Of gods and myths

COVER STORY

Storytelling is an integral part of every culture and civilization that has seen the rays of the sun. In the Indian sub-continent of yore, it used to be an old, shady tree, probably the bunyan, under the shade of which the village children would gather. An ancient crone would then regale them with stories passed on from one generation to another. The children would listen in rapt attention, travelling with the narrator to the land of jinnat and parris, witches, wizards and monsters. Legends of gods and goddesses, tales of princes and princesses abound in literary works of all countries, but it is Greece where the epic stories of gods and goddesses, monsters and heroes were taken to a level that cannot be matched!

Greece - the cradle of western civilization, the birthplace of democracy, Olympics and chaos; the modern day Greece is just a shadow of its former glorious past. But the world owes a great deal to Greece culturally, and continues to draw from its rich heritage. Attaining excellence is still described as winning laurels - a tradition of ancient Greece where heroes were decorated not with medals but were crowned with laurel leaves.

The stories of the Greek gods, goddesses, heroes, monsters, etc. are the best known myths. They continue to influence literature of all countries. According to some traditions, the art of storytelling and poetry gave birth to the tales of gods and goddesses and their supernatural powers. The earliest records suggest that these stories originated around 7 BC. Like the mythical kingdoms of Game of Thrones, these stories enthralled people everywhere. Let’s take a look at some of the intriguing features of the Greek mythology.

Chaos - the beginning

In Greek mythology, Chaos, or the void, was the first thing which existed. Out of Chaos probably came Gaia, Tartarus, and Eros. Chaos also gave birth to Erebus (Darkness) and Nyx (Night).

The birth of Titans

The earliest deities were born when Gaea (Gaia) (the earth) and Uranus (the heaven) came together. They gave birth to the twelve Titans, the forbearers of the Olympian gods. The Titans were powerful gods and ruled the earth before the arrival of the Olympians. Gaea also gave birth to many other mythical being and monsters like Cyclopes (the one-eyed monster), Hecatoncheires (the one with hundred hands of great strength and fifty heads), and many other creatures. She later turned against Uranus when he hid his gigantic youngest children of Gaea, Hecatonchires and Cyclopes in the Tartarus.

Wars between gods

Cronus, the youngest Titan, dethroned Uranus and started to rule the earth. His reign is known as the mythical ‘Golden Age’. He married another Titan, Rhea. Uranus and Gaea had already predicted that Cronus would be dethroned by one of his own children. In his bid to avoid being overthrown by his own child, Cronus started to swallow all his children.

He and Rhea gave birth to Demeter, Hestia, Hera, Hades and Poseidon, but to prevent the prediction of his parents from coming true, he swallowed them all as soon as they were born. When the sixth child, Zeus, was born Rhea sought Gaia advice and gave birth to him in secret in Crete, and handed Cronus a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes, which he promptly swallowed, thinking that it was his son.

Rhea handed Zeus over to the nymph, Adamanthea to bring him up. Another version is that Zeus was brought up by his grandmother, Gaea. After growing into a youth, Zeus went to his father and made him vomit all his siblings. Zeus then waged a war against his father with his disgorged brothers and sisters as allies: Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon. Together all of them, the Titans and other creatures fought with Cronus to win the world. They succeeded and punished all their rivals. Cronus was banished to the Tartarus. Atlas, who was the chief of Cronus’ army, was given the punishment of balancing the whole world on his shoulder.

Following their final victory, the three brothers divided the world amongst themselves: Zeus was given domain over the sky and the air, and was recognized as overlord. Poseidon was given the sea and all the waters, whereas Hades was given the Underworld, the realm of the dead. Each of the other gods was allotted powers according to the nature and proclivities of each. The earth was left common to all to do as they pleased, even to run counter to one another, unless the brothers (Zeus, Poseidon and Hades) were called to intervene.

Zeus

Zeus has many temples and festivals in his honour, the most famous of his sanctuaries being Olympia, the magnificent “Temple of Zeus”, which held the gold and ivory statue of the enthroned Zeus, sculpted by Phidias and hailed as one of the “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”. Also, the Olympic Games were held in his honour. The Nemean Games, which were held every two years, were also initiated to honor Zeus. There were numerous festivals throughout Greece: in Athens they celebrated the marriage of Zeus and Hera with the Theogamia (or Gamelia). The celebrations were many! In all, Zeus had more than 150 epithets.

In art, Zeus is bearded, middle aged figure. He looks very regal and imposing. Artists always tried to reproduce the power of Zeus in their work, usually by giving him a pose as he is about to throw his bolt of lightning. There are many statues of Zeus, but without doubt the Artemisium Zeus is the most magnificent. It was previously thought to be Poseidon, and can be seen in the Athens National Archaeological Museum.

Poseidon

God of the sea, protector of all waters, Poseidon is a god of many names. He is most famous as the god of the sea, but is also the god of earthquakes and the god of horses. The symbols associated with Poseidon include: dolphins, tridents, and three-pronged fish spears.

Poseidon was relied upon by sailors for a safe voyage on the sea. Men used to drown horses as sacrifice to him. He lives on the ocean floor in a palace made of coral and gems, and drives a chariot pulled by horses. However, Poseidon is a very moody divinity, and his temperament can sometimes result in violence. When he is in a good mood, Poseidon creates new lands in the water and a calm sea. In contrast, when he is in a bad mood, Poseidon strikes the ground with a trident and causes unruly springs and earthquakes, shipwrecks, and drownings.

Poseidon often uses his powers of earthquakes, water, and horses to inflict fear and punishment on people as revenge. Though he can be difficult and asserts his powers over the gods and mortals, Poseidon is, at times, cooperative and it was he who helped the Greeks during the Trojan War.

Hades

Hades was given the Underworld and became the lord of the dead and ruler of the nether world, which is referred to as the domain of Hades or, by transference, as Hades alone.

Hades sits on a throne made of ebony, and carries a scepter. He also has a helmet, given to him by the Cyclopes, which can make him invisible. Hades rules the dead, assisted by various (demonic) helpers, such as Thanatos and Hypnos, the ferryman Charon, and the hound Cerberus. Many heroes from Greek mythology have descended into the underworld, either to question the shades or trying to free them. Although Hades does not allow his subjects to leave his domain, on several occasions he has granted permission, such as when Orpheus requested the return of his beloved Eurydice.

Hades possesses the riches of the earth, and is thus referred to as ‘the Rich One’. Of all the gods, Hades is the one who is liked the least and even the gods themselves have an aversion of him. People avoided speaking his name lest they attracted his unwanted attention. With their faces averted they sacrificed black sheep, whose blood they let drip into pits, and when they prayed to him, they would bang their hands on the ground. The narcissus and the cypress are sacred to him.

Other names for Hades include Clymenus (‘notorious’), Eubuleus (‘well-guessing’) and Polydegmon.

Birth of humans

The titans, Prometheus and Epimetheus were given the task of creating man. Prometheus shaped man out of mud, and Athena (a goddess) breathed life into his clay figure. Prometheus had assigned Epimetheus the task of giving the creatures of the earth their various qualities, such as swiftness, cunning, strength, fur, and wings. 

Unfortunately, by the time he got to man Epimetheus had given all the good qualities out and there were none left for man. So the two brothers started to divide the gifts among themselves in order to give them to the earth’s inhabitants. Epimetheus asked his brother to give out the gifts first, and was granted his wish. He gave the gift of beauty to some animals, agility on other animals, strength in others, and agility and speed to some. However, he left the human race defenseless, with no natural weapons in this new kingdom. Prometheus, who liked the human race, upon realizing what had happened, promptly distributed his own gifts to mankind. He stole reason from Athena, and thus gave reason to man. He then stole fire from the gates of Hephaestus, and gave mankind this new gift, which would keep them warm. Prometheus then became the protector of the human race, and shared with it all the knowledge he had.

This new situation angered Zeus, for fire until now had been a gift only reserved for the Gods. Zeus did not want the human race to resemble the Gods. Zeus’s next step was to punish Prometheus. And a heavy punishment it was. Zeus chained Prometheus to a peak in the Caucasus which was believed to be at the end of the world. He had an eagle eat his liver every single day for thirty years. At the end of each day, Prometheus’ liver would grow back again, so he would have to suffer all over again. After thirty years, Heracles (Hercules) released Prometheus from his nightmare.

Angered by Prometheus, Zeus sent Pandora, the first woman on earth, to punish mankind. Though she had a gift of beauty but she also had a jar that she was forbidden to open (which contained Zeus’ punishment to mankind). Eventually, Pandora’s curiosity about the jar became too great. She opened the jar and out flew all manors of evils, sorrows, plagues, and misfortunes. However, the bottom of the jar held one good thing - hope.