Before the advent of religions, people composed myths and legends. This helped explain to them the phenomena of the world, create their own heroes, on whom you could hope and be equal. The most famous and "rich" is Greek mythology. The pantheon of gods, divine beings and heroes is several dozen.
In this article we will talk about the goddess Ata, her origin and the myths associated with her.
Origin
There are two versions of the origin of the Greek goddess. According to Homer (his version is recognized as the main one), Ata was the daughter of Zeus himself and an unknown earthly woman. From birth, she was endowed with the gift of clouding the mind and misleading gods and people. Her image is found in the Iliad, where Homer calls the goddess Ata the eldest daughter of a Thunderer, very powerful and treacherous.
In "Theogony" of the ancient Greek writer Hesiod Ata (Ata) - the goddess of blindness and madness. Her mother was Eris (the goddess of contention), but nothing was said about her father. Experts sometimes combine these two versions of origin. And thus, the parents of Ata are Zeus and Eris. It is erroneous or not, but to date no source has come to confirm or refute such a conclusion. Scientists, based on the laws of mythology themselves, argue that the origin of Ata should have been absolutely "divine", otherwise it would have been a mortal (demigoddess), as in the case of Heracles.
Appearance
Ideas about the appearance of the goddess Ata also vary. According to one mythological data, she was depicted as a hunched old woman with gray hair and a hoodie. According to another version, she was a marvelous beauty with delicate features. She had wavy red hair (a sign of a witchcraft gift) and a slender figure. She deftly charmed the “victim”, staring into her eyes. And then she took control of her mind, drove her crazy or deceived with the help of auditory / visual hallucinations.
There is also a version that the goddess used a special fragrance in her spell, which allowed her to freely manipulate a person (or god). Or she blinded her victims with fire.
Ata and Hera
There is a myth about how, before the birth of Heracles, the goddess Ata had conceived to muddle the mind of Zeus, and force him to swear that his first mortal descendant would become the ruler of the whole world. Another option: the ruler over the entire clan of Perseus (the elder brother of Hercules on his father). Enchanting the Thunderer, she got her way. But when the jealous Hera found out about Ata's insidious plan, she hastened the birth of Eurystheus (grandson of Perseus). Hercules, on the contrary, began to serve his cowardly and stupid brother.
According to the second version, Hera herself forced to take the oath of Zeus, while Ata had already muddied the mind of the thunderer, and then, holding the birth of Alkmena (mother of Hercules), gave Eurystheus the first to be born.
The myth of the fall of the goddess
Learning about the act of his daughter, Zeus became furious and shamefully threw her from Olympus. He forbade Ata to appear in the divine abode and communicate, and even more so influence the gods. So she was doomed to eternal loneliness. However, the goddess Ata after falling from heaven did not lose power over people. She wandered around the world and brought with her devastation and devastation.
According to legend, people still managed to cope with crazy charms. To do this, they needed to turn to the Litas - the goddesses of requests, the sisters of Ata, also cast down from Olympus. True, they were lame and cross-eyed, so they walked for a very long time, they were late, and indeed sometimes they didn’t come there at all. However, it was impossible to do without them. If a person ignored the help of the goddesses, then he completely fell under the influence of Ata. Then big troubles happened: wars and mass insanity.
Goddess cult
As a sign of respect, Ata did not build temples, did not put her images on sacred dishes and canvases, did not compose songs in her honor. However, the goddess of madness patronized women engaged in witchcraft. They turned to her for help to deceive a man, bewitch him, drive him crazy. In the same way, one could punish a rival. To do this, it is necessary to conduct a special ritual - bring red wine to the altar and dance a certain dance with the call of the goddess, and the statement of his request. The goddess of madness, Ata, was very moody. And if she didn’t like something, she punished the witch.
Interesting Facts
The author of the "Library" Apollodorus wrote that Ata, thrown from Olympus, fell to the top of the mountain in the Asia Minor state of Phrygia. This place was later named after the goddess. Together with her, Palladium, the sacred amulet, was dropped. The legendary Ilion (Troy) was founded on this mountain by the warrior Ilom. And Palladium became a charm of the city.
In addition to Ata, in Greek mythology there are two more goddesses of madness - Mania and Lissa. The first ruled in the underworld and punished people who violated customs, transgressed the law. Lissa was the daughter of Uranus, who personified Heaven. The myth of Hercules is connected with her , who in a rage killed his children. It was the goddess who provoked such a crime.
In honor of the Greek goddess Ata, an asteroid (111 Ata) is named. It was discovered in 1870 by the German-American astronomer K. Peters. The image of Ata can be seen on some versions of the Tarot cards - “Nine of Swords”. Her terrifying face with a long nose, an ominous smile and gray hair rises above a frightened girl surrounded by nine swords stuck in the ground. The card symbolizes anxiety, panic, a feeling of powerlessness in front of problems. In the inverted position, “Nine of Swords” has a positive interpretation, saying that the black bar is ending, and now it is necessary to make considerable efforts to get things going uphill.