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"Hades: The Ruler of the Dead"


             Hades was the Greek God of the Underworld, and also one of the six Olympians. Other names for Hades are Pluto, Plouton, Dis, and Aidoneus. He is the eldest of the three sons of Kronos and Rhea. He and his brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, divided the world into thirds and each took a portion of for their own. Hades chose the Underworld as his dominion over which he would rule, and Zeus and Poseidon chose to rule over the skies and the seas. Hades has and sits upon a throne made from ebony (Hades). Hades also has the title of the ruler of the dead. "Since he was one of the sovereigns of the universe, he had the privilege of ascending Olympus. However who he was in his own infernal realm, he was quite unaware of what was happening either in the heavens or on earth; only the oaths and curses of men reached his ears" (Barthell, Jr. 58). Two symbols which represent the god Hades are the scepter and the cornucopia (Mythography). .
             When wrongdoers died in Greek mythology, they were sent to the Underworld where they were not allowed to leave by Hades. The Underworld in mythology was located in the far west beyond the inhabited regions. It was separated from the land of the living by the myriad rivers: the Styx, which means hateful, the Lethe, which means forgetfulness, the Acheron, which means woeful, the Phlegethon, meaning fiery, and the Cocytus which means wailing (The Columbia Encyclopedia). .
             Hades ruled over the Underworld and the dead by himself until he fell in love with the very beautiful goddess Persephone, daughter of the goddess Demeter. Hades abducted and raped Persephone and then carried her away in a chariot. "Hades, the lord of the underworld, represents the body intelligence of man; and the rape of Persephone is symbolic of the divine nature assaulted and defiled by the animal soul and dragged downward into the somber darkness of Hades, which is here used as a synonym for the material, or objective, sphere of consciousness" (The Rape of Persephone).


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