The myth of Persephone narrates her abduction by Hades, the god of the underworld. Persephone's mother, Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, plunges the world into despair while searching for her daughter. This leads to the creation of winter as the earth becomes barren. Eventually, a compromise is reached, allowing Persephone to spend part of the year with Hades and part with her mother, symbolizing the changing seasons and the cycle of life, death, and rebirth in nature.