The Greek God Zeus
EducationThe Greek God Zeus
The Greek God Zeus is King of the Greek Gods, Master of Olympus, Father of Man. He is Lord of the sky and the Upper Air, Rain God and the Cloud Gatherer. To the Romans, he was the God Jupiter.
When he walked among the mortals, Zeus was in the guise of a fit and muscular older man with a beard. He was handsome and charismatic. However, he was also quick to temper and could at times be rather moody. Zeus was well-known for his shape changing abilities and often took the form of different animals, especially the swan and bull.
Zeus is the son of the Titan Cronus and the Goddess Rhea. He is the youngest of six sibling, two brothers, Hades and Poseidon, and three sisters, Hera, Demeter and Hestia. Zeus and his brothers overthrew their Father and the Titans to gain control of Olympus and become the ruling Deities. The war against the Titans was called the “War for Freedom”. Freedom was an important belief to the Greek people and hence during worship they never bowed or supplicated themselves, but honoured their Gods by standing. During the “War for freedom”, the Cyclops bestowed on Zeus the lightning bolts he is so famous for. When the war ended and Zeus and his brothers were victories, they drew lots to see who would rule what. Hades got the Underworld,Poseidon got the Oceans and Zeus got Olympus, making him King of the Gods.
In Ancient times, Zeus was well-loved and respected by the Greek people. They opened many temples in his honour and held festivals and celebrations for him. The first Olympics were in 776 BC and were to honour Zeus. It continued until 391 AD, until Emperor Theodosius 1 banned them for being a Pagan practice.
Zeus had four wives; Metis, Themis, Mnemosyne and Hera. He was well-known for his multiple love affairs and seductions of not only the other Goddesses but of the mortal women too. Zeus had at least thirty children, some from his four wives but many were illegitimate. He was the Father of many famous Gods and hero such as the Fates, the Muses, Ares, Artemis and Apollo, Heracles, Hermes, Persephone, Helen of Troy and Dionysius
The most renowned temple of Zeus is in Dodona in Athens. Here, stands the grove of the “Talking Oak Trees”. The priest, called “Selloi” would lay themselves upon the ground under the trees and interpret Zeus’ will by the rustling of the Oak leaves and branches. The temple itself is now in ruins but the scared grove still stands. Archaeologist’s date the ruins to as early as the eighth Century BC.
Around 440 BC, an artist named Pheidias made a gigantic statue in tribute to Zeus. The statue stood 40 feet tall and carved from ivory with gold robes and accents. The statue was one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. During the first century AD, the Roman Emperor Caligula tried to relocate the statue to Rome but alas, his workmen were unable to move it. It was eventually moved to Constantinople where it stood until 426 AD before it was destroyed in a fire. The temple in Olympia that originally housed the statue closed in 391 AD by Emperor Theodosius 1 in his quest to stamp out Paganism and is now just ruins due to natural catastrophes.
Today Zeus is still worshipped by Pagans, especially those of the Hellenic Faith, everywhere but surprisingly he is not as popular or held in such high esteem as he once was. Gods such as Hades, Pan and Gaia are far more popular choices, as it is felt they have a closer connection to humankind and the circle of life. Though Zeus’ time of great power may have past, he is still loved by many and their praises to him can still be heard ringing through the night.