One Dione is identified as the mother of the Roman goddess of love, Venus,[2] or equivalently as the mother of the Greek goddess of love, Aphrodite; but Dione is also sometimes identified with Aphrodite. Dione was only mentioned several times in the ancient Greek texts but there is no doubt she was held in the highest esteem. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Dione was variously described. Regardless, we know without doubt that Dione was an honored resident of Mount Olympos at the time of Trojan War, i.e. He had been infused with vigor and boldness by the goddess Athene and told to avoid all Immortals on the battlefield except Aphrodite ... Athene told Diomedes to attack Aphrodite if he saw her. 2010-05-20 02:48:50 2010-05-20 02:48:50. The latter gave the city Byblos to Dione. She clasped her daughter in her arms, and stroked her with her hand and spoke to her ... Iliad—book 5, line 381—To her (Aphrodite) then made answer Dione, the fair goddess: "Be of good heart, my child, and endure for all your suffering; for many of us who have dwellings on Olympus have suffered at the hands of men, while bringing grievous woes on one another.

Dione could heal the other Immortals with just the touch of her hands. In fact she was on the scene so early that no-one else seems to have been around to make notes for posterity. Related Questions. Dione was a resident of Mount Olympos and even though she was not one of the twelve Olympians, she was honored by Zeus and the other Immortals. What were Dione's powers? At that moment, Diomedes lunged at the goddess and wounded her on the wrist. Dione remains one of the more mysterious Greek goddesses. [3], One of the Hyades, the rain-bringing nymphs,[7] is Dione, the daughter of Atlas and an Oceanid nymph (either Pleione or Aethra); she[8] married king Tantalus and bore him sons Pelops and Broteas, and a daughter, Niobe. In the Phoenician History, a literary work attributed to Sanchuniathon, a daughter of Uranus/Heaven and Gaia/Earth is called Dione and also Baaltis. In particular, she represented the moist soil that marks fertile ground. A s an Oceanid, Dione served as a goddess of water and moisture. Myths are…, Greek mythology, body of stories concerning the gods, heroes, and rituals of the ancient Greeks. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Who led the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece? Myth, a symbolic narrative, usually of unknown origin and at least partly traditional, that ostensibly relates actual events and that is especially associated with religious belief. When Dione spoke to Aphrodite, she revealed priceless information about the vulnerabilities of the Immortals. She is otherwise called a daughter of Gaia; according to worshippers of Orpheus her father is the sky-god Uranus,[3] while others identify her father as Aether. If an, This page was last edited on 24 July 2020, at 19:06. Dione (/ d aɪ ˈ oʊ n iː /; Greek: Διώνη, Diōnē) was an ancient Greek goddess, Titaness primarily known from Book V of Homer's Iliad, where she tends to the wounds suffered by her daughter Aphrodite. (Thought to be) Hestia, Dione, and Aphrodite, marble figures from the east pediment of the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis. Dione was variously described. Bear up now, despite your heartsick grief. Perhaps this same one was worshiped as a mother goddess who presided over the oracle at Dodona, Greece and was called the mother of Aphrodite. How many gods who hold the halls of Olympus have had to endure such wounds from mortal men, whenever we try to cause each other pain ...". By extension, she also was a goddess of fertility (there are a bunch of them, actually). For Aphrodite to refer to Dione as Mother might be interpreted as a sincere gesture of respect. Iliad—book 5, line 371—... and now bright Aphrodite fell at the knees of her mother, Dione, who gathered her daughter into her arms' fold and stroked her with her hand and called her by name ... Iliad—book 5, line 381—Dione the shining among the divinities answered Aphrodite saying, 'Have patience, my child, and endure it, though you be saddened. Aphrodite was assisted from the battlefield by the goddess Iris. [1] Very little information exists about these nymphs or goddesses, although at least one is described as beautiful and is sometimes associated with water or the sea. The Official Guide to the Mythological Universe says: Iliad—book 5, line 426—In Diônê's lap Aphrodítê sank down, and her dear mother held and caressed her, whispering in her ear ... Iliad—book 5, line 440—Then said Diônê, the loveliest of goddesses: "There, child, patience, even in such distress. Iliad—book 5, line 477—Soothing words, and with both her hands Dione gently wiped the ichor from Aphrodite's arm and her wrist healed at once, her stark pain ebbed away. Károly Kerényi notes in this context that the name Dione resembles the Latin name Diana, and is a feminine form of the name Zeus (cf Latin deus, god), hence meaning "goddess of the bright sky". It is distinguished from symbolic behaviour (cult, ritual) and symbolic places or objects (temples, icons). However, some scholars[13] identify her with Asherah, proposing that Sanchuniathon merely uses Dione as a translation of Asherah's epithet Elat. 0. Dione sought to make Aphrodite realize that even though she was immortal, she was still subject to pain and injury. Dione was only mentioned several times in the ancient Greek texts but there is no doubt she was held in the highest esteem. A Dione is among the Titanides or Titanesses. Dione (Διώνη), in Greek mythology, was the goddess of the nymphs. [12] She is a sister of Kronos/Elus whom the latter made his wife after their father sent her, and her sisters, to kill Kronos/Elus. The exact identity of this Dione is uncertain: Sanchuniathon may have meant to identify her with Dione the Titaness. That the myths contained a considerable element of fiction was recognized by the more critical Greeks, such as the philosopher Plato in the 5th–4th century bce. Ikhor was the juice, not blood, that flows in the veins of the gods. In the Iliad she is mentioned as the mother of the goddess Aphrodite by Zeus; in Hesiod’s Theogony, however, she is simply identified as a daughter of Oceanus.
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Wiki User. Since the partner and wife of Zeus was normally the goddess Hera, it has been conjectured that Dione is an older figure than Hera. They confined Ares inside a brass cauldron for thirteen months ... Ares would have died if Eeriboia, the stepmother of Ephialtes and Otos, had not alerted Hermes, who rescued Ares. From her name Baaltis and association with Byblos she is taken to be Ba‘alat Gebal, the patron goddess of Byblos. Dione, in Greek mythology, a consort and, at Dodona in Epirus, a cult partner of Zeus, the king of the gods. In the Iliad she is Dione, in Greek mythology, a consort and, at Dodona in Epirus, a cult partner of Zeus, the king of the gods. Top Answer. First, Dione told Aphrodite how Ares had once been bound and held prisoner by the gigantic brothers, Ephialtes and Otos.
Hera had been struck in the right breast with a tri-barbed arrow by Herakles and Hades was wounded in the shoulder by an arrow from Herakles's bow. They mounted the chariot of Ares, god of war, and flew to Mount Olympos. For many of us who have our homes on Olympos endure things from men, when ourselves we inflict hard pain on each other. Dione is translated as "Goddess", and given the same etymological derivation as the names Zeus, Diana, et al.

It has been suggested that she is the personification of a more ancient Mother Goddess (Goddess of the Oak from Asia Minor) and that the Greeks simply adopted her into their pantheon. One source describes her as an ancient wife of Zeus.

Aphrodite was created from the blood of Ouranos (Heavens) as it mixed with the foam of the sea. Her offices. Iliad—book 5, line 416—She (Dione) spoke, and with both hands stroked away from her (Aphrodite's) arm the ichor, so that the arm was made whole again and the strong pains rested.