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Question of Inquiry
What role did the Gods play in the life of the ancient Greeks? This information report will research
this question in order to provide information on the impact that Greek Gods had on ancient Greeks’
everyday life.
About Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece can be dated back to the Stone Age, but the Archaic period (when the Olympic
Games started) started around the 700s BC. This was the stage when more development of Ancient
Greece took place. Such development included art and democracy. Ancient Greece came about in
about 3000 BCE, when a group of people called the Minoans settled on an island named Crete,
which lives in the Aegean Sea. The Minoan civilisation lasted nearly 2000 years. From then, the
Ancient Greek period continued to flourish and went on to become an empire, conquering many
other countries, especially countries that are by the water, as shown in the map below. This
civilisation lasted until 30 BCE, when the Ancient Greek time period ended.
Ancient Greece: Geography
Ancient Greece was built on mountainous land and is almost completely surrounded by the
Mediterranean Sea. Although the mountains in Ancient Greece made internal travel difficult for the
citizens, they also proved a barrier to invaders. It has more than 1400 islands within it. Ancient
Greeks traded with other countries around the Mediterranean Sea.
When building, the most freely available building material was stone, so this was used for a lot of
structures, but they also owned high quality marble. Most marble came from Mt Penteli, which is
located on the western side of Athens, but there was also another ancient marble quarry on the
island of Thasos.
Some famous structures are The Temple of Hephaestus, which is constructed entirely of marble
from Mt Penteli. There is the Temple of Apollo Epicurus, which is built entirely from grey Arcadian
Limestone, with exception of the frieze which, like the Temple of Hephaestus, is made from marble.
And lastly, there is the most famous structure of all, the Parthenon. The Parthenon’s enormous
foundations were made of limestone and the columns were made of marble from Mt Penteli.
Ancient Greece: Gods
Ancient Greeks worshipped gods. Unlike the Christianity religion, which has one god, Ancient Greeks
had many gods and each god had a role to play. For example, Zeus ruled the other gods, Aphrodite
was the goddess of love and beauty, Ares was the god of war, Athena was the goddess of wisdom,
warfare and crafts and Poseidon was the god of the sea. Each god also had a symbol. For example,
Zeus’s symbol was the thunderbolt, Athena’s symbol was the owl and Poseidon’s symbol was the
trident. The Ancient Greeks believed that these Gods amongst many others lived on Mount
Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece.
Despite how it may seem, the Greek gods were not perfect. The gods could be violent, jealous,
adulterous, and could inflict suffering upon humans. A very good example of this is in the myth of
the golden apple. Aphrodite, the god of love, placed a golden apple on a table, where many
goddesses were seated. The fruit came with the legend, “For the fairest.” Instantly, all the goddesses
began to argue about who should be the rightful possessor of this prize.
The Ancient Greek people were very serious followers of their gods. Evidence of their devotion to
their gods is seen through the many buildings and temples made in honour of their gods. For
example the magnificent Parthenon was built for the goddess Athena. Also, they created the
Olympics in honour of the god Zeus. These are just two examples of how they admired their gods.
Another way that the Ancient Greeks celebrated their gods was through festivals. Every god and
goddess had a festival of their own, meaning that there were more than sixty festival days in the
year. At these festivals, sporting events would occur and there were competitions in music and
recitation of poetry. The festivals would continue at night too, with singing, dancing, torch races and
drama. Having so many special days dedicated to the gods shows just how important the gods were
to the Ancient Greeks.
Ancient Greece: Rituals and Offerings
Another way that the Ancient Greeks showed their affection for their Gods, was through rituals and
offerings. They would often give the Gods food, drinks and other things of value, usually in order to
get something in return, or to say thanks for a favour. Although, sometimes they would give
offerings just to mark a special event.
One example of how Ancient Greeks gave offerings and used rituals, is with farmers. As Ancient
Greece had long, hot and dry summers, farmers would often pray for good harvest and sometimes
rain. Ancient Greeks got most of their food from farming, so getting plentiful harvests was an
essential. This is why, in times of trouble, when it was dry and rain was scarce, farmers looked to the
gods for help. Fishermen also did something similar. After a fishing trip, fishermen would drop some
of the food that they had caught into the water, as an offering for the god Poseidon, the god of the
sea. They would do this, ensuring that they would be given calm seas.
Ancient Greeks also made smaller offerings on a daily basis. Before every meal, they would spill a
little bit of wine as an offering to the gods. Throughout the day, it was common for Ancient Greeks
to pray and give small offerings, such as wine and fruit, to please the gods and ensure themselves
good health and fortune.
Another common ritual took place in Ancient Greece when boys were growing up. When boys were
growing into men, an initiation took place where the parents would ask the gods to protect the
child. This shows how the Ancient Greeks believed that the gods could bring safety and protection to
children and the other Ancient Greeks.
One of the most extreme rituals that took place was the animal sacrifice. This would take place at
the altar at the temple. The most common animals were oxen, goats, bulls and sheep. Some gods
were believed to prefer different animals; Athena was believed to like cows as a sacrifice. Although,
no matter what the animal was, it had to be healthy, otherwise the gods would take offence from it.
These animals would often be decorated by adding features such as painted horns and ribbons to
add more value to them. At the altar, the animal would be sprinkled with water as a symbol of
purity.
Ancient Greece: Beliefs
Ancient Greeks had lots of religious beliefs, one of which is the afterlife. They believed in the
afterlife, but ideas about it varied. The kingdom of the dead, or the underworld, was generally
thought to be located deep in the earth and the king of the underworld was the god Hades, one of
Zeus’s two brothers. It was believed that the dead were carried across the river Styx to the
underworld by the ferryman. The trip was not free, so sometimes the Ancient Greeks would leave a
coin on the deceased to pay for their journey. It was also believed that if a person was not buried,
their spirit could not pass into Hades. The underworld was not particularly a place of punishment,
but it was still thought of as a joyless place. The final belief about the afterlife was that some heroes
that were in favour with the gods journeyed to the Isles of the Blessed, where they lived with
pleasure and happiness. The Ancient Greeks believed that the gods were always watching them.
The Ancient Greeks also believed myths about the Gods. These myths usually either explained how
the Gods were born, how the Earth came to be how it is, or they had a moral to teach humans how
to do something or to not do it. For example, it is believed that Athena popped out of Zeus’s
forehead fully armoured. It is also believed that Uranus’s genitals were detached by Cronus and
thrown into the sea, from which rose Aphrodite.
Another important belief in Ancient Greek religion was the spirits, monsters and mythological
beings. These include the Amazons, which are a race of female warriors, Centaurs, half-man, halfhorse creatures who were wild, but possessed cultural knowledge and Keres, which were evil female
spirits. One of the most notable, though, was Medusa. Medusa was a female monster with hair
made of snakes. It was believed that if you looked into Medusa’s eyes, you would be turned to
stone. This horrifying character appeared in many myths and Ancient Greek stories.
Summary
The Ancient Greek Gods had a very significant impact on the lives of the Ancient Greeks. They were
very serious followers of their gods and their everyday lives involved rituals, and offerings. They
would give the gods food, drinks and other things of value. Many people like farmers and fishermen
gave offerings, but there were also smaller offerings on a daily basis, such as spilling a little bit of
wine before every meal. One of the most extreme rituals that took place was the animal sacrifice. A
common ritual that took place in Ancient Greece was when boys were growing up. When boys were
growing into men, an initiation took place where the parents would ask the gods to protect the
child. More evidence of their devotion to their gods is seen through the numerous buildings and
temples made and the festivals held in honour of the gods. Ancient Greeks had many religious
beliefs, one of which being the afterlife, which was a place ruled by the god Hades. The Ancient
Greeks believed that the gods were always watching them. All of this shows how much the gods
affected the lives of the Ancient Greeks.
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