Queen Of The Dead
Tattoo by Ash at Show Off Ink Artistry July 2020 (COVID-19 Phase 2 in CT)
So many people think they know the story of Persephone. The supposed waif-ish blonde demi-goddess of Spring, stolen from her Goddess mother and dragged into the Underworld, tricked by Hades to eat the food of the Dead and forced to marry Hades. Sounds like a cis-hetero white mans version of a cautionary tale, stay with your mother and if you don't, sacrifice and pay for your mistakes.
Throughout my life I have been lucky enough to find so many versions of this story, to enjoy seeing the many ways a story can be interpreted. So here is the version I love the most. Persephone, the Goddess of Spring is not like the other Goddesses. She is tall and strong, loving, empathetic and also has an inner darkness. A balance that is needed to create life, to grow things deep in the mud and dirt, to birth the planets flora and fauna. Her inner darkness, her balance was unappreciated by all except Hades. Now Hades historically is the unwanted God, ruler of the Underworld, a job no other God wanted. While he lives a life that was melancholy and unhappy he knew his job was to keep the balance. He had seen Persephone before and found her beautiful, exciting and her inner darkness called to him.
It was in that moment that her decided her would visit Persephone and ask her to come back to the Underworld. Little did he know that is exactly what she wanted, she felt an unconscious attraction to Hades and the Underworld and knew with him she would not longer be the Demi-Goddess controlled by her mother and the other Gods, she be a free agent. So she tool Hades off and went to visit his realm. While it was a dark and scary place, she felt no fear, and Hades built her a field of permanent spring amongst the Elysium fields so she would never yearn for home.
While they were spending time getting to know each other Demeter was livid and asked Zeus to get their daughter back, imagining that her daughter was stolen by Hades to "have his wicked way" with her. Demeter unleashed her anger on the world and created Winter. Crops died, animals were confused and the Mortals grew hopeless, no longer praying to the Gods. Persephone knew this would happen and being tempted by the food of the dead, ate 6 pomegranate seeds hoping it would mean she would have to stay. It seemed to be common knowledge that anyone who ate the food of the dead would have to stay. In her short time in the Underworld she had grown fond of Hades and of the realm itself. She knew her kindness and compassion could ease the suffering of the newly dead, she could bring life back to all the dark, primordial places that once grew life. She wanted to stay.
But Zeus, who hated Hades himself, brought both Persephone and Hades to Olympus for a trial. Everyone else would decide what would happen to Persephone. Hades argued that if Persephone wanted to stay with him he would happily have her and if not he would let her go. Demeter went into a rage and said if she lost her child the world would be in a perpetual Winter. Hades pointed out that Persephone ate the food of the dead and therefore she would have to stay but again was willing to not enforce this rule if Persephone wanted to return home. Persephone was livid, no one had considered her in all of this (although Hades had at least tried). She announced she was going, she ate the food of the dead and that was that. Zeus could not abide by this, he could not allow Winter to destroy the planet. So instead Zeus made a compromise, 6 months in the Underworld and 6 months on Earth. Persephone agreed to the terms to keep the peace and restore balance.
Everyone sees this story as a story of the birth of the season, a cautionary tale about leaving home, find a partner, whatever other storyline you can pull from it. What hear is that balance, life and death, Spring and Winter, romantic and platonic (in this case Maternal) Love, the Harvest of Spring and Fall with the resting period of Summer and Fall, all need each other, we can't know one without the other, and Persephone sacrificed a lifetime of continued happiness so the world could have balance.
I wanted an image that embrace the beauty and darkness, the power and softness, the balance that is Persephone and it happened. Now imagine how beautiful this will be when it's complete.