ARES (Mars)
ARES (Mars).
Ares, the son of Zeus and Hera, was the god of war, who gloried in
strife for its own sake; he loved the tumult and havoc of the
battlefield, and delighted in slaughter and extermination; in fact he
presents no benevolent aspect which could possibly react favourably upon
human life.
Epic poets, in particular, represent the god of battles as a wild
ungovernable warrior, who passes through the armies like a whirlwind,
hurling to the ground the brave and cowardly alike; destroying chariots
and helmets, and triumphing over the terrible desolation which he
produces.
In all the myths concerning Ares, his sister Athene ever appears in
opposition to him, endeavouring by every means in her power to defeat his
bloodthirsty designs. Thus she assists the divine hero Diomedes at the
siege of Troy, to overcome Ares in battle, and so well does he profit by
her timely aid, that he succeeds in wounding the sanguinary war-god, who
makes his exit from the field, roaring like ten thousand bulls.
Ares appears to have been an object of aversion to all the gods of
Olympus, Aphrodite alone excepted. As the son of Hera, he had inherited
from his mother the strongest feelings of independence and contradiction,
and as he took delight in upsetting that peaceful course of state-life
which it was pre-eminently the care of Zeus to establish, he was
naturally disliked and even hated by him.
When wounded by Diomedes, as above related, he complains to his
father, but receives no sympathy from the otherwise kindly and beneficent
ruler of Olympus, who thus angrily addresses him: “Do not trouble me with
thy complaints, thou who art of all the gods of Olympus most hateful to
me, for thou delightest in nought save war and strife. The very spirit of
thy mother lives in thee, and wert thou not my son, long ago wouldst thou
have lain deeper down in the bowels of the earth than the son of
Uranus.”
Ares, upon one occasion, incurred the anger of Poseidon by slaying his
son Halirrhothios, who had insulted Alcippe, the daughter of the war-god.
For this deed, Poseidon summoned Ares to appear before the tribunal of
the Olympic gods, which was held upon a hill in Athens. Ares was
acquitted, and this event is supposed to have given rise to the name
Areopagus (or Hill of Ares), which afterwards became so famous as a court
of justice. In the Gigantomachia, Ares was defeated by the Aloidæ, the
two giant-sons of Poseidon, who put him in chains, and kept him in prison
for thirteen months.
Ares is represented as a man of youthful appearance; his tall muscular
form combines great strength with wonderful agility. In his right hand he
bears a sword or a mighty lance, while on the left arm he carries his
round shield (see next page). His demoniacal surroundings are Terror and
Fear;[44] Enyo, the goddess
of the war-cry; Keidomos, the demon of the noise of battles; and Eris
(Contention), his twin-sister and companion, who always [114]precedes his
chariot when he rushes to the fight, the latter being evidently a simile
of the poets to express the fact that war follows contention.
Eris is represented as a woman of florid complexion, with dishevelled
hair, and her whole appearance angry and menacing. In one hand she
brandishes a poniard and a hissing adder, whilst in the other she carries
a burning torch. Her dress is torn and disorderly, and her hair
intertwined with venomous snakes. This divinity was never invoked by
mortals, except when they desired her assistance for the accomplishment
of evil purposes.
MARS.
The Roman divinity most closely resembling the Greek Ares, and
identified with him, was called Mars, Mamers, and Marspiter or Father
Mars.
The earliest Italian tribes, who were mostly engaged in the pursuit of
husbandry, regarded this deity more especially as the god of spring, who
vanquished the powers of winter, and encouraged the peaceful arts of
agriculture. But with the Romans, who were an essentially warlike nation,
Mars gradually loses his peaceful character, and, as god of war, attains,
after Jupiter, the highest position among the Olympic gods. The Romans
looked upon him as their special protector, and declared him to have been
the father of Romulus and Remus, the founders of their city. But although
he was especially [115]worshipped in Rome as god of war, he still
continued to preside over agriculture, and was also the protecting deity
who watched over the welfare of the state.
As the god who strode with warlike step to the battlefield, he was
called Gradivus (from gradus, a step), it being popularly believed
by the Romans that he himself marched before them to battle, and acted as
their invisible protector. As the presiding deity over agriculture, he
was styled Sylvanus, whilst in his character as guardian of the state, he
bore the name of Quirinus.[45]
The priests of Mars were twelve in number, and were called Salii, or
the dancers, from the fact that sacred dances, in full armour, formed an
important item in their peculiar ceremonial. This religious order, the
members of which were always chosen from the noblest families in Rome,
was first instituted by Numa Pompilius, who intrusted to their special
charge the Anciliæ, or sacred shields. It is said that one morning, when
Numa was imploring the protection of Jupiter for the newly-founded city
of Rome, the god of heaven, as though in answer to his prayer, sent down
an oblong brazen shield, and, as it fell at the feet of the king, a voice
was heard announcing that on its preservation depended the future safety
and prosperity of Rome. In order, therefore, to lessen the chances of
this sacred treasure being abstracted, Numa caused eleven more to be made
exactly like it, which were then given into the care of the Salii.
The assistance and protection of the god of war was always solemnly
invoked before the departure of a Roman army for the field of battle, and
any reverses of fortune were invariably ascribed to his anger, which was
accordingly propitiated by means of extraordinary sin-offerings and
prayers.
In Rome a field, called the Campus Martius, was dedicated to Mars. It
was a large, open space, in which armies were collected and reviewed,
general assemblies of [116]the people held, and the young nobility
trained to martial exercises.
The most celebrated and magnificent of the numerous temples built by
the Romans in honour of this deity was the one erected by Augustus in the
Forum, to commemorate the overthrow of the murderers of Cæsar.
Of all existing statues of Mars the most renowned is that in the Villa
Ludovisi at Rome, in which he is represented as a powerful, muscular man
in the full vigour of youth. The attitude is that of thoughtful repose,
but the short, curly hair, dilated nostrils, and strongly marked features
leave no doubt as to the force and turbulence of his character. At his
feet, the sculptor has placed the little god of love, who looks up all
undaunted at the mighty war-god, as though mischievously conscious that
this unusually quiet mood is attributable to his influence.
Religious festivals in honour of Mars were generally held in the month
of March; but he had also a festival on the Ides of October, when
chariot-races took place, after which, the right-hand horse of the team
which had drawn the victorious chariot, was sacrificed to him. In ancient
times, human sacrifices, more especially prisoners of war, were offered
to him; but, at a later period, this cruel practice was discontinued.
The attributes of this divinity are the helmet, shield, and spear. The
animals consecrated to him were the wolf, horse, vulture, and
woodpecker.
Intimately associated with Mars in his character as god of war, was a
goddess called BELLONA, who was evidently the female divinity of
battle with one or other of the primitive nations of Italy (most probably
the Sabines), and is usually seen accompanying Mars, whose war-chariot
she guides. Bellona appears on the battle-field, inspired with mad rage,
cruelty, and the love of extermination. She is in full armour, her hair
is dishevelled, and she bears a scourge in one hand, and a lance in the
other.
A temple was erected to her on the Campus Martius. Before the entrance
to this edifice stood a pillar, over which a spear was thrown when war
was publicly declared. [117]