In Greek mythology, it is said that Hades was feared by most Gods and mortals for his association with death but what does the King of the Underworld fear himself? Is there anything in the world that brings fear into the Lord of the Dead just as he does to everyone else?
Hades, King of the Underworld, doesn’t have much to fear for other than the loss of his wife and the wrath of his brother, Zeus. Hades was a very powerful being in his own right and his control over the dead made him a formidable God even among the strongest.
There isn’t much in the world that can put fear into Hades’ eyes but it doesn’t mean that nothing in the world does. Hades himself had a few fears with one of them being the loss of his wife which he loved very dearly…
The Loss of Persephone, Queen of The Underworld
There is nothing scarier than the fear of losing someone you love. You may think that this is limited to the petty lives of mortals but I can assure you that it applies to the Gods as well.
Hades loved his wife, Persephone, very much and dreads the possibility that he might lose her. Hades already went through so much trouble just to get her to marry him, he doesn’t want to lose her at all.
He even went against the wishes of his sister, Demeter, who was the Goddess of Harvest and risked the death of the earth by famine. He took liberties to kidnap her and got a bad wrap for it as everyone now sees him in a bad light for abducting the daughter of his brother, Zeus.
There is nothing scarier to him than to lose his wife to anyone else or worse, to fate itself. Though he feared the loss of his wife, he was willing to compromise by letting her stay with Demeter for two-thirds of the year while Persephone will stay with him for the rest.
Hades may be adamant but he isn’t unreasonable. He was extremely faithful to Persephone as well, never finding another lover after their marriage. He even rejected an old love, the nereid Minthi, who tried to seduce the King of the Underworld back to her side.
Unfortunately for her, Persephone grew extremely angry and trampled her into the herb, mint. Luckily for Hades, Persephone appreciated the God’s affection and loyalty which she grew to reciprocate eventually.
The Wrath of Zeus, The King of The Gods
Every single God in Mount Olympus has a fear for Zeus as he was the most powerful being in the Greek pantheon and could easily overpower them all by himself. This fear extends to Hades as well who served under his brother even though he was the eldest.
Not only was Zeus a very powerful being by his own right, but the King of the Gods also owned the most fearsome arsenal which could bring tremendous pain to a God as well. Hades was powerful but he couldn’t fair against the Lightning Bolt and the Aegis.
Not many things in the world can hurt a God but Zeus’ Lightning Bolt could smite divine beings which deterred powerful beings such as Hades from incurring his wrath. The Greek Gods may be immortal but they can still feel pain.
Once, Hera, Poseidon, and Athena tried to overthrow Zeus by holding a coup against the King of the Gods. Hades was invited to join them but the God wasn’t foolish enough to think that they could overthrow someone as powerful as Zeus.
The King of the Underworld was proven right when Zeus eventually repelled the coup with the help of Thetis and the Hekatonkheires. Hades just saved himself a lot of trouble by making a wise choice here.
Conclusion
Hades didn’t fear much as the King of the Underworld because he rarely left his domain and he was the most powerful being in his own realm. The only things that Hades feared were his wife, Persephone, leaving him and the wrath of his brother, Zeus.
Persephone was the love of his life and he did everything he could to keep her by his side, even going against the wishes of his sister, Demeter, to kidnap her. He was loyal to her and made her the happiest Goddess in the Greek pantheon.
Zeus was the most powerful being during his time as King of the Gods and there was no God that didn’t fear his wrath. The Greek Gods may be immortal but Zeus can cause them immense pain with his Lightning Bolt and Aegis.
They say death fears no one and no one can intimidate it, but Hades clearly had fears as even the Gods weren’t completely perfect beings.
