The Story of Persephone and the Pomegranate Seeds

Mabon Blessings! We like to tell this story on Mabon evening, gathered around a fire. I have a pomegranate to show, and when the story is finished, I open the pomegranate to show the seeds inside, and let everyone try one if they wish.

persephone and the pomegranate seeds image source HERE

Once there was a beautiful young girl called Persephone. Her mother was Demeter, the Goddess of the growing things. Demeter and her daughter lived in a world where it was always summer. Green things were always blooming and the sun shone warm and sweet.

One day while she was out with her friends, Persephone felt a trembling beneath her feat and heard a rumbling. The ground split open and Hades, God of the underworld, appeared driving a chariot. He snatched Persephone and took her back into the earth with him. The ground closed up again with a huge roar and all that was left of Persephone was a bunch of flowers on the ground.

Demeter searched everywhere, but she could not find her daughter. For days and days she looked for Persephone. Her grief was so great that the earth began to grow cold and all the green things died. There was no food, and a terrible hunger came to the people.

In the underworld, meanwhile, Persephone came to see that Hades wasn’t as scary as she first thought. He had been so lonely in the underworld, he told her of his longing to keep her there with him.

Persephone missed her mother and the bright world above ground. But her new status as Queen of the underworld and her love for Hades gave her reason to stay with him. She believed that she had important work to do deep under the ground.

Persephone knew that if she ate or drank anything in the underworld, she would have to stay there forever. Even though Hades begged her too have just a sip, or one bite of food, she didn’t’.

Demeter had finally learned where Persephone was. She insisted that she be returned to her. Hades sadly hitched his horses to his chariot and prepared to take Persephone back. But before they left, he offered Persephone one last thing to eat – a ripe, blood red pomegranate. Looking him in the eye, Persephone took six seeds and ate them.

They went back above ground, up through a crack in the earth. Persephone threw herself into her mothers arms, joyous to be reunited. The earth again grew rich with flowers and the sun shone once more.

But, because Persephone had eaten six pomegranate seeds, it was decided that for six months of each year, she must return to the underworld with Hades, on Mabon, and winter would come to the world. In spring she would once again return to her mother, allowing the earth to bloom.

  1. Kisty

    September 23, 2013 at 06:07

    I’ve always been fascinated with Greek Mythology, and I think Persephone’s story was one of the saddest one. But I didn’t know that she also fell in love with him (there’s too many versions to keep up with).

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    July 3, 2014 at 23:14

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  3. Sylver Blake

    September 19, 2014 at 17:28

    Lovely.
    Also, it was the Goddess Hecate who told Demeter of Persephones abduction and then helped Persephone come to terms with her role and purpose in the underworld. Just an interesting little detail :)

  4. teresa lace de souza

    March 14, 2015 at 20:39

    … delighted , i am to read this … my own story …

    well written in content . whats more relevant .

    lacemoon

  5. Christine Simpson

    September 21, 2015 at 08:02

    This is a great little story . I would like to see more.

  6. lily

    September 22, 2015 at 19:51

    Wow this really helped alt for my presentation

  7. The Patience to Peel a Pomegranate | Barbara Sinclair

    October 25, 2015 at 20:19

    […] all, we have Persephone and the pomegranate to thank for winter every […]

  8. The Patience to Peel a Pomegranate : Conscious Life News

    October 28, 2015 at 15:02

    […] all, we have Persephone and the pomegranate to thank for winter every […]

  9. A Gift from My Mother and the Pillbugs - eileenanddogseileenanddogs

    May 26, 2016 at 17:48

    […] I, with its connection to my mom? There’s even that mother/daughter thing in mythology with Persephone and the pomegranate seeds. So of course I kept the […]

  10. Adam Smith

    October 2, 2016 at 20:04

    In the version I read, it was a little boy who offered her the seeds. But there are many versions so a tiny detail isn’t that unusual.

    1. CC visnesky

      April 15, 2017 at 17:52

      Adam..it can’t have been a powerless little boy …as the point of explaining winter in Greek Myth was Hades who had the power to remove her, and the grief of her mother to stop all things growing until she was given back..see?
      And persimmons are also said to be the correct fruit as they grew in the Middle East too… either way on the fruit the beautiful complicated tale of why nothing grows in winter is delightful to read.

  11. Pomegranate - Queen Of Fruits - The Look Good Feel Good

    December 11, 2016 at 17:59

    […] In Greek mythology this deeply colored purplish-red fruit with jewel-like seeds and sweet-tart flavor is a fruit of Persephone, the Queen of  Underworld. […]

  12. How one woman set up her own Beauty Salon in Paris

    February 5, 2017 at 19:29

    […] I find so fascinating about this story is that every time she is free, this rebirth happens for her, Spring arrives! And.. I love this […]

  13. minimi

    May 2, 2017 at 22:41

    thanks for writing this story with simplicity. i’m a great fan of western mythology and i’m enthusiastic to know more about greek mythology. it seems very interesting.

  14. Silungile

    July 12, 2017 at 16:38

    This is starting to confuse me, in other versions Persephone never loved Hades. Thanks for the piece.

    1. Cassie

      August 24, 2017 at 09:57

      Persephone eventually grw to love him for he treated her well and he made her his equal in power and treated and respected her as an adult.

  15. Estella

    February 24, 2018 at 01:39

    Wait so she was with her friends then hades took her without her friends noticing????

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  18. Ebba Werring

    June 16, 2018 at 00:48

    true (I am afan of Hades).

  19. Austin

    October 10, 2018 at 19:02

    Hey so I know I must’ve swallowed a seed that’s why I keep hearing fucking voices but I can’t get no fucking x rays to show proof I swear to god this shit is annoying as fuck and it’s look or the people I’m around all day are in my mind as well as their friends it’s like they’re reading my thoughts my feelings all type of shit wtf do I do shit makes me angry as fuck.

  20. Austin

    October 10, 2018 at 19:04

    And it’s like people I’m around*

  21. Kaya

    April 30, 2019 at 05:17

    This info was really helpful on my presentation on her thanks for all the great info and i would love to see more :)

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