Elysian Fields | Valdorcia Edition

Elysian Fields | Valdorcia Edition, originally uploaded by ! . © Angela Lobefaro . !.

Elysium

Elysium or the Elysian Fields (Ancient Greek: Ἠλύσιον πεδίον, Ēlýsion pedíon) is a conception of the afterlife that evolved over time and was maintained by certain Greek religious and philosophical sects, and cults. Initially separate from the realm of Hades, admission was initially reserved for mortals related to the gods and other heroes. Later, it expanded to include those chosen by the gods, the righteous, and the heroic, where they would remain after death, to live a blessed and happy life, and indulging in whatever employment they had enjoyed in life.[1][2][3][4][5][6] The Elysian Fields were, according to Homer, located on the western edge of the Earth by the stream of Oceanus.[1] In the time of the Greek oral poet Hesiod, Elysium would also be known as the Fortunate Isles or the Isles (or Islands) of the Blessed, located in the western ocean at the end of the earth.[1][7][8] The Isles of the Blessed would be reduced to a single island by the Thebean poet Pindar, describing it as having shady parks, with residents indulging their athletic and musical pastimes.[1][2]
The ruler of Elysium varies from author to author; Pindar and Hesiod name Cronus as the ruler.[9] While the poet Homer in the Odyssey describes fair-haired Rhadamanthus dwelling there.[6][7][10][11]

Courtesy of:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elysium