Sisters

Seven virgin sisters
Singing in the heavens.
Stereope had fallen
Stark glitter dimmed from shame
She loved a mortal man. 
Sysaphus won her heart
So now she sings alone

Hydra

Huge nine-headed serpent
Haunts the heavenly spheres.
Hapless the warrior who
Hopes to conquer him.
Herculean power
Holds fast the honored sword ~
Hideous heads will roll.

Orion

Orion, great hunter
Out of shame was blinded.
Obstacles ahead, by
Oracle, were given.
Orders met, sight regained.
Outlived Diana’s kill ~
Ordained to grace the skies.

Pegasus

Pegasus, winged wonder
Prances through the skies.
Phantom of greater realms.
Poets and prosers all
Profit from his magic.
Preponderence of strength;
Pride of all the Muses.

Orpheus

Orpheus, of legend
Oft’ played his magic lyre
Offering sweet music.
O’er field and stream he played.
Orgiastic rites denied.
Orphic notes entrancing,
Outpoured them unrestrained.

Draco

Draco, dreaded dragon
Demoralizing force ~
Deemed harsh, bloody, cruel, 
Depicted in the skies.
Dangerous Athenian
Demolished all fair laws.
Death, the final payment.

Hercules

Herculean warrior,
Hero of Grecian myth,
Honored for twelve labors
Hera imposed on him.
Hell and back was traveled,
Hateful hearts were conquered ~
His height to heaven earned. 

Jupiter

Jupiter, all-ruling
Judge of fathers and men,
Jostles the elements
Jetting storms with boastful
Jabs, fulminating noise ~
Jangling, exploding his
Judicative powers. 

Mars

Mars, majestic warrior,
Macrocosmic wonder.
Machinator, schemer
Marches on with fury.
Mace of authority
Must come to shake the world ~
Macroevolution.

Saturn

Saturn, god of seed-time,
Sower and harvester
Summons forth the sunlight.
Son of  Heaven and Earth.
Served well the ‘golden age.’
Saturnine influences:
Sullen, cynical, wry.

Venus

Venus, goddess of love,
Visuvian beauty.
Violet-crowned Cytheria
Ventured up from the sea.
Virtue withheld but was
Viewed irresistible.
Volatile love: the dove.

Mercury

Mercury, winged runner,
Messenger of the gods,
Master of wind and space.
Mercuric attributes,
Marvelously nimble.
Musician, dexterous ~
Made lyre from tortoise shell. 

Pluto

Pluto, god of the dead,
Plant farthest from sun
Pervades the underworld.
Powerful deity
Proffering justice with
Proserpine, his queen ~
Plutonic, gloomy reign.

Uranus

Uranus, Grecian god
Unified in heaven.
Unkind to his children.
Undermined by Cronus,
Underwent castration.
Unchristened by the sea,
Up from blood sprang Venus.

Helios

Helios, Greek sun god
Hears and sees everything.
Has four-horse chariot
High in the midheavens.
Headstrong son, Phatheos
Handled the reigns badly,
Hastening disaster.

Luna

Luna, goddess of moon,
Luminary wonder,
Lingers in the heavens
Lighting silver arrows.
Loved young Endymion.
Lulling him to sleep, she
Lubriciously captured.

Neptune

Neptune, mighty wonder,
Navigates through sea with
Naiad nymphs and horses.
Never-napping god can
Nebulize with trident ~
Naval seamen credit
Neptunian powers.

Midas

Midas, mighty ruler,
Mythical Phrygran king
Made self a major fool.
Maladapted wishes;
Maintained his lust for gold.
Macrostupidity ~
Mind-made his donkey ears.

Atlanta

Atalantis, famous
Athlete, virgin beauty,
Adventurous huntress.
Agreed to race suitors.
All strove to win.
Aphrodite aided
Arduous Hippomenes.

Adonis

Adonis, Greek hero,
Attractive, virile youth,
A skilled, manly hunter.
Adored by young maidens.
Aphrodite loved him;
Assailed by boar…Rebirth;
Anemone flowers

Persephone

Persephone, maiden,
Promise of springtime’s growth.
Pluto stole and raped her.
Pained mother, Demeter,
Pleaded to Zeus for her
Precious daughter’s life to
Pacify earth’s hunger.

Echo

Echo, fairest of nymphs,
Enticed Narcissus who
Eclipsed and scorned her love.
Evanished by Hera,
Escaped to live in caves.
Eternally silenced,
Ever to speak last word. 

Narcissus

Narcissus, son of the
Nymph Leirope. A
Narcissistic youth, who,
Noted for great beauty,
Never returned love to
Numerous nisus nymphs.
Nemesis transformed him.

Myrrha

Myrrha or Smyrna, known
Mother of Adonis,
Made incestuous union.
Malefaction punished;
Made to dwell in myrrh tree.
Malevolent father
Managed to kill himself.

Apollo

Apollo, god of sun
And light, poetry and
Art, music and healing.
A lover of many.
Aided Trojans in war.
Artemis – twin sister;
Asiatic goddess.

Minotaur

Minotaur, Cretian bull,
Monstrous; owned by the king.
Menacing, destructive.
Mazelike prison built by
Minos, king of Crete, who
Made meat of Athen’s youth.
Mortal blow by Theseus.

Antigone

Antigone buried
A brother, Sophocles
And was condemned for it.
Abetted Oedipus -
Assisted blind father.
Antigonian love
And courage; heroine.

Theseus

Theseus, the thinker;
The son of Argeus.
Terrible feats – Given
Tasks of strength and honor.
Tackled and killed Minotaur.
Tamed and calmed Hercules.
Thereafter, was worshiped.

Creon

Creon, king of Thebes,
Claimed city under siege.
Conquered old Oedipus.
Criminal wrongs employed.
Corpse denied interment.
Condemned Antigone.
Caused deaths of sons and wife.

Helen (Of Troy)

Helen, queer on Sparta,
Honored daughter of Zeus,
Hatched from a goose’s egg.
Her immortal beauty
Had many Greek nobles 
Hustling for her hand.
Husband was Menelaus.

Bacchus

Bacchus, Greek god of wine,
Birth of many versions.
Brewed religious frenzy,
Brought orgiastic rites.
Became involved in war
Between gods and Giants.
Butchered his son to death.

Cybele

Cybele, mother of gods.
Corbantes, young priests, gave
Cybelian rites with
Cries of worship, shouts, drums,
Clashing swords, wild dances.
Creative force – nature ~
Claiming, clinging, cleansing.

Achilles

Achilles, Greek warrior,
A son of Peleus
And the sea nymph, Thetis.
At age fifteen was made
Admiral of Greek fleet.
Advanced war against Troy.
Arrow in heel killed him.

Androcles

Androcles, a Greek slave,
According to legend,
Abstracted a thorn from
A lion’s paw once in
Africa. Remembered
Act of kindness; saved from 
Arena of lions.

Cassandra

Cassandra, crazed priestess,
Calamity’s prophet.
Could foretell fall of Troy.
Claimed by Agamemnon;
Captive slave, concubine.
Chieftan Ajax raped her.
Cyclemestra killed her.

Eros

Eros, known as Cupid,
Esteemed god of Venus;
Enchanting god of Love.
Ever-ready to pierce
Each heart with his arrows,
Empowering naked
Emotions to run free. 

Hephaestus

Hephaestus, god of Fire,
Hera and Zeus’s son,
Had ugly form – was lame.
Heart was kind and gracious.
Hailed for blacksmith skills. Made
Hercules’s shields; heroes
Holy armor; honored.

Vesta

Vesta, Roman goddess;
Viraginous virgin.
Vestals tended fires,
Vitalized her powers.
Vigil over homes, hearths.
Victory’s child seen in
Vinous celebrations.

Giants

Giants, monstrous brood; Great
Ge, Earth mother, bore them;
Gave Uranus his sons.
Giantomachy raged
Great war on Olympus.
Geothermal hatred.
Greek myths of them abound.

Iris

Iris, Rainbow goddess.
Iridescent garments.
Important messenger;
Induces harmony.
Inherent influence
In Greek mythology.
Indefatigable.

Somnus

Somnus, Greek god of Sleep
Slumbers in his house of
Sleep where dusky twilight’s
Shadows wrap all things in
Silence and darkness. No
Sound but the flowing
Stream of Lethe is heard there.

Harpies

Harpies, wild hounds of Zeus,
Huge, flying monster birds.
Horrible winged creatures,
Hateful, odious, swift.
Heaven sent Iris, with
Haste: saved king Phineas.
Hacked by sons of Boreas.

Atlas

Atlas, bearer of sky.
A half-divine giant.
Allegiance to Titans.
Adjudged by Zeus to use
Arms of mighty vigor
And shoulders of great strength;
Awesome, arduous task!

Hebe

Hebe, young Greek goddess,
Healthy, blooming beauty.
Hera was her mother,
Her father’s name was Zeus,
Hercules, her husband.
Habit was to serve gods
Hearty, healthy nactar.

Cheirion

Cheiron, wise king of
Centaurs, half-man, half-horse.
Cultured son of Titan,
Cronus and Philyra.
Counselled Achilles. Was
Centauras Immortal;
Constellation in stars.

Boreas

Boreas, great North Wind
Blows brisk, cold blasts and gales
Bringing Boreal snows;
Bold, bitter temperatures.
Best known for courting his
Beloved Orithyia who
Bore him several children.

Dryads

Dryads, immortal nymphs,
Destined to dwell in trees.
Devoted, yet carefree;
Defending – protecting.
Daily duty and deep 
Desire to aid life.
Death of tree –gone the nymph.

Naiads

Naiads, young, beautiful 
Nymphs, inhabiting springs.
Named from Greek root, “flow.”
Notorious for their
Noncontrolled emotions.
Nympholepts, bewitching;
Nisus love for young males.

Satyrs

Satyrs, composite forms;
Semblance of man and horse.
Semi-divine Greek gods.
Sylvan ithyphallic
Spirits who dance with nymphs.
Satyriasis is
Seen in sensual acts.

Fates

Fates, daughters of the night,
Famed for symbolizing
Fortune’s obscurity
From Hades. Three different
Faces of doom are spun;
Future life is measured;
Final end is severed.

Romulus and Remus

Romulus and Remus
Roman twins, sons of Mars;
Respectively rash and slow.
Renounced by Amulius.
River Tiber saved babes.
Raised, suckled by she-wolf;
Red woodpecker fed lads.
Rome proffered well from them.

Momus

Momus, Roman god of
Mockery and censure.
Major carping critic;
Men and gods were jeered at.
Marveled Aphrodite;
Modified his manner.
Made self a grievous death.

Prometheus

Epimetheus, fool.
Earned his name: (After-thought.)
Errors in creation
Endangered man, not beast.
Enlisted Fore-thought’s help,
Ensuring best for man.
Emblazoned change ensued.

Epimethus

Epimetheus, fool.
Earned his name: (After-thought.)
Errors in creation
Endangered man, not beast.
Enlisted Fore-thought’s help,
Ensuring best for man.
Emblazoned change ensued.

Hyathinthus

Hyathinthus, Greek youth,
Handsome Spartan lad, was
Hit by Apollo in
Head by an iron quoit.
Heart of Apollo weighed 
Heavy from accident;
He had killed his best friend.

Thamyris

Thamyris, Greek poet who
Thought his singing better
Than the Muses; Impudent.
Tempted them to combat.
They won and took his gifts.
Thus, transformed him sightless
To write poems and sing.

Cerberus

Cerberus, three-headed
Cur; watchdog of Hades.
Cerberean Monster,
Comes welcoming the dead.
Cruel; sharp fangs, dragon’s tail.
Crushed once by Hercules.
Charmed twice by honey-cake.

Ganymede

Ganymede, prime, young male,
Gorgeous Trojan prince.
Great lover of Zeus who
Granted him ageless youth.
Glorified cupbearer;
Gave nectar to the gods.
Given immortal bliss.

Medusa

Medusa, wild Gorgon
Monster: huge wings, teeth, claws.
Mass of writhing serpents
Made frame around her head.
Major menace to gods.
Marked dead by Athena.
Managed by Perseus.

Pan

Pan, woodland god, son of
Penelope and Hermes.
Protector of shepherds.
Pointed ears, tail, goats feet.
Played merry music from
Pipes of reeds; danced with nymphs.
Prophetic, poetic.

Hubris

Hubris: any human
Having superior
Heightened love of self, as
Hubristic boasting of
Higher status than gods.
Heavenly hierarchy
Has justified anger.

Horae

Horae, the Three Hours,
Happy, blooming maidens.
Have charge of the seasons.
Home is on Olympus
Heaven’s gates, watched by them.
Honored for their justice,
Harmony and order.

Clotho

Clotho, one of three Fates,
Clothed daughter of the night.
Charge of universal
Cosmic regulation.
Consultant to the gods.
Controls the thread of life.
Can disobey parents.

Hundred Handers

Hundred Handers – giants:
“Homogenous three.”
Hostile-battling brothers.
Had fifty heads and one-
Hundred arms. Threw large rocks,
Halting Titans in war.
Huge, fierce fighting machines!

Ge (Gaia)

Ge, Mother of the Earth;
Goddess born of chaos.
Gave birth to Heaven; Sea.
Grand dame of netherworld.
Guided marriage and death.
Given prayers for crops. In
Grecian shrines, was worshiped.

Tartarus

Tartarus, region of
The underworld; dark, vague.
Two rivers flow its path
There: ‘Woe, Lamentation.’
Three judges pass sentence
To torture the wicked:
Torment everlasting.

Nereus

Nereus, diety;
Necromatic sea-god.
Named ‘Old Man of the Sea.’
Numerous daughter-nymphs.
Noted kindly prophet
Neptunian powers.
Nature to transform shape.

Chaos

Chaos, father of night.
Chaotic ruler of 
Confusion, dark unrest,
Chance; primordial state.
Conflicting disorder
Causing elemental
Combinations of birth.

Typhon

Typhon, huge Greek dragon;
Terrifying hybrid,
Terrible winged monster.
Twisting snakes; hundred heads.
Tested Zeus in battle.
Thunderbolts of lightning
Took its toll and killed him.

Sphinx

Sphinx, Greek female monster.
Shape of lion’s body;
Soaring wings, woman’s bust.
She gave a riddle to 
Solve. Many losers were
Sacrificed: She ate them!
Successful: Oedipus.

Furies

Furies, Roman sisters.
Fierce, violent goddesses
Feared by the early Greeks.
Fought for retribution:
Found, frightened and tortured
Flagrant offenders of
Filial negligence.

Askeplios

Askeplios, son of
Apollo. Skilled surgeon;
Attained heroic heights.
A mortal healer whose art
In medicine, when
Administered, revived
And assisted the dead.

Oedipus

Oedipus: Ulysses,
Outstanding Greek leader.
Old king of Ithaca
Outlived his bouts with fate.
Overcame gigantic 
Odds in Homer’s epic
Odyssey: Illiad.

Janus

Janus, Roman god with
Jugate opposing heads,
Joiner of old and new.
January’s month gives
Journeys through gates and doors.
Joyous new beginnings,
Justifiable ends.

Andromeda

Andromeda, princess,
Abhorred by Cepheus.
Abandoned to placate
A sea-monster: rock-chained.
Abetted by Perseus,
At her death she was placed
Among the stars.    

Graces

Graces, divine sisters;
Great names: “Splendor, Mirth and
Good Cheer.” Friends of Muses.
Gave beauty to young girls.
Graced the ‘first woman’ with
Garlands.  Keepers of the
Gates of heaven – graceful.

Pandora

Pandora, sent by Zeus,
Punished the human race;
Prometheus stole the
Precious fire from heaven.
Pandemonium was 
Poofed out from the lid of
Pretty Pandora’s box.

Graeae

Graeae, sisters of the
Gorgons, three old hags, who
Grew gray hair from birth. They
Guarded their sisters but
Great warrior, Perseus
Grabbed their one eye, so he
Got to slay Medusa.

Flora

Flora, the goddess of
Flowers, gave birth to Mars.
Frequent Floralia
Festivals were given.
Floriferous maidens
Found joy in serving the
Fruits of Rome’s existence.

Aurora

Aurora, brilliant light;
A herald of the dawn.
As borealis or,
Australis, she flies,
Appearing to be as
An arch of morning light
Acrosss heavenly spheres.

Icarus

Icarus, prisoner,
In the labyrinth thrown.
Ingenious wings were
Invented to free him.
Impractacle, too close
Into the sun he flew;
Icarian Sea - his death.