Lightning strikes a home and causes a fire that burns down everything in the house. Random acts of God appear out of nowhere, but can have immense effect on someone's life.  In Homer’s epic poem, Odyssey, divine beings have a major impact upon mortals.

For example, Athena protects and helps Odysseus throughout the epic. When Odysseus was preparing to see penelope again, “Athena lent him beauty, head to foot” (1544). Athena helps Odysseus throughout the poem saving him from many different things.. She makes him look good when he returns home to see his wife. Athena gives him amazing looks and, “ Lavished beauty over Odysseus’ head and shoulders” (1551). Athena covers Odysseus completely in a whole new look, making him clean and beautiful again. She keeps him safe and assists him with his troubles.

In contrast, Zeus hinders the likelihood of Odysseus returning home. Deciding to destroy Odysseus, Zeus, “the lord of cloud roused in the North, a storm against the ships” (71-2). He is helping his brother Poseidon defeat Odysseus in revenge for his son’s eye. He deprives any chance of survival they have. When the crew saw the storm, they “ saw death in that fury” (75). The crew could see an untimely death approaching them, there was no saving the crew from the likes of Zeus.

In addition, Odysseus has extreme troubles with Poseidon, when he has to deal with the deadly storms. In the story Polyphemus, Poseidon’s son, prays “grant that Odysseus, raider of cities, never see his home” (486). Poseidon hears his sons prayer and attacks Odysseus and his men. He sinks their ships and pushes them toward deadly islands that will likely kill them all. At one point, a storm pushes them towards the island of the Cicones, “Killed the men who fought. Plunder we took, and we enslaved the women” (44-5). Poseidon nudged them toward a deadly island where the Cicones killed  the greater number of Odysseus’ men. Each of their ships now with six empty benches, when they at last had escaped the bloodbath of the Cicones island.

In conclusion, gods have an immense power advantage over humans. Greater beings can sway the events in people's lives.There is an effect that superior people have upon human beings. Gods are superior in strength and power, and should never be messed with.