An Introduction to Mythology

The 12 Olympians

• Zeus• Hera• Demeter• Athena• Poseidon• Artemis

• Apollo• Hermes• Dionysus• Ares• Aphrodite• Hephaestus

The 12 chief Gods. Greeks believed all things came from them.

Other Greek Gods and Spirits• The God Pan:

God of the fields, and countryside. Half man, half goat, he was know for his mischievous, playful personality. He would scare travelers by shouting at them, this is where our word panic is said to have come from.

Other Greek Gods and Spirits• The Furies:

Three fearsome winged Goddesses of revenge. They avenged acts of injustice committed by ordinary men, heroes, or the immortal Gods. The showed no mercy and often drove their victims to madness.

Other Greek Gods and Spirits• The Muses:

Nine Goddesses and daughters of Zeus who inspired creativity. Each was associated with a particular activity

Calliope – Epic PoetryClio – History

Erato – Love poetryEuterpe – Music

Melpomene – TragedyPolyhymnia – Hymns

Terpsichore – DancingThalia – Comedy

Urania - Astronomy

Other Greek Gods and Spirits• Nymphs:

The Goddesses of Nature. There were several types:

Dryads – Tree NymphsNerieds – Sea Nymphs

Naiads – River and well Nymphs

Other Greek Gods and Spirits

Hestia:She was once one of the 12 Olympians, but gave

up her place to Dionysus. She is the Goddess of hearth, home, and family.

Greek Myths of CreationThe Titans

Uranus feared his titan children and trapped them in Tartarus,

but Cronus broke free and killed his father. He married Rhea and she gave birth to 6 Olympians.

Cronus imprisoned his own children, and they had to fight a war against their parents to take

over the world

The Cosmic EggThe world began with a single

egg laid by Time. The God Eros emerged from this Egg. He

gave birth to everything else in the universe and was its first

ruler

The UnderworldThe ancient Greeks believed that the souls of the dead inhabited the

underworld, which they called Hades. It was divided into different regions: the souls of heroes and virtuous dwelt in the Elysian fields, the

wicked were punished in Tartarus, and those who were neither good nor bad were sent the the plains of Asphodel. The dead were buried with a

coin in their mouth to pay Charon, the ferryman, to row them to the underworld across the river Styx.

The Underworld: HadesThe name of the place as well

as the name of the God who ruled over it. He was stern and unforgiving, presiding

over his dark, desolate kingdom. He wore a cap of invisibility made for him by

a Cyclops and carried a two-pronged spear.

The Underworld: Cerberus

Hades had a monsterous dog called

Cerberus: a huge, three-headed beast

that never slept. Cerberus guarded the

gates of the underworld, not only

stopping the souls of the dead from

escaping, but also preventing the living

from trying to enter and rescue their

loved ones from the clutches of death.

The Underworld: The Living and the Dead

Despite the watchful Cerberus, several Heroes did manage to enter the underworld and return alive. Orpheus went there to try to rescue his dead wife, and Odysseus went to consult the soul of a blind fortune tellr. Hercules entered the underworld,

captured Cerberus with his bare hands and brought him back to the land of the living.

Hades and PersephoneThe story of how the underworld got it’s queen

and how the seasons came to be.

Mythical Creatures

A wide variety of amazing creatures and terrible beasts populated Greek myths. A few of them

were helpful and made the world a better place, but most were hostile. The Greeks told many tales of mighty heroes who vanquished these savage beasts. Others were rewarded

and sent to the heavens.

PegasusA flying horse tamed and ridden by

the Hero Bellerophon, who used a magic bridle given to him by

Athena.

Origin: Arose from the blood of Medusa, the mortal Gorgon

Fate: Turned into a constellation

Other Mythical CreaturesThe Satyrs

Wild forest creatures of nature, these half-men half-goats spend their days merrymaking and reveling with Dionysus.

EchidnaThe mother of all

monsters, half nymph, half serpent was killed by Argus, they hundred

eyed giant.

The GorgonsThree horrible sisters with terrible fangs and snakes for hair. A single glance could turn any human to

stone. Two were immortal, but one, Medusa was

mortal and is said to have been killed by the hero

Perseus

Ancient Greek HeroesAchilles

A noble hero of the Trojan war, Achilles was nearly invincible

after being dipped into the Rive Styx as a baby. His only

vulnerability was his heel, where his mother held him to dip him in the river. Achilles

was killed by the Trojan prince Paris with an arrow to his heel.

PerseusPerseus is the hero famed with

killing Medusa. He had help from the Gods to accomplish this feat. Athena gave him a

reflective shield to look at the Gorgon and not be turned to stone. Hermes gave him the

magic sword the killed her and the Nymphs gave him an

invisibility helmet and winged shoes.

HerculesThe Son of Zeus with awesome strength. Hera was jealous of

him because he was the son of one of Zeus’ other wives so when

he was a baby she sent two snakes to kill him, he strangles the serpents bare handed and grew to complete many great

feats of strength.