He was the father of a water dragon that was killed by Cadmus, the Prince of Phoenicia. The myth of Ares founding the city of Thebes is one of the most popular tales. These include his two sons from Aphrodite viz., Phobos (personification of fear) and Deimos (personification of terror), Enyo (Goddess of strife) and Alala (personification of war cry). Ares is often accompanied by several other gods into the battlefield – gods who seem to share some of his characteristic traits. This reference throws some light on the relationship of Ares with his parents, especially with his father. In fact, Homer’s epic poem Iliad has an incident wherein Zeus says that Ares is the most hateful god to him. Though he was not a neglected child, he was also not the one who was loved much by his parents, the simple reason being that they did not have any sympathy for his inhuman and hostile acts. He had a peculiar liking for and a sort of addiction to bloodshed and murder due to which his parents were very ambivalent towards him. Though Ares is considered the ‘God’ of war, he denotes all the malevolent forces that war comprises. He had three siblings viz., Hebe (Goddess of Youth), Eileithyia (Goddess of Childbirth) and Eris (Goddess of Discord). Though born in Thrace, which was considered to be his true home, some sources state that he resided on Mount Olympus, much like the others of his race. Ares in Greek MythologyĪres was one of the twelve Olympian Gods who make the primary divinities of the Greek pantheon. In short, Ares stands for every negativity that relates to war. So, while Athena is the goddess of the art of warfare, skill, strategy, courage, and above all, wisdom, Ares is more specifically, the God of warlike frenzy, hostility, and mercilessness.

Bloodlust, violence, hatred and promiscuity were the main facets of Ares’ personality.Īccording to Greek mythology, there are two gods of war, one symbolizing the benevolent aspects while the other symbolizing the malevolent ones. Ares, known as the Greek God of war, is one of the twelve Olympians residing on Mount Olympus.

Greek god of war