God of the Underworld: Hades

This Article was written by Paul Mestermann, Year 7- as part of his series: Mythical Mondays

Hades is the ruler of the life beyond death; a place where old souls go to rest (or not,) also known as 'the Underworld.'

Out of all the godly children from Cronus and Rhea, Hades was the first male to be born. And like his brothers, he was also swallowed by his father. Asides from immortality, keeper of the souls and having the ability to restore life to the dead or dying; Hades can also turn invisible by wearing a helmet called 'The Helm of Darkness.' He is supported by his three- headed watchdog, Cerberus.

Regarding his love life, only had one proper godly consort; Persephone. However out of the three brothers, Hades had the least amount of love affairs. The ones that he had, he did not try to hide and they did not dare bother Persephone. The only time one did, was when the nymph Minthe bragged to Persephone how she was more beautiful than her and how she would win Hades back. As a result of this, Persephone turned Minthe into the first mint leaf. Although at the beginning it was more of a forced marriage; Persephone soon grew to love Hades, who treated her with compassion and love. With her, Hades had a daughter named Melinoë.

Key Characteristics:

• Creative

• Risk taker

• Resilient

• Powerful

• Cunning

If he were an animal, he would be:

A Screech Owl as it is his sacred animal

If he were a Disney princess:

Snow White

If he were a country, he would be:

The Congo Free State because it has the darkest history

Mythical Tale:

One day, Hades saw the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Demeter, Persephone, picking flowers in a field in Sicily. The God then carried her off in his chariot to his Kingdom in the Underworld. When Persephone was found missing, her mother Demeter started searching for her. After she realized that Persephone was taken to the underworld, she protested the abduction by not letting the crops grow. Back then, food was not an issue but when Demeter stopped caring for her crops the food supply became scarce. As a result of this, some of the gods tried to convince Demeter to let them grow again but she refused. She said that she’ll only grow crops again if she got her daughter back. Knowing that food was becoming an issue, Zeus sent Hermes to tell Hades to let Persephone go. Hades knew that this was a demand that he had to follow, but before she left, Hades fed her the seeds of a pomegranate (the fruit of the underworld,) and as a result to this, she was tied to the underworld and to Hades.

*KEY* Characters mentioned:

Persephone (Goddess of vegetation), Minthe (Naiad-nymph of Mount Mintha), Melinoë (Goddess of propitiation), Demeter (Goddess of harvest), Hermes (God of travel).