Persephone’s story begins with her abduction by Hades, the god of the Underworld, an event that shattered the natural balance of the world. Taken from the sunlit fields where she once gathered flowers, Persephone was drawn into the shadowed realm below, leaving her mother Demeter—goddess of agriculture—consumed by grief. In her sorrow, Demeter allowed the earth to wither, crops failed, and winter fell upon the world for the first time. When the gods finally intervened, a compromise was struck: P

One day, Persephone was frolicking in a meadow when suddenly, the earth split, and a terrifying figure arose. It was Hades, come to steal Persephone away to the underworld: | TED-Ed