Eros
Hesiod's Theogony, written around 700 BC, lists Eros as the fourth god to emerge from Chaos. He appeared after Gaia and Tartarus, establishing love as a fundamental force of creation rather than a later addition to the divine order. Parmenides, writing circa 400 BC, took this concept further by declaring Eros the very first god to exist. His fragment 13 states that she devised Erōs before all other deities. Aristophanes presented a different cosmogony in his comedy The Birds, performed in 414 BC. In this parody, blackwinged Night laid an egg in the bosom of Erebus. From this egg sprang graceful Eros with glittering golden wings. This version identifies him as Protogonos, meaning first-born, who mated with dark Chaos to create humanity. Orphic texts describe Eros as Phanes, the illuminated one, who passed his scepter of power to Nyx. Zeus eventually swallowed Phanes to absorb these powers of creation. Thus, early Greek thought viewed Eros not merely as a lover but as the architect of the universe itself.
Later myths shifted the identity of Eros from cosmic entity to son of Aphrodite. Simonides, a lyric poet active between the sixth and fifth centuries BC, considered him the child of both Aphrodite and Ares. By the third century BCE, epic writers like those behind the Argonautica referred to him simply as Venus's son. Ovid described a scene where Venus's son kissed her while his quiver dangled down. An arrow grazed her breast without her noticing at first. The wound proved deeper than it seemed, making her enraptured by Adonis. Nonnus wrote the Dionysiaca in the fifth century CE, depicting Eros driving Dionysus mad for the girl Aura. He struck the god with a love arrow before flying lightly to Olympus. These later accounts stripped away the primordial grandeur found in Hesiod or Parmenides. They replaced the creator figure with a mischievous youth who intervened in the affairs of gods and mortals. His role became complementary, often appearing alongside his mother rather than standing alone as a primary force.
Apuleius committed the story of Eros and Psyche to literature in his Latin novel The Golden Ass. This narrative preserved an ancient folktale tradition long before its written form. The protagonist retained her Greek name even though other deities used their Roman equivalents. Aphrodite commanded her son to make mortal princess Psyche fall in love with the ugliest creature on earth. Instead, Eros fell in love with Psyche himself and spirited her away to his home. Jealous sisters caused Psyche to betray the trust of her husband, wounding him emotionally and physically. Eros left his wife, leaving Psyche to wander the Earth looking for lost love. She visited temples dedicated to Demeter and Hera seeking advice. Eventually she reached Aphrodite's temple and asked for help. Aphrodite imposed four difficult tasks which Psyche achieved through supernatural assistance. Zeus turned Psyche into an immortal after a near death experience. Together they had a daughter named Voluptas or Hedone, meaning physical pleasure. Ancient mosaics portrayed Psyche as a goddess with butterfly wings since psyche meant soul or spirit.
A cult of Eros existed in pre-classical Greece but remained less important than that of Aphrodite. In late antiquity, Thespiae hosted a fertility cult dedicated to him. Athens shared a very popular cult with Aphrodite where the fourth day of every month was sacred to him. This day was also shared by Herakles, Hermes, and Aphrodite. The Thespians celebrated the Erotidia, festivals explicitly named for Eros. Pausanias recorded these events in Description of Greece, book 9, section 31. He held the epithet Klêidouchos, meaning holding the keys because he possessed the key to hearts. Another title given to him was Pandemos, common to all the people. Pontianus of Nicomedia asserted that Zeno of Citium viewed Eros as the god of friendship and liberty. Erxias wrote that Samians consecrated a gymnasium to Eros under the name Eleutheria. Lacedaemonians offered sacrifices before battle believing safety depended on the friendship of those standing side by side. Cretans offered similar sacrifices within their line of battle.
Early Greek poetry and art depicted Eros as a young adult male embodying sexual power. Later satirical poets transformed him into a blindfolded child, the precursor to the chubby Renaissance Cupid. Putti became a major icon throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in Christian art. These figures influenced the development of Cherubim found in religious paintings. A red-figure terracotta plate from 340, 320 BC shows Eros with his bow at the Walters Art Museum. Ovid specified that Eros carried two kinds of arrows: golden ones inducing love and leaden ones causing hatred. Anacreon fragment preserved by Athenaeus describes how Eros struck him with a purple ball. This made him fall in love with a woman who shunned him over his white hair. Lucas Cranach the Elder painted Cupid stealing honey while being stung by bees. The story compares the small creature's sting to the pain caused by Eros's own arrows. These visual traditions evolved from powerful youth to mischievous children carrying bows and arrows.
Zeno of Citium taught that Eros represented friendship and liberty rather than mere lust. Sappho wrote of Artemis stating limb-loosening Eros never went near her virgin goddesses. Hestia, Athena, and Artemis all took vows of purity that protected them from his influence. Lucian satirized this power in Dialogues of the Gods where Zeus chided Eros for deceiving mortal women. Even Aphrodite advised him against using gods as playthings. Nonnus described Dionysus falling in love with Aura after Nemesis ordered Eros to strike him. The god filled a spring with wine before forcing himself on the nymph. In another myth, Apollo mocked Eros about leaving weapons to older gods. Eros immediately struck Apollo with a love arrow making him fall for Daphne. He then hit Daphne with a lead arrow causing her to repulse his advances. She transformed into a tree to escape the god's wooing. Anacreontea attributed to sixth century BC author Anacreon tells how bees stung Eros while stealing honey. Aphrodite smiled and compared him to the bees since he caused pain greater than his size.
Continue Browsing
Common questions
Who was Eros in Hesiod's Theogony written around 700 BC?
Hesiod's Theogony lists Eros as the fourth god to emerge from Chaos after Gaia and Tartarus. He appeared establishing love as a fundamental force of creation rather than a later addition to the divine order.
What is the origin story of Eros in Parmenides fragment 13 circa 400 BC?
Parmenides declared Eros the very first god to exist before all other deities. His fragment 13 states that she devised Erōs before any other gods came into being.
How did the identity of Eros change by the third century BCE epic writers like those behind the Argonautica?
By the third century BCE epic writers referred to him simply as Venus's son instead of a cosmic entity. Later accounts stripped away primordial grandeur to replace the creator figure with a mischievous youth who intervened in affairs of gods and mortals.
Where did Thespiae host a fertility cult dedicated to Eros in late antiquity?
Thespiae hosted a fertility cult dedicated to him while Athens shared a popular cult where the fourth day of every month was sacred to him. Pausanias recorded these events in Description of Greece book 9 section 31.
When did early Greek poetry depict Eros as a young adult male embodying sexual power?
Early Greek poetry and art depicted Eros as a young adult male embodying sexual power before satirical poets transformed him into a blindfolded child. A red-figure terracotta plate from 340, 320 BC shows Eros with his bow at the Walters Art Museum.
All sources
31 references cited across the entry
- 3bookOf Wing and Wheels: A synthetic study of the Biblical cherubimAlice Wood — 2008
- 4bookThe Classical TraditionHarvard University Press — 2010
- 5bookThe Sacred and Civil Calendar of the Athenian YearJon D. Mikalson — Princeton University Press — 2015
- 11inlineHesiod, Theogony 116–122.
- 13bookOrpheus and Greek ReligionW.K.C. Guthrie — Princeton University Press — 1952
- 15bookArgonauticaApollonius of Rhodes
- 16bookPhaedraSeneca
- 17bookMetamorphosesOvid
- 18bookDionysiacaNonnus
- 19bookThe Golden AssApuleius — Penguin Classics
- 20inlineApuleius, Golden Ass 6.23
- 21bookThe Nag Hammadi ScripturesJames M. Robinson — HarperCollins — 2007
- 22inlineNonnus, Dionysiaca 15.202–16.383
- 23inlineNonnus, Dionysiaca 48.936–992
- 25journalPaul, Artemis, and the Jews in EphesusRick Strelan — De Gruyter — 1996
- 26inlineFirst Vatican Mythographer 172
- 27bookGrecian and Roman mythologyMary Ann Dwight et al. — Putnam — 1849
- 28inlineOvid, Metamorphoses 1.452-470
- 29inlineOvid, Metamorphoses 5.362
- 30inlineAthenaeus, Deipnosophistae 13.72