The Greek goddess of love, beauty and pleasure, Aphrodite was born of the blood and semen from her great-grandfather Cronos’ severed genitals, when they fell into the sea. Aphrodite emerged from the sea-foam fully grown, and floated ashore on a scallop shell.
Apophis is the ancient Egyptian personification of pure evil, depicted as a huge serpent with a head of flint, with no redeeming quality whatsoever. An enemy of the solar deity Ra, bringer of light, who supported the truth and order represented by Maat, Apophis was an embodiment of chaos and disorder, fundamentally opposed to all they stood for.
Arachne was a mortal, gifted in weaving, who boasted that her work was superior to that of the goddess Athena, patroness of crafts. Incensed, the goddess, disguised as an old woman, appeared to Arachne and counseled her to repent her pride and acknowledge Athena’s greater skill.
Asbolus was a centaur, a seer, augur, or prophet for his people, who read signs in the flight of birds. He anticipated the devastating battle with the Lapiths at the wedding of their king, where many centaurs died, and warned them against attending, but went unheeded.
Asclepius was a god of medicine and healing, a son of Apollo by a mortal woman, who died while pregnant. Apollo saved the unborn child from her womb when she was on her funeral pyre, and gave him into the keeping of the centaur Chiron, who taught him the healing arts.
Askalaphus was a gardener for Hades, god of the dead, in the underworld. When Hades abducted Persephone, her mother Demeter searched for her in vain, until Hekate told her of the kidnapping. Demeter went to Zeus and demanded the return of her daughter, who decreed that, so long as Persephone had eaten none of the food of the dead, she could be freed.
