The mythology surrounding Persephone, and the possible origins of those stories, has become a significant part of my life. That's why I'd call myself a Hellenic pagan, if forced to identify with any particular group. The Mysteries of Persephone seem to parallel a number of other descent myths, like those of Isis and Innana. There are connections between Persephone and the Gorgons, between Demeter and Dionysos, and hundreds of other interweavings of stories. Conventional wisdom also has it that the original (possibly Minoan) story had Persephone voluntarily becoming the queen and mother of the dead, creating a split between life (Demeter) and death (Persephone). For me, this mother and daughter image is personal and metaphoric enough to serve as a sort of hub for thinking about life, death, and the spirit.
- The resource for simple facts and mythological trivia, except for Christianity: Encyclopedia Mythica.
- I wish there were more information about this Greek calendar. There's also a high level calendar here.
- The Stele is also a wonderful Hellenic resource, as is the Biblioteca Arcana.
- Hellenion is slightly less wonderful.
- I tend to lose time on this Celtic mythology site.
- More about language than myth: the Perseus project. Includes texts like the Homeric hymn to Demeter.
- A nice collection of myth and folklorelinks.
- The Joseph Campbell foundation has a beautiful website.
- This is a good starting point for researching the Mysteries at Eleusis.
- Eleusis from a tourist's perspective - as the ruins look today.
- An interesting essay on descent mythology.
- Some more thoughts on the origins of Persephone.
- Everyone should read Judy Grahn's Blood, Bread & Roses for her intriguing perspective on the origin of mythology as menstrual metaform.
- Here's a rather interesting article that combines Jung, feminism, and mythological archetypes. I've been starting to research more of the Athene/Medusa duality.
