Why did Pluto choose to govern the Underworld instead of being on Olympus with the other gods?
Pluto is an alternative name for the Greek god Hades, but was more often used in Roman mythology in their presentation of the god of the underworld. Pluto was originally not the god of the underworld. Pluto is cognate with the Greek word “Ploutos” (wealth) and under the original name Plutus, was considered by the Romans as the giver of gold, silver, and other subterranean substances. Because these “gifts” were mined, Pluto became recognized as the god of the physical underworld, which in turn helped him become recognized as the god of the spiritual underworld and thus death. This brought about his mythological relationship to the Greek god Hades. Because the mythology of these gods is more known than the actual religious roles of the gods, Pluto is identified as the counterpart to the Greek Hades (which is only wholly true in mythology). Hades became God of the Underword when Zeus, Poseidon and Hades received weapons from the three Cyclops to help in the war. Zeus the thunderbolt; Hade
