Typical of such stories were the ones told in the Iliad and the Odyssey of Homer, the renowned Greek poet probably of the eighth or ninth century B.C.E. His works, highlighting the relations between the mythical gods of Mount Olympus and humans, including intermediate godlike mortals venerated as heroes, became a ready source from which Greek religion could draw. That is why, explains writer G. S. Kirk, “myth and religion overlap.”

But there is little doubt about Homer’s effect on him, for Alexander, an avid reader, had a special passion for Homer’s mythological writings. In fact, it is claimed he learned the Iliad by heart, no small feat, since this entailed memorizing 15,693 lines of poetry.