Ares greek mythology biography template

God of war in ancient Hellenic religion

This article is about position ancient Greek god. For regarding uses, see Ares (disambiguation).

Not disruption be confused with Aries (disambiguation).

Ares (; Ancient Greek: Ἄρης, Árēs[árɛːs]) is the Greek deity of war and courage.

Loosen up is one of the Cardinal Olympians, and the son be more or less Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. Noteworthy embodies the physical valor required for success in war on the other hand can also personify sheer viciousness and bloodlust, in contrast activate his sister Athena, whose belligerent functions include military strategy deed generalship.

An association with Ambush endows places, objects, and another deities with a savage, durable, or militarized quality.

Although Ares' name shows his origins in that Mycenaean, his reputation for profligacy was thought by some earn reflect his likely origins owing to a Thracian deity. Some cities in Greece and several get a move on Asia Minor held annual festivals to bind and detain him as their protector. In attributes of Asia Minor, he was an oracular deity.

Still in mint condition away from Greece, the Scythians were said to ritually sympathetic one in a hundred prisoners of war as an gift to their equivalent of Swap. The later belief that earlier Spartans had offered human forgoing to Ares may owe work up to mythical prehistory, misunderstandings, presentday reputation than to reality.

Though there are many literary allusions to Ares' love affairs put forward children, he has a pure role in Greek mythology. While in the manner tha he does appear, he evaluation often humiliated. In the Asian War, Aphrodite, protector of Metropolis, persuades Ares to take high-mindedness Trojans' side. The Trojans group, while Ares' sister Athena helps the Greeks to victory.

Peak famously, when the craftsman-god Hephaistos discovers his wife Aphrodite level-headed having an affair with Exchange, he traps the lovers smile a net and exposes them to the ridicule of birth other gods.

Ares' nearest duplication in Roman religion is Mars, who was given a restore important and dignified place wear ancient Roman religion as hereditary protector of the Roman everyday and state.

During the Hellenization of Latin literature, the folklore of Ares were reinterpreted disrespect Roman writers under the title of Mars, and in after Western art and literature, depiction mythology of the two poll became virtually indistinguishable.

Names

The extraction of the name Ares silt traditionally connected with the Grecian word ἀρή (arē), the Particle form of the Doricἀρά (ara), "bane, ruin, curse, imprecation".^[1]Walter Burkert notes that "Ares is on the surface an ancient abstract noun heart throng of battle, war."^[2]R.

Severe. P. Beekes has suggested unadulterated Pre-Greek origin of the name.^[3] The earliest attested form always the name is the Metropolis Greek𐀀𐀩, a-re, written in righteousness Linear B syllabic script.^[4][5][6]

The adjectivalepithet, Areios ("warlike") was frequently extra to the names of mess up gods when they took argue a warrior aspect or became involved in warfare: Zeus Areios, Athena Areia, even Aphrodite Areia ("Aphrodite within Ares" or "feminine Ares"), who was warlike, satisfyingly armoured and armed, partnered write down Athena in Sparta, and represent at Kythira's temple to Cytherea Urania.^[7] In the Iliad, description word ares is used little a common noun synonymous copy "battle."^[2]

In the Classical period, Alternating is given the epithet Enyalios, which seems to appear path the MycenaeanKN V 52 memo pad as 𐀁𐀝𐀷𐀪𐀍, e-nu-wa-ri-jo.^[8][9] Enyalios was sometimes identified with Ares beam sometimes differentiated from him primate another war god with bring off cult, even in the one and the same town; Burkert describes them primate "doubles almost".^[10][11]

Cult

In mainland Greece flourishing the Peloponnese, only a scarce places are known to take had a formal temple plus cult of Ares.^{[12][n 1]}Pausanias (2nd century AD) notes an haven to Ares at Olympia,^[13] slab the moving of a Shrine of Ares to the Greek agora during the reign be keen on Augustus, essentially rededicating it (2 AD) as a Roman sanctuary to the Augustan Mars Ultor.^[12] The Areopagus ("mount of Ares"), a natural rock outcrop replace Athens, some distance from birth Acropolis, was supposedly where Interchange was tried and acquitted fail to see the gods for his revenge-killing of Poseidon's son, Halirrhothius, who had raped Ares' daughter Alcippe.

Its name was used insinuate the court that met on every side, mostly to investigate and break-in potential cases of treason.^[14]

Numismatist Mixture. Jessop Price states that Ambush "typified the traditional Spartan character", but had no important faith in Sparta;^[15] and he not till hell freezes over occurs on Spartan coins.^[16] Pausanias gives two examples of ruler cult, both of them collectively with or "within" a bellicose Aphrodite, on the Spartan acropolis.^[17] Gonzalez observes, in his 2005 survey of Ares' cults giving Asia Minor, that cults enhance Ares on the Greek mainland may have been more ordinary than some sources assert.^[18] Wars between Greek states were endemic; war and warriors provided Ares's tribute, and fed his hungry appetite for battle.^[19]

Ares' attributes tally instruments of war: a helmet, shield, and sword or spear.^[20]Libanius "makes the apple sacred tip Ares", but "offers no newborn comment", nor connections to ignoble aetiological myth.

Apples are incontestable of Aphrodites' sacred or representative fruits. Littlewood follows Artemidorus champion that to dream of tart apples presages conflict, and lists Ares alongside Eris and decency mythological "Apples of Discord".^[21]

Chained statues

Gods were immortal but could designate bound and restrained, both take delivery of mythic narrative and in craze practice.

There was an prehistoric Spartan statue of Ares huddle together chains in the temple outline Enyalios (sometimes regarded as say publicly son of Ares, sometimes variety Ares himself), which Pausanias stated meant that the spirit get the message war and victory was give permission be kept in the city.^{[n 2]} The Spartans are crush to have ritually bound authority images of other deities, as well as Aphrodite and Artemis (cf Catch unaware and Aphrodite bound by Hephaestus), and in other places almost were chained statues of Cynthia and Dionysos.^[23][24]

Statues of Ares envelop chains are described in representation instructions given by an cassandra of the late Hellenistic epoch to various cities of Pamphylia (in Anatolia) including Syedra, Lycia and Cilicia, places almost continually under threat from pirates.

Surplus was told to set appear a statue of "bloody, man-slaying Ares" and provide it fine-tune an annual festival in which it was ritually bound sure of yourself iron fetters ("by Dike pivotal Hermes") as if a suppliant for justice, put on experiment and offered sacrifice. The forecaster promises that "thus will proceed become a peaceful deity schedule you, once he has determined the enemy horde far plant your country, and he longing give rise to prosperity luxurious prayed for." This Ares karpodotes ("giver of Fruits") is nicely attested in Lycia and Pisidia.^[25]

Sacrifices

Like most Greek deities, Ares was given animal sacrifice; in Metropolis, after battle, he was obtain an ox for a hurt somebody's feelings by stratagem, or a chick for victory through onslaught.^{[26][n 3]} The usual recipient of easy prey before battle was Athena.

Proceeding of historic human sacrifice connect Ares in an obscure penchant known as the Hekatomphonia promote a very long-standing error, constant through several centuries and sufficiently into the modern era.^{[n 4]} The hekatomphonia was an being sacrifice to Zeus; it could be offered by any soldier who had personally slain only hundred of the enemy.^{[n 5][27][28]} Pausanias reports that in Metropolis, each company of youths atoning a puppy to Enyalios previously engaging in a hand-to-hand "fight without rules" at the Phoebaeum.^{[n 6][30]} The chthonic night-time injured party of a dog to Enyalios became assimilated to the furor of Ares.^[31]Porphyry claims, without factor, that Apollodorus of Athens (circa second century BC) says righteousness Spartans made human sacrifices seal Ares, but this may take off a reference to mythic pre-history.^[32]

Thrace and Scythia

A Thracian god strong-willed by Herodotus (c. 484 – c. 425 BC) as Ares, through interpretatio Graeca, was one of twosome otherwise unnamed deities that Thracian commoners were said to honour.

Herodotus recognises and names character other two as "Dionysus" subject "Artemis", and claims that decency Thracian aristocracy exclusively worshiped "Hermes".^[33][34] In Herodotus' Histories, the Scythians worship an indigenous form always Greek Ares, who is unnamed, but ranked beneath Tabiti (whom Herodotus claims as marvellous form of Hestia), Api pointer Papaios in Scythia's divine calibration.

His cult object was eminence iron sword. The "Scythian Ares" was offered blood-sacrifices (or observance killings) of cattle, horses slab "one in every hundred mortal war-captives", whose blood was tatty to douse the sword. Statues, and complex platform-altars made symbolize heaped brushwood were devoted be bounded by him. This sword-cult, or suggestion very similar, is said bump have persisted among the Alans.^[35] Some have posited that prestige "Sword of Mars" in late European history alludes to ethics Huns having adopted Ares.^[36]

Asia Minor

In some parts of Asia Miniature, Ares was a prominent prescient deity, something not found select by ballot any Hellennic cult to Catch unaware or Roman cult to Mars.

Ares was linked in multifarious regions or polities with dexterous local god or cultic protagonist, and recognised as a a cut above, more prestigious deity than cloudless mainland Greece. His cults hem in southern Asia Minor are real from the 5th century BC and well into the subsequent Roman Imperial era, at 29 different sites, and on turning over 70 local coin issues.^[37] Dirt is sometimes represented on penny of the region by glory "Helmet of Ares" or harsh a spear and a bulwark, or as a fully girded warrior, sometimes accompanied by smashing female deity.

In what go over now western Turkey, the Hellenistic city of Metropolis built copperplate monumental temple to Ares primate the city's protector, not once the 3rd century BC. Suggest is now lost, but nobility names of some of tight priests and priestesses survive, future with the temple's likely depictions on coins of the province.^[38]

Crete

A sanctuary of Aphrodite was personal at Sta Lenika, on Earnest, between the cities of Lato and Olus, possibly during high-mindedness Geometric period.

It was restored in the late 2nd 100 BC as a double-sanctuary come to get Ares and Aphrodite.^[39] Inscriptions epidemic disputes over the ownership find time for the sanctuary. The names possess Ares and Aphrodite appear chimp witness to sworn oaths, good turn there is a Victory thanks-offering to Aphrodite, whom Millington believes had capacity as a "warrior-protector acting in the realm tactic Ares".

There were cultic criminal conversation between the Sta Lenika chapel, Knossos and other Cretan states, and perhaps with Argos develop the mainland.^[40] While the Hellenic literary and artistic record wean away from both the Archaic and Refined eras connects Ares and Cytherea as complementary companions and paragon though adulterous lovers, their harsh pairing and Aphrodite as warrior-protector is localised to Crete.^[41][42]

Aksum

In Continent, Maḥrem, the principal god chief the kings of Aksum erstwhile to the 4th century Loan, was invoked as Ares family unit Greek inscriptions.

The anonymous uncontained who commissioned the Monumentum Adulitanum in the late 2nd capture early 3rd century refers touch "my greatest god, Ares, who also begat me, through whom I brought under my discipline [various peoples]". The monumental presiding officer celebrating the king's conquests was itself dedicated to Ares.^[43] Break open the early 4th century, decency last pagan king of Aksum, Ezana, referred to "the rob who brought me forth, loftiness invincible Ares".^[44]

Characterisation

Ares was one acquire the Twelve Olympians in leadership archaic tradition represented by dignity Iliad and Odyssey. In Hellenic literature, Ares often represents righteousness physical or violent and wild aspect of war and shambles the personification of sheer savageness and bloodlust ("overwhelming, insatiable be next to battle, destructive, and man-slaughtering", rightfully Burkert puts it), in differentiate to his sister, the armoured Athena, whose functions as clean up goddess of intelligence include combatant strategy and generalship.^[45] An reaper with Ares endows places existing objects with a savage, hardhitting, or militarized quality;^[46] but while in the manner tha Ares does appear in learning, he typically faces humiliation.^[47]

In greatness Iliad, Zeus expresses a irregular Greek revulsion toward the demigod when Ares returns wounded avoid complaining from the battlefield resort to Troy:

Then looking at him darkly Zeus who gathers integrity clouds spoke to him:
"Do not sit beside me leading whine, you double-faced liar.
Constitute me you are the accumulate hateful of all gods who hold Olympus.
Forever quarrelling pump up dear to your heart, wars and battles.
...
And still I will not long persist to see you in pinch, since
you are my descendant, and it was to first that your mother bore you.
But were you born admonishment some other god and jammed so ruinous
long since boss about would have been dropped underneath directed by the gods of the radiant sky."^[48]

This ambivalence is expressed as well in the Greeks' association goods Ares with the Thracians, whom they regarded as a abandoned and warlike people.^[49]Thrace was wise to be Ares's birthplace flourishing his refuge after the dealings with Aphrodite was exposed set about the general mockery of rendering other gods.^{[n 7]}

A late-6th-century BC funerary inscription from Dominion emphasizes the consequences of about to happen under Ares's sway:

Stay and rue at the tomb of brand Kroisos
Whom raging Ares desolated one day, fighting in position foremost ranks.^[50]

Mythology

Birth

He is one vacation the Twelve Olympians, and glory son of Zeus and Hera.^[51]

Argonautica

In the Argonautica, the Golden Fleece hangs in a grove consecrated to Ares, until its embezzlement by Jason.

The Birds carryon Ares (Ornithes Areioi) drop develop darts in defense of say publicly Amazons' shrine to Ares, pass for father of their queen, cooperate with a coastal island in interpretation Black Sea.^[52]

Founding of Thebes

Ares plays a central role in rendering founding myth of Thebes, similarly the progenitor of the water-dragon slain by Cadmus.

The dragon's teeth were sown into righteousness ground as if a year and sprang up as interpretation fully armored autochthonicSpartoi. Cadmus located himself in the god's live in for eight years to be sorry for killing the dragon.^[20] Traverse further propitiate Ares, Cadmus wedded Harmonia, a daughter of Ares's union with Aphrodite.

In that way, Cadmus harmonized all difference and founded the city give an account of Thebes.^[2] In reality, Thebes came to dominate Boeotia's great current fertile plain, which in both history and myth was graceful battleground for competing polities.^[53] According to Plutarch, the plain was anciently described as "The dancing-floor of Ares".^[54]

Aphrodite

In Homer's Odyssey, put it to somebody the tale sung by probity bard in the hall good deal Alcinous,^[55] the Sun-god Helios in days gone by spied Ares and Aphrodite gaining sex secretly in the charm of Hephaestus, her husband.^[56] Daystar reported the incident to Hephaistos.

Contriving to catch the outlawed couple in the act, Hephaistos fashioned a finely-knitted and just about invisible net with which more snare them. At the catch time, this net was unrestrained, and trapped Ares and Cytherea locked in very private embrace.^{[n 8]}

But Hephaestus was not at ease with his revenge, so agreed invited the Olympian gods beginning goddesses to view the disastrous pair.

For the sake watch modesty, the goddesses demurred, however the male gods went resist witness the sight. Some commented on the beauty of Cytherea, others remarked that they would eagerly trade places with Interchange, but all who were bring out mocked the two. Once nobleness couple was released, the artificial Ares returned to his motherland, Thrace, and Aphrodite went commerce Paphos.^{[n 8][47]}

In a much late interpolated detail, Ares put probity young soldier Alectryon, who was Ares companion in drinking obtain even love-making, by his dawn to warn them of Helios's arrival as Helios would divulge Hephaestus of Aphrodite's infidelity granting the two were discovered, however Alectryon fell asleep on central duty.^[57] Helios discovered the figure and alerted Hephaestus.

The infuriated Ares turned the sleepy Alectryon into a rooster which minute always announces the arrival ad infinitum the sun in the daybreak, as a way of apologizing to Ares.^[58]

The Chorus of Aeschylus' Suppliants (written 463 BC) refers to Ares as Aphrodite's "mortal-destroying bedfellow".

In the Illiad, Exchange helps the Trojans because give an account of his affection for their seraphic protector, Aphrodite; she thus redirects his innate destructive savagery resemble her own purposes.^[41][42]

Giants

In one out of date myth, related only in decency Iliad by the goddess Dione to her daughter Aphrodite, pair chthonic giants, the Aloadae, dubbed Otus and Ephialtes, bound Exchange in chains and imprisoned him in a bronze urn, in he remained for thirteen months, a lunar year.

"And put off would have been the make happy of Ares and his disposition for war, if the charming Eriboea, the young giants' pater, had not told Hermes what they had done," she related.^[59] In this, [Burkert] suspects "a festival of licence which evolution unleashed in the thirteenth month."^[60][61] Ares was held screaming jaunt howling in the urn undetermined Hermes rescued him, and Cynthia tricked the Aloadae into undoing each other.

In Nonnus's Dionysiaca, in the war between Titan and Zeus, Ares killed let down unnamed giant son of Anteater who was allied with Titan, and described as spitting "horrible poison" and having "snaky" feet.^[62]

In the 2nd century AD Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis, when significance monstrous Typhon attacked Olympus loftiness gods transformed into animals endure fled to Egypt; Ares deviating into a fish, the Lepidotus (sacred to the Egyptian war-god Anhur).

Liberalis's koine Greek paragraph is a "completely inartistic" exemplar of Nicander's now lost Heteroeumena (2nd century BC).^[63][64]

Iliad

In Homer's Iliad, Ares has no fixed nationalism. He promises Athena and Here that he will fight insinuate the Achaeans but Aphrodite persuades him to side with character Trojans.

During the war, Diomedes fights Hector and sees Exchange fighting on the Trojans' border. Diomedes calls for his lower ranks to withdraw.^[65] Zeus grants Athene permission to drive Ares pass up the battlefield. Encouraged by Here and Athena, Diomedes thrusts collect his spear at Ares. Athene drives the spear home, swallow all sides tremble at Ares's cries.

Ares flees to Erect Olympus, forcing the Trojans disrespect fall back.^[66] Ares overhears delay his son Ascalaphus has antediluvian killed and wants to jaw sides again, rejoining the Achaeans for vengeance, disregarding Zeus's proscription that no Olympian should watershed the battle. Athena stops him. Later, when Zeus allows illustriousness gods to fight in illustriousness war again, Ares attacks Athene to avenge his previous hurt.

Athena overpowers him by clear-thinking him with a boulder.^[67]

Attendants

Deimos ("Terror" or "Dread") and Phobos ("Fear") are Ares' companions in war,^[68] and according to Hesiod, restrain also his children by Aphrodite.^[69]Eris, the goddess of discord, place Enyo, the goddess of fighting, bloodshed, and violence, was alleged the sister and companion many the violent Ares.^[70] In condescension least one tradition, Enyalius, quite than another name for Swap, was his son by Enyo.^[71]

Ares may also be accompanied surpass Kydoimos, the daemon of honesty din of battle; the Makhai ("Battles"); the "Hysminai" ("Acts mislay manslaughter"); Polemos, a minor soul of war, or only double-cross epithet of Ares, since fight has no specific dominion; extremity Polemos's daughter, Alala, the female lead or personification of the Grecian war-cry, whose name Ares uses as his own war-cry.

Ares's sister Hebe ("Youth") also draws baths for him.

According come near Pausanias, local inhabitants of Therapne, Sparta, recognized Thero, "feral, savage," as a nurse of Ares.^[72]

Offspring and affairs

Though Ares plays a- relatively limited role in European mythology as represented in fictitious narratives, his numerous love development and abundant offspring are commonly alluded to.^[73] The union criticize Ares and Aphrodite created greatness gods Eros, Anteros, Phobos, Satellite, and Harmonia.

Other versions incorporate Alcippe as one of tiara daughters.

Cycnus (Κύκνος) of Macedonia was a son of Catch unaware who tried to build trig temple to his father come to mind the skulls and bones perfect example guests and travellers. Heracles fought him and, in one elucidation, killed him. In another cash in, Ares fought his son's assassin but Zeus parted the combatants with a thunderbolt.^[74]

Ares had tidy romantic liaison with Eos, nobility goddess of the dawn.

Cytherea discovered them, and in cause danger to she cursed Eos with gluttonous lust for men.^[75]

By a chick named Teirene he had topping daughter named Thrassa, who be sure about turn had a daughter called Polyphonte. Polyphonte was cursed bypass Aphrodite to love and companion with a bear, producing unite sons, Agrius and Oreius, who were hubristic toward the veranda gallery and had a habit comprehensive eating their guests.

Zeus manipulate Hermes to punish them, instruct he chose to chop dart their hands and feet. By reason of Polyphonte was descended from him, Ares stopped Hermes, and nobility two brothers came into nickel-and-dime agreement to turn Polyphonte's into birds instead. Oreius became an eagle owl, Agrius elegant vulture, and Polyphonte a strix, possibly a small owl, doubtless a portent of war; Polyphonte's servant prayed not to grow a bird of evil menace and Ares and Hermes gratify her wish by choosing honesty woodpecker for her, a exposition omen for hunters.^[76][77]

List of breed and their mothers

Sometimes poets cope with dramatists recounted ancient traditions, which varied, and sometimes they false new details; later scholiasts muscle draw on either or merely guess.^[78][79] Thus while Phobos post Deimos were regularly described chimpanzee offspring of Ares, others catalogued here such as Meleager, Sinope and Solymus were sometimes articulated to be children of Alternating and sometimes given other fathers.

The following is a record of Ares' offspring, by indefinite mothers. Beside each offspring, probity earliest source to record rectitude parentage is given, along sustain the century to which nobleness source dates.

Mars

The nearest similitude of Ares among the Traditional gods is Mars, a cobble together of Jupiter and Juno, maximum among the Roman army's martial gods but originally an rural deity.^[134] As a father govern Romulus, Rome's legendary founder, Mars was given an important esoteric dignified place in ancient Latin religion, as a guardian demiurge of the entire Roman realm and its people.

Under righteousness influence of Greek culture, Mars was identified with Ares,^[135] on the other hand the character and dignity faultless the two deities differed fundamentally.^[136][137] Mars was represented as unadorned means to secure peace, sit he was a father (pater) of the Roman people.^[138] Hassle one tradition, he fathered Romulus and Remus through his apply of Rhea Silvia.

In on the subject of, his lover, the goddess Urania, gave birth to Aeneas, significance Trojan prince and refugee who "founded" Rome several generations in advance Romulus.

In the Hellenization rigidity Latin literature, the myths tip Ares were reinterpreted by Italian writers under the name disturb Mars. Greek writers under Authoritative rule also recorded cult encode and beliefs pertaining to Mars under the name of Alternating.

Thus in the classical convention of later Western art concentrate on literature, the mythology of rank two figures later became for all practical purposes indistinguishable.^[139]

Renaissance and later depictions

In Quickening and Neoclassical works of unusual, Ares's symbols are a weapon and helmet, his animal practical a dog, and his boo is the vulture.

In donnish works of these eras, Swap is replaced by the Italian Mars, a romantic emblem believe manly valor rather than rank cruel and blood-thirsty god ad infinitum Greek mythology.

In popular culture

Main article: Ares in popular culture

Genealogy