Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon, my Darlings. For today’s blog post, I will be discussing the Adonia, a festival to celebrate Adonis! The Adonia was said to take place around Midsummer, in July, which is why I am writing about this today. However, I want to note that while Plutarch stated the Adonia was in Midsummer, Aristophanes stated that it was celebrated near the Spring. Of course, this conflicting information could be that Adonia was celebrated at different times in different areas, meaning that both accounts could be accurate.
Now that I have explained the timeframe when the Festival of Adonia was celebrated, let’s discuss a bit more about the event. This event was devoted to celebrating the love between Aphrodite and Adonis. Adonis was a mortal man who was born from a Myrrh Tree, as his mother Myrrah had been turned into a Myrrh Tree by the Gods while pregnant. You see, Aphrodite had cursed Myrrah to lust after her own father when Myrrah had been compared to Aphrodite herself in beauty (this was the fault of Myrrah’s mother, who also was punished by this, as it led to the incest between her husband and daughter). When Myrrah’s father realized that a deception had led to him bedding his own daughter, he sought to kill her, which is why the Gods saved her by transforming her into a tree!
When Aphrodite saw the beautiful baby born from this tree, she could not see any harm ever come to him, and she gave him to Persephone to raise in the Underworld. This is also why Myrrh is Sacred to Aphrodite! I think it is very telling that Aphrodite had Persephone raise Adonis because she did not want Adonis to see her as a mother, as I believe she knew that when he grew up, she might become his lover. Of course, when Adonis grows into a very handsome man, Persephone is not too keen to give him up to go live with Aphrodite.
This is what caused Zeus to have to intervene and state that Adonis would spend one-third of the year with each Goddess and the final third of the year however he pleased. Of course, Adonis chose to spend this final third of the year with Aphrodite as well, given how deeply he loved her! I do want to briefly state that there are differing opinions as to why Persephone fought to keep Adonis with her. Some people believe that Persephone herself lusted for Adonis, boiling it down to a simple love triangle. However, I tend to read it in another way, that Persephone saw Adonis as a son and was being overprotective in a motherly way, as this makes much more sense to me.
Now that I have noted that, let’s get back to Aphrodite and Adonis. It is famously known that they had a deep and abiding love story, which was to end tragically. Adonis was gored to death by a boar, which was either controlled by Artemis or Ares, depending on the myth. When it is Artemis who sends the boar, it is due to jealousy over Adonis’ hunting prowess. But, when it is Ares who sent the boar, it is due to his jealousy over how much Aphrodite loved Adonis!
Either way, Aphrodite is thrown into a deep depression and grief at the loss of her true love. It is this story that states that Roses turned Red for the first time by the blood of Adonis falling onto them, and that the mixing of the tears of Aphrodite and the blood of Adonis formed the Anemone flower. This link with two different flowers shows just how powerfully life-giving the love between these two was!
That brings us to why the Adonia was celebrated. It was this Festival that marked the time when women would mourn the loss of Adonis with Aphrodite! It should be noted that the Adonia was a Festival put on by women, not by the state itself, and it is a Festival that only involves women. The Festival of Adonia involved women planting quickly growing seeds in pots on their rooftops, which would then be cast into the Sea in mourning for Adonis! I love this Festival for the fact that it came out of a true love and devotion to Aphrodite and her Consort Adonis, with women creating and celebrating this of their own free will. As this is not a Festival sanctioned by the state, and it is not one that is run by Priestesses, as any woman could participate, making it a very unique kind of Festival. This is truly a celebration of Love and Devotion done by ancient Greek women, and it is honestly almost surprising that it was not stopped by the men. I love that the men accepted this, as it shows their own Love and Devotion to Aphrodite as well!
I hope you have enjoyed this look at the Adonia. What is your favorite aspect of the Adonia? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is the painting of Aphrodite and Adonis by Peter Paul Rubens. I found the art on https://classical-inquiries.chs.harvard.edu/the-theo-eroticism-of-mythmaking-about-aphrodites-love-for-boys-like-adonis-in-ancient-greek-paintings/.
LINK TO AVALONIAN ROSE FAERY MYSTERIES PATREON: patreon.com/AvalonianRoseFaeryMysteries
Further Reading
- Blood and Roses: A Devotional for Aphrodite and Venus by Bibliotheca Alexandrina
- https://www.personalitycafe.com/threads/the-adonia-the-annual-ancient-greek-festival-of-mourning-adonis.1374484/
- https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2017/2017.05.50/