Zeus: Myths, Power & Facts

Zeus: Myths, Powers & Facts | Zeus was the supreme ruler of Greek gods | image: ancientpages.com

Zeus was the king of all Greek Olympian gods and goddesses – the gods that lived on Mount Olympus. Ancient Greeks worshiped him as the god of the sky, thunder, lightning and justice. Married to the goddess Hera, Zeus’ symbols include: a bull, a thunderbolt, an eagle, and the oak tree. He was the son of Cronus and Rhea. In ancient Roman Mythology, Zeus was seen as the equivalent of the Roman supreme god, Jupiter.

Below, we present the myths, power and interesting facts about Zeus- the king of Greek pantheon of gods.

How Powerful is Zeus?

The amount of magical powers wielded by Zeus was just unimaginable. Perhaps, Zeus’ greatest power was his ability to throw bolts of lightning. He had a winged horse named Pegasus who carried his lightning bolts. His magical eagle was also trained to retrieve the lightning bolts whenever he required them. The eagle in particular would go on and become one of the commonest symbols of Zeus.

Using his mighty powers, Zeus was also a master of the weather. He had the hostilities of the weather at his fingertips. He controlled the weather by invoking rains and storms.

Aside being the boss of the atmosphere, Zeus had the ability to mimic the voices of people. We can say he was a great vocalist. As if that wasn’t enough, Zeus could alter his shape to resemble anything he wanted; he could assume the form of an animal or a person. Another power of his was the ability to turn human beings into animals. This was his preferred way of punishing people who angered him.

Siblings and Children

In Greek mythology, it was believed that Zeus had quite a large family. He was the youngest of his two brothers. Even though he was the youngest, he possessed all greatness. Zeus had several sisters, all of who were goddesses. The eldest of Zeus’ brothers was called Hades. Hades ruled the Underworld – the land of the dead. However, Hades was no match for Zeus when it came to strength. Poseidon was the name of Zeus’ other brother. Poseidon was the god of the sea, water, earthquakes and horses. Zeus had other siblings, namely Demeter, Hestia and Hera.

As it was common during the first and second generational gods, Zeus married his sister, the goddess Hera. Hera was often portrayed as being jealous and having a strong dislike for infidelity. Hera often exacted vengeance on all the deities and humans Zeus had affair with. Hera’s wrath also rained down upon the children that came out of Zeus’ extramarital affairs.

Zeus begot a number of children. Some of his popular children include the Olympic gods: Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Hermes, Athena, Aphrodite and Dionysus. Those are not all the children Zeus had. He had other famous children namely, the Muses, Helen of Troy, and the Graces. One scary thing about the children of Zeus is that, some of them were animals and half human. Zeus also had children that were half gods and half humans. Examples of such demigods include Greek heroes Perseus, Hercules, and Sarpedon. The latter, according to the Iliad, a work by ancient Greek poet Homer, is described as the warrior who tragically died fighting in the Trojan War.

Read More: 9 Most Famous Sons of Zeus

Zeus’ family tree

Zeus’ Family Tree | Olympian gods and goddesses | Names in blue are the Olympians; in some cases Hestia, the goddess of the hearth, and Hephaestus, the god of forges and fire, are excluded from the list of Olympian gods and goddesses

How did Zeus become King of the Greek Olympian gods?

Let’s now look at how Zeus became the king of all Greek Olympian gods. His mum and dad were the Titan gods named Cronus and Rhea. Zeus’ father Cronus always knew that his children had superpowers. Due to his irrational fear of his growing children, who would become too powerful (perhaps, greater than himself), Cronus decided to eat all five of them.

The children didn’t die but lived in his stomach. They could not escape from his stomach either. Luckily enough, Zeus (the almighty one) wasn’t born at that time.

Knowing the danger that could befall her newly born son, Rhea (Zeus’ mother) hid him from Cronus – her husband. Zeus was consequently raised in a forest by Nymphs. Nymphs were minor goddesses or spirits which inhabited natural environments such as mountains and rivers.

When Zeus grew up and heard of how his father swallowed up his brothers and sisters alive, he was deeply troubled. He became desperate to free his siblings from the captivity of their father. His exceptional power and bravery were some of the things that edged him to take this tough decision of challenging his father.

Zeus liberates his siblings

Acting with wisdom, Zeus disguised himself before making his way home. This would trick his dad not to recognize him; he would then be in a comfortable position to carry his mission of rescuing his siblings. When he got home, Zeus gave a potion to his father to drink.

Unknown to Cronus, the potion contained medicinal and magical powers. When his father drank the mystical drink, he coughed up the five siblings of Zeus – Hades, Hestia, Poseidon, Demeter and Hera. Zeus outwitted his father and the other Titan gods.

Cronos disgorging Zeus’ siblings

Clash of the gods

When Zeus played these disrespectful tricks on his father, Cronus became mad and set forth to fight Zeus with assistance from the Titan gods. A battle lasting several years was fought between Zeus’ camp (that included all his siblings) and the old gods (the Titans) led by Cronus.

However, it was too late. Zeus had already become an unbeatable god. Zeus also enlisted giants and Cyclopes of the Earth to help him fight his father and the Titans. Weapons were given to Zeus by the giants to fight Cronus and his fellow Titans. It was now a battle between Olympians and Titans.

By combining powers, it was easy for Zeus and his Olympians to defeat the Titans in a fierce battle called the Titanomachy. Zeus could boast of thunder and lighting, Poseidon had a powerful trident (a three-pronged spear), and Hades was blessed with invisibility powers.

Read More: The 12 Titans in Greek Mythology

Zeus leads the Olympians to victory

The battle became too intense for the Titans. Eventually, Cronus and his Titans surrendered. Zeus, after conquering his father’s army, locked them up, deep in an underground prison (Tartarus) in the Underworld.

The callousness of Zeus vexed Mother Earth (Gaia). She called Typhon (a fearsome monster) to fight the Olympians. It was only Zeus who stood firmly, fighting and defeating Typhon. The others backed out. Zeus trapped Typhon and put him under Mount Etna. This was how Mount Etna became a very turbulent volcanic mountain.

Having conquered all the other gods, Zeus became their king. He went ahead to make his home on Mount Olympus with his fellow gods. There, he married Hera and reigned over all the gods and humans.

Read More: List of Roman Gods and the Greek Equivalents

Other Interesting Zeus Myths

Here a few more myths about Zeus, the all-father god in Greek mythology:

• Zeus was the keeper of oaths. He disliked dishonest people.
• In the Trojan War, Zeus supported the Trojans while his wife, Hera, supported the Greeks.
• He initially married the Titan Metin but swallowed her for fear that she would give birth to powerful children.
• The Ancient Greek Olympic Games were held in the honor of Zeus.
• Another very interesting Zeus myths and facts is that Zeus was an extremely unfaithful husband to wife Hera.
• For his crimes and trickery, Zeus instructed his eagle to feast on the Titan Prometheus‘ liver every day. The king of the Olympian gods meted out this punishment to Prometheus because he had given fire to mankind.