Hades, according to various Christian denominations, is "the place or state of departed spirits", borrowing the name of Hades, the Greek god of the underworld. It is often associated with the Jewish concept of Sheol.
The "harrowing of hell" refers to what Christ did when he descended to Hades or hell between his death and his resurrection. The early church believed that after his death Christ descended into hell in order to rescue the souls of the righteous, such as Adam and Eve.
In Luke 16:19-31 Hades is represented as a place of torment for the wicked after death. We shall return to this passage later. In Simon Peter's discourse on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:14-36) the word is found twice (vs. 27.31).
At the bottom of the cave in which the Court of Pan sits, there is a deep chasm with a spring. As part of pagan worship to Pan, people came from all over to make sacrifices to Pan, which were then thrown down into this chasm. This cave was known all over the region as the Gates of Hades.
Third century. Hippolytus of Rome ( d. 235) pictured Hades, the abode of the dead, as containing "a lake of unquenchable fire" at the edge of which the unrighteous "shudder in horror at the expectation of the future judgment, (as if they were) already feeling the power of their punishment".
Hades, according to various Christian denominations, is "the place or state of departed spirits", borrowing the name of Hades, the Greek god of the underworld. It is often associated with the Jewish concept of Sheol.
Despite modern connotations of death as evil, Hades was actually more altruistically inclined in mythology. Hades was portrayed as passive and never portrayed negatively; his role was often maintaining relative balance.
Hades, Greek Aïdes (“the Unseen”), also called Pluto or Pluton (“the Wealthy One” or “the Giver of Wealth”), in ancient Greek religion, god of the underworld.
Cerberus, as the gatekeeper to Hades, ensured that only the souls of the dead entered Hades, and he ensured that souls could not escape once inside.
The underworld itself— commonly referred to as Hades, after its patron god, but also known by various metonyms—is described as being located at the periphery of the earth, either associated with the outer limits of the ocean (i.e., Oceanus, again also a god) or beneath the earth.
At death his Spirit went to the Father in heaven, and then returned to be clothed in the resurrection body, in which he appeared to the disciples over a period of 40 days before the ascension. The statement in John 20:17 tells us that the ascension of the resurrected Christ had not yet happened.
The idea of purgatory has roots that date back into antiquity. A sort of proto-purgatory called the "celestial Hades" appears in the writings of Plato and Heraclides Ponticus and in many other pagan writers. This concept is distinguished from the Hades of the underworld described in the works of Homer and Hesiod.
Hades is usually pictured with a beard, a helmet or crown, and holding a two-pronged pitchfork or a staff. Often his three headed dog, Cerberus, is with him. When traveling he rides a chariot pulled by black horses.
Yet, a later medieval view stated once again that only believers of the pre-Christian period were indeed recipients and beneficiaries of Christ's preaching in Hades, implied in Matthew 27:52 and again in Hebrews 12:23.
As the God and ruler of the underworld, Hades had an important role to play in ancient Greek mythology and storytelling. He was the steward of all the souls that passed from the land of the living and into the underworld, where it is his responsibility to act as a warden for them.
Know that the only noteworthy "evil" thing he did is kidnap kore/Persephone and marry her, and even then, she loved him just as he loved her. He is one of the only gods to only marry out of love. The idea of him being evil is a Christianized view of him because of his association with death.
Persephone's abduction by Hades is mentioned briefly in Hesiod's Theogony, and is told in considerable detail in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter. Zeus, it is said, permitted Hades, who was in love with the beautiful Persephone, to abduct her as her mother Demeter was not likely to allow her daughter to go down to Hades.
In the 1997 Disney film Hercules, Hades is banished from Olympus by Zeus for attempting to seize his position as the ruler of the gods.
Zagreus is the Prince of the Underworld and the son of the god Hades. He is the protagonist and player character of Hades.
Hades's strengths include his wealth of the earth, especially precious metals; persistence; and determinedness. His weaknesses include his passion for Persephone (also known as Kore), the daughter of Demeter and Zeus, and his own niece. (He kidnaps her to be his wife.) Hades is also impulsive and deceptive.
Hades is the brother of Zeus. After the overthow of their Father Cronus he drew lots with Zeus and Poseidon, another brother, for shares of the world. He had the worst draw and was made lord of the underworld, ruling over the dead.
Haides was also the god of the hidden wealth of the earth, from the fertile soil with nourished the seed-grain, to the mined wealth of gold, silver and other metals. Haides was devoured by Kronos (Cronus) as soon as he was born, along with four of his siblings.
Hades, like all his siblings except Zeus, was cursed from the moment when they were eaten alive by his father Kronos, Titan of time, when he was born because Kronos feared the prophecy that said that one of his own children would dethrone him and banish him just as he had done to his father Uranus, the Sky.
In these adaptations of the Greek god Hades, renowned God of the Dead, he often seems to be up to mischief, concocting his latest evil plan and causing mayhem for all involved. Yet, in the Greek mythological canon, Hades hardly causes any trouble at all. In fact, he is one of the most peaceful and impartial gods.