hera

Hera is a title given to her by the Greeks; it means "Lady". She is depicted as a young lady, fully clad and of stunning beauty. She is often is wearing a high, cylindrical crown. She was born, according to the summarians, in the isle of Samos on the banks of the river Imbrasos near a water willow which still existed in the days of Pausanais. She had been raised in one legend, by Macris or by the daughters of the river of Asterion. Her childhood was spent on the isle of Euboa.

The first encounter between Hera and her husband Zeus, king of all the gods, was in the region of the Hesperides. Hera was not responding to his attempts to seduce her so he resorted to trickery that appealed to Hera's nurturing side. It was winter and Zeus turned himself into a cuckoo that appeared to be frozen from the cold. Hera, feeling sorry for the bird turned to her motherly instincts as she held the bird tightly to her breast to warm it. Zeus then turned himself back into his normal shape and took advantage of the surprised state Hera was in. Unable to fight him off, Hera was raped and then persuaded to marry him to cover her shame.

During the sacrifice that took place before the marriage, Hera was associated with Artemis and with the Morai. They both received the cuttings of hair that young girls sacrificed before them before a matrimony. On the day of Hera's wedding, Aphrodite joined them and brought Hermes, Peitho, and Charites. Hera holds first place among the three female powers that occupy a specific position in the marital area. The ritual depends on the necessary collusion with Artemis and Aphrodite alike.

There are varied stories on how the deity couple were married. In the ceremony of their marriage, the oldest tradition takes place in the Garden of Hesperides, which was the mystical symbol of fertility. This story said that Gaia gave Hera golden apples of the Hesperides . Hera, also known as Mother Earth in this story, found the apples so beautiful that she planted them in her garden on the shores of the ocean. The Iliad places the couple on the summit of Mount Ida in Phrygia. Other traditions place the mystic marriage in Euboea, where the god and goddess landed when they came from crete. The gods had faith in their marriage and believed that it would be long standing. Zeus and Hera had secretly coupled for several days before the ceremony while Cornus was still the ruler of the universe, before the war against the Titans. Other traditions place the marriage in Euboa, where the gods and goddesses landed when they arrived from Crete. As the first lawfully wedded wife among the gods, she was placed as the proectress of the deity of wives.

Hera cared for her beauty carefully. She went to bathe every year in the spring Canathus as Nauplia and renewed her virginity in the mystical waters. She was known as the "white armed goddess" and was irresistible when she fragranced her body with a lotion so sweet that it filled the whole universe with its fragrance. Athene had woven her a robe with art and she wore her earrings with three tear-dropped clusters, the robe clasped at her breast with a golden pin, and a white veil draping from her head, even Zeus could not resist saying "Never has my love for goddess or mortal so flooded my senses and filled my heart!"

Hera is queen of Olympus, sister and wife of Zeus, daughter of Cronis and Rhea, and mother of Ares, Hebe, Hephaestus, and Eileitha. As the eldest daughter of Cronus and Reah, Zeus was deemed to give her respect. Hera was associated with Zeus's sovereignty and became the chief feminine deity of Olympus. She sat on a golden thrown beside her husband and when she entered the congregation of all the gods, they all rose in reverence to her. On Olympus. Her marriage to Zeus had been the occasion of great rejoicing. All the Immortals had taken part in the procession and the Fates themselves had chanted the hymeneal chorus.

Hera depends a lot on Aphrodite, who is herself subject to her own law as she authorizes enforcement. On the pediment of marriage is inscribed the figure of Hera, "The Perfected One", in a stern, reigning figure. Her perfection does not come from her status as Zeus's wife, but from her exclusive competence in all that the word "telos" implies for a women. Hera was associated with Zeus because of their marriage was celebrated by all the gods in the legends. The power was viewed to be given to the bride, and not the husband. One cult went as far as to cal Zeus "Hera's Zeus"

Hera was not the first wife of Zeus. His first wife was Metis, goddess of wisdom. Hesoid believed that she knew more things than the gods and men put together. Themis was Zeus's second wife. She was the law that regulated both physical and moral order. Even after she was replaced by Hera, Themis continued to remain near Zeus as an advisor, and was always revered on Olympus. She was Zeus's official consort; her rage however, was a result of the dramatics that took place throughout their marriage.

In her role as the first lady of Olympus, she has an extremely difficult temper as she is always angered by Zeus's infidelities. She had always been filled with hatred and jealousy of her mate's children by others as well as her husband's infidelities. Zeus was not a faithful spouse and his many infidelities kept Hera in a constant rage. She often sought revenge with the bastard children if she could not hurt the woman first hand. Hera, protecting the deity of the wives, she is often angry with Zeus because she regards his infidelities as insults. Shortly after they had been married, she left Olympus on protest and returned to the isle of Euoba. Zeus had to coax her back by carrying around a statue throughout Greece spreading the message that there was a new fiancee to the master of the gods. In a fit of jealousy, she seized the chariot and discovered the trick her husband had played on her. She returned somewhat despondent to Olympus.

Being the protectress of marriage, Hera never strayed like her husband. She was still however, sought after by many gods. Ixion, the King of Lapithae, when arrived to dine with the gods only glanced at Hera before he was consumed with desire. In his mad passion, he embraced a cloud which Zeus had shaped to look like Hera. Ixion was reprimanded for his lack of respect to Zeus and his wife. He was bound to a fiery wheel that whirled him indefinitely through the sky.

Conflicts with Zeus persuade her to explore the reahlms pf the female body. She promises herself to take sovereignty over the royal bed. She goes to the garden of Flora looking for ways to take control. She confesses to Flora that she is willing to take any potion or try any spell. Flora reigns over the garden of a thousand colors and owns every flower. There are stranger seeds than you would find anywhere else in the universe. Hera discovers a seed in the corner of her garden the would allow her to conceive without contact from another body. Ares, the god of war was born from the flower of Olen. Of the two next children; Typhon and Hephaestus, it is unknown which is more terrifying. Hera conceives Hebe by eating a head of lettuce. The lettuce is established in Greek tradition as being a food for cadavers and for bringing impotence to those men who eat it. The paradox of the lettuce is that it has the characteristic of promoting lactation and menstrual flow. Yet women are forbidden to eat the heart of the lettuce, the part that contains the milky juice that mostly resembles men's semen. The plant that provided Hebe with youth and Hera with fertility gives death to men's sexual power. The children are known as "the monstrous children of Hera" as she has them without united love, and are in part the tradition of the self-governing female body.

There are many legends that illustrate her rage resulting from Zeus's various affairs:

In one episode, Zeus cheated on Hera with a woman named Alcmene. Hercules was born from that event. Hera sought revenge by driving her son, Hercules mad and causing him to murder Megrea, his own wife as well as his children Hercules later regains concienceness and is horrified by the terror that Hera is capable of bringing. On many occasions, Zeus had tried to conceal his illegitimate children to protect them from Hera's jealous anger.

In another episode, Hera decided to plot against Zeus who was being especially demanding and overbearing to the other gods. The legend says that Hera convinced all the gods to join in a revolt. She drugged him and the other gods then bound him to a couch and carefully tied many knots. Then the gods began to argue over the next step. Briareus overheard arguments and still being grateful to Zeus, he slipped in and was able to untie the series of knots. Zeus then sprang from the couch and grabbed his thunderbolt. In a fury, he brought the gods trembling to their knees begging for his mercy. Hera was seized and hanged with gold chains from the sky. She wept in pain the entire night, begging Zeus to let her go. The other gods dared not interfere. Zeus, however, could not sleep due to all her weeping and in the morning, agreed to release her if she agreed to never plot against him again. Hera had little choice but to agree. While she had learned her lesson, she often intrigued against Zeus's plans and was often able to outwit him.

She is not always after vengeance as a result from infidelity however. Hera and Zeus were once arguing about whether a man or a woman received the greater pleasure from the sexual act. Zeus said that women enjoyed it more and Hera believed that it was the man that was luckier in receiving the pleasure. The two deities decided to contact TIRESIAS, who had experienced the sexual act as both man and woman. He said that is the pleasures of sex were divided into ten parts, the man's pleasure was equal to only one of those parts while the other nine were endured by the woman. Hera was so annoyed that Tierces had sided with Zeus that she took away his sight.

Hera's vindictive nature was taken out on other goddesses as well. Antigone, daughter of Laomedon, once boasted about having hair more beautiful than her. Hera than turned Antigone's hair into serpents.

The reason that Hera had sided with the Trojans in the Trojan war was because she had lost a beauty contest she presided against Aphrodite and Athena, with Paris acting as the judge. Paris refused to give her the prize even after she attempted to bribe him with promises of world sovereignty.

Hera also became known as the protectress of Argo. She guided him through the narrow rocks of Cynea as well as those of Scylla and Charybdis. Hera's symbol is known to be the peacock, whose plumage was said to represent the eyes of Argos, the watcher.

In another story, it is said that Hera had four children by Zeus: Hebe, the gracious youthful beauty, Ilithya, the mother of birth pangs; Ares, who was impetuous; and Hephetus, who was known for his skillfulness.

Religious life in the "polis" revolved around the cults of the Olympian Gods, whose traditional abode was Mount Olympus in Northern Greece. The 12 Olympians: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Apollo, Aphrodite, Athena, Hestia, Ares, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Hades together formed the focus of the public religion of the city-states. The Olympian gods mirrored qualities the Greeks revered. Gods also made mistakes, got embarrassed, and were caught cheating on their spouses. The Gods also were heroic, wise, loving and developed essential crafts. They were always depicted in human form with beautiful, powerful bodies as the Greeks greatly admired strength, beauty, and intelligence. All the gods are related in some way The goddesses received sacrifices of female animals.

ZEUS was the king of Hellenistic heaven, taking the guise of the bull (symbol of potency). Hera, in turn, was cow-eyed. There is speculation that "Cow-Eyed" Hera may have been the first sacred cow. From there, she became known as "Earth Mother"

The Greek Gods did not provide man with a moral code, but only a reason for the whims of his fate as they shrugged at sin. Greeks sought the god's favor through ritual and sacrifice. Divine sanction was invoked for oaths marriages, and every other enterprise. Greek Mythology lived on in art, poetry, and drama. Their noble themes, rousing tales and delightful fantasies have given the gods immortality