Land of dreams (mythology)

This article is about the location in the Greek underworld. For other uses, see Land of Dreams.
Morpheus Awakening as Iris Draws Near, René-Antoine Houasse, 1690
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In Greek mythology, the Land of dreams (or District of dreams; Ancient Greek: δῆμος ὀνείρων, romanized: dêmos oneírōn)[1] is a location in the Greek underworld mentioned by Homer in the Odyssey.[2] Homer locates the land past the streams of Oceanus, the world-encircling river, and the gates of the Sun, close to the Fields of Asphodel, where the spirits of the dead reside.[3] Described as "the land where reality ends and everything is fabulous", the district of dreams is situated by the stream of Oceanus, the physical boundary in cosmic space, beyond which lies the realm of images and ghosts.[4]

  1. ^ Homer, Odyssey (Greek) 24.11–14
  2. ^ Nagy 2018, p. 234.
  3. ^ Homer, Odyssey 24.11-14
  4. ^ Cox Miller 1994, p. 14.