Most people do not realize that many of the beliefs and rites found in a number of modern-day religions were forged from the myths and legends of ancient times. That isn’t surprising if you remember what people in bygone days had to contend with.

For sure, life was simpler then, but it was also a lot harder.

When you were hungry, you couldn’t just open the refrigerator and take a peek inside or pop down to your local 7-Eleven for a quick bite to eat. Oh no, you’d have to go hunting, sometimes for hours or days at a time on foot to snare, trap, chase and bring down your prey. To increase your chances of success, you would need to understand the nature of your quarry, know its habits and its characteristics.

If you couldn’t hunt, that didn’t necessarily mean you’d starve, but it would entail toiling from dawn to dusk scratching a living from the land, or through the animals you tended. Living along the shoreline afforded an extra opportunity – equally as harsh – of bringing in the yield of the sea.

Then there was the matter of the clothes on your back, the abode in which you lived, the tools of your trade or weapons you needed to defend your home and loved ones from those who would try to take what you had worked hard to produce.

It wasn’t an issue of simply hiring those things or paying rent. Early man had to utilize the resources at his disposal to make the things he needed. And if he lacked a particular skill or commodity, it was vital to trade with someone who excelled in the areas you were deficient in – someone who hopefully needed the very things you could provide.

Not for our early friends the turning of a thermostat dial or the closing of a triple glazed window when the seasons brought hardships of their own. Droughts, storms, eruption, and earthquake all dealt their own bitter brand of injustice. It’s no wonder then, that in many societies the gods evolved from mankind’s belief that something greater lurked behind the scenes, for life was a daily struggle for survival against the very real forces of nature.

The Pantheon of the Assyrian and Babylonian nations prescribed the belief in superhuman beings in fleshly form – all immortal – and each charged with oversight of an aspect of heaven or earth.

Some of the first to be worshipped among mankind were Tammuz, Ea, Asshur, and Enlil, who were thought to control the harvest, the swarms of the waters, supernatural powers, fertility, war, and the weather.

Marduk, chief among his ilk, was said to exercise dominion over all the other gods below him, and was assumed to have the capacity to fulfill the role of all of them combined if required.

It is perhaps not surprising that those same qualities were also reflected in the Pantheon of another historic empire, Egypt.

The earth and its produce, fecundity, storms, chaos, conflict, protection, even the personification of paranormal powers within humans, were embodied in such creatures as Geb, Isis, Set, Horus, and Werethekau.

Again, this civilization had a supreme being, one who was above and who directed all those beneath him – Ra, God of the blinding sun, giver of life to those mortals below.

As mankind spread across the earth and became more sophisticated, the deities they worshipped also took on a more philosophical and romantic aspect.

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According to Plato, the earliest of the heroic Greek sovereigns who rose to divinity and saved his people was Atlas, whose name was recorded in their earliest writings as king of fabled Atlantis. Others believe Atlas was a Greek name prescribed to a fabled Egyptian pharaoh, Wa-n’ka-reh, or Achtoes III – or, in another, more diverse reference – a mystical being called Adem’uhn.

Adem’uhn was attributed with leading a society, blessed with highly evolved arts, literature and way of life, far in advance of those to follow, even thousands of years later.

According to Greek mythology, Adem’uhn’s specific characteristics as life giver and protector were reflected by Zeus, a being of such position and authority that he was mightier than all the other immortals combined.

Zeus was believed to control the storm, wind and life-giving rain, and of course the thunderbolt, which he wielded in his hands. He encapsulated the finest of celestial qualities, those of irresistible power, majesty, soaring vision and life. Zeus also wore the fabled Aegis – the breastplate of protection and authority – so awful and awesome to behold that no-one could look upon its magnificence.

He was ruler of Olympus, home of the gods. As lord of the sky, thunder and rain, Zeus was also known as the cloud gatherer. He had many progeny, some from among humans, and those descendants were mighty in their own right.

The twins Apollo and Artemis are two such offspring of note who endured through the ages.

Apollo’s qualities are encompassed within the radiant sun and light – in imitation of his father – along with the bow and arrow, and the dolphin. Of note is the fact that Apollo stood for truth and prophecy, medicine and justice in his own right.

His twin sister Artemis was thought by some sources to pre-date even the time of Greek legend. She was the chaste goddess of the hunt and wild animals, and of the athlete. Her speed – both on land and in water – was typified by her sigils of bow and arrow, torch and wings, and dolphins, which she loved dearly.

In some of the more obscure sources, it was considered that Artemis served as an attendant to her father as standard-bearer and recorder, a task by which she adopted the title, Nike, the spirit of swift victory and military prowess.

Some references claim them to be different aspects of the same deity, a creature more than capable of overcoming all obstacles to achieve victory.

The Romans saw Zeus’ attributes reflected in Jupiter, the overseer of the sky and of thunder, a being also typified by the immense power of the bull. For all that, the gentler, yet more enduring attributes of the pine tree are also linked to him, in that it has the ability to thrive where other trees cannot.

Apollo remained “Apollo” to the Romans with much the same virtues, other than some interesting references to his brave and manly, warriorlike nature. Indeed, the root of the Greek word Andros - Andres is reflected in a very common name – Andrew – and is still linked to those reflecting manliness in its most masculine form.

The Greek huntress Artemis – or Nike – who wielded the bow and arrow with unceasing accuracy, and yet who loved animals, was named as Diana by the Romans, and later, Victoria.

A quiet contrast to her father and brother, her qualities were represented by the Moon, the mighty oak, and in some accounts she had wings on her feet, for such was her speed and uncanny ability to achieve victory over death.

Yes, myth and legend provides a wealth of hallmark insights that help explain why certain beliefs or practices might be so prevalent today.

Interestingly, they also reflect another easily overlooked common denominator: that a group of exceedingly powerful and gifted individuals are believed to have existed throughout history, all of whom were united or otherwise under the leadership an even more potent father-figure.

Whatever the origins of these fabled individuals – be it human or divine – they were known to predominate for a period of time, protecting and shepherding mankind, before waning from public popularity, only to be replaced by similar gods in other cultures, who coincidentally held the same or very similar attributes.

Some say such myths and legends may have a basis in truth, jazzed up to make them more idealistic or acceptable.

What do you think?