Meet the Goddess Athena: the one who brought bloodless victories

One of the most represented Greek goddesses in works and sculptures, Athena is known as the goddess of war, wisdom, reason, intelligence, balance, the creative spirit and diplomacy. In other words, she had the perfect combination to end all battles in the best way: without spilling a drop of blood.

The Goddess Athena was not only worshiped by the Greeks, in fact, it was possible to find temples in her honor spread across African and Asian colonies as well. For the Romans, Athena was the beautiful warrior Minerva, daughter of the God Jupiter, who protected and blessed the heroes of war.

Despite the Goddess Athena being a female representation, she was not worshiped by Greek women and this has to do with the fact that she has an unquestionable masculine strength. To learn more about all the details of the fascinating history of the Goddess Athena, check here her trajectory, her importance and her characteristics.

Take the opportunity to discover the fiery force of the Goddess Sekhmet and her history.

Who is the Goddess Athena?

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Athena is the Greek goddess who combines knowledge with the art of war, always making use of her rational wisdom and her calming behavior. For the first time in the history of Greek mythology, battles were fought with order, discipline and intellect.

This is because the Goddess Athena was endowed with a strong sense of justice, so she became known as the protector of life in society. In fact, it is Athena who created civilization and culture, valuing the arts, philosophy, literature and music.

Because of her intellectual strength, her capacity for reflection and her strategic knowledge of wars, the Goddess Athena should be the new Queen of Olympus. However, as her father Zeus already feared losing the throne to a woman, he did not let her rise to power. Either way, without defying her father, Athena continued to wield her power to protect cities and bring victory in battle.

You can see how complex Athena was: a warrior, but also a good daughter. The Goddess Athena also carried traits of the Great Mother symbolized by the Goddess of soil fertility. Therefore, it is correct to say that she was linked to the Greek god Dionysus, because in the rituals of worship to her, branches of the vine used to be given to her.

History of the Goddess Athena

Metis was the wife of Zeus and the most intelligent goddess in the universe, according to him. However, when she became pregnant, Zeus feared that his daughter’s strength would be able to remove him from the throne. That’s why he had the idea of ​​swallowing the goddess Métis while she was still pregnant and, for that to happen, he invented a game: the two should transform into a different animal.

It was then that the goddess Metis decided to turn into a fly and Zeus easily swallowed her. But in fact, it ended up in his head and tormented him so much in the form of a headache that he couldn’t take it and took the ax of Hephaestus to open it. At this moment, Athena emerges as an adult and armed from within Zeus’ brain.

It is said that the Goddess Athena is a symbol of patriarchy precisely because she was born an adult from the head of Zeus, that is, without the presence of the female figure of the mother. That’s why she was never linked to emotions and behaviors considered weak such as demonstrations of love, exacerbated dramatizations, erotic attractions, among others.

Athena, the virgin goddess

Athena did not follow the rule that the woman had the only mission to reproduce, so she was called the virgin goddess. In fact, throughout the story of the Goddess Athena, she remained a virgin, as she believed that pregnancy and domestic life could interfere with her work in wars. It is for this and others that she never wanted to be a goddess passionately desired by her physical beauty.

Even so, the Goddess Athena had a child with the fire god Hephaestus. But how did that happen, you must be wondering, right? According to the myth, Hephaestus tried (in vain) to take advantage of Athena when she asked for his help in making weapons for her. But as she was strong, she managed to get away from him.

However, Hephaestus’ semen fell on Athena’s legs, who, with a cloth, wiped it off and threw it on the floor. The moment Hephaestus’ semen touched Athena’s leg and touched the earth, Erichthonius, the first mythical king of Athens, was born.

Importance of the Goddess Athena

Looking at the image of Athena, it is easy to deduce that the spear she carries symbolizes war. However, this symbol represents the ability of the Greek goddess to win battles with clever strategies. Therefore, the importance of Athena is related to the political sciences, the search for reason and the philosophical arts.

As such, she is the true protector of civilization and peaceful community life. The inhabitants used to turn to her to solve the problems that their diplomacy was necessary. According to Greek mythology, the goddess Athena aided the heroes Achilles, Heracles and Odysseus in their battles.

People who identify with the Goddess Athena archetype share her sense of justice and her intellectual curiosity. Therefore, when approaching the goddess of wisdom, you usually feel a thirst for knowledge.

However, it is important to be careful not to become a cold and calculating person, who does not repress feelings considered “weak”.

Characteristics of the Goddess Athena

For the Romans, the Goddess Athena was Minerva, the one who gave the tie-breaking vote and who exonerated Orestes, accused of killing his mother to avenge his father’s death. To this day, the term “minerva vote” is known for tie cases.

The goddess of wisdom is also tied to the story of Medusa, who was not always a serpent-haired monster. In fact, Medusa was a beautiful maiden who worked in the temple of Athena and who seduced Poseidon.

The two lovers decided to make love on the altar of the temple of the goddess who, furious at the lack of respect, transformed Medusa into the horrible image we know to this day.

With his brother Ares, the Greek god of war, the relationship was not the best either. That’s because the two used to disagree when it came to battle. While the Goddess Athena believed in order and discipline, Ares advocated force and violence to win wars.

In addition to these curiosities, the figure of Athena carries many other mystical symbolisms such as the owl, olive trees, spears, serpents, armor, aegis and helmets.

Immaculate goddess, protector of civilization, holder of wisdom and intellect, Athena possessed many qualities. If you are also interested in the amazing life of the Goddesses, check out the book “All the Goddesses of the World”, by author Claudney Prieto.

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