Although Lara's story is Roman, most people refer to the Greek names of Gods and Goddesses. So I will use their Greek counterparts today to make the story easier to understand.
The Story of Lara and Jupiter/Zeus
Zeus and Juturna
As with most Greek and Roman stories, it all began with Zeus being a monumental sleaze. Zeus had cast his eyes on the beautiful water nymph named Juturna, but she did not welcome his advances. (Big surprise, right?) So instead, she threw herself into the river Tiber to escape him and tried to hide along its banks. Zeus, angry at being thwarted, demanded that the other nymphs reveal her location.
In Zeus's own words:
"Your sister is an enemy to herself, and shuns a union
With the supreme god that would benefit her.
Take counsel for both: for what would delight me greatly
Would be a great advantage to your sister.
When she flees, stop her by the riverbank,
Lest she plunges her body into the waters." - Ovid.
Talk about a jerk. What delights him would be an advantage to Juturna? Umm, no. Being raped by Zeus has never ended well for anyone. But, unfortunately, Zeus was the king of the gods, so the nymphae reluctantly obeyed, except for one brave little maiden.
Lara vs. Zeus
Lara was the daughter of the river god Almon and was said to speak far too much. Her parents often cautioned young Lara that her loose tongue would one day get her into trouble. Well, this was the day. Upon seeing one of her fellow sisters about to be sexually assaulted or raped, she rushed to see the Goddess Hera. Knowing of her jealousy, Lara relayed what the god-king was trying to do in hopes that Hera might intervene quickly enough to spare the poor Juturna. None of the stories say what Hera did to Zeus, but we know that he did not get his hands on Juturna. Unfortunately, Lara wasn't as lucky.
Lara's Punishment
Being denied his conquest and now in trouble with his wife, Zeus did what any man-child would do; he had a temper tantrum. First, he ripped out the tongue of innocent Lara so she could never speak again. Then he ordered his son, Hermes, to escort her to the Underworld, where she would remain a prisoner for all eternity. But Hermes, son of Zeus and a nymph himself, was a trickster and loved to steal. Even Poseidon's trident, Artemis' arrows, and Aphrodite's girdle were prey to his grasp. Along the way, Hermes falls in love with the water nymph and decides to steal her away. As he and Lara passed through a grove:
"He prepared to force her, with a glance instead of words
She pleaded, trying to speak from her mute lips.
Heavy with child, she bore twins who guard the crossroads,
The Lares, who keep watch forever over the City." Ovid.
He did not take her to the Underworld but hid his beloved in a cabin deep in the woods. There in secret, Lara and her children became silent household deities. In some versions of this story, Zeus finds Lara and punishes her by forcing Lara to guard a crossroad for all eternity. Either way, Lara and her children are known to be protectors of the crossroads.
The Lares
The Lares' power to connect our plane of existence with the other realms makes sense because of their father Hermes's ability as a messenger to travel freely between all dominions. It is for this reason that Hermes was tasked with being a psychopomp. A psychopomp's purpose was to guide the souls of the newly deceased to the river Styx where the souls would be given over to Charon. The Lares were so important to the Roman and Greek families that each home had a lararium (a separate shrine) decorated with their images. Often snakes were depicted beneath the Lares as an image of Depending on the wealth of the homeowners, the lararium could be a miniature marble temple or a simple shelf on the wall. The most important aspect of a lararium was that it was a permanent fixture. These small shrines were viewed as a direct access point to the family's ancestors and would often be surrounded by death masks of the deceased.
Because the ancient families viewed the Lares as messengers to their ancestors and the lararium as a portal, the shrines were integral to important family occasions, such as marriages, births, and adoptions. It was also the religious hub of the household.
"In his coming-of-age, a boy gave his personal amulet (bulla) to his Lares before he put on his adult toga. Once his first beard had been ritually cut off, it was placed in their keeping. On the night before her wedding, a Roman girl surrendered her dolls, and breastbands to her family Lares, as a sign she had come of age." Wikipedia
Once a girl married, she would pay her husband's home lararium copper coins as an offering to signify that her allegiance was now with her new family. Offerings of wheat, grains, honey cakes, honeycombs, fruits, wine, and incense were standard. Likewise, any food that fell on the floor during a feast would be theirs.
In Conclusion
The story of Lara is so tragic and barbaric that I really pity the women of that era. The story is all about a powerful man using his position to attempt rape, and when a brave person speaks up, she is mutilated and raped herself. The takeaway of the story is stated to be some likeliness of "don't speak about others' business" or "wayward mouths should be silenced." Like, seriously? You're supposed to just sit by, watch these things happen, and look away? Disgusting! I generally think Roman and Greek mythology would be much better if Zeus choked on a pretzel. I think Lara was brave and deserves so much praise for her actions.
We in the western world often hear about household spirits such as gnomes, house elves, hobs, and brownies. Very rarely are the Lares mentioned, which I believe is a shame since they are intricately tied to the afterlife and our ancestors. As a witch who derives her power from ancestral veneration, I feel pulled to build a small lararium to honor my ancestors. What do you think? Would you be interested in seeing how I build one? Leave me a comment below!
Sources:
Ovid, Fasti 2, V. 599. http://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/OvidFastiBkTwo.htm#anchor_Toc69367694
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