In modern understanding of the Grecian God Hades, he is pictured as a violent tyrant who ruled over a pit of tortured souls and condemned them to an eternity of terror. In actuality, Hades is no different than the other Grecian Gods. He ruled the underworld with integrity and balance. Like the other gods, he expressed love and pity as well as anger.
Hades was an honorable deity who acted no differently than his brothers and sisters. He took responsibility for the souls of the dead and in doing so he sacrificed greatly. He rarely saw the sunlight, was surrounded by death, and was feared and hated by mortals for keeping balance in the world.
Family:
Hades was the second son of Cronus (Kronos), the ruler of the Titans, and his sister Rhea.
Hades' older brother was Poseidon and his younger brother was Zeus. He also had three sisters: Demeter the goddess of fertility and earth, Hestia the goddess of the hearth, and Hera the goddess of women and marriage and future wife of Zeus. .
Childhood:
All of the children, with the exception of Zeus who had been hidden, were swallowed by their father Cronus at their birth. He feared them. Cronus had learned from his parents that he would be overthrown by one of his children, just as he had overthrown his father.
The children were kept inside Cronus until, with the help of his grandmother Gaia, Zeus forced Cronus to reveal the contents of his stomach. Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hestia, and Hera were freed.
Hades at War:
Once they were strong enough, these siblings challenged the elder gods, the Titans, for power over the universe and were given gifts to help them. From the Cyclopes Poseidon received a trident, Zeus received a thunderbolt, and Hades received a helmet of darkness.
On the eve of their first battle, Hades, taking full advantage of his gift, placed the helmet on his head and was instantly rendered invisible. He snuck into the Titan's encampment and destroyed all of their weapons. This ensured their strength and cunning and led them into a ten year struggle for supremacy.
Eventually, the younger gods defeated the Titans. The three brothers, having decided to separate the power amongst them, drew lots. Poseidon drew the Sea as his dominion, Zeus drew the Sky, and Hades drew the Underworld.
Hades as a Ruler:
In ancient times Hades was considered to be a typical ruler who could be as caring as he could be angry. His main duties as the ruler of the dead were to keep the balance between life and death and to protect those that entered his kingdom. He disliked those who tried to escape his kingdom, those who tried to free his subjects, and those who tried to escape the grip of death.
Like the other gods, Hades was capable of mercy and compassion as well as anger. As an example, Orpheus, a great musician, had lost his beloved wife Eurydice to the realm of the dead. Hades, being moved by the man's music when he traveled to the underworld, agreed to let them return to the living. The only condition was that, on their assent, the musician was to trust Hades word and not look back to see if his wife was behind him. Sadly, being overcome by a mortal's fear and mistrust of Hades, the man looked back and lost his chance to save his wife.
Fear and Sorrow of Hades:
For the living, Hades became an object to fear. Death was a horrible experience for many and those they left behind were griped with terror. Though Hades did not take the souls of the dead himself (this was the job of Thanatos and Hypnos) mortals began to turn their heads away when making sacrifices in his honor. They feared saying his name and began using euphemisms. Hades became the most dreaded god to ever exist purely by his association to the most unpleasant aspect of life.
Sacrifices to Hades:
Mortals, deep rooted in their fear of Hades and the Underworld, associated very specific rites and rituals with the god. Animal sacrifices, being common in those times, included black animals, (especially rams and goats). Blood from these sacrifices were drained into a trough which emptied into the earth and, mortals believed, would flow down to Hades.
Approximately every hundred years the Romans would hold Ludi Terentini, or the Secular Games, in Hades honor. Traditionally, this celebration was three days and nights of theatrical performances and sacrifices to celebrate the longest period a mortal could live.
Hades in Love:
Hades, like many men of ancient times, took what he wanted. He had seen Persephone, the daughter of his brother Zeus and his sister Demeter. She encompassed light, health, and nature; everything Hades had been denied as the ruler of the dead.
In the most popular version of the story, Persephone, who lived away from the other gods and goddesses, was picking wildflowers in the fields on Enna. Hades broke from the underworld through a fissure in the earth and took her to the underworld with him.
Her departure caused the goddess Demeter great anguish as she searched for her missing daughter. Eventually, Helios, the god of sun, told her that Hades had stolen her. By this time, every living thing on Earth began to die. As the mortals cried and pleaded with their god's for relief, they in turn demanded that Hades return Persephone to her mother.
Just before departing to the world above, Hades tricked Persephone into eating the seeds of a pomegranate. This sealed her to him and forced her to return to the underworld for part of the year. This caused the changes of the seasons. Fall and winter are the seasons in which Persephone resides in the underworld with Hades. Spring and summer are the seasons when she is released to her mother.
Hades' Other Names:
Hades is also known as Pluto or "The Unseen One." Ancient Romans called him by two names, Dis Pater and Orcus and "God of the Underworld" is universally understood.
Hades' Symbols:
The three headed dog, a guardian of the underworld and a chariot drawn by three black horses are just some of the symbols attributed to him. Along with those are the Helm of Darkness, the cypress and the narcissus plant, a key to the underworld, and a two-pronged staff.