Major Myths

According to one account, Aphrodite was born when the Titan Cronus cut off the sex organs of his father, Uranus (pronounced YOOR-uh-nuhs), and threw them into the sea. Aphrodite emerged fully grown from the foam (her name comes from aphros, the Greek word for foam) that gathered on the surface of the water. A different account of her birth makes her the daughter of the ruler of the gods, Zeus (pronounced ZOOS), and a minor goddess named Dione.

Aphrodite’s connection with love is reflected in the numerous stories about her romantic affairs. She was married to Hephaestus (pronounced hi-FES-tuhs), the god of fire and blacksmiths. She had frequent love affairs and children with various other gods, including Ares (pronounced AIR-eez), Hermes (pronounced HUR-meez), Poseidon (pronounced poh-SYE-dun), and Dionysus (pronounced dye-uh-NYE-suhs), which angered her jealous husband. Among Aphrodite’s many children were Deimos (pronounced DYE-mos; Greek for “terror”); Phobos (pronounced FOH-bos; Greek for “fear”), fathered by Ares; and Eryx (pronounced ERR-iks), the son of Poseidon. She was also the mother of the Roman hero Aeneas, whom she had with the shepherd Anchises.

The handsome youth Adonis (pronounced uh-DON-is) was another of Aphrodite’s great loves. Persephone (pronounced per-SEF-uh-nee), the goddess of the underworld, also developed a passion for Adonis when he entered the underworld after being killed by a boar. Adonis’ death did not dull Aphrodite’s affection for him, and a bitter feud between the two goddesses erupted. Zeus resolved the conflict by instructing the youth to divide his time between them.

Aphrodite’s role as the goddess of beauty was one of the factors that led to the start of the Trojan War. Zeus forced the Trojan prince Paris to decide which of three goddesses—Hera, Athena, or Aphrodite—was the fairest. Each goddess tried to bribe Paris with generous gifts, but he found Aphrodite’s offer—to give him the most beautiful woman in the world—the best. Paris declared Aphrodite the fairest of the goddesses, and she kept her promise by helping him gain the love of Helen, the wife of King Menelaus (pronounced men-uh-LAY-uhs) of Sparta. Paris

Took Helen to Troy with him, and the Greeks’ attempts to reclaim her resulted in the Trojan War.

Aphrodite continued to influence events during the ten years of the war. At various stages during the conflict she assisted the Trojan soldiers, particularly Paris. Meanwhile, Hera and Athena, who were still offended by Paris’s choice of Aphrodite as the fairest, came to the aid of the Greeks.