Zeus
O
riginally Zeus was the god of the sky and of atmospheric phenomena. He was lord of the winds, of the clouds, of rain both destructive and beneficial, of the thunder. He resided in the ether, the upper part of the air, and on mountain tops. He was literally the All-high. He was worshipped in elevated spots all over the Hellenic empire.
Later Zeus took on a moral personality and became the supreme god who united in itself all the attributes of divinity. He was omnipotent, all-seeing and all-knowing. He was the fountainhead of all divination. As a wise sovereign, he ordained all according to the law of Fate with which his own will was merged.
To mortals he dispensed good and evil, but was kind and compassionate. While he chastised the wicked, he was capable of pity. He averted threatened dangers; he protected the weak, the indigent, the fugitive and all suppliants. His solicitude extended to the family as god of the hearth, of marriage, of friendship, and of the peoples' assemblies. Finally, he was the protector-god of all Greece - Panhellenic Zeus.
Zeus was normally depicted as a man in the fullness of maturity, of robust body, grave countenance and with broad forehead jutting out above deeply set eyes. His face is framed by thick waving hair and a finely curled beard. Except in primitive images he is rarely nude. He usually wears a long mantle that leaves his chest and right arm free. His attributes are the sceptre in his left hand, in his right hand the thunderbolt and at his feet the eagle. Often on his brow he wears a crown of oak leaves.
Zeus represents the archetypal father, and his qualities manifest as energies of justice, leadership, popularity, and charisma. In addition the Jupiter energy of which Zeus is the ruler is called on for the acquisition of wealth.
The colour associated with Zeus by the Greeks was imperial purple.
