While in Corinth and many cities of the region of Magna Graecia Great Greece , he was the most important god. In his benign form, he was regarded by the ancient Greeks to be the creator of new islands and the ruler of the calm seas.
However, when he was offended or ignored, he was believed to have struck the ground with this trident and be the cause of earthquakes, floods, ship wrecks and drownings. He was often referred to in the prayers of sailors, who even sacrificed horses for the purpose. Even Alexander the Great , paused at the Syrian seashore before the famous Battle of Issus , to pray to Poseidon and offered the sea god a four-horse chariot by casting it into the waves. Poseidon was the second son of Cronus and Rhea.
Cronus overthrew his father Uranus and ruled over the world along with his wife Rhea. However he was told that one of his children would go on to overthrow him like he had overthrown his father. Due to this he swallowed his children at birth including Poseidon.
Rhea was able to save her sixth child Zeus and when he came of age, he made his father disgorge his siblings : his sisters Hestia, Demeter and Hera ; and his brothers Hades and Poseidon. Poseidon then joined his other siblings to fight against the Cronus and the other Titans in the Battle of the Gods known as Titanomachy. After winning this battle, Poseidon and his brothers shared the world by drawing lots. Poseidon was named the lord of the seas, Hades received the underworld while Zeus received the heavens and became the king of the Greek Gods.
Although Poseidon is often depicted to be a mature, bearded and wise man , he was infamous for his irritable nature and terrible temper , much like his brothers Zeus and Hades. He was known to create strong storms during bouts of extreme loneliness and anger. He often found himself to be the subject of many disputes, quarrels and fights, such as the one with Athena for the sovereignty of Athens. However, there are also some accounts which depict that Poseidon matured over the centuries to the point where he did not let his emotions control him.
Poseidon is the Greek god of the sea. He is also the Greek god of storms, horses, and earthquakes. His parents are known as Cronus and Rhea. Poseidon is one of the twelve Olympians included in ancient Greek religion and mythology. In the myths of isolated Arcadia, he is related to Demeter and Persephone. He was also once venerated as a horse. Poseidon is considered to be the protector of seafarers.
It was Homer and Hesiod who suggested that Poseidon become the god of the sea. In the story of the Iliad, Poseidon supports the Greeks against the Trojans. Like many Olympians gods, Poseidon also had several consorts. Poseidon has sent disastrous floods into cities when angered to punish those who oppose him. Mount Olympus partly belongs to Poseidon. Poseidon is often regarded as a tamer or father of horses. He is considered as a protector of many Hellenic cities and colonies.
Poseidon had several children with several partners. Regardless of the version, Poseidon is always portrayed as the second-eldest brother. Table of Contents. Poseidon Facts Infographics. Poseidon has a reputation among most ill-tempered and greedy Olympian gods. Like the other major Greek gods, Poseidon got swallowed whole by his father. Reunited, the gods worked together to overthrow Cronus and the rest of the Titans.
Seafarers once relied on Poseidon for the safety of their journey. The Trevi fountain includes a sculpture of Poseidon. Source: Pexels. Poseidon is also worshiped as a god of navigation. Poseidon is considered a god of fertility by some. The coastal town of Pylos have cults dedicated to Poseidon. Poseidon felt more at home in the ocean than in Mount Olympus.
The dolphin is one of the many symbols that represent Poseidon. Poseidon had sexual relations with Aphrodite. Poseidon is the father of Orion. Poseidon is often seen carrying a trident. The cult of Peloponnesus worshiped Poseidon as a horse. Some Bronze age Greek tablets state that there was a feminine version of Poseidon.
The temple of Poseidon was put up in BC. Scholars consider Poseidon as one of the most powerful Olympian gods. Poseidon is typically portrayed with wet, curly hair.
Sea creatures pulled the chariot of Poseidon instead of horses. Traditionally, Poseidon is said to have caused most of the occurring earthquakes in Greece. Athena competed with Poseidon for the ownership of the city of Athens. Poseidon ruled over the oceans after defeating Cronus. The Pegasus is one of the children of Poseidon. Poseidon is rumored to have created the horse. Poseidon owned a palace made of jewels under the sea. Polybotes and Poseidon were once at war with each other.
Poseidon had a half-human half-fish son. The wife of Poseidon is Amphitrite. In some mythologies and stories, Amphitrite was not the sole wife of Poseidon. Poseidon has several preserved sculptures located globally.
Alexander the great once prayed to Poseidon for safe voyages. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Read more on our privacy policy here. Cookie Settings Accept All. Manage consent. Close Privacy Overview This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website.
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We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. It is also said that he punished Phoeacians by turning their ship into stone because they welcomed and helped the hero.
Poseidon also became furious when he helped Laomedon, a king of Troy, with building the walls in exchange for a wealthy ransom. When the walls were built, the king refused to pay the god and therefore Poseidon flooded the region and sent an enormous sea-monster to ravage the lands of Troy.
The Trojan Cetus, as it was called, terrorized the whole country over and over again before the Trojans finally, after consultation with the Oracle, agreed to sacrifice King's daughter Hesione in order to satisfy Poseidon enough to recall the monster. However, Laomedon had another option which was to promise a reward for Heracles who was just passing by from one of his quests.
Heracles agreed, defeated the Cetus, and saved Hesione. In a similar story, where Cassiopeia , a mother of Andromeda, boasted that her daughter is more beautiful than the Nereids , relatives and employes of Poseidon. When they heard of this Cassiopeia's pride, they complained to Poseidon who then released a Cetus to terrorise the lands of Ethiopia.
They were, like the Trojans, advised by the oracle to sacrifice the princess to the monster. Thereafter they had chained Andromeda to the rock and left her to be devoured by the monster. Then Perseus came to rescue, but unlike Heracles, he defeated the Cetus and saved Andromeda because of love at first sight.
Another one who offended the god was Inachus who, according to Apollodorus, testified that the land of Argos belonged to Hera after the gods were involved in a dispute.
Poseidon was outraged and in revenge dried up all remaining springs, leaving the land completely waterless and useless to Hera. There had also been a contest for the patronage of Athens between Athena and Poseidon.
In order to win city's deviotion, they had to produce a useful gift for its population. Poseidon was first to act and struck his trident hard in the earth, creating a well with streaming water. However, the water turned out to be salty and not so useful for the people.
Athena was next and created the olive tree, by planting an olive branch into the hole that she made with a spear. Delighted with olives, oil and useful wood, people of Athens chose Athena over Poseidon. This angered the god who then, in his vengeful act, flooded the city and lands nearby with salt water.
There is, however, an alternative explanation provided by Ovid where it is said nothing about revenge but that Poseidon, instead of giving fresh water to locals, presented a horse to men but the result was the same as they had picked Athena over him because of the olive tree. Then there were also two kings who paid their price for offending the god. First was Minos, a king of Crete , who tricked Poseidon with sacrificing an ordinary bull to him instead of the one given to him by the god as promised.
The Earthshaker then had his revenge as he made the promised bull savage and casted a spell on his wife Pasiphae to fall in love with it. As a result of such action, the Minotaur was born which was a punishment enough for Minos. The other one was Erechtheus , a king of Athens, whose army killed Poseidon's son Eumolpus in the battle for Athens. The god then demanded that one of his daughters should be sacrificed to him but because the daughters of Erechtheus had an agreement with each other that if one dies, the rest would commit suicide, the king of Athens lost all of his daughters.
In the end Poseidon also requested from Zeus to struck Eechtheus with a thunderbolt which ended the king's life and bloodline. Not all accounts are about revenge though. Poseidon could also be very passionate and understanding to those who he favoured and therefore gave good words or interviened himself on their behalf.
One of such accounts is the myth of Ares and Aphrodite when they were trapped in the bed of Hephaestus.
After all the gods have been summoned to see this adultery and having a laugh at it, it was Poseidon who convinced Hephaestus to let Ares go, in spite of what had been done. This was not the only god he helped.
It is said, by Hyginus, that he also protected Leto from vengeful Hera and took her to Ortygia which later became known as Delos after Posedion had transformed it, and he also granted a wish of Aphrodite and accepted her descendants into his realm of Sea.
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