They live on Olympus, the sacred mount
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The 10 main Greek gods of Olympus, their symbols and their attributes
According to Greek mythology, after the chaos the Titans reigned, until one of them, Chronos, ate his children. Only one survived, Zeus, who after a fight to the death defeated Cronus and gave rise to the age of the gods. These are the most important of the pantheon.
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1. Zeus, the father of the Greek gods
Zeus was the youngest of the descendants of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. When Kronos, fearful of losing his hegemony, ate his children, Zeus defeated him and freed his brothers: Poseidon became god of the seas, and Hades of the underworld.
Zeus became the father of all the gods, regardless of their direct kinship. He presides over the Olympian pantheon, embodies the archetypal deity, and oversees the universe. Among his attributes are the scepter and crown as symbols of power, and the ray with which he imposes order and justice. It is known as a “cloud collector”.
Zeus is also known as a great seducer who had adventures and romances with other goddesses, unions from which other gods are born, and even with mortal women, from whom some heroes are born. Among his great offspring are Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Perseus, Persephone, Dionysus and Heracles.
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2. Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea
He was a god much feared by the Greeks, town of sailors and navigators, because it was said that with a single movement of his trident he unleashed storms and earthquakes. Poseidon is the son of Cronus and Rhea, and therefore the brother of Zeus. After the elements of the titans were distributed, Poseidon was given dominion over the seas.
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Although in a benign state Poseidon was the island creator and facilitator of the calm sea, both in the texts and in popular beliefs, he had a terrifying character and was a feared god. When he was ignored or in a rage, he plunged his trident into the ground to unleash chaos on the seas and on the land.
He competed with Athena to be the chief god of Athens, but succumbed to the goddess of wisdom. He also had many relationships and had a large offspring.
3. Hades, the Greek god of the underworld
Brother of Zeus and Poseidon, after the defeat of the Titans he received power over the Greek underworld, which is the abode of the dead although it has a somewhat different character than the Christian hell. For the Greeks, the underworld does not have a negative aspect.
According to Greek mythology, the dead crossed the river Acheron aboard Charon’s boat. On the other shore was the underworld, guarded by Cerberus, the three-headed dog, and ruled by Hades. This is the only god that does not live on Olympus, and contrary to what one might think, he does not have a bad character.
Hades has a special role in the tragic story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Hades never let the dead leave his realm, but Orpheus pleaded for mercy on the death of his beloved Eurydice and, charmed by her musical gifts, for the first time showed mercy. But Orpheus broke his promise not to look back, and Eurydice returned to the underworld.
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4. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty
In ancient Greece, love did not have the romantic meaning of today, but was linked to eroticism. Her goddess was Aphrodite, who was married to Hephaestus (god of fire and the forge) but she had many other lovers. She is the embodiment of beauty.
Her name means “foam-born”, which gives even more power to that idyllic image of beauty. According to Greek mythology, after Cronus cut off the genitals of Uranus (Heaven) and threw them into the sea, around the member a white foam arose from which a beautiful maiden was born who could make men fall in love just by looking at them.
She is depicted as a desirable, vain, moody and touchy goddess. In some texts, although she is married to Hephaestus, prefers the momentum of Ares, with whom he had an affair and fathered Eros. She also had an afer with Adonis.
5. Hephaestus, the Greek god of fire
The myth says that Hephaestus was born so ugly and so weak that his mother, Hera, threw him from Olympus into the ocean and left him lame. He was rescued by the nymphs and became such a good craftsman that his father Zeus gave him the mastery of fire and the forge. In the forge of Hephaestus, the thunderbolt of Zeus, the armor of Achilles and the sandals of Hermes, among others, were built.
Despite his sickly and disheveled appearance, Hephaestus is the husband of Aphrodite, the goddess of great beauty that no one could possess.
Zeus had rewarded Hephaestus with such a privilege after this will help him give birth to the goddess Athena. Aphrodite, however, was having a passionate affair with Ares, and when Hephaestus found out, he bound them to the bed with a gold chain and called all Olympians to watch and taunt the lovers.
6. Apollo, the Greek god of light, music and medicine
Possessor of multiple attributes and virtues, Apollo is considered the most influential god after Zeus: his cult was widespread and a large number of temples were dedicated to him. He was identified with the light of truth that illuminated the arts and science.
More specifically, Apollo is considered the Greek god of the arts, the bow and arrow, but also of medicine and healing. Represents beauty, perfection and harmony, balance and reason, and the transition from childhood to maturity. He was also revered as the protector of shepherds, sailors, and archers.
As head of the inspiring muses, he is the provider of artistic creation, and is also granted the patronage of the oracle of Delphi. In the texts he appears as a seductive god, possessor of many lovers, and also feared for his irascible character.
7. Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt
According to Greek mythology Hera was furious at Zeus’s infidelity with Leto and forbade her to give birth to her daughter Artemis, but the island of Delos emerged from the depths of the sea so that she could be born. She was the twin sister of Apollo..
At the age of three, Artemis asked her father for nine wishes, among which were to always remain a virgin and to have a bow with arrows to hunt. She is the Greek goddess of the hunt and the protector of animals, but also has the gift of favoring birthsand represents chastity and the healing of women’s diseases.
Artemis’s fury when molested by men is terrible. When Actaeon saw her naked while she was bathing, she turns him into a deer and orders her hounds to devour him. It also causes the death of Adonis.
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8. Ares, the Greek god of war
Son of Zeus and Hera, Ares personifies courage, tireless strength, masculine vitality, is protector of Olympus and armies, leader of the rebels and leader of the just men. He is the Greek god of war and helper of the weak. As a war god he is the purveyor of brutality, violence and horrors in battle.
Represented as a young and vigorous man, he is credited with a passionate love affair with Aphrodite, the wife of Hephaestus, and after being discovered he fled to the north of Hellas, along with the barbarians. It is linked to infidelity and bloodshed provoked by amorous passions and jealousy.
It is a carrier of plagues and epidemics, and his bloodthirsty and treacherous character it made him very unpopular with the other gods. Also, in the Trojan War he fought in both.
9. Hermes, the protector of travelers
From the union of Zeus with Maya, Pleiad daughter of Atlas, Hermes was born, who in his first hours of life fled from his cradle taking with him the oxen of Apollo. Since then he is known as an elusive god, traveler and cunning thief.
To flee with the oxen Hermes put on the sandals forged by Hephaestus, but when Apollo found out he brought the boy before Zeus and demanded his cattle back. Hermes invented the lyre by tightening strings on the shell of a tortoise, and dazzled his father’s ears into letting him keep the animals.
Hermes, creator of various musical objects, befriended Apollo, god of music. But above all, it is known as the messenger of the godsprotector of travellers, lord of borders and ruler of commerce.
10. Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom
The birth of Athena is very particularbecause according to Greek mythology, he first swallowed his mother, Metis, and after nesting on the forehead of his father, Zeus, he was able to see the light thanks to the collaboration of Hephaestus, who received Aphrodite as a prize in marriage.
Athena is one of the few goddesses who always remained a virgin, and having been born armed, she demonstrated a great capacity for military strategy. In fact, he had a duel with Ares for the dominance of war, and although in some places Ares continued to be worshiped as the god of war, according to the texts he was never able to defeat Athena.
In addition to war, Athena is the goddess of wisdom, civilization, strategy in combat, science, justice, and skill. His symbol is the owl.
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Family tree of the Greek gods
According to Greek mythology, chaos first reigned, after which Uranus (Heaven) and Gaia (Earth) emerged together, which remained together in constant reproduction. From them were born the titans, who could not get out of Gaia’s womb, until she facilitated the exit of Cronos, the titan who castrated her father, Uranus, separating heaven from earth.
Cronos ate his children to prevent anyone from arguing with him for hegemony, but Zeus defeated him and claimed for himself, and his brothers Poseidon and Hades, the domains of the sky, the sea and the underworld. This is the beginning of the genealogy of the gods.
One of Cronus and Rhea’s daughters was Hera, who married her brother Zeus to give birth to Ares, Hebe, and Hephaestus. With Leto she had Apollo and Artemis, with Mnemosyme she gave life to the muses, with Io Epapho, and with Metis she had Athena. From the union of Zeus with Maya, Hermes was born.who together with Aphrodite had Hermaphroditus and together with Dryope had Pan.
Aphrodite, in turn, joined Ares to father Eros, Harmonia, Deimos, Phobos, Himero, and Anteros. The genealogy of the gods extends into many more branches.
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