Athena is one of the major Goddesses of the Greek era. She was so important that the stories associated with her changed with the times to keep up with cultural changes. Her myths portray her as a strong, courageous, intelligent and wise woman.
She came into the world quite dramatically by springing from her father Zeus’ head, fully grown with a battle cry on her lips. She was born fully clothed with flashing golden armor.
She had no mother, but some stories tell of Zeus lying with Metis, his first royal consort and an ocean deity. He became concerned about a foretelling that she would birth 2 children who would be equal to or greater in strength and courage to him, so after sleeping with Metis, he swallowed her thinking this would solve the problem.
However, Metis was already pregnant, so when Athena was ready to be born, he suffered terrible headaches. There are several different lesser gods that were said to have cleaved his head open so that Athena could be born. This might be regarded as similar to a cesarean birth.
Athena was Zeus’ favorite child and she became his right hand warrior. She was the only Olympian he entrusted with his thunderbolt and his aegis which were his symbols of power. She was wise, courageous, and a practical problem solver. Athena preferred to use her wisdom to solve conflicts rather than war. In wartime, she presided over battle strategy and during peacetime she presided over domestic arts. In historical pieces of art, she was often shown standing guard beside her king. Athena was a protector and patron goddess of many cities, the military forces and the crafts guilds. The bridle to tame a horse, the plow, the yoke for farming, and the chariot were all credited to her.
The city of Athens is named for Athena and the olive tree was her special gift to the city. One story has her competing with Poseidon for the honor of being the patron of the city. She won by creating the olive tree as a gift. Athens accepted her gift and then built the Parthenon in her honor.
When the Parthenon was being built, a highly praised worker fell and was gravely injured. He was not expected to survive. Pericles, who was taking care of the worker’s healing, was visited in a dream by Athena who instructed him in a treatment plan. The worker recovered and a statue was built in her honor, first of brass, then of gold.
She was the companion, patron, and helper of many heros such as Odysseus, Jason, and Hercules. She is also the patron goddess of heroic endeavor. She helped Perseus slay Medusa by guiding his hand as he decapitated her. She helped Jason and the Argonauts build their ship. She gave a golden bridle to Bellerophon with which he captured and tamed the winged horse Pegasus. She assisted Hercules in his twelve tasks. During the Trojan war, she assisted the Greeks, Achilles and later Odysseus on his long journey home.
“JudgementCastelo” by Ángel M. Felicísimo
She is one of the virgin goddesses, never marrying, nor taking a lover. She is considered to be self motivated and focused on what mattered to her rather than tending to the needs of others. She was one of the three goddesses who vied for Paris’ designation of the fairest goddess of all and a golden apple as the reward. When Paris couldn’t decide between Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera, the goddesses resorted to bribery. Athena offered Paris wisdom, fame, and victory in battle. Aphrodite won by offering him the hand of the most beautiful mortal woman in world. This eventually led to the Trojan war.
However there is some suggestion in more ancient texts that the golden apple was given to the man by the three goddesses rather than him deciding amongst them. The apple was said to have been given to the man selected as the mortal ‘king’ for the year. It is very similar to the ancient celtic tradition of selecting the ‘stag king’. As with many of Athena’s stories, this story may have changed as the culture progressed.
One interesting story is that she sided with the patriarchy in establishing that the man predominates over the woman since it’s his seed that creates the child. The woman is just the nourisher. Since she had been born from her father’s head and not from the womb of her mother, she sided with this patriarchal view. She cast the deciding vote as one of the judges in a courtroom case involving Orestes who had murdered his mother in an act of matricide. In siding with Orestes that the man is the predominate parent, she set a precedent for the patriarchy over the matriarchy of the times. In another telling of this story, Orestes’ matricide was a sacrilege to the matriarchal customs and practices of the times and created great change to all Goddess followers. However Athena’s following was so strong that she retained her status but her story was changed accordingly to be in favor of the decision.
This is just my version of Athena’s stories and the ones I felt resonance with sharing. You may find other stories and other aspects of her that resonate with you. Here are some resources I used that you may find useful:
Goddesses in Every Woman, Powerful Archetypes in Women’s Lives by Jean Shined Bolen, MD
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athena
http://greekgodsandgoddesses.net/goddesses/athena/
http://www.greekmythology.com/Olympians/Athena/athena.html
http://www.goddessgift.com/goddess-myths/goddess_symbols_athena.html
http://www.goddess-guide.com/athena.html
Enjoy your journey with Athena.
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