2.2 Gods
“‘Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavours: the immortal gods of Olympus … Zeus … Hera. Apollo…’”
[The Lightning Thief; Pg 67; Chiron to Percy] The gods have been described in great detail in both the sets of texts. According to Greek mythology, there are twelve major Olympians – Zeus, the King of the gods, Hera, wife and sister of Zeus, Poseidon, the sea god, Demeter, the goddess of harvest, Athena, the goddess of wisdom, Apollo, the god of the Sun, of healing and prophecies, Artemis, the goddess of the Moon and Huntress, Ares, the war god, Aphrodite, the goddess of love, Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, Hermes, the god of travelers and messengers, and Dionysus, the god of
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Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way [the satyr] cringed, as if Mr. D were [their] master.
‘You’re Dionysus,’ I said. ‘The god of wine.’”
[The Lightning Thief; Pg 70; Percy to Dionysus]
While each of the Greek and Roman versions of the Olympians are mentioned in the texts, it is Dionysus or Bacchus – the ‘least’ of the Olympians – who is most interesting. This is so as if the least of the gods can be so ferocious, one can only imagine the extent of the power of the higher gods like Zeus or Poseidon.
“‘A god. You.’
[Dionysus] turned to look at me straight on, and I saw the man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane in battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a straightjacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.
‘Would you like to test me, child?’ he said quietly.”
[The Lightning Thief; Pg 70; Dionysus to
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Saffron and myrrh their fragrant odours shed,
And now the present deity they dread.
Strange to relate! Here ivy first was seen,
Along the distaff crept the wond'rous green.
Then sudden-springing vines began to bloom,
And the soft tendrils curl'd around the loom:
While purple clusters, dangling from on high,
Ting'd the wrought purple with a second die.”
[Book the Fourth; Alcithoe and her Sisters Transform'd to Bats; Ln 3-12]
The skin of a tiger, the color purple, grapes and grape vines are all associated with Dionysus and later Bacchus as well. While these may not seem like much to the untrained eye, these were the wealth as well as the weapons of the wine god of the Ancient Greeks.
“[The Manticore’s] tail bristled, but the planks under his paws erupted into grapevines that immediately began wrapping around the monster’s body, sprouting new leaves and clusters of green baby grapes that ripened in seconds as the manticore shrieked, until he was engulfed in a huge mass of vines, leaves and full clusters of purple grapes. Finally the grapes stopped shivering, and I had a feeling that somewhere inside there, the manticore was no more.”
[Titan’s Curse; Pg 226;
The Greek Society believes in many Gods. The first one that I will talk about is Zeus. Zeus is The God of The Sky, Thunder, Lightning, and Justice. Zeus made sure that justice was always served. So he made sure that there was justice everywhere. And if someone was doing wrong he would punish them deeply.
In the myth of Dionysus there isn’t exactly a conflict between two sides of people battling for good or evil, its more as a battle between the two sides of Dionysus’ inner self. Unlike most examples of good versus evil, there isn’t a triumphant side. Just the personality switches between Dionysus being the joy-god or the heartless, savage, brutal-god. The reason for this change is due to the fact that he is the vine god; Wine is bad as well as good. He’d bring up peoples hopes and make them believe that they were capable of anything, but once they were sober again
Dionysos is defined as the god of wine, festivity, vegetation, pleasure, and divine intoxication. In the Hope Dionysos, he is depicted as a peaceful and joyful figure that represent happiness in Greek mythology. The statue is sculpted from marble as its medium and is classified as a stone
A polytheistic Greek religion is surrounded by numerous gods. Each represented a certain aspect of human problems including abstract ideas, such as justice and wisdom. This was the religion most devout Greeks followed and believed in. The most important gods were Olympian gods led by Zeus. These gods were: Athena, Apollo, Poseidon, Hermes, Hera, Aphrodite, Demeter, Ares, Artemis, Hades, Hephaistos,
The Greek gods were thought of as the most powerful forces to ever exist in ancient times. In turn, they played a pivotal role in the Greek people’s lives. Their power and influence over the Greek people is evident in many of the stories in Greek literature. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the most powerful Greek gods, each played a part in the story of Antigone by Sophocles.
In myths we come across many names of gods and goddesses and strange creatures. All of them have many stories related to them. Different gods represent different aspects of life and the Earth is under their control.
In this paragraph will be information on Greek Gods and Goddesses. There was a governing body for the Grecians. This mythological group was very important. They were usually the reason for war and many believed that they were so superior that they would bring disease and death upon others that they dislike or the people that would try to out shine them. They were called The Olympians. There were twelve Olympians, however before I name them there actually were 13, but Hestia gave up her position for Dionysus. There was Zeus, Poseidon, Hermes, Hephatus, Hera, Demeter, Aphrodite, Athena, Artimes, Dionysus, Aries (Ares or Aris), and Apollo.” (Greek Gods and Goddesses) There was one other God that is also very important to the Olympians. His name was Hades and he was the God of the Dead. He was not considered an Olympian though because he was always to be in the Underworld. Hades had one day decided that he wanted a partner however
The relationship between gods and mortals in mythology has long been a complicated topic. The gods can be generous and supportive, and also devastating and destructive to any group of humans. Mortals must respect the powers above them that cannot be controlled. The gods rule over destiny, nature, and justice, and need to be recognized and worshipped for the powerful beings as they are. Regardless of one's actions, intentions, and thoughts, the gods in Greek myth have ultimate power and the final decision of justice over nature, mortals, and even each other.
The second god that I want to focus on is Bacchus. Bacchus was the Greek and roman god of vine and wine. He was the son of Zeus and Semele. The Romans identified him as Dionsysus. Myth has it that he was very ugly at birth. He was horned and was crowned with a crown of snakes. He was boiled in a cauldron and banished to Mt Nysa by his parents. It was here that he invented wine. He eventually returned to Greece where he organized drunken revelries. He married Andriadne, daughter of King Minos. Myth also has it that he died in the winter and was reborn in the spring.
Had “main gods” Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, Athena, Artemis, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Ares, and Hermes.
In Greek mythology, there are many different gods and goddesses. There are six main deities, however; Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, Hades, Apollo, and Hermes. Each god controls something, ranging from natural elements to communication.
Dionysus is the god of wine and fertility, however also became considered a patron of the arts. Along with the variety of things Dionysus was associated with, he is associated with some important concepts. These are, being able to bring a dead person back from the underworld, rebirth after death represented through the symbol of his tending to vines to bear fruit for the making of his wine. There is also the feeling of being possessed by a greater power – which he demonstrated via the influence had from wine. This means that the greater power is the wine – that at these times a man might be greater than himself and do works he otherwise could not.
In Greece and Egypt, his identification with Dionysus capitalized on the popular Dionysiac cult, which could be found in the East as well as in Italy. By linking oneself with Dionysus, Antony portrayed himself as a divine triumvir, looking to conquer the Orient. This political move was based on popular belief that Dionysus was the god of world conquest, and the blessings of Dionysus included civilization itself. To the people of the East, this connection provided justification why Antony should be revered and followed. Connecting himself with Dionysus also indicated royal power. Since Alexander himself was "bound up with Dionysus," and his predecessors, the Hellenistic kings would displayed themselves as the wine god (by taking his dress and acting in his likeness), Antony proclaimed he was the successor of the Hellenistic kings, and therefore the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt. To the East, this deification through Dionysus justified Antony's connection to Cleopatra and his right to rule. In combination with enhancement of this image through deification and mythological ties, Antony launched a fierce verbal campaign against Octavian to illegitimate his rule. Suetonius' The Lives of the Caesars- The Deified Augustus, pays testament to Antony's craftiness and versatility.
Dionysus is an important figure of Greek mythology. He is the Olympian god of wine, vegetation, festivity and pleasure. He represents humanity’s longing for pleasure and desire to celebrate. Dionysus is also the god of hallucination, theatre, reincarnation and homosexuality. He is called: “the youthful, beautiful, but effeminate god of wine. He is also called both by Greeks and Romans Bacchus (Bakchos), that is, the noisy or riotous god…” (Roman 201).
In Greek Mythology, perhaps one of the most rudimental yet one of the most important elements are the Greek Gods and Goddesses. The ancient Greeks created the stories about the lives and journeys of the Greek Gods, known as myths, simply as an endeavor to elucidate nature and all phenomena which were difficult to explain using modern science and logic. These myths about the Gods were spread around the world by explorers and storytellers, and later merged with Greek religion. To this day, numerous myths survived through many writings and through much art. Each of these myths is very unique, and moreover, tells us much about the Greek Gods. The Greek myths in particular convey to us that Greek Gods and Goddesses looked and acted like humans,