Many Greek gods and goddesses were tie in with battle , but Ares was known as the one trueGreek god of war(not to be disconcert with Kratos , the protagonist of the " God of War " video biz enfranchisement ) .
are was the least - hero-worship deity in the Greek pantheon since most people preferred peace and stability between the many city - states . However , he would eventually come into his own as a fresh power emerge on the world stage .
When theRomansadopted the god of warfare and renamed him Mars , he became an integral spectral component of one of the greatest and most talkative empires of the ancient existence . At the beginning of any battle , Roman soldiers would implore to Ares to birth their forces from danger and frustration .
A Brief Overview of Ares: Warrior God of the Greek Pantheon
Grecian mythology is a complex tapestry of battle , political espionage and a unvarying struggle of the gods to maintain ascendency and influence over their human worshippers .
To the Greeks , Ares was assure as the harbinger of doom ; to the gods , he was an irregular menace . However , from the view of his most favored Romans , Mars / Ares was witness as the mythical justification for their violent expansion to the farthest corners of theempire .
The Divine Family Tree
are , the god of warfare , was the boy of Zeus and Hera — the king - father and queen - female parent of the other gods in the Pantheon family .
With their ceaseless tiff , unfaithfulness and backstabbing , it ’s no admiration that the toxic nature and rearing of their relationship conduct to their son becoming the god of war and bloodlust .
ar ' sister Athena was worship as the god of soundness and scheme in fight , while he became the embodiment of furore , ferocity and fatuous ferocity . Only the militaristic Spartans and warmongering Thracians preferred Ares over his more degree - headed sibling .
Ares' Affair With the Goddess of Love
Although are never married , he did engage in several amour — the most famous of which was the striking rendezvous with theGreek goddessof love and beauty , Aphrodite .
However , if you ’re expecting a rom - com conclusion for the veto love fib of Ares and Aphrodite , think that this is a Grecian tale of the gods ; these matter rarely finish well .
Aphrodite ’s husband , Hephaestus , was so tempestuous when he caught her and Ares in the throes of passion that he trapped them naked under a magical net . Disgusted with his wife ’s betrayal , he foretell in the other gods to witness their humiliation .
Once release , Ares and Aphrodite parted ways with the gods and settled into transportation , retreating to Thrace and Cyprus . Like most other fib of the gods and their trials , the embarrassing tale of Ares and Aphrodite is likely a monitory tale consanguineal tobiblicalwarnings of the time .
Symbols and Sacred Animals Associated With Ares
ar is the spirit of warriors in battle , so most symbols and iconography in esthetic representations show him wearing a helmet and wielding a mighty spear .
The immortal of war is also associated with the flaming torch and battle chariot , which seem in several stories of Ares lay waste to cities and fields during time of mass destruction .
The gods are often associated with a sacred animal that mirror their temperament , so the most meet creature for the god of war was the piranha — ascavengerthat feeds on decease and the decomposition of a battlefield .
However , he was also accompanied by the dog ( a symbolic representation representing the loyalty of soldiers in battle ) and the boar ( which had a tendency to charge blindly in a scene of fad ) .
3 Tales About the Greek God of War
ar plays a supporting role in many legend of Greek mythology , but the most epic illustration are his engagement with Hercules , his gaining control at Mount Olympus and his support of the Trojans in Homer ’s " The Iliad . "
1. Ares vs. Hercules
The Grecian god of war seem in the chronicles of Hercules , a superman and Word of Zeus .
In the story , Ares ’s son Kyknos angers Apollo by do havoc and killing pilgrims on their journeying to the prophet at Delphi . Apollo dispatchesHerculesto learn the menace a lesson , and the hero deals out ultimate vengeance , kill Kyknos .
Ares seeks retaliation and engages Hercules in immortal armed combat . The stakes are not that high-pitched since one is a god , and the other is a Ubermensch protect by Athena .
The clash ends in a het up tie , but the powerful Hercules is able to bruise Ares and land a monolithic coke to Ares ' ego before all is said and done .
2. A Year in the Bronze Jar
Although the son of Zeus and Hera was a mighty warrior god , there were times when his brash nature get him into trouble .
In one level , the two titan known as the Aloadae , Ephialtes and Otus , stage an assault on Mount Olympus . Ares intervened and was captured by the behemoth in a bronze urn for over a year .
Artemis , Ares ' sister and Grecian god of the Holman Hunt , came to his rescue in the form of a cervid . She raced between the captures , and they both pretermit with their spears . Each spear tip found a home in the other buddy , result in accidental fratricide .
3. The Seige of Troy
Although many historiographer concord that the metropolis of Troy was a material place , Homer ’s account of the siege at Troy was not a historically accurate account statement . " The Iliad " was one of the most popular poetic fiction , with a genius - studded stamp of ancient heroes .
" The Iliad " take office during the warfare between the Trojans and the Greeks . The war broke out after a serenity deal ferment when the Trojan prince Paris stole the wife of Menelaus , the king of the Spartans .
enrage by this vilification , Menelaus plead with his crony Agamemnon to raise an regular army and exact his revenge .
struggle lines are draw , and both heroes and immortal must opt a side . Ares was the god of state of war , so the Spartan / Grecian forces wait him to automatically side with their causal agent . However , Ares , in yet another rash decision , prefer to flip sides from Hera and Athena to back the Trojans and join forces with his former lover , Aphrodite .
Ares inevitably bets on the wrong Trojan sawhorse , as Hellenic bomber , admit Achilles , Ajax and Odysseus , set the city aflare in a nighttime raid .
