Poseidon

History

Roman name Neptune.

Poseidon was the god of the sea, earthquakes and horses. Although he was officially
one of the supreme gods of Mount Olympus, he spent most of his time in his watery
domain. Poseidon was brother to Zeus and Hades. These three gods divided up
creation. Zeus became ruler of the sky, Hades got dominion of the Underworld and
Poseidon was given all water, both fresh and salt. Although there were various rivers
personified as gods, these would have been technically under Poseidon's sway.
Similarly, Nereus, the Old Man of the Sea, wasn't really considered on a par with
Poseidon, who was known to drive his chariot through the waves in unquestioned
dominance. Poseidon had married Nereus's daughter, the sea-nymph Amphitrite.

The Romans' name for Poseidon was Neptune. In dividing heaven, the watery realm
and the subterranean land of the dead, the Olympians agreed that the earth itself would
be ruled jointly, with Zeus as king. This led to a number of territorial disputes among the
gods. Poseidon vied with Athena to be patron deity of Athens. The god demonstrated
his power and benevolence by striking the Acropolis with his three-pronged spear,
which caused a spring of salt water to emerge.

Athena, however, planted an olive tree, which was seen as a more useful favor. Her
paramount importance to the Athenians is seen in her magnificent temple, the
Parthenon, which still crowns the Acropolis. The people of Athens were careful, all the
same, to honor Poseidon as well. Poseidon was father of the hero Theseus, although
the mortal Aegeus also claimed this distinction. Theseus was happy to have two fathers,
enjoying the lineage of each when it suited him. Thus he became king of Athens by
virtue of being Aegeus's son, but availed himself of Poseidon's parentage in facing a
challenge handed him by King Minos of Crete. This monarch threw his signet ring into
the depths of the sea and dared Theseus to retrieve it.
The hero dove beneath the waves and not only found the ring but was given a crown
by Poseidon's wife, Amphitrite. Poseidon was not so well-disposed toward another
famous hero. Because Odysseus blinded the Cyclops Polyphemus, who was
Poseidon's son, the god not only delayed the hero's homeward return from the Trojan
War but caused him to face enormous perils. Poseidon similarly cursed the wife of King
Minos. Minos had proved his divine right to rule Crete by calling on Poseidon to send a
bull from the sea, which the king promised to sacrifice. Poseidon sent the bull, but
Minos liked it too much to sacrifice it. So Poseidon asked Aphrodite, the goddess of
love, to make Minos's queen, Pasiphae, fall in love with the bull. The result was the
monstrous Minotaur, half-man, half-bull.

As god of horses, Poseidon often adopted the shape of a steed. It is not certain that he
was in this form when he wooed Medusa. But when Perseus later killed the Gorgon, the
winged horse Pegasus sprang from her severed neck. Poseidon sometimes granted the
shape-shifting power to others. And he ceded to the request of the maiden Caenis that
she be transformed into the invulnerable, male warrior Caeneus.

Poseidon Greek God of the Sea Poseidon was god of the sea, earthquakes, storms,
and horses and is considered one of the most bad-tempered, moody and greedy
Olympian gods. He was known to be vengeful when insulted. He is the son of Cronus
and Rhea and was swallowed by his father along with HADES, DEMETER, HESTIA
and HERA. However, in some folklore stories it is believed that Poseidon, like ZEUS,
was not swallowed by Cronus because his mother Rhea who concealed him among a
flock of lambs and pretended to have given birth to a colt, which was devoured by
CRONUS instead. After the gods defeated the Titans, the world was divided into three
and Zeus, Hades and Poseidon drew straws to decide which they would rule. Zeus
drew the skies, Hades the underworld, and Poseidon the seas. There is only one
reference to this divide, by Homer in the Iliad.
Facts about Poseidon

 Poseidon was most notably the God of the sea and the protector of all waters;
sailors relied upon him for safe passage.
 Poseidon was allotted his dominion after the fall of the Titans.
 Zeus and Hades were his brothers.
 It stands to reason that, because of his influence on the waters, he was
worshipped in connection with navigation.
 Poseidon was worshipped as a fertility god.
 His name is Greek for “husband.”
 He wielded the trident or three-pronged spear, and this image of him is reflected
in art.
 Poseidon could strike the ground with his trident to produce an earthquake. This
earned him the nickname “Earth-shaker.”
 Poseidon possessed a palace, made of gems and coral, located on the ocean
floor. He was at Mount Olympus more often than his palace.
 Poseidon was moody by nature: his temperament was unstable at best, and his
emotional fluctuations often resulted in violence.
 He was similar to Zeus in that he liked to exert power over women and flaunt his
rugged masculinity. At times, however, his efforts were appreciated. Poseidon
saved Amymone from a satyr.
 His primary means of transportation was a chariot pulled by horses.
 Poseidon assisted the Greeks in the Trojan war. However, Zeus commanded him
to withdraw from the battlefield, and he reluctantly obeyed.
 His grudge against Odysseus is one theme in the Odyssey.
 Poseidon was the husband of Amphitrite, a Nereid. Their union produced
TRITON, who was half-human, half-fish.
 He and Medusa conceived the FLYING HORSE, PEGASUS – one of many
MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURES. He was also the biological father of Orion,
Polyphemus, Pelias, and many others.
 One of his most notable dalliances involved his sister Demeter. She refused his
advances by turning herself into a mare. He then transformed into a stallion and
pursued her. Their relations produced a horse, Arion.
 He and Athena competed for possession of the city of Athens. To sway the
people in his favor, Poseidon made it spring at the Acropolis. Athena, on the
other hand, gave them the olive tree. With it, she won the contest.
 Despite Poseidon’s connection to chariots and ships, Athena was the first to
make one of each.

DIVINE OFFSPRING
 AIOLOS (Aeolus)
The god of the winds and king of the Aiolian or Liparian Islands (southern
Italy). According to some, he was a son of Poseidon and Arne.
 ASOPOS (Asopus) The god of the river Asopos of Argos (southern
Greece) and/or Boiotia (central Greece). According to some, he was a son
of Poseidon and the Nymphe Pero or Kelousa (but most accounts say he
was born to Okeanos and Tethys like the rest of the river-gods).
 ATHENE (Athena) The goddess of warcraft was, according to some, the
daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis (contrary to the usual account in which
she springs fully-grown from the head of Zeus). [This is a myth from
Libyan Mythology whose native gods were identified with their closest
Greek counterparts--Athena and Poseidon.]
 DAIMONES PROSEOOUS Six daimones (spirits) which haunted the sea-
caverns of the island of Rhodes (Greek Aegean). They were sons of
Poseidon and the sea-goddess Halia.
 DESPOINE (Despoena) The goddess of certain Arkadian Mysteries. She
was a daughter of Poseidon and Demeter.
 PROTEUS An elderly sea-god who was the son and seal-herder of
Poseidon.
 TELKHINES (Telchines) Sea-daimones and powerful but malignant
sorcerors of the Aegean Islands who were burried beneath the sea by
 Zeus. According to some accounts they were sons of Poseidon and
Thallatta (though these accounts seem to identify or confuse them with the
Rhodian Daimones Proseoous above).
 TRITON A fish-tailed sea-god. He was a son of Poseidon and Amphitrite.

NYMPH OFFSPRING
 AITHOUSA (Aethusa) A nymphor princess of Boiotia (central Greece).
She was a daughter of Poseidon by the Pleaid Alkyone.
 BENTHESIKYME (Benthesicyme) A sea-nymph queen of Aithopia
(Ethiopia). She was a daughter of Poseidon and Amphitrite.
 HEROPHILE A nymph daughter of Poseidon and Aphrodite.
 KYMOPOLEIA (Cymopoleia) A sea-nymph or giantess daughter of
Poseidon.
 OUREA (Urea) A nymph of the Troad (Asia Minor). She was a daughter of
Poseidon loved by Apollon.
 RHODE or RHODOS The goddess-nymph of the Island of Rhodes (Greek
Aegean),. She was the wife of the god Helios and a daughter of Poseidon
by one of three goddesses--Amphitrite, Aphrodite or Halia.

GIANT OFFSPRING
 ALOADAI (Aloadae) Two giants from Alos in Phthiotis (northern Greece)
named Otos and Ephialtes who attempted to storm Heaven. They were
sons of Poseidon and Iphimedeia.
 ANTAIOS (Antaeus) A king of Libya (North Africa) who slew travellers to
his country to roof the temple of Poseidon with their skulls. He was a son
of Poseidon and Gaia the Earth.
 EPHIALTES A giant of Alos in Malis (northern Greece) who, with his
brother Otos, attempted to storm Heaven. He was a son of Poseidon and
Iphimedeia.
 KHARYBDIS (Charybdis) An immortal giantess who was chained beneath
the Straits of Messina where her inhalations formed a massive whirlpool.
Kharybdis was a daughter of Poseidon and Gaia.
 KHRYSAOR (Chrysaor) A giant king of the island of Erytheia (in the
Atlantic Ocean) and/or Iberia (Spain). He was a son of Poseidon and
Medousa.
 LAISTRYGON (Laestrygon) The eponymous first king of the Laistrygones,
a tribe of man-eating Giants. He was a son of Poseidon. ORION A sea-
walking giant of Hyria in Boiotia (central Greece), born of Poseidon and
Euryale, or of the earth, fertilised by an ox-hide soaked with the urine of
the three gods Poseidon, Zeus and Hermes.
 OTOS (Otus) A giant of Alos in Malis (northern Greece) who, with his
brother Ephialtes, attempted to storm Heaven. He was a son of Poseidon
and Iphimedeia.
 POLYPHEMOS (Polyphemus) A kyklops (cyclops) giant of Sikelia (Sicily)
(southern Italy). He was a son of Poseidon and the sea-nymph Thoosa

ANIMAL OFFSPRING
 AREION (Arion) An immortal horse owned by the heroes Herakles and
Adrastos. He was the son of Poseidon and Demeter, born following their
mating in the shape of horses.
 KHRYSOMALLOS (Chrysomallus) A golden-fleeced, flying ram who
spoke with a human tongue. He was a son of Poseidon and Theophane.
 PEGASOS (Pegasus) An Immortal, winged horse owned by the hero
Bellerophon. He was a son of Poseidon and Medousa, sprung from his
mother's severed neck.

MORTAL OFFSPRING
 ABAS A king of the island of Euboia (central Greece) and Eponym of the
Abantes tribe who joined the expedition of the Argonauts. He was a son of
Poseidon and the Nereis Arethousa.
 AGELOS (Agelus) A king of the Island of Khios (Greek Aegean). He was
the son of Poseidon and a Khian Nymphe.
 AGENOR A king of Phoinikia (Phoenicia) (West Asia). He was a son of
Poseidon and Libya.
 AIOLOS or HELLEN (Aeolus) A prince of the island of Ikaria (Greek
Aegean). He was a son of Poseidon and Arne but was raised by the
Ikarian king Metapontos and his wife Theano.
 AKHAIOS (Achaeus) A king of Akhaia and Sikyonia (southern Greece)
and eponym of the Akhaian tribes. According to some, he was a son of
Poseidon and Larissa (though others call him a son of Xuthos).
 UNION COLLEGE OF LAGUNA
STA. CRUZ, LAGUNA

ENGLISH 16
(MYTHOLOGY & FOLKLORE)

SUBMITTED TO:
JUDY LYN PAYRA

SUBMITTED BY:
KRISTINE BONZA
CHARA ANN DE CASTRO