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1 CE
Persephone's Kidnapping
Hades, ruler of the Underworld, fell madly in love with Persephone. After getting permission from Zeus, he kidnapped her to be his wife. This event kicked off the start of the first winter as Demeter, Persephone's mother, brought along fierce droughts and bitter cold to make the world suffer as much as she did while she tried to get her daughter back. -
2
Persephone's Return
Many people in the world were dying due to the famine, drought and cold brought about by Demeter as she mourned her child's absence. Hades was finally convinced to return Persephone back to the overworld but only if she hadn't eaten anything while she had been in the Underworld. It turns out that she had eaten part of a pomegranate while she had been there and was therefore bound to the Underworld. However, since she didn't eat the entire fruit, she only had to spend part of the year down there. -
3
Aphrodite and Adonis
The goddess Aphrodite took in recently orphaned Adonis and knew he would grow up to be a beautiful man. Not wanting any of the other goddesses to claim him for themselves, she gave him to Persephone to look after. Persephone ended up falling for Adonis's beauty however, and the two goddesses ended up fighting over him. A decision similar to Persephone's own was made in which Adonis spent 1/3 of the year with Persephone, 1/3 with Aphrodite and had 1/3 all to himself. -
4
Punishing Minthe
At one point, Hades fell in love with another woman. She was a nymph named Minthe. Persephone was angered by this and ended up crushing Mithe. A mint plant sprung up from where she had been. -
5
Orpheus Comes To The Underworld
The young musician Orpheus came to the Underworld seeking to bring back his love Eurydice. He played a song for Persephone and Hades and they were so moved that he was allowed to bring his love back to the world of the living. However, he wasn't allowed to look at her until they returned to the overworld. He ended up turning back when they were almost out and lost his love forever.
