Greco-Roman underworld  

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Greco-Roman mythology, magic in the Greco-Roman world, Roman underworld, underworld, Greek underworld

Roman underworld

• Dis Pater
• Orcus

Greek underworld

Greek underworld (often shortened as Underworld, depending on the context) is a general term used to describe the various realms of Greek mythology which were believed to lie beneath the earth or beyond the horizon.

This includes:

• The great pit of Tartarus, which was originally the exclusive prison of the old Titan gods, but which later came to mean the dungeon home of the damned souls
• The land of the dead ruled by the god Hades, which is variously called the house or domain of Hades (domos Aidaou), Hades, Erebus, the Asphodel Fields, Stygia and Acheron ;
• The Islands of the Blessed or Elysian Islands ruled by Cronus (According to Pindar - other accounts differ), where the great heroes of myth resided after death ;
• The Elysian Fields ruled by Rhadamanthys, where the virtuous dead and initiates in the ancient Mysteries were sent to dwell.

The five rivers of Hades are Acheron (the river of sorrow), Cocytus (the river of lamentation), Phlegethon (the river of fire), Lethe (the river of forgetfulness) and Styx (the river of hate), which forms the boundary between upper and lower worlds.

The ancient Greek concept of the underworld evolved considerably over time.