Aside from being gods and brothers, there stands more to learn about the three gods who took the world of Greek mythology by storm. (Sorry, Poseidon, we both know you have something to do with this)
When you think that being brothers could give you a familial vibe where they are close to each other, you are wrong. There are sets of things to differentiate the three gods, and that is why we’re going to identify who these gods are and what the differences between Zeus vs. Poseidon vs. Hades are.
Profile
It is important to know the profile of each god to make the comparison easy. Learning more about who they are and what they did would give you more of a background check to see why the three gods are quite different from each other and see how they rule separately.
Zeus
Zeus is the king of all gods. The god ascended to his throne shortly after he defeated his father, Cronus, and threw him to the pit of Tartarus.
Because he won against the titans, he drew lots with his brothers, Hades and Poseidon, to see where the specific place they would rule.
Zeus obtained the longest end of the paper, resulting in him ruling over the sky and any phenomena related to the skies.
Poseidon
The second god who had the longer piece of the stick is Poseidon.
He is the king of the ocean, and he ruled over the seas and any bodies of water. Like Zeus, he can control any phenomenon related to water.
Hades
The shrewd and introverted god ruled the underworld, not often leaving his post where he rules. In the underworld, he lives with his three-headed dog, Cerberus, and his wife, Persephone.
Their Family
The three brothers established a good family line but let’s see how Zeus vs. Poseidon vs. Hades lives with their family.
Zeus
Zeus and his siblings are ruling over the lives of the mortals from Mount Olympus. From there, they formed a 12 council of gods, starting from Zeus and his wife, Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, Apollo, Artemis, Poseidon, Demeter, Ares, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Dionysus.
Zeus had a very long lineage as he fathered numerous children, be it the mother was a god or a mortal.
With Hera, they had Hephaestus, Hebe, and Ares. The two sons joined Olympus and had been involved in the affair with goddess Aphrodite while Hebe is the silent goddess who gives drink and food to the gods until she married Heracles.
His other notable children are Athena, Apollo and Artemis, Hermes and Dionysus, and other heroes such as Perseus and Heracles.
Poseidon
The sea god married the Nereid Amphitrite, but like Zeus, the god had many lovers to tell.
With his wife, he had Triton and Benthesikyme. Triton is the merman who is the herald to Poseidon’s kingdom, while Benthesikyme is also a sea goddess.
Poseidon had children with Demeter after forcing her to mate with him, having Despoina and Arion.
With Aphrodite, they had a child, too. The goddess bore Rhodos, a sea nymph that was associated with the island of Rhodes.
Hades
Despite being named after the place he’s ruling, the god is quiet unless provoked to unleash his anger. Hades married Persephone, the daughter of Demeter, who caused the whole world to go cold when she lost her daughter because of Hades’s abduction.
Hades abducted the goddess because Zeus advised him that Persephone will never willingly go with him into the underworld to leave her mother. So Hades followed Zeus’s advice, and they got to marry each other after making sure that Persephone ate six pomegranate seeds from his realm.
What Are Their Powers?
The three gods have different sets of powers. These gods also have different animals that represent them.
In talking about the powers of Zeus vs. Poseidon vs. hades, the god of the sky always has his mighty Thunderbolt in his hand. He could easily strike anyone who displeases him with this, and he also has the ability to shift into animals to go and make his intervention, whether it is for pleasure or helping people with their business.
The god of the sky uses eagles and bulls as his symbol, as he views them as his sacred animals.
As it was stated before, the sea god can trigger any phenomenon related to water. He can easily cause violent earthquakes, tsunamis, and even storm surges. He also has control over horses, whether on land or the sea. And because he can rule the ocean, he can control any creature that dwells on his territory.
Like Zeus, Poseidon has the trident that he uses. He always has it in his hand to manifest his powers.
Hades owns a helm of darkness that is gifted to him by the cyclopes. The helm has the ability to remain invisible every time it is worn by someone. Like his brothers, he is using a bird-tipped scepter, and the animal related to him is his three-headed dog, Cerberus.
Roles of Each God in Myths
Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades have varied roles in Greek mythology.
As Zeus appeared multiple times in Titanomachy, he is the one who mainly slayed their titan father Cronus and ruled the Olympian gods. Zeus also appeared in gigantomachy, where they beat the whole clan of titans along with his demigod son Heracles who later on joined the counsel of gods in Mount Olympus.
Poseidon, on the other hand, also appeared multiple times in the mythology, one of which marked the history of women who have been the victims of the god’s fury, Medusa. Poseidon forcefully took Medusa’s virginity in the steps of Athena’s temple, which is why the goddess cursed the priestess out of her spite.
The god also appeared in the journey of Odysseus as he was enraged with the hero for many reasons. Poseidon sides with the Trojans in the Trojan War, and Odysseus was also responsible for the deaths of the Trojan soldiers. The hero also consults with the goddess Athena, which only infuriated him more as he hates Athena to much extent.
As for the underworld god, he appears in the stories of Sisyphus and Asclepius.
Hades got angry with Apollo’s son Asclepius for raising the dead for sums of money, and Hades complained to Zeus about this problem. Zeus killed Asclepius, and then Apollo killed the Cyclops who wielded the thunderbolt.
In the story of Sisyphus, the underworld god is making the mortal push back the big boulder into the surface in his attempt to get out of the hellish environment his soul is supposed to get in. Sisyphus continues to push the rock, but every time it almost reaches the top, the stone would roll back down again because of Hades.
Conclusion
The powers and the story that revolves around the gods Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades has a large selection of stories that take an interesting turn. While some may look like they are more powerful, they share the same identity as a god. They easily lose their temper, and they don’t want anybody interfering in their own businesses.
But eventually, these gods can become allies if they need to fight for the greater cause. They may have some sibling rivalries, but in a story like Gigantomachy, you can see that these gods also help each other in the end.