NEMESIS ~ THE GREEK GODDESS OF REVENGE AND DIVINE RETRIBUTION

Nemesis is the Greek Goddess of Revenge and Divine Retribution. She plays an important role in the history of the Ancient World.Nemesis is the personification of Divine retribution against those who commit  Hubris (arrogance before the Gods). Her name means "She Who Distributes What is Due." Nemesis directs human affairs in such a way as to maintain balance.She is also known as Rhamnusia,and another name for her is Adrasteia, meaning “the Inescapable.”She represents the ideas of righteous anger, due enactment, or divine vengeance.

 Nemesis has been described as a daughter of Zeus,but according to Hyginus, She is a child of Erebus and Nyx. Hesiod mentions that She is the daughter of Nyx, being born without a father.In the Theogony, Nemesis is the sister of the Moirai (the Fates), the Keres (Black Fates), the Oneiroi (Dreams), Eris (Discord) and Apate (Deception).

In the classic Greek tragedies, Nemesis appears chiefly as the avenger of crime and the punisher of hubris and as such is akin to Ate, the Greek goddess of mischief, delusion, ruin, and folly and the Erinyes.

There is also a tradition that Nemesis produced the egg from which hatched two sets of twins: Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra and the Dioscouri, Castor and Polydeukes. According to this story,Nemesis tries  to avoid Zeus' amorous advances and turns into a goose; but He is also transformed into a swan and sleeps with Her. Nemesis, then,lays an egg that is discovered in the marshes by a shepherd, who passes it to Leda. It is in this way that Leda comes to be the mother of Helen of Troy, as she kept the egg in a chest until it hatched.

The Symbols of Nemesis

Nemesis is depicted as a beautiful, thoughtful woman, often wearing a crown and holding a rudder, balance, and cubit and seated in a chariot drawn by griffins.The wheel is also one of her main symbols, as it illustrates the speed with which Nemesis executes justice and the swift change of conditions. She often holds a whip or a sword, symbols of power and punishment .Another interesting fact about Nemesis is that She has wings.