Greek myths have been rooted in human minds through the interpretation of many years of documentation from various cultures and religious beliefs. Greek mythology, being one of the more popular genres, came from various accounts and writings throughout the years. Homer, Hesiod, and The Homeric Hymns are listed as the three sources from which Greek mythology rises. Written versions of the Greek myths began in the classical Greece era, so it is unsure whether the written versions were actual accounts of what occurred or whether these written words were mixed with fictional and nonfiction accounts.

By the time Homer, Hesiod and The Homerica Hymns were written down, there were many different versions being told throughout the years. Those written versions are known as authentic Greek myths, however, with the many variations of stories being told before the myths were finally written down, one wonders how authentic could those stories be?

Remember the game where one person whispers a phrase to another and by the time the story reaches the last person it has changed significantly if not altogether? Even the written word can be construed as unauthentic if each time the myth was published it was changed in various ways to reflect the writer’s perception of that era.

Even so, Greek mythology has a plethora of gods and monsters and has entertained many people who enjoy reading about the heroes, gods, and monsters of that time. The Olympians, who were the gods of the Greek culture, were also referred to as the Immortals. Well- known for their vital contributions to cultural beliefs, the Olympians were just a few of the Immortals that ruled over the earth and sky. Their contribution to the Greek culture and religious beliefs was a vital part in the history of Greek mythology. It is said that forces of nature, the rivers, and the mountains were the bodies of the Immortals. If one were to disrespect the bodies’ of the Immortals there would be no peace at home or, when traveling, there would be no safe passages. In other words, disrespect the land and face the fury of the Gods.

Olympians, or Immortals, were descendants of Kaos. The ruler of the Olympians was Zeus, the strongest of the Olympians. The Immortals were well-versed in beauty and poetry, and developed many creative activities that became traditions in Greek culture. While there were many gods in that time, Greek mythology would not be the same without the various monsters who became the tyrants of Greek mythology.

If one were to compare the religious beliefs of that time to Christianity today, one would see Zeus, or Olympians, as the Immortal Gods and the various monsters would signify hell and the devil. It’s the classic evil versus good that dominates religious and cultural beliefs all over the world.

Greek mythological monsters

As stated above, there would not be gods without the monsters and vice versa. Evil versus good occurs in every religion and cultural belief. It gives religious followers a choice to follow their god’s word and find peace and safety or side with the monsters and find chaos and mayhem. Following in the footsteps of the mythical monsters of that era, one would also be facing the wrath of the gods. Defy the gods in those days and face persecution and death. Or one might get lucky and be turned into a monster like what happened to Medusa when she disrespected Athena. Medusa will be discussed later in this article.

There have been many creatures of Greek mythology; some being the monsters Greeks had to battle on a daily basis and some were the more exotic creatures that were intermingled with the mythological gods and monsters. The more exotic creatures of that time were animals born with physical attributes that were much different from the regular species of that time; exotic creatures such as Pegasus the winged horse, Laelaps the hunting dog, and the Erymanthian Boar.

Mystical monsters were the worst of the worst when it comes to monsters that defied and hated the gods. They were humanoid creatures who prided themselves as the most evil mythological monsters of that era. Several of the most ruthless monsters were Echidna, Typhon, Argus, Cerberus, Cyclopes, Gorgons, and Scylla and Charybdis.

Echidna was a she-viper and monstrous dragon. Half woman, half serpent, she mated with one of the worst monsters of that time and bore several equally monstrous villains. Her mate’s name was Typhon, a giant who had many anomalies. He had two hundred hands, a human head, ninety-nine animal heads, serpent tails instead of legs, enormous wings, and a mean, fiery breathe that could incinerate anything in his way.

Argus’ monstrous features were the eyes located all over his body. There may have been as many as one hundred eyes. Try hiding from that monster! Argus was a guard who protected Hera. When Argus was killed by Hermes, Hera placed the eyes of Argus on the tail of the peacock which was her favorite bird.

Cerberus was one of the offspring borne from the mating of Echidna and Typhon. Cerberus was a very large dog with three heads that guarded the gates of the underworld. His feet were that of a lion, while his mane was comprised of serpents, and his tail was fashioned like the tail of a viper. Hades, the god of the dead, owned Cerberus and placed him at the gates of the underworld for protection.

Cyclops was a giant with one eye who terrorized Greeks. There were several Cyclopes, one of which was Polyphemus who was the son of Poseidon. Polyphemus lived on an island where he was later blinded by Odysseus. These one-eyed giants would make weapons for the gods to use in their battles. One of those gods was Zeus, leader of The Olympians, who used the thunder and lightening forged by Cyclopes in his many battles.

Gorgons were comprised of three evil sisters who had snakes fashioned as a wreath around their heads, claws for hands, and golden wings. One of the more infamous Gorgons was Medusa. Once a beautiful woman, Medusa offended Athena who turned Medusa into a monster with hair of snakes and a horrible face that would turn men and women to stone should they look at her. She was beheaded by Perseus who avoided looking at Medusa’s face by using his shield to look at her reflection. It was said that Medusa’s head, even after decapitation, could still turn people to stone.

Scylla and Charybdis were powerful monsters. Living in a sea cave, these two worked together to feast on sailors who happened to come near their cave. Scylla was a monster with several dog heads. She enjoyed eating sailors alive. Charybdis was a sea demon who could create whirlpools. Her ability of sucking in the seawater and spitting it back out caused treacherous whirlpools that would snag sailors and bring them to their death.

While this article only touches on just a few of the numerous monsters of Greek mythology, it gives one the idea that the Greek’s really believed in the mythological creatures and gods that were borne of that era. The creativity of their stories remains a mystery as to the authenticity of the mythological gods and monsters that roamed the earth and preyed on mortal humans. Could these stories remain authentic through so many years of story-telling?

Whatever the answer is one can look back at this mythical era with a sense of what the world might have looked like at that time. Gods fighting for their rightful place in a world where mere humans revered and looked up to those gods and a world of monsters who defied the gods and became ruthless villains who would go down in the history books of Greek mythology.

Maybe today’s world isn’t so different; there are many gods signified by the many religious and cultural beliefs of today and then there are the monsters that prey on the innocent mortal humans of today’s world.

So, in conclusion, one could either embrace the writings of Greek mythology as the gospel truth or one could look at the writings as great embellishments by creative writers throughout the years. Either way, the writings and stories were entertaining to say the least. Everyone likes a good fairy tale filled with gods, heroes, and the horrible monsters that defied the gods; monsters that gave heroes a chance to prove their heroism and devotion to the gods and mortals of that era. In any case, Greek mythology is a fascinating era filled with good versus evil.