In Roman polytheism Dis Pater, Pluto and Orcus are all names for the
same God of the underworld and of death. His consort Proserpina is equally a
Goddess of death, but also of spring, and thus the possibility of renewed life.
Any discussion of one of these deities is incomplete without the other. Both deities
should be understood as being essentially the same as the Hellenic Hades and
Persephone. Although they are infernal Gods they are in no way like their
Christian usurper, Satan. They are not inherently evil and their raison d'etre is not to torture the
damned or tempt the weak. Nor is their domain a burning hell, but rather a
“gloomy palace” (Ovid) surrounded by water. Dis Pater is euphemistically called
the rich one – this title meaning, literally, rich father. As the foremost God of the underworld Dis Pater is
naturally associated with all the wealth that comes from it, including gold, precious
gems and, most importantly, the latent fertility of the earth. This latter
aspect of the God links him with the Goddess of the harvest (Ceres), and of
course her daughter who emerges from beneath the earth every spring, Proserpina.
