Beliefs and Customs

Like other ancient peoples, the Greeks were polytheistic—they worshiped many gods. But you won't find gods with animal heads in Greece as you did in Egypt. Greek gods looked like humans, yet were more powerful and more beautiful than any human could be.

Greek Gods and Myths

ESSENTIAL QUESTION What was Greek religion like?

To the Greeks, the gods were not distant beings. They became involved in people's lives, and the Greeks loved to tell stories about them. These vivid tales showed that the gods were sometimes cruel and selfish.

The Gods of Greece

The Greek gods had both divine and human qualities. For example, they were very powerful and could shape human events. Yet they had a wide range of human emotions, including love, anger, and jealousy. The gods and goddesses of Greece constantly competed with one another.

Zeus (ZOOS) was the ruler of the gods. The Greeks believed that he and 11 other major gods and goddesses lived on Mount Olympus (uh•LIHM•puhs), the highest mountain in Greece. The Greeks also worshiped many less-important gods.

Each city had a special god or goddess to protect it. For example, Athena (one of the 12 who lived on Olympus) was the protector of Athens. She was the goddess of wisdom, a warrior, and the patron of crafts such as weaving.

Greek Mythology

Myths are stories that people tell to explain beliefs about their world. Myths often begin as oral stories. Later they might be written down.

The Greeks created myths to explain the creation of the world and of human beings. Many myths described the gods and goddesses and how they related to one another and to humans. For example, the myth of Prometheus (pruh•MEE•thee•uhs) tells how he stole fire from the gods and gave it to humans. Zeus punished him for this by chaining him to a rock. Every day, an eagle ate his liver—which grew back every night. Today, Prometheus is seen as a hero who defied unjust authority.

Other myths portrayed Greek heroes and heroines. The Reader's Theater on pages 366–369 is based on the myth of a young woman named Atalanta, who was a skilled hunter and runner.

Honoring the Gods

ESSENTIAL QUESTION How did the Greeks honor their gods?

Like other ancient peoples, the Greeks believed it was important to honor the gods. An angry god could cause trouble. The Greeks created statues of the gods and built temples as places for the gods to live. They also held special events to honor the gods.

Holy Festivals Certain days of each month were holy to different gods and goddesses or to aspects of nature. For example, each month began with the new moon, and the festival of Noumenia was held. People celebrated holy days with sacrifices and public ceremonies.

The most important festivals honored the 12 Olympian gods. For example, there was a great festival to honor Athena. A new robe was woven for her statue in the main temple. The festival also included a procession, races and other athletic games, and poetry recitals.

The Olympics

In Greece, games were always part of religious festivals. The largest and most elaborate of these were the Olympics . The Olympics were games held every four years as part of a major festival that honored Zeus. They took place in a stadium built in the city of Olympia. Only men competed in these contests.

The oldest records of winners at the Olympics date to 776 B.C. But the games might have been going on for centuries before that. The first Olympics included only a foot race. Over time, longer races and other events were added. Events included wrestling, the long jump, the javelin throw, and the discus throw. These games tested skills that were valuable to soldiers.

Unmarried girls competed in a festival to honor the goddess Hera. Hera was Zeus' wife, and her festival was held at the same time as the Olympics. This festival featured a foot race in three different age categories.

Early Greek Literature

ESSENTIAL QUESTION What literature did the early Greeks produce?

In addition to stories about gods, the Greeks told stories about their ancient heroes. Much of what we know about the early Greeks comes from stories passed down through generations and from long poems that told stories. These long poems are called epic poems. According to tradition, a blind man, Homer, composed the most famous epics.

Epics of Homer

Homer's epic the Iliad is about the Trojan War, which started because a Trojan stole a Greek king's wife. In the Iliad, the Greeks surrounded the city of Troy for more than nine years, trying to capture it. The Iliad is famous for its portrayal of heroes. For example, no one could defeat the Greek warrior Achilles (uh•KIHL•eez). When he was a baby, his mother dipped him in a river that would make him live forever. But an arrow wounded Achilles in his one weak spot—the heel his mother held as she lowered him in the water—so he died.

For centuries, people thought Homer's story was fiction. Around 1870, archaeologists discovered the ruins of ancient Troy. A real war did take place there, but it did not happen exactly as the Iliad portrays it.

Homer's other major epic was the Odyssey. It describes the adventures of the Greek hero Odysseus (oh•DIHS•YOOS) after the Trojan War. The Greek gods decided that Odysseus' trip home should take ten years. During that time, he and his men encountered many dangers. The gods sometimes helped Odysseus and sometimes worked against him.

These ancient stories still influence speech and art today. For instance, we use the phrase Achilles' heel to refer to a person's weakest area.

Aesop's Fables

A fable is a short story, usually involving animals, that teaches a moral lesson. A storyteller named Aesop (EE•suhp) is credited with writing down many ancient Greek fables.

One of Aesop's best-known fables is "The Hare and the Tortoise." In it, a hare (rabbit) makes fun of a tortoise (turtle) for being slow. The tortoise challenges the hare to a race. The hare is so sure he will win that he lies down for a nap. The tortoise never stops but goes at a slow, steady pace to the finish line. The hare wakes up too late for his speed to save him. We still use this story today to encourage people to work steadily at a task that seems impossible to accomplish.

Lesson Summary

• The ancient Greeks created stories about their gods, who were important to their daily lives.

• The ancient Greeks honored their gods through festivals that included rituals and athletic games.

• Early Greeks wrote fables and epic poems.

Why It Matters Now . . .

Greek mythology, epics, and fables continue to influence our literature, language, and movies.