Ares was a deity that was part of the pantheon of the ancient Greeks considered the god of war and understood as the personification of violence and slaughter. Ares was not a very popular god among the ancient Greeks, who feared his personality, mainly because he was considered irritable.
Historians say that there is evidence that Ares was already worshiped since the Mycenaean period , but the Greeks considered Ares a foreign god, born in Thrace. He was the son of Zeus and Hera and is barely mentioned in Greek myths, but his appearances are always marked by some humiliation that Ares suffered.
Learn more: Poseidon — Greek god of water responsible for catastrophes
Ares Summary
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Ares was the god of war for the Greeks, understood as the personification of slaughter.
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The Romans also loved Ares, but they called him Mars.
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Ares was primarily worshiped in Sparta, a city that had a statue in his honor.
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Ares had a love affair with Aphrodite, with whom he underwent great humiliation.
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he was the son of Zeus and Hera, and his own father didn't like him.
Ares Characteristics
Ares was a god of Greek mythology, therefore part of the religiosity of the ancient Greeks. Despite this, Ares was viewed negatively by the Greeks, who found him to be very irritable and moody. The Greeks considered Ares the god of war , but in its most negative sense:of violence, slaughter and bloodshed.
Historians point out that there were mentions of Ares since the Mycenaean period, as inscriptions about him were found in Linear B. Despite this, the Greeks claimed in mythology that Ares was from Thrace , a region that was to the north of Greece and that was known for having a warlike people, the Thracians. In the ethnocentric point of view of the Greeks, the Thracians were also understood as barbarian peoples, that is, uncivilized and inferior.
Ares is not one of the most recurrent gods in Greek myths, but his appearances are always marked by some vexing situation in which this god is placed. Perhaps this is a demonstration of how this god was viewed (unpopularly) by the ancient Greeks. Ares was also present in the religiosity of the Romans , being known by these people as Mars.
Myths about Ares
As mentioned, there aren't many mentions of Ares in the Greek mythology, and most of them narrated the god of war in vexatious and humiliating situations . Ares was the son of Zeus and Hera, and the Greek myths convey the idea that his own father did not have a good relationship or a positive view of his son.
Ares was particularly known for having an extramarital relationship with Aphrodite , goddess of beauty and love for the ancient Greeks. From this relationship of Ares and Aphrodite were born five children, named Harmonia, Phobos, Deimos, Eros and Anteros. Aphrodite and Ares' relationship ended up bringing great shame to both of them.
This is because Hephaestus, husband of Aphrodite and god of metallurgy, was warned by Helios, god of the Sun, about the affair between Aphrodite and Ares. Thus, Hephaestus devised a trap that trapped Aphrodite and Ares when the two were in Hephaestus' bed. The god of metallurgy then invited all the Greek gods to see the shame of Aphrodite and Ares.
After being released, they both decided to run away for a while. Ares returned to his homeland of Thrace, and Aphrodite isolated herself on the island of Cyprus. Ares was also temporarily banned from Mount Olympus because of his affair with Aphrodite.
Ares' relationship with Aphrodite also influenced how Ares participated in the Trojan War, as narrated by Homer in the epic poem Iliad. Ares would have been influenced by Aphrodite to support the Trojans in this conflict, and the Greek myths tell that Ares himself would have led the Trojans in some battles against the Achaeans (Greeks).
, known for being Prince of Argos. After being wounded in battle, Ares reportedly fled back to Mount Olympus.and wounded by a mortal named Diomedes was defeated by Athena in battle The accounts of Ares portray the god of war in a very negative light. In several passages of the conflict, Ares goes through great humiliations. He
Another Greek myth points out that Ares was captured by two giants, named Otto and Ephialtes, when they attacked Mount Olympus. He was captured and imprisoned in a bronze urn, remaining in it for a period of 13 months. During this entire period, Ares screamed for release, and it was Hermes who rescued the god of war.
See also: Artemis — Greek goddess of hunting, nature and chastity
Ares in the religiosity of the ancient Greeks
The fact that Ares was not a popular god directly affected the small dispersion of his cult throughout Greece. The place where else Ares was worshiped was Sparta , where militarism and warfare were important features. In that city, there was a statue of Ares that was in a temple.
The statue of Ares in this temple was chained, and the justification for this was that the act would prevent the spirit of war and victory from leaving the city. In addition, there were temples to Ares in other locations, such as Argos, Crete, Megalopolis, among others. In Athens there was also a temple to Ares, but it is believed that this temple was built during Roman rule and was therefore dedicated to Mars.