Nyx (mythology)
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In Greek mythology, Nyx (Νύξ, Nox in Roman translation) was the primordial goddess of the night.
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[edit] Nyx in Hesiod
In Hesiod's Theogony, Night is born of Chaos; her offspring are many, and telling. With her brother Erebus, Night gives birth to Aether ("atmosphere") and Hemera ("day"). Later, on her own, Night gives birth to Momus "blame", Ponos "toil", Moros "fate", Thanatos "death", Hypnos "sleep", the Oneiroi "the tribe of dreams", the Hesperides, the Keres and Fates, Nemesis, Apate "deception", Philotes "friendship", Geras "age", and Eris "strife".
In his description of Tartarus, Hesiod says further that Hemera "day", who is now Night's sister rather than daughter, left Tartarus just as Nyx entered it; when Hemera returned, Nyx left. This mirrors the portrayal of Ratri "night" in the Rig-Veda, where she works in close cooperation but also tension with her sister Ushas "dawn".
[edit] Nyx in Homer
In Book 14 of Homer's Iliad, there is a quote by Hypnos, the minor god of sleep, in which he reminds Hera of an old favor after she asks him to put Zeus to sleep. He had once before put Zeus to sleep at the bidding of Hera, allowing her to cause Herakles (who was returning by sea from Laomedon's Troy) great misfortune. Zeus was furious and would have smote Hypnos into the sea if he had not fled to Nyx, his mother, in fear. Hypnos goes on to say that Zeus, fearing to anger Nyx, held his fury at bay, and in this way Hypnos escaped the wrath of Zeus.
[edit] Nyx in Orphic Poetry
Night took on an even more important role in several fragmentary poems attributed to Orpheus. In them, Night, rather than Chaos, is the first principle. Night occupies a cave or adyton, in which she gives oracles. Kronos - who is chained within, asleep and drunk on honey - dreams and prophesies. Outside the cave, Adrastea clashes cymbals and beats upon her tympanon, moving the entire universe in an ecstatic dance to the rhythm of Nyx's chanting.
[edit] Other Greek texts
Night is also the first principle in the opening chorus of Aristophanes's Birds, which may be Orphic in inspiration. Here she is also the mother of Eros. In other texts she may be the mother of Charon (with Erebus), and Phthonus "envy" (with Dionysus?).
The theme of Night's cave or house, beyond the ocean (as in Hesiod) or somewhere at the edge of the cosmos (as in later Orphism) may be echoed in the philosophical poem of Parmenides. The classical scholar Walter Burkert has speculated that the house of the goddess to which the philosopher is transported is the palace of Night; this hypothesis, however, must remain tentative.
[edit] Cults of Night
In Greece, Night is only rarely the recipient of cult. According to Pausanias, she had an oracle on the acropolis at Megara (Paus. 1.40.1).
More often, Nyx lurks in the background of other cults. Thus there was a statue called Night in the temple of Artemis at Ephesus. The Spartans had a cult of Sleep and Death, conceived of as twins (Paus. 3.18.1) - no doubt with Night as their mother. Cult titles composed of compounds of nyx- are attested for several gods, most notably Dionysus Nyktelios "nocturnal" (Paus. 1.40.6) and Aphrodite Philopannyx "who loves the whole night" (Orphic Hymn 55).
[edit] Nyx in modern literature/culture
In the song Erebus by The Amenta the final line makes reference to Nyx with "Ah, Nyx. Close your womb. Your children are heavy."
In the series Incarnations of Immortality by Piers Anthony, Nox appears as the Incarnation of Night, whose schemes are quite mysterious.
She appears as Night, a mysterious Greek goddess, in Ilium and Olympos by Dan Simmons, and Zeus is said to secretly fear her wrath.
[edit] Nyx outside of Greece
In Roman texts that take up this Greek theme, Nyx is translated as Nox. (Virgil V, 721)
On June 21, 2006, the International Astronomical Union renamed one of Pluto's recently discovered moons (S/2005 P 2) to Nix, in honor of Nyx. The name was spelled with an "i" instead of a "y", to avoid conflict with the asteroid 3908 Nyx.
[edit] References
- Aristophanes, Birds.
- Hesiod, Theogony.
- Otto Kern ed., Orphicorum Fragmenta.
- Pausanias, Descriptions of Greece.
- [1] in the game Resident Evil: Outbreak File 2, Nyx was the final boss of End Of The Road
- News article about the naming of Pluto's moons
[edit] In Popular Culture
Nyx appears in Castlevania's Portrait of Ruin as a minor enemy towards the end of the game. She resembles a seductive, bat-winged, blue-haired nurse holding a large syringe filled with purple fluid that poisons the heroes. She's described as the "Master of Night" as well.
[edit] See also
