In Ancient Italy, Mars was the god of fertility; it was believed that he could either cause the destruction of crops or the death of livestock, or avert them. In his honor, the first month of the Roman year, in which the rite of expelling winter was performed, was named March. Mars was later identified with the Greek Ares and became the god of war. The temple of Mars, already as the god of war, was built on the Field of Mars outside the city walls, since the armed army was not supposed to enter the city territory.
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MARS, ancient Italian deity (one of the most ancient gods of Italy and Rome). Initially, he was part of the first triad of gods (Jupiter (see JUPITER (in mythology)), Mars, Quirin (see KVIRIN)). According to most researchers, he was the god of wild nature,... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Mars: Mars god of the Roman pantheon Mars planet of the solar system Mars astrological concept “Mars” a series of Soviet interplanetary space stations Mars platform on the top of the composite mast Mars, Incorporated American food ... ... Wikipedia
In Roman mythology, Mars is the god of war. Figuratively: a military, belligerent person. The expression son of Mars is used in the same meaning; expression Field of Mars meaning: battlefield. One of the parts of the city was also called in Ancient Rome... ... Dictionary of popular words and expressions
- [boh], ah, call. God; pl. gods, gods; m. 1. [with a capital letter] only units. According to religious beliefs: the creator of heaven and earth, of all things; the omniscient supreme mind that rules the world; universal world principle (has many names: Creator, ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
God of War, Ares; red planet, gradiv Dictionary of Russian synonyms. mars noun, number of synonyms: 8 ares (5) god ... Synonym dictionary
God- (boh) a, name; God; pl., bo/gi, bogo/in; m. see also. God help you, my God!, God be with you, God forbid, God forbid... Dictionary of many expressions
Mars- wing. sl. Mars. Son of Mars. Field of Mars In Roman mythology, Mars is the god of war. Figuratively: a military, belligerent person. The expression “son of Mars” is used in the same meaning; the expression “Champus of Mars” meaning: battlefield. Also… … Universal additional practical explanatory dictionary by I. Mostitsky
- (Mars). The Roman god of war, who, as the father of Romulus, was considered the ancestor of the Roman people. He granted victory, and when Roman generals went to war, they worshiped Mars. The wolf and woodpecker were sacred to Mars. (Source: “A brief dictionary... Encyclopedia of Mythology
- (Gol. mars). 1) a plank or lattice platform at the top of the mast. 2) (lat. Mars). God of war among the ancient Romans. 3) planet of the solar system, fourth in terms of its distance from the sun. 4) in alchemy iron. Dictionary of foreign words included in... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
1. MARS, a; m. [from lat. mars male] [with a capital letter] 1. In ancient Roman mythology: the god of war (considered the father of Romulus and Remus, the ancestor of the Romans). 2. The fourth planet of the solar system, whose orbit is between Earth and Jupiter. ◁… … encyclopedic Dictionary
Books
- Sowers. Book 1. Universal Flame, Alexey Berkut, You know where humanity came from, why dinosaurs disappeared, why Mars lost its atmosphere, and where Phaeton disappeared, who and why visits Earth on high-speed spaceships, and who is... Category: Science fiction Publisher: Publishing Solutions, eBook
- I will return to God his wife Asherah. In 620 BC, the worship of Asherah, the wife of God, was banned in Jerusalem. Igor Vladimirovich Levanov, God the Father said: “Igor, return my wife Asherah.” Igor, a reserve major, replied: “Yes!” and together with NLPer Lena went on a search. If found, two billion Christians will be happy... Category: Contemporary Russian literature Publisher: Publishing Solutions, eBook
In the ancient mythology of Rome, the great God Mars occupies one of the places of honor. He was famous for his reliable, devoted defender and patron of the Roman Empire. He was revered as a fearless and fair warrior, as a brave knight leading his army against the enemies of Rome.
In ancient times in Italy, he was part of the triad of gods who were the ancestors of the Roman pantheon (Jupiter, God Mars, Quirinus). Being the deity of military battles, Mars was ready to give all his power to preserve the peace and glory of the great empire. Mars is considered the equivalent of the cunning and evil God Ares in Ancient Greece.
Pantheon of Gods - as a place of honor for God Mars
The archaic Triad of the divine pantheon of Rome is famous for its strength and majesty. God Mars is one of the prominent characters in this field. At the head is the God Jupiter, who is the formidable ruler of the skies, thunder and lightning, fierce storms and thunderstorms. He is identified with the Greek Zeus, who is terrible in his anger and begins to throw lightning. The next place of honor is occupied by Quirin, who provides light from the rays of the sun. In the mornings, at his will, the heavenly gates opened and the heavenly body appeared, in the evenings Quirin closed the gates with bolts.
Next came God Mars, and although the inhabitants of Rome gave Mars third place, it was he who retained his prototype more clearly than the other deities. The Romans worshiped Mars, believing that he brought victories in battles and long wars, endowed the army with the spirit of courage and fearlessness, kept peace in the Roman Empire and glorified it. You can often find sources where Mars is represented as a bloodthirsty and dishonest God of War, who does not care whose side is right; his goal was numerous victims, blood and confusion. But be that as it may, his strength was directed primarily to ensuring peace and unity. Under the leadership of his male aggression, great wars were carried out, which, in an ideal situation, should have guaranteed security and peace.
God of battles and vernal equinox
The Romans, distinguished from most peoples by their warlike qualities, worshiped the fierce and powerful Mars, considering him the father and founder of the empire. The name of the first spring month was given by the Romans in honor of this great god - Latin Martius (month of March). The beginning of spring was considered a particularly busy period, with many festivals held in preparation for new battles and wars. Particular attention was paid to tournaments involving horses, since these animals were the only assistants in any battle.
In the mythology of ancient Rome, the God Mars also performed more harmless functions than military actions. He was considered the deity of fertility and agriculture, the protector of lands, vegetation, and the surrounding nature. It depended on what the harvest would be and how healthy the livestock and future offspring would be. Or, on the contrary, it was in his power to burn all the sown fields and kill all the animals. He was worshiped not only by soldiers, but also by ordinary peasants, who brought him various sacrifices hoping for a rich harvest. Mars was associated with wild forests, places unknown to people. Perhaps this wildness given to him as the god of nature created him separately from the world and people beyond all conventions, and transformed into an unbridled force that must be pacified and subdued.
Birth
The parents of Mars are Juno and Jupiter. There is an amazing version about his birth, told by the Roman poet Ovid: according to him, Juno was jealous of Minerva, the daughter of Jupiter, because in her conception she appeared without the participation of a woman. And Juno also wanted to give birth to a child without the help of a man. Flora, the goddess of vegetation, gave her a magic flower, and only after touching this flower did Juno become pregnant with the god Mars. That is why, initially, he was considered an agricultural god, the patron of plants, nature and wild forests.
The Myth of Mars and the Goddess Nerio
Once upon a time, Mars took a liking to the goddess Minerva, who personified wisdom and beauty, love and art. Mars was confused and taken by surprise by his own feeling of love, and he did not know how to tell the goddess about his sympathy. He asked for help from the goddess Anna Perenne, known as the patroness of the new year. Anna was supposed to act as a matchmaker in the amorous affairs of Mars, but nothing came of it, and Minerva refused the formidable Mars. But the goddesses decided not to stop there and wanted to play a prank on Mars.
Anna informed him that Minerva reciprocated his feelings and was waiting on a date. Satisfied and delighted, Mars rushed to his beloved on the “wings of love.” Arriving at the meeting place, he saw a woman sitting, wrapped from head to toe in a long dress. Moving the tent away from her face, he jumped away from the woman in horror: old Anna Perenna appeared before him. The gods of the Roman Empire remembered this joke for a long time and laughed at the gullibility of the formidable god, who had been fooled. As a result, Mars chose the goddess Nerio as his wife, whom, according to legend, he had to kidnap. Nerio was the goddess of courage, feminine strength, courage and courage. Mars did not regret his choice at all, since his wife was his devoted companion and was present with him at all battles.
Remus and Romulus
The great Mars had two sons - the twins Remus and Romulus. Their mother was Rhea Silvia - who served the goddess Vesta as a vestal priestess. She was a virgin, as she took a vow of celibacy and remained celibate to guard the magical fire. One day, Rhea went to fetch water for a ceremony. On the way she met a huge wolf, the girl took refuge in a cave and remained there until dark. Suddenly the god Mars appeared before her and Rhea became pregnant.
She gave birth to twin boys - Remus and Romulus. The Vestal faced severe punishment, since she broke her vow, and none of the gods took her side. Rhea explained that she became a victim of violence from Mars, but this did not save her. As a result, she was executed, and the twins who were born were placed in a box and thrown into the stormy waters of the Tiber River. Having traveled a considerable distance, the box landed on one of the banks of the river, crashed against it, and the boys found themselves on dry land. Soon a wolf found them, brought them into his pack, and they were fed with the milk of a she-wolf and grew up with the wolf cubs. When the twins grew into strong young men, they decided to build their own city and began their plan by searching for suitable territory. But each of them liked different places and they could not come to a compromise. A serious dispute arose between them and Romulus killed Remus. Afterwards, he regretted his action for a long time, and when he finally erected a city, he gave it the name Rome, in honor of the murdered twin.
Temple of Mars
After Rome was founded by the son of the god Mars, Romulus, the main territory of the city began to be called the Campus Martius. This place served for military exercises, training, and for holding civilian rallies. The center of the field was occupied by a majestic temple erected in honor of the great Mars. The temple servants included people only from noble and wealthy families. According to legend, on the first day of spring, a huge shield fell from the sky at the feet of the second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius. Residents of the city perceived this sign as a blessing from the gods, and the shield became a sacred artifact personifying the invincible Roman army.
To avoid theft of the shield, the servants smelted 11 more of the same pieces from the metal. In this way, it was intended to confuse anyone who decided to steal the sacred shield. On the first day of spring, during the festive festival in honor of the god Mars, the shields were carried outside by the servants and the cart carried them throughout the city, showing the Romans the sacred symbol.
In the mythology of the ancient Greeks, Ares was the god of war. Unlike Pallas Athena, the goddess of fair and just war, Ares gave wars an insidious and treacherous character. The ancient Romans revered Mars as the god of war; he was unlike either Athena or Ares. He helped the Romans win victories, gave well-being and prosperity, so in Rome he, along with the god Jupiter, was highly valued, revered in every way, and dedicated a special month in the annual calendar - March. The ancient Romans considered this first month of spring the most favorable for the start of hostilities.
Initially, Mars was the god of fertility, all vegetation, the god of wild nature, everything unknown and dangerous, which was fraught with a threat. He could destroy the harvest or cause the death of livestock, but most often, on the contrary, he protected the livestock and prevented crop failure. So gradually Mars became the guardian, and then the god of war.
One day Mars fell in love with Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom, similar in beauty to Venus, the goddess of love, but did not know how to approach her. He was forced to turn to the elderly Anna Perenna, the Roman goddess of the coming new year, and ask her to be a matchmaker. She agreed, but Minerva disagreed. She did not at all want to become the wife of the god of war. And then they decided to play a joke. Anna Perenna informed Mars that Minerva was pleased with this proposal and was ready to become his wife. He was given a secret meeting. Mars flew on the wings of love to the appointed place, where a woman sat covered with muslin. He was told that this was his bride. With his heart beating, he lifted her veil and saw the old woman with horror. Anna Perenna sat in Minerva's place. Having learned about the unsuccessful matchmaking of Mars, the gods laughed at him for a long time, and he eventually married the goddess Nerio, who was sometimes identified with Venus.
The Romans considered Mars to be the father of Romulus and Remus. But the Vestal Rhea Silvia gave birth to them. Therefore, Mars was revered as the ancestor of the city, its guardian, sacrifices were made in his honor, and the Field of Mars appeared near Rome, on which a sacred temple was also built in his honor. According to the beliefs of that time, in order not to expose the city to danger, armed Roman troops were forbidden to enter the city limits.
The servants of the sanctuary of the god Mars were priests called salii; there were 12 of them. They were all elected from noble families - patricians. According to legend, on March 1, a shield fell from the sky into the hands of the second king of Rome, Numu Pompilius. This was considered a sign from the gods. The shield became the guarantee of the invincibility of the Roman army. Based on his model, 11 more shields were created, which were called sacred and handed over to the Saliyas. They were kept on the Palatine Hill, where the Roman emperors later built their palaces.
Before the start of a military campaign, the commanders came to the temple of Mars, they worshiped the sacred shields. When autumn came and hostilities ceased, the sacred shields were removed, and only on March 1 they were put up again. On this day, salii in military armor led the solemn procession. She moved through Rome and stopped at the doors of the sanctuary of Mars.
In the alchemical tradition, the symbol of Mars is a graphic image of a circle with an arrow located at an angle of 45 degrees. The “symbol of Mars” meant iron, which in medieval esotericism was inextricably linked with the “red planet” and the element of Fire. At the same time, Mars originally embodied strength, aggression and belligerence (in fact, Mars is the name of the ancient Roman god of war), that is, purely “male” characteristics. That is why, over time, the symbol of Mars became a gender designation for the male sex (in a similar way, the symbol of Venus, which also came from medieval alchemy, and came into it from ancient mythology, began to be used to designate the female sex).
Thus, the symbols of Venus and Mars moved from the alchemical environment into the category of universal gender emblems, which, in fact, is not surprising, given the characteristic features attributed to the images of these planets. However, the mythological background of the symbols of Venus and Mars is much more significant than it might seem. In particular, the symbol of Mars in its statutory outline has its own characteristic name - “shield and spear of Mars.” And here we literally mean the legendary weapon of the ancient Roman god of war.
However, in the concept of “shield and spear of Mars” the mythological meaning is emphasized only by the concept of “shield”. That is, Mars (in the sense of god) was depicted with a spear (unlike, for example, the Greek Ares, who was sometimes armed with a sword). However, the spear here acted as an absolutely abstract male and military symbol, in which it is easy to see a phallic image. And there is no information that Mars had any special spear that could be classified as a magical artifact.
But the shield of Mars is a completely different image, which is sometimes called (with good reason) the symbol of Rome. The shield of Mars, called the ankylus, according to legend, fell from the sky and fell directly into the hands of King Numa Pompilius at a time when his people were suffering from a pestilence epidemic. Pompilius claimed that the fall of the ankylus was accompanied by a loud voice that told the king that Rome would rule the world as long as the shield of Mars was in the hands of a Roman. Actually, at the official level, the shield of Mars was never a symbol of Rome, however, this myth was widely known at all times, therefore in traditional Roman architecture there are often bas-reliefs and statues that include a characteristic element - the ankylos, the shield of Mars (its image given above).
There are two interesting points in this tradition associated with the shield of Mars. Firstly, the etymology of the word “ankil” itself is not known. Secondly, by order of Pompilius, 11 copies of the original shield were made and once a year, on the holiday of the god of war, servants of the cult of Mars carried these shields through the streets of Rome.
It is not known exactly when the formulation “spear and shield of Mars” appeared (although, for example, the origin of the concept “mirror of Venus”, denoting the female gender sign, is beyond doubt). At the same time, taking into account the courteous features of the image of the god Mars in the form of statues and bas-reliefs (with an ankylos and a spear), this combination looks quite logical. It is no less logical to correlate the desired symbol with the planet of the same name and the masculine principle as such.
Thus, the symbol of Mars, which arose in deep antiquity, experienced a “rebirth” in the Middle Ages on the pages of alchemical treatises, and in the 20th century it became a generally accepted “male” sign. And it is very important that today we know well the true origin of this truly ancient and profound image. After all, if a culture uses emblems the essence of which it does not understand, then such a culture is worthless.
ARES, Ar e th (Ἄρης),
in Greek mythology, the god of war, treacherous, treacherous, war for the sake of war,
in contrast to Pallas Athena, the goddess of fair and just war. Initially, Ares was simply identified with war and deadly weapons (traces of this identification in Homer, Hom. Il. XIII 444, in Aeschylus, Agam. 78). The oldest myth about Ares testifies to his non-Greek, Thracian origin (Hom. Od. VIII 361; Ovid. Fast. V 257). Sophocles (O.R. 190-215) calls Ares a “despicable” god and calls on Zeus, Apollo, Artemis and Bacchus to strike him with lightning, arrows and fire. The ancient chthonic features of Ares were reflected in the myth about the birth of the Theban dragon together with one of the Erinyes (Schol. Soph. Ant. 128), who was killed by Cadmus. Even the children of Ares - the heroes - show traits of unbridledness, savagery and cruelty (Meleager, Ascalaphus and Ialmenes, Phlegius, Oenomaus, the Thracian Diomedes). Ares' companions were the goddess of discord Eris and the bloodthirsty Enyo. His horses (children of Boreas and one of the Erinyes) bore the names: Shine, Flame, Noise, Terror; his attributes are a spear, a burning torch, dogs, a kite. His very birth was initially thought of purely chthonically: Hera gave birth to Ares without the participation of Zeus from touching a magic flower (Ovid. Fast. V 229-260). In Olympian mythology, Ares has great difficulty getting along with its plastic and artistic images and laws, although now he is considered the son of Zeus himself (Hom. Il. V 896) and settles on Olympus. In Homer, Ares is a violent deity, who at the same time possesses previously unusual traits of romantic love. He screams like nine or ten thousand warriors (V 859-861); wounded by Athena, he stretches across the earth for seven acres (XXI 403-407). His epithets: “strong”, “huge”, “fast”, “furious”, “harmful”, “treacherous”, “destroyer of people”, “destroyer of cities”, “stained with blood”. Zeus calls him the most hated of the gods, and if Ares had not been his son, he would have sent him to Tartarus, even deeper than all the descendants of Uranus (V 889-898). But at the same time, Ares is already so weak that he is wounded not only by Athena, but also by the mortal hero Diomedes. He falls in love with the most beautiful and tender goddess Aphrodite (Hom. Od. VIII 264-366). The love of Ares and Aphrodite's violation of marital fidelity is often mentioned in ancient literature, and even the children from this relationship are named: Eros and Anteros (Schol. Apoll. Rhod. III 26), Deimos (“horror”), Phobos (“fear”) and Harmony (Hes. Theog. 934 seq.). The Orphic hymn (88th) glorifies Ares as an Olympian high deity (although the 65th hymn still paints him in the light of complete immorality). The violent and immoral Ares had great difficulty assimilating with the Olympian gods, and his image retained numerous layers of different eras. In Rome, Ares is identified with the Italic god Mars, and in later art and literature he is known primarily under the name Mars.
Lit.: Losev A.F., Olympic mythology in its socio-historical development, “Scientific notes of the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute named after. IN AND. Lenin", 1953, t. 72, v. 3; Schwenn F., Der Krieg in der griechischen Religion, “Archiv für Religionswissenschaft”, 1920-22, No. 20-21; by him, Ares, ibid., 1923-24, No. 22.
The most significant of the ancient statues that have come down to us are “Ares Borghese” and “Ares Ludovisi” (Roman copies). Ares was depicted in scenes of gigantomachy (reliefs of the eastern frieze of the Parthenon and the treasury of the Siphnians at Delphi, works of vase painting). The plot of “Ares and Aphrodite” was embodied in several Pompeian frescoes. In medieval book illustrations, Ares is depicted as the god of war and as a symbol of the planet Mars. In the art of the Renaissance and especially the Baroque - mainly due to the influence of Ovid - subjects related to the love of Ares and Aphrodite became widespread in painting (paintings by S. Botticelli, Piero di Cosimo, Giulio Romano, J. Tintoretto, P. Veronese, B. Spranger, M. Caravaggio, P. P. Rubens, N. Poussin, C. Lebrun); sometimes Ares was depicted in chains put on him by Aphrodite (fresco by F. Cossa) or Eros, which symbolized the victory of love over belligerence and savagery. Another plot - “Ares and Aphrodite, caught by Hephaestus” (works by J. Tintoretto, H. Goltzius, Rembrandt, L. Giordano, F. Boucher, etc.) has not lost popularity in modern times (L. Corinth “Mars in the Networks of Vulcan "). Works were created whose symbolism was based on the ancient mythological tradition: in them, Athena confronted Ares (“Minerva and Mars” by J. Tintoretto, P. Veronese, etc.), and sometimes entered into single combat with him (“The Duel of Minerva and Mars” by J. L. David). The first statues of Ares were created in the 2nd half of the 16th century. (Giambologna, I. Sansovino). As a monument to A.V. Suvorov statue of the god of war by M.I. Kozlovsky was erected in 1801 in St. Petersburg on the Field of Mars.
MARS
The wife of Mars was considered to be Nerio or Neriene, identified with Venus and Minerva, originally “The Valor of Mars” (Aul. Gell. XIII 23).
IN 366 BC The temple at the Capena Gate was dedicated to Mars, from where the army went to war, and the horsemen to the annual parade (Liv. VII 23, 8; Dion. Halic. VI 13). In the center of the forum, Augustus dedicated a luxurious temple to the avenger Mars in gratitude for the victory over the assassins of Caesar. During the era of the empire, Mars was often depicted on coins, enjoyed wide popularity in the army, often, together with Honor and Virtus, was endowed with the epithets “victor”, “fighter”, “expanding the empire”, “companion of Augustus”, “guardian”, “pacifier”. In the western provinces, the main gods of tribal and territorial communities were often identified with Mars and he was endowed with epithets derived from the names of tribes and settlements (for example, Mars Latobius - from the Latobikov tribe in Norica), as well as “king of light”, “wise” in Gaul , “king of the community” in Britain, Mars Things (i.e. god of the Thing - the people’s assembly) on the Rhine, etc. This suggests that early Roman ideas about Mars as the supreme god of the community continued to exist in popular beliefs.
Lit.: Dumézil G., Juppiter, Mars, Quirinus. ; Hermansen G., Studien über den italishen und den römischen Mars, Kbh., 1940 (Diss.); Thevenot E., Sur les traces des Mars céltique, Brugge, 1955.
Shtaerman
Unexpected conclusions
Peoples in the era of tribal organization worshiped various forces of nature - earth, fire, water, etc. In those days (for Roman history this is VIII - VI centuries BC BC) people believed that the whole world around, all natural phenomena, all types of economic activity, all feelings and states of people themselves havespirits-patrons or special deities.Gradually, these spirits were given names, united in pairs, or placed at the head of a tribe.
To put it in sophisticated words, the Gods are a manifestation of the archetype of the people.
As the tribe unites on the Apennine Peninsula, a spiritual mutual enrichment of peoples occurs, including as a basis - an “exchange” of deities (or the perception of someone else’s archetype).
Ares and Mars are presented in “educational” literature as one and the same god.
However, even with the most superficial comparison, it is striking that Ares was not perceived by the Greeks as their own god, they did not even recognize him as the son of Zeus (the father of the gods), but then they still accepted him as an “unloved” son.
It is likely that Ares, who certainly possessed the data of God, aggressively came to Greece from the outside (as a result of the infusion of the people (or peoples) who worship Ares into the Greek community).
Ares is strong, dexterous, but does not inspire respect among the Greeks; they contrast his military art with the military art of Athens, and seem to even rejoice at his defeat at Troy.
It is likely that the Greeks, as warriors, had their own skills in warfare, and the power of Ares frightens them, they seek protection from it from “their” gods.
The Romans have a completely different attitude towards this god. Here Mars is in the trinity of great gods. One of the most revered gods and the father of the founder of Rome (remember that Rome (Mir) was founded by the Proto-Slavs - the Aryans). This is their native god - the God of the Aryans. They are not afraid of his formidable manifestations; for them he is a parent.
It turns out that the Romans were Aryans. Also Aryans were the tribes of the Gauls, the British, and the inhabitants of the banks of the Rhine! But the Greeks do not. That is why they did not love the god Ares.
PS: I found interesting confirmation of my conclusions .
What about the Slavs? The Slavs have one of the riding gods - Description of the same characteristics as Mars (Areus). By the way, a victim of the truncated Russian language, since it should have been written using iotirated A, i.e. YArilo.
