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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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