The Underworld

Kingdom of the Dead

The Ferryman digital artwork by Overmynd Industries, 2022 (4)

The Underworld is the realm of the dead. It is known to be deep below the worlds of the living, ruled by the god Hades and the goddess Persephone. It is believed to have been divided into at least four regions by the rivers that run through it. 

The Rivers

Thetis dipping Achilles into the River Styx to make him immortal.
by Antoine Borel (1743-1810) (5)

The five rivers that run through the underworld are the Styx, Acheron, Cocytus, Phlegethon, and Lethe. Each of the rivers is believed to have their own meaning. The Styx is the river of hatred and unbreakable oaths. This is the river Charon uses to charter souls. The Acheron is the river of all sorrow and pain (1). The Cocytus is the river of weeping and wailing. The Phlegethon is the river of fire. Finally, there is the Lethe which is the river of oblivion and forgetfulness. Dead souls are to drink from the river in order to forget about their past lives, in case of reincarnation (1).

The Regions

Elysian Fields by Arnold Böcklin. 1877 (6)

  The four regions that are known to be 

  in the underworld are Tartarus, Elysian 

  Fields, Fields of Mourning, and Asphodel 

  Meadows. In the Tartarus, it is known to be 

  the deepest gulf of the underworld. In The 

  Iliad, it even is said “as far beneath Hades as 

  heaven is above earth” (2). It houses the 

  worst people who are deemed to need to 

  eternally endure punishments to fit their 

  crimes (3). The Elysian Fields (also known as 

  Isles of the Blessed) are known to house those who are supposed to have been exceptional in their formal life, so they can live a relaxing rest of their lives.  It is the one place in the Underworld where there is supposed to be eternal sunshine with meadows. The Fields of Mourning has the souls of mortals whose "ruthless love did waste away” (1). It's filled with mostly women who cannot move on from grief that they have previously suffered through, even in death. Finally, the Asphodel Meadows has the rest of the souls who had not fit into being sorted into any of the other realms. Just the most ordinary people who will live in a realm of indifference (9).

Process into the Underworld

Minos, Rhadamanthys & Aeacus - Judges of the Underworld (8)

Upon death it is believed that a person's soul will leave them and then head into the Underworld guided by Hermes. However once in the Underworld, they would need the ferryman Charon to ferry them in, but he'd always require a fare. For this reason, many Greeks would be buried with coins on their eyes or under their tongues, so they'd be able to enter (10). If someone does not have the money to pay his fare they would be stranded on the shore of the Styx River, forever stuck in between the worlds of the living and the dead. Once in the Underworld the souls have to go before a panel of three judges and be sentenced to a region according to their actions while living (7).

Modern Stories with the Underworld

While the Underworld is featured in many modern adaptations in Greek mythology. Once of the most famous is the story of Orpheus and Eurydice, where Orpheus follows Eurydice into the Underworld in order to bring her back to life. Their story has been adapted into the Broadway play Hadestown. This link will take you to the official site where you could get tickets to see the play and learn more about them. The Underworld is also featured in Homer's Odysseus where Odysseus takes a journey into the Underworld to seek guidance from the prophet Tiresias. This is currently being turned into a film with the trailer out now. Finally, there is also the Disney film Hercules, where Hercules travels into the underworld to try and rescue his loves Meg soul. This film is able to be watched on Disney+.

The Underworld - Disney's Hercules (11)

Works Cited

1. GreekMythology.com, The Editors of Website. "The Underworld". GreekMythology.com Website, 08 Apr. 2021, https://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Places/The_Underworld/the_underworld.html. Accessed 12 February 2025.
2. The Internet Classics Archive | the Iliad by Homer. classics.mit.edu/Homer/iliad.html.
3. KLN PASS User Login. 2018, research.ebsco.com/c/qh4vbl/viewer/html/ltrwn3exe5.
4. “The Ferryman by Overmynd Industries.” Fine Art America, 14 December 2022, fineartamerica.com/featured/the-ferryman-overmynd-industries.html.
5. Borel, Antoine, and Antoine Borel. “Thetis Dipping Achilles Into the River Styx.” World History Encyclopedia, 19 Feb. 2025, www.worldhistory.org/image/6245/thetis-dipping-achilles-into-the-river-styx.
6. “Elysian Fields, 1877 - Arnold Böcklin - WikiArt.org.” www.wikiart.org, www.wikiart.org/en/arnold-bocklin/elysian-fields-1877.
7. “The Underworld - Ancient Greek Places • Greek Gods &Amp; Goddesses.” Greek Gods & Goddesses, 1 Mar. 2024, The Underworld - Ancient Greek Places • Greek Gods & Goddesses.
8. “Greeker Than the Greeks.” Greeker Than the Greeks, Greeker than the Greeks
9. Antonis, Michaela. “The Role of the Underworld in Greek Myths: Life After Death Explored.” Greek Mythology, 7 Dec. 2024, greek.mythologyworldwide.com/the-role-of-the-underworld-in-greek-myths-life-after-death-explored.
10. World History Edu. “Everything You Need to Know About the Underworld in Greek Mythology.” World History Edu, 6 Jan. 2025, worldhistoryedu.com/ancient-greek-underworld.Wiki,
11. Contributors to Disney. “Underworld.” Disney Wiki, disney.fandom.com/wiki/Underworld.