✦ Minor Deity Monday - Morpheus ✦
Welcome to the first of a series!
The first episode of this series starts off with Morpheus, the Greek Shapeshifting God of Dreams and the leader of the Oneiroi, personifications having to do with dreams, or dream spirits (aka daemones).
The name of Morpheus (Μορφευς) means "form" or "shape" and he is known specifically for being the Oneiros who personifies the human form in dreams, taking the shape of various humans and being able to copy the exact voice and mannerisms of the being as well. He also is known to have delivered dreams to humans, and at times delivered messages or prophecy through these dreams.
In mythology, Morpheus is considered leader of the Oneiroi, dream daemones, children of either Nyx (Night) and Erebos (Darkness) or of Hypnos (Sleep) and Pasithea (Relaxation), that are called brothers with each other, with the three Oneiroi mentioned in mythology being Morpheus (Form), Phobetor (Frightener), and Phantasos (Fantasy).
Morpheus, along with the rest of the Oneiroi are said to "sleep" in a cave in Erebos (with either Hypnos or Erebos) that is located in the Underworld. The Oneiroi seem to tend to be "sleeping" under the effects of poppy seeds which exist in the cave they reside in. The Poppy plant contains opiates, which is where morphine is derived from. In low doses, it causes drowsiness, sleepiness, and a mild high.
There isn't much mention of Morpheus specifically throughout mythology, with the most prominent of myths including him being in the story of Alcyone and a suspected theory of Morpheus being the unnamed Oneiroi who gave Agamemnon a dream in the Iliad.
After the death of Alcyone's husband, Hera feeling terrible for the situation, had Iris go to Erebos, where Hypnos and the Oneiroi reside, and told Hypnos that Alcyone needed to be told of her husband's death. Hypnos then enlists Morpheus, who fit the situation best as he then goes to Alcyone in the night, and takes the form of her dead husband, copying his voice and mannerisms perfectly, and telling her that she had lost her husband.
In the Iliad, Zeus wished to give victory to Achilles during the Trojan War, so to do this, he planned to fool Agamemnon first. For this to work, Zeus enlists the help of Dream (who is suspected to be Morpheus), who turns into Nestor, an advisor to Agamemnon, and speaks to him in his sleep making him believe Zeus is on his side. By doing this, Agamemnon follows through on this fake advice and makes a tactical error, losing in battle instead.
In my personal experience, Morpheus, alike to how he is thought to be in myth, he seems to appear as a young man or entirely cloaked in shadow, either way having dark/blackened angel-like wings, and standing far above even a tall human height. He does also live in Erebos, within the Underworld, with the other Oneiroi.
I also personally feel him to be nonbinary, but primarily male-presenting, so "he" or "they" works!
His attitude can tend to be stoic but with a dark sense of humor, at times being fairly serious when he truly needs you to know something and more mischievous when you fail to pay attention to him, especially if you're in a dream with him. He's a wonderful guide and teacher especially in terms of dream work and has actually helped me quite a bit with understanding lucid dreaming much better. Additionally, as I've seen some talk in a few spaces of liminal deities, I'd consider Morpheus one, especially as a deity known for changing shape and existing primarily in the world of dreams.
He's connected to the element of Air, and the colors silver, black, dark blue, grey, and gold.
The three primary epithets I know him as are:
- Winged Guide of Dreams - Focuses on his dream and guiding aspects
- The Dark Messenger - Focuses on his prophetic aspects
- The Shifting Shadow - Focuses on his more liminal and transformative aspects
Further Resources on Morpheus:
https://www.theoi.com/Daimon/OneirosMorpheus.html
https://www.greeklegendsandmyths.com/morpheus.html
https://www.thecollector.com/morpheus-greek-god/
https://olympioi.com/demigods/morpheus
https://www.greekmyths-greekmythology.com/morpheus-the-god-of-dreams/
