This entry ... is mainly for those ... who know of Adonis. So basically, this is for maybe three people at the most who actually know I have a journal online ... No ... I'm not going to explain this to ... everyone ... the subject of Adonis is a very touchy one with me ... and apparently those who know of him. I had time ... today ... to do things ... so I decided to look up the name Adonis - for obvious reasons to those three. I found that it tied to Greek Mythology. "Older than Jesus ..." This is what I found: Adonis source = http://www.in2greece.com/english/historymyth/mythology/names/adonis.htm The most beautiful of young men was the son of king Cinyras of Cyprus and his daughter Myrrha. The gods turned Myrrha into a tree, and out of its trunk Adonis was born. Because of the fact that he was the result of incest, he was hidden in the underworld and looked after by Persephone. When Aphrodite saw him she fell desperately in love, and when he was killed while hunting by a wild boar, she pleaded with Zeus to bring him back to life. Zeus agreed to get the young man back, but he had to stay in the underworld during winter and be with Aphrodite in summer, thus making the vegetation die in winter and blossom in summer. The cult of Adonis was the first important cult in ancient Greece. It has been suggested that Adonis was a semitic god, since his name seems to be a grecian for of adon - the lord. The myth also resembles the Babylonian story of the god Tammuz death: here, it is Ishtar who laments him and brings him back to the world. Especially the ancient Greek women would worhip Adonis, and womens' laments were sometimes called Adoniscries. The so-called Adonisgardens were pots with flower seeds in them surrounding a statue of the god. In summer the flowers would grow and in winter wither, symbolizing the myth above.This makes Adonis a god of vegetation as well. In spring there would be Adonis festivals where wild celebrations of joy would take place, and in autumn there would be mourning processions. Adonis Part Two source = http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adonis A Greek mythological hero, Adonis was one of the most complex figures in classical times. He had multiple roles and there has been much scholarship over the centuries of his meaning and purpose in the Greek religious beliefs. His Semitic counterpart is Tammuz. His Etruscan counterpart was Atunis. He is an annually-renewed, ever-youthful vegetation god, a life-death-rebirth deity whose nature is tied to the calendar. Adonis was almost certainly based in large part on Tammuz. His name is Semitic, a variation on the word meaning "lord" and also used, as "Adonai", to refer to Yahweh in the Old Testament. When the Hebrews first arrived in Canaan, they were opposed by the king of the Jebusites, Adonizedek, whose name means "lord of Zedek" (Jerusalem). As "Lord" Adonis was the youthful consort of the ageless Goddess, who might take various identities according to which aspect of annual renewal is being emphasized. Adonis' birth is shrouded in confusion. Multiple versions exist. The most commonly accepted version is that Aphrodite urged Myrrha or Smyrna to commit incest with her father, Theias, the King of Assyria, which confirms the area of Adonis' origins. Myrrha's nurse helped with the scheme. When Theias discovered this, he flew into a rage, chasing his daughter with a knife. The gods turned her into a myrrh tree and Adonis eventually sprung from this tree, confirming his nature as a vegetation god. It was also said that Myrrha fled from her father and Aphrodite turned her into a tree. Adonis was then born when Theias shot an arrow into the tree or when a boar used its tusks to tear the tree's bark off. Apollodorus considered Adonis to be the son of Cinyras and Metharme. Hesiod believes he is the son of Phoenix and Aephesiboea Once Adonis was born, Aphrodite took him under her wing, seducing him with the help of Helene, her friend, and was entranced by his unearthly beauty. She gave him to Persephone to watch over, but Persephone was also amazed at his beauty and refused to give him back. The argument between the two goddesses was settled either by Zeus or Calliope, with Adonis spending four months with Aphrodite, four months with Persephone and four months of the years with whomever he chose. He always chose Aphrodite because Persephone was the cold, unfeeling goddess of the underworld. He died at the tusks of a wild boar, sent by either Artemis or Artemis' lover, Ares, who was jealous of Adonis' beauty. Each drop of Adonis' blood turned into a blood-red anemone. Adonis was often worshipped in mystery religions. Women in Athens would plant "gardens of Adonis" quick-growing herbs that sprang up from seed and died. The Festival of Adonis was celebrated by women at midsummer by sowing fennel and lettuce, and grains of wheat and barley. The plants sprang up soon, and withered quickly, and women mourned for the untimely death of the vegetation god. His name is frequently used as an allusion to an extremely attractive, youthful male, often with a connotation of immature vanity: "the office Adonis." ... maybe ... that ... explains ... some things ... I don't know ... just confuses me a bit more ...