A Comparison of Greek and Norse Mythology

Hundreds of years ago people did not have the technology to explain different forces of nature. They created gods, each with separate powers, to rule their domains. Some of the gods were merciful, some were wicked, and others were merely servants of more powerful gods. Looking at the gods, it is easy to tell what the civilization most valued. I am going to look at the Greek and the Norse gods to compare what was most important to their societies.

Both cultures had a king of the gods. In Greek mythology there is no god who is more powerful than Zeus. He is the youngest son of Cronus and Rhea, ruler of the Titans. Cronus was told that one of his children would overthrow him, taking control of his kingdom. To be sure this would not happen, Cronus swallowed his first five children: Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon. Rhea could not bear to see another one of her children, devoured so she replaced Zeus with a rock wrapped in swaddling. Cronus, thinking he ate Zeus, left Rhea time to leave Zeus in a cave where he was raised by a divine goat, Amaltheia (pantheon/odin). After Zeus was grown he went back to Cronus with the help of Gaia and Metis, who made an elixir to cause Cronus to vomit his brothers and sisters. Zeus then led the fights against the Titan dynasty. Afterwards they banished the Titans to Tartarus, the lowest place on earth, even lower than the underworld. Zeus and his brothers then drew straws to find who would rule where. Zeus gained rule of the sky, Poseidon ruled the seas, and Hades ruled the underworld (pantheon/odin).

Zeus is the god of law, justice, morals, thunder, lightning, and rain. It was his job to oversee and make sure laws were being kept. He was worshipped originally as a weather god. He was depicted as a middle-aged man with a youthful appearance; he was regale and was almost always shown ready to throw a lightning bolt (pantheon/zeus).

Odin is the ruler of the gods in Norse mythology. He was stuck by his own spear pinned to the World Tree. There he learned nine songs and eighteen runes. Odin lives in Asgard; from his throne he observes everything that happens in the nine worlds. Valhalla is a hall in Asgard where the dead warriors are taken; Odin is also known to reside there (pantheon/odin).

Odin is the god of death, war, wisdom, and poetry. Odin can speak with the dead; he questions the wisest of them. Odin only has one eye; it blazes like the sun. He gave his other eye for a drink from the Well of Wisdom. Odin has a spear, Gungnir, that never misses its target. He owns an eight-legged horse, Sleipnir, two wolves, Geri and Freki, and two raven, Huginn and Muninn. Wednesday is named after him (pantheon/odin).

The main similarity between these two is that they are the king of the gods. Another is that they both value wisdom. Zeus is more focused on law, Odin's focus is on war.

Hades is one of the brothers of Zeus. He is the unlucky one who got to rule the underworld. He is cruel and unforgiving. Only two have ever gone to Hades domain and returned, Hercules and Odysseus. Hades fell in love with Zeus's daughter and devised a plan to abduct her. With Zeus's help they succeeded in the capture of Persephone. Her mother Demeter was so enraged she cursed the Earth. She continued the curse even after she was released. It was only after her mother Rhea was allowed to see her that she let the Earth prosper (message).

In Norse mythology, Hel is know as the queen goddess of the underworld. She was raised on Asgard but later she was given the underworld to rule. She decides the fate of those who die, the ones who die in battle are allowed to go to Valhalla, and all others go to Hel's domain. She was born with her skeleton on the outside of her body. She was said to be born half black and half white (gods).

One of the most similar qualities the two cultures is that their Underworlds are guarded by large dogs. Cerberus is the three-headed dog that guards the underworld in Greek mythology, although he has been said to have up to fifty heads. Cerberus is the brother of Chimera, a beast with a goat, dragon, and lion head and Hydra the multi-headed serpent. In Norse mythology, Garm is the leader of a pack of dogs that guard the underworld (webhome).

Aphrodite, for the Greeks, was the goddess of love, beauty, reproduction and sexuality. She was born from the sea, which is what her name means. She was born when the severed genitals of Uranos fell into the sea. She had many children and was the patroness of prostitutes (webhome).

Freyia is the Norse goddess of love, fertility, wealth, and war. She married Od, who many believe to be Odin. She lost him and cried tears of gold. Everyday she and Odin split the inhabitants of Valhalla to fight with. Friday is named after her (webhome).

These two are goddesses of love. In each society it was thought to be a women's domain. Also Freyia is one of the only goddess with a vital role in Norse mythology (webhome).

Hermes is the Greek herald of the gods. His realms include shepherds, land travel, merchants, weights and measures, oratory, literature, athletics, and thieves. Hermes is known for his cunning and shrewdness. The day he was born, his mother Maia fell asleep. He ran off and stole his brother Apollo's cattle and took them to Greece. He then quickly ran home and wrapped himself in swaddling and acted like he was there all the time. His duties as herald to the gods were guiding souls to their final destination and sending dreams to people. He is shown as having a winged hat and winged boots. He was best know for his speed and was credited for the invention of the foot race and boxing (pantheon/hermes).

Hermod is the messenger of the gods for the Norse gods. Not being a god of war gives him very little story time. He went to Hel's domain to convince her to let Balder return to the world of the living (webhome).

Other than having similar names, both these gods have been known for their speed. Both are perceived as sleek men wearing winged boots.

Hercules, the god of strength, is the youngest son if Zeus. He is one of the most loved gods of the Greek civilization. He has the most stories told about him.