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Goddesses of Ancient Greece - I
Iambe
The daughter of Pan and Echo. She was full of life and had a friendly
nature. When Demeter was lamenting over the loss of her daughter, Iambe
managed to cheer her up. She became the first priestess of the goddess.
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Iaso
A Greek goddess of healing, daughter of Asclepius.
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Idaea
An epithet of Cybele, referring to her connection with Mount Ida in Asia
Minor, which was an ancient seat of her worship. A Greek nymph, with Scamander
the mother of Troy's first king: Teucer.
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Ilithyia
(Eileithyia) ("fluid of generation') An ancient Greek goddess, daughter
of Zeus and Hera, a protectress of midwives who assisted during birth.
She was originally two goddesses, of birth-pain and of delivery. Also
a fate-spinner, she is believed to be of Cretan origin. She was depicted
kneeling, as though aiding delivery; and carrying a torch, the symbol
of light. The Romans called her Juno Lucina.
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Ino
Ino is the daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia. She was the sister of Agave,
Semele, and Autonoe. This is important because all of Cadmus and Haromonia's
children have some kind of tragedy to happen to them. Semele, Dionysus'
mother, was killed when a thunderbolt from Zeus burned her to ashes; Agave
killed her son Pentheus when she was afflicted with Dionysic madness;
and Acteon, Autonoe's son, was killed by his own hunting dogs when he
accidentally saw Artemis naked.
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Io
Io was an Argive princess and the daughter of Inachus, an ancient hero
or river god of Argos. She had the misfortune to be subjected to the lust
of Zeus. Zeus, in an attempt to avoid the rage and jealousy of Hera, his
wife, transformed Io into a handsome white heifer. Hera, who knew Zeus
was up to no good, asked for the heifer as a present. Zeus could not refuse.
Hera deposited Io in the safe keeping of Argus, the watchman with a hundred
eyes. She was eventually rescued by Hermes, though Hera still dogged her
by sending a gadfly to sting her wherever she went.
This tale she eventually ended up telling to Prometheus, while he was
bound to his rock. Prometheus, though he couldn't provide direct comfort,
told her that, though her future would be fraught with hardship and toil,
she would, upon reaching Egypt and the Nile, be restored by Zeus and bore
him a son, Epaphus. She is the progenitor, thought removed by many generations,
of Heracles, greatest of heroes, to whom Prometheus himself would owe
his freedom.
Io, and the myth surrounding her, is important in several respects. Her
descendant Heracles plays a major role in Greek mythology. A number of
real place names and objects are directly named for her or connected with
her story: Ionia, or the western coast of Asia Minor, is named after her
because she reputedly ran down this coastline while she was being pursued
by Hera's gadfly. Bosphorus, or Ford of the Cow, is named in memory of
her passing. When Hermes rescued Io, he killed Argus, whose eyes became
the tail of the peacock, a bird associated with Hera.There are also a
number of common literary and mythological motifs that surround Io. Zeus'
infidelity is seen here, as well as Hera's jealousy. We also find one
of Zeus' most common techniques for hiding his exploits from Hera; the
Long Night. While he was seducing Io, Zeus threw a cloud over the earth
to hide their tryst from Hera.
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Irene
("peace")Daughter of Zeus and Themis, one of the Horae. Goddess
of concord and unity, her spirit was invoked in works of pacification
and diplomacy. Irene was portrayed as a young woman with a cornucopia,
scepter, and torch or rhyton. Famous is the marble statue of Cephisodotus
(ca. 380 BCE), which shows Irene with Plutus on her arm.
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Iris
("rainbow") Daughter of Thaumas, and Goddess of the rainbow.
Like Hermes, she was a messenger and herald, and she served as an oath-taker
on solemn occasions among the Gods, bearing a jar containing water from
the River Styx, which would render a Divinity comatose for a year should
they foreswear themselves. She is regarded as the messenger of the gods
to mankind, and particularly of the goddess Hera whose orders she brought
to humans. Iris is the daughter of Titan Thaumas and the nymph Electra.
She is portrayed as a young woman with wings and her attributes are a
herald's staff and a water pitcher. She appears mainly on Greek vases.
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Jocasta
The mother of Oedipus, who unknowingly killed his father and married her.
This may be a patriarchal rewrite of a Dying King story: originally, the
Young King's killing of the Old King and subsequent marriage of the Goddess-Queen
would have been conscious and unquestioned. |
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