Persephone

In the world of ancient Greece, Demeter, the goddess of the earth and the harvest, lived with her daughter, the beautiful Persephone.

Demeter loved Persephone more than anything else and the two were inseparable.

One day, Persephone was walking in a green meadow, picking flowers and playing with the butterflies

Persephone - Hades

Suddenly, the earth opened up and out came Hades, the god of the underworld.

In the Underworld

Hades was enchanted by the beauty of Persephone and decided to take her with him to his dark kingdom.

The search

Demeter, when she realized that her daughter was missing, started looking for her everywhere. Days became weeks, and weeks became months.

Dry and barren land

Demeter was so sad that the earth began to wither. The flowers lost their colours, the trees lost their leaves and the land became dry and barren.

People's request

The people, seeing the earth dying, prayed to the gods for help. Zeus, the king of the gods, heard their prayers and decided to intervene.

He asked Hades to return Persephone to her mother. Hades agreed, but with one condition: that Persephone should spend some time with him in the underworld.

Spring - Summer

So, every year, Persephone spends the spring and summer with her mother, making the earth bloom and fill with life.

Autumn - Winter

When autumn and winter come, it returns to Hades and the earth withers and quiets down, waiting for the next spring.

Explanation of seasons

And that explains why we have seasons, and why the earth changes colours and moods throughout the year. Demeter's love for Persephone is so strong that it affects all of nature.