Selene
Talk5this wiki
| Selene | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Title | |
| Titaness of the Moon, Night and Radiance | |
| Titaness of Childbirth and Lunacy | |
| Eye of the Night | |
| Vital Statistics | |
| Gender | Female |
| Family | Hyperion (father) Theia (mother) Helios (brother) Eos (sister) Menae (daughters by Endymion) Narcissus (son by Endymion) Pandia, Ersa and Nemea (daughters by Zeus) Nemean Lion (son by Zeus) The Horae (daughters by Helios) Mousaios (demititan son) |
| Status | Faded |
| Eye Color | Silver, like miniature moons |
| Hair Color | Lustrous black |
| Height | Any height |
| Other | |
| Affiliation | Gods |
| Weapons | Moonlight and darkness The Moon Chariot |
| Species | Titan |
| Home | The moon (chariot) |
| Greek/Roman form | Luna (Roman) |
| Appearances | The Titan's Curse (Mentioned) |
| Actor | None |
| Quests | None |
Selene is the former the Greek Titaness of the Moon, or simply the moon as she was the moon personified into a divine being (the same goes for Helios and the sun). Her Roman counterpart is Luna.
Contents |
Description
Edit
She might have faded due to the downsizing of the Romans, though in the books they say her role went to the goddess Artemis. They never say if Selene is actually gone. She is the daughter of Hyperion and Theia, and the sister of Helios and Eos. She pulled the moon across the sky riding side saddle on a horse or in a chariot drawn by a pair of winged steeds. Her lunar sphere or crescent was represented as either a crown set upon her head or as the fold of a raised shining cloak. Sometimes she was said to drive a team of oxen and her lunar crescent was likened to the horns of a bull. Selene's great love was the shepherd prince Endymion. The beautiful boy was granted eternal youth and immortality and placed in a state of eternal slumber in a cave near the peak of Lydian Mount Latmos.
Love LifeEdit
Selene was different from Artemis, who replaced her, as Selene did have a few lovers, both mortal and divine alike while Artemis shunned the company of men. One day while pulling the moon across the sky, she spotted the shepherd/prince Endymion and fell in love. She put him into eternal sleep so he may never grow old or die, and together they had fifty daughters (and according to some also a son, Narcissus). The daughters ruled over each month that separates the Olympic games, since they happen every fifty months. She bore Zeus three daughters, Pandeia (goddess of brightness/sun), Ersa (goddess of the all-nourishing dew) and Nemeia. Some stories also state she was the mother of the Nemian Lion with Zeus.
She also had an encounter with the great nature god Pan, who deceived her by wrapping himself in sheepskin and offered her a ride on his back. While they were airborne, he attacked her.
Percy Jackson and the OlympiansEdit
The Titan's CurseEdit
Helios was the first sun god, and Selene was the first moon goddess. Apollo said they were forced to give up their roles as the sun and moon gods due to the laziness of the Romans and pass them on to him and his sister Artemis. They faded, and Artemis and Apollo took their roles as the Sun and Moon.
AbilitiesEdit
She presumably had the same powers that Artemis has over the moon, but more advanced due to her being the very first lunar deity on top of being the moon incarnate (unlike Artemis who is just another moon goddess). Selene may have had powers over childbirth and night. That last one outing itself in umbrakinesis which could be used to render herself invisible and bend shadows to her will. Selene also may have had hydro- and chronokinetic abilities due to her being the titaness of the moon (which influences the tides) and month respectively as well as the power to both induce and cure lunacy.
RepresentationEdit
Selene is one third of the goddesses that make up the triple goddess symbol:
- The Maiden - waxing moon - Artemis, represents the huntress on earth
- The Mother - full moon - Selene, represents the moon in the heavens
- The Crone - waning moon - Hecate, represents the Underworld
In Greek mythology, there are many goddesses associated with the moon. These include Selene, the personification of the moon itself, Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, and Hecate, the goddess of magic.
Together, Artemis, Selene and Hecate embody the phases of the moon. Many depictions of Selene show her wearing a crescent moon, and one of Hecate's symbols includes the dark circle of the new moon.
TriviaEdit
- Selene is also seen as a goddess of the night, radiance, childbirth and lunacy.
- Selene and Helios were also seen as the parents of the Horae (goddesses of the seasons).
- According to some sources Selene and Endymion were the parents of the famed Narcissus, the very handsome youth who spurned the affections of those who were attracted to him. The youth Ameinias who became distraught when Narkissos cruelly spurned him, slew himself before his door, calling on the goddess Nemesis to avenge him. His prayer was quickly answered, when Narkissos fell in love with his own image reflected in a pool. Gazing endlessly at the reflection, he slowly pined away and was transformed by the nymphs into a narcissus flower. Other versions say the nymph Echo fell in love with Narcissus, but when he didn't love her back she asked Aphrodite to kill her. Aphrodite obliged, but cursed Narcissus to fall in love with someone who wouldn't love him back (himself).
- She differs from Artemis, because Artemis is a virgin goddess (swears off men) while Selene had mortal and divine consorts alike.
- The chemical element Selenium is named after her as the term Lunacy was named after her Roman incarnation Luna.
- Selene vomer, a species of fish, is named after her.
- In modern times, Selene is the root of Selenology, the study of the geology of the Moon.
- The meaning of her name is uncertain but some believe that means "brightness."
- The dog, hen, bull, and cock were her sacred animals.
- The name of her Roman form, Luna, literally means "moon" in Latin.
GalleryEdit
