Ancient Greek Religion: Rituals, Olympian Deities, and the Role of City-States

Religion was an important element of ancient Greek society. The rituals involved varied according to the major deity of a particular city. The earlier ancient religion was gloomy in general, while the Olympians (Zeus and his associates), the new arrivals during the Bronze Age, were more joyful and full of praise. Unlike the Near East and Egypt, where priests and religions dominated and controlled the state, in Greece the city-states controlled and dominated religion and the priesthood.

The priests became minor officials in these Greek city-states, with temples property audited and controlled by the state. Unlike in the Near East, there was no hereditary hierarchy of priests, and they were all viewed as separate and equal. There was no specified place of worship, and nearly any site, natural or manmade, could be used. The temple was reserved for the gods, with other spirits worshiped throughout the lands in groves, caves, mountains, and even random spots of land, often without any kind of structure, just an alter or statue. Religious ceremonies were written down and performed in precise detail. Since any alteration of a ceremony might upset the god, it was followed consistently year after year. The ceremony was accompanied by music, which allowed the ritual to follow a similar pattern; in many ways, then, music and religion became interchangeable.

In the ceremony, a procession, including chanting, would arrive at the altar, where prayers and a sacrifice were offered. The sacrifice, presenting something to a god or goddess, might be an object such as a tripod, furniture, cauldron, or something of value, or an animal (rarely humans) that was slaughtered and burned as an offering. In Homeric legend, Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter, Iphigenia, while Achilles executed twelve Trojan youths for Patroclus. Themistocles sacrificed Persian captives at Salamis. Animal sacrifice soon replaced human sacrifice, allowing an alternative system. This would become the dominant form throughout the Classical period.

The gods of ancient Greece fell into a variety of categories based upon the era, location, and culture. In addition to the later Olympian gods, which arrived with the Dorian invasions after the Mycenaean period, a large number of minor deities existed, many of which were the former major deities, but now relegated beneath the new gods. One of the earliest invading Greek gods were associated with the sky, ultimately becoming Uranus, or the Heavens, and the rainmaker Zeus, associated with thunder.

The sun god Helios appears to have been the only minor deity, probably since, unlike rain that was needed and scarce, the Sun was always there. During Classical Greece, the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars were rarely worshipped. More relevant were the gods of the Earth, or those associated with land. One of the earliest was Gaea, the Earth goddess, made pregnant from the rain of Uranus. The Earth had numerous local gods in trees, mountains, rivers, lakes, and surrounding regions.

The Greeks believed that their gods were automorphic, and they never engaged in the animal varieties seen in Egypt. There were nevertheless some representations of animals, the most famous being the bull, known for its strength and virility. Zeus often took its form. Although the Minoans may or may not have worshipped the bull, they did honor it with games and representations. This may point to an earlier association with worship of the bull. The pig, an animal associated with Demeter, was a sign of fertility and also may have been worshipped. The python snake was venerated as well, in early Delphi, where Apollo would ultimately become victorious. The snake was also sacred on Crete, as well as in Athens, which offered a honey cake to the serpent, not only during the festival but as a regular offering. The snake was viewed as a protector of the home or temple.

Oak trees and groves were seen as especially sacred. The Nereids, Naiads, and Oceanides resided in rivers, lakes, or the sea. The gods Maeander and Spercheas often gave the name to local rivers and streams. The names given to the winds, later in Greek maritime manuals, came from the early gods, such as Zephyr, Eurus, Boreas, or Notus, who were controlled by their master, Aeolus. One of the great nature/land gods was Pan, the sensual god, who had horns and played his magic flute. He was attended by fauns and satyrs, half-man, half-goats, who were known for wisdom.

Fertility was a crucial part of Greek worship, as it was in nearly every religion. The power of fertility, associated with the symbols of male and female reproductive organs, were worshipped so as there would be productive, fertile, lands. The most common and powerful symbol of reproduction was the phallus. The symbol appears in the worship of rites of numerous gods, such as Demeter, Dionysus, and even the virgin Artemis. It occurs in regular frequency in art, and even was associated with the Great Dionysia in Athens during the dramatic festival in which comedy, tragedy, and satyric drama occurred. Women were a crucial part in fertility rites, as witnessed with the story of Demeter and her daughter, Persephone, and the various seasons.

The story had that when Persephone was taken by Hades as his wife to the underworld, the land fell barren because Demeter did not allow crops to grow. Zeus intervened and Persephone would return to her mother for half of the year. When she returned, spring and summer occurred, but when she left and went back to Hades in the underworld, fall and winter came.

To the ancient Greeks, and probably most societies, the gods of the underworld brought fear and trepidation. The caves and chambers of the ground housed the gods of the Underworld, and the Greeks worshipped them at night with fear. Most of these gods were non- anthropomorphic and struck fear into the hearts and minds of the Greeks. In later Greek mythology, there was the anthropomorphic brother of Zeus, Hades or Pluto as the Greeks called him. To ensure his favor, since he also gave the fruits of the earth, he was worshipped and offered sacrifices. A more feared god was Hecate, who was viewed as evil and arose from the lower world to bring misfortune. Many of the early Greeks sacrificed puppies to her to keep her away.

Throughout Greek history, superstition, magic, and sacrifice were vital components of religion. This was the link between the common people and the unknown. The stories of great heroes and their artifacts allowed the Greek ruling elites to control the political story. This often led to superstition, which could promote the psyche of the people or the city. This is best seen in the development of oracles, which advised people and states of future possible action. These powers were held by women who had the gift of divination.

Associated with this was the idea of morality in religion. Greek religion was based on magic, not ethics. Rituals rather than good conduct, as witnessed by the gods’ behaviors, were paramount. Nevertheless, there were some aspects of good behavior or codes in the religious makeup of the society. The rites of purification promoted good hygiene; the gods promoted some good moral behaviors. They frowned upon arrogance and protected the stranger. Religion promoted the growth of the state through procreation and the safety of the state by adherence to local traditions.

In the early Greek world, the departed dead were spirits who were either good or evil. Although not proper gods, they were honored. By the Classical Age, the dead were not loved but feared, and they were honored through rites that warded them off rather than welcoming them to a city. This then gave rise to the worship of heroes, great men and women. Cities worshipped different heroes, such as Helen at Sparta or Oedipus at Colonus. Many of these gods and heroes were associated with the religion of Mycenae and were soon overlaid by the new Dorian gods, the Olympians.

The older gods, like the Mycenaeans, had been defeated but not destroyed. For instance, at Dodona, the goddess Gaea was replaced by Zeus, while at Delphi, Apollo became supreme. The defeated gods were often subjected to the Underground and were worshipped by the local indigenous populations. The elites or Dorians, who brought the Olympian gods with them, celebrated their deities in the Homeric poems. Along with Homer and Hesiod, poets spread the new Olympian religion until it not only took hold, but dominated the new states. Many of the previous gods were not subject to or associated with the new gods. Satyrs went to Dionysus; sea nymphs to Poseidon; and the mountains and forests to Artemis.

The new religion had Zeus as its leader, who had overthrown the earlier leaders, Uranus and Cronus. Zeus took the sky, while his brothers Poseidon and Pluto had the sea and the Underworld, respectively. This mythology does not have a creation story since the world was already established. This was akin to the realities of the new political situation since the Dorians had overrun the already established Mycenean world.

These gods, although powerful, had their limits. Zeus became known for his numerous amorous affairs. His first mate was Dione of Epirus, whom he left for the Thessalian Olympians so that his list of paramours may in fact show the migration route of the Dorians from the west via Epirus. At Olympus, he married Metis, but he was told that her children would overthrow him, so he swallowed her and took her wisdom. Athena then sprang out from his head, fully grown and armored, as the goddess of wisdom. He mated with many others, who begot the Muses, the Graces, Apollo, Leto, and Artemis. He then married his sister, Hera, who became queen of Olympus; by her, Zeus had Hebe, Ares, Hephaestus, and Eileithyia. He and Hera were not compatible so he sought out mortals.

Some of Zeus’s children become honored as gods and goddesses of cities in their own right. Athena, known for her wisdom, became an important deity. More widely worshipped was her brother Apollo. He was the god of music, poetry, art, and the Sun. He established cities and made laws. He appropriated the earlier powers of Gaea and Phoebe at Delphi. His sister, Artemis, was goddess of the chaste and animals. The offspring of Hera, whether by Zeus or unaided, was Hephaestion, who constructed the homes for the gods on Olympus because of his skill in building. When Zeus became angered by him, he threw Hephaestion down to Lemnos. As a result, he injured his ankle and limped for the rest of his life. Zeus and Hera’s son Ares the god of war was not viewed as intelligent.

Hermes was formed from a stone evolving into a grave stele, then into a boundary stone differentiating fields, and then into a phallus. From there, he became a Herm or pillar, with a head and phallus. This often marked a crossroad, showing he was the god of both travelers and messengers. Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty, was also known in the Near East and Cyprus as a goddess of reproduction. A late god was Dionysus, the god of wine and merriment.

These and other gods celebrated the world of the Greeks. Some, like Dionysus, enacted the Mysteries, ancient, secret rites that brought forth the mystical, revealed the sacred symbols. These ceremonies were meant to show the rebirth of the soul in a dark afterlife.

The Greek religion was based on ritual and formula in a world of superstition. The various gods throughout its history had distinct purposes and functions that helped explain the world and allowed the Greeks to seek help when disturbed. By appeasing a particular god or goddess, they could help their home city or area.