Lachesis (mythology)

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Lachesis (mythology)

In Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the Ancient Greece concerning their List of Greek mythological figures#Immortals and Greek hero cult, Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices....
, Lachesis (also Lakhesis, Greek

Greek language

Greek is an Indo-European languages native to the southern Balkan peninsula, the language of the Greek people. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European....
: ???es??, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
: "disposer of lots", Etymology

Etymology

Etymology is the study of the roots and history of words; and how their form and meaning have changed over time.In languages with a long detailed history, etymology makes use of philology, the study of how words change from culture to culture over time....
: ?a????? - to obtain by lot, by fate, or by the will of the gods) was the second of the Three Fates, or Moirae

Moirae

The Moirae or Moerae , in Greek mythology, were the white-robed personifications of destiny . The Greek word moira literally means a part or portion, and by extension one's portion in life or destiny....
. She was the apportioner, deciding how much time for life was to be allowed for each person or being. She measured the thread of life with her rod. She is also said to choose a person's destiny after a thread was measured.

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Encyclopedia

In Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Greek language

Greek is an Indo-European languages native to the southern Balkan peninsula, the language of the Greek people. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European....
: ???es??, English

English language

Etymology

Moirae

Decima (mythology)

In Roman mythology, Decima was one of the Parcae, or the Fates. She measured the thread of life with her rod. She was also revered as the goddess of childbirth. Her Greek equivalent was Lachesis ....
. According to Hesiod

Hesiod

Hesiod was a Greek language oral poet, his date is uncertain but leading scholars agree that Hesiod lived in the latter half of the Eighth-century BCE....
's Theogony

Theogony

The Theogony is a poem by Hesiod describing the origins and genealogy of the polytheism of the ancient Greeks, composed circa 700 BC....
, she and her sisters (Atropos

Atropos

In Greek mythology, Atropos was one of the three Moirae, Goddesses of wikt:fate and destiny. Her Roman equivalent was Morta . Atropos was the oldest of the Three Fates, and was known as the "inflexible" or "inevitable." It was Atropos who chose the mechanism of death and ended the life of each mortal by cutting their thread with her "abhor...
and Clotho

Clotho

Clotho or Klotho — the "spinner" — was the youngest of the Moirae of Greek mythology, otherwise known as the Fates due to their roles in governing over the lives of humans....
) are the daughters of Nyx (Night). In other accounts, they are said to be the daughters of Zeus

Zeus

Zeus in Greek mythology is the king of the gods, the ruler of Mount Olympus and the god of the sky father and List of thunder gods. His symbols are the thunderbolt, eagle, bull , and oak....
and Themis

Themis

Themis is an Greek mythology. She is described as "of good counsel", and was the embodiment of divine order, law, and custom. Themis means "law of nature" rather than human ordinance, literally "that which is put in place", from the verb t?????, t?themi, to put....
as well as several other beings such as Chaos

Chaos (mythology)

In Greek myth, Chaos or Khaos is the original state of existence from which the first gods appeared. In other words, the dark void of space....
and Ananke

Ananke (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Ananke was the personification of destiny, necessity and wiktionary:fate, depicted as holding a Spindle . She marks the beginning of the cosmos, along with Chronos....
. Lachesis is also mentioned in the tenth book of the Republic of Plato as the daughter of Necessity. She instructs the souls who are about to choose their next life, assign them lots, and presents them all of the kinds, human and animal, from which they may choose their next life.

Appearance

In paintings and stories, Lachesis is often portrayed as a matronly woman; however, also often depicted (along with her sisters) beautiful and powerful