Being the strongest and the King of Gods, the almighty Zeus must have a plethora of powers in his grasp, but how did he get any of them? We’ve heard it all, flight, weather manipulation, shape-shifting, but did he get them from somewhere else, or was he born with them?
Zeus was born with most of his powers already bestowed to him due to his Divine heritage to the Titans and the Primordial Gods. Some of his powers are only accessible due to artifacts and weapons given to him by other beings such as his Lightning Bolt.
The God of Thunder didn’t need any powers bestowed upon him as he was already born almighty and powerful. He was so powerful that rarely did any other God try to challenge him in an outright fistfight. With that said, what are some of the powers that Zeus inherently has?
Powers That Zeus Were Born With
The powerful God was born with a set of powers that he could command. He was born so powerful that his father, Cronus, feared his birth way before he was even conceived. Here were some of the powers that Zeus had in his grasp when he first came to be.
Shapeshifting
Zeus was born with shapeshifting powers that allow him to take on the form of any being and he can recreate the form perfectly without fail. Not only does his form change, but he could mimic the voice of others as well to add to the deception of his shapeshifting.
This wasn’t limited to shifting his own shape as he could manipulate the shape of others as well. In many stories within Greek mythology, Zeus has punished and deceived many by abusing this power.
His shapeshifting powers also lead to many of his adultering deeds as some were a direct result of him using said powers. He once turned Io, a mortal woman, into a white heifer because he fell in love with her and wanted to save her from Hera’s wrath, which he ultimately failed to do.
There was another time where Arcas and the Nymph Callisto were transformed into constellations because both mother and son were turned into bears due to Artemis’ jealousy. One of the most famous stories was that of Mnemosyne where Zeus shapeshifted into her husband to bed her for nine consecutive nights.
The myth and birth of the Minotaur, King Minos, was a result of Zeus disguising himself as a great white bull and seducing the mortal Europa away to Crete. There was also the time where Zeus transformed into a golden shower to sneak into Danae’s chambers to bed her as well.
However, Zeus didn’t use his shapeshifting powers solely to bed others though as previously mentioned, there are times where he used them to show his wrath. When Lycaeon disrespected the God by serving him human meat, he turned him into the first werewolf known to man.
Power Over The Elements
It was said that Zeus has control over all the elements like day and night, the movement and arrangement of stars, time, and the lifespan of mortals. It was believed that he decides the lifespan of every human while they are being born.
To that extent, he shared a role in fate manipulation with the Fate Sisters, who weave the fabrics of fate to determine the past and future of every human. The only difference is that Zeus has less power over fate and even he, as powerful as he is, is vulnerable to it.
Not only does he have power over fate, but he also has absolute control over the weather. He can create winds, thunderstorms, rain, and clouds at will. Moreover, Zeus can even manipulate the air around him to fly to a certain extent.
Not to mention, he can also send dreams to humans to manipulate or help them at certain times. It was believed that Zeus sent a dream to Agamemnon, the King of Mycenae, to send troops to attack Troy to glorify the hero, Achilles, whose mother Zeus owes a favor to.
Ability to Grant and Take Away Powers
As King of the Gods, one of the reasons why he held the title was because he could freely give and take away anyone’s powers as he pleases. It was believed that he controlled the powers of all his siblings and children, being able to remove or grant them any power at will.
This is so important because it allowed him to manipulate the Gods to do his bidding. When he was angered by the human race, he wanted to eradicate them and start the world anew.
To that end, he asked his brother, Poseidon, to send a huge flood over the world that engulfed it. Those were all the powers he was born with, but something seems missing here…
What Powers Were Zeus Given?
Contrary to popular belief, Zeus didn’t inherently have the power to control lightning though it seems ironic seeing that he was the God of Thunder. The origins of his electrokinesis actually come from one of his signature weapons, the Lightning Bolt.
During the Great Titan War, Zeus and his brothers, Poseidon and Hades, freed the Cyclops from their imprisonment by their father, Cronus. The Cyclops then helped the brothers to fight the Titans by forging them weapons and artifacts that eventually became synonymous with them today.
They forged the Lightning Bolts in their namesake shape in a piece of metal, and it was the most powerful weapon they have ever forged to date. They were so powerful that they could even hurt and kill Divine beings which is why even the Gods feared Zeus’ wrath.
Typhoeus, a Titan that was born specifically to defeat the Gods, was considered to be the 2nd strongest being in the world next to Zeus. Though he was powerful, he still lost to Zeus when he hurled a hundred Lightning Bolts at him, sending him down to the depths of Tartarus.
His Lightning Bolts were so powerful that they could shear off mountains, delete islands, demolish entire civilizations, and even boil the seas dry.
Can Zeus Fly?
There is no evidence of Zeus being able to fly on his own but he can manipulate the elements to levitate himself around. Depending on the culture worshipping Zeus, some may even say that Zeus was omnipotent, therefore he is everywhere at any time.
Though Zeus may not be able to fly himself, he has access to other means of flying such as the mythical Pegasus, a winged horse that was supposedly born out of his lust.
Conclusion
Zeus, the King of Gods, was born almighty with a large number of powers already available to him when he was born. This was due to his heritage as a descendant of the Primordial Gods. It was also believed that he was the One True God in the body of an Olympian by the others.
He has the power to shapeshift, control and manipulate the elements such as fate, give and take powers from every other God, and the fearsome powers of electrokinesis which were bestowed to him by his weapon, the Lightning Bolt.
Though Zeus has never been recorded to be able to fly, he could manipulate the weather enough to levitate himself with the air. The King of Gods can and will be everywhere as long as he will it to be.
