The Creation of the World

Our first subject will be about the creation of the world. Just like every religion in the world, the Greek one tries to explain how the world came to be. Let’s explore the fascinating story behind the creation of the world :

First of all, Greeks named the void “the Chaos” and he is undefinable because isn’t a divinity, a human or an object. The Chaos created six entities:

-Eros represent the love

-Erebe is the darkness (obscurity in the depths on the earth)

-Nyx is the night

-Gaia serve as Earth

-Hemera is the light terrestrial

-Tartarus represent the center of the Earth. Later Tartar will represent the hell because this is a place very obscure.

These entities will create a multitude of divinities. The union between Nyx and Erebe will conceive three gods:

-Thanatos, who is the death

-Hypnos is the god of sleepiness

-Ether is the light of stars

Gaia and Tartar will come together to create gods:

-Echidna, this is a divinity scornful with wife head with sneak body. She is exclude to the others divinities because of his appearance

-Typhoon is the other harmful divinity like her sister Echidna. Typhoon is like his name suggests, he creates typhoon. They are married and they give birth to horrible creatures.

At the beginning of creation we saw that Earth, Gaia gave many births to deities. Among them is Uranus, who represents the sky. Thereafter these two entities will unite and mate to produce other gods. So of this union we will find twelve Titans including six Titanides, three Cyclops and three Hecatoncheires. To give them a brief description, the Hecatoncheires are creatures with a hundred arms and fifty heads.
Moreover this robustness somewhat frightens Uranus, their father. He fears their strength and therefore imprisons them in the depths of Tartarus, who I remind you alludes to the underworld, the deepest darkness. Upset and taken by the sadness of not seeing her children, Gaia does not accept her husband’s attitude. It does not tolerate the Hecatoncheires being locked up in Tartarus without a highly valid reason. She entrusts this high mission to her youngest son Cronus. Then, Gaia and his son Uranus (he represent the sky) will come together to do the Titans, they are cornerstones of the mythology Greek. Gaia and Uranus created six titans and titanides:

-Oceanus is the ocean

-Coeus considerate like “the one who thinks”

-Crius is “the leader”

-Cronus is the king of Titans

-Hyperion (he have three children: Helios, Selene, Eos)

-Iapetus (Prometheus, Epimethius and Atlas are his children)

The titanides:

-Mnemosyne, goddess of the memory. She have like children nine Muses with Zeus

-Phoebe represent the light and she is the intelligence. Will come together with Coios and she have Leto and Asteria with he

-Rhea is the wife of Cronos

-Theia is “the queen”, wife of Hyperion and mother of Helios, Selene, Eos

-Themis is “the justice”

-Tethys, marine fecundity and she’s married to his brother Okeanos

( Author : Aaaaa )

the Greek gods today

the Greek gods today

But what led the Greeks to renounce their gods? It is the appearance of another god and an even more fashionable religion: Christianity.
For a new fashion to be successful, a star often has to lead by example. In our case, it is the Emperor Constantine who will play this role. Constantine lived between 274 and 337 AD. As emperor of the Roman empire, Constantine was obviously the most famous person around the Mediterranean at the time. When he publicly decided to become a Christian, he made it the new religion «cool».
So little by little the Greek polytheism (=believe in several gods) is erased in favor of Christianity. Which has become the most widely practiced religion.*

After this religious domination the Greek gods are still very present, even after centuries.

Here are several examples:

Malpertius, a fantastic novel by Belgian writer Jean Ray, published in 1943 featuring elements of Greek mythology and Shakespeare who also adds elements of these myths to his comedy Le Songe d'une nuit d'été (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) written between 1594 and 1595.
Today, Olympians are still fascinating people, they're starring in numerous movies, books and series; like Xena or Hercules.

Other productions, Hollywood this time also exploited the Olympians. By further transforming the original myth. Of course, most of the time, it is not the gods in people who are the heroes of the film, but their children, demigods. Like in "Jason and the Argonauts" where we follow Jason and his crew on fantastic adventures. He will challenge monsters and skeletons in fury to achieve his goal. But also the more recent film "Percy Jackson" adapted from Rick Riordan’s books.

But also Clash Of the Titans, which follows the adventures of Perseus who will ride Pegasus and challenge the Kraken and the gods! These three adaptations, based on the myth by modifying some details while keeping the essence of it. In my opinion, these films are to be seen for any lover of mythology, while keeping a strong second degree.

In my opinion the Greek gods are not ready to be forgotten and will continue to fascinate us for a long time to come. Their powers and at the same time their humanity so pronounced reminds us of a civilization that we know well, and that finds it to be ours. These divine beings self-destruct as we continue to do and as long as the human has an ounce of feeling in him, the Greek gods will continue to occupy our thoughts. However, polytheistic religions have not disappeared: a multitude of different deities are still worshipped in India, China or Japan, for example.

QUIZZ :

What religion has overthrown the Greek religion?

What famous character played a role in the change of religion?

Quote a film inspired by Greek mythology?

Quote a famous theatre writer who was inspired by Greek mythology?

On what hero or gods would you make a movie or a book if you could?

Men and Gods

Men and Gods

The Greek gods were revered during ancient Greece. There were 12 major gods and many minor gods. The Ancient Greek Men feared the gods because some of them were not benevolent and they were reputed to be all susceptible. This is why Men have developed practices to satisfy the gods, to be benevolent. That Zeus does not bring a storm, that Poseidon does not unleash the oceans on the ships, that Demeter allows a good harvest, that Ares is on their side during the wars... Each god has its own function and therefore its own ritual and its own servants.

Monumental buildings were built for the gods and mainly the 12 great ones. The Parthenon at Athena is a good example of this, but there are many others, three of which are classified as wonders of the world: 

• The chryselephant statue of Zeus in Olympia composed of gold and ivory and measuring 13 m
• The temple of Artemis 137m long for 71m wide
• The colossus of Rhodes with its more than 30m high represented Helios god of the sun

Most of the time in each city there were several temples and each temple was built to honor a god. The richer the city was, the more temples there were. Each temple had its servants, who were in charge of watching over and serving the god they served. These temples were built on the highest points of the cities so that they would be noticed and closer to the gods who inhabit Mount Olympus above the clouds.

The Greeks also believed greatly in the oracle. Apollo the god of light, music and also the god of prophecies, and for the Greeks prophecies were indispensable.In Delphi there is a temple and in it a young virgin woman chosen by the priests of Apollo serves as an intermediary between gods and men. All the Men had to purify themselves in a sacred fountain before consulting the oracle, after having asked their question the young woman went into a trance (probably due to fumes escaping from a fault above which she was sitting).

To satisfy the gods men also used to make offerings, They were diverse, Animal sacrifice, fruit, wine poured… Some religious feasts (Olympic Games) brought together all the Greeks and were moments of peace and brotherhood.

The Greeks thought that the gods were at the origin of all that surrounded them and of all the events of daily life. Some religious demonstrations brought together all the Greeks which played a role of peace for the Greek world. The Olympic Games were thus religious games in honor of Zeus. The athletes ran barefoot thus awakening the vital forces of the Earth. They received only symbolic gifts as a reward for their victories (laurel crowns...), the main objective was honor for its city. In Athens the religious feasts were particularly numerous; only the war could suspend them or reduce their brilliance. They grew, along with religious sentiments, national pride. They were spread out almost every month of the year; some months, like October, were overloaded. They included competitions that were either athletic, musical or dramatic.

The main religious feasts were the following (note that the Athenian year begins in July):

• in July: The Panathenaeus, National Day of the Protector of the City, Athena
• in September: the honor of Demeter and his daughter, Kore
• in October: Festival of sowing, in honor of Apollo / Thesmophories, reserved exclusively for women, in honor of Demeter / the Chalkeia Crafts Festival in honor of Athena Ergane and Hephaestus
• December: the rural Dionysians, popular celebrations, more or less unbridled, in honor of  Dionysos
• in February: the Anthesteries, festival of wine, in honor of Dionysos
• in April: the Plynteries, Athena’s bath party.

At the Anthesteria, the jars where the wine is preserved since the last harvest are opened; there is a competition of drinkers who will drink the wine contained in a jar as quickly as possible

The Panathenaeus: they take place every year but are celebrated with more solemnity every four years, they lasted six to nine days, they included gymnastic contests where the victors received oil from the sacred olive trees of Athena, enclosed in amphorae.

The Greeks named their capital Athens after the goddess Athena, goddess of war strategy and wisdom.

QUIZZ :

Quote the 3 wonders of the world linked to the Greek gods?

Quote some important festivals from Greek mythology?

How was the oracle chosen?

What was every man to do before consulting the oracle?

What was the oracle for?

In honor of which goddess the Greeks gave the name of their capital? And what was its function?

Heroes of Olympia

Heroes

Since many years heroes are a symbol for everyone. All people know Hercule and his strength, Achille and its heel… These heroes given rise to expression. Today i speak about heroes in greek mythology.

Heracles :

It is one of the most recognized and revered heroes of all mythology by the success of his work. The story of this hero begins with his birth. His mother Alcmene is the wife of King Amphitryon. Zeus quickly falls in love with the beautiful queen. While her husband is at war, Zeus takes the appearance of Amphitryon and enters the room of the young woman. This is how Heracles came into the world.

Back home, the king discovers his wife’s infidelity and decides to reject the child. Zeus' wife, Hera, also did not accept her husband’s infidelity and tried to kill Heracles while he was still a baby. Heracles rejected on all sides was raised and educated by the famous centaur Chiron.

After this difficult childhood, Heracles became a big and powerful boy. He was taught the arts, combat, skill, etc. Only Heracles had difficulty in controlling his strength and mastery. Also, he is a disturbing and sometimes violent student. In an excess of rage he struck and killed his music teacher which earned him exile from his hometown.

As a war began Heracles and his father-in-law left Creon the king of Thebes. This war will cost Hercules his father-in-law who died in battle. For the thanked Creon offers Heracles the hand of his daughter Megara. The two beings fell madly in love with each other and had several children together. But Hera, jealous and taking a hatred against Heracles, sees the happiness and the success of the latter what irritates him even more. Then she casts a spell on the hero who goes crazy. Seized of a great madness, he kills his wife and children. When he wakes up Heracles notices the crime. He is inconsolable, filled with sadness that he lost the woman he loved more than anything and his children. Taken of guilt he will consult the oracle of Delphi in order to be purified. The oracle tells him that if he wants to be purified he will have to answer the 12 works that Eurystheus, his greatest enemy, will entrust to him.

The 12 labours :

1- Kill the Nemean Lion whose skin is impenetrable and whose claws are sharp.

2- Kill the Lernaean Hydra, a gigantic snake whose head ends in fifty snake heads. The particularity of this snake is that the main head is immortal and the others grow back twice once cut.

3- Bring back the wild boar of Erymanthus alive. He ran him, threw stones at him for several days, so that the beast finally fell tired into a pit that Heracles had dug to trap the boar.

4- Capture the Ceryneian Hind. Reputed to have golden horns and brass hooves, Heracles pursued the beast more than a year before he succeeded in capturing it.

5- Clean the stables of Augias in less than a day. To get there Hercules diverted a river.

6- Killing the Stymphalian birds. These birds were monstrous. They fed on human flesh.

7- Tame the Cretan bull, which decimated the harvests.

8- Capture Diomedes' anthropophagous mares.

9- Bring back the belt of Hippolyte, the queen of the Amazons.

10- Defeat Geryon and bring back his herd of oxen. Geryon is an immense three-bodied being.

11- Recover the golden apples from the garden of the Hesperides guarded by Ladon a huge dragon.

12- Go down to the underworld to chain Cerberus the three-headed dog.

After his 12 labours (and a poisonus tunic) Heracles, immortal, reached Mount Olympus where he reconciled with Hera. There he married Hebe, goddess of youth where they will have two children.

Orpheus :

Orpheus is the son of Oeagre and Calliope, one of the nine muses. He sings and plays the lyre wonderfully well which makes him very famous in his time. These songs made the beasts and the fiercest men calm and gentle, he was also known to have surpassed the sirens and their songs.

But if he is really known it is because of his tragic love story. Orpheus fell very in love with Eurydice, a beautiful nymph. Only one day while she was walking another man was chasing her for violence, trying to flee, she walked on a snake that bit her and she died.

Orpheus, inconsolable, went down to Hell to look for his wife. Thanks to this music, it charms not only the monsters of the Underworld, but even the god Hades. Hades and Persephone agree to return Eurydice to a husband who gives such proof of love. But they put a condition in it, that Orpheus will go back to the day, followed by his wife, without turning to see her before leaving their kingdom. Orpheus accepts, and sets off. Already, he had almost returned to the light of day when he had a doubt, immediately he turns around. But Eurydice fainted and died a second time. Orpheus tries well to go back to find her, but, this time, the access of the infernal world is denied to him. He must return among the humans, inconsolable…

Ariadne: 

Ariadne, in Greek mythology, was the daughter of Persiphae and King Minos who reigned on an island of Crete. Ariadne is considered a Heroine. 

On this island there was a monster, the Minotaur, who lived in the Labyrinth of Daedalus, and every year seven young men and seven young girls were delivered to him.

That year, the Hero Theseus went there with the future victims.

Ariadne fell madly in love with him, and against her promise to bring him and marry him, she gave him a thread that he rolled behind him. He killed the Minotaur and was able to come out alive from the Labyrinth, which had only one door.

He brought Ariadne with him as promised and they made a stopover on the island of Naxos.

However, lacking in his promise, taking advantage of Ariadne’s sleep, Theseus set sail. He left leaving her behind.

Dionysos found Ariadne in tears, the console, then became in love with him. She followed him and has children with him.

Then the god Dionysos brought him with him on his chariot to go to Olympus and marry him.

As a wedding present, he offered her a golden tiara that became a constellation. It is called the Boreal Crown.

Ulysses :

Ulysses was born in Ithaca which is a west coast island of Greece of which he later became king. During his childhood he was also the pupil of the centaur Chiron. 

King of Ithaca, he is married to Penelope and he is the father of Telemachus. His superior intelligence makes him appreciated by all, she will serve very well during the Troy War in which he participated.

Ulysses, a wise king and a fine orator, is Athena’s favorite. He holds an important place in the council of kings. It was he who had the idea of the Troy Horse’s cunning.

When the Troy War was over, he tried to return to his kingdom. But the wrath of Poseidon complicated his travel and made him wander on the sea for many years where he encountered many obstacles and had many adventures like the cyclops Polyphemus, the witch Circe or the cursed couple Charybdis and Scylla.

It took him 20 years to regain his kingdom, his wife Penelope and his son Telemaque. "The Odyssey" is the name of his adventures after Homer's Iliad, referring to his original Greek name "Odysseus".

Later he undertook another travel, forgot Penelope. He remarried. Back in Ithaca Telegonos, a son he had with Circe killed him. Telegonos married Penelope, and his son Telemaque married Circe.

Ulysses' death marked the end of the Heroes' Age.

QUIZZ :

How much work has Hercules done?

What prompted Hercules to carry out his work?

What Hero marks the end of the age of heroes?

Who did Ariadne marry?

Why didn’t Orpheus bring his wife back from hell?

How long did it take Ulysses to get home?