(c) "Argonauts"

The goddess Athena appears in ancient Greek legends as the goddess of crafts and just war. Many legends were created about her. She always appears majestic and sublime.

Appearance on Olympus

The myth about the birth of Athena tells that she is the daughter of Zeus and the Titanide Metis. The Thunderer was predicted that he would lose his throne when the son of Metis grew up. Without thinking twice, Zeus followed in the footsteps of his father and swallowed his pregnant girlfriend.

After some time, the Lord of Olympus began to suffer from terrible headaches. Other gods began to avoid him so as not to fall under the hot hand of the Thunderer. The pain did not go away. And then Zeus sent a messenger for Hephaestus, the blacksmith god. He appeared immediately, came running in what he was wearing, covered in soot, clutching a hammer in his hands.

Zeus turned to him with a request - to hit him on the back of the head with his heavy copper hammer. Hephaestus recoiled in horror when he heard the strange order.

Zeus was adamant:

“Hit it as if it were your own anvil,” he ordered sternly.

Hephaestus no longer dared to object to his father. He swung and hit with all his might. The skull of Zeus split open and a maiden stepped out of it in full military garb. Olympus shuddered from the powerful tread, the surrounding lands shook, the sea boiled, and the tops of the mountains were covered with snow-white snow. Surprised to say the least, Hephaestus dropped the hammer.

Zeus the Thunderer himself was no less amazed, but did not want to show that he himself was in the dark about something, and therefore, as if nothing had happened, he turned to the divine forge, introducing him to “sister Athena.”

Zeus said:

Since she was born with the help of your hammer, she will have mastery like you.

Hephaestus frowned; he was used to being the only artisan on the mountain of the gods. But Zeus reassured the blacksmith, saying that no one would claim his hammer, and Athena would get the spindle. Athena worked sparingly. But when the sounds of battle, the whistling of arrows and the clanging of swords reached her ears, she put on armor and rushed into battle.

Athena - goddess of wisdom

Athena was sometimes considered the wisest of the ancient Greek pantheon, since she emerged from the head of Zeus. The Thunderer himself valued his daughter and consulted with her if he doubted something.

Mortals loved the warlike goddess. They turned to her for advice, asked for help and called out for help. She gave people the knowledge of how to make threads from wool, and then weave them into durable fabric and decorate it with patterns. The young men learned from her how to clean the obtained skins and then make soft sandals from them. Others received axes as a gift from Athena and learned carpentry. Someone received a bridle to tame the horses.

The Greek goddess Athena willingly assisted artists, appreciating their ability to add color to life. She was praised for the fact that she accustomed people to city life.

The myth of human pride

Humanity quickly forgets all the good things; we cannot expect gratitude from them. People are constantly overcome by pride. A rumor spread across the earth that a craftswoman had appeared in Lydia to match Athena herself, who would not be inferior to her either in embroidery or weaving. These rumors also reached Athena.

Athena immediately left Olympus. The Greek goddess took the form of an old man, appeared to Arachne and advised her to pray for forgiveness for her impudent speeches and unbridled pride. The mortal craftswoman rudely pulled back the conversational old man.

You've completely lost your mind, old man! - Arachne answered. “Athena is just afraid to compete with me in skill!”

Unreasonable! - Athena revealed her divine appearance. “I’m here, and I’m ready to accept your daring challenge.”

The Greek goddess Athena wove a canvas of unprecedented beauty - she depicted all twelve Olympians in their true greatness, and in the corners weaved four episodes about mortals who challenged the gods. Athena was merciful to those who were able to admit their guilt, and Arachne still had a chance to stop. But the proud princess of Lydia did not even think of using it. Having honored Athena's work with a contemptuous look, she began to work on her creation. A canvas appeared on which there were scenes of divine love affairs.

The figures on this canvas turned out to be alive. Athena appreciated the skill of her rival, but the plot caused her indignation. Athena could not stand the disrespect and destroyed the work, and hit Arachne herself with a shuttle. The unfortunate princess could not bear the shame and insult, twisted a rope and hanged herself with it. Athena pulled the mortal out of the loop and did not let her die. However, she turned the rebellious, daring girl into... Since then, the Arachne spider has been hanging in the corner and forever weaving its thin silver thread.

Why is Athena “Pallas”?

Even people not familiar with Greek mythology know the name of Pallas Athena. However, why “Pallada”, what is it? There are several speculations regarding the origin of this name. According to one version, Pallas is Athena’s “childhood” friend, daughter of Triton. One day, the friends had a serious quarrel, and the angry Pallas threw a spear at Athena, which was deflected by the magic shield-egis of the Thunderer, who noticed the quarrel in time. Offended, Athena in turn struck. It turned out to be fatal. The Greek goddess Athena later regretted what had happened. And she added the name to her own in memory of her former friend.

Another version says that the second name is also a memory, but about the winged goat-like giant Pallante. When the Olympians fought with the giants, the lustful Pallant “intended to commit violence against the goddess.” Athena threw her enemy to the ground, and then tore off his skin, while still alive, to make an aegis for herself, and placed his wings on her shoulders.

There is also a version that is somewhat similar to the first story. But according to this legend, the name “Pallada” is a sign of grief for the deceased comrade Pallant, who died from a fatal accident in a playful sword fight.

Unlucky in love

The brush of the artists of antiquity never depicted the chaste Greek goddess naked. In modern art, taking into account the revaluation of values ​​and ignorance of traditions, one can also find a more erotic image of Athena. "Shame!" - a character in the famous film by Leonid Gaidai would say.

Legends claim that the goddess Athena never touched the arrow of the god of love Eros; he always avoided the brave warrior.

His mother, Aphrodite, could not understand this and was not happy that her cheerful son did not even try to give love to the chaste goddess. For which Eros was reproached.

The God of love never tired of making excuses; he complained that he was afraid of Athena. Afraid of her watchful eyes, her courageous and majestic appearance. More than once he tried to approach her in order to hit her with an arrow, but the Greek goddess Athena again directed her gloomy gaze at him, and Eros recoiled, also frightened by the terrible head on her armor, dropped his arrows and ran away from the warlike daughter of Zeus.

Popular recognition

Athena provided special protection to the city that received her name. Its inhabitants tirelessly praised the goddess for their well-being.

People dedicated the olive tree to Pallas Athena, as the intelligence and thoughtfulness of their actions, a rooster that wakes people up early in the morning for honest work. In addition, the owl, from whose penetrating eyes nothing can be hidden even in the darkness of the night, was also dedicated to the goddess of war. The image of an owl was minted on silver coins, and everyone accepted the “owl” in exchange for goods, as if paying homage to the goddess. Ancient Greek poets gave Athena herself the epithet “owl-eyed”.

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Greek goddess Athena

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Light up our new path, bright-eyed maiden Pallas! (c) "Argonauts" The goddess Athena appears in ancient Greek legends as the goddess of wisdom, crafts and just war. Many legends were created about her. She always appears majestic and sublime. Appearance on Olympus The myth about the birth of Athena tells that she is the daughter of Zeus and the Titanide Metis. The Thunderer was predicted that he would lose...

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 the bedspread.

Classical Athena is endowed with ideological and organizing functions: she patronizes heroes, protects public order, etc. In the myths of 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 that, 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. The Trojan horse was made by Epeus according to the plan of Athena, 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 a wooden horse into the city and sends snakes to kill 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 side 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

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-moist”) 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, there lived a huge snake - the 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, the ship, the flute and trumpet, the ceramic pot, the rake, the plow, the yoke for oxen and the 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 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 Suppliants”, “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 the Athena Parthenos is considered to be the statue of Athena Varvakion in the National Museum in Athens, and the Athena Promachos is probably the 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' painting "The Birth of Athena" was in the sanctuary of Artemis Alfionia 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.

Goddess Athena, in Greek legends is considered the goddess of wisdom, just war and crafts. The myth about the goddess Athena tells that she was the daughter of Zeus and the Titanide Metis. Zeus, having learned that his son from Metis would deprive him of his throne, swallowed his pregnant wife.

One day Zeus had a terrible headache. He became gloomy and sad. Seeing this, the gods left so as not to fall under the hot hand of the Thunderer. The pain did not go away. Zeus could not find a place and almost screamed in agony.

Then, the lord of Olympus sent Ganymede for Hephaestus. The divine blacksmith came running in what he was wearing, covered in soot and with a hammer in his hand.

“My son,” Zeus addressed him. “Something happened to my head.” Hit me on the back of the head with your copper hammer.

Hearing these words, Hephaestus stepped back in horror.

- But how? - he was indignant. - I can’t...

- Can! - Zeus ordered sternly. - Just like you hit an anvil.

And Hephaestus struck, as he was told. Zeus's skull split, and a maiden came out of it in full armor and stood next to her parent. From the girl’s powerful jump, Olympus shook, those lying around the earth began to tremble, the sea began to boil, and snow fell, covering the tops of the mountains. The gods could not come to their senses for a long time. Hephaestus dropped his hammer in horror.

Zeus was amazed, but, not wanting to show that he was not omniscient, he turned to Hephaestus as if nothing had happened:

- This is your sister Athena. Since the blow of your hammer helped her come into the world, she will, like you, have mastery.

Hephaestus was dissatisfied, because he was used to being the only artisan on Olympus.

“Your hammer will remain with you,” Zeus reassured him. - Athena will receive a spindle and will spin. This is how the prudent goddess Athena appeared. She, sparing no effort, spent time working to dress and put on shoes for the gods of Olympus. When the whistle of arrows or swords reached her ears, she threw the spindle, put on armor and, sword in hand, rushed into the battle.

Athena - goddess of wisdom

Athena was wiser than all the other gods, since she was born from the head of Zeus. Zeus knew about this and consulted with her before doing anything. People, wanting to organize their lives, turned to Athena, the goddess of wisdom, for help and advice. It was she who taught the maidens to draw threads from wool, and then weave them into dense fabric and decorate them with patterns. She showed the young men how to clean skins, how to soften leather in cauldrons and make soft shoes from it, gave others sharp axes in their hands, teaching them how to carpenter and make furniture, and gave others a bridle to tame wild horses that began to serve people. It was the goddess Athena who helped artists decorate life with colors. All people glorified the virgin goddess, calling her the Worker and Polyada (from the word “polis”, which meant a city-state among the Greeks), because she accustomed the people to city life.

But, as we know, the human race is not grateful - everything good is quickly forgotten. Everyone began to talk about the Lydian maiden Arachne, who assured that she could embroider no worse than Athena. The warrior goddess heard this and immediately descended to the ground. Appearing in the form of an old woman, Athena advised Arachne to pray to the great goddess for forgiveness for her impudent words and pride. But Arachne rudely interrupted Athena, who was trying to form her.

- Old age has robbed you of your understanding! - she screamed. “Athena is simply afraid to enter into a fair competition with me!”

- I'm here, foolish one! - Athena exclaimed, taking on her divine form. “And I’m ready to show my skills.”

Athena depicted the twelve Olympian gods in all their greatness in the center of her canvas, and in the corners she placed four episodes of the defeat of mortals who challenged the gods. The goddess is merciful to those who admit their guilt, and it was not too late for Arachne to stop. But the arrogant Lydian woman looked with contempt at the work of the goddess and, starting her canvas, weaved on it scenes with the love affairs of the gods. The figures of the gods were completely alive, it seemed that they were about to speak. Athena, overcome with rage, struck Arachne with her shuttle. The princess could not bear the insult and hanged herself. But Athena did not let her die, but turned her into a spider. Since then, Arachne and her offspring hang in the corners and weave a thin silver net.

The city of Attica, which received her name, enjoyed special protection from Athena. The Athenians believed that they owed their wealth to Athena. There is a legend that says that the cult of Athena in her city was strengthened by the son of the Earth, Erechtheus. The goddess of wisdom Athena raised him in her sacred grove, and when the boy grew up, she awarded him royal power. There is an interesting fact - the owl, a bird with bulging intelligent eyes, was dedicated to Athena. The image of an owl was minted on silver Athenian coins, and everyone who accepted the “owl” in exchange for goods seemed to be giving honor to Athena herself.

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It became known that the son born of Metis would rebel and throw him off Olympus. Without hesitation, Zeus swallowed his wife. And then a misfortune happened - he had an unbearable headache. Unable to bear the excruciating pain, he ordered his head to be split open. The blacksmith Hephaestus cut Zeus's skull with one blow, and the goddess Athena emerged from the broken head. But the son disappeared and was not born.

The goddess Athena had the courage of a lion and the caution of a cat, she was always armed with a spear and a shield, and wore a helmet on her head. Snakes slithered along the hem of her robe, personifying inevitability. However, despite all the weapons, the warrior maiden had a completely peaceful character. She never let go of the spear, but she never raised it at anyone either. Only once did the goddess lightly scratch Hephaestus with it, resisting his advances.

Stately and proud, Athena was the only goddess on Olympus dressed in battle armor. The visor of her helmet was always raised, the divine face appeared to the whole world. When the goddess Athena gave chastity, the main Greek city began to be named after her. From now on it was the city of Athens.

The goddess patronized the art of war and combat skills. Under her tutelage were also many peaceful crafts, weaving and pottery, blacksmithing and furriery. Athena gave people the ability to make such necessary things as harnesses for horses, carts, plows, rakes, clamps; she trained winegrowers, leather workers and coopers. Under her patronage, skilled shipbuilders appeared who knew how to build durable ships for long journeys.

Often the goddess Pallas Athena was depicted in military armor, holding a spear in one hand and a spindle with yarn wound on it in the other. At the same time, an owl, a symbol of wisdom, sat on her shoulder. Athena strove for the superiority of the mind over instincts and preferred a restrained strategy in solving all life issues. She taught people practicality, ambition and perseverance in achieving their goals.

The main position that the goddess Pallas Athena strictly followed was the consistent development of wild nature, its subordination to human needs. For this approach, the goddess was condemned by Artemis, who believed that all living things in nature should be outside the influence of humans. But Athena’s desire to comply with the law, all laws without exception, and a respectful attitude towards statehood on Olympus was welcomed; many gods supported the warrior goddess Athena in this.

One day, Pallas Athena quarreled with the sea god Poseidon. She won the fight with him. After this, the goddess Athena began to reign supreme over Attica. Then she helped Perseus destroy the terrible one. Then, with the help of Athena, Jason builds a ship and sails off for the Golden Fleece. Pallas Athena patronizes Odysseus, and he returns home safely after victory in Not a single event on Olympus is complete without the participation of Athena, the goddess of knowledge and crafts, arts and inventions, the patroness of military battles and the ordinary life of ordinary people. Some critical people argue that Athena is the goddess of something indefinite, takes everything under her protection, indiscriminately. We cannot agree with this. Pallas Athena is a versatile and multifaceted goddess.

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 patroness 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 .

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 the 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 of World History

- (Pallada, 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; was 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

Books

• 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...