Goddess of Love
Aphrodite governs romantic love and physical beauty, wielding an influence that even Zeus cannot resist.
The Meaning of Goddess of Love
Aphrodite was born from the sea foam that gathered around the severed flesh of Ouranos after Kronos cast it into the ocean. She rose from the waves near Cyprus, stepped ashore on a shell, and the Horai dressed her in gold. Zeus married her to Hephaestus to prevent the gods from warring over her beauty, but she carried on a passionate affair with Ares. Hephaestus trapped the lovers in an unbreakable golden net and displayed them before the Olympians, who laughed rather than condemned. Aphrodite sparked the Trojan War by promising Helen to Paris in exchange for the golden apple. She also aided lovers like Hippomenes, giving him three golden apples to distract Atalanta during their footrace, winning him a bride.
Symbols
Fun Fact
Aphrodite's sacred island of Cyprus still bears the name of the beach, Petra tou Romiou, where she supposedly emerged from the waves.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Judgement of Paris
💭 conceptbeauty, causation
The beauty contest between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite judged by Paris of Troy, whose choice of Aphrodite triggered the Trojan War.
Goddess of Marriage
💭 conceptMarriage, family, women, childbirth, fidelity
Hera protects the institution of marriage, the rights of married women, and the sanctity of oaths between spouses.
God of Love
💭 conceptLove, desire, attraction, passion
Eros wields a bow whose golden arrows ignite irresistible love and whose lead arrows cause revulsion.
Judgement of Paris
💭 conceptNarrative
The Trojan prince's fateful choice among three goddesses that set in motion the Trojan War
Judgment of Paris
💭 conceptfate
The beauty contest between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite judged by Paris of Troy that caused the Trojan War.
Aphrodite
⚡ godGoddess of love, beauty, desire
Goddess of love and beauty, born from the sea foam. Aphrodite's power to inspire desire was so great that even the gods were not immune.
Midas Touch
💭 conceptWealth, greed, unintended consequences
The ability to turn everything to profit, from King Midas who wished that all he touched would become gold.
Wedding of Peleus and Thetis
💭 conceptNarrative
The divine wedding feast where gods and mortals celebrated together, unknowingly setting the Trojan War in motion
Eris
💭 conceptGoddess of strife and discord
The goddess of strife and discord who threw the golden apple that started the chain of events leading to the Trojan War.
Symposium
💭 conceptPlato's dialogue on the nature of love
Plato's Symposium was a philosophical dialogue set at a drinking party where guests give speeches about Eros — including Aristophanes' myth that humans were once doubled beings split in two.
Eros and Psyche
💭 conceptNarrative
The love story between the god of desire and a mortal princess that became an allegory of the soul's journey
God of Wine
💭 conceptWine, festivity, ecstasy, theatre, rebirth
Dionysus rules over wine, ritual madness, and the transformative power of theatre and celebration.