the Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Greece

THE PANTHEON OF MT OLYMPUS MOUNT OLYMPUS Home of the Gods Originally Thought to be a Real Mountain Finally Came to be Thought of as a Floating Mountain in the Sky

ZEUS (Roman Name: Jupiter) Supreme Ruler of the Gods His weapon was the mighty THUNDERBOLT© He falls in love frequently and often acts on it (even though he is married)

HERA (Roman Name: Juno) Zeus’ Wife and Sister Protector of Marriage and Married Women Very Jealous of Zeus’ Numerous Lovers

HADES (Roman Name: Pluto) Lord of the Underworld Ruler of the Dead

POSEIDON (Roman Name: Neptune) Ruler of the Seas and Oceans

DEMETER (Roman Name: Ceres) Goddess of Corn and Agriculture Her Moods Affect the Seasons

APHRODITE (Roman Name: Venus) Goddess of Love and Beauty Wife of Hephaestus

HESTIA (Roman Name: Vesta) Goddess of the Home

ALL ZEUS’ CHILDREN

ARES (Roman Name: Mars) God of War None of the Other Gods Like Him Much

ATHENA (Roman Name: Minerva) Battle Maiden and Goddess of Wisdom While Adopted by Hera, She is the Daughter of Zeus Only (Sprang from his Head)

HEPHAESTUS (Roman Name: Vulcan) God of Fire and the Forge He is the Only Ugly God Husband of Aphrodite

HEBE (Roman Name: None) Cupbearer of the Gods

APOLLO (Roman Name: Apollo) Twin Brother of Artemis God of Music and Poetry God of Light and Truth No False Words (Never Told a Lie) His Oracle at Delphi was the Most Popular

ARTEMIS (Roman Name: Diana) Twin Sister of Apollo Goddess of the Moon and the Hunt Lady of the Wild Things

PERSEPHONE (Roman Name: Proserpine) Goddess of Spring She was Kidnapped by Hades Later Made the Queen of the Underworld Spends Half the Year in Hades, Half on Earth

HERMES (Roman Name: Mercury) Messenger of the Gods Has Wings on Sandals and Cap Appears the Most Often of All the Gods

The Origins of Creation The Greek Pantheon begins with the primordial forces. Chaos is first, who spawns the physical realms, i.e. Gaea (Earth), Ouranos (Sun & Sky), Tartarus (the Underworld) etc. Gaea and Ouranos in turn gave birth to the Titans, i.e. Tethys (the sea), Oceanos (the ocean), Kronos (time) etc. Oceanos and Tethys gave birth to other Titans such as Atlas, Prometheus and Epimetheus. Kronos and Rhea gave birth to the next generation, the Pantheon of Mt. Olympus.

The War with the Olympians After it was prophesised that Kronos would be killed by his own son, he decided to destroy his own children. He began eating the Olympians, but Rhea tricked him, giving him a swaddled stone instead of the infant Zeus. Zeus grew to maturity with the help of Rhea, then rose up against Kronos and the Titans. All but Rhea, Prometheus, Epimetheus, Oceanus and Tethys sided with the Titanomachy.

The War with the Olympians Zeus triumphs over Kronos, splitting him in two and enabling his siblings to reemerge. The liberated Olympians then fought with Zeus against the remaining Titans. Eventually they emerged victorious. The Titans who fought against the Olympians were punished. Most were imprisoned in Tartarus, but Atlas was given the punishment of standing on the edge of Gaea (where the Atlas mountains are today) to hold up Ouranos and prevent him from embracing Gaea.

The Creation of Humanity and the Golden Age After the war, Zeus tasks Prometheus and Epimetheus with creating the Hellenes. The two Titans create them from mud and clay, then Athena breathes life into them. At first Humans are immortal, and it is said that during this Golden Age they lived in the presence of the Gods, without fear of death and having all that they needed.

End of the Golden Age The Hellenes had neither technology nor industry. Prometheus, who loved his creations more than the Olympians, defied Zeus to give them fire and teach them how to use it to smith and make crafts. Zeus was enraged and punished both Prometheus and the Hellenes. He stripped away their immortality, withdrew to Mt. Olympus and isolated the Gods from the Hellenes.

Pandora Zeus’ final punishment was to task Hephaestus with the crafting of a Hellene of unrivalled beauty. He then had Hermes instil within this Hellene the ability to lie and deceive (previously unheard of traits). Finally he gave Pandora a jar that she was forbidden to open.

Pandora Zeus sent Pandora to Epimetheus, who was still living amongst the Hellenes. Promethus had warned him not to accept gifts from Zeus, but he was so bedazzled by Pandora’s beauty that he let her stay. Eventually Pandora’s deceitful nature led her to open the jar, and out flew all of the world’s ills (sorrow, pain, sickness, misfortune).

Pandora One good thing came from Pandora’s Jar (later Box): Hope. Thus the natural state of mortality was born, and the Golden Age was well and truly over.