God of Love in Greek Mythology

Eros is the god of love in Greek mythology. By the way, it is on his behalf that the modern word "erotic" takes place. After a while, the god of love began to be called Cupid or Cupid, although this, in principle, is one and the same. Eros is the permanent companion of the goddess Aphrodite.

Basic information about the god of love Eros

Initially, Eros was a handsome man with a magnificent torso and wings behind him. A little later, the Greeks themselves turned him into a plump child. On some images the god of love is represented on horseback on a dolphin or a lion. The invariable attributes of Eros are a quiver, a bow and arrows. It is important that the golden arrows were of two kinds: variants with the dove feathers at the end caused instant love, and arrows with owl feathers led to indifference. Eros sent love , both to ordinary people, and to the gods of Olympus. The Greek god of love had one so-called lack - he always acted like a child, without thinking about his decisions. That is why often his arrows caused feelings where there is absolutely no need.

On some images Eros is presented with blindfolds, which confirms the randomness of the choice and emphasizes the expression - "love is blind." The God of Love in Ancient Greece has its own holiday - the day of love and sexuality, which is celebrated on January 22.

There are several different versions explaining the appearance of Eros. The Greeks believed that his mother was Aphrodite, and the father of the god of war Ares. By the way, according to one legend, Zeus knew that Eros would bring many problems and troubles, so he wanted to kill him at birth. To save her son, Aphrodite hid him in the forest, where two lionesses raised the boy. The Romans had their own opinion, according to which the god of love was born Mars and Venus. In ancient legends there is information that Eros was born long before the birth of Aphrodite. He hatched from an egg, and is a child of Chaos. In ancient Greek mythology, the god of love was also considered the personification of life after death. In ancient times he was depicted on tombs.

The love story of Eros is very beautiful. His chosen one was the usual girl Psyche and to prove the strength of her feelings she had to go through many tests and eventually die. Eros resurrected his beloved, gave her immortality and made her a goddess. They had a daughter who was called Pleasure. According to the myths they had many more nameless children. Until now, the god of love among the Greeks has a special significance. It is depicted on various souvenir items and on jars with olive oil .