Natural Aphrodisiacs - The World of Aphrodite and Its Immortality

The world of Greece was not always a kind one to Aphrodite, as the Roman world was not always kind to Venus. Goddess of the Greek and Roman mythology are associated with love, beauty, lust and reproduction. Aphrodite rose from sea fully grown, and while she is associated with love, she had little for her fellow gods or humans. She was married to Hephaestus, the god of fire and smithing, and she was eternally unfaithful to him. All of this does not paint a beautiful picture of a vain, uncaring and faithless woman of great beauty. While love was her first realm of power, she showed little. Thus, in the literature she is more associated with lust and love and beauty or reproduction.

Lending her name to the word aphrodisiacs comes directly in line with this propensity and association. Natural aphrodisiacs have long been for the creation of lust with little concern for love and beauty. Literature has attempted to change this and the marketing world of the twentieth century forced a different view on the buying public.

As her priestesses were forced into ongoing prostitution with little hope beyond the temple life, and the use of natural aphrodisiacs seems to have arisen from this role. For centuries natural aphrodisiacs have been touted for their effectiveness and include ginkgo biloba, ginseng, damiana, artichokes, strawberries, oysters, rhinoceros horn, tiger penis and chocolate. While the rhinoceros horn and tiger penis are illegal to obtain, the remainder of the aphrodisiacs are easily accessible in the modern world.

Different Natural Aphrodisiacs And Their Effects

An aphrodisiac is a substance which increase sexual desire, though they work in many different ways to affect sexual desire and sexual performance. Ginkgo biloba is a considered a natural aphrodisiac and comes from the seeds of the "female" gingko trees. They are widely used in natural remedies or several kinds and are generally available at most health food stores. The reasons for this is increased blood flow. The leaves are widely used in memory and concentration

Ginseng is also considered a natural aphrodisiac and comes from ginseng root and affect the central nervous system and gonadal tissues. Thereby, they work differently than ginkgo and several others on the list. This is widely found in health food stores.

Damiana is a shrub and the leaves are made into a tea that is used as a natural aphrodisiac . This plant works on widening the blood vessels, and it is easily found in any health food store. It can be produced in several variations for inclusion into food and drink.

Artichokes are considered a natural aphrodisiac, though have no properties which affect the human body other than to reduce hunger. The eating of the artichoke is considered sensual for the process. They received their reputation more from their association with Catherine de Medici, who was considered a very sensual woman. These can be found in any grocery store.

Strawberries are another food considered to be a natural aphrodisiac though like th artichoke simple for how they look, taste and smell. They have no medical change to the body to heighten sexual function or sexual arousal. These also can be found in any grocery store, though the ones picked during the regular growing season have a more full-bodied taste and scent.

Oysters are also listed in the natural aphrodisiac list, though this time with reason. They contain a high level of zinc which is required in the production of testosterone. Testosterone has been used to increase sexual desire and function in both men and women. Oysters are a shellfish that is much more commonly available on the coasts, but can be found in most grocery stores.

Since we are ignoring the illegal substances, we are left with chocolate, which is also considered a natural aphrodisiac . It has an effect on the human body, by increasing the serotonin levels in the brain thereby produced a happy feeling. Chocolate is widely available to almost any store.

Natural aphrodisiacs go back through the history of the written word and passed from generation to generation of the spoken word. What is true that all the of natural aphrodisiacs listed here have differing effects on the human body and may not work for everyone. However, its always fun trying.

Original article : Natural Aphrodisiacs

Aphrodite - The Goddess Of Love

Aphrodite is the mythological Greek Goddess of love who legend has it was born out of the sea. According to Greek mythology Aphrodite was the Goddess of love beauty and sexual rapture (ooh ah!) born when Uranus the father of the gods was castrated by Cronus his son. Not a very family orientated bunch were they those Greek Gods? Anyway I digress, and it gets better. Cronus the dear loving son who chopped off his dads family jewels lobbed them into the sea where they foamed up into a veritable lather which produced Aphrodite and transported her to Cyprus. I think the name Aphrodite is actually connected to the word foam or aphros and Chythera is a rough translation of Cyprus or Kypris.

Well, It sure beats cheap charter flights and queing at airport check ins to get to the beautiful Island of Cyprus for your holidays. Anyway, Zeus the top God was a trifle worried that the other Gods would fight over Aphrodites hand in marriage so he beat them to it by giving her to Hephaestus the God who fashioned the weapons as a black smith. Hephaestus was a steady hard working plodder whilst Aphrodite was a bit of a party animal and girl around town. Despite all this he loved her and using his skills as a black smith he knocked up (probably in his spare time) a beautiful jeweled girdle with magic powers in gold filigree for her to wear. Bad move Hephaesus, the girdle made her irresistible and she took many lovers not just amongst the Gods but mortals too. The most famous being Adonis who gave her many sons including Eros from where the word erotic is taken (I leave you to work that one out).

The festival of Aphrodite was called Aphrodisiac (mm that's where it came from) her priestesses represented her and to have sex with them was considered an act of worship (Myrtle! book me a flight I am taking a religious pilgrimage) or reverence towards this deity. Those Greeks sure new a thing or two about worshiping the Gods and the Gods themselves were not slow in the romance stakes either.

So now you know a bit about Aphrodite and her chums in Greek God land how about you visit where it's all at. If you are planning on taking a holiday inn Cyprus be sure to stop by and check out the rock of Aphrodite. Situated about 12 Kilometers outside of Paphos town close to the mountain/coast road you will find a great little restuarant on the cliff edge overlooking the Mediterrainian ocean. There are some large rocks which are said to be the place where Athrodite was born. The legend claims that if you swim around these rocks during a full moon you will become 10 years younger (if you don't kill yourself climbing down the cliffs first).

There are different versions of the Aphrodite story and lots of local legends have grown out of it over the years but the official version is well narrated by the ancient Greek scholar Hesiod. Whatever version you choose to accept be sure to see the place for yourself, sort the history then chill out at the restaurant with a nice cool beer.

Kevin Moore owns and runs the Information Cyprus web site. Information Cyprus is the number one online resource for cyprus holidays, travel and Cyprus property purchase links. To find out more about the beautiful island of Cyprus, Cyprus holidays or buying property in Cyprus just visit the web site at Cyprus Info

Cyprus And Aphrodite - The Greek Goddess Of Love Beauty And Sexual Rapture

If you know even a little about Cyprus or Greek mythology the chances are you will have heard of the Goddess of love, beauty and sexual rapture Athrodite. Legend tells that she was the result of the castration of the God Uranus which was carried out by his son Cronus (perhaps it was the way those Gods raised their kids) with a sickle. Owch! Anyway Cronus threw the severed genitals into the sea where they foamed up which in turn gave birth to Aphrodite. The word "athros" or sea foam giving rise to the translation Athrodite or deity of foam.

Anyways, Cyprus comes into the picture because Aphrodite was carried by the sea and came ashore on the Island and some legends claim she rode on a giant clam shell. In fact some Greek mythology refer to her as Cytherea or Kypros for this very reason.

Zeus (the top God) was worried that the other Gods would fight over Aphrodite's hand in marriage so he took the liberty of marring her of to Hephaestus the smith God. Boy was he knocked out? Scruffy old black smith weds Goddess of love, beauty and sexual rapture! Had his boat come in or what?

Hephaestus was over the moon and as a sign of his love for Aphrodite he used all his skills as a smith to fashion her a beautiful bejeweled girdle with fine gold filigree. He even wove magic into the gold filigree which was a big mistake on his part. The problem was that when ever Aphrodite wore the girdle she would become sexually irresistible bearing in mind that she was already the ultimate embodiment of female beauty anyway. Amongst her many lovers (she was a bit of a girl) were Gods but she also took mortal lovers too the most famous being Adonis.

Some of her Sons are Eros, Anteros, Hymenaios and Aeneas through her union with her Trojan lover Anchisess. What can I say? It's a typical story of a beautiful woman wreaking havoc amongst the male population, causing wars and several spoilt dinners to boot. Her festival was Aphrodisiac (now you know where that comes from) which was celerbrated in several places in Greece including Athens and Corinth. Her priestesses where not prostitutes but sexual intercourse with them was considered a form of worship to the Goddess herself.

There you go then, now you can impress all your friends or even fellow tourist with your factual knowledge of Aphrodite. When you visit Cyprus be sure to take a trip out to her alleged birth place a few kilometers outside of Paphos. The view from the cliffs is indeed spectacular and there is a resturant bar with a great view point where you can relax with a cool drink. You will see the "rock of Aphrodite" itself just off the coast.

The local legend states that if you swim around the rock at midnight during the full moon Aphrodite will make you ten years younger if the exercise doesn't kill you off first that is. Enjoy Cyprus and don't forget to visit the rock of Aphrodite.

Kevin Moore owns several Cyprus web sites and writes regular articles about Cyprus and Cyprus property so take a look here at Cyprus Info