The Metis Archive is named in reference to the Greek word “μήτις” (roughly pronounced “May-tis“) meaning wisdom, skill, and craft. The term is also in reference to the mythological greek goddess, Metis, the goddess of wisdom who lives in Zeus’ head and provides him advice and counsel.
Essentially, the “Metis Archive” is a place where I store important thoughts, so “Metis” can refer back to them.
That answers the question. Though, if you’re interested in learning more, I’ve added some details.
Who is Metis?
Let’s take a minute to learn some Greek mythology.
Metis is perhaps most famous for being the mother of Athena, the successor Goddess of wisdom. Though a Greek goddess, Metis is lesser known because she was not an Olympian (It’s the Olympian gods that are active in epics like the Iliad and the Odyssey). Metis was an Oceanid, a cousin to Zeus, and helped Zeus take power and establish Olympus before later becoming his first wife. Most of the references to Metis shows up in the Theogony, an ancient poem by Hesiod which chronicles the origins of the gods.
In the Theogony, Zeus marries Metis, but tries to get rid of her almost immediately:
“[885] Now Zeus, king of the gods, made Metis his wife first, and she was wisest among gods and mortal men. But when she was about to bring forth the goddess bright-eyed Athena, Zeus craftily deceived her [890] with cunning words and put her in his own belly, as Earth and starry Heaven advised.”
Metis became Zeus’ first wife, but also one of his victims. For context, A major theme of the Theogony is about sons usurping their fathers. Uranus the titan was usurped by his son Cronos, and Cronos himself was usurped by his son Zeus. Of course, this also would apply to Zeus–his son would usurp him as well.
“For they advised him so, to the end that no other should hold royal sway over the eternal gods in place of Zeus; for very wise children were destined to be born of her, [895] first the maiden bright-eyed Tritogeneia, equal to her father in strength and in wise understanding; but afterwards she was to bear a son of overbearing spirit king of gods and men. But Zeus put her into his own belly first, [900] that the goddess might devise for him both good and evil.”
To prevent that from happening, Zeus tricked Metis and ate her. The gods have a history of eating each other to get rid of them. Zeus’ father Cronos actually ate many of his children to try and prevent his own usurping.
The Gods appear to be more robust than humans though, as being swallowed wasn’t the end of Metis. She survived, made her way to Zeus’ head and gave birth to Athena (also known as Tritogeneia).
“But Zeus lay with the fair-cheeked daughter of Ocean and Tethys apart from Hera … deceiving Metis although she was full wise. But he seized her with his hands and put her in his belly, for fear that she might bring forth something stronger than his thunderbolt: therefore did Zeus, who sits on high and dwells in the aether, swallow her down suddenly. But she straightway conceived Pallas Athena: and the father of men and gods gave her birth by way of his head on the banks of the river Trito. And she remained hidden beneath the inward parts of Zeus, even Metis, Athena’s mother, worker of righteousness, who was wiser than gods and mortal men.”
Eventually, Metis worked in Zeus’ head to procure weapons of war for Athena, who caused enough of a headache that Zeus ended up “birthing” her out of his head.
Mattei Athena By Jastrow – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1750660
But Zeus himself gave birth from his own head to bright-eyed Tritogeneia, [925] the awful, the strife-stirring, the host-leader, the unwearying, the queen, who delights in tumults and wars and battles.
“There the goddess Athena received that whereby she excelled in strength all the deathless less ones who dwell in Olympus, she who made the host-scaring weapon of Athena. [929t] And with it (Zeus) gave her birth, arrayed in arms of war. [930]”
Evidently, Metis remained in Zeus’ head after Athena’s birth. As far as mythology goes, she didn’t birth the second child–a son who would be more powerful than Zeus’ thunderbolt–a usurper.
There, she remains a voice in his head. And for us, she can be the voice of reason in our head. The supporter of thought, contemplation, and skill. Whenever I speak to myself or work through a hard problem, I imagine I am speaking to Metis herself, the goddess of wisdom that exists in my head.
Source: From the Theogony (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0130%3Acard%3D901)
Leave a Reply