Art by Kris Waldherr




Ebisu

Ebisu

Ebisu is one of the Japanese "Seven Gods of Luck" (Shichi-Fukujin). He is the patron god of fishermen. He is usually depicted carrying a fishing pole and his catch of the day.
















Eos

Eos
Eos was the Greek goddess of the dawn. It was thought that she emerged every day from the ocean and rose into the sky on a chariot drawn by horses. The morning dew represented her tears of grief for her slain son. In Greek mythology, Eos was the goddess of Dawn. She appears in the Theogony of Hesiod as the daughter of two Titans, Hyperion and Theia. Eos is therefore also the sister of Selene (the Moon) and Helios (the Sun). Eos also played a role in the epics of Homer. The Greek poet frequently mentions this beautiful goddess in the "Iliad" and the "Odyssey", referring to her as "rosy-fingered", "early-rising", and "saffron-robed". The team of horses that pull her chariot across the sky are named in the Odyssey as "Lampos" and "Phaethon" (translated as Firebright and Daybright). There are a number of mythical stories about the affairs of Eos. Some scholars have attributed her strange fascination with mortal men to an unfortunate incident. Apparently, the goddess of the Dawn had a fling with Ares. Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, was no doubt angry that her lover had been involved with Eos, so she punished the dawn-goddess by making her fall for a series of mortals. Tithonus, Cephalus, and Orion are some of the fatal attractions of Eos. Children often came from these romantic liaisons. Eos was the mother of several notable offspring, including the Winds: Zephyrus, Boreas, and Notus, and the Morning Star: Eosphoros, all of whom she bore to the Titan Astraeus; and Memnon, her son by Tithonus. Her Roman name was Aurora.



Eros

Eros with Psyche

Eros was the son of Chaos and the brother of Gaia, Tartarus, Erebus and Nyx. He was also the attendant or the son of Aphrodite and lover of Psyche. In early mythology he was represented as one of the primeval forces of nature. His actions were the source of the irresitible attraction between people known as love. In ancient Rome he was adopted into their pantheon as Cupid. Only in the writings of Euripides are his arrows mentioned, and there only as a metaphor. The Trojan War began when the daughter of Zeus, Helen, was smitten by Eros’ arrow. In the blind madness of love, she abandoned her husband, took her bridal dowry and sailed off to Troy with her lover, Alexandros. The enchantment wore off after the sack of Troy, for we find Helen at home with her rightful husband Menelaos. She blamed her folly on Zeus, who, we can assume, now commands Eros.













Eshu

Eshu
Eshu is also known as Elegba, Legba, or Exú, in West African and Brazilian-African religions. Eshu is a trickster deity of the Yoruba, Fon, and other peoples of southwest Nigeria and Benin. Eshu speaks all languages and serves as an intermediary between gods and humans. He takes messages to humans from the supreme god Olodumare, and returns to him with sacrifices from his worshippers. Eshu presides over chance, luck, and accidents, lurking along roads, ready to trick travelers. In the sculpture of West Africa, Eshu is often represented with a distinctive phallic headdress. Eshu is a spirit of transformation, and his ability to communicate with deities gives him an important role in rites used to appease the gods. He is closely associated with the Yoruba god of healing and prophecy, Ifa, often in the role of his servant. Eshu and Ifa are linked in the Yoruba system of divination. In Brazil, Eshu (or Eshou) carries the same attributes as he does in West Africa, except that in the Brazilian tradition he is also a god of vengeance.





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