FREE ESSAY ON GREEK GODS

GREEK GODS

Parallelisms between Greek and Roman Mythology have many similarities between them. Each
type has there own set of Gods and Goddesses, although they were worshiped for similar
reasons. The following will explain each God or Goddess and explain how they compare to
each other. The King of Gods in Greek Mythology is known as Zeus. Zeus was the ruler of
the sky, and had the power to create thunderstorms and lightning as well as earthquakes.
He was the child of Cronus and Rhea. 
As the story goes he was their sixth child, and the father to protect him from being
overthrown had eaten the five previous children. Zeus was taken to a city called Crete
and hidden from his father. As Zeus grew older and learned of what happened he found a
potion to make his father regurgitate the other children. Once this happened they all
teamed up and killed their father. Zeus then became the ruler of Mount Olympus, and head
of the new line of Gods. Jupiter was the predominant power holder of Roman Gods. He was
ruler of the sky, the daylight, all the weather, and even the thunder and lightening.
Jupiter helped drive back the Sabines. His temple was built in the Capitol, and newly
elected counsels offered their first prayers to him. 
Hera was the wife and sister of Zeus, and the High Goddess of the Greeks. She was
extremely jealous of the affairs that her husband was having and often tormented or
harmed the mistresses he was fooling around with. Although, when she went too far, or
tried to cause death, Zeus would intervene and stop her. Hera tried to ship wreak
Hercules on his return from Troy, and with that Zeus had her hung by the wrists from top
of the mountain with an anvil tied to each ankle. The two had four children together.
Juno, 
Hera's counterpart, was the wife of Jupiter. Juno was the protector of women, especially

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those who are married. Women often gave offerings to Juno to help with their childbirth.
The God of the Underworld, Hades, was the brother of Zeus. He gained Hell, as his share
in conquering their father. He is most known for kidnapping his wife, Persephone, while
she was picking flowers in a field. As the story goes, Hades had her eat a piece of food
in the Underworld, therefore she could not live on the Earth again. Her father, Zeus,
made arrangements for her to be allowed on Earth for two-thirds of the year and in the
Underworld as Hades' wife for the rest of the time. This is used as the cause of spring
and winter. When she returns to the surface she brings spring with her and when she
returns to the Underworld she leaves winter behind her. 
Pluto, the Roman God of the Underworld, who's name also means rich. It reflects the rich
mineral resources beneath the ground and the rich resources above the earth. In art he is
shown with the Horn of Plenty. This horn is most likely why we associate the Devil, or
Satan, as having a horn on top of his head. His name was thought of to be bad luck, and
therefore was hardly mentioned in myths. 
Ares was the child of Zeus and Hera. He was the God of War. Whenever he was seen or
portrayed he would be fully armed and ready for battle. Any cause to fight or go to war
would bring him out and about. He was the discomfited lover of Aphrodite. Almost all of
his children by mortal women were of a violent nature. Mars, The Roman God of War and
Agriculture, was the second most important god after Jupiter. The month March was named
after Mars, and was also the first month of the Roman calendar. March was the month when
agriculture was reborn and when most people engaged in war. Mars was given his own priest
and altar in Rome. The wolf and woodpecker were the sacred
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animals of Mars. A festival in October was held in his honor and all farmers and soldiers
would lay aside their weapons and had a celebration. 
The Greek Goddess of Love and Beauty was Aphrodite. She was married to the Smith God,
Hephaestus, but left him for the God of War. She favored the Trojans during the Trojan
War. She was known to have angry mood swings and all the gods and mortals paid dearly for
it. Aphrodite and Venus were counterparts in mythology. Venus, The Roman Goddess of Love,
was first worshiped in pre-Roman Italy, where she was worshiped for gardens and
vegetation. Festivals during the month of April were in recognition of Venus. Her son,
Cupid, was told to fire individuals with love by the touch of his arrow. Her plans
backfired and an arrow accidentally touched her. She fell in love with Adonis, the first
man she saw, and instantly had a passion to be with him. She was so anxious to be with
him that she tried to persuade him not to hunt any longer, but he did and got killed by a
boar. The name Venus means "beauty" or "charm." 
Poseidon was one of the Olympian deities of the Greeks, the son of Cronus and Rhea. His
sphere of power covered the sea, and earthquakes. He had similar powers of Zeus in these
fields, but was ultimately less powerful. He was mostly worshiped on the island called
Atlantis. Offerings were given to him were given when sea goers wanted calm voyage or
needed help in navigation. Poseidon had an affair with Medusa and she bore him a Pegasus
as a child. The Roman God of Water was called Neptune. The Romans were not a seafaring
community in early times and Neptune was of little importance or worry to them. His
festival was celebrated on the height of summer during 
the driest time of the year. The date was July twenty-third. 
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The Greek God of Love, usually represented as a small chubby winged child, was called
Eros. He was usually equipped with a bow and a quiver full of arrows. These arrows were
used to induce love, as well as the lighted torch he was sometimes shown holding. By
riding on a lion or dolphin, or breaking the thunderbolts of Zeus one would know that
this indicated his power over both gods and men. The Roman God of Love, Cupid, was also
usually represented as a small chubby naked child armed with a bow and quiver of arrows.
Mischievously he would aim 'Cupid's darts' at will; at times causing untold mayhem as
they caused those they pierced to fall in love with the first person they met. In classic
arts he is often shown playing a game such as quoits, but sometimes he wears a helmet and
carries spear and shield to show that even Mars, God of War, gives way to love. His
encounter with Psyche shows him in a more serious aspect. Psyche would eventually be
married to Cupid, after many hardships. 
Artemis was the daughter of Zeus and his mistress Leto. Born on the island of Delos with
a slightly younger twin brother, Apollo. She was the eternal virgin huntress goddess,
even though she had a very vindictive nature. She was responsible for several deaths,
including Callisto and Orion. At Ephesus, she was worshiped more as a mother goddess then
a huntress. Bees and stags were animals most often associated with her. Her temple was
listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Diana was very similar to the
Greek Goddess Artemis. Born on Delos with a twin brother named Apollo, Diana was the
Goddess of Hunting. She had two particular shrines in Italy: one at Aricia on the shores
of Lake Nemi, where she is known as Diana of the Woods, and the other at Capua under the
name of Diana Tifatina, known as the Goddess of the Crossroads. Her 
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cult allowed human sacrifice, and her priest could be replaced by whom ever killed him.
In Greek mythology the messenger of the gods, son of Zeus and the nymph Maia, was known
as Hermes. He also had the role of escorting the dead to the Underworld. He was also the
patron of merchants and seamen, of good luck, and of thieves and pickpockets, and was
known for his mischief making. Often used by Zeus as an intermediary in various
situations, he was rewarded with a winged helmet and a pair of sandals, which he used for
walking the roads. Mercury was a Roman god, and son of Jupiter and Maia. He was the
messenger of Jupiter. He was often seen with the caduceus (a wand), broad-rimmed hat,
winged sandals and purse. He, like Hermes, protected the merchants. His name has the root
word 'merx' meaning merchandise. 
Apollo, twin brother of Artemis, had Zeus as a father and a nymph as a mother. He was
born under the shade of a single palm tree, the only tree on the island. Apollo's major
shrine was at Delphi, but before he could have this he had to rid the place of the
monster. Python, a dragon or serpent, had terrorized the countryside for a long time.
After slaying this creature Apollo initiated the Pythian Games, in honor of Python.
Delphi became noted for the pronouncements made by the priests when they were in a
hallucinatory state, most likely after chewing on bay laurel leaves. The legendary
Hercules, a half god warrior, came to Delphi to seek advice from the oracle. He was
dissatisfied with what he heard and tried to steal the sacred tripod, emblem of Apollo.
Hercules and Apollo fought over the tripod, but Zeus separated them and returned the
tripod back to Delphi. Apollo was also the God of Music, Fine Arts, Poetry, and
Eloquence. Apollo was also the God of Medicine, which was used to cure as well as 
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attack. Apollo was also responsible for the plague that struck the Greeks at Troy. He had
a number of encounters with mankind, working at times for a king as a herdsman. He had
several love affairs with mortal girls and nymphs, a number of whom assumed other shapes
in an endeavor to escape his attentions. 
Greek Goddess of Wisdom, Athena, daughter of Metis by Zeus, had a very strange birth.
Zeus had been warned that if Metis had a female child that a male child would follow and
eventually overthrow him. To avoid this prophecy, Zeus swallowed the infant whole just as
Metis was about to give birth. He soon had a very bad headache, so Hephaestus took a
double-sided axe and split his skull open and Athena came out fully-grown and fully
armored. Athena won the city of Athens in a contest with Poseidon. The rules were simple;
who ever could produce the best gift for mankind would win. Poseidon created a horse out
of rock, while Athena caused an olive tree to grow. The judges declared that the olive
tree was most useful and hence she won the city. As a warlike goddess she was protector
of many heroes and towns. Her animal familiar was the watch owl. Minerva was the Roman
Goddess of Craft and Trade, including the intellect on how to do the particular craft.
Together with Juno and Jupiter she was one of the great Capitoline triad and was
introduced to Rome by an Etruscan contingent, which came to aid Romulus. Minerva's
festival was celebrated on March Nineteenth. 
Demeter was the sister of Zeus and one of the five children that was eaten by Cronus.
Demeter was the God of Fertility, and often referred to as the essential mother. Demeter
had a baby girl by the name of Persephone. Her father was Zeus, Hera's husband as well as
Demeter's brother. Hades kidnapped Persephone and took her to the 
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Underworld with him. After searching everywhere for her lost daughter, Helios the God of
the Sun, told her he saw what had happened. She vowed not to return to the gods or
continue any of her tasks till her daughter was returned. Demeter went to Zeus and
demanded that her daughter be returned from the Underworld. Zeus agreed under the
condition that she had not eaten anything while she was down there. Zeus then found out
she had eaten something, and told Demeter that he could not bring her back from the
Underworld. When she found out she withdrew her support of earth and mankind. Demeter
caused the fields to become unfertile, and finally a deadlock was reached. Soon a
compromise was reached between Demeter, Zeus, and Hades. Persephone would be allowed to
earth during the spring, but she would be required to return to the Underworld during the
winter. Ceres, the God of Corn and Harvest, is the Roman equivalent to the Greek Goddess
Demeter. She shares all the same legends and stories. 
As you can see, many of the Gods of Greed and Roman mythology are similar in nature.
Besides the difference in names and petty physical attributes the Gods are almost
identical. In the Roman civilization the Gods names were more relied on as the planets'
names. But in the Greek civilization, the names were a meaning of their power and
ability. 
Most of the Gods in both places resided from Zeus. Those Gods that did not come from Zeus
were probably aid in his victory with the between Zeus and his father Cronus. The Titans
were trapped Tartarus, a place beneath Hades (hell), where they were punished and
tortured. Those titans, such as Gaea, Zeus' mother, who helped Zeus, were left in peace
to live among the rest of the Olympian Gods- to dwell among Mount Olympus.
The people of ancient Greece had an extremely intelligent society. They had sophisticated
architecture and a very high level of mathematics in their culture. These areas of life
dealt with real things that could be controlled. When it came to natural phenomena the
Greeks had certain explanations that might look eccentric now, but were reasonable 3000
years ago. In Greece's history there are several themes that contributed to Greek
mythology and reasons it developed. Once Greek mythology was established in the culture
an interesting set of gods and beliefs evolved and continued to evolve for hundreds of
years. Two of these gods that you are most likely to be familiar with are Zeus and
Apollo. If you understand how and why Greek mythology came about, the idea of Greek
mythology won't seem so weird. The location of Greece itself lends itself to many
different cultures. It is centrally located between Europe, Asia and Africa. With all
three having extremely distinct and varied cultures. Travelers would share their ideas
and thoughts with the locals as they went through Greece. Some ideas were adopted into
the Greek culture or they were modified to their specific needs. Greece became a melting
pot or crossroad for many different cultures. These factors must be taken into
consideration when you are trying to understand Greek culture. Another way Greece was
influenced by other cultures was by force. Between the years 2000-1400 B.C. Greece was
ruled by several different cultures. These outside forces influenced their culture and
religion. One thing that remained a constant was their language. The Greeks maintained to
keep their native language and this established great internal uniformity. This became a
factor in later years helping them rise to such a sophisticated civilization. The origins
of Greek mythology as we know it today are impossible to trace because there was no
structured 
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church or written codes, but the main influence is thought to come from the Aegean
civilization. The Aegeans lived on the island of Crete and are thought to be one of the
first modern civilizations about 3000 B.C. Aegeans believed that all natural objects had
spirits. Over time these beliefs developed into a set of legends involving natural
objects, animals, and gods with human form. Some of these legends survived as part of
classic Greek mythology. The Greek mythographer, Euhemerus, who lived around 300 B.C. had
a contributing theory. He thought myths were distortions of history and the gods were
actually heroes that were glorified over time.
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Bibliography
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