What existed before anything…

CHAOS  Khaos literally translates to gap, so Chaos is the goddess of air, the space between Earth and Heaven  Chaos was the lower atmosphere that surrounded the Earth (invisible air and mist)  She was the first of the Protogenoi to emerge at the creation of the universe  Followed by Gaia, Tartaros, and Eros  Chaos was the mother or grandmother of the other substances of air: Nyx (night), Erebos (darkness), Aither (light), and Hemera (day)  Later, authors defined Chaos as the chaotic mixture of all the elements that existed in the primordial universe

Gaia’s Background  Known as Earth or Mother Earth  She was an early earth goddess  Also called Gaea or Ge by the Greeks and Terra or Tellus by the Romans, she was a maternal figure who gave birth to many other creatures  Gaia was born from Chaos, the great void of emptiness within the universe, and with her came Eros. She gave birth to Pontus (the Sea) and Uranus (the Sky).  She gave birth to the Cyclopes and to three monsters  Symbol or Attributes of Gaia: The earth. Fruits.  She was widely worshiped at temples in Greece, including the shrine of the oracle at Delphi.  The Greeks also took oaths in Gaia's name and believed that she would punish them if they failed to keep their word. Alessandra Loffreda Mancinelli

Tartarus was the entity that became the great stormy pit or the inverse of the sky. Tartarus was born of Aether and Ge and is father to the gigantes, typhoeus, and Echidna. Tartarus’ pit has been described “As far below hades, as heaven is above earth.” The pit is also A place where truly wicked men are sent to be tortured by hades.

Eros

 God of love  Son of Aphrodite and Ares  Was considered “Cupid”  Power to make bonds of love between two mortals or gods  Eros was worshipped by a fertility cult Thespiae  The fourth day of every month was sacred to him  Father of Hedone  Married Psyche

Nyx Personified Goddess of the night Described as the literal substance of night, or a dark veil which blotted out light Born from a single parent, Chaos, the first primordial god Sibling of Gaia (Earth), Tartarus (Underworld), and Eros (Love) With Erebos (Darkness) gave birth to primordial gods Aither (Light) and Hemera (Day), as well as Moros, Apate, Nemesis, the Keres, the Moirai, the Hesperides, Oizys, Momus, the Oneiroi, Hypnos, Thanatos, Philotes, Geras, and Eris According to Homer, Nyx was feared by Zeus

Erebus TRAVIS WILTROUT The Primeval God, Erebus, is commonly known as “The God of Darkness and Shadow.” By the god of darkness, it does not just been night, but also the underworld. Erebus was born into his family by the god Chaos, and the god Nyx.

Children of Erebus & Nyx

Aether  Son of Erebus(Dark) and Nyx(Night)  Brother of Hemera(Day)  Pure upper air breathed by the Gods  Brightness  Likely had a cult instead of shrines “The soul of the world from which all light emanates”

Hemera (Roman: Dies)  Primordial goddess of daytime  Daughter of Nyx & Erebus (Night & Darkness)  Sister/Wife of Aether (air)

Momus a child of Nyx The personification of satire, mockery, blame, ridicule, scorn, complaint and stinging criticism Said to have ridiculed the man formed by Hephaestus, because little door had not been left in his breast that would enable one to look into his secret thoughts. Expelled from heaven for ridiculing the gods

Tarturus  Who/What: It is the deep abyss that is used as a dungeon of suffering for the great and as the prison for the Titans.  Where it came from: Chaos  Related Stories: Typhoeus, a monstrous serpentine storm-giant who attempted to seize heaven. Zeus vanquished the creature and cast it back down into the Pit.

Momus a child of Nyx The personification of satire, mockery, blame, ridicule, scorn, complaint and stinging criticism Said to have ridiculed the man formed by Hephaestus, because little door had not been left in his breast that would enable one to look into his secret thoughts. Expelled from heaven for ridiculing the gods

Ponos  The spirit of hard labor and toil  Related to Erebos & Nyx  Child of Eris  Eris was the goddess or spirit of strife, discord, contention and rivalry.

Moros  Moros is the god of doom.  He manifested as a shapeless being that drove mortals to their death or doom.  He was invisible and dark.  He is the son of Erebus and Nyx and the brother of Thanatos.

THANATOS “God of Death” I. Thanatos was portrayed as the god of non-violent death, he is often characterized as gentle and careful. II. The depiction of Thanatos depends upon the story, for in some he appears as an older man, however, in others he is youthful. He is depicted as having wings and accompanies his twin brother Hypnos, the primordial god of sleep. III. He is thought to have been the personification of death, therefore, his powers would involve subtle death and peaceful deaths. IV. It was also believed that he was the son of Nyx, along with his twin brother (Hypnos) and his sisters who share the death-like powers, though in a violent manner, the Keres, who were the spirits of slaughter and diseases. V. He is featured in The Iliad accompanying his twin, where he carries off the dead body of a warrior, Sarpedon.

Hypnos  Hypnos is the personification of sleep in Greek Mythology.  Hypnos is the son of Nyx, the deity of night, and Erebus, the deity of darkness.  Hypnos tricked Zeus and heled the Danaans win the Trojan War.  Hypnos can make anyone fall into a deep sleep.  Hypnos lived in the underworld.

The Hesperides  Nymphs  Goddesses of the evening, sunset, and bridal night  Entrusted by Hera to protect the golden apples given to her by Gaia on her wedding day.  Pet dragon, Ladon, with a thousand heads  Nyx (mother, no father) or Atlas (father) and Hesperis (mother)  Hercules and the golden apples (one of the twelve labors)

The Keres THE DAUGHTERS OF EREBUS AND NYX ERIC HIGGINS Female Death Spirits with long fangs, claws, and the desire to pray on human flesh; They represent war, plague, and disease that kills mass population. Injured men would be taken down to Hades by the claws of The Keres. They were agents of Moirai (Fates) and Doom, both with the desire of causing and predicting the death of men since they were born. Although they had no extreme powers, they took over the soles of innocent men. Zeus was able to prevent these spirits from destroying the lives of fallen men.

The Moirai  Control the fate of all men  Three sisters, Clotho spun the thread of life, Lachesis measured the length of the thread, and Atropos cut the thread when it was time to die  Were the daughters of Nyx, but later became the daughters of Zeus and Themis

Nemesis NICK COURTNEY

 Greek Goddess of Justice and Balance Keeps happiness and unhappiness balanced among the mortals She also can give people what they deserve whether it is revenge or retribution Daughter of Nyx(Goddess of Night) and Oceanus( Titan God) Apparently Zues fell in love with Nemesis, and she avoided any advances Zues had made Nemesis

Apate  The spirit od deceit, guile, fraud, and deception  She was the daughter of Nyx and Erebus  Was the first spirit out of Pandora’s box

Philotes  She was the goddess of friendship and affection  Daughter of Nyx, goddess of the night  Sisters included Eris and Apate

Geras OLD AGE SON OF NYX (AND EREBUS) AKA SENECTUS

Eris o Eris was the Goddess or Spirit of stride, discord, contention and rivalry. 1.Eris is the daughter of Nyx, Goddess of night, and Erebus, God of darkness. o Eris cast a golden apple inscribed with the word kallisti (“for the fairest”) among the guests. o Eris' disagreeable nature she was the only goddess not to be invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis Nina Primavera

The Children of Gaia

Typhon (Roman: Typhoeus)  The son of Gaia and Tartarus  He is the deadliest monster of Greek mythology  He was known as the "Father of All Monsters“  He was often depicted as a giant storm god

Typhon (Continued)  Typhon was so huge that his head was said to brush the stars.  He appeared man-shaped down to the thighs, with two coiled vipers in place of legs.  Attached to his hands in place of fingers were a hundred serpent heads, fifty per hand.  He was winged, with dirty matted hair and beard, pointed ears, and eyes flashing fire.  According to some he had two hundred hands each with fifty serpents for fingers and a hundred heads, one in human form with the rest being heads of bulls, boars, serpents, lions and leopards.  As a volcano-daimon, Typhon hurled red- hot rocks at the sky and storms of fire boiled from his mouth.

Uranus

 Son of Gaea  Husband of Gaea  Created numerous off spring, 12 titans, many Cyclopes, and the Hecatonchires  He was frightened of his children's strength  Gaea told Cronus their youngest son to castrate Uranus  Cronus defeated his father and became king of the Gods  Later to be taken over by his son Zeus

Ourea ( Ο ὔ ρεα) Every mountain has its own bearded god List of Ourea:  Aetina  Athos  Cithaeron  Helicon  Nysa  Olympus  Orieos  Pelion  Tmolos Protogenoi (primeval gods) & Daimones (spirits) of the mountains Originated from their mother Gaia

Pontus  Ancient, pre- Olympian sea-god  Gaia’s son; born without coupling  He was one of the first born gods  He is depicted as a giant head rising from the sea with a gray beard and crab-claw horns  He had 5 children with Thalassa  He was Lord of the Sea before his younger brother took the title  He is known to be the father of most of the sea creatures