Aphrodite

On a golden dawn in the dawn sublime
Of years ere the stars had ceased to sing,
Beautiful out of the sea-deeps cold
Aphrodite arose -the Flower of Time--
That, dear till the day of her blossoming,
The old, old Sea had borne in his heart.

Around her worshipping waves did part
Tremulous - glowing in rose and gold.
And the birds broke forth into singing sweet,
And flowers born scentless breathed perfume.

Softly she smiled upon Man forlorn,
And the music of love in his wild heart beat,
And down to the pit went his gods of gloom,
And earth grew bright and fair as a bride,
And folk in star-worlds wondering cried--
"Lo in the skies a new star is born !"

O Beloved, thus on my small world you
Rose, flushing it all with rosy flame!
Changing sad thoughts to a singing throng,
And creating the earth and the sky anew!

As Love you appeared--and, lo, you are Fame,
And, all my follies and sins despite,
You yet, Beloved, may see my light--
Small, but a star--mid the stars of song.

A poem by Victor James Daley, with special thanks

The Aphrodite (a-fro-DYE-tee) / Venus ~by Greek Mythology

Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, and sexuality. The Romans called her Venus. Aphrodite lived on Mount Olympus with the other supreme deities and was married to the homely craftsman-god, Hephaestus. She was said to have been born from the foam of the sea.

Aphrodite involved herself on several noteworthy occasions with the affairs of mortal heroes. When Jason asked permission of the king of Colchis to remove the Golden Fleece from the grove in which it hung, the king was clearly unwilling. So the goddess Hera, who sponsored Jason's quest, asked Aphrodite to intervene. The love goddess made the king's daughter Medea fall in love with Jason, and Medea proved instrumental in Jason's success.

Aphrodite can also be said to have caused the Trojan War. This came about in the following fashion. When the hero Peleus was married to the sea-nymph Thetis, all the gods were invited to the ceremony -- all but one that is. The slighted goddess happened to a specialist in sowing discord, so she maliciously deposited a golden apple on the banquet table. The fruit was inscribed with the legend, "For the fairest". Immediately all the goddesses began to argue about whose beauty entitled her to be the rightful possesor of this prize.

Finally it was decided to put the dispute to arbitration. Reasonably enough, the designated judge was to be the most handsome mortal in the world. This turned out to be a noble Trojan youth named Paris, who was serving as a shepherd at the time. So the three finalists -- Aphrodite, Hera and Athena -- sought him out in the meadow where he was tending his flocks.

Not content to leave the outcome to the judge's discernment, the three goddesses proceeded to offer bribes. Hera, Queen of Olympus, took Paris aside and told him she would help him rule the world. Athena, goddess of war, said she would make him victorious in battle. Aphrodite sized Paris up and decided he would be more impressed with the guaranteed love of the most beautiful woman in the world. This was Helen, who happened to be married to the king of Sparta.

Paris promptly awarded the golden apple to Aphrodite, who in turn enabled him to elope with Helen, who thenceforth became notorious as Helen of Troy. Helen's husband and his brother raised a Greek army to retrieve his wife, and this was the inception of the Trojan War.

Planet Venus

The Planet Venus is the second closest planet to the sun. It is located between our Earth and Mercury. It is named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty.

Venus is the brightest object in the sky besides our Sun and the Moon. It is also known as the morning star because at sunrise it appears in the east and and evening star as it appears at sunset when it is in the west. It cannot be seen in the middle of the night.

Venus and Earth are close together in space and similar in size, which is the reason Venus is called Earth's sister planet.

Framed painting

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