Ares

Mars made a curious transition in his Roman identity. As the Greek Ares, he was a violent, roughneck bully and an untrustworthy friend.

Whenever Ares appeared in a myth, he was depicted as a violent personality, who faced humiliation through his defeats more than once. (greekmythology.com)

As the Roman Mars, he became a noble symbol of Roman might and warcraft, a god second only to Jupiter. This would appear to highlight the willingness of militarist culture to turn violence into a virtue.

As Ares, he is son of Zeus and Hera. He had no wife of his own–he had too much raping and pillaging to do–but he did have three children by Aphrodite.

Ares had a number of lovers in mythology, although most of these appear only in the ancient genealogies with no accompanying story.

The most significant of his love stories is the famous tale of his affair with the goddess Aphrodite, first described by Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey, and expanded upon by later writers. The couple were also frequently paired together in ancient art: from archaic paintings and reliefs of the gods of Olympos to Roman mosaic scenes. (Source)

The twins were Phobos (panic) and Deimos (fear). The third child was Harmony, later to marry Cadmus, founder and king of Thebes. In establishing Thebes, Cadmus killed a dragon sacred to Ares and sowed its teeth in the ground to create the Sparti, who helped him build the city. To atone for this deed, Cadmus was forced into service of Ares for the period of a divine year (eight years).

Violent and bloody as he was, Ares did not always win his battles. When two giants, known as the Aloads, attempted to overthrow Olympus, he was captured, bound and kept in a brazen jar for thirteen months, until released by Hermes. When Ares killed the son of Poseidon for attempting to molest his daughter, Alcippe, Poseidon hauled him before a court and tried him for murder. This is the first murder trial in Greek mythology, and demonstrates a developing sense of social justice and responsibility.

Ares promised Hera to support the Aechaeans in the Trojan war, but broke his word. In battle he was confronted by an Aechaean warrior guided by Athena, who made herself invisible to Ares by wearing Hades’ helmet.

The god Mars who inherited his qualities was originally the Roman god of fertility and vegetation and father of Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome (who were, abandoned and raised by a she-wolf). As state power waxed he became far more important as a symbol of heroism in battle, representing a further move away from the goddess culture of fertility and co-operation.

Mars In Astrology

Astrologically Mars represents the male impulse. Initiatory, energetic, assertive, Mars is our personal powerhouse. In men, he is foremost, representing ego and identity. In women, he is often less easy to reach, and represents the male archetype. Mars gives each of us our will to be and to achieve, he gives us our impatience and aggression. He represents the drive for life.

Last updated on August 17, 2017 at 3:39 pm. Word Count: 515