Hades (Pluto)

The son of Cronus and Rhea, Hades, along with his brother Poseidon and sisters Hera, Hestia, and Demeter, was swallowed by his father until being delivered by Zeus, his other brother. He took part in the struggle with the Titans wearing a helmet given to him by the Cyclopes that made him invisible. The name Hades originally meant "Invisible."
When the universe was divided among the gods, he received the Underworld, known as Hades or Tartarus, while Zeus was given the Sky and Poseidon lordship over the Sea.
Although he belonged to the new generation of gods, Hades was not numbered among the Olympians because he never emerged into the light of day. His only direct contact was with Hermes, who had the task of accompanying the dead into the next world.

In the Infernal Regions, Hades ruled with an iron hand and permitted none of his subjects to return to the world of the living, apart from a few rare exceptions.
He was assisted in his task by demons and various spirits subject to his orders: Charon, Minos, Cerberus, and so on. By his side, and no less cruel, reigned Persephone, whom Hades abducted from her mother Demeter. Later, the god of the dead was obliged to return her but succeeded in binding her to his world for a third of the year. No children were born from their union, although one tradition asserts that the infernal couple had generated the Erinyes.

Hades appears rarely in legends, and his name was usually not spoken to avoid arousing his anger. He was mostly referred to by his epithets. The most common of these was Pluto, which means "the Wealthy" and alludes to the riches hidden in the earth. This was the name that the Romans used for Hades.

Last Edited On: 08/13/99

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