Mercury,
God of Commerce and Quick Thought, is the son of Jupiter and Maia,
daughter of the titan Atlas, who holds the sky on his shoulders.
He wears winged sandals and carries a caduceus, the symbol of
medicine and floral delivery. The herald of Jupiter, Mercury is
also the patron of all who live by their wits, including thieves.
He is himself precociously accomplished in that field, having
stolen Apollo's herds on the day of his birth.
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Venus
(Aphrodite)
Though
several poets have attempted to pin paternity charges on Jupiter,
it is more fitting to believe that Venus, the Goddess of Beauty
and Love, arose unfathered from the foamy waves, as portrayed
in Sandro Botticelli's masterpiece Birth of Venus. The lover of
many, most famously the mortal Adonis, Venus is the mother of
Cupid.
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Mars
(Aries)
The
God of War, Mars is the none-too-bright son of Zeus and his queen
Juno, both of whom hate him. His bloodthirst makes the heroes
of the Iliad queasy. His cowardice provokes Homer's scorn, for
when wounded the "bloodstained bane of man," clad in invincible
armor and attended by Strife and Discord, runs home to Olympus
to whine to his parents.
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Jupiter
(Zeus)
The
child of the god Saturn and the titan Rhea, Jupiter slayed his
father to become the king of gods and men. The sky god, he is
the most powerful deity, though is by no means omnipotent. His
seat is Mount Olympus, where he reigns with thunderbolt in hand.
The instigator of numerous extramarital affairs, he nonetheless
demands from his followers moral conduct a step beyond the rote
sacrifices that satisfy his divine counterparts. He is the patron
of the Roman state.
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Saturn
(Saturn)
Following
his patricide, the god Saturn assumed dominion over the world.
Perhaps remembering his own tense family relationships, he gulped
down all of his children (by his sister, the titan Rhea) to prevent
one of them from overthrowing him as he had Uranus. This precaution
was a temporary expedient, however, as Rhea spirited away Zeus,
who later freed his swallowed siblings in a successful revolt.
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Uranus
(Cronos)
Born
out of the primordial chaos, Uranus is the first lord of the heavens.
He is by his wife Gaia the father of all gods and monsters, eventually
slain by his son Saturn, who is jealous of his unequaled authority
and fearful of his monstrous children.
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Neptune
(Poseidon)
Jupiter's
brother and husband to Amphitrite, granddaughter of the titan
Ocean, Neptune is the God of the Sea. Second only to Jupiter in
eminence, he introduced, among other benefits, the horse to man.
Often titled "the Earthshaker," Neptune carries a trident with
which he lashes storms or smoothes seas.
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Pluto
(Hades)
Jupiter's
brother, Pluto never recovered his high spirits after being swallowed
by his father, Saturn. As the King of the Underworld, his kingdom
doesn't help to lighten his mood. It does, however, give him sway
over both the souls of the departed and the vast treasures found
underground. He is married to Persephone, whom he abducted as
a girl. Though melancholy and pitiless, he is not an evil god.
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