For the ancient Greeks, Aphrodite was about so much more than love and beauty. In an overarching way, she was the goddess of consensus, as in any interaction between consenting people or groups of people. In politics, business and war, as well as human relationships, Aphrodite embodied the natural force, mixis, which translates into connections or dealings between persons or groups. It helped things to work smoothly in ancient society.
Aphrodite had many epithets (descriptive terms accompanying, or used in place of, a name) that showed her different qualities. Here are five examples of how the goddess Aphrodite – with varying epithets – reigned supreme in different realms through mixis.
