Aphrodite, in Greek mythology, the goddess of love and beauty and the counterpart of the Roman goddess Venus. In Homeric legend she is said to be the daughter of Zeus and Dione, one of Zeus's consorts, but in the Theogony of Hesiod she is described as having sprung from the foam of the sea, and etymologically her name may mean “foam-risen.” According to Homer, Aphrodite is the wife of Hephaestus, the lame and ugly god of fire. Her lovers include Ares, god of war, who in later mythology was represented as her husband.
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Perhaps the most famous legend about Aphrodite concerns the cause of the Trojan War. Eris, the personification of discord—the only goddess not invited to the wedding of King Peleus and the sea nymph Thetis—resentfully tossed into the banquet hall a golden apple on which were inscribed the words “for the fairest.” When Zeus refused to judge between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, the three goddesses who claimed the apple, they asked Paris, prince of Troy, to make the award. The contest prompted the goddesses to bribe the prince; Aphrodite said she would give him the most beautiful woman in the world, Athena said she would give him immense military influence and Hera promised him to become a powerful ruler. Paris declared Aphrodite the fairest and chose as his prize Helen of Troy, the wife of the Greek king Menelaus. Paris abducted Helen and this treason led to the Trojan War and in turn led to the destruction of Troy.
Posted 2011-01-24 and updated on Jan 24, 2011 8:26am by crisd