Poseidon (Neptune)

Lord of the sea and also god of earthquakes and of horses. A son of the titans Cronus and Rhea, he was known as the Roman god of the sea, Neptune.

After aiding his brother Zeus when they overthrew Cronus and sent the other Titans to Tartarus, he received the sea as his domain. When he was not residing in Olympus, he lived with his Oceanid wife and queen, Amphitrite, in his underwater palace at Aegae. Poseidon was the father of the sea god Triton and two daughters – Rhodes and Benthesicyme.

Poseidon was always depicted as a powerfully muscular, bearded-man, carrying a mighty trident. One blow from his trident could split a rock open. He drove a two-horse chariot over the waves. In Hesiod's Theogony, Poseidon was called the Dark-haired One.

Like many sea deities he had the ability to change shape, but unlike some of them, he didn't have oracular power. Poseidon amorously pursued his sister Demeter. When she changed her shape into a mare to hide from him, Poseidon changed himself into a stallion and mounted her. He became the father of the immortal horse Arion and a daughter, Despoina (goddess of horses). Poseidon was also called a god of horses, known by his epithet as Hippios (or Consus).

His best known epithet was Enosichthon (Ἐνοσέχθων, "Earth-shaker"), which is also found on the Linear B tablets in Knossos: E-NE-SI-DA-O-NE (Enosidas). His other epithet was Gaieochus (Γεήοχος, "earthguarder").

Poseidon was also the father of another famous horse, Pegasus. When Poseidon seduced Medusa at Athena's shrine, the goddess transformed the unfortunate girl into a monster known as the Gorgon. Pegasus and the giant Chrysaor sprung out of the sea from the blood that fell from Medusa's severed head. (See Perseus.)

Like his brother Zeus, he had numerous affairs with nymphs and mortals. He also had many children by them. Some of his sons were gigantic in stature, like Antaeus, Otus and Ephialtes, the Cyclops Polyphemus, and possibly the great hunter Orion.

Poseidon had two important sons who sailed with Jason. One of them was the Miletian pilot Ancaeus, whose mother was Astypalea. Erginus was also his son and brother of Ancaeus, but Erginus played no important role. The other important Argonaut was Euphemus whose mother was Europa, the daughter of Tityus. Euphemus was a great runner who could run on top of the waves without getting his feet wet. Euphemus played an important role in the Clashing Rocks episode and later on when their ship was stranded in Libya. See the Argonauts.

His most famous son was the Athenian hero Theseus, by Aethra, though some say Aegeus was Theseus' father.

There was enmity between Poseidon and the Trojans which dated back to the time of Laomedon, father of Priam. Zeus punished Poseidon and Apollo by making the two gods work as builders of the walls of Troy. Laomedon promised to pay the gods with vines of gold. When the walls were completed, Laomedon refused to pay, breaking their contract. At first, Poseidon sent a sea monster to punish Troy, but the hero Heracles killed the monster. So during the Trojan War, Poseidon sided with the Greeks, though he saved a Trojan hero, Aeneas, son of the goddess Aphrodite and Anchises. He spirited Aeneas away from Achilles because Aeneas had to survive to rule the Trojans one day.

His favourite animals were the horse, the bull, and the dolphin, while pine was his sacred tree. His places of worship were Corinth, Argos, Troezen and Athens where he vied for recognition against the other deities.

In Argos, when he lost to Hera, Poseidon would sometimes dry up the rivers in Argos, while at other times he would flood the city.

In Athens, Poseidon vied against Athena. Poseidon demonstrated his power by striking a rock with his trident, causing sea water to gush from the spring in the Acropolis. Athena caused an olive tree to grow beside the spring. It was decided that the entire citizenship would vote. All the men had voted for the sea god, while all the women voted for the goddess. Since there was one more woman, Athena won the contest by one vote. The angry sea-god flooded the region of Attica. The Athenians, however, wisely continued to worship Poseidon, and Athena decreed that women were not allowed to vote in future elections, thereby appeasing the angry sea god.

Poseidon also contested against Helius, god of the sun, for the city of Corinth. The Corinthians, afraid to offend either god, decided to award the Isthmus to Poseidon while Helius received the heights of the Acrocorinth (the citadel of Corinth). The Isthmian Games were held in his honour.

Clearly, Poseidon was an important god during pre-Hellenic Mycenaean civilisation since his name, PO-SE-DA-O-NE, appeared frequently in the Linear B tablets. Poseidon also has a feminine name in the Linear B tablets, PO-SI-DA-E-JA. The centre of his worship appeared to be at Pylos during the Bronze Age. Poseidon was the father of the twins, Pelias and Neleus, by Tyro. While Pelias ruled in Iolcus, Neleus migrated to Pylos and became father of Nestor.