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In the beginning there was Chaos. Then Gaea (Earth) was created together with her love, Eros. Gaea bore Uranus (the starry Heaven), with whom she conceived Oceanus and numerous sons and daughters, the youngest being Chronos . However, Creation was monstrous and anarchic and Chronos developed a hatred for his father Uranus. Chronos chopped off his father's members and
cast them away to fall behind him ... the resultant
blood that dripped from the severed organ of Uranus A white foam spread around them from the immortal flesh.
Petra tou Romiu In this foam which was created by the sperm
of Uranus grew a maiden who first drew near Cythera, and from
there she was carried to sea-girt Cyprus, and it is there
where the beautiful and respectable goddess came forth and
green grass grew about her beneath her light feet.
Aphrodite By mutilating his father, Chronos put an end to the disorderly creation and from then began the reign of Aphrodite associated with Eros. In the Homeric Hymn I to Aphrodite (Hymn I,
58-68) the goddess went to Cyprus, to Paphos, where her precinct
is and a fragrant altar, and passed into her sweet-smelling
temple. As soon as she went in she pushed the glittering doors.
There the Graces bathed her and rubbed her with heavenly oil. And laughter-loving Aphrodite put on all her rich clothes, and when she had decked herself with gold, she left sweet-smelling Cyprus and went in haste towards Troy... Further on (Hymn I, 86-88) she is described as clad in a robe out-shining the brightness of fire, a splendid robe of gold, enriched with all manner of needlework, which shimmered like the moon over her tender breasts, a marvel to see... Hymn II, 7-11 describes her jewels: On her head, the Hours put a fine, well-wrought crown of gold, and in her pierced ears they hung ornaments of bronze and precious gold, and adorned her with golden necklaces over her soft neck and snow-white breasts... In the Iliad (XIV, 214-218), the goddess is
wearing on her bosom a curiously-wrought, embroidered belt,
which brings desire and love, the magic girdle The rite of sacred prostitution was practised,
according to Herodotus, 1.105. 2-3, in her sanctuary in Paphos.
Every girl had to come once in her lifetime to the sanctuary
and made love to a stranger. The girls would sit in the sacred
gardens with a crown of rope on their head. They waited for a man to choose them by throwing at their feet an offering, no matter how small, for this offering was sacred, and say the words: 'I invoke the goddess upon you'. No girl had the right to refuse. All the girls that were beautiful, says Herodotus, finished quickly, but the ugly ones had to wait as long as three or four years... The cult of Aphrodite was maintained in Cyprus
at least during the first three centuries of our era, even
while Christianity was spreading.
Sandro Botticelli: The Birth of Venus Of course Cypris had numerous sandals
One of the most peculiar events in the history
of orchid classification has been done by J. G. Beer. Find out how she is related to these
orchids!
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