Ancient Mysteries (1994)

Season 3: Episode 41

Twelve great gods, overlooking classical Greece from atop Mount Olympus. Their anger was capable of boiling the oceans, electrifying the skies or splitting the earth. They seduced mortal women and castrated their enemies. From Zeus to Apollo, Poseidon to Demeter, the gods and goddesses were all powerful and unpredictably fickle. The great writer Homer dared to mock the gods. Yet, from Eleusis to Athens, the Greek people built magnificent temples and cult sites. Ceremonies of birth and death were played out and sacrifices were made as the mysteries were celebrated. Propitiating the gods was a duty executed with lyrical devotion and savage passion.