Greek Mythology GeoCities, your home on the Web. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Greek Gods There have been a number of Gods - Greek, Roman, Norse and Egyptian. The most well known are the ones from Greek Mythology. There were over 200 different gods and half-gods from this time. I have listed just a few here. Table of Contents The Major Gods The Goddesses Minor Gods of Olympus Minor Gods of Water Minor Gods of the Underworld Minor Gods of Earth Others -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Major Gods   Zeus      Zeus was the chief God, the God of thunder and lightning, and the sky. He was stronger and more powerful than any other God, yet he could be fooled. He was usually, however, kind and thoughtful. His main weakness was a love for women, and those women usually are persecuted by his wife because of his love. He is married to Hera. His oracle was in Dodona, the land of oak trees. Zeus, the son of Cronus and Rhea, dethroned his Father to become chief God. Poseidon      Poseidon was the God of the Underwater Realm, and brother to Zeus. He was generally portrayed as rotten tempered and bad to hold grudges (Odyssey). He was married to Amphritrite. Hades      Hades was the mirthless god of the Underworld. He was not heartless, but merely unpitying. He was King of the Dead, but not Death himself, who the Greeks called Thanatos. He is married to Persephone. Phoebus Apollo      Apollo was usually called "the most Greek of all the Gods." He was a beautiful figure in Greek Poetry, a master musician, the archer God, the God of Light, and the God of Truth who from his lips no darkness fell. O Phoebus, from your throne of truth, From your dwelling-place at the heart of the world, You speak to men. By Zeus's decree no lie comes there. no shadow to darken the world of truth. Zeus sealed by an everlasting right Apollo's honor, that all may trust with unshaken faith when he speaks.      His oracle, Delphi, was for many years the center of the World. People came from all over the world to hear what Apollo's Priestesses prophecied. And it was always true. Delphi was a direct link to the Gods showing them how to make peace with each other and even how to cleanse the blood stains from their conscience. Zeus was his father, Leto his mother. He was born on the tiny island of Delos. Artemis was his twin sister. Hermes      Hermes was the Messenger God, God of Commerce and Trading, shrewd and cunning, who started thieving before he was a day old when He stole Apollo's cattle. The babe was born at the break of day, and ere the night he had stolen away Apollo's herds. Zeus, of course, made him give them back, and Hermes presented Apollo with the lyre, which he had made, and they were great friends after that. He was the Son of Zeus and Maia. Dionysus      Dionysus was the God of Wine, the last God to enter Olympus, and the only God to have a mortal parent. His mother Semele was a Theban princess. At Thebes alone do mortal women bear Immmortal Gods. Semele was the most unfortunate of Zeus's wives. Hera put the wish into her heart to make Zeus promise to show his Godliness to her. He swore it, unknowingly,and watched sadly as she burned to her death. But he grabbed the child Dionysus and sewed him up into his hip until he was born, when he sent him to the nymphs of Hysa. On his way to Olympus, he was kidnapped by a group of sailors. When Dionysus was set aboard, his ropes fell off. The helmsman alone saw that this must be a God, but the rest of the crew bade him a fool. Just then, wine flowed throughout the ship, and Dionysus changed the crew into dolphins, all but the helmsman. He had an army of wine-crazed women called the Maenads, or the Bacchantes. They rushed through the forest devouring wild animals, and singing  O Bacchanals, come, Oh, come. Sing Dionysus, Sing to the timbrel, the deep-voiced timbrel. Joyfully Praise him, Him who brings joy. Holy, all holy Music is calling. To the hills, to the hills, Fly O Bacchanal Swift of Foot. On, O joyful, be fleet. Ares      Ares was the God of war, who was so ruthless even his parents, Zeus and Hera hated him. He is a coward, though, who bellows away when wounded. He is not a distinct personality like Zeus and Hermes. Hephaestus      Hephaestus was the ugly and lame craftsman god. He was thrown from Heaven by Zeus after he sided with Hera in an argument. Thrown by angry Jove, Sheer o'er the crystal battlements; from morn to dewy eve, A summer's day, and with  the setting sun Dropt from the zenith like a falling star. On Lemnos, the Aegean isle, he is portrayed as a kindly, peaceful God. He was very important in the city. In the Odyssey, he was married to Aphrodite. In the Iliad, he was married to Aglaia, one of the three Graces. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Goddesses   Hera      Hera was the Goddess of marriage and family. She was the wife and sister of Zeus. She was not painted as particularly beautiful by the poets, but one did write: Golden-throned Hera, among immortals the Queen. Chief among them in beauty, the glorious lady all the blessed in high Olympus revere, Honor even as Zeus, lord of the thunder.      But usually she was painted as a goddess that never forgot a wrong against her. She spent most of her time in pursuit of mortals her husband married. Argos was her city. Pallas Athena      Athena was the Goddess of wisdom, the city, handicrafts and agriculture, and protector of civilised life. She was child of Zeus only. She sprang out of his head, fully clothed in armor nad full grown. She was his favorite child, the only one he trusted to carry his aegis, his buckler, and his thunderbolts. She was the chief of the three virgin goddesses, and was called the maiden. Her city was Athens, and her temple the Parthenon. Artemis      Artemis was the twin sister of Apollo, daughter of Zeus and Leto. She was one of the three virgin Goddesses of Olympus - Golden Aphrodite who stirs with love all creation, cannot bend nor ensnare three hearts: The pure maiden Vesta, gray-eyed Athena who cares but for war and the arts of the craftsman; Artemis, lover of woods and wild chase over the mountain. She is the protector of wild things, huntsman-in-chief to the Gods, an odd office for a female. But, she was a good huntsman, and she strove to protect the dewy youth. When women died painlessly, they are said to have been shot by her silver arrows. Aphrodite      The Goddess of Love and Beauty who tempted all, man and Gods alike; the laughter Goddess who laughed mockingly at those who were conquered by her wiles; the irrestible Goddess who stole even wise men's wits. In the Iliad, she is the daughter of Zeus and Dione, but in later poems she is said to have sprung from the sea-foam near Cythera. A Homeric poem says of her: The breath of the west wind bore her over the sounding sea, up from the delicate foam, to wave-ringed Cyprus, her isle. And the hours golden-wreathed welcomed her joyously. They clad her in rainment immortal, and brought her to the Gods. Wonder siezed them all as they saw Violet-crowned Cytherea.      Yet, she had another side. In the Iliad, the battle-poem, she was a soft, weak figure. In later poetry she was a malicious Goddess, exerting a deadly and destructive force over men. She is usually married to Hephaestus. Demeter      Demeter was the Goddess of the Corn, a Goddess who had an altar on every threshing-floor. Her Chief Festival was at harvest time, with processions and singing in every town. Her great temple was at Eleusis, a small town near Athens. Her Worship was the Eleusinian Mysteries. She had one daughter, Persephone, abducted by Hades to be his wife. Persephone lives eight months with Demeter and four with Hades. During those four months, the Earth has winter while Demeter mourns for her lost daughter. Beside Demeter when the cymbals sound Enthroned sits Dionysus of the flowing hair. Hestia      Hestia was the sister of Zeus, and was a virgin like Athena and Artemis. She did not have a distinct personality, yet played a very important part in the Greek home. She was the Goddess of the hearth, the symbol of the home. Every meal began and ended with an offering to her. Hestia, in all dwellings of men and immortals, Yours is the highest honor, the sweet wine offered first and last at the feast, poured out to you duly. Never without you can Gods or mortals hold banquet. Every city had a public hearth sacred to hestia, where the fire was never allowed to go out. In Rome, her fire was cared for by six virgin priestesses called Vestals. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Minor Gods of Olympus Eros      Eros was the God of Love, son of Aphrodite. he was Fairest of the deathless Gods. In earlier poetry he was a beautiful youth who gives good gifts to men. He was often represented as blindfolded, because often love is blind. In his attendance were Anteros, avenger of slighted love, Himeros, longing, and Hymen, God of the wedding feast. Hebe      Hebe was the Goddess of Youth and cupbearer to the Gods. She is married to Hercules. Iris      Iris was the Goddess of the Rainbow and a messenger to the Gods. In the Iliad she is the only messenger. Both Iris and Hermes occupy this job, both called on frequently by the Gods. The Muses      There were nine muses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, Memory. Each occupies her special field. Clio-History, Urania-Astronomy, Melpomene-Tragedy, Thalia-Comedy, Terpsichore-Dance, Calliope-Epic Poetry, Erato-Love Poetry, Polyhymnia-Songs to the Gods, and Euterpe-Lyric Poetry. They were the companions of Apollo, and also the Graces. The Graces      The Graces were three in number: Aglaia-Good Cheer, Euphrosyne-Mirth, and Thalia-Good Cheer. They are not treated as seperate personalities, except when Homer and Hesiod wrote that Aglaia married Hephaestus. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Minor Gods of the Waters Ocean      The Titan Ocean was the Lord of the river Ocean, a great river that circled the Earth. His wife, Tethys, was also a Titan. The Oceanids, the nymphs of the Great Ocean, were their daughters. Nereus      Nereus was the Old Man in the Sea (the Mediterranean). His wife Doris was a daughter of Ocean. They had fifty beautiful daughters, the Nereids, Nymphs of the Mediterranean. His daughter, Thetis, was the mother of Achilles, and another daugher, Amphritrite, was the mother of Poseidon. Triton      Triton was the trumpeter of the Sea. His trumpet was a great shell. He was the son of Poseidon and Amphritrite. Proteus      Proteus was also the son of Poseidon and Amphritrite. He was also his attendent. He had the powers of telling the future and changing his shape at will. The Naiads      The Naiads were also water nymphs. They dwelt in brooks, springs, and fountains. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Minor Gods of the Underworld Cerberus      The three-headed, dragon-tailed dog who sat watch over the gate to the Underworld. The Erinyes      The Erinyes were placed in different places by different poets, but all told that they punished evildoers. There were three-Tisiphone, Megaera, and Alecto. Sleep, Death and Dreams      Sleep, Death, and Dreams all descended to men from the Underworld. They passed through two gates: One of horn for true dreams, and one of ivory for false ones. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Minor Gods of Earth Pan      Pan was Hermes's son; a loud and merry God. He wad pert goat, with goat horns and goat feet. He was the goatherder's and the shepherd's God. Silenus      Silenus was sometimes Pan's son, sometimes his brother, son of Hermes. He was a happy fat old man who rode a donkey because he was always too drunk to walk. Castor and Pollux      Castor and Pollux were twins born of different fathers, Castor and his sister Clymnestra to King Tyndareus of Sparta, and Pollux and Helen, heroine of Troy, to Zeus. Therefore, Castor was mortal, Pollux was immortal. They were inseparable, and one day Castor was stabbed and killed. Pollux was inconsolable. He prayed to Zeus to die also, and Zeus took pity and allowed Pollux to share his immortality with Castor, to live Half thy time beneath the Earth,and half within the golden homes of Heaven. After this they were employed by Poseidon to save any ship that was in distress. Saviors of swift-going ships when the storm winds rage over the ruthless sea. Satyrs      The satyrs were goat-men, like Pan. Oreads and Dryads      Oreads were nymphs of mountains and Dryads were Nymphs of trees. Dryads' lives were bound up with those trees. The Winds      The Winds were: Boreas, the North Wind, Zephyr, the West Wind, Notus, the South Wind, and Eurus, the East Wind. Back to TOC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Others      Sometimes there were beings, neither human nor divine, who lived on the Earth. The Centaurs      Half men, half horses. Mostly they were savage, but one, Chiron, was known for his goodness. The Gorgons      There were three Gorgon sisters, and two were immortal. They were dragon-like creatures whose look turned men to stone. The Graiae      The Graiae were the Gorgon's sisters. There were three of them also. They had one eye between them. They lived far down the bank of Ocean. The Sirens      The Sirens lived on a small island in the sea. They had beautiful voices, and they lured sailors to their deaths on the rocky shore. No one who saw them ever lived, so no one knows what they looked like. The Fates      There were three Fates, each assigned a duty in weaving a man's life; Clotho, the spinner, who spun thethread of life, Lachesis, the disposer of lots, who assigned a man his destiny, and Atropos, who cut the thread of life and could not be turned. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Modifications to this page by Dave Kennedy