GREEK MYTHOLOGY STORIES

(The Essential-The Origins- The War-The Rise of Olympus)

The Greek Myth of Creation

Gaea gave birth to Uranus (Starry Sky)

Uranus became Gaea’s husband

yTHE CHILDREN OF GAEA & URANUS

- one-eyed CYCLOPES (lightning flash and thunderbolts)

- hundred-handed HECATONCHEIRES (storm surge and tsunamis)
- twelve TITANS (volcanic eruptions and earthquakes)

THE CASTRATION OF URANUS

1. Uranus was a cruel husband and a cruel father.
2. He hated his children because of their appearance and behavior.
3. He imprisoned them into different places in the Earth.
4. Uranus angered Gaea so she plotted against him together with her sons. All were afraid
except Cronus.
5. They set up an ambush for Uranus. Cronus castrated Uranus.
 6. Cronus then threw Uranus’ genitals into the ocean. It has been told that Aphrodite arose
from it.

CRONUS DEVOURS HIS CHILDREN

● Cronus rose to power and became the next ruler.
● He imprisoned the Cyclopes and Hecatoncheires in Tartarus then married his sister
Rhea.
● Cronus maltreated his children, devouring them at birth.
● Rhea was distressed and so she decided to plot against him.
● At the time of the sixth birth, Rhea hid herself in Crete, leaving the new-born to be raised
by nymphs.
● She then wrapped a stone in swaddling clothes. Cronus ate it unaware, thinking it was
his youngest offspring.

THE RETURN of ZEUS

● Rhea’s youngest child, Zeus was raised by the nymphs Adrastea and Ida, and the she-
goat Amalthea.
● He quickly grew to a handsome youth and then left Crete to ask the Titaness Metis
(Wisdom) on how to defeat Cronus
● He was told to prepare a drink from Cronus’ favorite wine, and so he disguised himself
as the god’s cupbearer
● He slipped Metis’ drink to Cronus. He then started vomiting and spilled out all of Zeus’
five other siblings
● Overwhelmed with gratitude, Rhea’s children recognized Zeus as their leader.

Children of Rhea
● Hestia (Vesta) - Goddess of the Earth
● Demeter (Ceres) - Goddess of Grains and Agriculture
● Hades (Pluto) - God of the Underworld
● Hera (Juno) - Goddess of Marriage and the Family
● Poseidon (Neptune) - Lord of the Ocean
● Zeus (Jupiter/Jove) - God of Sky and Thunder King of the Gods

THE TITANOMACHY
● Cronus was still in command and yet to be defeated.
● He asked for help from the faithful Titans.
● This led to a decade long war between the Titans and Olympians. The Titans were lead
by Atlas.
 ● At one point, Zeus was thought to be defeated so he released prisoners from Tartarus
and in return, the Cyclopes gave him the Thunderbolt
● Prometheus did a cunning little trick and made them win. The Titans were blinded and
subdued.
● Zeus considered himself as the king of the universe. He exiled the Titans to Tartarus
except for Atlas.

OTHER OLYMPIANS
● APHRODITE (VENUS) - Goddess of Beauty
● ARES (MARS) - God of War
● HEPHAESTUS (VULCAN) - God of Fire and the Blacksmith of the Gods
● HERMES (MERCURY) - Messenger of the Gods
● APOLLO - God of Music and Healing
● ARTEMIS (DIANA) - Goddess of Hunt and the Protector of Women and Childbirth
● ATHENA (MINERVA) - Goddess of War and Wisdom
● DIONYSUS (BACCHUS) - God of Wine and Revelry

THE MYTH OF HUMAN CREATION

● When the Titanomachy was over, Prometheus created man out of earth(mud), and the
goddess Athena breathed life into his creation.
● Epimetheus ( Afterthought), Prometheus’ brother, was the one assigned the duty of
giving all living creatures the different skills and qualities; however, Epimetheus had
already given all the good skills and qualities to other creatures, and nothing was left for
man.
● Consequently, Prometheus made man according to the image of the gods and gave
them fire.
● This made Zeus angry. Thus, he decreed that men must present a portion of each
animal they sacrifices to the gods, but Prometheus gave Zeus the worst part of the
slaughtered animal while men took the best part.
● The trick angered Zeus the more, so he took fire away from man. However, Prometheus
stole it and gave it back to man.
● For these violations, Zeus punished both man and Prometheus.

THE CREATION OF PANDORA

● The punishment that Zeus inflicted on man was to create Pandora, the first woman, with
the help of Hephaestus, to counteract the blessing- the knowledge that Prometheus
bestowed on man, that was symbolized by fire.
● Zeus gifted Pandora a box. This contained the gods’ choicest gifts – dominated by
misfortunes, diseases, and plagues, but at the bottom was also hope. Zeus sent her to
 Epimetheus who forgot the warning of his brother Prometheus, and made Pandora his
wife.
● Out of curiosity, Pandora opened the mysterious box from which all the evils of men flew
over the earth. Hope alone remained inside, the lid having been shut down before she
could escape.
● Meanwhile, Prometheus was condemned to be tormented in Mt. Caucasus- where he
was chained to a rock. Every night, an eagle would appear and eat his liver.
● During the day, the liver was reformed only to be consumed by the eagle at night, and
Prometheus endured the sufferings and terrible pain all in the name of his true love for
man.

POINTS TO PONDER

Have you found any similarities and differences between the biblical and the mythological
stories of creation?

Myths are stories of anonymous origin, prevalent among primitive people and by
them accepted as true. Most of these stories have been orally retold from generation to
generation, so changes are inevitable. The myth of the world’s origin told us the ancient
husband-wife, parent-child conflicts, sibling rivalries, and all forms of abuses.

What present social issues have been mirrored by the conflicts of the different characters in the
story?

When Uranus maltreated his children, and when Cronus ‘cannibalized’ his own children
as well? Are there families today as troubled as Gaea’s and Rhea’s families? Are there still
fathers at present who act the way Uranus and Cronus did?

Will we still consider Prometheus the Champion of Man when he violated the decree of Zeus?

In myth, Pandora was considered the reason why men suffer. In the Bible, it was Eve
who gave in first to the devil’s temptation.

Is it right for us to say that a woman was or is the reason why we suffer?

Think about it…

The stories you have just read might be childish, and unrealistic but, whether we like it
or not, they still influence our present lives. The events of once upon a time have still been
experienced and practiced by today’s generation. In terms of language, some of the words
we use to communicate have originated from these myths: e.g. planet Uranus was named
after the lord of the sky; geography was named after Gaea, and the word erotic was derived
from Eros. Some businesses and companies are named after mythological characters. To
add, these stories may have the different qualities or elements that make them refuse to die.
May you have the strong interest to appreciate the beauty of the literary treasure of the past,
and may the actions and traits of some of the ancient characters help you acquire the inner
transformation that would make you become morally conscious of your actions and
decisions.