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Eros
1st c. BCE marble from Pompeii. This statue is also known as Eros Centocelle, and is thought to be a copy of the collosal Eros of Thespiae, a work by Praxiteles.^[1]

Eros. Attic red-figure bobbin, ca. 470 BC–450 BC.

In Greek mythology, Eros (Greek: Ἔρως) was the primordial god of lust, love, and intercourse; he was also worshipped as a fertility deity. His Roman counterpart was Cupid. Eros' name is the root of words such as erotic. In some myths, he was the son of the deities Aphrodite and Ares, but according to Plato's Symposium he was conceived by Poros (Plenty) and Penia (Poverty) at Aphrodite's birthday. This explains the different aspects of love. Look up eros, Eros, EROS in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... The ancient Greeks proposed many different ideas about the primordial gods in their mythology. ... This article is about the race of Titans in Greek mythology. ... The Twelve Olympians by Monsiau, circa late 18th century. ... The ancient Greeks had a very small number of see gods. ... For other uses, see Chthon (disambiguation). ... Asclepius (Greek , transliterated AsklÄ“piós; Latin Aesculapius) is the demigod of medicine and healing in ancient Greek mythology. ... For the rock band, see Muse (band). ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... For other meanings, see Fate, a disambiguation page. ... In Greek mythology, Cratos (strength) was a son of Styx and Pallas, brother of Nike, Bia and Zelus. ... This Zelos is the Greek personification. ... This article discusses the Greek Goddess. ... In Greek mythology, Metis (wisdom or wise counsel) was a Titaness who was the first great spouse of Zeus, indeed his equal (Hesiod, Theogony 896) and the mother of Athena. ... For the game of graces, see Game of graces. ... In Greek mythology, the Oneiroi were the sons of Hypnos, the god of sleep. ... In Greek mythology, Adrasteia (inescapable; also spelled Adrastia, Adrastea, Adrestea) was a nymph who was charged by Rhea to raise Zeus in secret to protect him from his father Cronus (Krónos). ... Horae in Meyers, 1888 In Greek mythology, the Horae were three goddesses controlling orderly life. ... In Greek mythology, Bia (force) was the personification of force, daughter of Pallas and Styx. ... In Greek mythology, Eros was the god responsible for lust, love, and sex; he was also worshipped as a fertility deity. ... Daughter of Nyx in Greek mythology, Apate was the personification of deceit. ... In Greek mythology, Hesiod mentions Themis among the six sons and six daughters—of whom Cronos was one—of Gaia and Ouranos, that is, of Earth with Sky. ... Eris (ca. ... In Greek mythology, Thanatos (in Ancient Greek, θάνατος – Death) was the Daimon personification of Death and Mortality. ... In Greek mythology, Hypnos was the personification of sleep; the Roman equivalent was known as Somnus . ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1278x2694, 1102 KB) Summary Eros Marble Pompeiian statue ca. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1278x2694, 1102 KB) Summary Eros Marble Pompeiian statue ca. ... For other uses, see Pompeii (disambiguation). ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1940x1912, 2734 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Eros (mythology) Ancient Greek eros Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1940x1912, 2734 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Eros (mythology) Ancient Greek eros Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... The ancient Greeks proposed many different ideas about the primordial gods in their mythology. ... Look up Attraction in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Love (disambiguation). ... The word intercourse refers to: Look up intercourse in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article is about the Roman god. ... Eroticism is an aesthetic focused on sexual desire, especially the feelings of anticipation of sexual activity. ... The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient Greek god. ...

Like Dionysus, he was sometimes referred to as Eleutherios, "the liberator". His Roman equivalent was Cupid, "desire", also known as Amor, "love". According to tradition which was made by Eratosthenes, Eros was principally the patron of male love, while Aphrodite ruled the love between men and women. His statue could be found in the palaestrae or wrestling schools, one of the principal venues for men to associate with their beloveds, and it was to him that the Spartans sacrificed before battle. Meleager records this role in a poem preserved in the Greek Anthology: "a woman, hurls the fire that maddens men for women; but Eros himself sways the passion for males." (Mousa Paidiké, 86) Throughout Greek thought, there appear to be two sides to the conception of Eros; in the first, he is a primeval deity who embodies not only the force of erotic love but also the creative urge of ever-flowing nature, the firstborn Light for the coming into being and ordering of all things in the cosmos. In Hesiod's Theogony, the most famous Greek creation myth, Eros sprang forth from the primordial Chaos together with Gaia, the Earth, and Tartarus, the underworld; according to Aristophanes' play The Birds, he burgeons forth from an egg laid by Night conceived with Darkness. In the Eleusinian Mysteries, he was worshiped as Protogonus', the first-born. This article is about the ancient deity. ... A head of Minerva found in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath Roman mythology, the mythological beliefs of the people of Ancient Rome, can be considered as having two parts. ... This article is about the Roman god. ... Roman bronze bust, the so-called Pseudo-Seneca, now identified by some as possibly Hesiod Hesiod (Hesiodos, ) was an early Greek poet and rhapsode, who presumably lived around 700 BC. Hesiod and Homer, with whom Hesiod is often paired, have been considered the earliest Greek poets whose work has survived... Theogony (Greek: Θεογονία, theogonia = the birth of God(s)) is a poem by Hesiod describing the origins and genealogies of the gods of the ancient Greeks, composed circa 700 BC. The title of the work comes from the Greek words for god and seed. // Hesiods Theogony is a large-scale... A creation myth is a supernatural mytho-religious story or explanation that describes the beginnings of humanity, earth, life, and the universe (cosmogony),[1] usually as a deliberate act of creation by a supreme being. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Chaos. ... For other uses, see Gaia. ... This article is about the deity and the place in Greek mythology. ... For other uses, see Underworld (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Aristophanes (disambiguation). ... The Birds (Ornithes) is a comedy written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes in 414 BC, and performed that year for the Festival of Dionysus. ... The Eleusinian Mysteries (Greek: Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια) were initiation ceremonies held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at Eleusis in ancient Greece. ... In Greek mythology, Eros was the god responsible for lust, love, and sex; he was also worshipped as a fertility deity. ...

Alternately, later in antiquity, Eros was the son of Aphrodite and either Ares (most commonly), Hermes or Hephaestus, or of Porus and Penia, or sometimes of Iris and Zephyrus; this Eros was an attendant to Aphrodite, harnessing the primordial force of love and directing it into mortals. Worship of Eros was uncommon in early Greece, but eventually became widespread. He was fervently worshiped by a fertility cult in Thespiae, and played an important role in the Eleusinian Mysteries. In Athens, he shared a very popular cult with Aphrodite, and the fourth day of every month was sacred to him. The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient Greek god. ... For other uses, see Hermes (disambiguation). ... Hephaestus (pronounced or ; Greek Hēphaistos) was a Greek god whose Roman equivalent was Vulcan; he was the god of technology, blacksmiths, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metals and metallurgy, and fire. ... In Platos Symposium, Porus, or Poros, was the personification of expediency. ... In Platos Symposium, Penae was the personification of poverty. ... Iris, by Luca Giordano In Greek mythology, Iris is the personification of the rainbow and messenger of the gods. ... Zephyr and Hyakinth; Attic red figure cup from Tarquinia, circa 480 BCE. Boston Museum of Fine Arts. ... Thespiae (Greek Θεσπιαι, Thespiai) was an ancient Greek city in Boeotia. ... The Eleusinian Mysteries (Greek: Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια) were initiation ceremonies held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at Eleusis in ancient Greece. ... For other uses, see Athens (disambiguation). ...

Eros, very angry at the lovely Apollo for making fun of his archery skills, caused him to fall in love with the nymph Daphne, daughter of Ladon, who had scorned him. Daphne prayed to her father, the river god Peneus to help her escape Apollo and was changed into a laurel tree, which became sacred to Apollo. For other uses, see Apollo (disambiguation). ... Archery is the practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. ... In Greek mythology, a nymph is any member of a large class of female nature entities, either bound to a particular location or landform or joining the retinue of a god or goddess. ... This article is about the Greek mythological character. ... Ladon is the hundred-headed dragon that guarded the garden of the Hesperides in Greek mythology. ... In Greek mythology, Peneus (Πηνειός) was a river god, one of the three-thousand Rivers, a child of Oceanus and Tethys. ... Binomial name Laurus nobilis L. The Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis, Lauraceae), also known as True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, or just Laurel, is an evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 10–18 m tall, native to the Mediterranean region. ...

The story of Eros and Psyche has a longstanding tradition as a folktale of the ancient Greco-Roman world long before it was put to print; first seen in Apuleius' Latin novel, The Golden Ass, this is apparent and an interesting intermingling of character roles. The novel itself is picaresque Roman style, yet Psyche and Aphrodite retain their Greek parts. It is only Eros whose role hails from his part in the Roman pantheon. The Abduction of Psyche by William-Adolphe Bouguereau The tale of Eros and Psyche first appeared as a digressionary story told by an old woman in Lucius Apuleius novel, The Golden Ass, written in the second century CE. Apuleius probably used an earlier tale as the basis for his story... Lucius Apuleius (c. ... For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ... The Metamorphoses of Lucius Apuleius, which according to St. ... The Abduction of Psyche by William Bouguereau The tale of Cupid and Psyche first appeared as a digressionary story told by an old woman in Lucius Apuleius novel, The Golden Ass, written in the second century CE. Apuleius probably used an earlier folk-tale as the basis for his story...

The story is told as a digression and structural parallel to the main storyline of Apuleius' novel. It tells of the struggle for love and trust between Eros and Psyche, whose name is difficult to appropriately translate as it transcends both the Greek and Latin language, but can be taken to mean "soul", "mind" or rather both. Aphrodite is jealous of the beauty of mortal Psyche, as men are leaving her altars barren to worship a mere human woman instead, and so commands her son Eros to cause Psyche to fall in love with the ugliest creature on earth. Eros falls in love with Psyche himself and spirits her away to his home. Their fragile peace is ruined by a visit of Psyche's jealous sisters, who cause Psyche to betray the trust of her husband. Wounded, Eros departs from his wife and Psyche wanders the earth, looking for her lost love. In order to regain the trust and love that she cast away, Psyche must complete three tasks, one requiring descent to the underworld. By embracing the help of nature, she is successful and is received into the pantheon of gods as an immortal and reconciles with her mother-in-law. Eventually, she bears Eros a daughter, Hedone, whose name means "pleasure." Psyche's visit to and return from the underworld made her an object of some devotion, like Dionysus and Persephone. She was an object of some mystery religions and was occasionally mentioned in connection with the popular Eleusinian Mysteries. Hedonism is a word used to describe any way of thinking that gives pleasure a central role. ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... This article is about the Greek goddess. ... Mystery religions, or simply Mysteries, were belief systems of the Graeco-Roman world full admission to which was restricted to those who had gone through certain secret initiation rites. ...

Notes

References

• Bartsch, Shadi and Thomas Bartscherer, eds. Erotikon: Essays on Eros, Ancient and Modern. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
• Bataille, George Translated The Tears of Eros. Translated by Peter Connor. San Francisco: City Lights Books, 1989.
• Calame, Claude. The Poetics of Eros in Ancient Greece. Translated by Janet Lloyd. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1999.
• Carson, Anne. Eros the Bittersweet: An Essay. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1986.
• Nygren, Anders. Agap New York: and Eros. by Philip S. Watson.Harper and Row, 1969.
• Amatorius, 756 E-F: Plutarch's Citation of Parmenides and Hesiod Hubert Martin, Jr. The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 90, No. 2. (Apr., 1969), pp. 183-200.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Eros

• Anteros
• Himerus
• Greek words for love
• Eros (love)
• Love at first sight
• Cupid
• Kama
• Psyche
• Rene