Worship of Jupiter: King of the Gods

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Worship of Jupiter

Background of Jupiter

Jupiter, or Jove, is the King of the Gods, and the God of the Sky and Storms.Jupiter’s most well known symbols are the lightning bolt, and the Eagle.

Jupiter is the son of the Titans, Saturn and Opis. Jupiter and his brothers, Pluto and Neptune, rebelled against Saturn and the other Titans, vanquishing them and imprisoning some of them in Tartarus. Jupiter also had three sisters, Vesta, Juno and Ceres. He is the husband to his sister Juno, and father of Vulcan, Venus, Minerva, Apollo and Diana (Twins), Mercury, Bachus, Mars, and Proserpina.

Jupiter is regarded as the Roman equivalent of the Greek Deity, Zeus. Both Deities are known to create law and order, and they both are told to throw lightning bolts, which are retrieved by an eagle. Zeus was married to his sister, Hera, and Jupiter and is also married to his sister, Juno. They also both share the similarity of not being faithful to their wives, and both having children with other Gods.

Cult of Jupiter

Temples

Jupiter was worshipped mostly in temples, with the most recognised being “Temple of Capitoline Jupiter”, or “The Temple to Jupiter Optimus Maximus”. The Temple was used to worship both Jupiter as an Individual Deity, and to worship the Capitoline Triad, consisting of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. It is regarded as the most important temple in Ancient Rome, and was constructed on the Capitolium, one of the two peaks of the Capitoline Hill.

It’s construction was started under the reign of Tarquinius Priscus, and was completed under the reign of Tarquinius Superbus. It was burnt down three times, and rebuilt each time. The fourth construction stayed intact until Emperor Theodosius I closed all pagan temples in 392 BC.

Inside ...

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... “Jupiter Caelestis”, or “Celestial Jupiter”

- “Jupiter Feretrius”, or “Jupiter the carrier of the spoils of war”

- “Jupiter Fulgur”, or “Lightning Jupiter”

- “Jupiter Lucetius”, or “Jupiter of the Light” (This is relating to lightning bolts, not to daylight)

- “Jupiter Victor”, or “Jupiter the Conqueror of Everything”.

Capitoline Triad

The Capitoline Triad, consists of Jupiter, Juno (Jupiter’s Wife), and Minerva (Their Daughter). The reason Minerva was included in the Triad, is because she is the only daughter of both Jupiter and Juno (Jupiters other daughters were to different mothers), and because she is the Goddess of Destiny and Wisdom.

The Capitoline Triad was worshipped in Temples called Capitolia, which were most commonly built on hills and high points. The two most commonly known being The Temple of Capitoline Jupiter, and the Capitolium Vetus.

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