Zeus

Zeus is the supreme god and ruler of Olympus. He is known by many titles: Lord of the Sky, the Cloud- gatherer, the Rain-god and Zeus the Thunderer, all of which show which force of nature was considered to be the most important in Ancient World - rain. In most other mythologies the "ruler-god" was usually associated with the sun, but in Greece the climate is hot and dry making rain the scarce, life-giving force.

Zeus was the sixth child born to Cronus and Rhea, Because Cronus, ruler of the Titans and the supreme god at the time, was afraid that one of his children would overthrow him, just like he overthrew his father, Uranus, he swallowed his first five children - Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter and Hestia. This, of course, infuriated Rhea and when Zeus was born she tricked Cronus into swallowing a rock wrapped in blankets. Zeus is more powerful than any other god or even all the other gods combined. But, unlike many gods in other religions he was neither omnipotent nor omniscient. He could be, and in fact was, opposed, deceived and tricked by gods and men alike. His power, although great, was not boundless, Zeus had no control over The Fates and Destiny. Like all Greek divinities, Zeus was subject to pleasure, pain, grief, and anger, but he was most susceptible to the power of Eros - love, which often got the object’s of his desire in a lot of trouble with his wife, Hera.

The representation of Zeus was a most noble one - mighty, glorious, awesome and wise, although he did show a certain degree of surprising foolishness and naiveness when it came to hiding his love affairs. Some historians attribute this less than noble behavior of the "noblest one of all" to the fact that Zeus was most likely a compilation of many "supreme gods" from different areas. When his worship spread to an area which already worshipped another god, some of that god’s qualities as well as his wife or lover were transferred to Zeus. Aside from the endless affairs Zeus was different from other gods in that he did not participate in the arguments and the resulting petty scheming that made up the daily activities of other gods. Being this wise ruler, he also demanded just and righteous action from men. Zeus was however vengeful, as can be seen in The creation of man by Prometheus, but only rightly so.

Zeus had two special attendants, Nike (Victoria), the goddess of victory, and his cup-bearer, Hebe, who was one of his numerous daughters. After Hebe married Heracles, Ganymede replaced her as the cup-bearer for Zeus. In Roman Mythology, Zeus’ counterpart, Jupiter, was also attended by Fama (fame) and Fortuna (luck and chance, Tyche in Greek).

Zeus was the guardian of political order and peace. The aegis is his breastplate - so glorious and at the same time awful to behold that no human could see Zeus in all his magnificence and survive. His weapon is, of course the thunderbolt which he hurled at whoever displeased him. The thunderbolts were fashioned for him the three Cyclopes who also were the deciding power in the battle with the Titans. His bird is the Eagle, his tree - the Oak. Dodona was his oracle. His will was revealed by the rustling of oak leaves which was interpreted by his priests.

Hera

Hera was Zeus’ sister and wife. She was brought up by the Titans Ocean and Tethys, despite the nickname "cow-faced" (in some translations - "ox-eyed") which seems to have stuck with her through the ages, she was very beautiful, in fact she was one of the three contestants in the Judgment of Paris which led to the Trojan War. But her personality was not as attractive, she was petty and cruel and is most often shown administering some sort of revenge on one of Zeus’ lovers. In one, and only one, myth is shown as a noble and gracious protector of heroes and inspirer of heroic deeds, the Quest of the Golden Fleece.

As might have been expected Hera’s marriage to Zeus was not to her liking, after Zeus had courted her unsuccessfully for some time, he turned to trickery. Changed himself into an injured bird, Hera, feeling sorry for it, held it to her breast to warm it, Zeus, taking advantage of the situation raped her. She then married him to cover her shame.

Zeus was anything, but a faithful husband, so Hera, in her turn was not a loyal wife. Once she even convinced the other gods to join in a revolt against Zeus. Her part was to drug Zeus, and in this she was successful. The gods then bound the sleeping Zeus to a couch taking care to tie many strong knots. They had not, however, planned what to do next and began to quarrel over who would take Zeus’ place. Briareus overheard the arguments, still full of gratitude to Zeus, he came to his help and was able to quickly untie the many knots. Zeus sprang from the couch and grabbed his thunderbolt. As the gods fell to their knees begging and pleading for mercy, he seized Hera and hung her from the sky with gold chains. She wept in pain all night but, none of the others dared to help her. The weeping kept Zeus up and the next morning he agreed to release her if she would swear never to go against him. She had little choice but, to agree. While she never again rebelled, she often intrigued against Zeus's plans and she was often able to outwit him.

Hera was the goddess of marriage and protector of married women. Her sandals, chariot and throne were all of pure gold, but that was not uncommon with the gods. Her animal is the cow, the peacock, and sometimes the cuckoo, her birds. Hera had her own messenger - the fleet- footed Iris (rainbow). Argos and Sparta were her favorite cities. She had no distinguishing featured and can only be identified in artistic representations by either inscription or context

Apollo

Apollo and his twin sister Artemis were the children of Zeus and Leto. Born in the little island of Delos he has been called "the most Greek of all the gods." He is a beautiful figure in Greek poetry, the master musician who delights the gods of Olympus with his golden lyre. He is the Archer- god, master of the silver bow. He is the god of Light, in all the gods, like in men, there is a continuos struggle between good and evil, their light and dark sides, whatever the proportion of one to the other might be; in Apollo there was almost no darkness at all, his primitive and cruel side was shown only briefly and in very few myths. He is also the god of Truth, no false word ever fell from his lips, because of this his oracle at Delphi was very important to people, serving ad a link between men and gods. He was also the Healer- god, who first taught men medicine and the art of healing.

One of his more important daily tasks was to drive the Sun across the sky in his golden chariot. Sometimes he is called the son-god and Helios is said to be one of his many names, but in other myths Helios is separate god, the son of the titan Hyperion. One of Apollo’s great deeds for mankind was his killing of the serpent Python, who lived in the caves of Parnassus after the Great Flood, because of this he was sometimes called Pythian. In the Iliad he is also called "the Sminthian," the Mouse-god, but it is unknown whether it was because he protected or destroyed mice.

Apollo is usually shown as a manly, beardless youth of great beauty, his head crowned with laurel leaves, either the bow or his lyre in his hand. His tree was the laurel. Many creatures were sacred to him, chief among them the dolphin and the crow. One of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, the Colossus of Rhodes, was actually a statue of Apollo. Many festivals were held in his honor, the most famous of which were the Pythian Games, celebrated at Delphi every three years.

He had a huge temple in Didyma which became rival to the one in Delfi.

Artemis

Artemis and her younger twin brother Apollo were the children of Zeus and Leto, born in Delos. She is the lady of the forest and all the wild things, as well as the Huntsman- in-chief to the gods, an odd office for a woman. Like Apollo she hunts with silver arrows. She is one of the three virgin goddesses along with Athena and Hestia. Surprisingly, she also presides over childbirth, this goes back to the fact that she did not cause her mother any pain when she was born. As always in Greek Mythology, she also had her dark side, showing her as fierce and vengeful warrior. For example, although she is the protector of the young, she kept the Greek Fleet from sailing to Troy, until Iphigenia, a royal maiden, daughter of the Commander in Chief Agamemnon was sacrificed to her. All because the Greek soldiers killed one of the creatures, a hare, together with her young. On the other hand, when women died a quick and painless death, they were said to have been slain by Artemis’ silver arrows.

Artemis was vindictive and there were many who suffered from her anger. One of her actions was to join Apollo in killing the children on Niobe. Artemis took part in the battle against the Giants, where she killed Gration. She also destroyed the Aloadae and is said to have killed the monster Bouphagus. Other victims of Artemis included Orion and Actaeon, as well as Meleager, who was fated to die as the result of the Calydonian Boar hunt instigated by Artemis.

Artemis was also associated with the moon, and called Phoebe and Selene (Luna in Latin), neither name originally belonged to her. Phoebe was a titan, one of the elder gods. So was Selene, a moon- goddess and sister of Helios, the sun-god often confused with Artemis’ brother, Apollo. In the later poems Artemis became associated with another goddess, Hecate, the dark and awful goddess of the lower world. Hecate was the Goddess of the Dark of the Moon, the black nights when the moon is hidden. She was associated with deeds of darkness, the Goddess of the Crossways, which were held to be ghostly places of evil magic; and awful divinity. Thus she became "the goddess with three forms," Selene in the sky, Artemis on earth and Hecate in the lower world as well as in the world above, when it is wrapped in darkness. In Artemis is shown most vividly the uncertainty between good and evil which exists in every god. Ironically, this contrast is least apparent in her brother, the God of Light, Apollo.

Artemis was held in honour in al the wild and mountainous areas of Greece, in Arcadia and in the country of Sparta, in Laconia on Mount Taygetus and in Elis. Her most famous shrine was at Ephesus. Artemis absorbed some cults that involved human sacrifice, such as that practiced in Tauris. She was also the protecting deity of the Amazons who, like her, were warriors and huntresses and independent of men.

The cypress is her tree. All wild animals are scared to her, but especially the deer. She is almost always depicted with her bow and a fawn; and very often, also with Apollo.

Her biggest temple was build in Ephesus which became one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In the nearby museum of Selcuk you can sea two beautiful marble statues of Artemis Polimastros (with many breasts), as she was called in the Ionian region of Asia Minor.

Poseidon

Poseidon is the ruler of the sea, often called the "Earth- shaker." After Zeus, with his brothers and sisters, defeated the Titans and dethroned Cronus, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades drew lots for one of the three realms to rule. Zeus got the heavens and thus became the supreme ruler, Hades got the underworld and Poseidon got the sea. Poseidon is very powerful, second only to Zeus himself. Poseidon had a magnificent palace beneath the sea, but spent much of his time participating in the festivities in Olympus with the other gods. Poseidon’s wife is Amphitrite, granddaughter of the titan Oceanus.

Poseidon, had a very encroaching disposition, he was very dissatisfied with the his share of the world and once even conspired to dethrone Zeus. But his plot was discovered and in punishment Zeus exiled him to earth. There he was to build the walls of Troy in Anatolia for king Laomedon. He was helped by Apollo, who at the time was also banished from Olympus at that time, Apollo was able to move the heaviest of stones with just the sound of his lyre. After the task was completed Laomedon refused to reward them as promised and that was the chief reason why Poseidon was on the Greek side during the Trojan War.

Although Poseidon did give men the first horse, his primary importance was as Lord of the Sea, at his command winds rose and the most violent of storms began, but when he drove in his golden car over the water, the storms subsided and tranquil peace followed his wheels.

Both the bull and the horse are associated with Poseidon, but the bull is associated with many other gods as well, so the horse can be considered his animal. He was always depicted carrying, or using, his distinguishing weapon, the trident, a three- pronged spear which he used to shatter and shake anything he pleased.

Athena

Athena is Zeus’ daughter and his favorite child, she is often described as "gray-eyed" or "flashing- eyed." In popular myth she is said to have no mother, because she sprang full grown and in full armor from her fathers head.

This is not entirely true however. Athena’s mother was Metis, Zeus came to lust after her, and chased her in his direct way. Metis tried to escape as best she could, going so far as to change her form many times, turning into various creatures such as hawks, fish, and serpents. But Zeus was both determined and equally proficient at changing form. He continued his pursuit until she relented.

An Oracle of Gaea then prophesied that Metis first child would be a girl but, her second child would be a boy that would overthrow Zeus as had happened to his father (Cronus) and his grandfather (Uranus). Zeus took this warning to heart. When he next saw Metis he flattered her and put her at her ease, then with Metis off guard Zeus suddenly opened his mouth and swallowed her. This was the end of Metis but, possibly the beginning of Zeus's wisdom.

After a time Zeus developed the mother of all headaches. He howled so loudly it could be heard throughout the earth. The other gods came to see what the problem was. Hermes realized what needed to be done and directed Hephaestus to take a wedge and split open Zeus's skull. Out of the skull sprang Athena, full grown and in a full set of armor. Greeks believed that the men were solely responsible for conception of a child, and the woman’s only role was to carry it until it was born, therefore Metis is not given any credit for Athena birth.

There are two distinctly different representations of Athena’s character. In the Iliad she is a fierce and ruthless warrior- goddess, who takes pleasure in war and fighting. In the Odyssey and all alter poetry she is still very powerful, but only fights to defend the State. She was the embodiment of wisdom, purity and reason, as well as the patron of the handicrafts and sciences and agriculture. She gave men the bridle allowing them to tame and use Poseidon’s gift - horses. She also invented the trumpet, the flute, the pot, the rake, the plow, the yoke, the ship, and the chariot. Of the three virgin goddesses (Athena, Artemis and Hestia) she was chief and called the Maiden, Parthenos, accordingly her temple in Athens was called the Parthenon.

Athena was perhaps the most recognizable of the gods. She was always depicted with her unmistakable helmet and the ever- present spear. Because she was Zeus’ favorite she was allowed to use his weapons and armor, including the awful aegis, his buckler and even his thunderbolt. Her shield was also very distinctive, after Perseus defeated the gorgon Medusa, Athena affixed it’s head to her shield.

Athena’s special city was Athens, patronage of which she won from Poseidon by giving the city the olive tree which Cecrops judged to be a better gift than the water spring that Poseidon provided. Her tree is the olive, which she herself created. Her bird is the owl, also a symbol of wisdom.

Demeter

Demeter was the Goddess of Corn and therefore also harvest. She was the daughter of Cronus and Rhea and thus Zeus’ sister. Along with Dionysus (also Bacchus, God of Wine) Demeter was one of the two most important gods in the everyday lives of people. While most other gods did little to help people and people would have done much better without them, even when they were not outright harmful; these two were truly mankind’s best friends. What also made them very different from other gods, was that they were the only two to have known and felt suffering and true grief, while the other gods lived happy blissful lives.

Demeter’s tragic story is her search for Persephone. Persephone was Demeter’s only daughter; Zeus was the father, Persephone was abducted by Hades and later returned to earth with the condition that she spends four months of each year with Hades. In these months Demeter misses her daughter so much that she withdraws her gifts from the earth, and winter comes. But when her daughter returns, Demeter is so happy that she restores all her gifts and spring starts.

One of Greece’s most important and interesting festivals was associated with Demeter and in fact held in her honor. This celebration of harvest was held every five years for nine days in September. The festival included processions, sacrifices, dance, song and all other kinds of general rejoicing common to such festivities. But we know little about the most important part, the Eleusinian Mysteries, since all the participants vowed never to reveal what they have witnessed. Although some limited accounts do exist, and many different theories have been presented. This mysterious part of the festival was held in Eleusis, a small town not far from Athens.

Hermes

Hermes was the son of Zeus and Maia, daughter of Atlas; born in a cave on mount Cyllene in Arcadia. Hermes appears more often in the myths than any other god or goddess. He is the fastest of the gods, and his position was as Zeus’ messenger. He was also the shrewdest and most cunning of all the gods, he was the Master Thief, who started his carrier before his was one day old, by stealing Apollo’s herds. Zeus made him give them back, and Hermes won Apollo’s forgiveness by given him the lyre which he made out of a tortoise shell.

To the people Hermes was the God of Commerce and the Market, patron of traders, merchants and thieves. In odd contrast he was also the Divine Herald, the solemn guide of the dead who leads their souls down to the underworld, after Thanatos did his job.

Because of a famous statue, Hermes’ appearance is well known and he is easily recognized in art. He always wore his winged sandals and his winged cap (petassos); Caduceus, a magic wand given to him by Apollo was always with him as well. He invented quite a few things, some of which are: the lyre, the pipes, the musical scale, astronomy, weights and measures, boxing, gymnastics and the care of olive trees.

Aphrodite
Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love. The Romans called her Venus. In Greek mythology, Aphrodite was the goddess of love (equivalent to the Roman Venus, Phoenician Astarte and the Babylonian Ishtar). She is said to be either a daughter of Zeus or to have sprung from the foam of the sea. She was the unfaithful wife of Hephaestus, the god of fire, and the mother of Eros. Aphrodite surpassed all the other goddesses in beauty, and hence received the prize of beauty from Paris. She likewise had the power of granting beauty and invincible charm to others. In the vegetable kingdom the myrtle, rose, apple, and poppy, among others, were sacred to Aphrodite, as, in the animal world, were the sparrow, dove, swan, and swallow.

Ares

He is the son of Zeus and Hera. He was disliked by both parents. He is the god of war. He is considered murderous and bloodstained but, also a coward. When caught in an act of adultery with Aphrodite her husband Hephaestus is able publically ridicule him. His bird is the vulture. His animal is the dog.

Hephaestus
Hephaestus was the Greek god of volcanic fire. The Romans called him Vulcan. He was the son of Zeus and Hera.

Dionysus

He is the god of the vine. He invented wine and spread the art of tending grapes. He has a dual nature. On the one hand bringing joy and devine ecstasy. On the other brutal, unthinking, rage. Thus, reflecting both sides of wines nature. If he choses Dionysus can drive a man mad. No normal fetters can hold him or his followers.

Dionysus is the son of Zeus and Semele. He is the only god to have a mortal parent. Zeus came to Semele in the night, invisable, felt only as a devine presence. Semele was pleased to be a lover of a god, even though she did not know which one. Word soon got around and Hera quickly assumed who was responsible. Hera went to Semele in disguise and convinced her she should see her lover as he really was. When Zeus next came to her she made him promise to grant her one wish. She went so far as to make him swear on the River Styx that he would grant her request. Zeus was madly in love and agreed. She then asked him to show her his true form. Zeus, was unhappy, and knew what would happen but, having sworn he had no choice. He appeared in his true form and Semele was instantly burnt to a crisp by the sight of his glory. Zeus did manage to rescue Dionysus and stiched him into his thigh to hold him until he was ready to be born. His birth from Zeus alone conferred immortality upon him.

Dionysus problems with Hera were not yet over. She was still jealous and arranged for the Titans to kill him. The Titans ripped him into to pieces. However, Rhea brought him back to life. After this Zeus arranged for his protection and turned him over the mountain nymphs to be raised.

Dionysus wandered the world actively encouraging his cult. He was accompanied by the Maenads, wild women, flush with wine, shoulders draped with a fawn skin, carrying rods tipped with pine cones. While other gods had templaces the followers of Dionysus worshipped him in the woods. Here they might go into mad states where they would rip apart and eat raw any animal they came upon.

Dionysus is also one of the very few that was able to bring a dead person out of the underworld. Even though he had never seen Semele he was concerned for her. Eventually he journeyed into the underworld to find her. He faced down Thanatos and brought her back to Mount Olympus.

Dionysus became one of the most important gods in everyday life. He became associated with several key concepts. One was rebirth after death. Here his dismemberment by the Titans and return to life is symbolically echoed in tending vines, where the vines must be pruned back sharply, and then become dormant in winter for them to bear fruit. The other is the idea that under the influence of wine, one could feel possessed by a greater power. Unlike the other gods Dionysus was not only outside his believers but, also within them. At these times a man might be greater then himself and do works he otherwise could not.

The festivel for Dionysus is in the spring when the leaves begin to reapper on the vine. It became one of the most important events of the year. It's focus became the theater. Most of the great greek plays were initially written to be performed at the feast of Dionysus. All who took part writers, actors, spectators were regaurded as scared servents of Dionysus during the festival.