Download Introduction to Mythology

Introduction to Mythology
In the beginning, there was Chaos. From Chaos was born Gaea, the earth. Gaea created
Uranus, the sky, and Pontus, the sea. Gaea and Uranus together had three groups of children.
The Cyclopes were three brothers each with only one eye. The Hecatonchires were three
brothers with 50 heads and one hundred hands. The Titans were 12 in number, and would take
over the world. As each of his children was born, Uranus imprisoned them in the underworld
because he was afraid they would overthrow him.
However, Gaea protected the youngest Titan, Cronus, and hid him from his father. She made a
special weapon for him, a sickle of magical metal, to fight Uranus. Cronus defeated his father
and rescued his brothers and sisters from Tartarus, where they were imprisoned.
Cronus, much like his father, was afraid that his children would overthrow him. When his wife,
Rhea, gave birth to her six children, Cronus swallowed them one by one. The first was Hestia,
goddess of the hearth (the fireplace in the ancient Greek home). Next was Demeter, goddess
of agriculture and the harvest. Hera was third, the goddess of marriage. The next child was a
son, Hades, god of the dead and lord of the underworld. Poseidon was next, god of the sea.
Finally, Zeus was born. As each child was eaten, Rhea gave Cronus a cup of wine, so by the time
Zeus was born, Cronus was very drunk. Rhea gave him a stone wrapped in clothing, and sent
Zeus to Crete to be raised by Gaea.
When Zeus grew up, Rhea gave Cronus a potion which made him throw up the children he had
eaten. The children joined their brother Zeus, and fought a great war against the Titans. They
released the Cyclopes and Hecatonchires to help them in the war. The gods won, and Titans
were imprisoned in Tartarus. Some of the Titans received special punishment. Atlas was
forced to hold up the sky for all eternity. Prometheus was chained to a mountainside, where
an eagle eats out his liver, which grows back every day. Zeus became the king of the gods, as
well as being the god of the sky and storms.
Each of the gods has their own story, usually involving their various lovers and the children that
are born.
Poseidon was married to Amphitrite, and had a son named Triton, who was half fish. Poseidon
was also the father of the hero Theseus.
Hades was married to Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. He kidnapped her and
took her to the underworld. She had been warned never to eat the food of the underworld,
but she became hungry, and ate part of a pomegranate. Because she ate half the fruit, she
would have to spend half the year in the underworld with Hades.
Demeter was not married to one of the gods, but she did have a daughter named Persephone
with Zeus. When Hades kidnapped Persephone, Demeter was mourning and wandered around
the world looking for her. She withheld the harvest, preventing any crops from growing until
her daughter was returned. When she finally found Persephone, she had already eaten the
food of the underworld, and had to stay half the year there. The time that Persephone is in the
underworld is the winter, when the weather is harsh and no crops can grow.
Hera was the wife of Zeus. She was the mother of Ares, and Hephaestus. In some stories, she
conceived Hephaestus by herself, without Zeus being involved. However, the child was born
misshapen and lame, and Hera was so disgusted that she threw him from Olympus. Hera was
also one of the goddesses who competed for the golden apple. When Paris chose Aphrodite
instead of her, she became an enemy of the Trojans.
Apollo was the son of Zeus and Leto, and he was the god of the sun and of music. When Hera
found out that Zeus had another lover, she cursed Leto, saying that no land seen by the sun
could receive her. Leto wandered the world, unable to go to any land to give birth. Finally she
found the island Delos, which floated, and sometimes was covered by the waves of the sea. For
this reason, she was able to give birth there. Apollo, her son, loved a nymph named Daphne,
but she did not live him. When Apollo came to see her, she ran, and Apollo chased her. She
prayed to her father, who turned her into a laurel tree. This tree would always be sacred to
Apollo. Apollo also slew the monstrous dragon Python, and he set up his oracle there, which
foretold the future to mortals.
Artemis was Apollo’s twin sister. She was the goddess of the moon and of the hunt. Her most
famous story involves a hunter named Actaeon. After spending the day hunting, Artemis
stopped at a spring for a bath. Actaeon, who was also hunting, came to the spring and
accidentally saw her without her clothes. She was angry, and turned him into a stag (deer). His
hunting dogs attacked him and killed him.
Athena was the child of Zeus and Metis. There was a prophecy that Metis’s first child would be
as powerful as the father, and her second child would be greater than the father. Zeus did not
want a child who could overthrow him, so he ate Metis while she was pregnant with Athena.
Months later, Zeus had terrible head pains. Hephaestus took an ax and split his head open, and
Athena leaped out, wearing armor and carrying her weapons. The most famous story of
Athena involves a girl named Arachne. Arachne was a skilled weaver, and bragged that she was
better than Athena. The goddess challenged her to a contest, and when Arachne showed her
skill, Athena grew angry. She turned the girl into a spider so she could weave for all time.
Ares was the god of war, son of Zeus and Hera. He had no wife, but he did have a famous affair
with Aphrodite, who was married to Hephaestus. When Hephaestus found out, he set a trap.
He made chains so fine they could not be seen, and spread them above his bed. He told
Aphrodite he was leaving, and Ares came to see her. When they went to bed together, the
chains fell, trapping them there. Hephaestus came back and revealed their shame to the other
gods.
Aphrodite, in some stories, was the daughter of Zeus and Dione. She had a son named Eros,
who was the god of love. Aphrodite was jealous of a girl named Psyche, because many people
said the girl was even more beautiful than the goddess. She sent her son to make Psyche fall in
love with the ugliest man he could find, but Eros fell in love with her and married her.
Hermes was the son of Zeus and Maia. He was the god of mischief, thieves, and travelers. On
the day he was born, he stole cattle from his brother Apollo. He led them backwards so there
would be no footprints leaving the pasture, and he invented sandals so he would not leave
footprints of his own. Apollo found Hermes and was angry with his brother, but Hermes gave
him a lyre, a musical instrument (kind of like a harp) he had invented. Apollo was pleased, and
agreed to the trade.
Hephaestus was the son of Zeus and Hera, and most of his stories have been told in parts
above. He was married to Aphrodite, and caught her in an affair with Ares. He was the god of
fire and metal-working. He was responsible for forging Zeus’ lightning bolts, and was assisted in
this task by the Cyclopes.
Dionysus was the god of wine and revelry. He was the son of Zeus and the mortal woman
Semele. Hera was angry that Zeus was with another woman, and devised a trick to take
revenge. She convinced Semele to ask Zeus to grant her any one promise. Zeus agreed to give
her whatever she wanted, and she told him to show her his full godly power. Zeus was bound
to his word, and when he showed her his true power, she was burned to death. The child she
was carrying was a god, and he survived. Zeus took the unborn child and sewed it into his thigh
until he was ready to be born. Dionysus had a rivalry with his cousin Pentheus. Pentheus was
king of Thebes, and forbade people from worshiping the god. He was curious however about
the crazed festivals and rituals that the followers of Dionysus held. The god tricked Pentheus
into spying on the rituals, and when the crazed worshipers saw him, they tore him apart with
their bare hands.