Irlandos at 10:29, November 17, 2008

2008-11-17T10:29:29Z

Irlandos: New page: '''Maia''' in Greek mythology, was the eldest of the Pleiades, the seven daughters of AtlasHesiod, ''Theogony'' 938; Hymn to Hermes and [[Pleione (mythology)|Pleione...

2008-11-17T10:28:46Z

New page: '''Maia''' in Greek mythology, was the eldest of the Pleiades, the seven daughters of Atlas<ref>Hesiod, ''Theogony'' 938; Hymn to Hermes</ref> and [[Pleione (mythology)|Pleione...

New page

'''Maia''' in [[Greek mythology]], was the eldest of the [[Pleiades]], the seven daughters of [[Atlas]]<ref>Hesiod, ''Theogony'' 938; Hymn to Hermes</ref> and [[Pleione (mythology)|Pleione]]<ref>Pseudo-Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheke'' 3.110.</ref>. She and her sisters, born on Mount [[Cyllene]] in [[Arcadia]], are sometimes called mountain goddesses, ''[[oread]]s'', for [[Simonides of Ceos]] sang of "mountain Maia" (''Maia oureias'') "of the lively black eyes".<ref>Simonides, Fragment 555.</ref> Maia was the oldest, most beautiful and shyest. [[Aeschylus]] repeatedly identified her with [[Gaia]].

She and her sisters were pursued by [[Orion]], and turned into doves to preserve their safety.<ref>Hesiod, ''Works and Days'' 619ff.</ref> According to the [[Homeric hymn|Homeric ''Hymn'']] ''to Hermes'', [[Zeus]] in the dead of night secretly begot [[Hermes]] upon Maia, who avoided the company of the gods, in a cave of Cyllene. After giving birth to the baby, Maia wrapped him in blankets and went to sleep. The rapidly-maturing infant Hermes crawled away to [[Thessaly]], where by nightfall of his first day he stole some of [[Apollo (god)|Apollo]]'s cattle and invented a [[lyre]]. Maia refused to believe Apollo when he claimed Hermes was the thief and Zeus then sided with Apollo. Finally, Apollo exchanged the cattle for the lyre.

Maia also raised the infant [[Arcas]]<ref>Pseudo-Apollodorus, ''[[Bibliotheke]]'' 3.101.</ref> to protect him from [[Hera]], who had turned his mother, [[Callisto (mythology)|Callisto]], into a bear. Arcas is the [[eponym]] of [[Arcadia]].

In Roman mythology, Maia was identified with '''Maia Maiestas''' (also called Fauna, Bona Dea (the 'Good Goddess') and Ops), a goddess who may be equivalent to an old Italic goddess of spring. The month of May was named for her; the first and fifteenth of May were sacred to her. On the first of May the flamen of Vulcan sacrificed to her a pregnant sow,<ref>See Ambrosius Theodosius Macrobius, ''Saturnalia'' I.12; Juvenal, ''Satires'' ii.86; Festus 68</ref> an appropriate sacrifice also for an earth goddess such as Bona Dea: a sow-shaped wafer might be substituted. The goddess was accessible only to women; men were excluded from her precincts.

==Notes==
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<references />
</div>

==References==
*Harry Thurston Peck, ''Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities,'' 1898
*''Encyclopaedia Britannica'', 1911.

==External links==
*[http://www.theoi.com/Nymphe/NympheMaia.html Theoi Project - Nymphe Maia]
*[http://www.pantheon.org/articles/m/maia.html Encyclopædia Mythica - Maia]

{{Credit wikipedia}}

[[Category:Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Greek goddesses]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 '''Maia''' in [[Greek mythology]], was the eldest of the [[Pleiades]], the seven daughters of [[Atlas]]<ref>Hesiod, ''Theogony'' 938; Hymn to Hermes</ref> and [[Pleione (mythology)|Pleione]]<ref>Pseudo-Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheke''  3.110.</ref>. She and her sisters, born on Mount [[Cyllene]] in [[Arcadia]], are sometimes called mountain goddesses, ''[[oread]]s'', for [[Simonides of Ceos]] sang of "mountain Maia" (''Maia oureias'') "of the lively black eyes".<ref>Simonides, Fragment 555.</ref>  Maia was the oldest, most beautiful and shyest. [[Aeschylus]] repeatedly identified her with [[Gaia]].
-She and her sisters were pursued by [[Orion]], and turned into doves to preserve their safety.<ref>Hesiod, ''Works and Days'' 619ff.</ref> According to the [[Homeric hymn|Homeric ''Hymn'']] ''to Hermes'', [[Zeus]] in the dead of night secretly begot [[Hermes]] upon Maia, who avoided the company of the gods, in a cave of Cyllene. After giving birth to the baby, Maia wrapped him in blankets and went to sleep.  The rapidly-maturing infant Hermes crawled away to [[Thessaly]], where by nightfall of his first day he stole some of [[Apollo (god)|Apollo]]'s cattle and invented a [[lyre]].  Maia refused to believe Apollo when he claimed Hermes was the thief and Zeus then sided with Apollo.  Finally, Apollo exchanged the cattle for the lyre.
+She and her sisters were pursued by [[Orion]], and turned into doves to preserve their safety.<ref>Hesiod, ''Works and Days'' 619ff.</ref> According to the [[Homeric hymn|Homeric ''Hymn'']] ''to Hermes'', [[Zeus]] in the dead of night secretly begot [[Hermes]] upon Maia, who avoided the company of the gods, in a cave of Cyllene. After giving birth to the baby, Maia wrapped him in blankets and went to sleep.  The rapidly-maturing infant Hermes crawled away to [[Thessaly]], where by nightfall of his first day he stole some of [[Apollo]]'s cattle and invented a [[lyre]].  Maia refused to believe Apollo when he claimed Hermes was the thief and Zeus then sided with Apollo.  Finally, Apollo exchanged the cattle for the lyre.
-Maia also raised the infant [[Arcas]]<ref>Pseudo-Apollodorus, ''[[Bibliotheke]]'' 3.101.</ref> to protect him from [[Hera]], who had turned his mother, [[Callisto (mythology)|Callisto]], into a bear. Arcas is the [[eponym]] of [[Arcadia]].
+Maia also raised the infant [[Arcas]]<ref>Pseudo-Apollodorus, ''[[Bibliotheke]]'' 3.101.</ref> to protect him from [[Hera]], who had turned his mother, [[Callisto (mythology)|Callisto]], into a bear. Arcas is the eponym of [[Arcadia]].
 In Roman mythology, Maia was identified with '''Maia Maiestas''' (also called Fauna, Bona Dea (the 'Good Goddess') and Ops), a goddess who may be equivalent to an old Italic goddess of spring. The month of May was named for her; the first and fifteenth of May were sacred to her. On the first of May the flamen of Vulcan sacrificed to her a pregnant sow,<ref>See Ambrosius Theodosius Macrobius, ''Saturnalia'' I.12; Juvenal, ''Satires'' ii.86; Festus 68</ref> an appropriate sacrifice also for an earth goddess such as Bona Dea: a sow-shaped wafer might be substituted. The goddess was accessible only to women; men were excluded from her precincts.

Maia - Revision history

Irlandos at 10:29, November 17, 2008

Irlandos: New page: '''Maia''' in Greek mythology, was the eldest of the Pleiades, the seven daughters of AtlasHesiod, ''Theogony'' 938; Hymn to Hermes and [[Pleione (mythology)|Pleione...