Thalassa (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Thalassa (/θəˈlæsə/; Greek: Θάλασσα, "sea") was the primaeval spirit of the sea, of whom it has been suggested that she was of Pre-Greek origin. Gaius Julius Hyginus described her in the preface to his Fabulae as daughter of Aether and Hemera (Hygin. Fab. Praef, 2). With her male counterpart Pontus, she spawned the tribes of fish. The couple were later replaced by the other marine pairs, Oceanus and Tethys, Poseidon and Amphitrite. Nevertheless, fables were devoted to her by Aesop and she was to be depicted in both artistic and literary works during the Common Era.

Two rather similar fables are recorded by Babrius. In one, numbered 168 in the Perry Index, a farmer witnesses a shipwreck and reproaches the sea for being “an enemy of mankind”. Assuming the form of a woman, she answers by blaming the winds for her turbulence. Otherwise “I am gentler than that dry land of yours.” In the other, a survivor from a shipwreck accuses the sea of treachery and receives the same excuse. But for the winds, “by nature I am as calm and safe as the land.”

In yet another fable, Perry’s number 412 and only recorded by Syntipas, the rivers complain to the sea that their sweet water is turned undrinkably salty by contact with her. The sea replies that if they know as much, they should avoid such contact. The commentary suggests that the tale may be applied to people who criticize someone inappropriately even though they may actually be helping them.

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