Leucothea

Transformation and the sea. Two of my heartstones. Leucothea or Leucothoe, is the Greek sea goddess most commonly associated with transformation and maritime rescue.

Leucothea was originally a mortal princess named Ino, daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia. and married to King Athamas of Boeotia with two step-children, Phrixus and Helle.

According to myth, a famine plagued the land of Boeotia, and the people sought divine intervention. Ino was driven to madness by the goddess Hera, who was angry with her husband Athamas. In her madness, Ino plotted to kill her stepchildren, Phrixus and Helle, by roasting the seeds of the crop they needed to sow. However, Hermes, the messenger god, saved the children and provided them with a winged ram with a golden fleece to escape their murderous stepmother.

During their flight on the ram, Helle fell into the sea and drowned. Ino and Athamas suffered divine retribution for their actions, and Ino leaped into the sea, where she underwent a transformation. She emerged as the sea goddess Leucothea. She was known for her benevolence and for aiding sailors in distress, guiding them away from perilous waters and shipwrecks. It was believed that sailors who invoked her name and protection could receive her assistance.

Leucothea's story is an example of the transformative power of the sea and the interplay between mortal and divine elements in Greek mythology. Her benevolent nature as a sea goddess contrasts with her earlier mortal life, marked by tragedy and madness. As Leucothea, she embodies the potential for redemption and protection in the treacherous realm of the sea. - Niki McQueen