Athena: The Greek Pantheon of Gods: A Mythological Encyclopedia. Who is the goddess Athena in ancient Greek mythology, what is she known for
Athena(ancient Greek - Athenaia; Mycenaean atanapotinija - “Atana the Lady”), in Greek mythology, the goddess of wisdom and just war, military wisdom and strategy, knowledge, arts and crafts. Athena is a warrior maiden, patroness of cities, sciences, skill, intelligence, dexterity and ingenuity. One of the 12 great Olympian gods.
Family and environment
Myths
In the sources there are references to the birth of a child associated with Athena and Hephaestus. The first part of this story is contained only in later sources. According to them, Zeus vowed to fulfill any desire of Hephaestus and the Blacksmith God asked Athena as his wife. The King of the Gods could not break the oath, but advised his maiden daughter to defend herself. According to the main legend, the daughter of Zeus came to Hephaestus for weapons, and he tried to take possession of her, and she began to run away. The Blacksmith God chased after her and overtook her, but while defending herself with a weapon in her hands, Pallas wounded her pursuer with a spear. Hephaestus spilled the seed on Athena's leg, after which the goddess wiped it with wool and buried it in the ground, after which Gaia the earth gave birth to a baby. Therefore, Erichthonius was called both the son of Gaia and the son of Athena, and the name was interpreted from “erion” - wool (or “eris” - discord) and “chthon” - earth.
Athena secretly raised Erichthonius, wanting to make him immortal, she gave him in a casket for safekeeping to the daughters of Cecrops Aglavra, Gersa and Pandrosa, forbidding him to open. The sisters opened the casket and saw a child entwined with snakes, which the Warrior assigned to the baby as guard. They were either killed by snakes, or Pallas drove them mad and they threw themselves from the top of the acropolis into the abyss. After the death of his sisters, Erichthonius was raised in the temple of Athena. When he grew up, he became king, erected a xoan (statue or idol made of wood) of Athena on the acropolis, and established the Panathenaea, holding a procession in honor of Athena on the acropolis for the first time. Erichthonius was buried in the sacred site of the temple of Athena Polias.
Also, according to one version, together with Hephaestus, by the will of Zeus, she created the first woman - Pandora, who opened the ill-fated vessel called “Pandora’s Box”.
A powerful, terrible, owl-eyed goddess of the archaic, the owner of an aegis, during the period of heroic mythology she directs her strength to fight titans and giants. Although, according to the early mythological scheme, the Titanomachy occurred even before the birth of Athena, later authors, starting with Euripides, often confused giants and titans. Her participation in gigantomachy is a popular plot. Hyginus cites the story that after the death of Epaphus, Zeus, together with Athena, Apollo and Artemis, threw the titans into Tartarus, prompted by Hera. Together with Hercules, Athena kills one of the giants; she drove a chariot with a pair of horses towards the giant Enceladus, and when he fled, she brought down the island of Sicily on him. Pallanta peels off his skin and covers his body with it during battle.
The goddess of war demands sacred respect. There is a well-known myth about how she deprived young Tiresias (the son of her favorite nymph Chariklo) of sight. One day Athena and Chariklo decided to swim in a spring on Helikon, Tiresias saw the goddess and she blinded him (according to another version, he became blind from the sight of Athena). Having deprived the young man of his sight, she at the same time endowed him with a prophetic gift and gave him the ability to understand the language of birds, as well as the ability to maintain reason in Hades. Ovid, in Book VI of Metamorphoses, outlined the myth of how Athena severely punished the weaver Arachne when she questioned the piety of the gods by weaving love scenes with the participation of the gods on a bedspread.
Classical Athena is endowed with ideological and organizing functions: she patronizes heroes, protects public order, etc. In myths ancient Greece Stories about Athena helping heroes are common. She helps Perseus by guiding his hand in decapitating Medusa. One of Athena's epithets is "gorgon killer." Perseus sacrificed a heifer to the goddess and gave Athena the head of the Gorgon, which she placed on her shield. Athena later placed Perseus, Andromeda, Cassiopeia and Kepheus among the constellations. She inspired and gave strength to Cadmus, and also gave him a stone to fight the Theban dragon. On the advice of the wise Goddess, Cadmus sowed the dragon's teeth and threw a block at them, which caused a fight between them. Athena made Cadmus reign in Thebes, and for his wedding with Harmony she gave him a necklace, peplos and flutes.
It is believed that Asclepius received the blood of the Gorgon from Athena, with which he raised the dead. According to Euripides, at birth she gave Erichthonius two drops of the Gorgon’s blood, which he gave to Erechtheus in a golden ring, and the latter to Creuse (one drop is healing, the other is poisonous). Athena appeared in a dream to Pericles and indicated a herb to heal his slave who had fallen from the roof of the Acropolis Propylaea under construction, the herb was nicknamed parthenium, and Pericles erected a statue of Athena Hygieia. The base of a statue made by the sculptor Pyrrhus was found on the acropolis.
Pindar mentions that Bellerophon saw Athena in a dream while sleeping on her altar, and erected an altar to Athena the Rider when she handed over Pegasus to him. She also helps Nestor against Ereuthalion and in the battle with the Eleans. The goddess Menelaus protects from the arrow of Pandarus (according to Plutarch).
Repeatedly the wise Goddess helped Hercules at the request of Zeus. Athena threw a stone at the mad hero, which saved Amphitryon; this stone is called Sophronister, that is, “bringing to reason.” She gave him a cloak (according to another version, armor) before the war with Orchomen. There is a version that it was Athena who told the hero how to kill the Lernaean Hydra and gave him rattles made by Hephaestus to scare away the Stymphalian birds. With the help of Pallas, Hercules led the dog Cerberus out of Hades, and later she took the apples of the Hesperides from him and returned them to their place. Athena gave the hero the cubit of the Gorgon, which the hero gave to Sterope, daughter of Kepheus, for protection. The dying Hercules appeals to Athena with requests for an easy death (according to Seneca) and she leads him to heaven.
When Tydeus is ambushed by the Thebans, Athena warns him against returning to Thebes. During the campaign of the Seven against Thebes, the Warrior Goddess is present next to Tydeus in battle and deflects some of the arrows from him and covers him with a shield. When Tydeus was mortally wounded, she begged from her father a potion of immortality for the wounded man, but when she saw that Tydeus was devouring the brain of his enemy, she hated him and did not give him the medicine.
Athena's help to Tydeus' son Diomedes is described in detail in Homer's Iliad. The goddess gives him strength, inspires him to fight, including against Aphrodite, directs the spear of Diomedes against Pandarus, inspires Diomedes to fight with Ares, takes the peak of Ares away from the hero and directs the spear of Diomedes into the stomach of Ares, protects Diomedes during the storm. Horace says that Diomedes was elevated to gods by Athena.
The same Iliad mentions that Athena helped Achilles destroy Lyrnessos, she also tames the anger of Achilles at the request of Hera, lights a flame around Achilles’ head, frightening the Trojans. When Achilles mourns Patroclus, refusing food, she gives him nectar and ambrosia at the request of Zeus. During the fight with Hector, he protects Achilles, taking Hector’s spear away from him. It was she, in the form of Deiphobus, who advised Hector to meet Achilles, before which she appeared to Achilles and promised to help him in this battle. Achilles says to Hector: “under my spear Tritogen (i.e. Athena) will soon tame you.” After the death of Achilles, the Goddess mourns and comes to mourn him and rub ambrosia on his body.
In Homer's poems (especially the Odyssey), not a single important event takes place without the intervention of Athena. She is Odysseus's constant adviser, helps him calm the people, protects the hero from the lance of the Trojan Socus, helps him in running competitions, and supported him on the night of the capture of Troy. However, Athena never helped Odysseus during his wanderings (in the songs of the Odyssey dedicated to this period, she is not mentioned even once); assistance resumes after the crash of Odysseus’s raft. She calms the winds, helps him get ashore, and then sends him sleep. Athena often takes on the guise of mortals to advise or help Odysseus and at the same time transforms Odysseus: she elevates him in stature, gives him strength in competition, if necessary, turns Odysseus into an old beggar, and then restores his beauty again, and hides the hero on the island of Pheakov cloud, in Ithaca hides him and his companions in darkness and helps him leave the city.
She is the main defender of the Achaean Greeks and the constant enemy of the Trojans, although her cult also existed in Troy. Athena is the protector of Greek cities (Athens, Argos, Megara, Sparta, etc.), bearing the name “city defender”.
The warrior goddess promotes the capture of Troy from the very beginning of the Trojan War. She participates in the Judgment of Paris and loses the argument to Aphrodite. Trojan horse Epeus made it according to Athena’s plan, she appeared to him in a dream, in three days the horse was completed and Epeus asks Athena to bless his work and calls the Trojan Horse an offering to the Goddess. The inhabitants of Metapontum showed in the temple of Athena the iron tools of Epeus, with which he built a horse. She took the form of a messenger and advised Odysseus to hide the Achaean heroes in his horse. Next, the Goddess brought the food of the gods to the heroes, who were about to get on the horse, so that they would not feel hungry. When the Trojans think about destroying the horse, Athena gives bad signs (an earthquake) and the Trojans do not believe Laocoon, who insisted on this. She rejoices when the Trojans drag wooden horse into the city and sends snakes against the sons of Laocoon. Trifiodorus describes how Helen of Sparta came to the temple of Athena and walked around her horse three times, calling the heroes by name, but the Goddess of War, visible only to Helen, appeared and forced her to leave. And on the night of the fall of Troy, Pallas sat on the acropolis, shining with her aegis, and when the beating began, she screamed and raised her aegis.
Athena is always considered in the context of artistic craft, art, craftsmanship. She helps potters, weavers, needlewomen, and working people in general; she helped Prometheus steal fire from Hephaestus’s forge; Daedalus learned his art from her. She teaches girls crafts (the daughters of Pandareus, Eurynoma and others). Her touch alone is enough to make a person beautiful - this is how Penelope acquired the amazing beauty of meeting her future husband. She personally polished Peleus' spear.
Her own products are genuine works of art, such as the cloak woven for the hero Jason. She made her own clothes and even Hera's clothes. She taught people the art of weaving. However, Plato points out that Athena's mentor in the art of weaving was Eros. The spinning wheel is another gift of the Goddess to people; weavers are called those serving “the cause of Athena.”
Athena is credited with inventing the flute and teaching Apollo how to play it. Pindar says that one of the gorgons, Medusa, moaned terribly as she died, and the other Euryale moaned while looking at her sister, and Athena invented a flute to repeat these sounds. According to another story, the Patroness of the Arts made a flute from deer bone and came to the gods' meal, but Hera and Aphrodite ridiculed her. Athena, looking at her reflection in the water, saw how ugly her cheeks were swelling, and threw the flute in the Ideal Forest. The abandoned flute was picked up by the satyr Marsyas. Later, Marsyas challenged Apollo to a competition in playing the flute, was defeated and was severely punished for his pride (Apollo flayed the satyr). Aristotle believes that the Goddess abandoned the flute for another reason: playing the flute is not associated with mental development.
One of the most important mythological stories about Athena is the trial of Attica. Athena argued with the god of the seas, Poseidon, for the possession of Attica. At the council of the gods, it was decided that Attica would go to the one whose gift on this earth would be more valuable. Poseidon struck with his trident and gushed out a spring from the rock. But the water in it turned out to be salty and undrinkable. Athena stuck her spear into the ground, and an olive tree grew from it. All the gods recognized that this gift was more valuable. Poseidon was angry and wanted to flood the earth with the sea, but Zeus forbade him. Since then, the olive has been considered a sacred tree in Greece. Varro cites a later version of the myth, where Cecrops put the question of the name of the city to a vote: men voted for Poseidon, and women for Athena, and one woman turned out to be more. Then Poseidon devastated the earth with waves, and the Athenians subjected women to triple punishment: they were deprived of the right to vote, none of the children had to take the mother’s name, and no one had to call women Athenians. The trial took place on Boedromion 2 (end of September) and the Athenians removed this day from the calendar. The dispute between Poseidon and Athena was depicted on the back of the Parthenon, and in Ovid's account, Athena depicts this scene on fabric during her competition with Arachne.
Sophocles calls the Goddess Athena the Virgin, mistress of horses, her epithet is “Parthenos”. Argive girls sacrificed hair to her before marriage. According to Nonnus, Avra, suffering in childbirth, wants Athena to give birth herself. And the wise Goddess feeds the son of Avra and Dionysus Iacchus with her milk, as Erichthonius did earlier. The women of Elis prayed to Athena to get pregnant. And she helped Penelope delay her new wedding day. When Penelope asks Athena for Odysseus, the Goddess sends the ghost of Ifthima to her to reassure her. She inspires Penelope with the idea of arranging a competition for the suitors.
Already in Homer, Athena appears as the patroness of shipbuilding and navigation. According to her instructions, the architect Argos from Thespiae created the ship Argo. On the bow, Pallas strengthened a piece of the trunk of a Dodon oak tree, which could prophesy. After completing the voyage, the ship was placed in the sky by Athena. On the advice of Athena, Danaus, the son of the Egyptian king Bel and Ankhinoe, the father of 50 daughters, built a 50-oar ship with two bows, on which he fled with his daughters. According to myth, Danaus received a prediction that he would die at the hands of his son-in-law, Danaus’ daughters took up arms and killed their husbands in one night, fleeing revenge Danai built his own ship. Perseus, whom Pallas also willingly helped, was a descendant of Danaus. The image of the Goddess was on Athenian ships; according to myths, she often sends a fair wind to ships (Telemachus, Theseus, the Achaeans returning from Lemnos).
Name, epithets and character
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| Athena. 470-465 BC Red-figured amphora. Attica. St. Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum |
The etymology of the name "Athena", due to the pre-Greek origin of her image, is unclear. In modern Russian, a form close to the Byzantine pronunciation of the name, through “and”, has been established, but in the classical era the name of the goddess was pronounced approximately like “Athena”. Homer sometimes calls her Athenea, that is, "Athenian."
Athena is the goddess of wisdom, Democritus considered her “reasonableness.” Her wisdom is different from the wisdom of Hephaestus and Prometheus; she is characterized by wisdom in state affairs. For late antiquity, Athena was the principle of the indivisibility of the cosmic mind and a symbol of comprehensive world wisdom, thereby her qualities are sharply contrasted with the riot and ecstasy of Dionysus. As the legislator and patroness of Athenian statehood, she was revered as Phratria (“brotherly”), Bulaya (“councillor”), Soteira (“savior”), Pronoia (“provident”).
There is numerous information about the cosmic features of the image of Athena. She keeps the lightning bolts of Zeus. Her image or fetish, so-called. palladium, fell from the sky (perhaps hence her epithet Pallas). It is also possible that the epithet Pallas comes from the Greek “to shake (with weapons)”, that is, it means a victorious warrior, or it means “maiden”. Athena was identified with the daughters of Kekrops - Pandrosa ("all-wet") and Aglavra ("light-air"), or Agravla ("field-furrowed").
Homer calls Athena "Glaukopis" (owl-eyed), the Orphic hymn (XXXII 11) - "variegated snake." In Boeotia, she, the inventor of the flute, was revered under the name Bombileia, that is, “bee-like,” “buzzing.” The epithet Parthenos is the name of the Virgin Athena, hence the name of the Parthenon temple. Athena is called Promachos, that is, “advanced fighter,” as the patroness of war and fair battle.
The main epithets of Athena, endowed with civil functions, are Polyada ("urban", "patron of cities and states") and Poliukhos ("city ruler"). And she has the epithet Ergan (“worker”) as the patroness of artisans.
Cult and symbolism
Athena's ancient zoomorphic past is indicated by her attributes - a snake and an owl (symbols of wisdom). The chthonic wisdom of the Goddess has its origin in the image of the goddess with snakes of the Cretan-Mycenaean period. Athena's predecessor, according to Martin Nilsson's theory, was the "shield goddess" depicted on the Larnaca of Milato, as well as on other monuments, whose symbol was a figure-eight shield. According to I.M. Dyakonov, the single image of the warrior maiden was divided among the Greeks into three: the warrior and needlewoman Athena, the huntress Artemis and the goddess of sexual passion Aphrodite. The myth of the birth of Athena from Metis and Zeus belongs to the late period of Greek mythology. As Losev points out, she becomes, as it were, a direct continuation of the King of the Gods, the executor of his plans and will. In the temple dedicated to her, according to Herodotus, lived huge snake- guardian of the acropolis, dedicated to the goddess. An owl and a snake guarded the palace of the Minotaur on Crete, and an image of a goddess with a shield of Mycenaean times (possibly a prototype of Olympian Athena).
Pallas is one of the most important figures not only in Olympic mythology, she is equal in importance to Zeus and sometimes even surpasses him, rooted in the most ancient period of the development of Greek mythology - matriarchy. She is equal in strength and wisdom to her father. Along with the new functions of the goddess of military power, Athena retained her matriarchal independence, manifested in her understanding as a maiden and protector of chastity.
She is easily distinguishable from other ancient Greek goddesses due to her unusual appearance. Unlike other female deities, she uses male attributes - she is dressed in armor, holds a spear in her hands, and is accompanied by sacred animals. Among the indispensable attributes of Athena is the aegis - a shield made of goatskin with the head of the serpent-haired Medusa, which has enormous magical power and frightens gods and people; helmet with a high crest. Athena appeared accompanied by the winged goddess Nike.
Athena's olive trees were considered the "trees of fate", and she herself was thought of as fate and the Great Mother Goddess, who is known in archaic mythology as the parent and destroyer of all living things. Among the Megarians, Athena is revered under the epithet Ethia (“diving duck”), according to Hesychius, since she turned into a diving duck, hid Cecrops under her wings and brought him to Megara.
She is credited with the invention of the chariot, ship, flute and trumpet, ceramic pot, rake, plow, yoke for oxen and bridle for horses, as well as the invention of war in principle. She taught weaving, spinning and cooking and established laws.
Although her cult was widespread throughout mainland and island Greece (Arcadia, Argolis, Corinth, Sikyon, Thessaly, Boeotia, Crete, Rhodes), the Goddess of War was especially revered in Attica, the Greek region where the city named after her was located. A huge statue of Athena Promachos with a spear shining in the sun adorned the Acropolis in Athens, where the Erechtheion and Parthenon temples were dedicated to the goddess.
The first priestess of Athena was called Kalyfiessa, the priestesses were also Pandrosa, Theano, Phoebe (one of the daughters of Leucippus, kidnapped by the Dioscuri), Hersa, Aglavra, Iodama, the last three suffered an unenviable fate. Groves and many temples were dedicated to Athena in Athens, Argos, Delos, Rhodes and other cities.
Agricultural holidays were dedicated to her: procharisteria (in connection with the germination of bread), plintheria (the beginning of the harvest), arrephoria (giving dew for crops), callinteria (ripening of fruits), scirophoria (aversion to drought). During these celebrations, the statue of Athena was washed, and the young men took an oath of civil service to the goddess. The celebration of the great Panathenaia - state wisdom - was universal. Erichthonius was considered the founder of Panathenaia, and Theseus was the transformer. The annual Panathenaea was organized by Solon, the great ones were established by Pisistratus. Pericles introduced competitions in singing, playing the cithara and flute. At the Panathenaea, sacrifices were made to Athena and the goddess’s peplos was handed over, which depicted her exploits in the gigantomachy. In Athens, the third decade of each month was dedicated to the Goddess. According to myths, when all the gods fled to Egypt, she remained in her homeland.
In Rome, Athena was identified with Minerva. Two large passages from Ovid's Fast are devoted to the Roman festivals of Minerva. Throughout antiquity, it remains evidence of the organizing and directing power of reason, which organizes the cosmic and social life, glorifying the strict foundations of a state based on democratic legislation.
Influence on culture and art
The XI and XXVIII hymns of Homer, the V hymn of Callimachus, the XXXII Orphic hymn, the VII hymn of Proclus and the prose “Hymn to Athena” by Aelius Aristides are dedicated to Athena. She is the protagonist of the tragedies of Sophocles “Eantes”, Euripides “Ion”, “The Supplicators”, “The Trojan Women”, “Iphigenia in Tarvid”, Pseudo-Euripides “Res”.
She acts in the prologue of Sophocles' tragedy "Ajax", talking with Odysseus and Ajax. A monument to the glorification of the wise ruler of the Athenian state, the founder of the Areopagus, is the tragedy of Aeschylus “Eumenides”.
There are many known statues of the Goddess of War, the most famous of which are Phidias “Athena Promachos” from the 5th century. BC e., "Athena Parthenos" 438 BC, "Athena Lemnia" around 450 BC. have not survived to this day. The most accurate copy of Athena Parthenos is considered to be the statue of Athena Varvakion in the National Museum in Athens, and Athena Promachos is probably Athena Medici in the Louvre. The Vatican Museum houses "Athena Giustiniani" (a copy of the original from the 4th century BC)
The painter Famuel, who painted the Golden Palace of Nero, created a picture in which the Goddess looked at the viewer from any point. Cleanthes's painting "The Birth of Athena" was in the sanctuary of Artemis Alphionia at Olympia.
In Western European painting, the Goddess of Wisdom was less popular than, for example, Aphrodite (Venus). She was often depicted in the "Judgement of Paris" plot along with Aphrodite and Hera. Botticelli's painting "Pallas and the Centaur" of 1482 is well known. It was depicted mainly in works of an allegorical nature, multi-figure compositions ("Minerva conquers ignorance" by B. Spranger, "Victory of virtue over sin" by A. Mantegna). She was depicted together with Ares (Mars) ("Minerva and Mars" by Tintoretto, Veronese), rarely in sculpture (Sansovino).
Supposedly, Diego Velazquez's famous enigmatic painting "The Spinner" illustrates the myth of Athena and Arachne.
In modern times
An asteroid is named after Athena - one of three asteroids discovered on July 22, 1917 by German astronomer Maximilian Wolf at the Heidelberg-Königstuhl Observatory, Germany.
Athena is the name given to the American light-class launch vehicle.
The city of Athens is the capital of the state in Southern Europe of Greece.
The goddess Athena (Ἀθηνᾶ) occupied a special place in Greek mythology; she was counted among the 12 main Olympian gods.
The Greeks respected and loved the goddess and believed that Athena was always with them, wanting to help. Athena was the goddess of wisdom, strategy, war, knowledge, and was the patroness of Athens, art, culture, philosophical thought and martial arts.
Birth of Athena
The appearance of Athena happened in an unusual way. The first wife of Zeus was Mytis (Μήτιδα), who was wiser than gods and people. After she became pregnant, the Moiras, the goddesses of fate, predicted to her that Mitida would give birth first to a daughter, and then to a son, who would overthrow Zeus from the throne. To avoid this, Zeus swallowed his pregnant wife. After which he called Hephaestus and ordered him to cut off his head. He carried out his will and hit his skull with an ax. Beautiful Athena jumped out from there, in full uniform and with sparkling weapons.
Athena became the favorite child of Zeus. She fought next to him in the fight against the giants, and after he drove away the giant Enceladus, Athena chased after him in her chariot, the stone she threw killed the giant and became the island of Sicily.
The cult of Athena began with the time of Cecrops (Κέκροπα) in ancient Athens and from there spread throughout Greece. Endless celebrations and holidays in all cities were dedicated to the goddess Athena, but the brightest were in Athens. Pericles dedicated the entire Citadel to Athena.
The Goddess Athena had many names; the ancient Greeks at various times added divine and sacred names to their beloved Goddess:
Pallas (Παλλάδα) was given to Athena at birth when she was born from the head of Zeus with a new sparkling spear. According to another version, Athena killed the giant Pallant (Πάλλαντα).
Promachos (Πρόμαχος) warrior, refers to the combative nature of the goddess and her status as brave in battle, her "strategic" plans are to support her heroes.
Virgin (Παρθένα) untouched, Athena was a virgin, the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis is dedicated to Athena the Virgin.
Blue-eyed (Γλαυκώπις) light-eyed. The sacred bird of the goddess Athena, the owl (γλαυξ), comes from the same root, perhaps due to its large and bright eyes.
Athena and the owl
Since ancient times, the owl has been identical to wisdom. The ancient Greeks considered it a symbol of the goddess Athena.
The owl flies, does not walk, does not crawl. The gods of Olympus also flew; they took the form of birds when they appeared among people. Owls are special birds, predators, they see very well at night. The owl has a large round head, a disk-shaped face, and large eyes that provide stereoscopic vision. This ruthless predator grabs prey with its sharp claws and kills it in motion, striking it in the head with its hard and strong beak.
Such features of the owl seemed cult to the ancient Greeks.
The owl has the ability to see the “far side of things” where others are unable to see due to darkness, thus it symbolizes “wisdom”. Maybe for this reason, the owl became the companion of the wisest greek goddess, Athens.
Athena Athena is the goddess of wisdom and just war in the myths of the ancient Greeks. Born from Zeus and Metis (wisdom). Zeus swallowed his pregnant wife, then Hephaestus (or Prometheus) split his head with an ax, and Athena appeared from there in full battle armor and with a war cry. Athena is equal to Zeus in strength and wisdom. Her attributes are a snake and an owl, as well as an aegis - a goat skin shield with the head of a snake-haired Medusa, which has magical powers and frightens gods and people. The sacred tree of Athena is the olive. Athena of the period of heroic mythology fights titans and giants. She killed the gorgon Medusa. No mortal can see her (she deprived young Tiresias of his sight when he accidentally saw her ablution). She patronizes heroes and protects public order. Her favorite is Odysseus, she is the main defender of the Achaean Greeks and the constant enemy of the Trojans during the Trojan War. She helped potters, weavers, needlewomen, the builder of the Argo ship, and all artisans. Athena helped Prometheus steal fire from Hephaestus's forge. Her own products are genuine works of art. She is also a legislator and patron of Athenian statehood. Although the cult of Athena was widespread throughout mainland and island Greece, Athena was especially revered in Attica, in Athens (the Greeks associated the name of the city of Athens with the name of the goddess). A huge statue of Athena Promachos (front line fighter) with a spear shining in the sun adorned the Acropolis in Athens, where the Erechtheion and Parthenon temples were dedicated to the goddess. Many agricultural holidays were dedicated to Athena. The festival of the Great Panathenaia was universal in nature (during the festival, sacrifices were made to Athena and the transfer of peplos took place - the goddess's veil, on which her exploits in gigantomachy - the fight against giants - were depicted). In Rome, Athena was identified with Minerva.
Historical Dictionary. 2000 .
Synonyms:See what "Athena" is in other dictionaries:
- (Άθηνά), in Greek mythology, the goddess of wisdom and just war. The pre-Greek origin of the image of A. does not allow us to reveal the etymology of the name of the goddess, based only on data Greek language. The myth of the birth of A. from Zeus and Metis (“wisdom”, ... ... Encyclopedia of Mythology
Athena- Lemnia. Reconstruction of the statue of Phidias on the Acropolis of Athens. OK. 450 BC Sculpture collection. Dresden. Athena Lemnia. Reconstruction of the statue of Phidias on the Acropolis of Athens. OK. 450 BC Sculpture collection. Dresden. Athena in the myths of the ancient Greeks... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary " World history»
- (Pallas, among the Romans Minerva) in Greek mythology, the goddess of wisdom and military affairs; daughter of Zeus, born from his head; was considered the patroness of Athens. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Pavlenkov F., 1907. ATHENA (Greek... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
- (Pallas Athena) in Greek mythology, the goddess of war and victory, as well as wisdom, knowledge, arts and crafts. Daughter of Zeus, born in full armor (helmet and shell) from his head. Patroness of Athens. The Roman Minerva corresponds to her. Among … Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Athena- Lemnia. Reconstruction of the statue of Phidias on the Acropolis of Athens. OK. 450 BC Sculpture collection. Dresden. ATHENA (Pallas Athena), in Greek mythology, the goddess of war and victory, wisdom, knowledge, arts and crafts, the patroness of Athens. Daughter of Zeus,... ... Illustrated encyclopedic dictionary
- (Pallas Athena), in Greek mythology, the goddess of war and victory, wisdom, knowledge, arts and crafts, the patroness of Athens. Daughter of Zeus, born in full armor (helmet and shell) from his head. Attributes of Athena: snake, owl and aegis shield with... ... Modern encyclopedia
Pallas Athena, in ancient Greek mythology one of the main deities, a virgin goddess; revered as the goddess of war and victory, as well as wisdom, knowledge, arts and crafts. According to myth, A. in a helmet and shell came out of the head of Zeus. A.… … Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Minerva, Polyada, Pallas, Nike Dictionary of Russian synonyms. athena noun, number of synonyms: 10 pallas athena (3) ... Dictionary of synonyms
- (also Pallas) one of the most ancient deities of Greece, daughter of Zeus, warrior maiden, Greek parallel to the Valkyries (see) of German mythology. The origin of the image is unclear: perhaps it is based on a celestial projection of a primitive family... ... Literary encyclopedia
Greek goddess... Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron
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- Athena is the daughter of the oligarch, Musina Marusya. To get out of financial difficulties, Musya Musina gets a job as a tutor for Athena, the spoiled daughter of a capital oligarch. Dad has a new young wife and an oil business, but no...
ATHENA - in Greek mythology, the goddess of wisdom and justice
heavy war.
The myth of the birth of Athena from Zeus and Metis (“wisdom”,
Greek metis - “thought”, “reflection”) - period of registration
classical Olympic mythology.
The birth of Athena is depicted in this myth from the perspective of heroic
some mythology of the period of patriarchy, in which especially
the masculine organizing principle was present. Athena appears as if impossible
a rare continuation of Zeus, the executor of his plans
and will. She is the thought of Zeus, realized in action. Post-
Metis's motherhood gradually becomes more and more abstract and
same symbolic character, so that Athena is considered the offspring
one Zeus and assumes the functions of the deity of wisdom,
just as Zeus received them from Metis.
Zeus, knowing from Gaia and Uranus that his son is from Metis
deprive him of power, swallowed his pregnant wife and then
with the help of Hephaestus (or Prometheus), who split his head
with an ax, he himself gave birth to Athena, who emerged from his
heads in full military armor. Since this event is about
allegedly originated near the lake (or river) Triton in Libya, Athena received
la nickname Tritonidae or Tritogenea.
Athena is one of the most important figures not only in the Olympic
mythology, in its importance it is equal to Zeus and sometimes even
Surpasses it, rooted in the most ancient period of development of the Greek
ical mythology - matriarchy. She is equal in strength and wisdom
Zeus. She is given honors after Zeus and her place is near
closest to Zeus. Along with the new functions of the goddess of military power,
cabbage soup, Athena retained her matriarchal independence, manifesting
which was understood as a virgin and protector of chastity.
The origins of Athena's wisdom go back to the image of the goddess with snakes
Cretan-Mycenaean period. Image of the goddess with a Mykens shield
from what time - the prototype of the Olympic Athena. Among the indispensable
attributes of Athena - aegis - shield made of goatskin with a snake's head -
the hair of Medusa, which has enormous magical power,
frightens gods and people.
There is numerous information about the cosmic features of the image of Aphi-
us. Her birth is accompanied by golden showers, she keeps
lightning of Zeus. Her image, the so-called palladium, fell from the sky
(hence Pallas Athena).
According to Herodotus, Athena is the daughter of Poseidon and the nymph Tritonis.
Athena was identified with the daughters of Cecrops - Pandrosa ("all-
lazhnaya") and Aglavra ("light-air"), or Agravla ("field-
furrow").
The sacred tree of Athena was the olive. The olive trees of Athens are counted
were "trees of fate", and Athena herself was thought of as fate
and the Great Mother Goddess.
Powerful goddess of the archaic, owner of the aegis, Athena in the pe-
period of heroic mythology directs its power to fight against
titans and giants. Together with Hercules, Athena kills one
of the giants, on another she piles the island of Sicily, with
the third one tears off the skin and covers his body with it during sex.
marriage.
She is the killer of the gorgon Medusa and goes by the name "Gorgon Slayer".
Athena demands sacred respect for herself, not a single mortal
Noy can't see her. There is a well-known myth about how she deprived
the view of young Tiresias (the son of his favorite Chariklo), when he
I accidentally saw her ablution.
Classical Athena is endowed with ideological and organizing functions
Yami: she patronizes heroes, protects public
row, etc. Zeus sent Athena to help Hercules, and he brought
from Erebus the dog of the god Hades. Athena's favorite was Odysseus, smart and
brave hero. In Homer's poems (especially the Odyssey), not a single
An important event does not happen without the intervention of Athena. She -
the main defender of the Achaean Greeks and constant enemy of the Trojans,
although her cult also existed in Troy. Athena - protector of the Greeks
many cities (Athens, Argos, Megara, Sparta, etc.), bearing the name
"city defenders".
A huge statue of Athena Promachos ("front line fighter") with
a spear shining in the sun decorated the acropolis in Athens, where bo-
The Erechtheion and Parthenon temples were dedicated to the gyne.
Monument to the glorification of the wise ruler of Athens
state, the founders of the Areopagus, is the tragedy of Aeschi-
la "Eumenides".
Athena is always considered in the context of artistic
crafts, art, craftsmanship. She helps potters, weavers
boors, needlewomen, working people in general. Athena helped Pro-
I intend to steal fire from Hephaestus’s forge.
Athena is credited with inventing the flute and teaching it to play.
Apollo is on it. One touch is enough to
to make a person beautiful (She raised Odysseus to her camp,
endowed with curly hair, clothed with strength and attractiveness -
ness). She endowed Penelope on the eve of meeting her husband
amazing beauty.
Athena is the goddess of wisdom. She is characterized by wisdom in
government affairs. For late antiquity, Athena appeared
the principle of the indivisibility of the cosmic Mind and the symbol of the all-encompassing
more world wisdom. As legislator and patroness
Athenian statehood was revered by Athena - Phratry
("brotherly"), Bulaya ("advisory"), Soteira ("savior"),
Pronoia ("seer").
Although the cult of Athena was widespread throughout the mainland and
island Greece (Arcadia, Argolis, Corinth, Sikyon, Thessa-
lia, Boeotia, Crete, Rhodes), Athena was especially revered in Atti-
ke, in Athens (the name of the city of Athens was associated by the Greeks with the name
goddesses - patroness of the city). The land was dedicated to her
business holidays. During these festivities there was
washing the statue of Athena, the young men took the oath of citizenship
service to the goddess.
In Rome, Athena was identified with Minerva. Roman holiday
Two large passages from Ovi's "Fast" are dedicated to the deities of Minerva.
diya. Throughout antiquity, Athena remains a witness
the organizing and directing power of the mind, which stubbornly
completes cosmic and social life, glorifying strict
foundations of a state based on democratic legislation
body
The image of Athena is reflected in many significant pa-
pendulums of Greek plastic art. Giant statue of "Athena Parfait"
nose" by Phidias, staged in Athens in the Parthenon in 438 BC
AD, has not survived and is known to us from several reduced
copies. Numerous figurines of the goddess have been preserved. Separate
great scenes of the myths about Athena are reflected in relief plastic
temples, for example, a multi-figure group on the eastern pediment
The Parthenon depicts the birth of Athena from the head of Zeus, on
the falling pediment embodies the dispute between Athena and Poseidon for possession
land of Attica.
Scenes dedicated to
related to the birth of Athena, her participation in the Trojan War, the dispute with
Poseidon. There are images of Athena on Pompeian frescoes.
kah.
During the Renaissance, Athena is depicted according to
ancient artistic tradition - in armor and helmet. In a number
scenes Athena appears as the personification of wisdom and symbolizes
triumph of reason (“Minerva conquers ignorance” by B. Spranger,
"The Kingdom of Minerva" by A. Elsheimer), virtue and chastity
(“Pallas and the Centaur” by S. Botticelli, “The Victory of Virtue over
sin" by A. Mantegna), the world ("Minerva and Mars" by J. Tintoretto,
P. Veronese and others).
In musical and dramatic art, myths about Athena were
tinned the plot for the libretto of several works 17-18
centuries, including the operas “The Birth of Athena” by A. Draghi, “Miner-
va" by R. Kaiser, "Pallas and Mars" by M. Grimani, "Pallas of the triumph-
howling" by F.B. Conti; cantatas "The Dispute of Pallas and Venus" by L. Caldara
and "Pallas" by P.V. Guglielmi.
Athena is one of the 12 main gods of the Greek pantheon. The legendary daughter of Zeus, born from his head. Athena is the goddess of wisdom, military art, patroness of the city-state of which she is the eponym (Athens), as well as many sciences and crafts. The name of Athena is associated with many mythical events and literary subjects; her image is reflected in many ways in philosophy and art.
There are many interesting facts about the maiden dressed in armor.
Athena - sole daughter of Zeus
According to legend, Athena was born in full robes and with a battle cry straight from the dissected head of Zeus. The king of the gods found out that he future son from Metis he would kill his father, so he swallowed his pregnant wife and gave birth to a daughter on his own. 
Athena - maiden goddess
Along with Artemis and Hestia, Artemis is a chaste goddess who does not have a spouse or children. She is the patroness of chastity and unmarried girls, but women also pray to her for pregnancy.
Athena demands sacred respect for herself, so no mortal can see her. She deprived Tiresias of his vision when he saw her bathe.
Attributes of Athena
A mandatory attribute of a fair-haired and gray-eyed goddess is aegis. This is a goatskin shield with a snake-headed jellyfish that frightens people and gods. According to one version, it was Athena who killed the monster. The warrior maiden also holds a spear in her hands. 
Athena wears a helmet with a crest on her head. In her hand, the daughter of Zeus holds Nike, the goddess of victory.
The image of Athena has archaic roots
In Greek mythology, Athena is equal to Zeus and even sometimes surpasses him in wisdom and strength. It is known that together with Hero and 
Other gods Athena participated in the attempt to overthrow Kronidas. There was a temple of Zeus and Athena in Athens. The goddess was revered no less than the supreme deity. Athena's significance is rooted in the matriarchal period.
In Greek, the capital of Greece is not called "Athens", but "Athena"
Athena is the eponym of the capital of Greece. The city officially received this status in 1834 after liberation from Turkish rule. But according to legend, the name of the ancient Greek polis goes back to the confrontation between Poseidon and Athena for the right to patronize the city. Poseidon discovered a source of sea water for the inhabitants, and Athena planted olive tree. The last gift was considered more valuable, so the championship was given to the daughter of the Thunderer. According to another version, the female half of the population voted for Athena with an advantage of one vote, after which women were denied the right to vote.
Athena and the Judgment of Paris
According to a well-known legend, Athena was one of the 3 contenders for victory in the ancient “beauty contest”. But the shepherd Paris preferred Aphrodite to her and Hera, who promised him the most beautiful of women, Helen, as a reward. The prize, the apple of discord, went to the goddess of love, who helped the young man get Helen the Beautiful, because of whose abduction the Trojan War began.
How are Athena the Weaver and Arachnology related?
Athena was the patroness of crafts; in particular, she was an excellent weaver. But the mortal woman Arachne achieved no less art and began to boast about it. Then Athena challenged her to a competition, and although the fabric woven by Arachne turned out to be no worse than the goddess’s product, the latter turned the daring woman into a spider. The name of the science of arachnology comes from the name Arachne.
Stones are specially scattered around the Parthenon in Athens for tourists.
The Parthenon, the Temple of the Virgins, is an Athenian architectural monument that was dedicated to the patroness of the city and all of Attica. It contained an 11-meter statue of Athena made of wood, gold and ivory. To prevent tourists from destroying the landmark, special workers scatter stones around the temple every night, which travelers take with them as souvenirs.
- In Roman mythological tradition, Athena is called Minerva.
- Athena is the patroness of state wisdom and the principle of the indivisibility of cosmic intelligence.
- Sacred animals and plants of Athens: owl, snake, olive.
- Athena, unlike Ares, patronizes only just wars. She is an active participant in the Trojan War on the side of the Achaeans, the fight against the Titans and Gigantomachy.
- Famous epithets of Athena: Tritonida (Tritogenea) - born near the hydronym Triton in Libya; Pallas - victorious warrior; owl-eyed - an indication of the zoomorphic past of the image; Promachos - an advanced fighter; Peonia – healer; Phratria - fraternal; Soteira - savior; Pronoia - seer; Gorgophon - Gorgon-Killer and many others.
- Athens - the birthplace of democracy and Olympic Games as well as tragedy, comedy, philosophy, historiography, political science and mathematical principles.
