The characteristics of the King of the Underworld, Hades, are widely unknown to most people and modern depictions are highly fictional without much reference. Many believe that Hades was a terrible person, even more so than his brother, but does that statement hold any truth?
Hades was never a bad God in Greek mythology even though he is often portrayed as the villain in many works nowadays. He was just and responsible and was only doing his part after the three brothers divided the world for each to rule over.
It is very common to see someone like Hades be misunderstood by many as people tend to think his association with the dead means that he was the personification of evil. Hades had many good qualities, all of which might even make him better than his brother, Zeus.
The Bad Characteristics of Hades
There aren’t a lot of bad qualities when it came to Hades as he rarely appeared within Greek mythology. The only time he did anything remotely bad was when he kidnapped Persephone to be his wife in the Underworld against Demeter’s liking.
Many believed that he had no mercy and that he brought death to the mortal realm for his own entertainment but that is far from the truth. Hades doesn’t bring death but is only responsible for looking after them in the Underworld.
He doesn’t even make the dead suffer unless they are deserving of their punishment. He only punishes those that try to leave the land of the dead as it is his job to keep the dead out of the world of the living. All in all, Hades isn’t a bad God as the depictions tend to make him out to be.
The Good Characteristics of Hades
This might come as a surprise to many but Hades had some good qualities in him. Some might even consider him a more benevolent and understanding God than the King of the Gods, Zeus, himself.
Merciful
Hades was a merciful God just like his brother Zeus. He gave a chance to those that he deemed deserving and always keeps his end of the bargain. He’d even go as far as to allow the dead to return to the living if he felt that a second chance could be given.
When the poet, Orpheus, came to the Underworld to ask for the life of his wife, Eurydice, back, Hades gave the couple a chance but it came with a condition that they must fulfill. Hades would allow Eurydice to follow Orpheus behind him while they were walking out of the Underworld.
The twist was that Orpheus wouldn’t know if Eurydice was really following him and that he had to blindly believe in Hades’ words. If Orpheus were to turn back during his exit from the Underworld, Eurydice would forever be trapped within, never again leaving the land of the dead.
Orpheus was skeptical of Hades but he decided to take the bet. Though Hades was already merciful enough to let him leave the Underworld, the mortal’s skepticism got the better of him and he turned around.
Eurydice then immediately disappeared, returning to the Underworld for all eternity. Orpheus would lose his chance to regain his wife but they would still eventually see each other again in Elysium when the mortal’s life came to an end.
Just
The word “justice” isn’t usually associated with the likes of Hades but he was known as a very just God as well. He never punished anyone for the sake of it nor does abuse his Godly authority over others without reason.
Hades believed that the dead shouldn’t reside in the world of the living else they would plague it and ensured that the souls of the dead never flooded the earth. He is just enough to allow any living mortal that dares enter his realm to leave it unless they have wronged him in some way.
Hades never had favorites and treated everyone equally. It was believed that Hades would “drink tears like wine” but he never went out of his way to make anyone’s life difficult. He could be reasoned with and very accepting as long as the reason was justified.
When Zeus asked Hades to return Persephone to Demeter, Hades understood the importance behind it. The world’s crops were dying as Demeter was too depressed to take upon her duties so Hades came up with a compromise.
By the laws of the Ancient Gods, Persephone had to stay in the Underworld as she had consumed a part of it in the form of a pomegranate seed. Hades was just enough to let her return to her mother for 9 months a year on the condition that she spent the last 3 with Hades.
This was saying a lot knowing that if it were Zeus instead, he would have gotten his way even if he had to resort to violence.
Responsible
As King of the Underworld, Hades took his responsibilities very seriously. He didn’t choose his role willingly as it was the result of drawing lots between his brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, but he still accepted his role in the end.
Dealing with the dead wasn’t easy as many died every day and they would need to go to the Underworld. It would be a nightmare if the dead were allowed to roam around the living freely and Hades made sure that it never happened.
He puts his most ferocious beast, the three-headed Cerberus, as his gatekeeper who would welcome all the souls that have passed and deterred any of the living that dared trespass his realm. Many of the other Gods had a bad temper already even though they don’t need to handle the dead every day.
This says a lot about the King of the Underworld and how he took his duties to heart. When the God of Medicine, Asclepius, had honed his medical skills to the point where he could bring back the dead and doom the world, Hades met up with Zeus immediately.
Although Asclepius was his grandchild, Zeus immediately smote him into ashes. Asclepius would be deified forever since then but had it not for Hades, he would have accidentally brought upon the Apocalypse.
Conclusion
Hades, the King of the Underworld, wasn’t as bad a person as modern depictions would make him out to be. He has done bad things such as the kidnapping of his niece, Persephone, but other than that there isn’t much.
Hades was depicted as a very just, merciful, and responsible God within Greek mythology, and some stories back these up. The God was even praised by his brother, the King of the Gods Zeus, as one of the good Gods.
Many make the mistake of associating Hades with the likes of Satan or Lucifer. In truth, he did share the responsibilities with them to govern the damned but he was a good God underneath it all.
