Goddess Demeter pagan legend

Goddess Demeter

Demeter is a Goddess of the growing crops and fertile earth. She is seen as a mother Goddess who protects the seeds in the earth and with her love summons the shoots from the soil so that the earth becomes fertile green andbountiful. 

Also known as the Roman goddess Ceres, Demeter was the goddess of the harvest and was credited with teaching humans how to grow, preserve, and

 prepare grain. Demeter was thought to be responsible for the fertility of the land. She was the only one of the Greek goddesses who was involved on a day-to-day basis in the lives of the common folk. While others occasionally "dabbled" in human affairs when it suited their personal interests, or came to the aid of "special" mortals they favored, the goddess Demeter was truly the nurturer of mankind. 

Demeter also was the only one of the Greek goddesses who could truly empathize with the human experience of suffering and grief, having experienced it fully herself.Legends tell of Demeter the loving mother who goes searching for her daughter Persephone. Demeter was possibly the oldest of the gods/goddesses, and, like Hera who was born later, was swallowed by her father and, like Hera, was both a mate to Zeus as well as his sibling.

Legend has it that Persephone was abducted by Hades, Demeter was heartbroken and spent a long time searching the kingdom for her. At length Hades was persuaded to surrender Persephone for one half of every year, the spring and summer seasons when flowers bloom and the earth bears fruit once more. The half year that Persephone spends in the Underworld as Hades' queen coincides with the barren season. Each spring, Demeter makes sure all the flowers bloom in welcome when her daughter, Queen of the Underworld, returns to her. Each fall, when Persephone returns to Hades, Demeter cries, and lets all the crops die until spring, when the cycle starts again. Demeter is thus connected with the Eleusinian Mysteries--a ritual celebrating the annual birth and death of corn.

The story of Greek goddess Demeter illustrates the tremendous capacity of a woman to love and nurture, within her own family and the world at large. The story of Demeter also comes with a message to all mothers: if we hold on to our children too tightly, if we weave our lives totally around them, we are then at a loss when they mature and become independent. We can suffer very real and very deep pain. Like Demeter, our own inner child has been displaced onto our actual children. 

The legend also reminds us to stand firm for what is good and right, even in the face of adversity, when powerful forces are aligned against us. Call upon Demeter to give you courage to face any adversity, she will also help guide you through any family issues. Demeter shows us the change of the seasons throughout our life. We can be in the icy grip of despair but we know that Spring will return, our sadness will ease, and we can smile in the warmth once more. She is truly a Goddess of strength.