greek and roman mythololgy

poseidon

 is one of the in and , presiding over the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses. He was the protector of seafarers and the guardian of many Hellenic cities and colonies. In pre-Olympian , Poseidon was venerated as a chief deity at and , with the cult title "earth shaker"; in the myths of isolated , he is related to and and was venerated as a horse, and as a god of the waters. Poseidon maintained both associations among most Greeks: He was regarded as the tamer or father of horses, who, with a strike of his trident, created springs (the terms for horses and springs are related in the Greek language). His roman equivalent is neptune

 and suggest that Poseidon became lord of the sea when, following the overthrow of his father , the world was divided among Cronus' three sons; Zeus was given the sky, Hades the underworld, and Poseidon the sea, with the Earth and Mount Olympus belonging to all three. In 's , Poseidon supports the Greeks against the Trojans during the ; in the , during the sea-voyage from Troy back home to , the Greek hero provokes Poseidon's fury by blinding his son, the , resulting in Poseidon punishing him with storms, causing the complete loss of his ship and companions, and delaying his return by ten years. Poseidon is also the subject of a . In 's Timaeus and Critias, the legendary island of was Poseidon's domain.

Poseidon is famous for his contests with other deities for winning the patronage of the city. According to legend, Athena became the patron goddess of the city of after a competition with Poseidon, though he remained on the in the form of his surrogate, . After the fight, Poseidon sent a monstrous flood to the to punish the Athenians for not choosing him. In similar competitions with other deities in different cities, he causes devastating floods when he loses. Poseidon is a horrifying and avenging god and must be honoured even when he is not the patron deity of the city.