Mythology Explained

For as long as we’ve walked the earth, humans have looked up at the night sky and wondered:  Where did all this come from?  The stars, the earth, the strange spark of life — and our own ability to even ask the question. Some say it’s all coincidence.  That the universe emerged by chance — no plan, no purpose.  Others argue that such order, beauty, and consciousness can’t possibly be accidental — that something greater must lie behind it. As the philosopher Aristotle once wrote,  “The first philosophy is the search for causes and principles.” Across centuries, thinkers from every culture — from Greek philosophers to modern physicists — have wrestled with the same question:  is there evidence, rational evidence, that gods — or something like them — could exist? Today, we’re going to explore five of the most compelling arguments ever made for the existence of the divine. Not through faith or myth, but through reason — through what the world itself seems to suggest. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, we’re talking about Zeus — the thunder-wielding ruler of Olympus and so-called king of the gods. To most, he’s the ultimate symbol of divine power. But the truth is, his reign was built on borrowed fire. And I think that without it, the so-called king of the gods might’ve been nothing more than another name lost to myth. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Welcome to Mythology Explained. Today, we’re going to be discussing the Greek God Priapus. Before we dive into this I feel as though the elephant in the room needs to be addressed - or rather the anaconda in the room. Yes, that second one seems most appropriate. You would think that, applying your contemporary prism to the issue, that Priapus, being the well-endowed god that he was, probably did pretty well with the ladies. But you see, his massive organ wasn’t a genetic gift. Rather, it was but one symptom of a very permanent and very encompassing curse. Yes, his appearance was overflowing with more virility than a stampede of marauding centaurs. But when it came to it, he became, shall we say, deflated. He was cursed with Impotence.  His exaggerated physical form wasn’t a blessing — it was part of a cruel curse. Though he appeared to embody vitality, the irony was that he could never actually fulfill it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome back to Mythology Explained. In the last video of this style, we explored some absolute titans of terror in Greek myth: Typhon, the hundred-handed Hecatoncheires, the war-born Giants, the petrifying Medusa, and the mighty Cyclopes whose craftsmanship armed the gods themselves. Those creatures shaped the very balance of power between gods and Titans, between order and the primordial chaos of the earth. But the truth is.. Greek mythology didn’t stop inventing nightmares after the first cosmic wars were won. Beyond those famous five, there are other monsters — some born of divine spite, some older than the Olympians themselves — whose power forced gods to strategize, heroes to innovate, and, in some cases, Olympus to tread very carefully.  Today, we’re diving into five more of the most formidable monsters in all of Greek mythology — beings so dangerous that they changed the course of wars, made even the gods hesitate, and left scars on the mythic world long after their deaths. Let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Out of the void came the first truly tangible being: Gaia- the Earth itself, alive and fertile, the ground beneath every myth. To the ancient Greeks, Gaia was not merely soil and stone; she was the very foundation of reality, the ever-enduring mother of gods and monsters alike. She nourished, protected, and gave life — but she also schemed, rebelled, and unleashed creatures that nearly ended Olympus before it began. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Before there were gods, before there were Titans, before even the earth or sky — there was only silence. An endless, gaping expanse.  The Greeks called it Chaos: not disorder, but the raw void out of which reality itself would be born. Chaos wasn’t a god in the way we imagine Zeus or Poseidon, but rather the very first principle of existence — the source from which everything else emerged: earth, sky, gods, monsters, even fate itself. Yet Chaos was not always imagined the same way. Some traditions describe it as the offspring of Chronos, Time itself — not to be confused with Cronus, the Titan king. Others saw Chaos as a shapeless mass of matter and energy, waiting to be molded into the universe. And in yet another version, Chaos was thought of as the lower layer of air surrounding the earth, lying beneath the bright upper sky called Aether. Today, we’re going to be addressing all of these different accounts, and more, as we unpack Chaos: the FIRST Primordial Deity. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When it comes to the Bible, the roles of its central figures seem obvious. God is the creator, the sustainer, the giver of life, and Satan… He’s the deceiver, the destroyer, & the murderer of mankind.  Given that Satan is called a ‘murderer from the beginning’ in John 8:44, you’d probably assume that he’s the one responsible for claiming more lives. But what if I told you that the text itself paints a very different picture? Because when we look past assumptions and actually count the deaths, the numbers tell a shocking story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

For millennia, mankind has worshipped gods — beings of power, wisdom, and immortality. We’ve prayed to them, feared them, and shaped our civilizations around their stories. But in every culture, there comes a moment when man looks up at the heavens and dares to ask: Why not me?  So today, we’re diving into the myths and legends of different religions and cultures to confront one of humanity’s oldest—and most dangerous—questions: What happens when man tries to become god? Let’s dive in to it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Most people today believe that ‘Lucifer’ and ‘Satan’ are one and the same- with both names representing the complete and total archetype of evil. In fact, this misconception runs so deep that the names are regularly used interchangeably in books, movies, and even sermons. But what if I told you that this is actually…Wrong information? Because in truth, the Bible itself never explicitly identifies Lucifer with Satan. That connection only came later, through centuries of interpretation, translation, and literature. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Where do we go when we die? It’s one of humanity’s oldest questions. Across nearly every culture, every religion, and every age of human history, people have looked to the sky and wondered: What lies beyond this life? And almost universally, civilizations have imagined an idyllic realm of peace and perfection—an eternal paradise. This vision echoes through many of the world’s predominant religions, where Heaven is described as the ultimate reward, the place where suffering ends and harmony begins. But not every depiction of Heaven is the paradise you might expect. In fact, in some traditions, Heaven isn’t endless peace at all—it’s strange, unsettling, and even exhausting.  Today we’re going to be diving into the world’s visions of the afterlife- taking a closer look at how different cultures, religions and mythologies perceive life after death. Let’s dive in to it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. Today’s video is the start of a new series where I’ll be reading classic retellings of Greek myths by respected authors from over a century ago. These stories come straight from the public domain, and the goal here is to give you something you can listen to while winding down, studying, or just getting lost in the world of ancient Greece. The following is an excerpt from Myths and Legends Of Ancient Greece and Rome by E.M. Berens, published in 1880. If you’d like to read the full text, please check out the link in the pinned comment. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/22381/22381-h/22381-h.htm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Long before the Olympians ruled from their thrones on Mount Olympus, the cosmos was shaped by older forces — vast, silent, and unknowable. These were the Primordial Deities or Protogenoi: the first powers of existence, embodying fundamental aspects of reality itself. And out of the first void came something deeper than shadow. A presence, not just of absence, but of power. She wasn’t the goddess of one place or domain. She didn’t rule the sea or the sky. She simply was — there before the stars, before time, before anything had a name. Even Zeus, king of the gods, knew better than to cross her. Because this wasn’t just nightfall. It was Night itself. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’ve all seen them. Greek Statues.  Huge slabs of muscle, perfect proportions, nearly 0 bodyfat to speak of, and a casual reminder that we’re not QUITE in the shape that we thought we were. An idealistic version of the human form — chiseled from marble, frozen in time, that still somehow judges us centuries later. In modern bodybuilding, the physiques seen in Greek statues are often the end goal — the ultimate Grecian ideal: to look like a “Greek god” or a “Greek statue.” But I’ve often wondered..Why? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When people think of the Underworld, they think of Hades — the god draped in shadow, brother to Zeus and ruler of the dead, his realm carved from silence and sealed away from Olympus. But the truth is… he wasn’t the first. Because long before Olympus rose… before the Titans fell… before even light existed… there was something else. A presence. A force. A god. But this ‘being’ didn’t rule with a scepter or a crown… or sit on a throne. It simply was.  A suffocating darkness so complete… that even the gods feared it. And while time has tried to erase it from memory — buried beneath the myths of younger, more palatable deities — its shadow still lingers. This… is the story of the one who ruled before Hades. The one who gave birth to death, to night, to fate itself… The one who was the darkness. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There are many punishments in Greek mythology…But few are as chilling — or as deserved — as the one from this particular myth. In this tale - A king, beloved by the gods, was granted a seat at their table. He had their trust. Their favor. Their ear. But then… he did the unthinkable: he betrayed them. In this story, the actions of this man were so twisted, so vile, that even the Olympians were horrified. And for his crimes, he was given perhaps one of the greatest and most creative punishments inflicted on any being in Greek Mythology- eventually becoming a symbol of eternal punishment. But what exactly did he do? Why did a man so privileged risk everything? And what became of the gods who once welcomed him as their guest? Today, we uncover the truth behind one of the most disturbing myths in the ancient world. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When most people think of powerful Greek gods, one name tends to rise above the rest: Zeus. King of Olympus. Wielder of lightning. Slayer of Titans. The ultimate divine authority. Or… so we’re told. But the truth is — Zeus isn’t all that he was chalked up to be. Sure, he was powerful. Charismatic. But the most powerful god in Greek mythology? Not even close. He could be outwitted. He could be resisted. And in some cases, he was straight-up afraid. And for these reasons, and more, Zeus was far from the top of the divine food chain. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In myth and legend, there exist forces even gods must answer to. Time. Destiny.  But above all…Fate. A force so powerful that even God and Satan had to answer to it. But what if I told you that it was three beings who were responsible for fate itself? Not gods of thunder or war. Not angels or demons. But something else... See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“Before the Great Flood… before the Ten Commandments… a different kind of rebellion took place. One that started not on Earth—but in the heavens.” Long before the floodwaters rose… before Moses parted the sea… before even Abraham’s covenant with God—there was a story. A story of 200 divine beings who descended to Earth on Mount Hermon. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the last video, we discussed biblically accurate angels — and it was there that we unearthed a shocking truth: they’re not winged babies or glowing men in robes… But in fact, terrifying, often-alien looking beings that radiate divine power. And today, we’ll be taking a look at the other side of the coin.. Because if THOSE things were the messengers of divine order… Then what could the opposite possibly look like? Red skin? Horns? Maybe a pitchfork? Well… the truth is, that’s Hollywood. Because when it comes to the bible, or at least other ancient texts- Demons get way stranger — and most importantly: way more disturbing. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if I told you that the angels you see in paintings, Christmas cards, and stained-glass windows... Have nothing to do with how angels are actually described in the Bible? They aren’t cute little babies with wings or gentle, glowing humans in white robes strumming harps. In fact, that’s not even close. Because in reality, biblical angels are terrifying. They often appeared with multiple sets of wings, faces of beasts, and bodies covered in eyes. And in almost every story — their very presence causes fear. I mean..If they weren’t terrifying, why would Gabriel’s first words to Mary be: “Do Not Be Afraid” See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today we’re going to be diving DEEP down the rabbit hole- all the way to the depths of hell- and discussing the seven MAIN princes that reside there. The concept of hell exists across nearly all mythologies- a place where the deceased go after a life of sin- a place where you are subjected to eternal suffering in order to PAY for your wrongdoings. In Greek Myth we see hell go by another name- Tartarus, and in Norse myth we see hell go by a very similar name- ‘Hel’- which also happens to be personified by a female Norse Goddess. However, in today’s video we’re going to be discussing Hell in the context of Demonology- and unravelling aspects of the traditional concept of ‘hell’ that most of us are accustomed to. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of this video is Khepri, the god of the rising sun in Egyptian mythology, which, in certain traditions, connected him to the very first sunrise in the primordial past, the infant sun rising from the waters of Nun or from the primordial lotus. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of this video is Geras, the Greek god of old age, especially the frailty and feebleness of old age. He was depicted as a bent and brittle man, kept upright only by the grace of his staff, vigour and vitality sapped. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of this video is Helios. He was the Titan-god of the sun in Greek mythology, also associated with sight and oaths. He lived in a golden palace at the edge of the world, emerging each morning to drive his chariot across the sky, bathing the earth in life-giving light. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’re going to dive into the Divine Comedy and discuss the 9th circle of hell: the circle reserved for traitors, the frozen heart of hell where Satan is torturously trapped, and the place in all of creation most sundered from the light and love and God. Here, we’ll see Satan depicted in superlative fashion, virtually as massive, monstrous, and malevolent as can be, the horror of him beyond Dante’s ability to fully describe.  We’re going to begin by quickly outlining how Hell is structured, then jumping into the story when Dante and Virgil enter the 8th circle, covering their entry into the 9th circle, their encounter with Satan, and their arrival at Mt. Purgatory.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The Topic of this video is Zeus Ammon, a god coalesced from Greek and Egyptian counterparts. More broadly, we’ll explore the intermingling of Greek and Egyptian mythology in general, which yielded a multitude of other gods and mutually influenced rituals, another notable example being Hermanubis, a deity that combined the Greek god Hermes with the Egyptian god Anubis.  As well, Alexander the Great will be a main focus, his conquests suffusing much of the ancient world with Greek culture like never before. Most significant, with respect to this video, was his liberation of Egypt, which had, until his arrival, been under Persian control for centuries. The Egyptians welcomed Alexander. They made him pharaoh, consecrating him as the son of Amun, and he cultivated this image, fanning the flames of his divinity. He referred to himself as the son of Zeus Ammon, and he promulgated this image across his empire, coinage depicting him with the god’s curved ram’s horns disseminated far and wide.  Alright let's get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’re going to discuss Mammon, a demon Lord and the demon who rules over the deadly sin of greed. We'll start with his portrayal in John Milton's epic poem, 'Paradise Lost', before transitioning into an exploration of the historical and linguistic origins of the term 'Mammon' in the Biblical canon. We'll investigate how this term evolved from abstraction to personification, from a word denoting greed into a demonic entity, tracing this development from its Aramaic roots, then to Greek, Latin, and English. Following this, we'll examine the teachings on Mammon in the New Testament, specifically the Gospel of Matthew, illuminating how this term was initially used. Finally, we'll delve into notable historical texts that link Mammon to the seven deadly sins, showing him to be the deadly demon who presides over the deadly sin of Greed.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In todays’ video, we’re going to discuss six times the Greek gods nearly exterminated humanity. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The year is 1703. The Day is the 19th of November. In France, a prisoner just died after 34 years behind bars. The death was kept quiet. The burial was rushed. And things continued as if nothing had happened. Usually, such an occurrence was of little consequence. After all, prisoners died all the time. One dying was about as noteworthy as losing a horse to lameness, or to birth complications that imperiled mothers and newborns. This particular prisoner, though, was unlike any other. The purpose of his imprisonment wasn’t to punish for a crime committed - at least, not just that. The purpose, the real purpose, you could say, was to erase him from the face of the earth, to make it as if he didn’t even exist, shut away and left to fade like an old memory. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nemesis was the goddess of retribution. She personified the power that visited punishment on those guilty of wrongdoing. Some myths feature her as human-like, but often she was conceptualized as an omnipresent force rather than a physical entity. Her power functioned something like moral gravity, only punishing instead of pulling. When a person jumps, gravity pulls them back down to earth, and similarly, under the auspices of Nemesis, when a person did something bad, they were punished. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of this video is Leviathan, the biblical sea monster, a monster so infamous that his very name has become a byword for all giant creatures and mythical terrors who lurk in the dark depths beneath the waves. Depending on the source, it is either a large sea animal, a sea monster, an archdemon, another name for Satan, or a wellspring of power that can be tapped into by those with arcane knowledge or unorthodox religious beliefs. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of this video is Asclepius, the greatest healer in all of Greek mythology. He became so adept at healing that his powers became transcendent: able to bring the dead back to life, restoring soul to inanimate body, no longer limited by the fragility and perishability of flesh. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

First, we’re going to look at what’s said in ‘The Library of Greek Mythology’, a concise yet comprehensive compendium attributed to Apollodorus. It describes a version of Typhon’s battle with Zeus in which Typhon chases the gods out of Olympus, cuts the sinews from Zeus’ hands and feet, and imprisons Zeus in a cave. Following that, we’re going to quickly look at another version of this battle, the one told in Hesiod’s Theogony, which details a brief struggle in which Typhon is thoroughly trounced, walloped by Zeus in short order. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. Today, we’re going to discuss Ares, the Greek god of War, known as Mars to the Romans. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’ll be discussing Osiris, the lord of the underworld in Egyptian Mythology.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’re going to discuss the three sons of Zeus who, had they reached adulthood and grown into the full potential of their power, would have become more powerful than their father, who would have succeeded Zeus, either claiming the crown by force or ascending to the throne with their father’s blessing. And interestingly, as we’ll explore momentarily, it actually seems as if prophecy - reality itself, even, looked at one way - contrived to keep Zeus enthroned, ensconced up high in lofty Olympus. First, we’re going to go over how the fortune of fate stacked the deck in Zeus’s favor, and then we’re going to go over the three children who would have been more powerful than him. Alright, Let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of today’s video is the unlikely connection between Satan’s survival and the existence of Heaven. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of Today’s video is the wrath of God - specifically, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Both cities were burned clean from creation by a storm of fire and brimstone that erupted from heaven, a veritable conflagration of condemnation. Only a righteous few, given forewarning by the divine, managed to escape.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. The topic of Today's video is the Erinyes, known as the furies to the Romans - a terrible triumvirate of vengeful spirits who punish transgressors. More than anyone, they unleashed their wrath on those who perpetrated blood crimes against their own family members.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video we’re going to discuss Belphegor, a demonic diplomat, one source presenting him as the ambassador to France; a demon to whom disciples paid homage to with their excrement; a demon dispatched to Italy, there marrying a woman to discover why marriage ruined the hearts of men; a demon called the god of gluttons, this an epithet that harkens back to him being one of the seven deadly demons of the seven deadly sins, either presiding over gluttony or sloth, depending on the source; and a demon derived from an ancient pantheon, walking that well-worn path that leads from god to false god to demon lord.  Alright, let’s get into it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’re going to discuss Succubi, demons who appear desirably, usually as beautiful women, and prey on men in the night. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today’s video, we’re going to discuss Cronus’s escape from Tartarus, this followed by him becoming the king of the Isles of the Blessed, Greek Mythology’s version of heaven. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today's video, we're going to discuss Astaroth, variously described as a duke, lord, and prince of hell. He purports to have played no part in the fall of the angels and to have been unjustly condemned. He appears as an angel, but even in endeavoring to appear as such, his fiendish nature can't be completely concealed. The angelic appearance he maintains gives him a look both foul and unsettling, and the stench of his breath is so repulsive as to be perilous. As well, the fact that he holds a poisonous serpent and rides around on a monstrous dragon hardly helps to legitimize his pretense. We're going to begin with the work of Johann Weyer, which will piece together Astaroth's demonic profile: what he looked like, what his power was, and what danger he posed to the conjurer. After that, we'll explore his origins, getting into the Bible and Near East polytheism. And finally, we're going to go through many of the demonic hierarchies in which he features. Alright, let's get into it. Johann Weyer was a Dutch physician, occultist, and demonologist, known for his seminal work on demonology, "False Monarchy of Demons". This text was an appendix to his larger work, "On the Tricks of Demons", published in the mid-16th century. Unlike other works that elucidate the eldritch and evil mysteries of witchcraft, Weyer's own writing w as countervailing in that it condemned the rabid and virulent ideas that underpinned and encouraged witch hunting. He believed that those who claimed to, or were accused of, practicing witchcraft suffered from mental illness. He didn't believe they conspired, cavorted, and cackled in the dead of night with a coven of wicked spell-slinging women, pledging their souls to the dark power of Satan, a rather enlightened perspective given the era in which he lived. In particular, his work served to counter the "Malleus Maleficarum", the "Hammer of Witches", a guide that explained how to identify and exterminate witches. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today's video, we're going to discuss the three judges of the underworld in Greek mythology: Minos, Rhadamanthys, and Aeacus. These three judges, all of them sons of Zeus, were the arbiters of the afterlife, giving verdicts to the villainous and virtuous alike. The souls of the wicked were sent to Tartarus, and the souls of the righteous were sent to the Isles of the Blessed. Alright, let's get into it. The idea of there being a judge of the underworld harkens back to the earliest works of Ancient Greek literature. In the Odyssey, Odysseus ventures down into the depths of the underworld to consult a prophetess. He describes what he sees along the way. Among the spirits he describes are some of the great sinners, rulers, and heroes of old. The great sinners include Sisyphus and Tantalus, both of them condemned to punishment without end. The rulers and heroes include Agamemnon, the high chief of the Greek forces that waged war on Troy, and Achilles, the mightiest hero to wield spear and sword in the Trojan War, his conquering spirit and battle prowess eclipsing those of any other, foe or friend. Another king described by Odysseus along his chthonic quest is Minos, who, depending on the version, either serves as the judge of the dead or as one of the judges of the dead. Here's the passage: "I saw Minos the son of Zeus holding a golden scepter and delivering judgments among the dead. There he sat, and around him the others sat or stood in the ample-gated house of Hades, seeking from this master of justice the firm sentences of the law." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today's video, we're going to discuss Enyo, the Greek goddess of slaughter and bloodshed. She, along with better known gods like Ares and Athena, was a war deity, one said to revel in the destruction of armies and the devastation of cities. Because of her perverse proclivities and morbid M.O., she was much more in line with Ares than Athena: Ares was associated with bloodlust, brutality, and wanton violence, while Athena's own association with warfare is more accurately described by words like defense, strategy, restraint, and necessity. She was someone you would have invoked while devising a battleplan or organizing the defense of a settlement or city. With Ares, the point of it all was suffering and slaughter; with Athena, wisdom and warfare were interwoven; for her, war was a last resort - a tool of pragmatism, not an indulgence of pleasure. Alright let's get into it. Virtually the only times Enyo features in the stories that culminate into the mythical mosaic of ancient Greece is during battle. As the goddess of slaughter and bloodshed, writers almost exclusively included her in their works when people were killed and blood was spilt. In this way, she numbered among other gods and daimons who frequented the battlefield. ( Daimon is the Ancient Greek word for spirits that were halfway between gods and humans, often functioning as minor deities, and is the antecedent for the English word 'demon'.) The gods and daimons who frequented the battlefield include: Ares, the god of war, Phobos and Deimos, respectively "Fear" and "Dread", Eris, the goddess of strife, and the Keres, the trio of goddess or daimons of violent death, described as horrid, nightmarish creatures who feasted on the fallen, devouring flesh and drinking blood. When battles are described by the poets of Ancient Greece, and by later poets who wrote stories situated within the framework of the Greek mythos, usually some combination of these carnage-fueled characters is described on the battlefield. They foment conflict, fill forces with frenzy and fury, take part in the killing, and glory in the thick of the clash, champions pressing forward and corpses littering the ground. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today's video, we're going to discuss Sisyphus, a man whose story embodies the adage 'too clever for his own good', a man synonymous with the consequences of inciting the wrath of the gods, and a man whose fate has become an enduring symbol of futility, eternal struggle, and meaningless tasks. Alright, let's get into it. In Greek mythology, leaving gods aside for the moment, there is a small group of people who became immortalized as superlatives. Orpheus was the greatest musician, able to charm animals, even able to coax rocks and trees into movement. Hercules was the strongest man, bearing the crushing weight of the heavens on his shoulders for a time. Daedalus was the greatest inventor, creating the labyrinth in which the minotaur dwelt, and fashioning wings for himself and his son Icarus so that they could escape from the labyrinth after they were imprisoned inside. Sisyphus was the cleverest man - too clever for his own good, as events would bear out in the fullness of time. He cheated death twice, first ambushing and chaining Thanatos, death incarnate, who was sent to end his life, then once in the underworld, convincing Hades to let him leave. In the end, what awaited most people in the underworld was deemed too-low security for Sisyphus, so he was sent down to Tartarus and given an unending task, making any future wily antics an impossibility. Though he would win himself more days in the sun, his ultimate fate was perpetual punishment, not a great trade off. First, we're going to quickly go over a pastoral feud involving multiple instances of cattle theft, the outcome of this showcasing Sisyphus's cleverness. Second, we're going to go over the meat and potatoes, so to speak, of Sisyphus's mythology, which entails the betraying, tricking, ambushing, and chaining of gods, evading and escaping death, and perpetual punishment in the form of forever rolling a boulder uphill. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey everyone, welcome to Mythology Explained. In today's video, we're going to discuss Salmoneus, a man cursed and condemned by the gods and a man of impressive lineage. His sin was hubris and his crime was scorning the gods. He honored himself in their stead and tried to deify himself by impersonating Zeus, going so far as to toss torches and drag around pots to simulate lightning and thunder. His fate was that of the buzzing pest that annoys someone to the point of being swatted, Zeus striking him down with a thunderbolt and sending him down to Tartarus. He was only a few generations removed from the first man and the first woman, and the grandson of Hellen - not Helen of Troy but the son of Deucalion - from whom the tribes of ancient Greece claimed ancestry. Exploring this later on will take us from the first Titan-born humans and the time of the great flood to the tragic death of the hero Jason. Alright, let's get into it. In Greek mythology there are three crimes considered especially egregious, swift and severe justice meted out to those who perpetrate them. These three crimes are: (1) violating the sanctity of hospitality, pertaining to which the murder of a guest, or guests, is the most flagrant and least forgivable, (2) the murder of one's own kin - the closer the relation, the harsher the condemnation - and (3) hubris against the gods. This last was Salmoneus' offense. He thought himself a god. He dedicated the sacrifices and libations that should have gone to the gods to himself, and he even went so far as to impersonate Zeus, tossing torches and dragging around clanging metal to emulate the fire and flash of lightning and the booming rumble of thunder. As you no doubt have already guessed, this didn't sit well with Zeus and didn't end well for Salmoneus, who was struck down with a thunderbolt and cast down to the abyss of Tartarus, a place beneath the earth not unlike a mirrored reflection of the sky, the great chasm below instead of the great vault above, a place reserved for those who defied the gods, be they immortal, such as the titans, or the worst of the mortal sinners, to whose infamous ranks Salmoneus' was imminently destined. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Norse mythology can be broken down into three parts: the mythic past, mythic present, and mythic future. In the past are events like the beginning of the universe and the advent of the first gods and giants; the present is the time in which Ragnarok, the cataclysmic clash that ends the current age of the world, looms near, the world on the precipice and about to plunge into the maw of death and destruction; and in the future is Ragnarok, the end of the world as it currently exists. Though it hadn't yet come to pass, much of what it entailed was known, and to no god were these events better known than Odin. The inexorability of prophecy hung over the Norse gods like the headsman's ax. Odin's mind was burdened by grave knowledge and dire threats: that of his own death, the death of his kin and comrades, and the unraveling, or near to it, of everything he built, the labors of all his life. One of Odin's defining characteristics was the pursuit of knowledge, magic, and wisdom, and in this pursuit he was largely impelled by his own fate. If someone knew how they were going to die, this hypothetical death of the untimely sort, their life would probably revolve around how to avoid their own death. The same was true for Odin, who endeavored to forestall the events of Ragnarok, his death destined therein, by becoming the most formidable version of himself possible: accreting every esoteric detail, learning every spell, no matter how arcane, and becoming the superlative of wile and wisdom.To this end, Odin embarked on many adventures, undertook many trials, and subjected himself to suffering, the sacrifice of grievous bodily harm sometimes needed as payment for what was endowed. He gouged out one of his own eyes as payment to drink from the Well of Mimir; he impaled himself with his spear and, thus transfixed, hanged himself from the World Tree for nine days and nine nights to learn the secrets of the runes; he stole the mead of poetry; he resurrected the dead and communed with spirits; he preserved and reanimated the severed head of Mimir; and he learned Seidr, a feminine type of magic, from the goddess Freyja.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In mythology, creating the world, ruling the world, and destroying the world are almost always attributed to different gods, monsters, or phenomena. Using Norse mythology as the point of comparison, the quickening of the first life comes from the intermingling of fire and frost in the void - fire coming from Muspelheim, a realm of fire, and frost coming from Niflheim, a realm of ice. The world is ruled over by Odin, the king of the Norse pantheon. And the destruction of the world is brought about by an amassing horde of monsters: Fenrir, the World Serpent, a great host of undead, frost giants, fire giants, etc. Using Greek mythology as the point of comparison, creation begins with the emergence of the first primordial deities, the likes of Chaos, Gaia, Tartarus, and Eros. The kingship, though first held by Uranus and then seized by Cronus, is maintained by Zeus. And as for the end times, the Greeks didn't even have apocalyptic myths that prophesied the eventual destruction of the world. Atum-Ra, in the context of the bygone pantheons of the ancient world, is a singular entity, for he did create the world, rule the world, and it was prophesied that he would also destroy the world, returning it to the waters of chaos, the next cycle of creation beginning at a later time.Atum was a creator god who brought himself into existence in the Waters of Nun, basically the Egyptian equivalent of Chaos. Ra was the sun itself and generally the most important god in Egyptian mythology. He was the first king of the universe and the sustainer of life. Atum and Ra were combined into the syncretic fusion Atum-Ra, a compound deity that combined the power and purview of its two constituents: Atum the creator aspect and Ra the solar aspect. It was commonplace in Egyptian mythology to combine gods in this way, and Ra especially became incorporated into these sorts of divine amalgamations. Other examples include: Amun-Ra (Amun another creator deity), Sobek-Ra (Sobek the most powerful of the crocodile gods), and Ra-Horakhty (Horakhty, another name for Horus, the last god to rule the earth directly before the time of the pharaohs). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.