I think the God Pan as the perfect personification of the male image. He is wild, virile, strong, lusty, and often humorous. He is not wicked or evil, but like the aspect of Nature that he is can be extremely dangerous. The wildness of Nature (and man) can be beautiful and soothing. But, if either are angered, abused, or exploited both can become deadly.
Here is a link to a wonderful essay on the God Pan came from The Shrine of the Horned Gods at www.lugodoc.demon.co.uk/pan.htm
Pan was the God of goats, and sheep, and their shepherds. He was the god of bee keeping. He was also a god of music, playing upon the reed pipes he made from the transformed body of the nymph Syrinx (the one that got away). It was said that this music could inspire panic (the root of the word) in any who heard it. Sometimes he was a minor god of the sea. He was a god of prophesy and was also famous for being randy (Greek women with a track record were known as Pan girls). Above all he was the god of nature: meadows, forests, beasts, and even human nature. Unlike the other, more heroic Grecian deities, Pan's adventures tended toward the comical. King Midas (after his recovery from the gilding incident) was asked to judge a musical contest between Pan and Apollo. When Midas chose Apollo Pan punished him by giving him the ears of an ass.
The Greek gods became adapted into Roman gods,
and changed and flowed, the way gods do, living in the stories and myths
that keep them immortal. Some are forgotten, others sleep for a while,
but only rarely do gods actually die. There is only one story about the
death of a Greek god, and it is Pan.
Plutarch wrote that in the reign of Tiberius a
sailor passing by the Echinades islands heard a mysterious voice call out
three times "when you reach Palodes proclaim that the great god Pan is
dead".
Of course, he isn't.
General
Facts
Space's
Pagan Page
