Gaea
Gaea, also known as mother earth, was the great goddess of the early Greeks and she represented the Earth. She was worshiped as the universal mother. According to Greek Mythology, Gaea created the Universe and gave birth to the first race of gods known as the Titans, and also to the first humans. According to the ancient Greeks, the first part of the creation was Chaos. Chaos was made of Void, Mass, and Darkness. Then along came the Earth, in the form of Gaea. From Mother Earth came the starry heavens, which was in the form of the sky god Uranus. From Mother Earth also came the mountains, seas, plains, and oceans, as we know it today.
Mother Earth, or Gaea, was the oldest of the gods of the early Greeks. She was recognized as the supreme goddess by the humans and also the other gods. She presided over marriages and oaths and was recognized as a prophetess.
Mother Earth, Gaia or Gaea, is the Greek name for land. It is said that with Gaea came Eros. She gave birth to Pontus (known as the sea), and Uranus (the sky). After this was achieved, it was said she had siblings, Tartarus (the lowest part of the earth, even below Hades), and Eros, and gave birth to Ourea, (the mountains). Then she took as her husband, Uranus, who was her offspring. Together their offspring were the Titans, six sons and daughters. She gave birth to the Cyclopes, and to three monsters that became known as Hecatonchires. The Erinyes, which were the spirits of punishment, were also offsprings of Gaea and Uranus. The Gigantes were conceived after Uranus was castrated by his son Cronus. It is said that his blood fell to earth from an open wound. In order to protect her children fro the Cyclopes and the Hecatonchires, Gaea hid them within herself. Another version was that Uranus hid them because he was aghast at the sight of them so he hid them in Tartarus.
Gaea asked Cronus to castrate Uranus so the earth and the sky would be separated and they would not have any more monstrous offspring. When Cronus castrated Uranus, blood fell to the earth and when it made contact Erinyes (Furies), the Giants, and the Meliae (Nymphs of the manna ash trees), were born. After the earth was separated from the sky, Gaea gave birth to other offspring which were sired by Pontus. The offspring was the sea gods Nereus, Thaumas, Phorcys, Ceto, and Eurybia. Other versions say that Gaea had offspring from her brother Tartarus. Those were Echidna and Typhon, who was later an enemy of Zeus. Apollo killed Typhon when he took control of the Oracle at Delphi.
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