After watching the movie Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief, I was fascinated by Greek mythology. I chose the word "fascinated" because I think "obsessed" would be too strong a word to describe my sudden craze about Greek Gods and their children. I sort of did a little research on them and in this post, I would like to share with you my findings!
To tell how the world began and stuff would be too long so I would just keep the story short, beginning from how the Olympian Gods were born. A long time ago, there was a Titan named Kronos. He was the one who rescued his brothers and sisters from their father. he then married
Rhea and had 6 children, namely, Hera
Goddess of fertility, agriculture, grain and harvest
Demeter
Goddess of the hearth and home
Hestia
Goddess of marriage, women, and childbirth
Poseidon
God of the Sea
Hades
God of the Underworld
Zeus
God of the Sky
Kronos was afraid that his children might one day strip him of his power so he swallowed all of his children one by one. Rhea, as the mother, would not allow that to happen and had to save at least the youngest son Zeus. She tricked Kronos into swallowing a rock and hid Zeus in Crete. When Zeus reached manhood, he rescued his sisters and brothers and waged war against his father. This war was known as Titanomachy. The Olympian Gods won the war and took over Mount Olympus while banishing the Titans to the underworld. Before the Olypian Gods could truly rule the world though, another war with the Giants took place. The war was known as Gigantomachy. The Giants provoked the Gods by throwing rocks and fire at them, moving mountains, changing the flow of rivers, drowning islands and trembling the ground. This was the battle that made Heracles famous.
Here's a full list of all the gods:
| Aphrodite | Goddess of love, lust, beauty, wife of Hephaestus. Ares is her lover. Eros is her son. Known as the most beautiful of the Greek goddesses. Her symbols are the scepter, myrtle, and dove. |
| Apollo | God of music, medicine, health, prophecies, poetry, and archery. Also said to be the god of light and truth. Is associated with the sun. Also referred to as the most handsome of the gods. He is Artemis's twin brother, and son of Zeus. His symbols are the bow, lyre, and laurel. |
| Ares | God of war, murder and bloodshed. Brother to Athena, and is the son of Zeus. Has an affair with Aphrodite. His symbols are vultures, dogs, boars, and a spear. |
| Artemis | Goddess of the hunt, wild things, and the moon. Protector of the young. She became associated with the moon. Apollo is her twin brother. Artemis is a virgin goddess. Her symbols are the bow, dogs, and deer. |
| Athena | Goddess of wisdom, warfare, strategy, handicrafts and reason. Sister of Ares, and is the daughter of Zeus. Sprung from Zeus's head in full body armor. She is the wisest of the gods. Her symbols are the aegis, owl, and olive tree. |
| Demeter | Goddess of fertility, agriculture, grain and harvest. Demeter is a daughter of Cronus and Rhea and sister of Zeus. Her symbols are the scepter, torch, and corn. |
| Dionysus | God of wine, parties/festivals, madness and merriment. He represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficial influences. His symbols are the grape vine, ivy, and thyrsus. |
| Hephaestus | God of fire and the forge (god of fire and smiths) with very weak legs. He was thrown off Mount Olympus as a baby by his mother and in some stories his father. He makes armor for the gods and other heroes like Achilles. Son of Hera and Zeus is his father in some accounts. Married to Aphrodite, but she does not love him because he is deformed and, as a result, is cheating on him with Ares. He had a daughter named Pandora. His symbols are an axe, a hammer and a flame. |
| Hera | Goddess of marriage, women, and childbirth. Zeus' wife and sister. Appears with peacock feathers often. Her symbols are the scepter, diadem, and peacock. |
| Hermes | God of flight, thieves, mischief, commerce, and travelers. Messenger of the gods. He showed the way for the dead souls to Hades's realm. He shows up in more myths than any other god or goddess. Likes to trick people and is very inventive. Hermes invented the lyre using a turtle shell and sinew. His symbols are the caduceus and winged boots. |
| Hestia | Goddess of the hearth and home, the focal point of every household. Daughter of Rhea and Cronus. Gave up her seat as one of the Twelve Olympians to tend to the sacred flame on Mount Olympus for Dionysus. Her symbol is the hearth. |
| Poseidon | God of the sea. He created horses from sea foam. God of earthquakes as well. Also called 'Earth Shaker' and 'Storm Bringer'. His symbols are horses, sea foam, dolphins, and a trident. |
| Zeus | The king of the gods, the ruler of Mount Olympus and the god of the sky and thunder. His symbols are the thunderbolt, eagle, bull, and oak. |
Looks like I won't have time to write about the Greek heroes (God's half human children) but next time I will do it in a separate post so watch out for it. Hope I have cultivated some interest for Greek myth in some of you. For further information, you might want to try http://www.greek-gods.info/. Oh and also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_gods.
Buh Bye for now!
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