In Greek mythology, Persephone (pronunciation: /ərˈsɛfəniː/, per-SEH-fə-nee; Greek: Περσεφόνη), also called Kore (/ˈkɔəriː/; "the maiden"), is the daughter of Zeus and the harvest-goddess Demeter, and queen of the underworld. Homer describes her as the formidable, venerable majestic queen of the shades, who carries into effect the curses of men upon the souls of the dead. Persephone was abducted by Hades, the god-king of the underworld. The myth ...
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In Greek mythology, Persephone (pronunciation: /ərˈsɛfəniː/, per-SEH-fə-nee; Greek: Περσεφόνη), also called Kore (/ˈkɔəriː/; "the maiden"), is the daughter of Zeus and the harvest-goddess Demeter, and queen of the underworld. Homer describes her as the formidable, venerable majestic queen of the shades, who carries into effect the curses of men upon the souls of the dead. Persephone was abducted by Hades, the god-king of the underworld. The myth of her abduction represents her function as the personification of vegetation which shoots forth in spring and withdraws into the earth after harvest; hence she is also associated with spring and with the seeds of the fruits of the fields. Similar myths appear in the Orient, in the cults of male gods like Attis, Adonis and Osiris, and in Minoan Crete.
Persephone as a vegetation goddess (Kore) and her mother Demeter were the central figures of the Eleusinian mysteries that predated the Olympian pantheon, and promised to the initiated a more...
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