Everything about Nyx Mythology totally explained
In
Greek mythology,
Nyx (Νύξ,
Nox in Roman translation) was the primordial
goddess of the night. A shadowy figure, Night stood at or near the beginning of creation, and was the mother of
personified gods such as
Sleep and
Death. Her appearances in mythology are sparse, but reveal her as a figure of exceptional power.
Role in myth and literature
Hesiod
In
Hesiod's
Theogony, Night is born of
Chaos; her offspring are many, and telling. With her brother
Erebus, Night gives birth to
Aether ("atmosphere") and
Hemera ("day"). Later, on her own, Night gives birth to
Momus "blame",
Ponos "toil",
Moros "fate",
Thanatos "death",
Hypnos "sleep",
Charon, the
Oneiroi "the tribe of dreams", the
Hesperides, the
Keres and
Fates,
Nemesis,
Apate "deception",
Philotes "friendship",
Geras "age", and
Eris "strife".
In his description of
Tartarus, Hesiod says further that
Hemera "day", who is now Night's sister rather than daughter, left
Tartarus just as Nyx entered it; when Hemera returned, Nyx left. This mirrors the portrayal of
Ratri "night" in the
Rig-Veda, where she works in close cooperation but also tension with her sister
Ushas "dawn".
Homer
In Book 14 of
Homer's Iliad, there's a quote by
Hypnos, the minor god of sleep, in which he reminds
Hera of an old favor after she asks him to put
Zeus to sleep. He had once before put Zeus to sleep at the bidding of Hera, allowing her to cause
Heracles (who was returning by sea from
Laomedon's Troy) great misfortune. Zeus was furious and would have smitten Hypnos into the sea if he hadn't fled to Nyx, his mother, in fear. Hypnos goes on to say that Zeus, fearing to anger Nyx, held his fury at bay, and in this way Hypnos escaped the wrath of Zeus.
Other Greek texts
Night took on an even more important role in several fragmentary poems attributed to
Orpheus. In them, Night, rather than
Chaos, is the first principle. Night occupies a cave or
adyton, in which she gives
oracles.
Kronos - who is chained within, asleep and drunk on honey - dreams and prophesies. Outside the cave,
Adrastea clashes cymbals and beats upon her
tympanon, moving the entire universe in an ecstatic dance to the rhythm of Nyx's chanting.
Phanes - the strange, monstrous,
hermaphrodite Orphic
demiurge - was the child or father of Nyx.
Night is also the first principle in the opening chorus of
Aristophanes's
Birds, which may be Orphic in inspiration. Here she's also the mother of
Eros. In other texts she may be the mother of
Charon (with
Erebus), and
Phthonus "envy" (with
Dionysus?).
The theme of Night's cave or house, beyond the ocean (as in Hesiod) or somewhere at the edge of the
cosmos (as in later Orphism) may be echoed in the philosophical poem of
Parmenides. The classical scholar
Walter Burkert has speculated that the house of the goddess to which the philosopher is transported is the palace of Night; this hypothesis, however, must remain tentative.
Role in society
Cults of Nyx
In Greece, Night is only rarely the focus of cults. According to
Pausanias, she'd an oracle on the acropolis at
Megara (Paus. 1.40.1).
More often, Nyx lurks in the background of other cults. Thus there was a statue called "Night" in the
Temple of Artemis at
Ephesus. The
Spartans had a cult of Sleep and Death, conceived of as twins (Paus. 3.18.1) - no doubt with Night as their mother. Cult titles composed of compounds of nyx- are attested for several gods, most notably
Dionysus Nyktelios "nocturnal" (Paus. 1.40.6) and
Aphrodite Philopannyx "who loves the whole night" (Orphic Hymn 55). organization,
Modern homages
On
June 21 2006, the
International Astronomical Union renamed one of
Pluto's recently discovered moons (S/2005 P 2) to
Nix, in honor of Nyx. The name was spelled with an "i" instead of a "y", to avoid conflict with the
asteroid 3908 Nyx.
Children of Nyx
Further Information
Get more info on 'Nyx Mythology'.
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