God of the Underworld
Hades is brother to Zeus and
Poseidon. He is not Death
itself, but ruler of the dead. His
wife is Persephone, whom he
abducted from the real world.
Being faithful was not exactly
part of his marriage vows, as he
had affairs many times. His
companion in the Underworld is
his 3-headed dog, Cerberus.
Poseidon is the ruler
of the Sea. He is
second in power to
Zeus, his brother. His
official wife is
Amphitrite, but he had
others as well. He
rules the sea with his
three pronged trident,
which was given to
him by the Cyclopes,
his son.
Hestia is the goddess of fire and
hearth. She vowed to remain a
virgin, therefore, never marrying.
Both Apollo and her own brother
Poseidon tried to woo her into their
beds. She represents the home and is
revered by all the gods and
goddesses, never intervening in their
squabbles, always protecting those
who seek her out.
Demeter is the goddess of the
Harvest and corn. She showed the
mortals how to grow and harvest.
With her brother Zeus, Demeter had
Persephone who was stolen from her
by Hades, the god of the
Underworld. Demeter is one of the
few gods who suffered true grief.
She missed her daughter so much
that she took away all the harvests
which forced Zeus to intervene on
her behalf. Persephone was returned
to Demeter for half the year,
explaining the growing season, and
taken back to the Underworld for the
other half, the dead winter season.
Zeus is the supreme god and ruler of
all the gods and goddesses who
lived on Mount Olympus. He
became the master of the universe,
and as the god of rain, drought,
storms, good and bad weather, he
was worshipped. Zeus had many
wives, etc… but after many affairs
and children with different women,
he eventually settled down.
Hera was both Zeus’ sister and his wife.
Because he had so many affairs and
illegitimate children, she became very
mean and vengeful, wreaking havoc on
those Zeus coveted. Hera was the
goddess of marriage and protector of
married women. Hera was actually the
only married woman among the
Olympians. Eventually Hera made Zeus
so upset he hung her upside down from
the heavens, making her promise to
never again rebel against him.
Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, and
her twin brother Apollo were the
children of Zeus and Leto. Like
her brother, she has the power to
send plagues or sudden death
among mortals, and also to heal
those who please her. Artemis loves
to hunt and she is the lady of the
forest and all the wild things. She is
one of the three virgin goddesses
along with Athena and Hestia
Apollo is the twin of Artemis. He is the Archer-god, master of the
silver bow, Apollo the Far-Shooter, who can rain down death with
his deadly arrows. He is also the god of Light and Truth, the
Healer-god, who first taught men medicine and the art of healing.
One of Apollo's more important daily tasks was to drive the Sun
across the sky in his golden chariot. Sometimes he is called the
son-god and Helios is said to be one of his many names.
Although she was the goddess of
war, Athena preferred to settle
disputes with mediation. Perhaps
this is why she was also the
goddess of wisdom.But, when
she did have to fight, she
NEVER lost, not even to Ares.
Athena is Zeus’ daughter, his
favorite child. She is said to have
no mother, because she sprang
full grown and in full armor from
her fathers head.
Hephaestus was the God of
Fire. He was the son of Zeus
and Hera, although it is
sometimes said that Hera
conceived him by herself and
without any help from Zeus.
He was the only god who was
ugly, although he created
beauty.The beautiful
Aphrodite was his wife, and
he is the one who split open
Zeus’ head to birth Athena. At
the request of Zeus, and
against his wishes, he also
created the first woman,
Pandora, who eventually
unleashed a slew of evils upon
the world.
Aphrodite was the goddess of Beauty, Love, Fertility and Desire,
and was the daughter of Zeus and the Titaness Dione. Later
myths and poems say that the goddess of Love had risen from the
sea foam on a seashell. Hephaestus, was her husband, but the god
of War, Ares, and she had an ongoing notorious love affair that
scandalized all of Olympus. Aphrodite had three children by Ares
- Phobus, Deimus and Harmonia. She pretended these were her
husband's and presented them as such to Hephaestus.
Hermes is the son of Zeus and
Maia. He is the fastest of the gods,
and his position was as messenger
to Zeus and all the other gods.He
was also the shrewdest and most
cunning of all the gods, the master
thief. With Chione, daughter of
King Deadalion, Hermes had
Autolycus, who was the
grandfather of Odysseus.
Dionysus was the god of
the vine, and invented
wine. Dionysus was the son
of Zeus and the mortal
Semele. Zeus fell in love
with Semele and came to
her in the night, invisible.In
a jealous rage, Hera, Zeus’s
wife, made Dionysus crazy.
He was also one of the very
few that was able to bring a
dead person out of the
underworld.
Ares was the God of War born
in Thrace, the son of Zeus and
Hera, both of whom, Homer
says, detested him. Aphrodite
and other women were his
lovers, however, all others
hated him. Ares has tasted
defeat - Athena, a far more
skilled fighter than he, has
twice beaten him in battle.