Ceylon. He is described as a demon giant with
ten faces.
=Ravens.=--According to an oracle from the gods, delivered at ancient
Athens, ravens prognosticate famine and death because they bear the
characteristics of Saturn, the author of these calamities, and have a
very early perception of the malign influence of that planet.
=Remus= (_rē´mus_).--The brother of Romulus (_q.v._).
=Rhadamanthus= (_rad-a-man´thus_).--Son of Jupiter and Europa, and
brother of Minos. He was one of the three judges in the lower world, the
other two being Æacus and Minos.
=Rhea= (_rē´a_).--See “Cybele.”
=Rhea Silvia= (_rē´a sil´vi-a_).--Daughter of Numitor, and mother of
Romulus and Remus.
=Rhesus= (_rē´sus_).--A Thracian prince, who went to the assistance of
Troy. As an oracle had declared that Troy would never be taken if the
snow-white horses of Rhesus once drank of the Xanthus and fed on the
grass of the Trojan plain. Diomedes and Ulysses slew Rhesus on the night
of his arrival on Trojan territory, and carried off his horses.
=Rhodope= (_rod´o-pē_).--A lofty mountain range in Thrace, which, like
the rest of Thrace, was sacred to Bacchus.
=Romulus= (_rom´u-lus_).--The founder and first king of Rome;
twin-brother of Remus, son of Silvia by Mars. Silvia was the daughter of
Numitor and a vestal virgin, hence the twins were condemned to be thrown
into the Tiber. This was done; but the cradle stranded, and they were
suckled by a she-wolf. They were afterwards found by Faustulus, the
shepherd of king Amulius, who handed them over to the care of his wife
Acca Larentia. When grown up, they decided to found a city on the Tiber;
but in a dispute as to the site, Romulus killed Remus. When the city was
built, it was found that women were very scarce. Romulus accordingly
proclaimed that games were to be celebrated, and invited his neighbors,
the Latins and Sabines, to the festival, during which the Roman youths
carried off the maidens--this being generally referred to as “The Rape
of the Sabine Women.” Hence arose a war between the two peoples, which
was brought to a termination by the Sabine women rushing in between the
armies and praying them to be reconciled. After a reign of thirty-seven
years, Romulus was taken up to heaven by his father Mars in a fiery
chariot. He was then worshiped by the Romans as Quirinus (_kwi-rī´nus_).
=S=
=Saga.=--Goddess of history in Scandinavian mythology.
=Salamander.=--A fabulous animal supposed by the ancients to live in and
have the quality of eating fire.
=Salmoneus= (_sal-mō´nūs_).--Son of Æolus and brother of Sisyphus. He
presumed to imitate the thunder and lightning of Jupiter, and was
consequently hurled down to Tartarus with a thunderbolt by the father of
the gods.
=Sarpedon= (_sar-pē´don_).--(i) Son of Jupiter and Europa, king of the
Lycians. Jupiter granted him the privilege of living three generations.
(ii) Grandson of the preceding; assisted the Trojans in the Trojan war,
but was slain by Patroclus.
=Saturnus= (_sā-tur´nus_); usually called =Saturn= (_sat´urn_); called
by the Greeks Cronos.--A mythical king of Italy, whose reign was the
“golden age.” He was the son of Uranus (Heaven) and Gæa (Earth), the
husband of Rhea, and the father of Jupiter, Juno, Pluto, Neptune, etc.
He was the god of agriculture and of civilization in general. He was
dethroned from the government of the world by his son Jupiter. His
temple in Rome was used as the state treasury.
=Satyri= (_sat´er-ī_), or =Satyrs= (_sat´erz_).--A kind of wood-deities,
resembling apes, with two goats-feet, and very lascivious. The older
Satyrs were generally called Sileni (_sī-lē´nī_), and the younger ones
Satyrisci. They were described as fond of wine, sleep, and music.
=Scamander= (_ska-man´der_).--A celebrated river near Troy.
=Scamandrius= (_ska-man´dri-us_), or =Scamander=.--Son of Hector and
Andromache (_an-drom´a-kē_), whom the Trojans called Astyanax (_q.v._).
=Sciron= (_sĩ´ron_).--A famous robber of Attica, slain by Theseus. He
compelled those he robbed to wash his feet on the Scironian rock (which
was named after him), and at the completion of the process kicked them
over the rock into the sea. At the base of the rock was a tortoise,
which devoured them.
=Scylla= (_sill´a_), and =Charybdis= (_ka-rib´dis_).--The names of two
rocks, opposite to one another, between Italy and Sicily. In the one
nearest to Italy was a cave in which dwelt Scylla, who was a terrible
creature (female) with six long necks and heads, each of which contained
three rows of sharp teeth, twelve feet, and barking like a dog. On the
opposite rock, Charybdis, dwelt a being of the same name under an
immense fig tree. Thrice a day she swallowed the waters of the sea and
thrice threw them up again. Between these rocks, Scylla and Charybdis,
the sea was very narrow and very dangerous. Hence mariners had to
exercise great vigilance lest while avoiding Scylla they did not fall on
Charybdis. This last expression is often used in speaking of cases where
a middle course has to be carefully steered between two threatening
difficulties.
=Scyros= (_sī´ros_).--An island in the Ægean Sea, near Eubœa. Here
Achilles--at the court of King Lycomedes--was concealed, dressed as a
woman, by his mother Thetis, in order to prevent his going to the Trojan
war.
=Sedrat.=--The lotus tree which stands on the right hand side of the
invisible throne of Allah. Its branches extend wider than the distance
between heaven and earth. Its leaves resemble the ears of an elephant.
Each seed of its fruit incloses an houri; and two rivers issue from its
roots. Numberless birds sing among its branches, and numberless angels
rest beneath its shade.
=SCENES FROM THE STORY OF PSYCHE AND VENUS=
[Illustration: =PSYCHE’S PARENTS CONSULT THE ORACLE=]
[Illustration: =A ZEPHYR BORE PSYCHE FROM THE EARTH=]
[Illustration: =BURNING OIL FELL ON CUPID’S SHOULDER=]
[Illustration: =A FISHERMAN SHELTERS PSYCHE=]
[Illustration: =SHE OPENED THE BOX=]
[Illustration: =PSYCHE’S SISTERS ASKED WHAT SORT OF A PERSON HER HUSBAND
WAS=]
[Illustration: =VENUS AND PSYCHE BECOME RECONCILED=]
[Illustration: =“DRINK THIS, PSYCHE, AND BE IMMORTAL”=]
[Illustration: =THE MARRIAGE OF CUPID AND PSYCHE=
This symbolical picture represents the conscious union of the Soul of
Man, figured as a young girl (Psyche), with the divine Spirit of Love
(Cupid). Their starry or celestial environment signifies the emergence
of the soul from matter into a permanent, uninterrupted or eternal life.
The beautiful Greek story as a whole is simply an allegory describing
the fall of the soul of man into earthly conditions; the labors and
pains there undergone in order that, refined and redeemed, it may once
more be raised into the heavenly world.]
=Semele= (_sem´el-ē_).--Daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and mother, by
Jupiter, of Bacchus. Juno, actuated by jealousy, persuaded her to ask
Jupiter to appear before her in his terrible majesty as king of heaven.
Having promised to grant whatever she desired, Jupiter did so; but
warned her of the danger she would incur. The result was that she was
consumed by the lightning; but Jupiter saved her child Bacchus.
=Serapis= (_se-rā´pis_).--An Egyptian divinity (male), whose worship was
introduced into Rome, together with that of Isis, toward the end of the
republic.
=Seven Sages.=--Same as _Seven Wise Men of Greece_ (_q.v._).
=Seven Wise Men of Greece.=--The title applied to seven Greeks of the
sixth century B. C., who were distinguished for their practical wisdom
and their terse maxims or principles of life. Their names are as
follows: Bias, Chilo, Cleobulus, Periander (in place of whom some give
Epimenides), Pittacus, Solon and Thales. They were the authors of the
following famous mottoes, inscribed in later times in the temple of
Apollo at Delphi: “Most men are bad,” _Bias_; “Consider the end,”
_Chilo_; “Avoid excess,” _Cleobulus_; “Nothing is impossible to
industry,” _Periander_; “Know thy opportunity,” _Pittacus_; “Know
thyself,” _Solon_; “Suretyship is the precursor of ruin,” _Thales_.
=Seven Wonders of the World.=--A name applied to seven very remarkable
objects of the ancient world. They are usually given as follows:
(i) The Pyramids of Egypt.
(ii) The Pharos (_fā´ros_) of Alexandria, which was a lofty lighthouse
built by Ptolemy II. on the island of the same name, just opposite to
Alexandria and united to it by a mole.
(iii) The walls and hanging gardens of Babylon. The walls are described
under “Ninus.” The hanging gardens of Nebuchadnezzar were laid out upon
terraces, which were raised one above another on arches.
(iv) The Temple of Diana at Ephesus.
(v) The colossal statue of the Olympian Jupiter by Phidias. It was made
of ivory and gold, and the god was represented as seated on a throne of
cedar wood, adorned with gold, ivory, ebony and precious stones.
(vi) The mausoleum of Artemisia.
(vii) The Colossus of Rhodes.
=Sibyllæ= (_si-bil´lē_), or =Sibyls=.--Prophetesses, supposed to be ten
in number. The most famous of them is the Cumæan, who was consulted by
Æneas before he descended into the lower world and gave him the sop to
throw to Cerberus, which, when he had devoured it, threw him into a deep
sleep and so enabled Æneas to slip by.
=Sichæus= (_si-kē´us_).--Dido’s uncle and husband; often called Acerbas.
He was murdered by Pygmalion, Dido’s brother.
=Silenus= (_si-lē´nus_).--A name specially applied to a satyr (_q.v._)
who brought up and instructed Bacchus and was his constant companion. He
is described as a bald-headed, jovial old man, generally intoxicated,
and hence unable to trust his own legs to carry him safely. He generally
rode on an ass. He possessed prophetic powers, which he could be made to
exercise by surrounding him with chains of flowers while he was drunk
and asleep.
=Silvanus= (_sil-vā´nus_).--A Latin deity presiding over woods and
forests.
=Sinon= (_sin´on_).--Son of Æsimus, who allowed the Trojans to take him
prisoner, and then persuaded them to take the famous wooden horse into
their city. See “Troy.”
=Sirenes= (_sī-rē´nēz_), or =Sirens= (_si´renz_).--Sea nymphs, three in
number, who had the power of enticing mariners to their destruction on
dangerous rocks by their sweet music. In order to get his ship away in
safety from them, Ulysses stuffed the ears of his companions with wax
and then tied himself to the mast of the vessel, and did not release
himself till he could no longer hear their charming voices. They dwelt
on an island near the southwest coast of Italy.
=Sisyphus= (_sis´i-fus_).--Son of Æolus and king of Corinth; notorious
for his avarice and deceit. His punishment in the lower world was to
roll to the top of a hill a huge marble block, which no sooner reached
the top than it rolled down again: hence a never-ending punishment.
=Siva.=--The third of the Hindu triad of divinities, who, among a
thousand names, bears also that of Mahadeva. The greatest confusion
exists as to his attributes; now he is said to be the destroyer, and now
the creative principle.
=Somnus= (_som´nus_).--The god of sleep; was a son of Night and a
brother of Death.
=Soracte= (_sō-rak´tē_).--A high mountain, near the Tiber, in Etruria,
on the summit of which was a temple of Apollo.
=Specter of the Brocken.=--Among German myths, a singular colossal
apparition seen in the clouds, at certain times of the day, by those who
ascend the Brocken, or Blocksberg, the highest peak of the Hartz
mountains.
=Sphinx= (_sfingks_).--A she-monster, who proposed a riddle to the
Thebans, and murdered all who failed to guess it (see “Œdipus”). In
works of art she is represented with a woman’s bust on the body of a
lioness. The word Sphinx (Gr.) means the _Throttler_, from her manner of
killing her victims.
=Stentor= (_sten´tor_).--A Grecian herald in the Trojan war. His voice
was as loud as that of fifty ordinary men together: hence our word
_stentorian_.
=Stheno.=--See “Gorgons.”
=Stymphalus= (_stim-fā´lus_).--A town in Arcadia; the haunt of the
terrible birds slain by Hercules. See “Hercules (vi).”
=Styx= (_stiks_)--_i. e._, “the hateful, horrible” (Gr.).--The principal
river of the lower world, around which it flows seven times. Charon
(_q.v._) ferried the souls of the departed across it. By the Styx the
gods swore their most sacred oaths.
=Surya.=--The sun-god, according to the Hindu _Veda_, whose car is drawn
by seven green horses, the charioteer being Dawn.
=Sybaris= (_sib´ar-is_).--A Greek town in Lucania, notorious for the
luxury of its inhabitants: hence our word _Sybarite_.
=Syphax= (_sif´ax_).--King of one of the tribes of the Numidians. See
“Sophonisba.”
=Syrinx= (_sī´rinks_).--A nymph, who, being pursued by Pan, was
metamorphosed into a reed, of which Pan then made his shepherd’s pipe,
usually called Pan’s pipe.
=T=
=Tantalus= (_tan´ta-lus_).--Son of Jupiter and the nymph Pluto; father
of Pelops and Niobe. Having divulged some of his father’s secrets, he
received a terrible punishment in the lower world. He was made to stand
up to his chin in water, being at the same time afflicted with a raging
thirst, and over his head hung branches of tempting fruit, yet when he
attempted to drink the waters receded from him, and when he would pluck
the fruit the branches immediately sprang out of his reach. Moreover, a
huge rock was suspended above his head, threatening every moment to
crush him. (Hence our word _tantalize_, meaning to torment by holding
out hopes or prospects which cannot be realized.)
=Tarpeia= (_tar-pē´ya_).--Daughter of the governor of the Roman citadel:
was tempted by the gold bracelets of the Sabines, who, in the time of
Romulus, were besieging the fortress, to treacherously open one of the
gates. As they rushed in they threw their shields upon her and crushed
her to death. The Tarpeian Rock (_tar-pē´yan_), from which criminals
were hurled headlong, was named after her.
=Tartarus= (_tar´ta-rus_).--The place of punishment of the wicked in the
lower world, as opposed to the Elysian Fields, the abode of the blessed.
Sometimes it means the lower world generally.
=Taygete= (_tā-ij´et-ē_).--Daughter of Atlas and Pleione, one of the
Pleiones.
=Tecmessa= (_tek-mes´sa_).--Daughter of Teleutas, king of Phrygia, and
mistress of Ajax the Great.
=Telamon= (_tel´a-mōn_).--Son of Æacus and brother of Peleus. He was
king of Salamis and father of Ajax the Great (or Telamonius) and of
Teucer, the celebrated archer. He was one of the Argonauts, and took
part in the Calydonian boar hunt.
=Telegonus= (_te-leg´on-us_).--Son of Ulysses and Circe. He killed his
father without knowing it. See “Ulysses.”
=Telemachus= (_tē-lem´ak-us_).--Son of Ulysses (_q.v._) and Penelope.
=Telephus= (_tē´le-fus_).--Son of Hercules and king of Mysia. He married
Laodice, daughter of Priam, king of Troy. He was wounded by the spear of
Achilles, but was afterward cured by its rust.
=Tenedos= (_ten´e-dos_).--A small island in the Ægean Sea, off the coast
of Troas. Hither the Greeks brought their fleet when they pretended to
sail away from Troy (_q.v._).
=Tereus= (_tē´rūs_).--Son of Mars, king of Thrace and husband of Procne,
by whom he became the father of Itys. He hid Procne and married
Philomela (q.v.). Procne killed her son Itys and served him up in a dish
to Tereus. She then fled with her sister Philomela. Procne was
afterwards changed into a swallow, Philomela into a nightingale, and
Tereus into a hawk.
=Terpsichore.=--See “Musæ.”
=Tethys= (_tē´this_).--Wife of Oceanus and mother of the sea-nymphs and
sea-gods.
=Teucer= (_tū´ser_).--(i) Brother of Ajax the Great, and the most
skillful archer among the Greeks before Troy. (ii) The first king of
Troy: whence the Trojans are sometimes called Teucri.
=Thalia.=--See “Musæ.”
=Themis= (_them´is_).--The goddess of justice and of prophecy. She is
generally represented holding a cornucopia and a pair of scales.
=Thersites= (_ther-sī´tēz_).--A Greek before Troy, notorious for his
ugliness and scurrility. He was killed by Achilles.
=Theseus= (_thē´sūs_).--The great legendary hero of Attica; was the son
of Ægeus, king of Athens, and of Æthra. He went of his own accord as
part of the yearly tribute of Athens to the Minotaur (_q.v._). Ariadne,
the daughter of Minos, however, fell in love with the hero, and gave him
a sword wherewith he slew the monster, and a clue of threads by means of
which he found his way out of the labyrinth. Theseus then sailed away in
company with Ariadne, but he abandoned her (see “Ariadne”) in the island
of Naxos. When approaching Attica, he forgot to hoist the white sail, as
a token of success, and so caused the death of his father (see “Ægeus”).
Theseus thus became king of Athens. His life was full of adventure. He
was an Argonaut, and took part in the Calydonian boar hunt. His
friendship with Pirithous is proverbial. He even accompanied Pirithous
into the lower world with the object of carrying off Proserpine (see
“Pirithous”). On his return from the lower world he found himself unable
to re-establish himself as king of Athens, and retired to the island of
Scyros, where he was killed by Lycomedes, the king, who treacherously
thrust him down a rock.
=Thetis= (_thet´is_).--A sea-nymph; daughter of Nereus and Doris, wife
of Peleus and mother of Achilles. At her wedding with Peleus occurred
the celebrated incident of the Golden Apple (see “Paris”).
=Thisbe= (_this´be_).--A beautiful maiden of Babylon, beloved by Pyramus
(_pi´ra-mus_).--Their parents being averse to their union, they used to
converse secretly through a hole in the wall, as they lived in adjoining
houses. Once they agreed to meet at the tomb of Ninus. Thisbe arrived
first, but perceiving a lioness devouring an ox, she took flight. While
running she lost her garment, which the lioness seized and soiled with
blood. Meanwhile Pyramus came on the scene, and finding her garment
soiled with blood, he imagined that she had been slain, and killed
himself. Thisbe returned later, and finding the dead body of her lover
killed herself also.
=Thor.=--In Scandinavian mythology the eldest son of Odin and Frigga;
strongest and bravest of the gods. He launched the thunder, presided
over the air and the seasons, and protected man from lightning and evil
spirits. His wife was Sif (“love”); his chariot was drawn by two
he-goats; his mace or hammer was called Mjolner; his belt was
Megin-giord, and whenever he put it on his strength was doubled; his
palace, Thrudvangr, contained five hundred and forty halls; Thursday is
Thor’s day. This word means “refuge from terror.”
=Thyone= (_thi-ō´nē_).--The name given to Semele when she was brought
from the lower world by her son Bacchus and placed among the immortals.
=Tiresias= (_tī-res´i-as_).--A celebrated blind soothsayer of Thebes. He
was blind from his seventh year; but lived to a great age. He was one of
the most famous soothsayers in all antiquity.
=Tiryns= (_tī´rins_).--A town in Argolis; one of the most ancient in all
Greece, where Hercules was brought up. Remains of the city are still to
be seen.
=Tisiphone.=--See “Furiæ.”
=Titanes= (_tī-tā´nēz_).--The Titans; the six sons and six daughters of
Uranus (Heaven) and Ge (Earth), who contended with Jupiter for the
sovereignty of heaven, but were overcome by him and precipitated into
Tartarus.
=Tithonus= (_tī-thō´nus_).--Son of Laomedon and brother of Priam. He was
beloved by the goddess Aurora, who endowed him with immortality, but not
with eternal youth. Consequently, with the gradual decay of nature, he
became at length a decrepit old man, whose immortality with
ever-weakening physical vigor became a terrible burden to him. Aurora
eventually changed him into a grasshopper.
=Trimurti.=--The name of the Hindu triad of deities; or Brahma, Vishnu,
and Siva united in one god-head, and spoken of as an inseparable unity.
=Triptolemus= (_trip-tol´em-us_).--Son of Celeus, king of Eleusis. He
was the favorite of Ceres, and the inventor of the plow and agriculture:
hence introduced civilization, which follows the latter. He introduced
the worship of Ceres.
=Triton= (_trī´ton_).--A sea-god; son of Neptune, who blows through a
shell to calm the sea. He is represented with a man’s head and body, the
lower part being that of a fish.
=Troas= (_trō´as_).--The region about Troy (or Ilium), forming one of
the five parts into which Mysia, a district occupying the northwest
corner of Asia Minor, was divided. Troas is frequently called _The
Troad_.
=Troilus= (_trō´il-us_).--Son of Priam and Hecuba; slain by Achilles.
=Troja= (_trō´ja_), or =Troy=, called by the Greeks =Ilium=
(_ī´li-um_).--A city of Asia Minor, situated in the Troad, famous for
its ten years’ siege by the Greeks. The name Troy was derived from king
Tros (_trōs_), who gave his name originally to the district (Troas) and
the people; Ilium from Ilus, son of Tros, who founded the city--which,
however, was also called, after his father, Troy. The Trojan war forms
the subject of Homer’s immortal poem, the _Iliad_. The history of this
celebrated war may be briefly told as follows: The war arose from the
abduction of Helen, wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta, and the most
beautiful woman of her time, by Paris, son of Priam, king of Troy. The
cause of her abduction is given under “Paris” and “Helen.” All the
chiefs of Greece, who had been former suitors of Helen, joined Menelaus
in an expedition to Troy to bring her back. They accordingly massed all
their forces and sailed for the coast of Troas. Even the gods took an
active part in the contest: Juno and Minerva, owing to the judgment of
Paris, were hostile to the Trojans, and accordingly sided with the
Greeks; while Venus, to whom Paris had awarded the golden apple, took
the side of the Trojans. The innumerable incidents of the siege itself
must be passed over; only the remarkable way in which, after a ten
years’ siege, the city was finally taken, must be told. The city
contained an ancient statue of Pallas (_i. e._ Minerva), called the
Palladium, (_q.v._) on the preservation of which the safety of the city
was supposed to depend. Accordingly the Greeks make a night attack on
Troy, and Ulysses and Diomedes succeeded in carrying off this Palladium.
A little later the Greeks returned to their ships and sailed away,
pretending that they had relinquished the siege. On the plain before the
city, however, they left behind them the celebrated _wooden horse_, the
invention of Ulysses, which was hollowed out in the interior
sufficiently to admit of the presence of its wily inventor and a few
other heroes within it. Meanwhile Sinon, a relation of Ulysses, had
allowed himself to be taken prisoner by the Trojans, and then persuaded
them to draw this wooden horse, which he pretended was an atonement for
the Palladium, into the city. They foolishly believed him and dragged
the horse into the city, and in the dead of night Sinon let the Greeks
out of the horse, and they at once set fire to the city. Meanwhile the
main body of the Greeks, who had gone no farther than the island of
Tenedos, returned and rushed through the gates of the city, opened by
their friends within, and in this way the city was taken. The date most
generally accepted for the capture of Troy is B. C. 1184.
=Trolls.=--Dwarfs of Northern mythology, living in hills or mounds; they
are represented as stumpy, misshapen, and humpbacked, inclined to
thieving, and fond of carrying off children or substituting one of their
own offspring for that of a human mother. They are called hill-people,
and are especially averse to noise, from a recollection of the time when
Thor used to fling his hammer after them.
=Tydeus= (_tī´dēs_).--Son of Œneus, king of Calydon, and father of
Diomedes, who was one of the principal Greek heroes at the Trojan war.
Hence Diomedes is often called by his patronymic Tydides (_ti-dī´dēz_).
=Tyndareus= (_tin´dar-ūs_).--King of Sparta and husband of Leda. He
invited Menelaus to come to Sparta, and handed over the kingdom to him.
=Typhoeus= (_ti-fō´ūs_), or =Typhon= (_ti´fon_).--A giant who wished to
acquire the sovereign power over gods and men, but was overcome with a
thunderbolt from Jupiter and buried under Mount Ætna.
=Tyr.=--In Norse mythology, a warrior deity, and the protector of
champions and brave men; he was also noted for his sagacity. When the
gods wished to bind the wolf Fenrir, Tyr put his hand into the demon’s
mouth as a pledge that the bonds should be removed again. But Fenrir
found that the gods had no intention of keeping their word, and revenged
himself in some degree by biting the hand off. Tyr was the son of Odin
and brother of Thor.
=U=
=Ulin.=--An enchantress, who had no power over those who remained
faithful to Allah and their duty; but if any fell into error or sin, she
had full power to do as she liked. Thus, when Misnar (sultan of India)
mistrusted the protection of Allah, she transformed him into a toad.
When the Vizier Horam believed a false report, obviously untrue, she
transformed him also into a toad. And when the Princess Hemjunah, to
avoid a marriage projected by her father, ran away with a stranger, her
indiscretion placed her in the power of the enchantress, who transformed
her likewise into a toad. Ulin was ultimately killed by Misnar, sultan
of Delhi, who felled her to the ground with a blow.
=Ulysses= (_ū-lis´ēz_), or =Ulixes= (_u-lix´ēz_); called =Odysseus=
(_od-is´sūs_) by the Greeks.--A king of Ithaca, famed among the Grecian
heroes of the Trojan war for his craft and eloquence; the son of
Laertes, husband of Penelope, and father of Telemachus and Telegonus (by
Circe). In order to escape from going with the other Greek heroes
against Troy, he feigned madness, ploughing the sea-shore with a horse
and bull yoked together and sowing salt. The imposture, however, was
laid bare by Palamedes (_q.v._), who placed Telemachus, the infant son
of Ulysses, in the furrow, when the latter at once turned aside the
plough; but the wily Ulysses had his revenge on Palamedes. Ulysses, in
his turn, sought out and obtained the indispensable assistance of
Achilles (_q.v._). At the siege of Troy his cunning and valor were of
the greatest service to the Greeks. In company with Diomedes he slew the
horses of Rhesus, and also carried off the Palladium (_q.v._). Perhaps
the crowning effort of his ingenuity was the invention of the famous
wooden horse, by means of which the city of Troy (_q.v._) was ultimately
taken by the Greeks. After the taking of Troy Ulysses set out for
Ithaca, which, however, he did not reach for twenty years. During this
time he passed through the adventures which form the subject of Homer’s
glorious poem, the _Odyssey_, which takes its name from Odysseus, the
Greek name for Ulysses. He thus visited Circe (_q.v._), Polyphemus
(_q.v._), the Lotophagi, and other persons and places. In order to get
safely past the island of the Sirens, he, with his usual sagacity,
devised special means, which proved entirely successful (see “Sirens”).
He lost six of his companions while sailing between Scylla (_q.v._) and
Charybdis. He then suffered shipwreck, he alone escaping by means of the
mast and planks. In ten days he was drifted on to the island of Ogygia,
inhabited by Calypso (_q.v._), with whom he stayed for eight years. He
then constructed a raft, and made his way to the island of Scheria
(_q.v._), whence he obtained a ship that carried him to Ithaca. He did
not, however, make himself known at once to his wife and son. In order
to see how the land lay, he disguised himself as a beggar, but was
kindly received by the old swineherd. Meanwhile his son Telemachus, now
grown up to manhood, returned from a journey to Pylos and Sparta,
undertaken with a view to gleaning what information he could as to the
probable whereabouts of his father. Ulysses then made himself known to
Telemachus, and the two resolved on a plan of revenge on the numerous
unfortunate suitors for the hand of the virtuous and constant Penelope
(_q.v._). With great difficulty she was induced (being, as yet, unaware
of the safe arrival of her husband) to promise her hand to that suitor
who could shoot with the bow of Ulysses. Not one of them, however, was
able to draw this bow, whereupon Ulysses himself took it up and slew
them all. He then made himself known to Penelope, and went to see his
father Laertes, bowed down with grief and years. Now Circe, who had had
a son, Telegonus, by Ulysses, sent him in search of his father.
Telegonus encountered a storm which cast his ship on the coast of
Ithaca, and being pressed by hunger, he began to plunder the fields.
Ulysses and Telemachus hearing of this, went out against the spoliator;
but Telegonus, not knowing Ulysses, ran him through the body with a
spear given to him by his mother. Thus the famous hero died at the hands
of his own son. Telegonus afterwards married Penelope, and became by her
the father of Italus.
=Urania= (_ū-rā´ni-a_).--The muse of astronomy. See “Musæ.”
=Uranus= (_ū´ra-nus_), or =Heaven=.--Husband of Gæa (Earth), and father
of Oceanus, Hyperion, Rhea, Themis, Cronos, and other children. At the
instigation of Gæa he was dethroned by Cronos.
=Utgard-Loki.=--The chief of the giants, in Norse mythology.
=V=
=Varuna=, or =Vrauna=.--In Hindu mythology, the deity who presides over
the waters of the ocean, corresponding with _Neptune_ of classic
mythology.
=Valhalla.=--In Scandinavian mythology the palace of immortality wherein
are received the souls of heroes slain in battle.
=Valkyrs.=--The battle-maidens of Scandinavian mythology. They were
mounted on swift horses and held drawn swords. They rushed into battle
and selected those destined to death and conducted them to Valhalla. The
number of Valkyrs differs greatly according to the various mythologists
and ranges from three to sixteen, the greater part of them, however,
naming only nine.
=Venus= (_vē´nus_); called by the Greeks =Aphrodite=
(_af-ro-dī´tē_)--_i. e._ “sea-foam.”--The goddess of love and beauty.
She was supposed to have sprung from the foam of the sea: hence her
Greek name. She was the wife of Vulcan, but was very unfaithful to him.
She loved the gods Mars, Bacchus, Neptune and Mercury, and the mortals
Adonis and Anchises. She was considered by Paris (_q.v._) the most
beautiful of the goddesses and had awarded to her the celebrated Golden
Apple. Anyone who wore her magic girdle immediately became beautiful and
the object of love and desire. She is generally accompanied by her son
Cupid. The month of April, as the commencement of spring, was considered
peculiarly sacred to the goddess of love. The myrtle, rose, apple and
poppy, and the sparrow, dove, swan and swallow, were all sacred to her.
She was probably originally identical with Astarte, a Syrian goddess,
called by the Hebrews Ashtoreth. As might have been anticipated, the
representation of the Queen of Beauty on canvas and in marble has
resulted in some of the finest works of the most celebrated painters and
sculptors of antiquity. Among the former, Apelles’ masterpiece of Venus
rising from the sea deserves special mention; and among the latter the
“Cnidian Venus” (so called because it stood in her temple at Cnidus), by
Praxiteles, is unquestionably the most famous. Phryne (_q.v._) sat as
model for both of these noble works of art. The fame of the “Cnidian
Venus” was so great that travelers from all parts of the civilized world
resorted to Cnidus in order to see it. In fact, Pliny and others
declared it to be the finest statue in the world. The “Venus of Milo”
is, however, the noblest extant representation of Venus. It was found,
in 1820, in the island of Melos, the modern Milo (hence the epithet),
which is one of the group of islands named the Cyclades, in the Ægean
Sea. It now forms one of the treasures of the Louvre, Paris.
=Vertumnus= (_ver-tum´nus_).--The god of the changing year--that is, of
the seasons and their productions. His festival was celebrated by the
whole Roman people on the 23rd of August.
=Vesta= (_ves´ta_); called by the Greeks =Hestia= (_hes´ti-a_)--_i. e._
“the hearth.”--One of the twelve great Roman deities, the goddess and
guardian of the hearth and home. She was the daughter of Saturn and
Rhea. In her temple in the Forum at Rome stood no statue, the goddess
being represented by the eternal fire burning on her altar as her
abiding symbol. This fire was kept up and attended to by a number of
virgin priestesses, called Vestals, who were chaste and pure like the
goddess herself. On March 1 in every year the sacred fire was renewed,
and on June 15 her temple was cleaned and purified.
=Vidar.=--The Scandinavian god of wisdom, noted for his thick shoes, and
not infrequently called “The god with the thick shoes.”
=Vishnu.=--In Hindu mythology one of the great deities of the Hindu
triad, ranking as the _Preserver_, after Brahma, the _Creator_, and
before Siva, the _Destroyer_. It is believed that he has appeared on
earth nine times, his tenth _avatar_, or incarnation, having yet to
come.
=Volumnia= (_vol-um´ni-a_).--Wife of Coriolanus (_q.v._).
=Vulcanus= (_vul-kā´nus_), or =Vulcan=; called =Hephæstus=
(_hē-fēs´tus_) by the Greeks. The god of fire. He was the son of Jupiter
and Juno, and was lame from his birth. Besides being the god of fire, he
was master of the arts which need the aid of fire, especially of working
in metal. He made all the palaces of the gods on Olympus, the armor of
Achilles, the fatal necklace of Harmonia, the fire-breathing and
brazen-hoofed bulls of Æëtes (see “Argonautæ”), etc. The Cyclops were
his workmen, and his workshops were situated under Mount Ætna in Sicily.
Vulcan’s wife was Venus. His favorite abode on the earth was the island
of Lemnos. His great festival was celebrated on the 23rd of August.
=W=
=White Lady.=--In German folk-lore, the ancient Teutonic goddess Holda
or Berchta, who was the receiver of the souls of maidens and children,
and who still exists as the White Lady, not infrequently, in German
legends, transforming herself, or those whom she decoys into her home,
into a white mouse.
=Wild Huntsman, The.=--A spectral hunter in folk-lore, especially in
German folk-lore; the subject of a ballad by Bürger.
=Woden= (_wō´den_), or =Wotan=.--The Anglo-Saxon form of the
Scandinavian god Odin; Wednesday is called after him.
=Y=
=Yama.=--In the _Rigveda_, the name of the god who rules in heaven over
the blessed--the Manes, Fathers, or Pitris--and is therefore called
king.
=Yggdrasil.=--In Scandinavian mythology the great ash tree which binds
together heaven, earth, and hell. Its branches extend over the whole
earth, its top reaches heaven, and its roots hell. The three nornas, or
fates, sit under the tree, spinning the events of man’s life.
=Z=
=Zem.=--The sacred well of Mecca. According to Arab tradition, this is
the very well that was shown to Hagar when with Ishmael in the desert.
It is supposed to be in the heart of the city of Mecca.
=Zephyrus= (_zef´i-rus_).--The west wind, or properly, the northwest.
=Zeus= (_zūs_).--See “Jupiter.”
=Zohak.=--The giant of Persian mythology who keeps the “mouth of hell.”
He was the fifth of the Pischdadian dynasty, and was a lineal descendant
of Shedâd, king of Ad. He murdered his predecessor, and invented both
flaying men alive and killing them by crucifixion. The devil kissed him
on the shoulders, and immediately two serpents grew out of his back and
fed constantly upon him. He was dethroned by the famous blacksmith of
Ispahan, and appointed by the devil to keep hell-gate.
=Zohara.=--An oriental queen of love, and mother of mischief. When Harût
and Marût were selected by the host of heaven to be judges on earth,
they judged righteous judgment till Zohara, in the shape of a lovely
woman, appeared before them with her complaint. They then both fell in
love with her and tried to corrupt her, but she flew from them to
heaven; and the two angel-judges were forever shut out.
=Zulzul.=--According to Chinese mythology the sage whose life was saved
in the form of a rat by Gedy, the youngest of the four sons of Corcud.
Zulzul gave him, in gratitude, two poniards, by the help of which he
could climb the highest tree or most inaccessible castle.
=EXPLANATORY CHART OF GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY: SHOWING THE ORIGIN,
RELATIONSHIP AND DESCENT OF CHIEF MYTHS=
The relationship of these mythical personages are quite unlike those
of mortals and are full of inconsistencies. To reconcile all the
contradictions of the poets and mythologists is impossible. Perhaps
this chart is as consistent with their fabulous tales as can well be
made.
CHAOS Produced EREBUS, god of _darkness_, NOX, goddess of _night_, and
TERRA, _Earth_.
TERRA or TITÆA produced CŒLUS or URANUS, _Heaven_.
CŒLUS or URANUS, i.e. _Heaven_, and TERRA or TITÆA, i.e. _Earth_. had
|
+->=TITAN= Oldest of the twelve Titans.
|
+->=THE CYCLOPS= Giants, at first three in number: Arges, Brontes,
| Steropes.
|
+->=BRIAREUS= A famous giant called by men Ægæon, and by the gods
| Braireus.
|
+->=TETHYS= Wife of _Oceanus_; for offspring, see =Oceanus=.
|
+->=THEA= Wife of _Hyperion_; the mother of rivers, and of about three
| thousand daughters, called _Ocean´i-des_.
|
+->=SATURN= or =Cronos=, god of Time, had by _Rhea_ same as _Ops_,
| same as _Cybele_.
| |
| +->=JUNO=, wife and sister of Jupiter, queen of the gods, and of
| | Heaven and Earth.
| |
| +->=JUPITER= or =Zeus=, the most powerful of all the gods; king of
| | gods and men, had
| | |
| | +->_By Them´is._
| | | |
| | | +->=Astræa=, the goddess of _justice_;
| | | |
| | | +->=Nemesis=, of _vengeance_.
| | |
| | +->_By Juno._
| | | |
| | | +->=Mars=, the god of _war_; by _Venus_, Anteros, Harmonia;
| | | | the goddess of _youth_; once cupbearer to Jupiter.
| | | |
| | | +->=Hebe=, by her husband _Hercules_, Alexiares and Anicetus.
| | | |
| | | +->=Typhon=, by the monster _Echidna_, Chimæra and Sphinx.
| | | |
| | | +->=Vulcan=, the god of _fire_ and of _blacksmiths_, and
| | | husband of Venus; by his wife _Venus_, Cupid; by
| | | _Medusa_, Cacus, by _Juno_, Cæculus.
| | |
| | +->_By Lato´na._
| | | |
| | | +->=Apollo=, the god of _poetry_, _music_, _eloquence_,
| | | | _medicine_, _the fine arts_, _augury_, and _archery_.
| | | |
| | | +->=Diana=, the goddess of _hunting_, the patroness of
| | | chastity, presided also over childbirth.
| | |
| | +->_By Ma´ia._
| | | |
| | | +->=Mercury=, the _messenger_ of the gods, the god of
| | | _eloquence_ and _commerce_, the patron of _travellers_,
| | | _thieves_, and _knaves_, and the conductor of the souls of
| | | the dead to the infernal regions. By _Penelope_, Pan. By
| | | the Greeks he was called _Hermes_.
| | |
| | +->_By Mnemos´y-ne._
| | | |
| | | +->=The Nine Muses.=
| | | |
| | | +->_Cli´o_ presided over History. }
| | | | }
| | | +->_Calli´o-pe_ presided over }
| | | | eloquence and epic poetry. }
| | | | }
| | | +->_Er´ato_ presided over lyric }
| | | | and amorous poetry. }
| | | | }
| | | +->_Thali´a_ presided over }
| | | | pastoral and comic poetry and }
| | | | festivals. }
| | | | }See
| | | +->_Melpom´e-ne_ presided over }Dictionary of
| | | | tragedy. }Mythology.
| | | | }
| | | +->_Terpsich´o-re_ presided over }
| | | | dancing. }
| | | | }
| | | +->_Euter´pe_ presided over music.}
| | | | }
| | | +->_Polyhym´nia_ presided over }
| | | | singing and rhetoric. }
| | | | }
| | | +->_Ura´nia_ presided over }
| | | astronomy. }
| | |
| | +->_By Euryn´o-me._
| | | |
| | | +->=Graces.=
| | | |
| | | +->_Agla´ia_ }Three beautiful virgins, attendants on
| | | | }Venus; presided over kindness and good
| | | +->_Thali´a_ }offices, and were supposed to give to
| | | | }beauty its charms; represented dancing
| | | +->_Euphros´y-ne_}in a circle with their hands joined.
| | |
| | +->_By Sem´e-le._
| | | |
| | | +->=Bacchus=, god of _wine_; by his wife _Ariadne_, Thoas,
| | | Œnopion, Ceranus, Tauropolis, and others.
| | |
| | +->_By Metis._
| | | |
| | | +->=Minerva=, the goddess of _wisdom_, _war_, and the
| | | _liberal and useful arts_.
| | |
| | +->_By Dione._
| | | |
| | | +->=Venus=, said to have been borne in the foam of the sea;
| | | the goddess of _love_ and _beauty_, and mistress of the
| | | graces; wife of _Vulcan_; for offspring, see =Vulcan=.
| | |
| | +->_By Ceres._
| | | |
| | | +->=Pros´erpine=, wife of Pluto, _queen_ of hell, presided
| | | over death. She was stolen away by Pluto while gathering
| | | flowers in Sicily, and became the mother of the Fates and
| | | Furies, which see under Dictionary.
| | |
| | +->_By Euro´pa._
| | | |
| | | +->=Minos=, =Rhadamanthus=, and =Æ´acus=, three inflexible
| | | judges of Hades.
| | |
| | +->_By Leda._ }
| | | | }
| | | +->=Castor= and =Pollux=. }
| | | }
| | +->_By Dan´a-e._ }
| | | | }See Dictionary
| | | +->=Per´seus.= }of Mythology.
| | | }
| | +->_By Anti´o-pe._ }
| | | | }
| | | +->=Amphi´on= and =Zethus=.}
| | |
| | +->_By Segesta._
| | | |
| | | +->=Æolus=, whose offspring were the various Winds.
| | |
| | +->_By Alcmena._
| | |
| | +->=Hercules=, whose descendants were the Heraclidæ.
| |
| +->=VESTA=, the goddess of _fire_, and patroness of _Vestal
| | Virgins_, who had the care of the sacred fire in the temple of
| | Vesta at Rome, which was kept continually burning.
| |
| +->=CERES=, the goddess of _corn_ and _harvest_. The famous
| | _Eleusinian mysteries_ were celebrated in honor of Ceres, during
| | the representation of which it was death to speak; as it was
| | also to reveal afterwards what took place.
| |
| +->=LATONIA=, celebrated for her beauty, and for being greatly
| | beloved by Jupiter and persecuted by Juno.
| |
| +->=NEPTUNE=, the god of the _sea_, the father of rivers and
| | fountains, and, next to Jupiter, the most powerful deity; had by
| | _Amphitrite_, TRITON, his father’s companion and herald.
| |
| +->=PLUTO=, the god of the _infernal regions_, of _death_ and
| _funerals_; the dog _Cer´berus_, a frightful mastiff with three
| heads, and a tail like a serpent, watches at his feet, and three
| _Har´pies_, winged monsters, hover about him.
|
+->=MNEMOSYNE= Mother of the nine _Muses_.
|
+->=THEMIS= Mother of Astræa, goddess of Justice.
|
+->=CYBELE= OPS or RHEA, wife of _Saturn_; the goddess of _all
| things_; styled _Magna Mater_ or _Great Mother_, _Bona Mater_ or
| _Good Mother_; for off-spring, see =Saturn=.
|
+->=OCEANUS= The god of water, to whom the ancients recommended
| themselves when going on a voyage, had by Tethys.
| |
| +->AMPHITRITE had by _Neptune_ TRITON, who had no offspring.
| |
| +->CYLMENE had by _Japetus_ ATLAS, also Menœtius, Prometheus,
| | Epimetheus, and others.
| |
| +->PHORCYS had by _Ceto_ {The Gorgons, viz., Medusa,
| | {Stheno, and Euryale; three
| | {sisters whose heads were covered
| | {with vipers.
| | {The Graiæ, viz., Pephredo, Enyo,
| | {and Dinon.
| |
| +->ACHELOUS had by _Calliope_. The _Sirens_ were three sea
| | nymphs, named _Parthen´ope_,
| | _Lige´ia_, and _Leuco´sia_, having
| | the form of a woman above the
| | waist, and the rest of the body
| | like a flying fish.
| |
| +->The Harpies, viz., Aello, Ocypete, and Celæus.
|
+->=HYPERION=, god of the Sun, had by _Thea_, AURORA, the goddess of
| the _morning_; represented riding in a rose-colored chariot drawn
| by white horses, usually covered with a veil, the morning star
| appearing overhead. She was called _rosy-fingered_, because she
| scattered roses; by _Tithon´us_, a mortal, she had Memnon and
| Æmathion.
|
+->=JAPETUS=, father of mankind, had by _Clymene_, ATLAS, also
Prometheus, Epimetheus, Menœtius, and others, called _Japitonides_.
}_Nox_ or _Night_, _Mors_ or _Death_,
EREBUS } {Light, or Day,}_Somnus_ or _Sleep_, and _Morpheus_ (the
and }had{Somnus, Mors, }minister of Somnus, who brought dreams to
NOX } {and Charon, }men) were infernal divinities.
{the Ferryman }_Momus_, god of laughter and satire, son of
}Somnus and Nox.
Ancient Roman Sun-god--=Janus=, the god of the _year_, presided over
the gates of heaven, and over peace and war; represented with two
faces. His temple in Rome was open in time of war and shut in time of
peace.
[Illustration: =SCREENS OF LIGHT CAST BY INVISIBLE ATOMS=
=IMMENSELY ENLARGED REPRESENTATIONS OF ATOMS=
=(1) of Ordinary Matter; (2) of Radium=]
[Illustration: Here is seen an invisible speck of radium throwing out
invisible atoms that sparkle into sight on a film. This stream of atoms
will pour forth for 2500 years before the radium ceases to exist, thus
showing the marvelous energy stored up in the smallest particle. These
flying particles fall on the screen or film like hailstones splashing on
the surface of water, and the splash is visible, while the radium itself
and flying atoms are not. This is the nearest men have yet come to
seeing an actual atom.]