Aphrodite is the greek goddess of love, beauty and desire. In Roman mythology, she is referred to as Venus. In addition to her natural gifts, she has a magical girdle that compelled anyone she wished to desire her.
She represents sex, affection and the attraction that binds people together. She blesses all true lovers with beauty and grace.
Being true to your own heart is what pleases her most.
There are two accounts of her birth. One claims that she is the daughter of the greek god Zeus and the goddess Dione. The other claims that Kronous, the son of the titan Uranus threw his father's genitals into the sea and Aphrodite arose from the foams.
The second account seems more apt as the name Aphrodite means foam.
She was married to the rather homely greek god Hephaestus, the god of craft. But that did not prevent her indulging in numerous affairs with both mortals and gods, resulting in numerous offsprings.
Her most notable lovers were Ares, the god of War and the mortal Adonis and she loved each wholeheartedly.
She had a son Eros, who is the god of love. He was a talented archer who shot arrows dipped in his mother's love potion, hitting her unsuspecting victims, causing them to fall madly in love with the next person they saw.
An aphrodisiac was a festival which was celebrated throughout Greece where Aphrodite was worshipped through sexual intercourse with her priestesses (women who represented her).
information courtesy of www.greekmythology.com , www.lunaea.comand www.aboutaphrodisiacs.org
Classification of Aphrodisiacs
