Category: God

Indian customs and ordinary life influence Hinduism through meditation practices while Hinduism influences the society with Hindu based festivals, a specific nourishment, art and beliefs.

Religion is theology, faith,and worship but religion is also a way of life. It is powerful, persuasive, and more importantly has an image. When you think of a religion an image comes to your mind that sometimes helps you differentiate and remember multiple religions. Each religion is associated with distinct characteristics that tends to shape the view of a religion to both followers and unfollowers. After reading chapter four of “God Is Not One: the Eight Rival Religions That Run the World” when I think of Hinduism I simply paint a picture in my head of excessive amounts of vivid colors and intricate rituals and stories. Now even myself not living in India or a follower of this belief associates this way of life with how homeowners in India go through their daily routines. With such a large amount of Hindus habitating in India it tends to overpower the individual and social life of the residents through the different ritual practices and traditions done throughout the year and day to day life. From the moment Hindus wake up to when they fall asleep there are several practices they perform each and every day.

Beginning the day with a meditation as a thank you to their god for waking up and to start the day with propitious. They perform a daily ritual at the family mandir, temple, to show how important God is to them which is called Puja. After it is completed they typically would sit down to eat. Due to the principle of ahisma, meaning non-injury, most Hindus are vegetarian and follow a lactovegetarian diet which means meat, poultry, and fish are not allowed only milk products. Beef is also forbidden, as the cow is considered sacred in Hinduism. With this way of feeding so largely present in the country,the traditional and popular cuisine almost always fall under this diet. In addition to regular responsibilities of a Hindu for a career/education they perform 5 daily duties to help guide a person through everyday life in a pleasant and holy way. Even though Hindu worship is individualised, rather than communal, as it involves a personal donative, family members tend to gather together to pray a minimum of three times a day either at home or in a temple.

Hinduism not only affects an individuals life in India but also has a great influence on the social life of the country. With such a large population of Hindus practice of the caste system it explains India’s stratification system. Rewinding to 1500 BCE when the Aryans migrated into the Indian subcontinent they had created this system of classifying people into four main groups: brahmins or priests, kshatriyas or warriors and aristocrats, vaishyas or peasants and merchants, and shudras or serfs. Hinduism applies this strict social hierarchy that makes it impractical to move outside of their social station. The isolation of the main groups was seen as a base for Hinduism which came with a Hindu myth that the god named Purusha was assembled out of the four classifications with the brahmins or priest being the head and the shudras or serfs as the feet.

The Hinduism religion continues to prosper in modern day India through evolution. It influences the Indian society through everyday life and the community with temples, beliefs, Hindu-inspired festivals, and a definite type of art. Many Indian laws would not exist if it weren’t for Hinduism. For example, the law that bans killing cows because of the deep respect Hindus have of cows. It also is the reason for how poverty is viewed throughout the country. Not only is the customs of Indian life evolving with the influence of Hinduism but Hinduism is evolving from a mixture of Indian customs and traditions.

Topic 2: The Meditations don’t just prove the existence of God once, but twice. What are these arguments and what is the relationship between them? In what sense is God foundational for the metaphysics Descartes elaborates in his great work? What are some objections to his view? Are they compelling? Your goal in this essay is to assess Descartes’ argument(s) for the existence of God and to arrive at your own conclusions regarding its persuasiveness. At a minimum, your essay must rely on textual evidence from Meditations 3 and 5 to make its case.

In Meditations, Rene Descartes comes to the conclusion that he exists, with the statement; “I think therefore I am”, and that becomes the ‘Archimedean point’ on which he expands further concrete knowledge. This epistemic foundationalism enables Descartes to attempt to prove not only that God is real, but that we are able to trust our senses. In this essay, I will discuss the two proofs that Descartes proposes for the existence of God and argue whether these proofs are legitimate, and how persuasive they are.

Arguments for the existence of god

Descartes provides two arguments that prove the existence of God, the cosmological argument (Meditation three), and the ontological one (Meditation five). For the cosmological argument, Descartes used a mathematical approach, by using the concept of infinity. The idea that Descartes had was that we cannot have a concept of something without its opposite (such as light and darkness), and thus, we cannot have a concept of finitude without infinity. What Descartes is attempting to explain with this, is that certainty comes from the mind and not from the senses. First of all, through introspection, Descartes distinguishes formal and objective reality;

I am a substance, it seems possible that they are contained in me eminently […] for although the idea of substance is in me by virtue of the fact that I am a substance, that fact is not sufficient to explain my having the idea of an infinite substance, since I am finite, unless this idea proceeded from some substance which really was infinite (1641, p.51).

This knowledge of himself becomes his Archimedean point, off of which he comes to the conclusion that .therefore, Descartes looks for answers from his own mind, and not from his senses, as his mind is what he can be certain of. Descartes phrases it this way;

I have no choice but to conclude that the mere fact of my existing and of there being in me an idea of a most perfect being, that is, God, demonstrates most evidently that God too exists (1641, p.53)

The interesting part about this sentence is that Descartes expresses that he has no choice, he has proven to himself that his mind produces true answers about the world, and thus, he must believe that the concept of God is not only real but necessary.

The second proof that Descartes presents in Meditation five, is ontological, that is, relating to existence. He argues that some things are necessary, and to illustrate this, he uses mathematics once more; a triangle’s “three angles are equal to two right angles” (1641, p.58), and he does not need to sense this to know that it is a fact, he can logically come to that conclusion using intellect alone; “their truth is so open and so much in accord with my nature that […] I am not so much learning something new as recalling something I knew beforehand” (1641, p.58). This enables him to argue that since he cannot imagine “God except as existing”, just like he can’t imagine a “mountain without a valley”, God’s existence becomes necessary (1641, p.59). He goes on to explain how he can imagine a god that doesn’t exist, but that would then not make him a God, as that imaginary God would simply be a “perfect being without a supreme perfection” (1641, p.60) which does not make sense. In essence, Descartes argues that existence is superior to non-existence, God is a perfect being, thus God must exist.

God as a foundation for metaphysics

In the historical context that Descartes is writing in, God and faith is still a major part of education and society. Having received a religious education, Descartes was arguably susceptible to religious bias. Moreover, it would be favorable for him to prove the existence of God, as it would give him a major foundation for knowledge. Hypothetically, if God exists, Descartes can confirm that he is thus not a ‘brain in a vat’ and that there is no evil genius that is controlling our senses as god is benevolent and would not trick our senses. However, one can argue that God could trick the senses in an act of benevolence. The 1999 movie The Matrix Directed by the Wachowski sisters, discusses this idea of experiencing life through an induced and collective dream. In this scenario, individuals get to experience a dream world, with no idea of the disastrous state of the earth. A limited number of people get the opportunity to choose whether they want to keep dreaming or live in the real world. It is much simpler to go with the dream; “Truth, like light, blinds. Falsehood, on the contrary, is a beautiful twilight that enhances every object.” (Camus 1957, p.36). This idea of falsehood being more attractive than truth is something that has been discussed extensively through the literature, great thinkers from the past and today have argued that it is a considerable challenge to face the truth relentlessly. The question here is whether Descartes can relentlessly pursue the truth, putting aside bias, and possibly happiness (in the form of bliss).

Objections to Descartes view on God

When Descartes proposed his ‘logical’ proof for the existence of God, the Church did not approve. Only a decade earlier, Galileo was condemned for proving the heliocentric model over the current geocentric theory, the fact was, the Church did not approve of views that did not conform with the faith.

George Orwell came up with a term that describes having to opposed beliefs and believing both. This term is ‘Doublethink’. I would argue that it is possible that Descartes used his intelligence, and combined it with his beliefs, in order to argue, and believe the proofs that he presents to us on God’s existence. Indeed, in Meditation five, Descartes writes; “Nothing seems more pressing than that I try to free myself from the doubts into which I fell a few days ago” (1641, p.58). Arguably, he sees this lack of knowledge as constraining, and perhaps rushes to a familiar ‘truth’; God exists.

The most persuasive of Descartes arguments is perhaps the idea that we can not conceive of something that is unreal, or that doesn’t have an opposite state. However, it is easily countered by bringing up fantasy beings. That being said, the idea of a dragon, or flying horse is based on things that do exist, it is very hard indeed to come up with something uninspired from reality. On the other hand, some things that are real are also hard to conceptualize, such as a 4th dimension (which can be explained, mathematically, but cannot be easily imagined). Furthermore, there are psychotic states that humans can enter, where the mind is not a reliable source of information. Notably, people suffering from schizophrenia, experience false senses which are constructed through a chemical imbalance in their brain.

In conclusion, I have found that the arguments Descartes proposes are somewhat convincing because of their mathematical logic. However, some would argue that one does not know that God exists, but believes so (and does so wholeheartedly). At least that is the traditional religious way of thinking. Associating God with logic proves to be a complicated task, that hasn’t been accepted by many (such as the Church or other philosophers), and Descartes proofs could be interpreted as an attempt to incorporate his religious background into his knowledge, using logical concepts.

Bibliography

1. Camus, A 1957, The Fall (Translated by J O’Brien), Vintage Books, New York.
2. Descartes, R 1641, Meditations on First Philosophy.
3. The Matrix 1999, dvd, Warner Bros, USA.

Homer’s epic poem, The Iliad, depicts the prominent conflict between the Achaeans and the Trojans. The Iliad and The Odyssey have become staples in universal literature and the foundation of Greek culture to many. In both works, Homer implicitly celebrates the role he plays as a performer and conduit from the Gods “who have their homes on Olympos” (75,18), giving rise to a question I repeatedly asked myself: “Why does Homer invoke the assistance of Gods and Muses in The Iliad to aid his poetry?”. The exploration of the impact and function of the “blessed” (84,339) and yet “blameworthy” (121,164) Gods and Muses in the two poems is necessary to thoroughly disentangle the complexity of the matter.

Immediately, we can consider the openings of The Iliad and The Odyssey in that respective order. Homer invokes the muse in the first line of The Iliad,“Sing, goddess, the anger of Peleus’ son Achilleus/ and its devastation”(75,1), putting forward the notion that he isn’t just telling us a story but instead channelling divine forces. Similarly, in the opening of The Odyssey, Homer prays to the Muses “tell me how he wandered and was lost when he had wrecked the holy town of Troy”(105,2), and therefore uses the Gods to inform the readers of Odysseus’ situation. Homer is conscious that he wants to sing the Wrath of Achilles however he clearly requires the Muses’ help to give him entree into this unspeakably long tale at the perfect moment. I imagine that Homer employs the Muses to embed a starting point for the exploration of the general setting in his epic poems; however, they essentially execute the poems and unfold stories of the individual character’s to the readers. These introductory invocations serve to place the specific themes studied in the poems, such as ‘rage and hubris’ and ‘the glorification versus the critique of war’, enclosed by a broader framework aided by the desire and ability of the Gods and Muses. One can illustrate this as Homer revealing that the Gods spend their time writing the epic poems and that he only serves as the mouthpiece or performer, which is why it surprises me how much this technique has lionized Homer’s role and status.

The most extensive exhibition of Homer’s invocations is the ten lines introducing the famously debated ‘catalogue of ships’ in The Iliad, where“Twenty-nine Greek contingents, totaling 1,186 ships are listed, with the description spiraling outward from Boeotia in central Greece” (525,496). Homer emphasizes the magnitude of the host in a sequence of similes, “Like the multitudinous nations of swarming insects who drive hither and thither about the stalls of the sheepfold in the season of spring when the milk splashes in the milk pails” (105,469), and then suggests to list the names of the chiefs. What seems most interesting about the scene is not so much the inspiration for colorful and exiting language, nor the conversation surrounding the origins and poetics of the catalogue, but rather that he explicitly stops and invokes the Muses to help him with this unsettling task: “Tell me now, you Muses who have your homes on Olympos. For you, who are goddesses, are there, and you know all things, […] Who then of those were the chief men and the lords of the Danaäns? I could not tell over the multitude of them nor name them, not if I had ten tongues and ten mouths, not if I had a voice never to be broken and a heart of bronze within me, not unless the Muses of Olympia, […] remembered all those who came beneath Ilion.” (105,484).

The repetition of Homer’s requests of the Muses only signify the importance of the aid and assistance he receives, however I do not believe the invocation is simply a demand for knowledge, but also his own unique fabrication of ‘recusatio’, a dissent to give a complete demonstration of intricate matters. This interpretation is supported by the scene in The Odyssey where Helen of Troy tells Telemachus a story about his father: “I cannot tell you all the challenges steadfast Odysseus has undergone. But I will tell you what that brave man did at Troy, when the Achaeans were in trouble.” (159,240).We can clearly see this unusual need to be selective, which would indicate that without Muses, we would never have these Homeric poems. Although this scene demonstrates Homer’s need for the Muses and Gods to aid his craft, it does not tell us why he needs them. Why does Homer depend on the Muses? Who are they and does he use them to extend responsibility?

Perhaps by becoming this blind bard through the help of the Muses, he is able to better tell the story of Troy in different narratives, without the fear of failure. One can also infer that the function of the Muses is not solely for instruction but also selection; it’s possible that the through the oral tradition at which The Iliad is assumed to have been preformed, the Muses’ role was to cut down the story to practicable, important figures.

The role of gods in The Odyssey was to use their powers to help or hinder the lives of people. When using their powers, it determined the events that would later occur in this story. In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, he shows that gods can and will do whatever they want to help or hinder people’s lives. This is one of the most prevalent themes in the epic. There are multiple ways in which the gods showcased this theme.

One of the main ways they changed people’s lives is through force. The wind god Aeolus helps the soldiers get home after the battle at Troy. Aeolus uses his powers to help soldiers get back home. “Never once did the wind fail, once the god had set it blowing.”(74-79) When Aeolus causes the winds to blow faster and stronger, it helps the boat sail faster and safer. Another example of gods using force is when Poseidon makes Odysseus’ trip back to Ithaca difficult. Polyphemus says “Hear me, Poseidon who circle the earth, dark-haired. If truly I am your son, and you acknowledge yourself as my father, grant that Odysseus, sacker of cities, son of Laertes, who makes his home in Ithaca, may never reach that home.” (528-536). Poseidon acknowledges this and is now going to do everything in his power to make Odysseus’ trip back to Ithaca difficult. Overall, whenever gods use force, it is to contribute to an already good thing, or to make life for people difficult.

The second instances of gods changing people’s lives by using their powers and authority to change the future. In one scenario Zeus, makes it clear that Odysseus will return home. “Odysseus shall come back by the convoy neither of the gods nor of mortal people, but he shall sail on a jointed raft and, suffering hardships.’ (100-101). Already, Zeus has determined Odysseus’ future. It doesn’t matter what the gods do, no matter what. Odysseus will get back home. Another example of god’s helping people using the future is when Odysseus is informed by a goddess that he will suffer hardships. He knows the future has obstacles he must face. ‘Ah me unhappy, what in the long outcome will befall me? I fear the goddess might have spoken the truth in all ways when she said that on the sea and before I came to my country I would go through hardships’ (299-305). Odysseus knows that he will have to go through hardships. This motivates him even more to get back home to see his son, wife, and kingdom. If the goddess would’ve never informed him of his future, he might not have the motive and decide to take the easy out, instead of working hard towards his goals. In conclusion, knowing the future can help people because it will change their mindset to achieve their goal.

The third way god’s help people is physically helping them in person. They show up in real life to help people. Athena shows up in person after Odysseus comes back home. She says ‘But come now, let me make you so that no mortal can recognize you. For I will wither the handsome flesh that is on your flexible limbs, and ruin the brown hair on your head.’ (396-403). Athena helps Odysseus by changing him into a beggar. Because he will be a beggar no one will know that the beggar is Odysseus. Not only does Athena talks to Odysseus, she talks to Telemachus in person. She says “Telemachos, you are to be no thoughtless man, no coward, if truly the strong force of your father is instilled in you; such a man he was for accomplishing word and action.” (267-272) She says this to motivate him to be like his father. She wants him to be heroic and do the right thing. In conclusion, when a god or goddess shows up in real life to help, it is to give people advice, or aid the people in their objective by using their powers.

Gods or goddesses can help or hindered people’s lives in many ways such using force, through seeing the future, or physically helping people in person. The first way gods or goddess helped people was through force. They would use their powers to do this. Whenever the powers where used, it would change the climate or create challenges for characters to endure. Secondly, they would see the future. When they see the future, they can change it or inform people so they can prepare for the future. Lastly, gods or goddess help or hinder people’s lives physically in person. Often times, if a god or goddess meets a character in real life, the god or goddess has a really good intention of helping you. In conclusion, I think that gods and goddess have a lot of power in what people do in the story. They can whatever they want when they feel like it. Sometimes they will do something bad for the person or do something beneficial for the person.

King Laius of Thebes received a shocking oracle from the God of Truth, Apollo, that his son would slay the father and marry the mother. Immediately after his son was born, Laius left it on an isolated mountain. Several years later, the King was killed during an encounter with robbers.

At that time, Thebes was troubled by a Sphinx that nobody investigated the particular murderer. This Sphinx had the head of a woman, the haunches of a lion, and the wings of a bird. Nobody can pass it without either solving its riddle or being eaten raw.

Meanwhile, Oedipus, son of King Polybus of Corinth was foreseen that he would kill his father and sleep with his mother. Then, he was exiled out of Corinth; he traveled the world and decided to challenge himself with the Sphinx’s riddle. The Sphinx asked: “What is the creature that walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three in the evening”. Oedipus answered: “Men. In childhood he creeps on hands and feet; in manhood, he walks erect; in old age, he helps himself with a staff.” He was correct, and the Sphinx killed itself.

As a reward to the heroic act, Thebes enthroned Oedipus and planned his wedding with the widowed queen Jocasta. Several years later, Oedipus discovered that King Laius was killed away from home at the time he wandered the world and killed a group that provoked him. Jocasta attempted to stop him from further discovery yet Oedipus was decisive. When the truth was revealed, Jocasta could not handle the situation and committed suicide. Traumatized by the event, Oedipus stabbed his eyes with his mother’s hairpin.

After the death of King Polybus of Corinth, the people of Thebes nominated Oedipus for the throne. However, with the immoral tragedies between him and his parents, Oedipus refused the position. Jocasta’s brother, Creon, became the regent. The Thebans were kind and accepting of Oedipus at first but eventually expelled him. Unwilling to let her sightless dad travel alone, Antigone accompanied Oedipus.

Since Oedipus was away, there was no family dilemma to hinder his sons, Polyneices and Eteocles, from aiming for the throne. Eteocles succeeded; he exiled his brother from Thebes. Polyneices sought revenge for his lost by gathering an army against their home country. Unfortunately, they speared through each other during the combat, and both passed away.

In light of the situation, Creon requested that no one who betrayed Thebes would receive a burial. Antigone was not swayed by the law but sought to bury her beloved brother during a sandstorm. Her action was reported to Creon, leading to her execution.

The Trojan war

Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, was not invited to the Olympus banquet. For revenge, she schemed to start a war among the goddesses by leaving a golden apple at the party carved ‘For The Fairest.’ Hera, Aphrodite, and Athena all believed they were worthy of the title. However, nobody could decide one among them. They went to Zeus for help, but Zeus wisely pointed to another man, Paris. Paris was the prince of Troy but lived the life of a shepherd because there was a prophecy that he would bring chaos to his country. All the three goddesses offered valuable gifts to gain the title, but Paris chose Aphrodite and her promise of the fairest woman in the world. The event was called ‘The Judgement of Paris’ and was known as the reason for the Trojan War.

The fairest woman at the time was Helen, the daughter of Zeus and Leda. Paris pretended to bond with Helen’s husband, Menelaus and kidnapped Helen. The husband was angry when he realized Helen was gone. He invited the most heroic figures of Greece: Agamemnon, Achilles, Odysseus, Nestor, and Ajax to join the war against Troy.

It was the most challenging to have Achilles and Odysseus along in the war. For Odysseus, a prophecy predicted the Trojan war and claimed that he would not return long after it. When receiving the invitation, he pretended to go mad by plowing and sowing the field with grains of salt. The Greeks put his little son on the field; he stopped and had no further excuse not to join the war. For Achilles, a seer once told that he would die in the Trojan War. Hence, his mother burnt him and submerged him into the River Styx that carried the invulnerable flow from the gods. However, while she was sinking Achilles, she held his feet too tightly that his heels did not touch the water. His mother overheard Odysseus’s invitation for Achilles to join the war she disguised him as a maiden and hid him. However, Odysseus eventually found Achilles and succeeded in convincing him.

The war went on for ten years, drawing the attention of the gods. The winning side shifted between Troy and Greece. Troy had Hector, a brave and heroic Commander in Chief while Greece had the undefeatable Achilles. During a fight, Achilles managed to knock down Hector. He also knew that following Hector’s death, his was coming. Achilles killed Memnon in combat, but he let himself fell beside the Scaean gates and got shot by Paris, with Apollo’s help in pointing out the heels.

Losing many great leaders, the Greeks realized that they had to get their army into the city of Troy and take the Trojans down by surprise. They built a wooden horse to hide the army inside. On the day they left the horse at the Scaean gates, Greek kept quiet and pretended defeat. The Trojans brought the horse inside their town to offer to Athena’s temple. Late at night, the Greek army left the inside of the horse and took down Troy.

Agamemnon

Agamemnon was Menelaus’s brother. He had one son, Orestes, and three daughters, including Electra. When Agamemnon returned from the Trojan War, he brought home Cassandra, princess of Troy, while his wife Clytemnestra was in an affair with his cousin, Aegisthus. They argued, and Clytemnestra killed Agamemnon along with Cassandra. Seeking revenge for his father, Orestes planned to kill his mother with Electra’s help. Before Clytemnestra was killed, she cursed Orestes. The curse caused the anger of the Erinyes, the three goddesses of vengeance. In the end, Orestes was urged to death for his unfilial conduct while Electra was safe.

Odysseus

A prophecy stated that Odysseus would not be able to return home long after the Trojan war. Therefore, when the Greeks came to invite, he acted mad and plowed with grains of salt until his son was placed in the way. With no more excuses, Odysseus joined the war.

After the Greeks won the Trojan war, Odysseus headed home. He dealt with the sea, overcame the unmotivated lure of the Lotus Eaters, and escaped from the giant Polyphemus by wisely pierced through its only eye. Odysseus also encountered the witch Circe, ventured to the Land of the Dead for the way home, overcame the luring Sirens, and had to sacrifice six of his men at The Scylla.

When they arrived at the island of Helios, the god of the sun, a storm struck them. While Odysseus was looking for guidance, despite his warning of protecting Helios’ cattle, one man said that starvation was the worst kind of death and decided to slaughter the best cattle. Helios went fury and killed the crew except for Odysseus. Leaving Helios’ island, Odysseus stayed at goddess Calypso’s island for seven years before Athena asked Zeus to release Odysseus. Zeus sent Hermes to Calypso; the goddess agreed to let Odysseus go.

On Odysseus’ way to Ithaca, Poseidon wrecked Odysseus’ ship with waves in revenge for the death of his son Polyphemus. Odysseus was drowned and drifted to Scheria, where Princess Nausica saved him. Her father, King Alcinous, further discovered about Odysseus’ origin and the Trojan war; he gave Odysseus a ship that took Odysseus home.

Meanwhile, many suitors claimed that Odysseus was dead and asked to marry his wife, Penelope. Seeing Odysseus at her front door, Penelope could not believe that it was Odysseus. She refused to let Odysseus in until he proved himself. Penelope requested that one must shoot an arrow through twelve Spartan bracelets with Odysseus’ bow to marry her. No men succeeded until Odysseus tried the bow. Penelope recognized Odysseus, and they bonded after 20 years.

Bacchus

Bacchus (or Dionysus) was the son of Zeus and princess Semele of Thebes. His mother died from the burning glory of Zeus but Zeus managed to snatch the baby out. Since Thebes was the only place where mortals can bear immortals, Bacchus was considered a god. He was born by fire, raised by nymphs, and nursed by rain. Therefore, his burning heat ripened the grapes and his water flourished plants. He became the God of Wine, of Fertility.

There are different stories of Midas in Greek and Roman mythology. On one side, he was the God of Joy. He had a train of worshippers, called the Maenads or the Bacchantes, that were frenzied with wine. Everywhere he went, there would be feasts and parties. On the other side, he was brutal and bloodthirsty. He and his train would parade through the woods, tear off any wild creatures on the way, and get drowned in their blood. Bacchus reflected the two sides of wine: it kept men warm yet caused violence.

Midas

He was King of Phrygia, the land of roses. One day, Silenus from Bacchus’ train lost his way into Midas’s garden. He was drunk and fell asleep in Midas’ garden. Midas welcomed Silenus and had him stay at his home for ten days before guiding him back to Bacchus. To thank Midas, Bacchus gave him a wish; Midas chose to turn everything he touched into gold. Bacchus noticed the odd thing about the wish yet still granted it to Midas. When Midas returned home and got hungry, he reached for food, but everything he was about to swallow all turned to gold.

Starved and thirsty, he came to Bacchus for help. Bacchus pointed Midas to the river Pactolus so that he could wash his hand in its river to invalidate the power. From then on, people can find gold in the Pactolus river.

Another time, Apollo and Pan chose Midas to be the judge for their musical contest. Midas chose Pan, which caused Apollo’s rage. He turned Midas’ ears into those of a donkey for his ignorance.

Humiliated, Midas hid his ears inside a hat, and only the servant that cut his hair knew. This servant could not stand the burden of the secret, so he dug a hole in a field and spoke to the ground that “King Midas has donkey’s ears.” From the hole grew spring reeds that whispered those buried words when the wind blew by. In the end, all men knew the truth about the King.

Leda and The Swan

‘Leda and The Swan’ was composed by Willian B. Yeats in 1923. The sonnet is about Leda and her beauty. Attracted with her look, Zeus turned into a swan to seduce and eventually raped her. After the event, she gave birth to Helen and Clytemnestra. The sonnet alluded that one was the cause of the Trojan War and one was the cause of Agamemnon’s death.

Pandora

Zeus sent Prometheus and his brother, Epimetheus, to create humanity. Prometheus was bored by the limited resources; hence he stole the magical fire from Zeus for men. As a punishment, Zeus called upon Hephaestus, the god of fire and metal, to make a woman out of clay and named her Pandora. The gods gave her divine gifts: Athena blessed her with crafts, Aphrodite with grace. The Seasons adorned her with garlands of spring flowers, the Graces with jewelry. However, Hermes gave her curiosity and lies; Zeus gave her a jar that she was told not to open for the rest of her life.

Hermes later introduced Pandora to Epimetheus as his bride. One day, Pandora was curious. She opened the jar, releasing all the evils inside: diseases, wars, disasters. Nevertheless, she did not know that there were blessings following the evils. Pandora closed the box crying, closing the lids before “Anticipation” went out. The anticipation kept humans aware of their surroundings and kept them moving on from the evils.

The use of supernatural machinery is a prominent feature of many epics. Supernatural machinery is a must for an epic and Iliad is not devoid of this. Homer has used the Olympian gods and goddesses who take part in the poem separated into two parts. The most powerful gods and goddesses are equally balanced in the two groups such as Aphrodite and Apollo in support of the Trojans and Hera, Athena, and Hephaestus in support of the Achaeans.

In the Iliad, the olympian gods and goddesses fight and play great roles in human warfare. Homer’s portrayals of them suited his narrative purpose or stylistic presentation. The Homeric gods are not impartial. They control human fate and manipulate destiny like the death of Hector and the victor of Achilles. The gods know the mortal’s agony, as they play the largest role in causing it Zeus says There is nothing alive more agonized than a man of all that breaths and crawls across the earth.

In Homer’s ‘Iliad’, Olympian gods and goddesses experience the same emotions of love, hatred, revengefulness, jealousy, and antagonism, as human beings. The main difference between gods and human beings is that the deities have the power to control the course of events while human beings can not do so generally. Gods in the Iliad quarrel like mortal families do. They are engaged in teasing fond of entertainment and go to bed with their spouses. They interact with humans and human beings do not often respect the gods and goddesses while talking to them. Thus, when Aphrodite asks Helen to make love with Paris, Helen refuses and says to Aphrodite in anger. ‘No, go and sit with him yourself. Forget you are a goddess. Go and pamper him and one day he may make you his wife or his concubine’. Homeric gods are immortal but they are subject to undergo suffering. In book v, we see that Aphrodite is stabbed by Diomedes. Diomedes pierces her flesh and Aphrodite gives a piercing scream. In the same book Diomedes with the help of Athena also stabs the war god Ares who also gives yells loudly. Thus, it is proved that Homeric gods and goddesses suffer from human suffering.

Gods and Goddesses take part directly in the Trojan War. Zeus, the greatest of the Olympian gods played neutral in the war. Hera, the queen of Olympus takes the side of the Achaeans. Artemis, goddess of the moon and hunting takes the side of the Trojans. Apollo, the god of prophecy and poetry, and music supports the Trojans. Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty supports the Trojans. Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war took the side of the Achaeans. Poseidon, God of the sea supported the Achaeans in the Trojan war, taking the side of the Achaeans. Hephaestus, the god of fire, supports the Achaeans in the Trojan war.

Hera wants to ruin the Trojans because Paris rejected her bribe to make a decision in her favor in the beauty contest. She requests to Zeus that ‘I believe, therefore, that you have been promising her(Thetis) to give glory to Achilles and to kill many people at the ships of the Achaeans’. Athena who is the goddess of wisdom and war goes against Paris since Paris also rejected her to declare the winner of the beauty contest. On the other hand, Aphrodite wishes to defend Paris because Paris declared her winner.

However, the main action of the poem turns on the will of Zeus and his promise to Thetis that the Trojans will succeed until the Greeks are forced to appreciate Achilles’ wrath. But Zeus wanted to stay neutral because Hera preferred the Greeks. Zeus’ dream causes Agamemnon to mount an attack that he would have otherwise not mounted. This is the beginning of a series of divine actions that support Zeus’ pledge to Thetis. Thus, Homer portrays the supernatural machinery in his epic The Iliad

What is Judaism? Judaism is one of the oldest monotheistic religions developed among ancient Hebrews. It is the second oldest world religion behind Hinduism. Also, it was founded over thirty-five hundred years ago in the Middle East. Judaism is about four thousand years old. It is the foundation of the culture of America. Jews believed the God called them to be his chosen ones in order to be an example of holiness and behavior of ethics. Who are they? They are Jews of the religion, Judaism. Jews have a symbol, which is called the “Star of David.”

They think that the Star of David is a symbol of God, instead the Star of David symbolizes that it has the chosen people. The symbol of the idea is the Jewish people then settle our whole as the people of the Covenant. The Star of David is a symbol of this Holiness of the Jewish people. The Star of David is not a symbol for God, because that is forbidden in Judaism. One of the really interesting features of the Mosaic Covenant that it is an iconic nature.

Iconic means is that tomorrow your clothes, no icons or no symbols, something that is an iconic has no symbols know those symbols are allowed in Judaism. You should never ever make a symbol of God, because God is beyond anything that we can imagine. Point of the matter is that do not make a symbol of God at all. You should not symbolize God in any way, shape or form, because it is forbidden. Jews intentionally will not do this, because they do not want to symbolize God.

Jews were known to be the people of the Covenant. A covenant is the binding agreement between God and his people. For example, it is like when God told Moses to go back to Egypt and lead his people to freedom. So, Moses did want Gold told him to do and went up to Pharaoh, to tell him to let his people go. The covenant between Moses and God would be labeled as Mosaic.

There are different types of people of the Covenant. The people of the Covenant were Abrahamic, Mosaic, Rabbinic and Roman, just to name a few. Covenants were made with Abraham, Moses, and David. Abrahamic derived from the name of the most prophet of God, Abraham. These people of this covenant worshipped one God. Abraham made a covenant with God, which was, if him and his followers worshipped God alone, his people will be multiplied into a nation.

The Mosaic covenant follows the law of worshipping God. For example, the Ten Commandments comes straight out of Judaism. The Ten Commandments was given to Moses by God. It is a law to demand the constraints that is thought to be required of life. In other words, it is a list of rules to live by for a perfect life. The Ten Commandments are enhanced to control the four principle danger zones of/in human relationships: force, wealth, sex and speech.

The Rabbinic Covenant would have been created during the era of Rabbinic Judaism. During the Babylonian Exile period, Jews didn’t sacrifice at the temple, instead Judaism became a learning and teaching religion. That is similar to the Babylon covenant. Roles of priests became diminished and the value of Rabbis increased, which equaled to the teaching of Jewish things. Judaism led by the Rabbis was taught to be a good Jew is to study.

The David Covenant is a binding agreement with the outcome of having members of the nation. David, who was the next king after Saul, was known as the greatest king in Jewish History. He wanted to make things better by forming twelve tribes into a nation. The formation of the tribes occurred which led to the capturing of Jerusalem. After that happened, it was made the capital of Israel. It is one of the most holy cities for Muslims, Jews and Christians.

Now far as the Dispora, that was a time period where the Jews had scattered all over the globe. Jews had to do this, because Romans made it illegal for Jews to live in Israel. All of this occurred when the Romans crushed the Jews and destroyed a temple. Romans had conquered Israel and turned it into a colony. The conquering of Israel led to the Dispora. During the Dispora, the meaning of the Covenant changed during the Dispora. What it meant to be a member of the people of the Covenant became being a member of one of these four schools. Jesus is never heard of any of these schools. The schools are Dispora creations within the Jewish world, but this changes the Jewish Covenant.

The Dispora lasted nearly for almost two thousand years. This started in the year, 70 C.E. and lasted to the year, 1948 C.E. When the Jews scattered, they scattered across Africa. Many Jews fled to Ethopia, they also fled to Europe. They did not scatter in Israel. Israel was now a colonization. Since the Romans took over Israel, their covenant of people were members of four schools that were created. These four different types of school deal with Judaism. The schools were Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Orthodox Judaism and Reconstruction Judaism.

Reform Judaism is the largest school of Judaism mathematically. This school is the most liberal and it tries to keep somewhat of the Jewish tradition. The people of this school tend to be more relaxed than the others. This school is least likely to keep to the rules of Kosher. Kosher Rules what Jews can eat, pork is forbidden and they cannot mix meat and cheese. In the book of Leviticus, it lists everything that is Kosher and what is not Kosher. For instance, dealing with fish, you can only eat ordinary fish. Trout would be a type of fish that is acceptable to eat. No crawfish, crab, and shrimps. Any type of shellfish of any kind is not acceptable.

Dairy products are acceptable with the Kosher rules. Cheese is allowed, but you cannot mix meat and cheese. So, they can have a cheese sandwich just not with meat. A hamburger without cheese can be eaten as well. Cheeseburgers are not allowed. The school of Conservative Judaism take kind of a middle ground in the dilemma. They keep to the rules of Kosher. Also, they keep to the rules of the Sabbath. Romans changed the Christian Sabbath over to Sunday. Conservatives are not as hardcore as the Orthodox Jews.

The school of Orthodox have the most conservative Jews of Judaism. These people do not compromise, they just want to keep all the traditional rules. Orthodox Jews tend to create their own neighborhoods. New York and Chicago are some cities that these neighborhoods are created. Also, they form their own enclaves. The first three schools of Judaism kind of describe a spectrum from most liberal to most stringent.

The last form of the four schools is Reconstruction. Reconstruction is the American school of Judaism. It is not entirely unlike from the school of Reform. They believe that achieving high things is to make Judaism look good. For example, Albert Einstein was not a very observant Jew, but he is a hero to some Reconstruction Jews.

There are so many questions people have when it comes to faith. Questions that even lead people to give up on their faith. One of the most asked questions throughout history is “Why does God allow evil and suffering.” This is a question that stops people from even following God. There is so much evil and suffering throughout the world today, so if God is so powerful and so mighty, why does he not just stop it? How can God be such a good God, but let all of this pain and suffering happen? There are babies born with disabilities, people who get diagnosed with cancer, wildfires, natural disasters, epidemics, and so much more. All of these things are so hard to understand, but God allows these things to happen for a purpose.

There are two types of evil in this world. Natural evil and moral evil. Natural evil would be that of natural disasters, like earthquakes or tsunamis, which humans cannot control. Moral evil would be the acts of humans that would be considered morally wrong, like rape and murder. Both of these evils can work together though and make each other worse (Moral evil and natural suffering). John 16:33 talks about how there is going to be evil and trouble in this world, but God has overcome the world.

The world today is not how God originally designed it. Evil and suffering started with the fall of Adam and Eve. God’s original plan was for humans to have authority over the earth, the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth (Prijs 2019). God created us to live exactly how he lives, but since the fall, evil and suffering entered the world and ruined God’s extraordinary plan for us. Genesis 1:27 says “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” The very first thing God did was give mankind the authority over the earth. Yet all of this only last a few chapters of Genesis. God’s original plan was for mankind to have rule over the earth, but then there was sin, and it changed everything. God did not prevent Adam and Eve from sinning, he only allowed it. Before the fall, Adam and Eve had no knowledge of good and evil (Prijs 2019). It was because of free will that Adam and Eve sinned and allowed evil to enter God’s perfect world. God wants a relationship with everyone, but He wants us to desire it. God will not force people into having a relationship with him. Sin is a choice and it is a decision.

Sometimes it can be difficult to understand why such a powerful God can let bad things happen. That is why most people lose their faith, or not even want to start their faith. Some say that there is no such thing as God because an almighty God would not allow suffering or pain. God uses evil and suffering to further his purposes and to ultimately accomplish his will. This is something that can be very difficult to comprehend, it is hard to grasp the mind around God using evil and suffering for good. In the story of Joseph, his brothers meant evil against him when they sold him into slavery, but God intended this event for good. God knew that Joseph’s brothers would eventually need him due to the famine. Proverbs 16:4 says “The Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.”

In our pain and suffering, God wants us to draw near to him. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” This is a verse that gets taken out of context very easily (Givens 2015). The context of this verse was when the Israelites were in exile in Babylon because of their disobedience with God. During the time the Israelites were in Babylon they meet a false prophet, Hananiah, who said that God will be freeing them from exile in two years. Jeremiah confronted Hananiah’s lie and states the promise of Jeremiah 29:11, before Jeremiah shares this promise, he gave the Israelites a directive from God that says “seek the peace and the prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you will too prosper.” Clearly, this is not what the Israelites wanted to hear, in verse 10 the Israelites were continued to be let down, God tells them “after seventy years are completed in Babylon,” is the time their suffering will end (Givens 2015). Jeremiah 29:11 is not a promise that God is going to take his people out of suffering, it is a promise that the people are going to find hope in the midst of it.

In the book of Job, God allowed Satan to test Job by taking everything from him but his life. Even though Job lost everything, he never turned away from God. Job was suffering because of all that he had lost. The reason for his suffering was never revealed. Job knew that God would remain faithful in his suffering though. In chapters 38-42 of Job, God spoke to him and restored him. Job had previously received bad guidance from his friends, but God declared to Job that humans do not know everything. God wants his people to trust that all of the pain in suffering in the world is part of his plan.

Pain and suffering naturally bring people closer to Jesus, as long as the people put their worries on God and not on themselves. There is a famous quote that says, “God will never give you something that you cannot handle,” in reality, God does give people things that they cannot handle. The people have to choose to give their problems to God, then they will be able to handle the problem face first. Suffering for Christians is not only for eternity’s sake, but it is purifying in this life as well. God often uses suffering as a tool in the believer’s life to mold, sharpen, and strengthen them (“What is biblical perspective…”). Suffering can be the result of God’s discipline, which according to Hebrews 12:6-11, he does it out of love. Suffering could also be the result of the Lord pruning to make us more fruitful. God uses trials and sufferings to mold his followers into the image of His perfect son, sharpen our focus on Him, develop our character, and strengthen our faith in Him and His promises. God also uses suffering to keep us from pride and self-sufficiency and cause us to rely upon Him and His grace, which is the source of spiritual strength (“What is a biblical perspective…”).

Sometimes God seems quite in pain and suffering, just like Job experienced silence in his suffering. There was a long period I my life where I experienced silence in my suffering. My Dad had just gotten another divorce and moved to Chicago the day after I graduated. I was just about to enter a new season of life, and I was very frustrated. At the time I was also in a very toxic relationship that I was not sure how to get out of. I felt like I was turning to God and giving him everything, but nothing seemed to be going the right way. I was frustrated because I felt as though I was doing everything right, but I was not getting any response of what I should be doing or if I was making the right choices. God was silent in my life for about six months. I did not tell anyone what I was going through because I was embarrassed. I tried to handle my problems on my own. There was one night I cried out to God and told him that I could not keep giving everything to him and not get any comfort or response. I told God that if something does not happen then I am throwing my faith down the drain. That same night at 3 am, I woke my best friend up and cried to her. One of those big, ugly, hyperventilation cries. In the moment of telling my friend what I had been going through, I heard God. He said: “Lexy, I got you, be still.” Hearing that from God was a sigh of relief. My faith is still a little rocky, but I now know that I need to not try and tackle things on my own. One of my favorite verses is 1 Peter 5:7, it says, “Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” The Christian faith is like a seed, when we are first planted, we feel good because we were just in the hands of the Lord. When we get put into the dirt, we feel alone, no one can see us. Some days it feels like no one can hear us, but we are still growing. There is going to be times in our lives where it may seem like we are under the dirt, but that is where we grow the most, it is where we get our strong roots.

The greatest story of suffering is when Jesus died on the cross. Pontius Pilate sent Jesus to the cross to be crucified, but it is because of the our sin. We are the reason that Christ died. The Apostle Peter declared that “Christ died for sins, to bring us to God.” (1 Peter 3:18). Christ died for us so that we could live eternity with him in heaven. The apostle Paul witnessed that “Christ died for our sins, according to Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3). We all have sinned (Romans 3:23) and according to Romans 6:23, the consequence of sin is death. We are all headed for judgment, condemnation, and eternal death unless God himself intervened (Solomon 2019). And God did intervene. The crucifixion of Jesus was not a historical accident (Solomon 2019). It was a carefully planned event, Paul pointed this out in 1 Corinthians 15:3, “according to Scriptures.” Romans 5:8 talks about how Jesus willingly laid his life down for us because he loved us. God allowed his own son to go through the pain and the suffering, so we do not have to. God is such an awesome God.

The Bible makes no promise to take away our suffering in this lifetime, but it does give some hope that suffering will one day be ended forever. At the end of the Bible, there is a magnificent vision of a coming world in which all pain and suffering is gone forever. Revelation 21:4 says, “He [God] will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” The image of God wiping away tears from the eyes of his people communicates not just the ending of earthly suffering, but the comfort for earthly things (Ortlund). In the Bible, heaven represents the place where sadness does not just end, but it becomes unknown, forever. This gift is offered to anyone who repents of sin and trusts in Christ for salvation (Ortlund). According to the Bible, those who reject this salvation and persist in rebellion against God will be banished from God’s presence and experience eternal death and suffering.

Suffering can produce very different outcomes in different peoples’ lives, depending on how they respond to it. The same painful experience can make one person bitter, narrow, and ungenerous, and another person sweeter, humbler, and more patient (Ortlund). James 1:2-4 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” The Apostle Paul took this a little bit further and said, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” The New Testament repeatedly calls Christians to stand up under unjust suffering, and even to rejoice in it in light of God’s redemptive purposes (Ortlund).

Though suffering, comes revival. God wants us to draw near to him during times of suffering. Whether it be a global pandemic, war, a tsunami, or even a mass shooting, all of these events can spark a revival. Revival is held back when God’s people refuse to get right with him though. True revival is when the living God sovereignly and powerfully breaks into human history with the good news of His salvation. Traumatic events spark a revival, people coming together in tough situations sparks a revival, people spreading the good news of the Lord sparks a revival! It is often at such bare times that God breaks into history with true revival. His power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). God often waits until things are hopeless so that no one will glory in others, but only in the Lord. With suffering, comes revival.

Although it is difficult to comprehend God’s complex and mysterious ways, the Lord is the only source for true comfort and refuge in the midst of an evil world. In order to correctly respond to evil, we must not only be convinced that God is our help in time of trouble, but we must also understand that pain and suffering are designed to cultivate a stronger desire for God. The Lord works wonders in times of trial and suffering, it is all about trusting and leaning into Him to get through it all.

Everyone has experienced love during their lifetime, whether they loved or were loved. It’s no surprise that billions of individuals say, “I love you”. So, what is love? One way to define love is a feeling for different people, including kids, work colleagues, husband, wife, and God. Nevertheless, each of these has a totally different type of love. Love is a powerful affectionate feeling that even affects how the individual acts. Love exists in various types, including intimate love, friendship love, family love, and intangible love. The love between a husband and wife is usually strong. Nonetheless, the kind of love is dissimilar from that of a parent to children. Love for a wife or a boyfriend can be diverse than the love for God. Love may be romantic but is sometimes seen as lust. But then, without love, how would life be like? Here is an exclusive definition of love.

The first thing that comes into mind when one thinks of love is the romantic kind. Being in love gives you an extra heartbeat each time you think about your lover. You almost feel sick, and the hands become clammy each time you are far from each other, and every time you talk to the person, you want the moments to last forever. Romantic love makes you love the other person for everything they are, including their faults. Both of them try to make the other person better and assist them in growing, often sacrificing their happiness for the sake of the other person. Many feelings come up, including the negative ones such as sadness, passion, loneliness, lust, passion, happiness, and anger.

Family love is one of the most crucial types of love that everybody needs in their lives. It is everlasting, unconditional, and timeless. A family is a group of people united not just by blood but also by love. Family love is different from romantic love. It is the feeling of showing how grateful you are to them and how much they mean to you. It is the sensation shared between a boy paying attention to his grandmother’s stories of the past. The love is also experienced in the strict rules enforced by the mother and father that the child feels they are unfair. One knows that his or her parent can sacrifice anything for them and always feels at ease when surrounded by the family. The best thing about this kind of love is that it permits one to be himself or herself. They do not judge you regarding your quirky behavior or disabilities. You can always commit errors, and you will be exonerated.

Friendship love is comparable to familiar love but has limitations that should not be crossed. These friendship limits are different to each relationship. However, the limits are often on the line of mouthing behind the back of each other or not messing with each person’s boyfriend. Friendship love gives one a person to talk to and be there for each other, particularly about issues that you are not comfortable to speak about with your parents or family members. This love entails sharing your incidents about your firsthand experience with your girl crush in high school, sneaking out to the night party together, and even taking blames for the acts committed by your friend.

The essential love for me is love for God. His love for us is so great that he sacrificed his son to see us free from our sins. This love is different from that of a husband, a family, or friend because as sad as it might seem, all these people can break your love, but God will never leave you. Our devolution to God for the love he has shown us demonstrates our love for him in the form of reverence.

In conclusion, love is the most powerful feeling that we will ever experience. Everybody in his or her lifetime will fall in love and will fulfill the imaginings of another person. Both will have an everlasting friendship, hope, conviction, and a credited future. This is all because of this tiny entity that has an enormous meaning referred to as love. We can do awful things out of fear and hate, but love can make us do much more and shoddier.

In this paper, I explore the controversy of why human beings suffer; is it because of the gods or is it a consequence of human action? The former is something that I believe in; however, this seems untrue in the Iliad and the Odyssey. As a practicing Hindu, I believe in polytheism; for me, the gods are all knowing and are responsible for maintaining the moral order. Those who do bad deeds are punished and those who do good deeds are rewarded for their actions. Hence, when I read the Iliad and the Odyssey, I was surprised that though the gods are mentioned, they are not responsible for maintaining the moral order. Through this paper, I show that human beings in the Iliad and the Odyssey suffer due to their own actions. Human beings are incapable of knowing everything and also have limits. Those who attempt to go beyond their limits face severe consequences. To address the controversy mentioned above, I will first discuss the role of the gods in the two works of literature. Secondly, I will explain how free will allows human beings to act and influence their Moira. Lastly, I will demonstrate that human suffering is a consequence of human action alone through discussing the downfalls of Agamemnon, Patroclus, Hector, and Achilles.

To begin, it is important to know the role of the gods in the Iliad and the Odyssey. The gods are immortal, and their knowledge exceeds human knowledge. Moreover, the gods act as foils for human beings as they possess everything that a human being desires. Often the most powerful heroes are children or grandchildren of the gods (Burkert, 1985). For example, Thetis, a goddess of water, is the mother of Achilles (Burkert, 1985). Usually, gods can be seen as onlookers which is evident in the Iliad (Burkert, 1985). However, if their interests are affected, the gods can intervene directly (Burkert, 1985). For instance, in the Odyssey, Athena influences human actions directly as her interests are also at stake (Burkert, 1985). Athena advises Telemachus by changing her appearance and guides Odysseus home. Still, from my understanding, the gods are onlookers in both works who rarely influence human action. The gods do not have a large role in the Homeric poems; they do not influence human actions directly. Rather, human beings bring suffering upon themselves by performing certain actions.

In the Iliad and the Odyssey, human beings have free will, through which they choose their paths. The consequences brought by those choices results in moira. Moira can be referred to as one’s portion or lot; according to Dodds, moira means that people do not understand why something has happened “but since it has happened, evidently it had to be” (1951, p. 6). I view Moira as a consequence of human action. Human beings act and moira takes place depending on whether that action is reckless or not. However, often human beings blame their moira on the gods.

For example, Agamemnon states that “…the Achaeans have spoken often against me and found fault with me in it, yet I am not responsible but Zeus is…” (Homer, Iliad, XIX. 85-96). Here Agamemnon apologizes for taking Achilles’ prize Briseis, away from him. He does not take full responsibility for his actions, instead he blames Zeus even when it was his decision to take Briseis away from Achilles. Agamemnon uses the gods as an excuse to justify his actions. His moira is that he angers Achilles which disrupts the relationship between him and the other soldiers. There are many instances in the Iliad where human beings bring suffering upon themselves. The gods can be seen as guiding forces but it is ultimately human action that results in the outcomes that humans are faced with.

I find that Agamemnon’s actions throughout the Iliad are prime examples of humans bringing downfall amongst themselves. Along with upsetting Achilles, he also vows to show no mercy to those involved in the war. For example, Agamemnon tells Menelaus “[no], let not one of them go free of sudden death and our hands; not the young man child that the mother carries still in her body, not even he, but let all of Ilion’s people perish, utterly blotted out and unmourned for” (Homer, Iliad, V1, 57-60). Through these lines, Agamemnon expresses that he does not want to show mercy to the people involved in the war; he will not even pardon the unborn children in women’s wombs. Agamemnon is being ruthless by targeting the innocent people who are merely associated with the war; all he wants is glory. In the Odyssey, it is revealed through Menelaus that “while [he] was wandering [the sea] and bringing together much property, meanwhile another man had killed [his] brother secretly, by surprise and by his wife’s treachery” (Homer, Odyssey, IV. 90-92). Menelaus reveals that Agamemnon has met his Moira through his Wife, Clytemnestra’s infidelity. Agamemnon dies as a result of his own ruthless actions. The gods do not bring this upon Agamemnon.

Unlike Agamemnon who vows to eliminate anyone in his way to reach glory, Patroclus exceeds his limits in attempt to capture Troy which results in his death. Achilles even warns Patroclus that “[he] must not, in the pride and fury of fighting, go on slaughtering the Trojans, and lead the way against Ilion…” (Homer, Iliad, XVI. 91-92). Yet Patroclus goes beyond his limits and fights Hector, knowing full well that he is only supposed to drive the Trojans back from the ships. As Patroclus is wounded with the javelin, Hector “[comes] close…and with a spear stab[s] him in the depth of the belly and [drives] the bronze clean through” (Homer, Iliad, XVI. 820-821). Patroclus meets his lot (moira) and dies. Patroclus dies as a result of his own actions. Though he is warned by Achilles, he still attempts to fight against the Trojans, exceeding his limits. This shows that Patroclus is driven by his desire for glory and fury to kill the Trojans. As a result, Patroclus suffers a devastating death and initiates the wrath of Achilles.

Like Patroclus, Hector also brings suffering upon himself by exceeding his limits. Hector is presented with the choice of either going out and fighting Achilles or staying inside the Trojan walls and defending his family. Priam, Hector’s father, appeals to Hector: “…beloved child, do not wait the attack of [Achilles]…you might encounter your destiny beaten down by Pelion, since he is far stronger than you are” (Homer, Iliad, XXII. 38-40). However, Hector does not listen to the appeals of his father and proceeds to wait for Achilles outside the wall. He leaves behind his young child and his wife Andromache who also does not want him to leave the safety of the walls.

Consequently, when Hector sees Achilles, “shivers [take] hold of him and he [can] no longer stand his ground there, but [leaves] the gates behind and [flees], frightened and Peleus’s son [goes] after him…” (Homer, Iliad, XXII. 136-139). Hector regrets his decision when he spots Achilles and rans away from the gates because he is frightened to face him. He makes a rash decision and must now pay for it by accepting his lot (moira). Then finally, “Brilliant Achilles [drives] the spear as he [come] on in fury, and clean through the soft part of the neck the spearpoint [is] driven” (Homer, Iliad, XXII. 326-327). Though Hector has the option staying within the Trojan walls, he chooses to fight Achilles outside the walls. Thus, Hector’s death is brought upon him by his own actions. His father Priam, mother Hecuba, his wife Andromache and his child suffer because of his actions as well when Agamemnon’s army invades the Trojan walls.

I believe that Achilles’ story is the best example of human suffering brought about by human actions. In book one of the Iliad, Thetis, the mother of Achilles, is saddened by Achilles’ experience at the Trojan war, she says “your birth was bitterness…if only you could sit by your ships untroubled, not weeping since indeed your lifetime is to be short, of no length” (Iliad, I. 414-416). Here, Thetis is upset as she thinks about Achilles’ decision to fight in the war. Inevitably, Achilles will die because he has chosen to gain glory in the war rather than to live a long and a healthy life. It is clear that Achilles has chosen to fight in the war to gain glory. His death is further confirmed when he kills Hector. Though Achilles is aware that bringing killing Hector will bring death upon him, he still kills Hector. At the time of Hector’s death, Achilles says “die: and I will take my own death at whatever time Zeus and the rest of the immortals choose to accomplish it” (Iliad, XXII. 65-66). Achilles, like Agamemnon, blames the god for his upcoming death, even though it was he who chose glory over a long life. Also, Achilles is motivated by his anger at Patroclus’ death to kill Hector which eventually results in his own death.

It is only in the Odyssey, that we can see the gods getting deeply involved in the lives of human beings. Though it is only Athena. Athena is worried about Odysseus and his family; she says, “that the heart in [her] is torn for the sake of wise Odysseus, unhappy man, who still, far from his friends is suffering griefs, on the sea-washed island” (Homer, Odyssey, I. 48-50). Since her interests are affected, she inserts herself into the lives of Odysseus and his family. Athena also disguises herself as Mentes (an old friend of Odysseus) to guide Telemachus on his journey to reach manhood. She states that she must “make [her] way to Ithaka so that [she] may stir up [Odysseus’] son a little, and put some confidence in him” (Homer, Odyssey, I. 88-91). She wants Telemachus to reach manhood and be able to assist his father kill the suitors.

She appeals to her father, Zeus, to let Odysseus come home. Athena appeals “Father Zeus…no longer let one who is a sceptered king be eager…he cannot make his way to his country…and now there are those who are determined to murder his dear son on his way home” (Homer, Odyssey, V. 8-19). Athena asks her father to tell Calypso to release Odysseus from the island and let him go home. Athena also guides Odysseus home after the Trojan War. Athena claims that “Odysseus is far the best mortal men for counsel and stories, and [she] among all the divinities [is] famous for wit and sharpness (Homer, Odyssey, XIII. 97-99). According to Athena her and Odysseus are alike; thus, she favours him and wants him to return home to defeat the suitors.

In this paper, I show that Human beings are often blinded by their own desires; they act on those desires and bring upon their own suffering. While Athena does interject herself into the life of Odysseus and his family in the Odyssey, in general, the Gods are merely onlookers in both works. Moira is brought about by human action. Humans in the Iliad and the Odyssey may not be aware of why they are experiencing Moira, though it is there action that brought it about in the first place. I exhibit this by discussing the downfalls of Patroclus, Hector, Agamemnon, and Achilles. The only time gods influence the actions of human beings is in the Odyssey, when Athena helps Odysseus and Telemachus in their journey home. The gods are mostly onlookers in the Iliad and the Odyssey: the only time they intervene in human life is when their own interests are affected. The main argument of this paper is that human beings bring suffering upon themselves by acting recklessly and that moira is the result of their own action.

Works Cited

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4. Dodds, E. R., and ACLS Humanities E-Book. (1951). The Greeks and the Irrational. Berkeley: University of California Press.