How many gods are there in Greek mythology? –

If we focus on Greek mythologywe can summarize that it is the way they found to explain the origin of the world and everything that happens here through Myths and legends that recount the lives and experiences of gods and heroes, were part of their religion and they were worshiped. Obviously there were main entities and other more secondary ones, but How many gods are there in Greek culture and religion? We find out below.

How many gods are there in Greek mythology?

The story of the gods of Olympus begins, when Zeus, son of Cronuswho aided by the 12 gods of Olympus, defeat his father in the terrible war against the Titans, he got the power of the gods. He searched for a place to establish his abode, creating the Mount Olympus where he would live with his brothers and children.

In some cases we can see 14 Gods represented and it is that some of them could vary as is the case of Hestia and Hephesus. Being the 12 main gods who inhabited Mount Olympus:

Zeus
Hera
Poseidon
Aphrodite
Ares
athena
Hermes
Apollo
Sagebrush
Hephaestus
demeter
Hestia

What were the gods of the Greeks like?

the greek gods they were immortal, with human appearance, very warriors and with the same vices and virtues as the rest of mortals. Capable of governing the future of mortalsthe most representative gods of Olympus were:

Zeus

Zeus is the god of all godsYes, he is the one who really rules on Mount Olympus. It is the supreme god, god of the heavens and thunder. Descendant of the titans Cronos and Rhea, he is their youngest son and the one who managed to defeat his father, thus fulfilling the prophecy.

to Zeus he is symbolized with a lightning bolt in his hand, with an eagle, an oak, the scepter and a scale as a symbol of justice. Living somewhat licentiously, she was able to share her love life with both goddesses and mortals, having multiple children from all of her relationships.

Hera

was is the wife and sister of ZeusShe is considered the queen of the gods. protector of the family, although he often fixes his revenge on the mistresses and children of Zeus. She is the youngest daughter of Cronus and Rhea and her symbols are the Peacock, the Pomegranate fruit, the Crown, the Cuckoo, Lion and a cow.

Poseidon

Poseidon is linked with wateris the dgods of all seas, of horses and of earthquakes. Poseidon is the brother of Zeus and Hades and the son of Rhea. His symbols are the horse, the bulls, the dolphin and of course, the trident.

Dionysus

He is the god of party, wine and ecstasy. Dionysus is the son of the god Zeus and a mortal named Semele. Dionysus is married to Ariadne, a princess from the Island of Crete. He is perhaps the youngest of all the gods and the only one whose mother is mortal.

Apollo

God of beauty, light, the sun, music, the bow, poetry, knowledge and prophecy. Apollo is the twin brother of Artemis and the youngest son of Zeus and Leto (daughter of the titans Ceo and Phoebe). The god Apollo is represented by the sun, the lyre, the arrow and the bow, the wolf, the raven, the mouse and the swan.

Sagebrush

Goddess of hunting, childbirth and virginity, great archery shooter protector of animals and the forest. Twin sister of Apollo and eldest daughter. The goddess Artemis is usually represented with the moon, the deer, the bear, the hunting dogs, the cypress and the snakes.

What is the myth that explains the origin of the gods

According to reports hesiodAt the beginning of time, there was nothing but the chaos”after Chaos the earth appeared, called “gea”. When Gaia received the light, she came to life and began to engender the different elements as “the starry sky” which he called Uranusthen I create the mountains.

Seeing Uranus the great effort that his mother Gea was making, shed tears who became one rain that watered the earth, causing the appearance of plants, herbs, trees, etc. The water that ran down the slopes filled the rivers and these generated lagoons, lakes and the sea. The sea was endowed with life with beings that were called Titans and Titanides.

Other children were the cyclops, Arges, Astéropes and Brontes, immortal beings with a horrendous aspect and bearers of only one eye. They also begot the hecatonchires3 brothers possessing 50 heads and arms, each of them.

The night he fathered Hypno (sleep), Thanatos (death) and Hesperides (guardian of the sunsets).

The Titan Chrono (time) united with the Titanide Rhea (fertility), but soon a cruel prophecy would make a dent in this union, since she predicted that one of her sons would be the one to dethrone her. Chronos began to devour all their children in order to prevent the fulfillment of said prophecy.

Nevertheless, Zeusson of Cronor got rid of death and stand up to his father. With the help of his brothers Zeus manages to defeat Cronusgiving rise to the creation on Mount Olympus of his abodeboth for Zeus and for his brothers and sons.

characteristics of the greek gods

The gods of Olympus were the most important gods of Greeceas we have already mentioned, they are called Olympic Gods because their abode was located on Mount Olympus. all the gods were members of the same family and they all had in common their desire for war and disputes.

the twelve gods they lived together in a huge palace located on top of mount. The gods chose this mountain because it was the highest in all of Greece and from there they could govern the designs of the Greek world. The temple or palace where the gods lived had been built by the cyclops in a palatial style it was bordered by a huge steep and impregnable wall.

some gods did not live on Mount Olympus, such was the case of Hades (God of the underworld), persephone (wife of Hades), these logically they lived underground. Another god who also did not live on Mount Olympus was Poseidon (god of the sea), he used to inhabit in the waters of the seasrivers, lakes and fountains.

The gods they were immortal, beautiful and perfectprovided with a body and therefore visible. The gods had a great resemblance to human beings in terms of appearance and also liked to live like them, with their strengths and weaknesses. Great passionate and formidable lovers.

when it came to discuss earthly mattersrelated to mortals, the gods met in a room where would I reach a agreement on the future of every mortal, matters like who would win such a war or who would be harshly punished. Most of the time, the gods devoted it to their pleasures, be it eating, drinking, falling in love, or seeking confrontations with one another.

Among the gods, episodes of anger, rage, thirst for revenge, ambition, envy, in short, were very common. they enjoyed the same bad habits and vices as mortals.

The gods they fed on nectar, they ate ragweed, cheese, barley and even olive oil. Although without a doubt their most precious food was the speckled mushrooms that appeared every time Zeus’ lightning struck the earth.

The character of the Greek gods was a true mystery, sometimes they were ruthlessproviding really harsh and violent punishmentswhile other times they were understanding and fair. The sacrifices often appeased the wrath of the godsother times it was piety with which they could win their favors.