Greek Gods?

Question

I need all the information I can get on 12 major Greek gods for a history report!

Answer 1

The 12 Gods and Goddesses were:
Zeus
King of the Gods, God of Mankind
Symbol: thunderbolt and eagle


As the ruler of the Olympian gods, Zeus wielded enormous power and almost absolute authority. He appears in Homer's Iliad in the role of imperious leader, a grandiose father figure to a pantheon of bickering deities. And although he is often portrayed as an omniscient, omnipotent being, even the mighty Zeus could be tricked (or, to put it more gently, distracted). This is indeed the case in the Iliad, in that wonderful scene where he is seduced by his wife Hera and consequently led to ignore the events taking place on the battlefield of Troy. There are certainly other instances where Zeus is deceived (the incident with Prometheus being but one more good example). These examples only demonstrate that although he was the god who ruled Olympus and its divine denizens, he was subject to the laws of Fate and was not in fact all-powerful. And just as the other deities had their own personal foibles, Zeus too had a weakness - he was passionately fond of female charms. Many stories about Zeus recount his insatiable lust and notorious wandering eye, an eye that fell upon goddess and mortal woman alike.

Some of the paramours of Zeus are:

Alcmene - mother of Herakles (Hercules)

Danae - mother of Perseus

Europa - mother of Sarpedon

Leda - mother of Helen

Leto - mother of Apollo & Artemis

Maia - mother of Hermes

Metis - mother of Athena (in some legends)

Mnemosyne - mother of the Muses

Semele - mother of Dionysos



Hera
Queen of the Gods, Goddess of Marriage
Symbol: sceptre


Hera is a prominent Greek goddess. She appears frequently in both literature and art, where she is usually depicted as being both beautiful and quite adept at making use of her considerable wiles. These two aspects - her beauty and guile - may be in part attributed to her role on Olympus, for as the wife (and sister) of Zeus, she is the Queen of the Greek gods. As such, she is the patron of marriage for mortals and immortals alike. It is therefore no surprise that Hera plays a part in the oldest of the Greek epics: the Iliad and the Odyssey of Homer, as well as Hesiod's Theogony. The goddess is deserving of much attention, so let us begin by looking at her role as the queen of olympus.

Queen of Olympus

Hesiod mentions Hera in his introduction to the Theogony (the introduction is a dedication to the gods and the Muses). He describes the goddess as "queenly Hera, the Lady of Argos who walks in golden sandals" and connects her with her husband Zeus. This passage emphasizes Hera's importance within the Greek pantheon by stressing her relationship with the ruler of the gods. Hesiod is in effect justifying the legitimacy of Hera's claim as the queen of the heavens by stating:

Zeus made Hera his buxom bride,
and she lay in love with the king
of gods and men and bore Hebe
and Ares and Eileithyia.
In this way, Hera's status as wife and mother also serves as the divine model for the role of women in human marriage. However, the conjugal bliss between the king and queen of Olympus was sometimes, well, not so blissful. For more information about difficulties in the marriage of Hera and her husband, see Zeus.



Ares
God of War
Symbol: spear


My favourite deity and personal Lord. To read about his role in mythology, see the section entitled 'Ares in Mythology'.



Aphrodite
Goddess of Love
Symbol: sceptre


As the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite holds great power over both mortals and immortals. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that she is featured in numerous myths, poems, and plays; likewise, there are many representations of Aphrodite in Greek sculpture and vase painting. While several legends of Aphrodite emphasize themes of love and desire, some of most compelling myths deal with the consequences that the goddess herself suffers as a result of being the victim of love. The story of Aphrodite and her interlude with the human Adonis makes for an interesting study of the double edged sword that passion can be. In this myth, the vulnerability of the goddess is poignant. This vulnerability points to the fact that in Greek mythology even the gods could suffer, and were certainly not immune to the pains and passions that we, as humans, experience.

Birth of Aphrodite

There are a couple of versions of the birth of Aphrodite, which, although they differ, are not necessarily contradictory. According to Homer, the goddess is simply the daughter of Zeus and Dione (a name that is merely the feminine form of Zeus in Greek). However, the poet Hesiod provides a much more elaborate explanation for her birth: he claims that the name Aphrodite is derived from "aphros" or foam, and thus the goddess was born of this substance. The tale states that the Titan Kronos castrated his father Ouranos, and then cast the severed genitals into the sea. From the foam that gathered around the member, Aphrodite emerged, fully formed. Hesiod's description, however gruesome it may seem, does have the advantage of attaching a certain meaning to the birth of the goddess, which I leave to the reader to ascertain. At any rate, this version also lends a poetic quality to Aphrodite's creation, in that as Anadyomene ("she who emerges"), she was depicted by countless artists.



Hades
God of the Underworld
Symbol: none (although he is reputed to have an invisible helmet


Hades is my second favourite god and was the ruler of the Greek Underworld (which itself is sometimes confusingly referred to as "Hades" also). In mythology, he was the brother of Zeus and Poseidon, and therefore from the first generation of Olympian gods. And the manner in which Hades became the lord of the shadowy Underworld is worth mentioning.

According to the myth, the three sons of Kronos and Rhea - Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades - each drew lots to determine which part of the world they would rule. Zeus and Poseidon received the sky and the seas respectively, and Hades was therefore left with the underworld.

Hades ruled the realm of the dead alone. That is, until he became enamored of the beautiful goddess Persephone. The legend of how Persephone became the bride of Hades and the Queen of the underworld is told in the Hymn to Demeter. Although the relationship between Hades and Persephone appears to have begun badly - Hades abducted his future bride and whisked her away in a chariot - their union was peaceful (unlike the marriage of his brother Zeus...)

One day, Persephone was playing with her nymph friends when Hades drove past. He fell in love with the beautiful goddesses and longed to take her to brighten up his dismal kingdom. He abducted her and drove away in her chariot, plunging into the Underworld. Persephone had dropped her girdle, which marked the place where she had been carried away.

Her mother Dememter, upon learning of her daughter's abduction, began to search the earth for her. She sorrowed so much that she neglected her duties and the crops began to die. The people of Earth cried to Zeus who sent Hermes to the Underworld. Hermes demanded that Persephone be released - but only if she eaten nothing. Persephone began to weep for she had just eaten six pomegranete seeds. Zeus decreed that she could be with her mother for six months - but then she had to return to Hades for another six months.

Persephone accepted and for six months she and mother were happy and the Earth bloomed. For the six months she spent with hades, Dememter sorrowed and the Earth would not bloom - the Greek explantion for the seasons. Persephone herself grew to love Hades and by all accounts there's was a happy union.

Hades and the Underworld

Since Hades was the ruler of the Underworld, it makes sense to note one of the key features of this region - its myriad rivers. These rivers each had names and symbolic meanings:
Acheron - river of sadness
Cocytus - river of lamentation
Lethe - river of forgetfulness
Phlegethon - river of fire
Styx - river of hate



Poseidon
God of the Sea
Symbol: trident


Poseidon, as the god of the seas, held great power and significance for the ancient Greeks. He was a very popular god, and is consequently the subject of many myths. He appears in both the works of Homer and of Hesiod, as the brother of Zeus, and therefore from the first generation of olympians. And just as Zeus ruled the sky and wielded the deadly thunderbolt, Poseidon controlled, from his sea-domain, the devastating force of the earthquake. This ability to summon earthquakes earned Poseidon the epithet of "Earth Shaker", a name that is fairly common in poetry.



Artemis
Goddess of the Hunt
Synmbol: bow and deer


Artemis is my favourite Goddess and she played an intriguing role in Greek mythology and religion. She was known as the "Mistress of Animals" and the protectress of children, but she was also a divine huntress and the goddess who could bring death with her arrows. As the daughter of the ruler of the Greek gods (Zeus), she enjoyed the status and privileges of an olympian. Artemis was therefore free to pursue her interests, and was often found frolicking in the forests, accompanied by a band of nymphs.

Myths of Artemis

Myths show that the goddess was aloof and free-spirited, not constrained by husband or hearth. This aspect is reflected in the fact that she remained eternally a virgin. Indeed, those who in some way compromised her strict requirements for chastity were severely punished by the maiden goddess. There are several tales that describe the swift and terrible retribution of Artemis, and one of the most revealing involves the youth Actaeon...

The legend of Actaeon is one of the many tales in Greek mythology that cautions mortals about the power of the gods - and especially the goddesses.
According to one version of the story, Actaeon was a young man fond of the hunt and of spending his time haunting the forests, searching for game. One day, while on a hunting expedition, he happened to catch a glimpse of the chaste virgin goddess Artemis.

Artemis was bathing (in the nude, of course) and cavorting with her female companions in a lake. No doubt, Actaeon was taken aback by the beauty of the goddess. The youth then made some sound that gave away his illicit presence. Artemis, startled, noticed Actaeon's presence, and immediately her wrath at being seen in such a state by a mortal man caused her to react with fury. The goddess responded to the intrusion by transforming the unfortunate Actaeon into a stag.

The young man was accompanied by his hunting dogs. Normally, dogs are the perfect companions for hunters. But in this case, their presence was deadly. The animals simply did not recognize Actaeon in his new stag form. So Actaeon's hounds, blinded with lust for this tempting prey, pounced upon their master and tore him apart, thus ending the life of the unlucky man. And Artemis had her revenge...



Demeter
Goddess of the Harvest
Symbol:torch


As the goddess of grain and fertility, Demeter played an important - indeed essential - role in ancient Greek society. The Greeks, like most ancient cultures, relied upon agriculture for their sustenance. As the patron deity of agriculture, Demeter was accordingly worshipped with festivals (such as the Thesmophoria) and other honors. Likewise, her association with grain also translated into a close relationship with human fertility, as this was another crucial part in our continuing survival. There are, consequently, many myths dealing with Demeter in her capacity as a fertility goddess.



Apollo
God of Light and Prophecy
Symbol: bow


Apollo is in many respects the paradigm of a Greek god. He represents order, harmony, and civilization in a way that most other Olympian deities cannot quite equal. One only has to compare him with Dionysos to understand how Apollo is depicted as a bright, rational counterpart to the chaotic and frenzied god of wine and women. Indeed, Apollo is most often associated with the cultivated arts of music and medicine, and his role as the leader of the Muses establishes him as a patron of intellectual pursuits. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that in art, images of Apollo represented the height of male attractiveness - indeed, for years, Archaic statues of youths were commonly referred to as "Apollo", later to be replaced the more accurate term "kouros" (young man). However, as with most Greek deities, Apollo has characteristics that are myriad and diverse, so we should proceed to an exploration of this important god.

Birth of Apollo

The myth of Apollo's birth includes another instance of the wrath of Hera. Again, the wife of the philandering Zeus discovered that her husband had impregnated yet another goddess, this time Leto. In her anger, Hera would not allow Leto to bear her children (she was pregnant with the twin gods Apollo and Artemis), and the land itself was afraid to provide a shelter for Leto because of the fear of Hera's notorious retribution. Finally, Leto found an island that was willing to allow her to give birth, and this island was named Delos ("brilliant") in honor of the divine site. Apollo was then cared for by Themis, who fed him nectar and ambrosia for a few days, after which time he was an adult capable of assuming the full responsibilities of a god. And thus he began his journey...



Athena
Goddess of War and Wisdom
Symbol: aegis (a shield with the head of medusa) and owls


I can't say I'm keen on Little Miss Daddy Loves Me and I'm So Great, but the Greeks loved her! Much has been written about the goddess Athena. As the patron deity of the city of Athens, she played an enormous role in the lives of not only the residents of that illustrious "polis" (Greek for city), but in many respects all of the Greek speaking world. Our oldest sources of Greek literature - the works of Homer and Hesiod - discuss Athena. The goddess appears in several significant passages of Homer's Iliad, and she is one of the most influential deities in the Odyssey in her role as Odysseus's patron and ally. Therefore, Athena's attributes were codified early in the epics and poetry of Greece: she was the divine sponsor of warriors and heroes, she introduced several of the arts and crafts necessary for civilization, and she represented wisdom. Obviously, the goddess played a prominent role in Greek mythology.

Birth of Athena

The poet Hesiod states that Athena emerged from the head of Zeus; indeed, she sprang out fully grown and armed for battle. Furthermore, the legend of her birth reveals another odd aspect. According to the story, Zeus became enamored of the Titan Metis (the name means "thought"). Together, they conceived a child, but Zeus, fearing that his offspring would be a powerful male god who would eventually overthrow him, swallowed the pregnant Metis. In time, it was Zeus himself who gave birth to a daughter, with the assistance of Hephaistos, who played the part of a midwife by striking Zeus's head with an axe and thereby releasing Athena.

This instance of Zeus giving birth is not unique: the god also gave birth to Dionysos. Indeed, this is significant, as the birth of Athena from the head of her father emphasizes a couple of important features about the goddess. The idea that she was born from a male underscores her relationship with men, both divine and human. In the human realm, Athena consistently becomes a protector of heroes; while in the divine she completely avoids sexual liaisons with gods.



Hermes
Messenger of the Gods
Symbol: caduceus (a staff with two snakes entwined) and winged boots


Hermes was the son of Zeus and Maia. He presided over commerce, wrestling, and other gymnastic exercises, even over thieving, and everything, in short, which required skill and dexterity. He was the messenger of Zeus, and wore a winged cap and winged shoes. He bore in his hand a rod entwined with two serpents, called the caduceus.
Hermes is said to have invented the lyre. He found, one day, a tortoise, of which he took the shell, made holes in the opposite edges of it, and drew cords of linen through them, and the instrument was complete. The cords were nine, in honor of the nine Muses. Hermes gave the lyre to Apollo, and received from him in exchange the caduceus.



Hephaestus
God of Fire and the Forge
Symbol: axes


Hephaestus, the celestial artist, was the son of Hera. He was born lame, and his mother was so displeased at the sight of him that she flung him out of olympus. Other accounts say that Zeus kicked him out for taking part with his mother in a quarrel which occurred between them. Hephaestus's lameness, according to this account, was the consequence of his fall. He was a whole day falling, and at last alighted in the island of Lemnos, which was thenceforth sacred to him. Hephaestus was married to Aphrodite, and while he was madly in love with her, the fickle Goddess embarked on many affairs with the aid of a magic girdle (made by her husband) with rendered her irrestiable.



Dionysus
God of the Vine
Symbol: grape vine and ivy


Countless books and articles have been written about this most elusive Greek god. Many of these works come to the same conclusion - Dionysos is an atypical Greek deity. While the Olympian gods are bright beings of sunlight, Dionysos is a creature of mystery, his very essence an enigma. His realm is shadowy, and his followers flirt with madness, drunkenness, and death. He is the patron deity of the maenads (or bacchantes), those wild women who roamed the lofty peaks shouting "evoi, evoi" and were said to tear living animals apart in their trance of divine possession. He is the god who brings wine, but also an intoxication that merges the drinker with the deity. And, perhaps most significantly, his connection with a certain type of cult activity, known as a "mystery", separates him from his fellow olympians (with the exception of the goddess Demeter, who inspired her own mystery cult).
It is through these mystery cults, the secrets of which were so well guarded that we know but a few essential details, that we come into contact with a unique characteristic of Dionysos; for according to the legends of one the cults, the god himself dies. That a god should die seems an oxymoron - by definition, a deity is immortal. And yet some of his followers believed that he was slain, and then reborn. Something which is unthinkable in the case of other Greek deities. So the path to understanding Dionysos is divergent from the one that leads to knowledge of the rest of the olympian gods. It is a road that includes many unexpected tangents and seemingly incomprehensible signs, but which, if travelled with an open mind, leads to a most fulfilling destination.

The god Dionysos is in some respects a relative latecomer to the Greek pantheon, at least as far as Olympus is concerned. For he does not make a real showing in the oldest works of Greek literature - the Iliad of Homer contains a brief and somewhat uncomplimentary glimpse of Dionysos, while he is almost completely ignored in the Odyssey. Indeed, this absence has caused many contemporary scholars to claim that Dionysos was not originally a Greek deity at all, but a foreign god who was at some point grafted onto the Olympian family tree. Speculation about this hypothesis aside, Dionysos did manage to become one of the gods of lofty olympus, and was an important deity in his own right. He became a god when Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth, gave her seat on the Council of Twelve.

Legends of Dionysos

Dionysos plays an active role in many works of poetry, tragedy and comedy (he was the patron god of the theatre, after all), and of course, has his share of mythological stories. And one of the most intriguing is the story of Dionysos at Sea...

One of numerous Homeric hymns tells the tale of the abduction of Dionysos by pirates. The pirates, seeing how gloriously (indeed, divinely...) handsome this young man was, impetuously seized him and dragged him to their black ship. In their greed-ridden minds, the brigands thought that the god was a human prince who could be held for ransom, so they attempted to bind him firmly and carry him away. To their utter surprise, the bonds and shackles could not hold the young man, and would slip off, leaving the darkly handsome youth with a mysterious smile.

Only one of the pirates - the helmsman - recognized the true nature of the captive, and shouted with alarm to his fellows: "We have not a man, but a god in our midst!" But the others refused to heed him, and continued with their mad plan of capturing the son of Zeus. Setting sail, the group of thieves were astounded by a series of miraculous events: first, the ship was filled with wine, running like a river before their eyes; next, from the ship sprouted vines heavy with luscious grapes, and tendrils of the vine wrapped themselves around the sails like garlands. Upon seeing these wonders, the crew finally realized that they held no ordinary prisoner, but indeed a divine creature, and ordered the helmsman to return to shore. But Dionysos had still more in store for the disbelieving pirates, for suddenly he transformed himself into a fierce lion. The lion attacked the captain of the ship, and seeing this, the remaining crew sought to escape by jumping overboard. As they did this, they were changed into dolphins by the god. Only the helmsman, who had recognized the divinity of Dionysos, was spared, and the deity spoke to that man: "Courage! ... you are dear to my heart. I am loud-roaring Dionysos, born of the daughter of Kadmos, Semele, who mingled in love with Zeus."

For even more, please see links 2 and 3

Answer 2

Go to Barnes and Noble and pick up the greek mythilogy book from the kids section, that has a very clear understanding of all the Greek gods. I think I paid 7 bucks for it.

Answer 3

Giving birth to a new life is indeed a blessing which almost every woman would wish to have. How to get pregnant naturally https://tr.im/gZXc4
Enjoying the feeling of motherhood and raising a family would surely be a couple’s dream. Some get it naturally, while for some others things don’t seem to work as they desire. These reasons which stop a women from conceiving can be due to either physical reasons or truly physiological.

Answer 4

Don't forget to include Sucko, a lesser know Greek god who invented Windex!

Answer 5

12 major Greek gods? How do you scale the greek gods? seriously? Here is 12 random ones.
1. Aries/Ares = God of War 2. Aphrodite = Goddess of love
3. Zeus = King of the Gods 4. Athena = Queen of the Gods and Goddess of wisdom (evil) 5. Hades = God of the Dead (the devil) 6. Hephaestus = God of fire 7. Hera = Goddess of the Gods (evil as well) and Zeus second wife. 8. Poseidon = God of Water (oceans) 9. Chronos = God of Time and father of Zeus 10. Erebus = God of Darkness (evil) 11. Raiden = God of Lightning and lord of thunder. (child of Rhea) 12. Tartarus = God of Hell. (child of Hades.)

Answer 6

Good Luck!

Answer 7

Zues, Hera, Hades, Demeter, Poseidon, Aphrodite, and Athena are a few I came up with.

Answer 8

http://www.theoi.com/Pantheon.html

Good Luck

Answer 9

Use the link below and good luck http://www.desy.de/gna/interpedia/greek_myth/titan.html#Titans

Answer 10

johnslat, you have to know that your answers enable and encourage idiots to seek answers from others rather than to look them up on their own.

All of that information is on the internet and is in so many books and you should encourage them to look things up rather than to pander your wikepedia crap on them.

Answer 11

lets see 12 of them. zeus, ares, poseidon, hades, hera, demeter, apollo, artemis, athena...dude just go to wikipedia. its sooooo good......amazing!