Mythology stories can get confusing quickly. A god is said to be the son of two other gods. Another god goes by a second name. Another passage says he has a different father. A spouse isn’t listed until much later. It’s not necessarily because you have a bad memory. The genealogy of gods is complicated because there are often multiple versions based on different regions, symbolic links, overlapping time periods, and conflicting records.
Don’t try to draw out the whole pantheon. Start with one myth. Only include the characters that matter to the story. Put the main character in the center of your diagram and add in parents, siblings, mates, offspring, allies, and enemies. This will help you keep the diagram related to the story and exclude any names that are just mentioned in passing or appear in unrelated myths.
Don’t just connect every god to every other god with the same kind of line. Make sure to specify “parent of,” “sibling of,” “enemy of,” “ally of.” Gods don’t just have family ties; they can also have ties of origin, inheritance, adoption, metamorphosis, and alliance. Make sure to write down what type of connection exists between the gods instead of just connecting everything with a single line, which might look like you did something complicated but won’t actually tell you anything.
Once you’re done, go back to the text and add in any additional names, titles, or uncertain connections. Make sure that multiple versions exist on your diagram and don’t try to choose the best answer. If a god is given two different sets of parents in different stories, write down both versions of the genealogy and make sure you cite which version each one came from. You can also just add a note somewhere saying, “note that this god has two different versions of his parents in later retellings.” Don’t just leave it out because it’s easier.
Now, close your book and see if you can use your diagram to explain why the main conflict in the story occurs. Who rules? Who opposes him? Which relationship in the diagram creates conflict? If you find yourself using the diagram just to recite names, try adding in titles like king, messenger, patriarch, trickster, protector, or antagonist. It’s much easier to remember the relationships if you know what action each person is responsible for.
Try not to constantly expand your diagram with more and more gods. With large pantheons, you can end up with huge pages of lines without actually explaining anything. Try to make a few separate diagrams instead: one for a creation myth, one for a heroic epic, and one for a dynastic struggle. And every time you want to add a new god to your diagram, ask yourself, “does this person actually explain an action, motive, power struggle, or change in the story?”
