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Classical Greek Mythology

The Greek Gods and Human Life

Are there other stories of homosexuality among the gods?

Apollo, a usually restrained god of order and reason, loved a boy named Hyacinth. He was in the process of teaching the boy “manly” athletic arts when the boy was accidentally killed by a discus made to go astray by Zephyrus, the jealous god of the West Wind, who also loved Hyacinth. And there are other stories of “acceptable” homosexual love involving heroes such as Herakles, who loved a youth named Hylas, and Achilles, whose love for Patroclus is seen by some to be homosexual in nature. These stories suggest a general acceptance of the practice of same-sex love within certain parameters.



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