Her most famous lover, however, was the handsome and youthful mortal Adonis. Aphrodite was so attracted by his good looks that her jealous husband, Hephaestus, disguised himself as a boar and killed Adonis.
Aphrodite was the goddess of beauty and love. She was born out of the sea fully formed and riding a giant scallop shell. She had one husband and 8 consorts.
Paris chose Aphrodite, seduced by the prospect of Helen and her famed beauty. His elopement with the wife of Menelaos was the cause of the Trojan War. Two critical moments in this story are depicted on the Athenian vase shown below.
In Greek mythology, Adonis was a mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite and of Persephone. One day, Adonis was gored by a wild boar during a hunting trip and died in Aphrodite's arms as she wept. His blood mingled with her tears and became the anemone flower.
In Greek mythology, Psyche was a mortal woman whose beauty was so great that it rivaled that of the goddess Aphrodite. Aphrodite became so jealous of Psyche that she sent her son, Eros, to make Psyche fall in love with the ugliest man in the world.
Aphrodite later and of her own volition had an affair with Zeus, but his jealous wife Hera laid her hands upon the belly of the goddess and cursed their offspring with malformity. Their child was the ugly god Priapos.
Zeus begrudgingly agreed, and so Aphrodite was married off to Hephaestus. Unsurprisingly, Aphrodite was not happy about this trickery, as she had been dating Ares, God of War. This led to a very unhappy marriage with many affairs. Eventually, Hephaestus divorced Aphrodite.
Though married to Hephaestus, Aphrodite had an affair with Ares, the god of war. Eventually, Hephaestus discovered Aphrodite's affair through Helios, the all-seeing Sun, and planned a trap during one of their trysts.
Aphrodite and Anchises
Anchises was a young Trojan nobleman who tended to herds on Mount Ida. Zeus was angry at Aphrodite for making the gods, especially himself, fall in love with mortals and make fools of themselves pursuing them, so he caused Aphrodite to fall madly in love with Anchises.
Apollo was considered to be the most handsome of all the gods. He was always depicted as having long, golden hair – the same color as the sun. He was tall and had plenty of muscles. Even though he was depicted as being fairly calm, he had a temper, just like his father.
APHRODITE The goddess of love was seduced by Hermes with the help of Zeus and a stolen sandal. She bore him a son named Hermaphroditos. BRIMO A goddess of the underworld (probably Hekate), whose virginity was lost to Hermes on the banks of the Thessalian Lake Boibeis.
They say when it rains that it's tears for her children pouring down on to the island. ' So, Aphrodite's Tears refers to that watchful presence; a mother yearning for her son to find happiness and a family of his own.
(1) DIVINE OFFSPRING
DEIMOS The god of fear was a son of Ares and Aphrodite. EROS The winged boy god of love was a son of Aphrodite and her constant companion. (Some say the father was Ares, others that she was born pregnant with the child). EROTES The winged godlings of love were sons of Aphrodite.
The total number of Aphrodite's offspring is generally said to be fifteen, although some sources indicate a sixteenth: Tyche, goddess of fortune and luck. There are seven consorts listed as the fathers of these many children, including the gods Poseidon and Dionysus.
After Rhea refused to marry him, Zeus turned into a snake and raped her. Rhea became pregnant and gave birth to Persephone. Zeus in the form of a snake would mate with his daughter Persephone, which resulted in the birth of Dionysus.
Zeus finally became enamored of the goddess who was to become his permanent wife — Hera.
And Aphrodite, lover of smiles, went along.” Aphrodite soon discovered that she was pregnant, and so she revealed her true identity to Anchises. She warned him that he should not tell anyone about their relationship, but Anchises was too astonished. He excitedly told many people about his affair with Aphrodite.
She was married to Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, but Aphrodite had many lovers among the gods, as well as among mortal men. Her lovers included Ares, the god of war, and the mortal Anchises, a Trojan prince with whom she had a famous son, Aeneas.
Extensive research suggests he might have fathered an impressive 92 different children, which is quite a feat, even for the king of Greek gods.
Aphrodite's greatest weaknesses were her vanity, jealousy, and hate of anyone considered more beautiful than herself.
The name Psyche means "soul" and "butterfly" in Greek and was commonly referred to as such in Roman mythology as well, though direct translation is Anima (Latin word for "soul"). She was born a mortal woman eventually granted immortality, with beauty that rivaled even Aphrodite, goddess of love.
Aphrodite's Curse is about a dynasty's fall from grace, unrequited love and retribution. A powerful family is brought to ruin, the consequences unforeseen and irreparable. The trouble begins with King Minos who asks the gods for a bull to be sacrificed so that he may become ruler of Kretos and surrounding lands.
Aphrodite was compelled by Zeus to marry Hephaestus, the god of fire. However, they were an imperfect match, and Aphrodite consequently spent time cheating with the god of war, Ares, as well as a slew of mortal lovers, such as the Trojan nobleman Anchises and the youth Adonis.
Hermaphroditus, in Greek myth, was the son of Hermes and Aphrodite. The water-nymph Salmacis, seeing him bathing in a pool, fell in love with him and prayed that they might never be separated. The gods interpreted her request literally and joined the pair into one body.
Athena was an armed warrior goddess. The Parthenon at Athens was her most famous shrine. She never had a true lover or someone to hug and hold her; all she had was her loving mother, caring father and most of all her brothers and sisters.