Zeus, who guided mortals to be wise,
has established his fixed law—
wisdom comes through suffering. ~ Aeschylus

Zeus (/ˈzjuːs/ zews; Ancient Greek: Ζεύς, Zeús, [zdeǔ̯s]; Modern Greek: Δίας, Días [ˈði.as]) is God of the Sky, and of lightning, thunder, law, order,and justice in ancient Greek religion, who ruled as king of the gods of Mount Olympus. His equivalent in Roman religious mythology was Jupiter, a name with similar origins and meaning.

Quotes

Nothing can be surprising any more or impossible or miraculous, now that Zeus, father of the Olympians has made night out of noonday... after this, men can believe anything, expect anything. ~ Archilochus
  • Zeus, who guided mortals to be wise,
    has established his fixed law—
    wisdom comes through suffering.
    Trouble, with its memories of pain,
    drips in our hearts as we try to sleep,
    so men against their will
    learn to practice moderation.
    Favours come to us from gods
    seated on their solemn thrones—
    such grace is harsh and violent.
  • ὦ Ζεῦ͵ πάτερ Ζεῦ͵ σὸν μὲν οὐρανοῦ κράτος͵ σὺ δ΄ ἔργ΄ ἐπ΄ ἀνθρώπων ὁρᾶις λεωργὰ καὶ θεμιστά͵ σοὶ δὲ θηρίων ὕβρις τε καὶ δίκη μέλει.
    • Oh Zeus, father Zeus, Yours is the Kingdom of Heaven, and you watch men's deeds, the crafty and the right, and You are who cares for beasts' transgression and justice.
  • Nothing can be surprising any more or impossible or miraculous, now that Zeus, father of the Olympians has made night out of noonday, hiding the bright sunlight, and . . . fear has come upon mankind. After this, men can believe anything, expect anything. Don't any of you be surprised in future if land beasts change places with dolphins and go to live in their salty pastures, and get to like the sounding waves of the sea more than the land, while the dolphins prefer the mountains.
    • Archilochus, as quoted in Eclipse (1999) by James Turrell
    • Variant translation: Zeus, the father of the Olympic Gods, turned mid-day into night, hiding the light of the dazzling Sun; and sore fear came upon men.
  • Zeus, n. The chief of Grecian gods, adored by the Romans as Jupiter and by the modern Americans as God, Gold, Mob and Dog. Some explorers who have touched upon the shores of America, and one who professes to have penetrated a considerable distance to the interior, have thought that these four names stand for as many distinct deities, but in his monumental work on Surviving Faiths, Frumpp insists that the natives are monotheists, each having no other god than himself, whom he worships under many sacred names.

See also

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