Hades - The Greek Deity

In practically every religion practiced throughout time there is the concept of good and evil. In the case of Hades, the underworld was his domain but was he the embodiment of evil?

Hades - The Greek Deity

Hades is an important term in many cultures. Aside from being the name of Hades, the Greek diety of the underworld, it is also a name given to the underworld itself. Christians have adapted the term "Hades" to mean a place, such as hell, where souls that have fallen from grace reside. While in Greece, Hades originally just meant the name of the diety, eventually, the term "Haidou" (the House of Hades) was shortened to Hades as well, so the name took on the meaning of the Greek Underworld.

Hades' name in Greek literally means "unseen", and it is said that Hades was born of two of the Titans, Chronos and Rhea. Hades had three older sisters, Hestia, Demeter and Hera; he also had two brothers, Poseidon and Zeus. Zeus was the only of his siblings to be born outright, and he caused his father, Chronos, to disgorge the rest of his siblings (he had swallowed them at birth). Together with allies, the six children started the Titanomachy, a war between them and the Titans, in which the Titans lost.

When each of the new deities took their place among the Mount Olympus pantheon, Hades became the ruler of the underworld. He chose a consort, Persephone, and managed to get her to stay with him through trickery. Although Hades was often tricky and wise, he was not really the evil figure some made him out to be in later works. Instead, Hades was often simply passive, and even in some instances helpful to others.

Hades was not only the ruler of the underworld, but of the dead themselves. He held domain over all the deceased souls, and employed demons to help him to keep order. Hades became very angry whenever a soul under his rule tried to leave the underworld, and kept a tight reign on his subjects. Very few mortals were able to pass in and out of Hades' realm, and those who did were all considered heroes. Heracles, Odysseus, Aeneas, Orpheus, Theseus and Psyche were the only ones who managed to survive a trip through the underworld.

While generally seen as evil or horrifying, Hades was really more of a way for ancient Greeks to come to terms with their ideas of death and afterlife. Hades ruled over the Elysian Fields (analogous to Heaven) as well as Tartarus (Hell), so he was not really as similar to the Christian devil as some would make his figure out to be. Instead, he represented a continuation of the soul after the body died.

Richard Monk is with Facts Monk - a site with facts about Greece.