Tuesday, 06. March 2007
The Ancient Greek Goddesses & Gods

Today I stumbled over a nice videos about the ancient Greek Goddesses & Gods.

In the Olympian pantheon of classical Greek Mythology, Hera was the wife and older sister of Zeus. She also presided as goddess of marriage, the patriarchal bond of her own subordination: her resistance to the conquests of Zeus is rendered as Hera's "jealousy", the main theme of literary anecdotes that undercut her ancient cult. Her equivalent in Roman mythology was Juno. The cow and peacock are sacred to her.

Athena was the goddess of civilization, specifically wisdom, weaving, crafts and the more disciplined side of war (violence and bloodlust were Ares' domain). Athena's wisdom encompasses the technical knowledge employed in weaving, metal-working, but also includes the cunning intelligence (metis) of such figures as Odysseus. The owl and the olive tree are sacred to her.

Artemis in Greek mythology the daughter of Zeus and of Leto and the twin sister of Apollo was one of the most widely venerated of the gods and manifestly one of the oldest deities (Burkert 1985:149). In later times she was combined with the Roman goddess Diana.

Demeter is the Pelasgian goddess of grain and agriculture, the pure nourisher of youth and the green earth, the health-giving cycle of life and death, and preserver of marriage and the sacred law. She is invoked as the "bringer of seasons" in the Homeric hymn, a subtle sign that she was worshiped long before the Olympians arrived. The Roman equivalent is Ceres.

Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love, lust, beauty, and sexuality. Her Roman equivalent is the goddess Venus. Myrtle, dove, sparrow, and swan are sacred to her.

See this 5 minute video for more about these ancient Greek Goddesses & Gods:



More Greek Goddesses @ Wiki
More Greek Gods @ Wiki



Zeus is the king of the gods, the ruler of Mount Olympus, and god of the sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His symbols are the thunderbolt, bull, eagle and the oak. His Roman counterpart was Jupiter.

Hades refers to the ancient Greek underworld and the god of the dead. Hades was also known as Pluto (from Greek Ploutōn), and was known by this name, as "the unseen one", or "the rich one", in Roman mythology.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Apollo, the ideal of the kouros (a beardless youth), was the archer-god of medicine and healing, light, truth, archery and also a bringer of death-dealing plague; as the leader of the Muses and director of their choir, he is a god of music and poetry. Hymns sung to Apollo were called Paeans. The American missions to the moon, Project Apollo, were named for the god.

Hephaestus is the Greek god whose approximate Roman equivalent is Vulcan; he is the god of technology including, specifically blacksmiths, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metals and metallurgy, and fire.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Dionysus associated with the god of wine, represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficial influences. He is viewed as the promoter of civilization, a lawgiver, and lover of peace - as well as the patron deity of agriculture and the theater.

Hermes is the Olympian god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of orators and wit, of literature and poets, of athletics, of weights and measures and invention and commerce in general, and of the cunning of thieves and liars. In the Roman adaptation of the Greek religion, Hermes was identified with the Roman god Mercury.
Category: Gods & Goddesses | Mythology & Epics |


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