The ancient Greeks were brilliant people whose accomplishments have echoed through the ages. Like many ancient cultures, the Greeks are celebrated for their ingenuity and for helping to create the backbone of modern Western society.
We can thank the ancient Greeks for the concepts of democracy, theater, and even the first computer! But perhaps one of the most exciting creations the Greeks are known for is their pantheon of gods.
The polytheistic Greek religion, or belief in many gods, has been a source of inspiration for art, music, dance, theater, television, and writing throughout the ages. But the ancient Greeks did not simply worship their gods, they used them as a way to help define the natural world.
From his seat of power on top of Mount Olympus, the god Zeus ruled over the land and skies. Zeus was the king of the gods, and together with his two brothers, Poseidon and Hades, they helped keep the other gods under control.
Zeus was the god of thunder and weather and was the giver of justice. If a great storm was followed by a bird flying on someone’s left side, the Greeks might take that as an omen, or a sign, that Zeus was angry and offer an animal sacrifice to appease the god.
Poseidon was the god of seas and rivers, the bringer of destruction who controlled storms and floods. Because of his status as ruler of the seas, fishermen and seafarers would often worship him and offer sacrifices before traveling. In the epic Greek poem, the Odyssey, it is said that the main character, Odysseus, angered Poseidon. On his journey home after the 10-year battle at the city of Troy, Odysseus encountered many hardships, and the god of the seas made it so difficult for him to sail that it took him 10 years to return home from the war.
Hades, the god of the underworld and Zeus’s second brother, has been seen as mysterious throughout the centuries.
He was the only god not to live on Mount Olympus. Instead, he chose to live in the dark underworld. But Hades was not the god of death or even seen as evil the way the Christian religion views Satan. Hades was simply the ruler of the underworld, and he had several lesser gods to do the majority of the dirty work when it came to death.
If a family member in ancient Greece died, the grieving family would place coins in the deceased person’s mouth. It was believed that when the soul reached the River Styx, the boatman named Charon would take the coins as payment to ferry the soul to the gates of Hades (what the underworld was called, like the god himself). Souls were judged and placed based on their deeds on Earth. Good souls were taken to the Elysian Fields. Souls who were not so wonderful had their misdeeds punished. And souls who made no sacrifices to the gods were sent to a place of eternal torment.
For this reason, piety and sacrifices to the gods were of great importance in the ancient Greek religion.
Perhaps one of the most popular stories in Greek mythology is that of the goddess Persephone, her mother Demeter, and Hades. It was believed that the god Hades fell in love with Persephone, the goddess of agriculture, when he saw her picking flowers in a field. He kidnapped her and took her to the underworld, and there she became his bride. Persephone’s mother, Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, searched for her daughter, forcing the ground to freeze and no crops to grow until her daughter was returned.
Meanwhile, in the underworld, Persephone was believed to be happy and in love with Hades. When she discovered that her mother had frozen the ground and people were dying, Persephone agreed to return. She would spend a portion of time with her mother, tending the fields of the earth, and the rest of the year in the underworld with her husband.
Thus, it was believed that fall and winter were when Persephone was in the underworld with Hades, and Demeter, in her anger, would freeze the ground so nothing could grow. But in the spring and summer, Persephone would return to her mother, and the crops would grow once again.
Like many religions today, the ancient Greeks believed that certain gods and goddesses acted like patrons on behalf of different people or cities. Artemis (daughter of Zeus and twin sister to Apollo) was the goddess of hunting, wild nature, and childbirth. It was believed that she was the patroness to women and young girls. The goddess was so loved by the people that they built her a temple—the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus—and it is regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Perhaps one of the most powerful goddesses in Greek mythology was Athena. Commonly referred to in classical literature as Pallas Athena, she was the goddess of war, wisdom, inspiration, and civilization. She was believed to be the most cultured of the gods, and the city of Athens was named in her honor. Due to her status as a powerful goddess and because of her wisdom, Athena was the patroness of several great cities, such as Sparta.
Long before the Greeks had a writing system, stories of the gods and heroes of old were sung by bards. It wasn’t until a formal writing system was developed that these stories were written down, and in many ways, solidified in their form. Even looking at written stories about the Greek gods today, historians find many contradictions and different versions of these stories that don’t match up with one another. Thankfully, historians have several scholars to thank for the written records of Greek myths that survive today.
Hesiod, for example, was a Greek poet and is often called the father of Greek poetry. His works have provided historians with useful information about life in ancient Greece. His poem, Theogony, gives a detailed genealogy of the gods and background information about each of the gods and goddesses who were both loved and feared in ancient Greece.
But perhaps one of the most famous poets of all time is the mythical Homer. His epic poems, Iliad and Odyssey, are considered two of the most important works in European literature. They provide a detailed account of the gods and heroes of ancient Greece and how their actions shaped the world. Though many scholars believe Homer to be several people and not a single person, these two poems have provided information about what life might have been like during a time when history is shadowed in mystery.
While the belief in Greek gods is still practiced in some communities currently, many see them as inspiration for other forms of entertainment. In fact, the Greek gods are still at the center of art, literature, music, and theater today. Think about the planets in our solar system that are named after the Roman versions of the Greek gods!
Greek mythology and the gods of Mount Olympus will likely always have a big influence on European and American culture and will continue to inspire stories about their deeds for centuries to come.