The Messed Up Origins of Persephone | Mythology Explained - Jon Solo 

Hades: “Persephone, what are you doing back here?” Persephone: “Omg I cannot stand my mother right now. I just need some away.” Hades: “But it’s April..?”

“Zeus? What are you doing? I need my sacrifices.” I LOST IT.

hades: *is too awkward to ask persephone to marry him* persephone: *is hanging out in a field of flowers* hades: *yoink*

Fun fact. Most people were more afraid of Persephone than they were Hades

In some versions Persephone was totally aware of the effects of the food from the Underworld and ate it because she had fallen in love with Hades and because she knew Demeter wouldn't let her go back to the Underworld, and that if she was to do so against her mother's will would cause her to reinstate her curse on the plants of the Earth; Persephone and Hades devised the plan so that she would be "forced" to spend time in the Underworld. She absolutely adored her mother and wanted to spend time with her as well, but she needed a binding reason to spend part of her time with her husband too.

Hades is easily the chillest of Greek gods. Even his sweet, lovely goddess of Spring that is his wife is more hot-headed than he.

HECATE: Goddess of Magic and Witchcraft ALSO HECATE: Can't perform a tracking spell.

_The moment when you realized that Hades is more of a nice guy than the other gods in the actual mythology... but the media called him a villain frequently._ *Hades:* Reality is often disappointing.

So people know, The "Rape" of Persephone wasn't what we think of "rape", now. The myth is also a moral for fathers not to sell off their daughters to narriage without their or their mothers' permission. Mothers didn't get a say so that's why Hades didn't ask permission from Demeter. In Ancient Greek marriages, father's would basically sell/give away their duaghters (like today's walking down the aisle) & the new husband would then give the bride a pomegranate (or sometimes an apple) to symbolise she will now be provided from by the husband, not father. That is why Persephone had the pomegranate. Minthe was a previous lover. Hades didn't cheat.

persephone was NOT in love with adonis. she raised him as her son. they weren't trying to share a boy toy. they were fighting over maternal custody.

I do like the one interpretation of Persephone choosing to stay with him to escape her overprotective mother. Demeter did decide to put her on an island and dress like a young girl despite being an adult, after all, so I can't blame Persephone for wanting to ditch. Plus the extra power and Hades being a pretty chill dude? She's in.

The moment when you realized that Hades is the most relatable character in your life because you grew up to be like him along with Squidward.

I clicked on this faster than Hades took Persephone

Persephone and Hades are my favorite couple since I was a kid. As a kid my parents told me that my name (Denise) was inspired by Persephone and Hades' gender-shifting child Zagreus/Dionysus, although other accounts say that Dionysus' real dad is Zeus. Also, other accounts state that Hades didn't rape Persephone: he didn't even know that Demeter and Persephone weren't aware of Zeus' decision to wed Persephone to Hades. Hades didn't touch her until they were married, and he didn't marry her until some time of courtship. The pomegranate issue was also consensual because both of them were scared that Demeter wouldn't allow Persephone to come back to the Undetworld to see Hades again. Also, compare to the dysfunctional marriage of Hera and Zeus, and affair-filled marriage of Aphrodite and Hephaestus, the marriage of Hades and Persephone is actually loving and both are very loyal. It sucks that some versions of their love story are very dark and negative. Sorry for the long comment.

"Mythology is so f*****g cool" My thoughts exactly

I like Hades, he's my favorite Disney villain. I've got 24 hours to get rid of this bozo or the entire scheme I've been setting up for eighteen years goes up in smoke and you are wearing his MERCHANDISE?!

Granted the 'Rape of Persephone ' is one version of the myth, there are other versions where Persephone and Hades actually to like each other. And the number of pomegranate seeds varies, in some it's one seed, in some it's three and in some it's seven seeds. Thank you for doing this video :3

Adonis: *chooses to spend two thirds of the year with Aphrodite instead of Persephone* Hades: “well now you know how I feel”

*Gods have a conflict* Zeus: “uhhhhh, ummmmm, lets compromise” Persephone: “not this shit again”

Fun Fact: This is one of many connections to Indian Mythology. In Greece, Persephone was abducted by Hades. In India, Sita, Rama’s wife, was abducted by the demon king Ravana. While Persephone loved Hades, and the abduction was planned by both Zeus and Hades, Sita was never interested in Ravana, and it was Ravana himself who planned it.

Because I'm a basic weeb I read Webtoon comics and I mostly got excited about this because of Lore Olympus

why did the number of parking tickets spike when persephone was carried off to the underworld? demeter wasn’t working 😂

Jon:"I bet you're thinking that's a cool shirt" **More than half of the shirt is off frame**

In the story I read Demeter got pissed off from Minthe talking shit about Persephone and stomped her into the ground, creating the mint plant 🥰

Actually theres another version , where she didnt want to leave after mother went to retrieve her :) she enjoyed being a queen and he grew on her and even made a garden for her because she missed the earth

wow, so Persephone isn't as innocent as I thought she was 👀

5:46 "how would they explain global warming? Maybe Demeter's going through menopause or something." 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Persephone has ALWAYS been my favorite myth.

Lore Olympus and now this? I LOVE IT. I love most greek mythology tales but Hades & Persephone are one of my faves.

In all seriousness, your research is out of the ordinary and you manage to put out the information in a way that gets people curious and want to keep listening! If you made a video on any topic, I would probably be interested, even if the subject matter doesn't interest me at all! Keep up the good work!

When all I see are my fellow Webtoon comic lovers. Beautiful!

" The Queen of The Underworld ( Yasss queen)" 😂

I am a simple female. I see Jon Solo, I hear his intro, I tap like and share😙😂

There's actually a different telling of the Minthe myth that I believe is the original. Minthe was going around telling folks how Persephone was basically a harlot and deserved the attack, Demeter heard this, and promptly squashed Minthe under foot, giving us mint.

"The Goddess of Spring" Silly Symphony short really brought me the understanding of this Persephone.

My bf & i were JUST debating about this mythology (thank you for proving me right my guy) 💁🏾

I know her appearance is a foot note, but Persephone also appeared in the Myth of Psyche and Eros when Aphrodite orders Psyche to take a box to Persephone and 'borrow some of her beauty', which Persephone does give to her, only to warn Psyche not to open the box. You can guess what happens next, but all turns out well for Psyche lol. Interesting, the Myth version of Persephone's kidnapping I heard was how Aphrodite ordered Eros to shoot his arrow at Hades, and the first person he saw was Persephone lol.

Wait wait wait. Hades is Persephone’s UNCLE?! WHY IS THERE SO MUCH INCEST IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY??!!

Jon's theory on global warming: "Demeter is going through menopause or something." LOL

Being in the role Helios would be so fun..... I mean the guy literally knows everything that goin on 😂

This is perfect since I have been listening to Hadestown non-stop for weeks, you should go listen to it, it's incredible.

Who else loves Jon Solo and the amazing contents he brings to us evertime.

That "Loose Geese" made me laugh. I wish you could leave multiple likes on a video. Thanks for this channel!

Y’all should read Lore Olympus 💯 This is for the people scrolling through the comments lmao

What most retellings of Persephone's (or Kori, which translates to "the Maiden" or "the Daughter", as she was known before Hades renamed her) rape neglect to mention is that Zeus raped his own daughter first - a matter that the oh so protective Demeter never seemed to have a problem with... Imo, both Zeus and Demeter just wanted Persephone for themselves, denied her an identity of her own and then were furious when she ran off with someone willing to crown her queen and treat her like a person. All these stories ever talk about is what Demeter or Zeus want Hades to do, no one ever asks Persephone...

Forgive the possibly incorrect term but I love the renaissance art! The photorealism is stunning

No matter how powerful the Gods/Goddesses are they're just like humans in the fact that they can't stand their partners having romantic/sexual affairs. Welcome back, Jon.

For some odd reason Persephone‘ myth is one of my fav. Like John said: Mythology is f*** cool 😎!

Excellent video! A part was missed - Demeter punishes the nymphs guarding persephone by turning them into the sirens for not stopping hades.

Literally listening to Hadestown when you uploaded this.

As a Hecate worshiper I pronounce it the way you did, Hea-ca-teah. others pronounce her name as Heck-cat-teh/Heck-kate/ Heck-ah-tee. Plez do a full video on her

About the Theseus thing Helen was TWELVE at the time.

My favourite version of how Persephone and Hades met is the one where she just found her way to the underworld and was like 'Tight, I'm staying here now' and Hades just like let her

You're well spoken, not excessively vulgar, and provide good content. You deserve your success good sir.

My mom passed away on Saturday. I'm building your videos because it helps take my mind off of it, thank you for what you do.

Her messed up origins- her parents were siblings

OMG I LOVE THIS MYTH SO GLAD UR DOING THIS

I'm so stoked that you've started making mythology videos, I'm a huge fan of the messed up origins! It would be sooo cool if you could make some videos on Irish/celtic mythology! I'd love to see you do a video on The Morrigan or Cuú Chulainn or something like that!

I am liking Hades more and more when listening to these origin stories.

Waiting for the Swan Princess not going to let you forget xD big fan of your channel

You don't need to apologise Jon your health comes first plus it nice to take a break from RU-vid once in a while.

I wish that they'd make more movies on Greek Mythology (that are more accurate)

I have fallen down the RU-vid rabbit hole and somehow stumbled upon this RU-vid channel. After watching this video I am now a member of the Solo Fam. I’m an now going to binge watch the rest of your videos. Love the content!!!!

The second to last myth you spoke of for Persephone reminded me of that biblical story of Lot and his family escaping Sodom and Gamorah while it’s destroyed. The family is warned not to look back, but Lot’s wife does and is turned into a pillar of salt and is lost forever. Obviously not the whole myth, but that little part towards the end reminded me of that.

Now I just wanna know how they explain global warming, maybe Demeter is going through meta pause. I laughed so hard

“Maybe Demeter was going through menopause or something” LMAOO

Also it’s believed that it was Persephone that was the feared one. Her epithets include “Dread Persephone” and “ The Pale Queen” among other metal titles. Heck, even her name Persephone literally translates to “Harbinger of Doom/Destruction” which hints that in Ancient Greece she was the terrifying eldritch goddess of death, decay, and devastation itself.

Ok, but the Orpheus one is actually messed up, too. Persephone knew he wouldn’t be able to resist to look behind him, and decided the requirement herself. Hades only approved it. Loosing his wife for a second time, Orpheus withered in grief and played his lyre in a way that called for death. He was later beheaded by Maenads, his head still singing beautifully.

"maybe global warming is Demeter experiencing menopause" ...omg, I laughed so hard xD

There is actually 2 versions of her origin story and in the other one her name is Kora, which meant little girl, and she when to the underworld on her own, because Hades left a portal open and she didn't want to leave. She's more scary than Hades and her name was changed because little girl didn't fit her anymore.

I like to think that Persephone wasn't abducted by Hades but rescued by him from her over-bearing and over-protective mother. We only see the myth from the perspective of Demeter and not Persephone. I think that wasn't their first meeting and they started a romance long before that, Hades gave Persephone a a diamond encrusted golden comb as a gift. But when Demeter found the comb she cracked down and made sure her daughter couldn't go anywhere without nymphs and the eternal virgin goddesses keeping watch over her. So her abduction was actually a rescue by a knight in shadowy armor.

Absolutely love your channel but Disney and mythology origins are my fav!! Keep up the epicness!

I accidentally stumbled upon your channel, and I have to say that I really like your videos. They are very informative yet you keep the attention of the viewer. You stay on topic but still include jokes. I just love them because they are both educational and entertaining. Keep it up!

Really loved this video, but apparently in some renditions Persophonie went willing to the underworld, when she accidentally found the entrance. Hades was suprised about her being there but didn't put up a fuss because she seemed to enjoy it there. When her mother was upset by this and made to return, she ate the pomegranate willing so that she could stay. Just thought you might be interested in that

You’d love the musical Hadestown it’s a modern retelling of the story of Orpheus and Euridyce Persephone has a great song called Our Lady of the Underground

I know a different version, in which zeus didn't know of the kidnapping. And the crops started to die as Demeter abandoned her charge to search for Persephone.

Did anyone else notice that he used one of the Egyptian god cards from Yu-Gi-Oh to represent the Kur... no just me... ( sigh ) 😧

Great portrayal of Persephone in the Time is Relative book series. I love the idea of her being a time traveling superhero!

Heather Dale has a lovely song about Persephone called "Flower Child". It portrays Persephone as having fallen in love with Hades and leaving to be with him of her own free will while Demeter, unable to accept this, convinces herself that her daughter "needs saving". Meanwhile, one of Persephone's siblings muses in the lyrics, "But, flower child, I think you got it right. Unworried by your darker self and graceful in the light."

Just imagine explaining that "IT'S OK EVERYONE DEMETER IS JUST GOING THROUGH MENOPAUSE...SO CHILLAX". 😂😂 We gonna be called crazy

When he said she's going through menopause I almost peed myself laughing 😂😂😂

“Because she couldn’t do the D” Feel like if it involves Aphrodites, probably the reason behind everything lol.

In Mycenaean Greece, there was no hades. Instead there wasn't a head deity of the underworld, but Persephone is mentioned, and her oldest Epithet is called "Dread Persephone". Her association with spring is more about the cycle. She herself is more of a goddess of death and fear.

Nice video! Even nicer to see popular youtubers educating people on Greek mythology. I have an interesting interpretation of the myth: Persephone was the goddess of vegetation before her abduction. Then she was the queen of the underworld. Apart from the seasons, the myth also explains the connection between life and death and why humans (and some animals) bury their dead. An example would be a fruit that rots, falls from the tree, and fertilizes the soil and a new form of life grows.

I've only heard of persephone right now so this is interesting

I love greek mythology, and roman to a lesser extent(as they basically stole everything from the greeks), but are you also going to cover Egyptian mythology? That really fascinates me, also with the gods having animal heads and all the symbolic meaning behind that.

Any HADESTOWN fans here? 🙋‍♀️🏾

I fucking love mythologies my dad would call me at night and tell me random greek and roman myths before I slept. I hope this is a long lasting series of yours

The original mythos came from Troy, and was changed to include dominant male gods by the Greeks later on. The original, from Crete, which was settled by the Trojans, is quite beautiful and does not involve any abductions. Since just about every Goddess myth has been altered by the patriarchy, I thought it would be quite refreshing to re-introduce the reader to the original myth of Demeter and Persephone. The Homeric hymns, in particular the Hymn of Demeter, give a rendition of the myth, however, this is an adulterated or corrupted version which clearly aimed at minimising the Goddess and introduced, for the first time, the idea that superior male gods such as Hades and Zeus were actually the presiding deities over the Mystery and the lesser myth of the changing of the seasons. Crete was settled by people from Troas or ancient Turkey; and indeed, the first surviving mythos of Demeter and Kore-Persephone comes from the ancient matriarchy of Crete, where Athena, the Mountain Goddess of the serpent and the tree of life also originates. In the Cretan myth, which was written long before the Olympian pantheon ever existed or Athena “became” a war god, Demeter, the Grain Mother, was the Goddess who gave humans the gift of agriculture and civilization. Her beautiful daughter, Persephone, also called Kore the Maiden, helped her to watch over the growing harvest. The girl liked to wander the hills after her work for the day was done among the wildflowers, gathering red poppies which she really favored. One day, Kore-Persephone went to Demeter and told Her that She had met the spirits of the dead drifting aimlessly over the Earth, hovering above their old homes and families. “They seem lost,” Kore said. ”Do they not have anyone to watch over them while they are in the Underworld?” Demeter replied that She was the Queen of the Underworld as well as the Upper world. Unfortunately, She did not always have the time to care for the spirits of the dead. Her priority was to tend the crops. “Do not worry, mother - I will go and care for them in your stead.” Kore-Persephone said. Demeter tried Her best to talk Persephone out of it, to no avail. The Maiden knew in her heart of hearts that She was needed in the realms of the dead. She gathered red poppies and sheaves of grain to take with Her in remembrance of Her mother’s domain. Demeter then led her to a deep chasm that stretched deep down into the bowels of the earth. The Grain Mother handed Her daughter a torch to illuminate her way, kissed Her, and wept bitter tears as Her only daughter vanished into the labyrinthine abyss. Kore-Persephone walked downward, ever spiralling into the darkness, until She came to an enormous underground cave teeming with the spirits of the dead. There, Kore set up the torch of illumination near a rocky throne; beside it she placed a dish of pomegranate seeds, which is the food of the dead. She called each spirit to Her, embraced it, and marked it’s forehead with pomegranate juice. This initiation marked a preparation for rebirth into the upper world. Meanwhile, Demeter continued to mourn for Her daughter. The crops stopped growing, fruit withered on the vine, and new seeds would not emerge from the soil. Everything went dormant,, and the weather was always hostile, dry and cold. After several months had passed, Demeter noticed a splash of color among the dry brown stubble. It was a crocus, in full bloom! Immediately, Demeter knew that Her daughter was returning to Her. The Grain Mother waved Her hands in blessings over the land and the crops began to flourish once more. Animals began to bear their offspring again, and new shoots sprang from the rootstock of the vine. Soon, Kore-Persephone emerged from the rocky cleft in the Earth, and mother and daughter were reunited joyfully. Yet since that time, each year Kore-Persephone, the Maiden, returns again to the Underworld to comfort and guide the spirits of the dead. And during the months that She is gone, Her mother weeps and awaits Her daughter’s triumphant return in the Spring, when life is renewed once again in a cyclical fashion. Adapted from an original, unpolluted Cretan myth as retold by Charlene Spretnak in D.J. Conway’s book, “Maiden, Mother and Crone - The Myth and Reality of the Triple Goddess” (2007) Llewellyn Publishers. ISBN 13:978-0-87542-171-1

When you realize that's why she was there in Lightning Thief.

I really like the Persephone myth because it is one of the least depressing of the Ancient Greek mythos I also have a suggestion. Amazon Prime just came out with a miniseries adaptation of the book, "Good Omens", that has a ton of topics you might like to cover, from the gift of fire to mankind to the Garden of Eden to the end of the world. Plus, I think the series and book are a riot and suggest it for anyone unless they have no sense of humor where religion is involve! Another idea would be the history of angels and demons. For example, angels were not seen as having wings until the Renaissance because artist needed a way to illustrate which figure was the angel (remember, most people were illiterate back then so that is why the churches commissioned these works in the first place), or you could with the surprising fact that demons were not always depicted as evil (think something similar to the demons of Eastern cultures that are powerful beings but not necessarily evil).

Omg love the video💙💙💙 this made my day much better and I did a project on propshepine and one of my friends did hades and I recommend him to watch your video on hades so it gave him some good information

I noticed that you made a mention of Narcissus and that's one of my favorite greek myths and hardly gets the attention it deserves I was wondering if you could do the story of Echo of Narcissus if you havent already? Love your videos! ❤

Just discovered Jon’s channel today... I’ve been binging his videos non stop this is really entertaining

Yeah the version you told is a very Western retelling. First, a more accurate translation of the myth is 'The Rapture of Persephone', not rape. Second, Hades asking Zeus for permission was parallel to wedding rites in ancient Greece. Same with the taking by chariot; on the wedding night the groom would come to the bride's house on his chariot and "kidnap" her and bring her to his house. Hades getting permission from Persephone's father, Zeus, and the performing the marriage rite was actually all very by the book. The flower was a gift requesting her consent. Whether or not Persephone understood this is up in the air. Demeter got pissed because she was never asked herself if she consents to giving Persephone away. Finally, it is ambiguous if Persephone was ticked into eating the pomegranate or not. Some say she was, some say she chose. Finally, in some versions it was Helios himself who aided Demeter and told her, not Hekate. But in some versions it's Hekate.

Jon Solo and Overly Sarcastic Productions collab?

All in all Hades and Persephone’s relationship isn’t that bad (aside from being kidnapped) considering that they are portrayed to be fairly happy in their marriage. Hades in most portrayals isn’t even shown to be much of a bad guy unless someone’s trying to mess with his wife. Depending on what lore/mythology your going on with, Adonis and Persephone dont do anything together, but there is a lot more lore with them being involved with one another.

There's also stories aboutHades talking up how he is immunte to love, and his interest in persephone was because Eros basically said, "Challenge accepted!"

Great video. I'm looking for more info on Ascalaphus, son of Acheron. Ovid wrote that he was the orchard keeper who told the other gods that she ate the Pomegranate, and I think Demeter turned him into an owl as punishment. Sound like something you'd want to dive into?

Hey im here! Wow 19 likes is alot how will we ever get there