More often than not, ancient Greek mythology (religion) served to explain a series of legends. Different from modern religions such as Christianity, Judaism, or Islam, ancient Greek religion was an anthropomorphic polytheism, meaning that ancient Greeks believed in a multitude of individual divine figures that took on human forms and emotions.1 Furthermore, ancient Greek mythology lacked much of the asceticism and mystical enthusiasm that is more commonly seen in modern religions. Most of the highly developed anthropomorphic and comparative rationalism of the ancient Greek religious thought can be accredited to Homer with the aid of his Iliad and Odyssey.2
The people of the ancient Greek civilization were often in a state of weakness under the power of nature; therefore, they relied heavily on the divine individuals of Olympus. Why? They believed that the forces of nature were under the control of their gods. In short, the relationship between humans and divine beings was that of a retribution justice.3 If humans did anything to offend the gods, then those gods would strike back in some sort of fashion to restore justice.4 Therefore, humans were constantly looking to please the gods in fear of their wrath.
Out of the ancient Greek mythology came the god of the dead and the underworld, Hades. Hades had five other siblings: Zeus, Poseidon, Demeter, Hera, and Hestia, and they were all children of Cronus and Rhea.5 After defeating their parents (the Titans), Hades drew lots with Zeus and Poseidon to gain their respective domains. Hades was commonly thought to be a cold god, but he was never considered to be an evil divine figure. Furthermore, it is important to note that his realm, the underworld, should not be associated with the hell of Christianity.6 However, Hades was for the most part feared by all. Another name for the ancient Greek god was Ploutos and later adopted by the Romans as Pluto.7
The god of the underworld was the husband of Persephone (Zeus’s and Demeter’s daughter). Although she was Hades’ wife, she only lived with him during the winter time.8 Persephone was the divine goddess of agriculture and fertility. Therefore, the ancient Greeks accredited the change in nature (winter) to Persephone moving to the underworld. Persephone was unable to stay with Hades at all times due to interference from her mother Demeter. Zeus, however, was okay with the marriage of Hades and Persephone. Therefore, in order to set up the marriage, Zeus had to trick Persephone, so she could be abducted by Hades.9 However, Demeter interfered, and that is why Persephone spends half of the year with Demeter and the other half with Hades.
Furthermore, it is important to note the Greek perspective of the afterlife. Perspectives about the afterlife varied from each other based on their region in Greece as well as their time period in Greek history. The consensus was that the underworld was neither heaven nor hell.10 The sense that exists within Christianity, for example, was not present during the time of the ancient Greeks. Although Tartarus was present as a location within the underworld, the Greeks would not compare it to the equivalent of Christian hell. The way the Greeks saw it, the underworld was a place that everyone ended up after death.11 However, there were a few, including the philosopher Epicurus, that believed that the underworld did not exist at all. He believed that when the body died, the soul died with the body as well.12 A good portion of Greeks refused to believe such a pessimistic perspective of the afterlife. However, even the Greek traditional perspective of the underworld was not as popular despite many Greeks believing in it.
- Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 2016 s.v., “Greek Religion and Mythology.” ↵
- Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 2016 s.v., “Greek Religion and Mythology.” ↵
- Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 2016 s.v., “Greek Religion and Mythology.” ↵
- Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 2016 s.v., “Greek Religion and Mythology.” ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, January, 2015, “Hades (deity),” by Joseph, Michael, DMin. ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, January, 2015, “Hades (deity),” by Joseph, Michael, DMin. ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, January, 2015, “Hades (deity),” by Joseph, Michael, DMin. ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, January, 2015, “Hades (deity),” by Joseph, Michael, DMin. ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, January, 2015, “Hades (deity),” by Joseph, Michael, DMin. ↵
- The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece, 2007, s.v. “Underworld,” by Robert B. Kebric. ↵
- The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece, 2007, s.v. “Underworld,” by Robert B. Kebric. ↵
- The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece, 2007, s.v. “Underworld,” by Robert B. Kebric. ↵
186 comments
Bryan Martin Patino
The article although well written, I feel like it could have focused a bit more on who Hades was instead of just giving random facts mixed in with the entire overview of Greek mythology. I also felt that the inclusion of the philosopher was irrelevant. The article was a bit more about the whole religion then it was about Hades but it was nice to read a different interpretation of his marriage.
Fumei P.
I liked this article because it was short and to the point. I like how the author emphasized the fact that Hades is not like the Christian hell. I liked the short background on how the belief in the Gods came about, and how Winter in associated with Persephone leaving to visit Hades in the underworld. The underworld reminds me of the Buddhist hell where people get whipped and boil the only difference is that the punishments don’t last an eternity.
Derek Esquivel
I enjoyed this article very much because of how the author was able to actually explain how Hades was put into the position of being in control of the whole underworld and how the others also got their parts. Another interesting thing about this article is that the author also points out how Greek religion isn’t a part of the Christian religion in how Christian hell is not the same thing as the underworld. I personally have always thought that the underworld was the Greeks representation of hell, but, I guess you learn something new every day.
Natalie Childs
This was a great article. The article did a good job of setting up the story of Hades by explaining Greek ‘religion’, how the Greeks viewed the Gods and the story of how Hades became ruler of the underworld. I like how it challenged our contemporary view of hell and put it in the perspective that the Greeks had when this myth was born.
Caroline Bush
I really enjoyed this article and loved the detail that was put into it. I have always found Greek Mythology interesting and I loved how the article didn’t describe Hades as a typical bad guy. I had always thought that Hades had come to rule the underworld due to a punishment from Zeus or that he was simply a devil like character in Greek mythology. I found it interesting how the Greeks didn’t view the underworld as hell or even consider Hades the devil. instead he was viewed simply as the god of the underworld who had come to rule it after drawing lots with his fellow gods. I also found it interesting how the Greeks viewed the underworld and how the anger of the gods was an explanation for any natural disaster.
Erin Vento
This was a really cool article!! I liked how compared the greek mythology/religious figures to other divine figures as a comparison. Specifically, I like how you noted how he was not seen as an evil entity, like other religious figures that are similar are because when you watch movies and he is involved, they usually portrayed as evil. Overall, it gave a nicer perspective on Hades.
Dayna Valdez
I really enjoy reading about greek mythology. It was a great and well written article and I always find topics like these interesting. I really liked that you write about his family and his afterlife. I also enjoyed your conclusion about his afterlife and including Christianity throughout the article. Overall, you did a really good job at including different religions in one!
Cameron Ramirez
The Greek and Roman gods have always fascinated me. Hades the god of the underworld has been directed in many different ways by many civilizations and even in today’s pop culture. Can you imagine thinking that winter and spring were all the result of Hades’ wife leaving Earth and going to the underworld? It must have been very interesting being a person living in those times. Your article made sense and it was well written. Overall nice work on the article on Hades.
Aaiyanna Johnson
I enjoyed this article, and how much it went into detail. Although I already had some knowledge of Hades, it was joyous reading of him again. I find Hades to be one of the most misunderstood Gods of Greek Mythology. He is depicted as angry, but he is also one of the most popular and recognizable amongst all the Gods.
Zeresh Haman
I really enjoyed this article, it was something different. I didn’t know that Hades was married, that really is an interesting fact. I think it is always fascinating to read about the Greek gods, all of their stories are some how linked and connected. I love how different the Greek out look on death is, its cool to be able to compare their views to the ones that we have as Christians.