The Breezes

Deities » Hellenic Deities

The Breezes, also called the Aurai, are the eternally youthful daughters of Boreas, god of the north winds, and Orithyia, goddess of mountain gales. Their names are Aura, Aeta, and Pnoia. They live with their parents in an air palace above the land of Thrace, and are goddesses of light winds from variable direction. Whether appearing individually or together as a trio, they appear to have identical powers and responsibilities.
The Breezes have a cheerful disposition and are pleasant to deal with, although they don’t have much of an attention span and tend to flitter from topic to topic.
There are, separately, Daughters of the West Wind who blow pleasant breezes over the Blessed Isles in the Underworld. The Northerly and Westerly Breezes are all granddaughters of Eos, and have a special affinity for Memnon.

Areas of Control

A Source of Wind

The Breezes move the air around them as they fly, much like their parents, but to a lighter extent that mortals find pleasing. They work together, shifting the winds from all different directions.
They can be helpful to sailors, although their winds are fickle and apt to change without notice, making them unreliable.

A Source of Rumor

Although not specifically goddesses of rumor (that would be Pheme), or messengers of the gods (that would be Iris or Hermes), the Breezes often pick up incidental news along their travels, which they pass along at random.
There is no intent on their part to glorify or scandalize any individual, though that is often the result. In fact, Pheme often uses them as unattributed sources, amplifying and warping their news for her own purposes.

A Divine Means of Conveyance

The Breezes are sometimes tasked with assisting deities or mortals who have been equipped with winged sandals or winged chariots, as these can be tricky for a novice to handle.

Mythoversal Representation

Becoming Hercules

The Breezes are the namesakes of three gates leading from the Old City into the Uplands Districts and from there to a New Wall gate that honors Boreas.

Amazons at War

The Breezes are present for the showdown between Achilles and Penthesileia and relay news of the outcome to Ares.

Select Mythology

Theogony

Prometheus, bound to the rock by Zeus for prolonged torture, calls out to the Breezes, among others, to be witnesses to a punishment that he feels is unjust. At his request, and with the permission of Ocean, they bring a winged chariot of Oceanids to speak with him as well.

General Mythology

The Breezes were the first to learn that King Midas of Phrygia had donkey ears, which they spread around because they found it so amusing.
The Breezes were also the ones to speed the ship of Theseus away from Ariadne after he abandoned her on the island of Naxos, with the implication that they also had a grudge against her.

Theban Cycle

The Breezes were the first to learn that Prince Actaeon of Thebes had been transformed into a deer by Artemis. They told Pheme, who brought the news to the boy’s family.

Epic Cycle

In the Penthesileiad (Posthomerica I), the Breezes inform Ares of the death of his daughter, Penthesileia.

Mythology

Greek/Roman

Domain

Northern Air Palace above Thrace

Greek Name

Αυραι