Known as Prosperina to the Romans, Persephone is a Greek goddess of spring and the queen of the underworld, ruling alongside Hades. Due to her mythology, in antiquity, she is closely related to all aspects of womanhood and female initiation, including girlhood, marriage, and childbearing. (This is an ancient view of what womanhood means and does not reflect my personal views on the topic).
Persephone’s parentage varies depending on who you ask
Demeter (her mother in the most popular variation)
Zeus (father in the most popular variation)
other variations include:
She has no full blood siblings, but has plenty of half-siblings from both Demeter and Zeus, most notably:
Adonis (in some tales, in others he is more of an adoptive son to her; in some tales, he’s both. Greek gods, am I right?)
In Orphic myth her children are
Zagreus (later turned Dionysus)
Kore, Kora, or Cora - the maiden
Despoina (literally "the mistress of the house") in Arcadia.
Hagne, "pure", originally a goddess of the springs in Messenia.
Melindia or Melinoia (meli, "honey"), as the consort of Hades, in Hermione.
Aristi cthonia, "the best chthonic".
Praxidike, "subterranean queen. The Eumenides' source [mother], fair-haired, whose frame proceeds from Zeus' ineffable and secret seeds."
Arrētos, “she who must not be named”
As a vegetation goddess, she was called:
Kore Soteira, "the savior maiden", in Megalopolis.
Neotera, "the younger", in Eleusis.
Kore of Demeter Hagne in the Homeric hymn.
Kore memagmeni, "the mixed daughter" (bread).
Demeter and her daughter Persephone together were usually called:
The goddesses, are often distinguished as "the older" and "the younger" in Eleusis.
Demeters, in Rhodes and Sparta
The thesmophoroi, "the legislators" in the Thesmophoria.
The Great Goddesses, in Arcadia.
The mistresses in Arcadia.
Karpophoroi, "the bringers of fruit", in Tegea of Arcadia.
Persephone’s most popular story, the abduction of Persephone, is possibly derived from the ancient Sumeria myth of Ereshkigal, goddess of the underworld who was abducted by Kur, the primeval dragon of Sumerian mythology, who forced her to become ruler of the underworld against her will. Keep in mind that there are many versions and interpretations of this myth.
Another story about Persephone involves her interaction with a Nymph named Minthe, who used to be one of Hades’ lovers. Minthe boasted that she was more beautiful than Persephone and would win Hades back. Persephone didn’t take kindly to this boasting and stomped Minthe into the ground, turning her into a mint plant.
Other popular stories are Adonis and Persephone, one creation myth, as well as many more.
It’s possible that Persphone is an old Cthonic local deity of agricultural communities that was absorbed into Greek mythos.
Persephone played a part in many different festivals and rituals in the Greek and Roman world. Many festivals were held in which people would reenact her abduction and her being found again by Demeter. In Syracuse, there would be an annual sacrifice of small animals and a public drowning of bulls.
Among the cults dedicated to Persephone, the largest one was located in Sicily and Southern Italy.
For her connection to the Underworld, Persephone is often mentioned in curse tablets and on gold leaves that were buried with people who had how to act in the afterlife inscribed on them.
Due to being a popular deity that was widely worshiped, the ancient correspondences of Persphone vary. Some symbols and attributes were more popular than others, and some were localized or cult-specific. Regardless, any traditional or historic correspondences will be marked with a (T).
Thesmophoria is a three-day festival celebrated by most of the Greek world; though the female cult of Demeter and Persephone were known to celebrate it more. This festival was probably celebrated around October-November. In some places, this festival or certain aspects of it were exclusive to women.
Chthonia, where four old women would be chosen to sacrifice four heifers with sickles. This festival honored Demeter in connection to Persephone.
Art (statues, pinakes, etc) (T)
Pomegranate (full fruit, the seeds, or juice)
Flowers, especially wild spring flowers!
Floral scents or like perfumes, oils, or incense
Any of the items or depictions of the items listed above
Chocolate (some say specifically dark chocolate)
Dancing to a song that reminds you of her (T)
Creating any art that reminds you of her (T)
Tend to wildflowers or your garden if you have one, or even houseplants.
Celebrate the festivals/holidays mentioned above
As always, your personal correspondences when interacting with a deity will mean much more than anything you find online, but this isn’t a bad place to start!
References and Further Reading
Persephone - Mythopedia (they also have a pretty huge reference list so please go take a peak!)
Persephone and the Seasons - Hellenic.org.au
Hymn for Persephone by Sappho (vis Sacredtexts)
Persephone - Theoi Project
Persophone - World History
(please message me if you are a follower or devotee of Persephone and would like to be added as a resource that someone could reach out to in regards to her!)
