Poseidon Myths: 6 Interesting and Surprising Legends

Today we show you the 6 most fascinating and popular Poseidon Myths. Discover what legends this god of the deep hides.

poseidon god

Myths Of Poseidon

Greek mythology is very interesting for example; in the myths of Poseidon this god is described as the lord of the sea, a moody and violent god. His fierce blue eyes pierced the mist, and his sea-blue hair spread behind him. He was called the shaker of the earth, because when he struck the ground with his trident, the earth shook and split.

When he struck the sea, the waves rose higher than the mountains and the winds howled, destroying ships and drowning those who lived on the shores. But when he was in a calm mood, he would reach out his hand and the sea would lift new lands out of the water.

Here we show you 6 very interesting Poseidon myths within the mythology of Poseidon.

1. The beginning of Poseidon

In the myths of Poseidon it is told that in the days of Cronus and the Titans, the sea was ruled by Nereus, son of Mother Earth and Pontus, the seas. Nereus was an ancient sea god with a long gray beard and a fish tail and was the father of fifty sea nymphs, the lovely nereids. When Poseidon, the Olympian athlete, came to take over the kingdom of the sea, kindly old Nereus gave him his daughter Amphitrite to be his queen and retired to an underwater grotto.

Mitología Del Dios Poseidón
God Poseidon

He gave the new king and queen his palace at the bottom of the sea. It was made of pale gold and stood in a garden of coral and glittering pearls. There Amphitrite lived contentedly surrounded by her forty-nine Nereid sisters. She had an only son, whose name was Triton. He had a fish tail instead of legs, like his grandfather Nereus, and rode on the back of a sea monster, playing a conch shell.

Poseidon was rarely at home. He was a restless god and loved to race the waves with his team of snow-white horses. It was said that he created the horse in the form of breaking waves. Like his brother Zeus, Poseidon had many wives and many children, but Amphitrite was not jealous.

2. Poseidon’s life island

In the mythology of the god Poseidon it is said that one of the islands that this god raised from the sea was Delos. It was created so recently that it was still floating in the water. The small island was barren. Nothing grew on it except a single palm tree. In its shade, the two great gods, Apollo and Artemis, were born.

Zeus, the brother of Poseidon and the most powerful of all the gods, had married the goddess Leto, and when Hera, Zeus’ jealous wife, learned that Leto was expecting twins, she was furious and ordered all the lands. In the world to reject Leto’s refuge. Away from all lands, poor Leto wandered from place to place and could not rest to give birth to her twins.

At last she reached Delos and the small island welcomed her. As she was still floating and not quite land, she was free from Hera’s orders. Exhausted, Leto sank into the shade of the palm tree, but she still could not give birth to her twins, because Hera forbade Ilithyia, the goddess of childbirth, to fetch her. Without her help, no child could be born.

poseidon delos

The necklace

All the other goddesses felt sorry for Leto and tried to convince Hera by offering her a beautiful necklace. It was nine yards long, made of gold and amber, and Hera could not resist it. She let Ilithyia go, and Iris led her over the rainbow to Leto.

Leto’s first child was Artemis, a girl as beautiful as the moon, with hair as dark as night. She was to be the goddess of the hunt and all newborn creatures.

The second son was Apollo came into the world. This one was radiant as the sun itself and he was given the title of being the god of the sun, music, light and reason.

Zeus was overjoyed to see his beautiful twins and gave each a silver bow and a quiver full of arrows. Artemis’ arrows were soft as moonbeams and brought painless death, Apollo’s were hard and piercing as the sun’s rays.

Zeus blessed the little island and fastened it to the bottom of the sea. Grass and flowers sprang up from the barren soil and Delos became the richest of all the Greek islands. Pilgrims flocked to it and loaded it with temples and treasures to honor Leto and his twins.

3. Myths of Poseidon: the contest of Athens

One of the myths of Poseidon very funny, this myth tells that in ancient Greece when the first king of Athens called Cecrops (he was half person and half snake) had to find a patron god for the state of the city of Athens.

El concurso de Poseidón y Atenea
The Contest of Poseidon and Athena

The two Olympian gods who were particularly interested in patronage were Poseidon, the god of the seas, and Athena, the goddess of wisdom and skill. The mythology of the god Poseidon says that these Olympian gods appeared before King Cecrops. The king asked them to offer a truly valuable gift to Athens.

Poseidon came first: he struck the earth mightily and created a well with his trident. Immediately, water flowed quickly, but the water turned out to be salty and not very useful for the population.

Then came the goddess Athena: Athena stepped forward, struck her spear into the ground and then knelt down and planted an olive branch in it. In this way she created an olive tree, as a symbolization of peace and prosperity on earth.

Cecrops was very impressed by Athena’s gift. So he chose Athena to claim the city of Athens and the city is named after her. The god Poseidon, however, was not pleased with Cecrops’ decision and cursed the city of Athens never to have enough water thereafter. In the myths of Poseidon it is said that after that there was a great problem of water shortage in the city of Athens, which continues to this day.

4. Myths of Poseidon And The Dolphin’s Feat

The mythology of the god Poseidon also tells of the feelings of this deity, there is a story that once came a time when Poseidon was feeling extreme loneliness. Full of anger, he was provoking storms so strong that they made the seas and the skies come together…

Poseidon y Anfitrite
Poseidon and Amphitrite

To combat his sad feelings, Poseidon set out to find a wife. On his way, he came across the mermaid Amphitrite, a sea nymph with golden hair and bright blue eyes, dancing on the island of Naxos with her friends. Captivated by her extraordinary beauty, Poseidon could not help but fall in love with her and asked her to marry him.

Amphitrite, granddaughter of the Greek titan of the seas, oceans and daughter of the gentle sea god Nereus, was trying to protect her virginity in any way possible. So she refused Poseidon’s proposal, telling him that she did not like his violent nature and then flew to the Atlas Mountains to escape.

However, Poseidon was determined. So he sent his messenger Delphinus, the king of the dolphins, to locate the mermaid and conquer her heart.

The king of the dolphins obeyed and began a long and perilous journey to find his master’s love. When he finally located the maiden, he promised her that if she married Poseidon, all of Poseidon’s energies would be balanced and tranquility would come to the water world. No strong sea would ever again harm the sailors.

Touched by emotion, Amphitrite surrendered and married Poseidon. According to Apollodorus, the couple gave birth to two daughters, the nymphs Rhode and Benthesicyme, and a son, Triton merman, with the upper body of a human and the tail of a fish.

5. Poseidon Myths: Agaeus And The Fatal Curse

This is one of the myths of Poseidon dedicated to people who are quick to jump to conclusions.

mitos de Poseidón, Agaeus Y La Maldición Fatal
Myths of Poseidon, Agaeus, and The Fatal Curse

Once upon a time, Poseidon the god of the seas, fell in love with Astipalaia, Europa’s sister and kidnapped her. The couple gave birth to a son and named him Agaeus, who would later participate in the Argonautic expedition.

Agaeus lived on the island of Samos and was an excellent winegrower. But he was undoubtedly very hard on his workers and treated them like slaves. One day, a servant was enraged by the way Agaeus treated him and exclaimed,“You must never drink wine from your vineyard or you will be devoured to death!” and cursed his master.

Time passed, until one fine day the wine was prepared and ready to drink. Happily, Agaeus called his servant and said,“Look how ridiculous you were! Your curse was in vain!

Calmly, the servant replied,“There is a long distance between this glass and your lips…”

Just then, a slave informed Agaeus about a wild boar that destroyed his country. Hastily, Agaeus put down his glass and ran against the beast. Ultimately, the boar devoured Agaeus and the prophecy was fulfilled.

6. Myths of Poseidon: The World Part

In the mythology of the god Poseidon there is a very interesting story where the participation of this god was important. After overthrowing the Titans, the three brothers Poseidon, Zeus and Hades brought out many to share fairly the powers of the world.

Sea god

Zeus’ realm was the heavens and he became the supreme ruler of the Greek gods. The price of Hades, on the other side, was rather unpleasant, as he was chosen by fate to receive the underworld.

Poseidon’s domain was the seas and in this way, Poseidon became the Lord of the seas and second in power among the Greek deities.

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