#demeter deity

She was also a goddess of mysteries. The Eleusinian Mysteries were one of many mystery cults across the Greek world centering around Demeter. The philosopher Isocrates credits her as the giver of the two greatest gifts: fruit, which “have enabled us to rise above the life of the beasts,” and the holy rites of Eleusis, which “inspires in those who partake of it sweeter hopes regarding both the end of life and all eternity."³

What are some of this Theos important epithets and their meanings?

Demeter has a lot of epithets. As much as I'd love to research and try to document every one, we'd be here all day. So I've collected a few important ones that attest to the functions above, separated by cultic or poetic use for ease of reading:

Cultic epithets:

'Ἐλευσίνια / Eleusinia / Of Eleusis — an epithet used throughout all of Greece, referring to the goddess as the keeper of holy rites. The title was likely used elsewhere to refer to her as the patronness of mysteria in general, rather than specifically in Eleusis⁴

Θεσμοφόρος / Thesmophoros /Law-giver — an epithet used especially in conjunction with the Thesmophoria festival, which was one of the most widespread Greek festivals. It was a woman-only festival related to "the fertility of the fields in close connection with the pigs thrown into holes [during the festival."⁵

Χλόη / Chloe / Green, First Shoots — an epithet referring to the sprouting of grain. A sanctuary in Athens was erected for Demeter Chloê and Ge Kourotrophos, and a festival was held in Spring named Chloeia honoring the goddess⁶

Καρποφόρος / Karpophoros / Bringer of fruit — an epithet attested mainly in Western Anatolia: Pergamon, Ephesos, Sardis, and Lydia⁷. In Ephesos, she had mystery rites under this epithet (as well as Thesmophoros.)⁸

Χθονία / Chthonia / Of the earth — an epithet used in Hermoine. She was worshipped alongside Kore-Persephone and Klymenos-Hades. This cult was explicitly connected to the underworld. Mystery rites also took place here!⁹ This epithet is also used in an lamellae (gold leaf tablet, associated with Orphism) invocation to Demeter Chthonia and the Mountain Mother.¹⁰ I just thought that was interesting :)

Poetic epithets:

Καλλιστέφανος / Kallistephanos / Beautifully-crowned — an epithet exclusively used for Demeter in hexametric poetry¹¹

Χρυσάορος / Chrysaoros / Of the golden sword — an epithet shared with Apollo (and various other deities)¹²

Κυανόπεπλος / Kuanopeplos / Dark-cloaked — an epithet shared with Leto, used during the mourning of Demeter in her Homeric Hymn¹³

'Ωρηφόρος / Horephoros / Bringer of the Seasons — an epithet also used in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, where a lot of Demeter’s characterization comes from¹⁴

Ανασσα / Anassa / Queen, Lady — an epithet used for various goddesses (Athena, Hekate, Aphrodite), and specifically Demeter in the Homeric Hymn¹⁵

What are the historical associations of this Theos (e.g animals, types of locations, etc)?

Plants:

Wheat/grain— Kind of a given! Hesiod, in his Works and Days, refers to grain as “Demeter’s grain” and “Demeter’s holy grain.”¹⁶ It’s obviously a major association with her. She’s also associated with fruit in general as Karpophoros, and apples as Malophoros¹⁷

Poppies— These flowers were considered sacred to Demeter, and were associated with sleep and death. Her association with poppies has led some to connect her with Minoan Cretan iconography in statuettes and signet rings.¹⁸ In particular, the “poppy goddess” figurines from Gazi, showing an upright figure raising their hands to the sky, with a diadem made of poppy heads, has been used as an example.¹⁹

Barley— During her mourning, in her stay at Eleusis, Demeter refuses to drink the wine offered to her. Instead, she instructs Metaneira to mix a drink of barley and mint.²⁰ This drink, Kykeon, is a subject of debate as to whether it contained a psychedelic agent. Its complicated, and I don't have an easy answer to give, but I'll link a few articles I read.²¹ ²² ²³ As far as I can tell, it could theoretically be done, but theres little evidence for it actually happening. I absolutely encourage you to read the sources and decide for yourself!

Mint— Another ingredient of the Eleusinian kykeon. There’s also a myth where Hades’ old lover, a nymphe named Minthe, insults Persephone in jealousy, and Demeter in her rage transforms her into the mint plant.²⁴ Though there’s also a version where Persephone herself transforms Minthe instead.²⁵ Either way, the plant has some importance to both.

Animals:

Snakes— Probably the animal most heavily associated with Demeter. They represent rebirth and fertility. Her chariot was drawn by drakones, dragon-like serpents²⁶. She is said to be the creator of the constellation Ophiochus (serpent-bearer), when a king named Triopas destroyed her temple. She gave him insatiable hunger and he suffered until he died, being put into the stars as a constellation²⁷ (This is one of a few variations of a myth of Demeter incurring her wrath onto someone for desecrating her sacred places.)

Pigs— Another animal heavily associated with Demeter, especially in her Eleusinian cult. During the women-only Thesmophoria, piglets were thrown into pits, known as megara (singular megaron), left to rot and later retrieved to be scattered across fields. You can find votive pigs or statues of her with pigs dedicated to her.

Horses— Mentioned before in part one when discussing Despoina, in Arkadia Demeter seemed to be somewhat associated with horses. An old, archaic xenon of Demeter Melaina (Black, who retreated into a cave after being raped by Poseidon) was recorded by Pausanias to have a horse head with snake hair, holding a dove and dolphin.²⁸

Bees— priestesses of Demeter were called Melissae (honeybees)²⁹ and Persephone was often referred to with euphemisms with the meli (meaning honey) prefix; ex: Melitodes, Melinoia.

Cows— In the Demeter Chthonia cult in Hermoine, old women would sacrifice heifers in honor of the goddess, using sickles.³⁰ Bulls were also sacrificed to her in Eleusis.

Some others, which seem less prominent:

Turtle dove— As well as her being portrayed holding a dove in the above, Aelian also says that the turtle-dove is sacred to her.³¹

Red mullet— these fish were listed as sacred to Demeter in the Eleusinian Mysteries by Aelian.³² The philosopher Porphyry, in his Abstinia, says initiates were forbidden to eat certain fish.³³

Geckos— Ovid records a myth of her turning someone into a gecko after they laughed at and mocked her thirst during her search for Persephone.³⁴

Owls— Another myth says she turned a man named Askalaphos into a horned owl after he attested that Persephone ate the pomegranate seeds.³⁵ In the Metamorphosis, Persephone is the one to turn him into a screech owl. They're considered a symbol of the underworld, moreso of Hades than Demeter, but I found it interesting so I included it :)

🌾 Bibliography

[1] I Eleusis 28a (Accessed via Attic Inscriptions) [2] Roberts, Underworld Gods in Ancient Greek Religion: Death and Reciprocity, 298 [3] Isocrates 11, Panegyricus 28 [4] Stallsmith, The Name of Demeter Thesmophoros, 118 [5] Pirenne-Delforge, Demeter as Thesmophoros: What Does She Bring Forth?, 201 [6] Murray, A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, 276 [7] Sonkaya and Can, Expressing Regional Cultic Concepts Through Local Art: A New Marble Relief from Blaundos, 276 [8] I Eph 213 (Accessed via Associations in the Greco-Roman World) [9] Roberts, Underworld Gods in Ancient Greek Religion: Death and Reciprocity, 464-465 [10] SEG 55:612 (Accessed via Packard Humanities Institute) [11] Pirenne-Delforge, Demeter as Thesmophoros: What Does She Bring Forth?, 192 [12] Logeion Dictionary [13] Homeric Hymn to Demeter, 319 [14] Homeric Hymn to Demeter, 54 [15] Demeter: Hom. Dem. 486; Athena: Hom. Od. 3.380; Hekate: Hom. Dem. 400; Aphrodite: Hom. Aphr. 92 [16] Hesiod, Works and Days 32; 597 [17] ToposText, Demeter Malophoros Salinunte [18] Carod-Artal, Psychoactive Plants in Ancient Greece, 33 [19] Hunt, A Selective History of the Sacred Poppy [20] Homeric Hymn to Demeter, 205 [21] Ascough, John Allegro and the Psychedelic Mysteries Hypothesis [22] Antonopoulos et al., Investigating the Psychedelic Hypothesis of kykeon, the sacred elixir of the Eleusinian Mysteries [23] Mosurinjohn and Ascough, Psychedelics, Eleusis, and the Invention of Religious Experience [24] Oppian, Halieutica 3. 485 [25] Strabo, Geography 8.3.14; Ovid, Metamorphosis 10.728 [26] Orphic Hymn to Demeter; Ovid, Metamorphosis 5. 643 [27] Hyginus, Astronomica 2.14 [28] Paus. 8.42.3 [29] Callimachus Hymn to Apollo 110; Scholia ad Pindar, Pythian Odes 4.104 [30] Blid, The Temple of Demeter Chthonia at Hermoine [31] Aelian, On Animals 10.33 [32] Aelian, On Animals 9.51 [33] Porphyry, On the Abstinence of Animals 4.16 [34] Ovid, Metamorphosis 5.444 [35] Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 1.33; 2.124