Chronos (Aeon)

Time Itself

They say that "time waits for no one," and no one would agree with you more than the Greek god of time, AEON, (sometimes known as CHRONOS, not to be mistaken for the Titan Kronos!) Aeon was born even before the Titans... he's kind of a weird one, since he doesn't follow any of the godly rules or families.

He's kind of "outside" time, since he controls it, and was around even before Erebus, Gaea or Ouranos came around!!!

He is often nicknamed "Father Time." Probably even more powerful than Zeus himself, since he controls time!!! He literally is ETERNITY!

Aeon is definitely one of the most bizarre beings in Greek mythology. Not a god or really anything related to any of the creatures or beings that came before them...he just stepped out of nothing and got the whole business of time moving forward.

According to the Greeks, he was serpentine in form and had three heads (those of a bull, a man, and a lion), but later went around as the kindly looking old god we see as "Father Time!"

He is the representation of Past, Present, Future and Eternity. There are no real specific myths associated with him, but he is said to have been the one to have kicked off the Big Bang.

Except for the effects of his actions, Aeon is not a physical presence in the world. He's the guy that gives us "cause and effect." Without him, time would be confusing and jumbled up!!!

He did have a wife named Ananke, who the Greeks believed took care of inevitability (the fact that something is going to happen, no matter what!) No kids, but they stayed around behind the scenes, never interacting with the Titans, Olympians, humans or anyone else, for that matter.

They just lived to make sure that time kept ticking and that past, present and future kept their necessary spots throughout eternity.

Coming from Aeon's other name, Chronos, some of the current English words we use today whose etymological roots is chronos include: chronology, chronometer, chronic, anachronism, and chronicle. So, you might say that Aeon is still around, in one form or another!



[1] "Mythopedia"

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