Esoteric myths of Greece & Rome

Triptolemus was a handsome young man, the son of the king of Eleusis on the coast near Athens.

After Persephone had been abducted by Hades and taken down to the Underworld, Demeter wandered throughout the whole Mediterranean area in search of her daughter. Some people were not very friendly to her and others, like Triptolemus, treated her with great hospitality. In fact, Demeter was so pleased with how well she was received by Triptolemus and his wife Metanira, that she decided to do a great favor for them. She secretly planned to make their son Demophon immortal. In order to accomplish this she stayed up late on night after everyone else had gone to bed, and she quietly took Demophon out of his crib. In order to make him immortal, Demeter needed to place him in the flames of the fireplace. The flames would destroy those parts of Demophon that prevented him from living forever.

Demeter was in the process of holding Demophon in the flames when suddenly his mother Metanira came into the room, screamed loudly, and broke the spell. Demophon died in the flames.

After Demeter explained what she had intended to do, Triptolemus and Metanira forgave her, but still were very sad over the loss of Demophon.

To help cheer Triptolemus up, Demeter gave him a chariot pulled by winged dragons and presented him with seeds of wheat. She also explained to him the secrets of agriculture and how he could plant these seeds and grow food for mankind.

Triptolemus got in the chariot and rode through all the lands of the world sharing what he had learned about agriculture and giving each person he met some of the seeds of wheat.

When Triptolemus finished his journey and returned to his native land near Athens, his father, out of jealousy, tried to kill him. Demeter came to the rescue of Triptolemus and forced his father to yield his throne to Triptolemus.

In gratitude to Demeter for all that she did for him and for mankind, Triptolemus established the festival of Thesmophoria in her honor. The festival was celebrated every November.