Hellenismos



Hellenismos is a polytheistic religion that originates from Greece it follows a diverse hierarchy of deities the top of which being Zeus who is the King of the Gods. There are 14 main Gods that are called the Fourteen Olympians they reside (excluding Hades) atop Mount Olympus, The Olympians have helped forged Greece whether it be Athena who swayed the tide of battles or Demeter who has held and nourished man by feeding the earth with a harvest.

Although Hellenoismos believes in all Fourteen Olympians many Hellenites choose one of the Gods as a patron rather to praying to all that is why it is not uncommon to see gigantic pantheons erected in honor for one God. It also not uncommon to find only one pantheon in a city for example in Sparta there is only one pantheon and that is dedicated to Ares while in Vergina there is one pantheon dedicated Apollo.

The Fourteen Olympians
Zeus- Father of the Gods and of all Men, Ruler of the Olympians and Mount Olympus, God of Thunder and God of the Sky. Zeus is the son of Cronus and Rhea though Cronus planned to swallow Zeus and his siblings due to the fact that Chorus overcame his father and Chorus’s son, Zeus, was destined to overcome him. But when Zeus was about to be born, Rhea sought Gaia to devise a plan to save him, so that Cronus would get his retribution for his acts against Uranus and his own children. Rhea gave birth to Zeus in Crete, handing Cronus a rock wrapped in swaddling clothes, which he promptly swallowed. He was then secretly born in Crete and was raised in secrecy till manhood where he then forced Cronus to disgorge the first stone and freed his siblings. As a token of appreciation Zeus was given a thunderbolt he and his siblings then went to overthrow Cronus and the other titans these series of battles became known as the Titanomachy. After the victory the titans where banished to the dark underworld of Tartarus one of the Titans who fought against Zeus, Atlas, was forced to carry earth where he now stays to this day.

Poseidon- God of the Sea brother to Zeus. Poseidon is son of Cronus and Rhea at birth like the rest of his siblings (except Zeus) was swallowed whole until Zeus came and rescued the, He helped his brother banish the titans and his father Cronus. After the banishment of the Titans he moved on to what is now Athens where he and Athena competed for the role as patron God/Goddess, Athena offered a olive tree where Poseidon struck the ground with his trident and water sprang out the water was salty and not useful there the Athenians choose Athena. Poseidon fathered many children and laid with many women one of the most important or considered by many is the human Cleito who lived in a isolated island the two fathered five sets of twin boys the first Triton became first King of Atlantis.

Hades- God of the Underworld and eldest son of Cronus and Rhea. He helped his two brothers defeat the titans and Cronus and after Poseidon was given the sea and Zeus the sky Hades was given the underworld where he rules. He rules over the dead in the underworld with his wife, Persephone, he rules over Elysiums, Asphodel Meadows and Tartarus. Hades is the most feared out of all the Gods as he is mysterious and if someone tries to escape his grasp their souls will be his for eternity.

Apollo- Apollo is one of the most complex and important deities in Hellenismos he is God of Healing, Lights & Sun, Truth & Prophecy, Plague, Music and Poetry. He is the son of Zeus and Leto like his uncle, Poseidon, he fathered many children and laid with many women.

Artemis- Goddess of Hunt, Wild Animals, Wilderness, Childbirth, Virginity and Protector of Girls. She is twin sister to Apollo and daughter of Zeus and Demeter she is often shown carrying a bow and arrows.

Aphrodite-Goddess of Love, Beauty, Pleasure and Procreation. She is the daughter of Zeus and rumored to have been daughter of Dione, she has had many affairs and has mothered many children both deities and human.

Ares- God of War, Son of Zeus and Hera he often represents the violent side of war rather then Athena who represents Strategy and tactics. He usually embodies physical valor necessary for success in war, He is a dangerous force that’s overwhelming, insatiable in battle, destructive, and man-slaughtering. He is the patron God of same former city-states like Sparta which embodied what Ares himself represented, He is a known lover of Aphrodite and together he has fathered eight children.

Dionysus- God of Grapes, Wine, Harvest and winemaking, He is son of Zeus and Semele, He is the youngest God and he is the only God with a mortal mother. He is very lustful and has fathered over twenty children with different women, He is a leading figure in Greek culture in which many plays are often associated with him.

Hephaestus - God of Blacksmiths, Craftsmen, Artisans, Sculptors, Metals, Metallurgy, Fire and Volcanoes. He is son of Zeus and Hera, as God of Blacksmiths he makes weapons on Mount Olympus for the Gods he is also very famous amongst the slaves, freed slaves and the lower class workers.

Athena- Goddess of Wisdom, Law, Justice, Courage, Inspiration, Civilization, Strength, Mathematics, Strategy, The Arts, Crafts and Skill. She is daughter of Zeus and Metis, She is also considered behind Zeus as the most important deity in all of Hellenismos. She plays a primary role in the reunification Greece, She helped Athenian Strategoi in the Northern Wars. The Athenians named the city after her and with her guiding them the Athenians reunified most of Greece under her name. The current seal of the Kingdom of Athens has her face upon it and she is the Patron Goddess of not only Athens but of the entirety of the Kingdom of Athens.

Hermes- God of Transition and Boundaries son of Zeus and Pleiad Maia he is the second youngest God in the Pantheon of Mount Olympus and has played a keen role in the unification of Greece. He assisted King Periphas as he travelled to Athens and assisted King Alexander in the northern wars by sending messages and bribing enemy generals.

Demeter- Goddess of the Harvest she presided over grains and fertility, she is sometimes referred to as the patron Goddess of Thessaly as it is a primal area for wheat farming and supplies Greece with over 90% of Wheat that is grown in all of Greece.

Herstia- Goddess of Architecture, State, Family and Hearth, she is daughter to Cronus and Rhea and his sister to Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. She is often symbolized with heart and flames and is usually used as a patron to infants and young children.

Ascelpius- God of Medicine son of Apollo and Coronis he is one of the lesser of the Gods and is usually not considered one as his father already serves as God of Medicine. Although he did help in the Northern Wars and with the wars against Sparta and Crete.

The Creation
In the begining there was only chaos. Then out of the void appeared Erebus, the unknowable place where death dwells, and Night. All else was empty, silent, endless, darkness. Then somehow Love was born bringing a start of order. From Love came Light and Day. Once there was Light and Day, Gaea, the earth appeared.

Then Erebus slept with Night, who gave birth to Ether, the heavenly light, and to Day the earthly light. Then Night alone produced Doom, Fate, Death, Sleep, Dreams, Nemesis, and others that came out of the darkness.

Meanwhile Gaea alone gave birth to Uranus, the heavens. Uranus became Gaea’s mate covering her on all sides. Together they produced three Cyclopes, the three Hecactoncheires, and twelve Titans. However, Uranus was a bad father and husband. He hated the Hecatoncheires. He imprisoned them by pushing them into the hidden places of the earth, Gaea's womb. This angered Gaea and she ploted against Uranus. She made a flint sickle and tried to get her children to attack Uranus. All were too afraid except, the youngest Titan, Cronus. Gaea and Cronus set up an ambush of Uranus as he lay with Gaea at night. Cronus grabed his father and castrated him, with the stone sickle, throwing the severed genitales into the ocean. The fate of Uranus is not clear. He either died, withdrew from the earth, or exiled himself to Italy. As he departed he promised that Cronus and the Titans would be punished. From his spilt blood came the Giants, the Ash Tree Nymphs, and the Erinyes. From the sea foam where his genitales fell came, Aphrodite.

Cronus became the next ruler. He imprisoned the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires in Tartarus. He married his sister Rhea, under his rule the Titans had many offspring. He ruled for many ages. However, Gaea and Uranus both had prophesied that he would be overthrown by a son. To avoid this Cronus swallowed each of his children as they were born. Rhea was angry at the treatment of the children and ploted against Cronus. When it came time to give birth to her sixth child, Rhea hid herself, then she left the child to be raised by nymphs. To concel her act she wrapped a stone in swaddling cloths and passed it off as the baby to Cronus, who swallowed it.

This child was Zeus He grew into a handsome youth on Crete. He consulted Metis on how to defeat Cronus. She prepaired a drink for Cronus design to make him vomit up the other children. Rhea convinced Cronus to accept his son and Zeus was allowed to return to Mount Olympus as Cronus's cupbearer. This gave Zeus the opertunity to slip Cronus the specially prepaired drink. This worked as planned and the other five children were vomitted up. Being gods they were unharmed. They were thankful to Zeus and made him their leader.

Cronus was yet to be defeated. He and the Titans, except Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Oceanus, fought to retain their power. Atlas became their leader in battle and it looked for some time as though they would win and put the young gods down. However, Zeus was cunning. He went down to Tartarus and freed the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires. Prometheus joined Zeus as well. He returned to battle with his new allies. The Cyclopes provided Zeus with lighting bolts for weapons. The Hecatoncheires he set in ambush armed with boulders. With the time right, Zeus retreated drawing the Titans into the Hecatoncheires's ambush. The Hecatoncheires rained down hundreds of boulders with such a fury the Titans thought the mountains were falling on them. They broke and ran giving Zeus victory.

Zeus exiled the Titans who had fought against him into Tartarus. Except for Atlas, who was singled out for the special punishment of holding the world on his shoulders. However, even after this victory Zeus was not safe. Gaea angry that her children had been imprisoned gave birth to a last offspring, Typhoeus. Typhoeus was so fearsome that most of the gods fled. However, Zeus faced the monster and flinging his lighting bolts was able to kill it. Typhoeus was burried under Mount Etna in Sicily. Much later a final challenge to Zeus rule was made by the Giants. They went so far as to attempt to invade Mount Olympus, piling mountain upon mountain in an effort to reach the top. But, the gods had grown strong and with the help of Heracles the Giants were subdued or killed.

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