Being of Norse descent, I’m proud to be culturally linked to a patron god with a sense of sacrifice and leadership such as Odin. This as compared to the self-serving nature of the immortal Zeus.

Odin was known to be quietly contemplative, too caught up in his thoughts to ever partake of the nightly feasts in Valhalla. This was because ever-present in his mind was the impending day of Ragnark, the day when the lot of them would be laid to waste by the giants. In preparation for this war, he constantly sought both knowledge and aid.

His twin ravens Hugin and Munin, whose names mean Thought and Memory respectively, traveled the world throughout the day to bring him news of their findings in the evening. Furthermore, he hung himself from a branch of the Yggdrasil tree in order to obtain knowledge from it and also gouged out his own eye in exchange for the runes held within the Well of Mimir. This was all done primarily as an effort to become all the wiser of the unholy apocalypse to come.

It should also be noted that the name Valhalla literally means Hall of the Slain. It was said that all who died on his behalf would be escorted by the Valkyries to this Hall to join in the preparations for Ragnark. Odin’s treat, they would feast upon boar meat every evening. Furthermore, after the death of his son Balder through the workings of Loki, a great vengeance was dealt down to the blasphemous giant. All in all, Odin held family in high respect and all who would call him ally in high regard. He knew of his own mortality and of those who wished it brought to fruition, and so he sought aid from all places in delaying the apocalyptic Ragnark.

Compare this to the immortal Zeus, patron god of the Greek pantheon. One of the earliest denotations of his nature was the fact that he claimed his title by slaying his father Cronus. Granted, this had been the way of things in their family for generations, but it still speaks volumes of his nature.

Being immortal, Zeus felt no need for alliances and thus developed something of a superiority complex. Humans were often disregarded as quivering peons unworthy of his aid lest they bow and scrape in worship. So, when the titan Prometheus blessed mankind with fire as apology for their lack of innate genetic advantages, he was brutally punished by Zeus in fashion comparable to Odin’s punishment delivered to Loki. This for giving a power to those who posed no threat to him, simply because he felt they were unworthy of the gift of fire.

As if that were not enough, Zeus extended the sentencing to punish Prometheus’s brother Epimetheus by creating Pandora, the first woman, and leaving her with him. Women were believed to have been evil, a source of corruption either by their nature to be as such or their curious tendencies. Zeus knew Epimetheus would fall for her, rendering him incapable of leaving to assist his brother or partake in any more rebellious acts.

Another lesser known defiant act of Prometheus speaks volumes of Zeus’s self-serving nature. Animal carcasses were to be divided between the gods and the humans, and Zeus believed that the gods should receive the fleshy tissue, the meat, because of their superiority. However, having helped design them, Prometheus knew of their need for meat. And so, he tricked Zeus into selecting bones and entrails as the food of the gods, for they were immortal and thus didn’t need the nourishment of meat. It was for this that Zeus had kept fire from humans in an arguably childish effort to keep them from being able to cook the meat.

So on the one hand we have Odin, mortal leader of the gods constantly seeking knowledge and aid in delaying the apocalypse. On the other, we have Zeus, immortal leader of the gods, usurper of his title from his own father, belittling humans and punishing any who aid them or call them ally. There is no comparison between the two, only contrast.