TFBT: The Seven Wives of Zeus: Part V

The Seven Wives of Zeus: Iasion

 

“So again when Demeter of the lovely hair fell in love with Iasion, and yielded to him in a thrice plowed fallow field, Zeus came to hear of it before so long and killed Iasion with his thunder-bolts“  (Odyssey 5.125,   Kosmos Society)

 

I wonder why Iasion got the shaft?  I have three considerations on the topic so far;

 

1.  First, Calypso who told the tale above also says with a shudder “and her words came forth in rapid flight: “You are merciless, you gods, resentful beyond all other beings; you are jealous if without disguise a goddess makes a man her bedfellow,” (Homer, Odyssey 5.115) So Iasion’s death would be the result of an Olympian taboo on misalliance.  The problem with this argument is that her own lover Odyssey didn’t get the struck by a lightning bolt on account of sleeping with the goddess.

 

1. Second, several scholars will tell you that the myth reflects the fact that “the cutting of three furrows was part of fertility rites performed to inaugurate the new agricultural year.” (Aaron Atsma)  They will say that the re-enactment of the myth took place between the goddess/priestess and the “agricultural hero” (Atsma) or “the sacred king” (Graves) or “corn spirit” (Frazer).  And that his blood fertilized the fields.   Only none of the scholars can offer literary references.  Surely, if it was a tradition back then Hesiod would have mentioned it in Works and Days.

 

1. The third consideration in understanding Iasion’s death is something that should have crossed my mind somewhere in the last half century of research.  The phrase “a thrice plowed fallow field” is a euphemism.  To share and example of this euphemism I turn to Sophocles in the Antigone;    

 

 ISMENE: What? You'd kill your own son's bride?
CREON: Absolutely: there are other fields for him to plow.”

 

Plowing the field is a euphemism for sex.  Iasion may have been slain for his hubristic threat to Zeus’ notorious hyper-masculinity.  Clearly Zeus had lain with Demeter, but he had to turn them both into snakes in order to rape her.  His brother and peer Poseidon had to turn Demeter into a mare in order to rape her.  Now comes along a silver-tongued mortal who not only convinces her to join him for a roll in the hay of her own free will, but Demeter enjoys their tryst so much that they “plow the field” three time before returning to Harmonia’s reception.  In short  a jealous Zeus strike shim dead not for  violating Olympic taboos, nor  to make him the prototype for human sacrifice  but rather out of jealousy of  Iasion’s sexual prowess

Any things else I should be considering in my analysis?

 

TFBT; The Seven Wives of Zeus III

Zeus Co-opts Authorities, Powers and Dominions

There are many ways to interpret myths.  Many ways to interpret the Hesiodic version of the wives of Zeus.  Here are a few ways to look at it.  

·      “The myths about the gods’ seduction of nymphs refers to marriages between (newly-arrived) Hellenic chieftains and local Moon priestesses; bitterly opposed by ‘Hera’, which means by conservative religious feeling” [i]

 

·      The “Pan-Hellenic urge” forces Pan-Hellenic poets like Homer and Hesiod to deal with local myth and local versions on Pan-Hellenic myth; “The familiar Olympian system was then agreed upon as a compromise between Hellenic and pre-Hellenic views: a divine family of six gods and six goddesses, forming a Council of Gods in Babylonian style”  [ii]

·      “Zeus does not marry her, (Styx) but in a sense he co-opts or adopts her powerful children, (Rivalry, and sweet-stepping Victory, and also Strength and Force) children who could in fact become a threat to his sovereignty if not kept within his control.” [iii]

So by marrying;

1.   Metis; Zeus co-opts her Wisdom, daughter Athena, who is “all for the father” and the Athenian Empire

2. Themis;   Zeus attains a life-long counselor and control of his daughters’ authority over ; Eunomia (Order), Dike (Justice), and blooming Eirene (Peace) and by claiming fatherhood over  Clotho, and Lachesis, and Atropos who are Destiny itself. 

3) Eurynome; Zeus attains a foothold in the Orphic Mysteries and fatherhood of the three fair-cheeked social graces, Aglaea, and Euphrosyne, and lovely Thaleia,  

4) Demeter; Zeus attains a foothold in the Eleusinian Mysteries.  

5) Mnemosyne; Zeus can claim to be the father of the authorities on the arts and sciences, the nine gold-crowned Muses  

6)  Leto:  Zeus has another claim of dominion over Delphi (via Leto’s mother) and can enthrone his mouthpiece and son Apollo there.  In addition he can lay claim to Delos and the Ionians.  Artemis delighting in arrows enthroned most famously in Ephesus is now subject to Zeus

7)  Lastly, he made Hera his blooming wife, giving him dominion over the “islands” of Pelopennsia & Samos along with authority over Immortality (Hebe) and War (Ares) and (Childbirth) Eileithyia.

So whether “Zeus” is this myth represents invading Japhethic chieftains, the “Pan-Hellenic Urge“ or literally the “Father of gods and men” himself, by these marriage (and more) Zeus acquires Wisdom and Counsel, authority and dominion and finally control over immortality which for the gods is “life itself”.

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[i] Robert Graves, The Greek Myths, Page 10 of the electronic version.

[ii] Robert Graves, The Greek Myths, Page 11 of the electronic version.

[iii] (Hesiod’s Cosmos, Jenny Strauss Clay, Page 23)

TFBT: The Seven Wives of Zeus

In Hesiod’s Theogony we read a list of seven goddesses. (886-923) Generally, referred to as the Seven Wives of Zeus.  Here it is; 

1.    886] Now Zeus, king of the gods, made Metis his wife first, and she was wisest among gods and mortal men. 

2.  901] Next he married bright Themis who bare the Horae (Hours), and Eunomia (Order), Dike (Justice), and blooming Eirene (Peace), who mind the works of mortal men, and the Moerae (Fates) to whom wise Zeus gave the greatest honour, Clotho, and Lachesis, and Atropos who give mortal men evil and good to have.

3) 907] And Eurynome, the daughter of Ocean, beautiful in form, bare him three fair-cheeked Charites (Graces), Aglaea, and Euphrosyne, and lovely Thaleia, from whose eyes as they glanced flowed love that unnerves the limbs: and beautiful is their glance beneath their brows.

4) [912] Also he came to the bed of all-nourishing Demeter, and she bare white-armed Persephone whom Aidoneus carried off from her mother; but wise Zeus gave her to him.

5) 915] And again, he loved Mnemosyne with the beautiful hair: and of her the nine gold-crowned Muses were born who delight in feasts and the pleasures of song.

6) [918] And Leto was joined in love with Zeus who holds the aegis, and bare Apollo and Artemis delighting in arrows, children lovely above all the sons of Heaven.

7)[921] Lastly, he made Hera his blooming wife: and she was joined in love with the king of gods and men, and brought forth Hebe and Ares and Eileithyia.

His possible eighth wife was the Nereid Thetis, but we will discuss her later.

As with everything else in Ancient Greek literature there must be some greater significance. Here are some thoughts;

Descending order of Threat from His Sons

I jokingly suggested over at the Kosmos Society that the list represents a descending order of affection for his wives;  based on Zeus and Hera’s notoriously rocky marriage.  But, I think we can see another descending order. 

 Zeus first hypothetical son would have hurled him from his throne.  (895-900). The next son on this list of legitimate spouses is Apollo, his heir-apparent and pretty viable threat;

 “I will remember and not be unmindful of Apollo who shoots afar. As he goes through the house of Zeus, the gods tremble before him and all spring up from their seats when he draws near, as he bends his bright bow. “. HH to Apollo

  

 The last of his legitimate sons from the seventh marriage were little threat. One was lame and the other “Arēs would have then perished had not fair Eeriboia…” (Iliad 5:389) Starving to death is a very ungodlike thing to do, neither of his final legitimate seems much of a threat to Zeus’ hegemony. 

So my first thought about the sequence of wives is that it represents an every decreasing level of threat to the security of Zeus' throne from his own sons.

Outline for the Seven Wives of Zeus 

Descending order of threat

Extinguishing Competing Lineages;

·      Explaining who they are based on Hesiod’s line up

·      Virginity within the Olympians article

·      Then discuss marriages

·      Hera’s Handmaidens

Co-opt Authorities, Powers and Dominions (per Graves)

Geo-political signifance?

Previous Husbands;

·      Eurynome and Ophion;

·      Hera and some Samoian river-god,

·      Thetis and Poros’ father

·      Themis and Prometheus’ father

*.  Demeter Iasion and Caramandor

Thetis

·      Part of Ring composition with Metis?  Or

·      Start of a new cycle as Hesiod suggests for the 5 Ages of Man