Selene

//Selene// Compiled by: Kelli Rossman

  __Selene__ __Description of Selene__ Selene was the Greek goddess of the moon. Many times she was described as a woman riding side saddle on a horse or carried in a chariot pulled by steeds. She was a beautiful woman with a pale face, dressed in white or silver robes. The crescent on her head either represented a crown or as the fold of her cloak. Some say that she carried a torch with her.
 * Said: Si Leen
 * Goddess of The Moon
 * Endymion, a shepherd, her lover
 * Hyperion, the god of the sun, and Theia were her parents
 * Also known as Goddess of the Night, Goddess of the Month, Goddess of Dew, and Goddess of Childbirth and Pregnancy
 * Selene had several different greek names such as Selenaia, Mene, and Aigle
 * Selene's Roman counterpart was Diana

__Family__ Hyperion, god of the sun, and Theia were Selene's parents. Helios and Eos were her siblings. She gave birth to the goddesses Pandia of all gifts, Ersa of dew, the Manai of months, and some say the four Horai of seasons. Her one mortal child was a poet named Mousaios. It is said that she bore fifty daughters to Endymion. Ancient stories also say that Zeus is the father of Pandia, Nemea, and Ersa.

__Selene's Lover__ Selene was madly in love with a shepherd, Endymion. The beautiful boy lived in a cave in eternal slumber and immortality because of a wish he made to Zeus. She would go to visit him every night and leave the night sky moonless to see her beautiful lover. She would kiss him with her rays of light.

__Also the Goddess of...__ Selene is also known as goddess of the night and goddess of the month. Evil Thessalian witches were believed to have created lunar eclipses, otherwise known as the red moon. The witches would draw the goddess away from the sky and extract her blood. Villagers would beat symbols to negate the power of these witches and return the beloved goddess to the sky. Ovid, Metamorphoses 7. 207 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) : "[Medea the witch cries out to the sky gods :] Thee too, bright Luna [Selene the Moon], I banish, though thy throes the clanging bronze assuage; under my spells even my grandsire’s [Helios the Sun’s] chariot grows pale and Aurora [Eos the Dawn] pales before my poison’s power." Selene was also goddess of childbirth because pregnancy was measured by months of the moon. She was also goddess of All-Nourishing dew. Plants and animals were believed to be nourished by the moon with dew. Selene's daughter Ersa became the goddess of dew. Selene is also known as the goddess of lunacy. Nonnus, Dionysiaca 46. 97 ff : "Mene [Selene the Moon] helped Bromios [Dionysos], attacking Pentheus with her divine scourge; the frenzied reckless fury of distracting Selene joining in displayed many a phantom shape to maddened Pnetheus [who became lunatic or moon-struck], and made the dread son of Ekhion forget his earlier intent, while she deafened his confused ears with the bray of her divine avenging trumpet, and she terrified the man." __Greek Names__ Selene had several Greek names: Selenaia meaning moon, Mene meaning moon or month, Aigle meaning moonlight, gleam and radience, Pasiphae meaning All-shining, and Eilethyia meaning Aid and relieve. __Roman Counterpart__ <span style="color: rgb(238, 23, 109);"><span style="color: rgb(65, 8, 212);">Diana, meaning "goddess", was the Roman goddess of the moon. She was the goddess of fertility and of nature. Diana would give women fertility and easy birth. Other Roman names for goddess of the moon are Luna, Atremis, Cynthia, and Phoebe. The Romans later found a connection between Roman goddess Diana and Greek goddess Selene. [|Good Information on Selene] Works Cited: Kelli Rossman