Eros is the mischievous minor god of love and desire in the ancient Greece and the counterpart of the Roman god, Cupid. Various sources mention different tales about his true origin, varying from being son of Aphrodite by either Zeus, Ares or Hermes.
Nevertheless, all legends involving his existence picture him as an attendant to Aphrodite, where he causes the love between mortals. His figure is described to have an appearance of a winged young man or a baby who carries the bow and arrows of love. Even as a god, he lacks good archery skills and in some myths, he is blindfolded, resulting in mostly missing his targets.
Eros was a god not simply of passion but also of fertility. His brother was Anteros, the god of mutual love, who was sometimes described as his opponent. The chief associates of Eros were Pothos and Himeros (Longing and Desire). He also shared a sanctuary with Aphrodite on the north wall of the Acropolis at Athens. He caused the love between Apollo and Daphne, after Apollo made fun of him. He later fell in love with a mortal woman named Psyche, eventually becoming her husband and from their union, Hedone is born.
According to some depictions, Eros is instead a Primordial God of Love and Desire and a child of Chaos or Nyx. Parmenides one of the pre-Socratic philosophers, instead makes Eros the first of all the gods to come into existence. He is a primeval deity who embodies not only the force of erotic love but also the creative urge of ever-flowing nature, the firstborn Light for the coming into being and ordering of all things in the cosmos. He was the driving force behind the generation of new life in the cosmos.
Eros appears in many myths, though not by name. In every instance of love or romance, Eros is present, because he is love. Despite this, he has no actual role in myths, aside from his presence as love. According to Hesiod's Theogony, one of the most ancient of all Greek sources, Eros was the fourth god to come into existence, coming after Chaos, Gaia and Tartarus. He was also equivalent to Thesis (Creation) and Physis (Nature).
Despite being derived from a Greek god, Eros appears as a female Persona in Persona 2: Innocent Sin. Her looks are overall red and feminine and she carries a heart shaped bow as a weapon. She is first unintentionally summoned by Lisa Silverman after she is attacked by Eikichi Mishina's Rhadamanthus early in the game. In battle, she is capable of inflicting minor Earth based spells and preventing instant death from Light attacks. She is also adept in recovery skills and doesn't have a particular elemental weakness.
Ginji Sasaki uses the Persona Reverse Eros in battle with the unique spell "Dark Mamagna" which inflicts Earth damage and Panic status.
