Themis, goddess of law and
personification of divine order was one
of the oldest divinities of Greek
mythology two of the primordial gods
were Uranus and his wife Gaia. Uranus and
Gaia had many children including the
twelve titans one of whom was Themis. As a titaness, Themis is member of the second
generation of gods who preceded the
Olympian gods.
Themis personifies natural
law and abstract concepts that what
difficult to represent symbolically.
originally it seems the Greeks only used
scales balance symbol and the cornucopia
or horn of plenty symbol of abundance
and nourishment to represent Themis.
Later the Greeks began to incorporate more
symbols and objects some of these came
from other goddesses who represented
concepts similar to natural law such as
justice Dike or revenge Nemesis. This
new enriched representation of Themis
was adopted by the Romans for their goddess Iustitia.
Today we represent Themis as goddess of
justice with the following elements.
The scales in her left hand to symbolize the
balance the order
A sword: in her right hand, because justice is executive, it must be respected.
Blindfold: we are now
accustomed to representing justice as blind because she is impartial.
A lion:
frequently, Themis is depicted leaning on a lion or with a nearby lion.
This indicates that justice must be linked to force.
Some classical
representations of Themis showed her holding a sword, believed to represent
her ability to cut fact from fiction. To
her there was no middle ground.
Depictions of Lady Justice wearing a blindfold are modern
not classical by the way when Themis is
disregarded nemesis brings just and
wrathful retribution
Themis is not wrathful she of the lovely
cheeks was the first to offer Hera a cup
when she returned to Olympus
distraught over threats from Zeus.
Themis was not only a counsellor of
Zeus but  was one of his earliest
brides with Zeus she more certainly
bore the Horae, those embodiments of the right moment
the rightness of order unfolding in time.
Horae were the goddesses of the seasons and
the natural portions of time first
triad of Horae. Thallo or  Thalatte
was the goddess of springs, buds and
blooms a protector of youth. Auxo one of
the Horae and the goddess and
personification of the season of summer
she is the protector of vegetation and
plants and growth and fertility. Carpo
was the one who brings and was in charge of autumn ripening and harvesting as
well as guarding the way to Mount
Olympus and letting back the clouds
surrounding the mountain if one of the
gods left. She was an attendant to Persephone,
Aphrodite and Hera and was also
associated with Dionysus, Apollo and Pan.
Second triad of Horae
Of the second triad associated to Themis and Zeus for
law and order: Diké  "Justice" Iustitia for Romans was the
goddess of moral justice: she ruled over human justice, as her mother Themis ruled
over divine justice. Eunomia was the goddess of law and legislation. The same
or a different goddess may have been a daughter of Hermes and Aphrodite. Eirene;
the Roman equivalent was Pax was the
personification of peace and wealth and
was depicted in art as a beautiful young
woman carrying a cornucopia scepter and
the torch or rhyton. And Moirae:
THE MOIRAI were the three goddesses of fate who
personified the inescapable destiny of man. They assigned to every person his or
her fate or share in the scheme of things. Their name means "Parts." "Shares" or
"Alottted Portions." The individuals were Klotho (Clotho), the "the Spinner"
who spun the thread of life, Lakhesis, "the Apportioner of Lots", who measured
measured it, and Atropos "She who cannot be turned," who cut it short.
The life of the Greek gods was full of adventure! Themis is one of the quieter
goddesses but there are many legends
that tell us about her.
In ancient Greece, oracles were very important. An oracle is the answer
given by a god to an important question about the life and destiny of a person or
people. Not all gods gave oracles; only those who had the gift of divination.
Among these is Themis.
Themis had the gift of divination, so many gods, including Zeus
asked her for advice. Usually, Themis resided in Olympus, but occasionally, she
was in Delphi, seat of one of the most famous oracles of antiquity. There,
through the priests, Themis divined the fate of the men who consulted her.
The
gods of Olympus led by Zeus had to face
the giants the giants were very powerful
and not even the gods were protected
from them Zeus asked Themis for advice
and she recommended he make a shield with the skin of Amalthea, a goat that had
nursed Zeus in Crete. Thanks to this shield, Zeus was practically invulnerable in the
terrible fight against the giants.
Themis built the Oracle at Delphi and
as herself oracular. According to another legend, Themis received the Oracle at
Gaia and later gave it to Phoebe.
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