Greek Goddess Aphrodite
Heavenly, smiling Aphrodite, praised in many hymns,
sea-born, revered goddess of generation, you like the nightlong revel
and you couple lovers at night, O scheming mother of Necessity.
Everything comes from you; you have yoked the world,
and you control all three realms. You give birth to all,
to everything in heaven, upon the fruitful earth
and in the depths of the sea, O venerable companion of Bacchos.
You delight in festivities, O bridelike mother of the Erotes,
O Persuasion whose joy is in the bed of love, secretive, giver of grace,
visible and invisible, lovely-tressed daughter of a noble father,
bridal feast companion of the gods, sceptered she-wolf,
beloved and man-loving giver of birth and of life,
with your maddening love-charms you yoke mortals
and the many races of beasts to unbridled passion.
Come, O goddess born in Cyprus, whether you are on Olympos,
O queen, exulting in the beauty of your face,
or you wander in Syria, country of fine frankincense,
or, yet, driving your golden chariot in the plain,
you lord it over Egypt’s fertile river bed.
Come, whether you ride your swan-drawn chariot over the sea’s billows,
joying in the creatures of the deep as they dance in circles,
or you delight in the company of the dark-faced nymphs on land,
(as, light-footed, they frisk over the sandy beaches).
Come, lady, even if you are in Cyprus that cherishes you,
where fair maidens and chaste nymphs throughout the year
sing of you, O blessed one, and of immortal, pure Adonis.
Come, O beautiful and comely goddess;
I summon you with holy words and pious soul.~ Orphic Hymn to Aphrodite - Translation by A. Athanassakis
Aphrodite is the Olympian Goddess of Love and Beauty. Her Roman name is Venus.
Her most famous myth is perhaps that of Her birth. The sky god Ouranos was abusing his wife the Earth Goddess Gaia. He was throwing their children into Tartarus fearing one of them would overthrow him. Cronus, the god of Time, took a sickle and cut off his father’s genitals and tossed them into the sea. They floated around for a while and the ichor from them along with sea foam formed the perfection of divine femininity, Aphrodite. She landed on the island of Cyprus near Paphos. That island is Hers and Paphos was Her main cult center for centuries.
Another famous myth is one that perhaps above all of Her stories we should take some notice of. Is it is the story of Adonis. Not all the details, some of which are pretty scandalous, but the point of the myth, She lost Her partner. She lost Adonis and She mourned for him like we all would mourn our beloveds. She truly felt grief and suffered like we do. In other similar myths the Goddesses get their partner back, Aphrodite does not. The point is She knows loss. Aphrodite knows grief, so She is more capable more motivated to help us in our grief in our mourning ad loss because She can empathize.
by Rossetti
Aphrodite is all aspects of Love and Beauty. She IS Love. She IS Beauty. She encompasses both the physical dimension and metaphysical dimension of love and beauty. She is sexuality and romance, but also friendship, community, family ties, kinship, service, passion, desire, procreation and Divine Love. She is the feminine embodiment of human attractiveness, sensuality, natural beauty, the beauty of creation, and Divine Beauty.
Patriarchy has tried to trivialize, oversexualize, and demonize Her. This is nonsense. Aphrodite is Unconditional Love, Universal Love. She lifts us all up. There is room for all of us in Her Temple. Aphrodite asks us to live a fully embodied human life, to take up the space that we were given at birth. We are loved. We are beautiful just the way we are. Yes, we have flaws and, yes, we should recognize them and work on them, but we have so much good in each of us. Let that shine. Aphrodite is the beating heart of the Goddess. She is merciful and compassionate. She is LOVE!
Aphrodite is a go to Goddess for all matters romantic and of the heart. She can help you with self acceptance, self esteem, body image, etc. APhrodite loves dance and music. All forms of artistic endeavor and creativity have used Her image and character for centuries. Appeal to Her for inspiration in the arts and writing. Her specialty is passion-desire. She can help you channel your desires into a plan of action and their fulfillment. Notice it says PASSION and DESIRE not lust. Patriarchy wants to lay all the sexual excesses at Aprhodite’s feet, but She is a Goddess of morality and virtue. Maybe not puritanical, but of virtue just the same.
In times of assault on women and our rights and persons, Aphrodite is a Goddess to ask for protection, for validation, for strength.
GODDESS CORRESPONDENCES
Altar/Symbols: scallop shell, apples, doves, hearts, mirror, roses, sea salt, sand, personal symbols of love, sweet smelling incense
Colors: all shades of blue, pink, red, copper, violet
Element: ALL of them, but water especially
Crystals: sapphire, blue topaz, aquamarine, pearl, larimar, rose quartz, pink kunzite
Plants/herbs: myrtle, apple, roses, violets, cypress, cedar, lilies, anemones, flowers in general
Consorts: Ares, Hephaestus, Adonis
Epithets: there are dozens of them. Golden One, She Who Postpones Old Age, Heavenly, Of All the People, Of the Divine Form (see more titles on Theoi.com)
Animal Allies: doves, sparrows, partridges, shellfish, sea birds, marine creatures, dolphins, horses, goats, rams, geese, swans
Offerings: roses, salt, all flowers, apples, coca cola, sweet wine, chocolate, dance, song, poetry, art work, a sentimental bit of jewelry (NOT bling! Aphrodite does not need another gold trinket) give something from your heart. Donation to charities in Her name.
