Who is Zeus? – A Brief Overlook at the Chief God of Mount Olympus

When you are a polytheist who follows the beliefs and practices of the Ancient Greeks, you must have a profound knowledge of the Ancient Gods, Goddesses, myths, other important figures, rituals and the way all of these things fit together. While most regions of Greece and the rest of the polytheistic world worshipped specific Gods, Goddesses, Heroes, and other important immortal figures, the knowledge of those not as heavily worshipped was nonetheless known.

One of the most worshipped Gods in the Ancient World was Zeus. Zeus was known by the name Jupiter by the Ancient Romans. He was also considered the King of the Gods and the Chief God of Mount Olympus. In all honesty, for those of us who worship Zeus, he still is. Zeus is the God of law, weather, fate, the sky and order. The symbols for Zeus are the lightning bolt, the eagle, the bull, and the royal scepter.

Zeus was born to the leader of the twelve Titans, Cronus and his wife/sister Rhea. The story of Zeus begins long before he is born, with the birth of his father Cronus, God of Time and Ages. Also known as Saturn (Roman), Cronus was born to Ouranos (Uranus) the God of the Sky and Gaia (Terra), the Goddess of the Earth. Gaia and Ouranos had six boys and six girls, known as the twelve Titans. Gaia also gave birth to three giant children known as the Kyklopes (Cyclops) and three giant children known as the Hekatonkeires. The latter three are the Gods of violent storms.

When the six giant children were born, Ouranos was disgusted with them. He banished the Hekatonkeires and the Kyklopes to Tartarus. This is the stormy pit that is located beneath the Earth and is ruled by Tartaros. Tartaros is a protogenos (primordial) God. This means that he was one of the first Gods in existence. He is also the brother of Gaia. It should be noted that while the primordial Gods have been described in human form, the primary belief is that each is a representation of their elemental form (i.e. Gaia is the Earth, Ouranos is the sky, Tartaros is Tartarus). Ouranos left the care of his six children in the capable hands of Tartaros not realizing that his wife Gaia’s discontent would lead to his downfall.

With Gaia guiding Cronus on the path towards overthrowing his father in order to free his six, giant brothers, Ouranos was first castrated and then deposed of by his son, who became the ruler of the Titans in what was known as the “Golden Age”. Unfortunately for Cronus, he feared his brothers, the Kyklopes and the Hekatonkeires so much that he kept them in Tartarus, much to the displeasure of his mother, Gaia.

The disgruntled Gaia took great pride in informing her traitorous son Cronus that he would be overthrown by one of his children in a similar manner to the way he overthrew Ouranos. To prevent this from happening, every time Rhea gave birth to one of their children, Cronus swallowed them whole. Rhea was not very happy about her husband eating their children. Together, with Gaia, Rhea formed a plan to sneak her youngest child, Zeus, to a safe location. The two women vowed for retribution at the loss of their children, at the hands of their husbands.

Zeus was born on Crete and was hidden by his mother in a cave on Mount Ida. Though myths vary upon whom or what raised Zeus, the major consensus is that he was brought up by his grandmother, Gaia. When Cronus asked Rhea if he could see his son, she had swaddled a rock in blankets and without even looking at his son, the fearful Cronus swallowed the rock whole, assuming it was Zeus.

Zeus did not act with stealth force the way Cronus had with his own father. Instead, with the help of Gaia, Zeus poisoned his father, forcing him to regurgitate the rock as well as his older brothers and sisters. In all, Poseidon (Neptune), Hades (Pluto), Hestia (Vesta), Demeter (Ceres) and Hera (Juno) emerged. Zeus released his giant uncles from Tartarus. The Titanomachy was fought and Zeus, along with his siblings and the giants defeated the Titans. This is how Zeus became the Father God and how he came to rule, making his home with the Twelve Olympian Gods on Mount Olympus.

The stone, which had been used to trick Cronus into believing it was his son, was set down upon the Earth, in the glens of Mount Parnassus. This was done as a reminder of the story of Zeus and his defeat of his greedy father, Cronus, for mortal men to learn from and so they could avoid such greed in their own lives. In thanks, the Kyklopes forged the thunderbolts that Gaia had hidden away and presented them to Zeus as a gift. Zeus was also given rule over the skies and the weather thanks to the giants.

Zeus was a lover of many things. Though he was considered to be married to his sister, Hera, he had many love affairs with both mortals and Gods alike. He also was known for having male lovers, as well, and for many other things, including being the Father (Chief God) of the Olympics.

Who is Zeus? He’s the greatest of Gods and one I am proud to worship. Though I’ve just touched briefly upon his life in this article, stay tuned for more information on Zeus as I explore his loves, losses, and children in part two of my series on the Greek Gods.

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