MYTHOLOGY: NORNS

Hej
I just got home LOL sorry


In Norse mythology, the Norns are the demi-goddesses of destiny. They control the destinies of both gods and men, as well as the unchanging laws of the cosmos. They are represented as three sisters: Urd ("fate"), Verdandi ("necessity") and Skuld ("being"). They live at the base of the World Tree Yggdrasil in the realm of Asgard.
Nothing lasts forever, and even the mighty Yggdrasil is subject to decay. The Norns try to stop this process, or at least slow it down, by pouring mud and water from the Well of Fate over its branches. This magical liquid stops the rotting process for the time being.
In other myths, the Norns were thought to give assistance at birth, and that each person has his own personal Norn.
Depicted: Urd is thought of as the old spinster, and is often depicted as old and withered. Verdandi is the most beautiful of the three and is always looking forward in life. Skuld is the most hidden of the three and is often pictured veiled or hidden.
Sources: here and here

That's it for today :3
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LLAMAS WITH HATS part 4

BRAZILIAN CULTURE: WHY THE MONKEY STILL HAS A TAIL

Hej
How are you guys? I'm fine but my vacation is over and two of my teachers are having health problems, we're worried about them  :c
Well, I guess it's time for another Brazilian tale...


 Once upon a time the monkey and the rabbit made a contract. The monkey 
was to kill all the butterflies and the rabbit was to kill all the
snakes.
 One day the rabbit was taking a nap when the monkey passed that way.
The monkey thought that he would play a trick on the rabbit so he
pulled the rabbit's ears, pretending that he thought they were
butterflies. The rabbit awoke very angry at the monkey and he plotted
how he might revenge himself on the monkey.
 The rabbit and the armadillo are very good friends. The armadillo is
very, very strong, you know, so it was he whom the rabbit asked to
help him.
 One day the rabbit caught the monkey napping. He had watched and
waited a long, long time to catch the monkey napping, but at last he
succeeded. Even the monkey sometimes takes a nap. The rabbit called
the armadillo at once and together they rolled a big stone upon the
monkey's tail. The monkey pulled so hard to get his tail out from
under the stone that it broke off. The cat, who at that time had no
tail of her own, spied the tail and ran away with it. The monkey was
very angry at the rabbit. "O, we thought it was just a snake lying
there," said the rabbit. "When you pulled my ears, you know, you
thought they were butterflies."
 That did not help the monkey to feel any better. How was he to live
without his tail! How could he climb without it! He simply had to have
it back so he at once set out to find the cat.
 At last he found the cat and said to her, "O, kind cat, please give me
back my tail."
 "I will give it to you," replied the cat, "if you will get me some
milk."
 "Where shall I get the milk?" asked the monkey.
 "Go ask the cow for some," replied the cat.
 The monkey went to the cow and said, "O, kind cow, please give me some
milk that I may give the milk to the cat so that the cat will give
back my tail to me."


 "I will give you the milk," replied the cow, "if you will get me some
grass."
 "Where shall I get the grass?" asked the monkey.
 "Go ask the farmer," responded the cow.
 The monkey went to the farmer and said, "O, kind farmer, please give
me some grass that I may give the grass to the cow so that the cow
will give me some milk so that I may give the milk to the cat so that
the cat will give back my tail to me."
 The farmer said, "I will give you some grass if you will give me some
rain."
 "Where shall I get the rain?" asked the monkey.
 "Go ask the clouds," responded the farmer.
 The monkey went to the clouds and said, "O, kind clouds, please send
me down some rain that I may give the rain to the farmer so that the
farmer will give me some grass so that I may give the grass to the cow
so that the cow will give me some milk so that I may give the milk to
the cat so that the cat will give me back my tail."
 "I will give you some rain," replied the clouds, "if you will get me
some fog."
 "Where shall I get the fog?" asked the monkey.
 "Go ask the rivers," replied the clouds.
 The monkey went to the river and said, "O, kind river, please give me
a fog that I may give the fog to the clouds so that the clouds will
give some rain so that I may give the rain to the farmer so that the
farmer will give me some grass so that I may give the grass to the cow
so that the cow will give me some milk so that I may give the milk to
the cat so that the cat will give me back my tail."
 "I will give you a fog," replied the river, "if you will find a new
spring to feed me."
 "Where shall I find a spring?" asked the monkey.
 "Go search for one among the rocks upon the hillside," replied the
river.
 Then the monkey climbed up the steep hill and searched and searched
among the rocks until at last he found a little spring to feed the
river. He brought the spring to the river and the river gave him a
fog. He took the fog to the clouds and the clouds gave him rain. He
took the rain to the farmer and the farmer gave him grass. He took the
grass to the cow and the cow gave him milk. He took the milk to the
cat and the cat gave him back his tail. The monkey was so glad to have
his tail again that he danced and danced with glee. Ever since that
time the monkey has been very careful to guard his tail. He still has
one and he is still happy because of it.
Source: http://fairytalesandfolklore.com/tale.php?tale=530

That's it. I'ts a fun tale, I think. :3
And now I have some homework to do and yeaah, see you later
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MYTHOLOGY: RAINBOW SERPENT

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Today I'll write about Aboriginal mythology because I've never heard anything about it in my whole life and I'm sure it's an awesome culture. u.ú


Rainbow Serpent
The Rainbow serpent comes from the Aboriginal culture. It is striped with all the colours of the sky, it is a huge limb less serpent that lives in the ocean and creates the waves when it moves. During the rain these creatures drink the moisture out of the atmosphere. The Rainbow serpent is also seen in West Africa and is there said to be the creator of all other creatures and the god Mawu rode on its back.
Source: http://www.mythcreatures.co.uk/dragons/rainbow.asp

 In the Dreamtime all earth lay sleeping. Nothing moved. Nothing grew. One day the Rainbow Serpent awoke from her slumber and came out from under the ground.
 She travelled far and wide and eventually grew tired and curled up and slept. She left marks of her sleeping body and her winding tracks. Then she returned to the place where she had first appeared, and called to the frogs, “Come out!”
 The frogs came out slow because their bellies were heavy with water, which they had stored in their sleep.    The Rainbow serpent tickled their stomachs and when the frogs laughed, water ran all over the earth to fill the tracks of the Rainbow serpents’ wanderings. This is how lakes and rivers were formed.
 With water, grass and trees sprang up. Also all animals awoke and followed the rainbow serpent across the land. They were happy on earth and each lived and gathered food with his own tribe. Some animals live in rocks, others on the plains and others in trees and in the air.
 The Rainbow Serpent made laws that they all were to obey, but some became quarrelsome and made trouble. The Rainbow Serpent said,” Those who keep my laws will be rewarded; I shall give them human form. Those who break my laws will be punished and turned to stone, never to walk the earth again.
 The lawbreakers became stone and turned to mountains and hills, but those who kept the laws were turned into human form. The Rainbow Serpent gave each of them their own totem of the animal, bird or reptile from whence they came. The tribes knew themselves by their totems. Kangaroo, emu, carpet snake, and many, many more. So no one would starve, the Rainbow Serpent ruled that no man should eat of his totem, but only of other totems. This way there was food for everyone.
 The tribes lived together on the land given to them by the Rainbow Serpent or Mother of Life and knew the land would always be theirs, and no one should ever take it from them.
Source: http://www.expedition360.com/australia_lessons_literacy/2001/09/dreamtime_stories_the_rainbow.html

Aparently, Blogger won't let me upload any images. Bad Blogger. ಠ_ಠ
Oh well, see you guys
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LLAMAS WITH HATS part 3

BRAZILIAN CULTURE: WHY THE SEA MOANS

Hej :)
Yesterday I found this at my place:

And there's a Brazilian tale in it *u* so I decided to post the same tale. But in English. And my book is in Portuguese, which means I googled the story so I didn't have to translate. So, the book's tale is a bit different from this, like,on the book the princess' name was Maria. But whatever.

 Once upon a time there was a little princess who lived in a
magnificent royal palace. All around the palace there was a beautiful
garden full of lovely flowers and rare shrubs and trees. The part of
the garden which the princess liked most of all was a corner of it
which ran down to the sea. She was a very lonely little princess and
she loved to sit and watch the changing beauty of the sea. The name of
the little princess was Dionysia and it often seemed to her that the
sea said, as it rushed against the shore, "Di-o-ny-si-a,
Di-o-ny-si-a."
 One day when the little princess was sitting all alone by the sea she
said to herself, "O! I am so lonely. I do so wish that I had somebody
to play with. When I ride out in the royal chariot I see little girls
who have other little boys and girls to play with them. Because I am
the royal princess I never have anybody to play with me. If I have to
be the royal princess and not play with other children I do think I
might have some sort of live thing to play with me."
 Then a most remarkable thing happened. The sea said very slowly and
distinctly and over and over again so there couldn't be any mistake
about it, "Di-o-ny-si-a, Di-o-ny-si-a."
 The little princess walked up close to the sea, just as close as she
dared to go without danger of getting her royal shoes and stockings
wet. Straight out of the biggest wave of all there came a sea serpent
to meet her. She knew that it was a sea serpent from the pictures in
her royal story books even though she had never seen a sea serpent
before, but somehow this sea serpent looked different than the
pictures. Instead of being a fierce monster it looked kind and gentle
and good. She held out her arms to it right away.
 "Come play with me," said Dionysia.
 "I am Labismena and I have come to play with you," replied the sea
serpent.
 After that the little princess was very much happier. The sea serpent
came out of the sea to play with her every day when she was alone. If
any one else came near Labismena would disappear into the sea so no
one but Dionysia ever saw her.
 The years passed rapidly and each year the little princess grew to be
a larger and larger princess. At last she was sixteen years old and a
very grown-up princess indeed. She still enjoyed her old playmate,
Labismena, and they were often together on the seashore.
 One day when they were walking up and down together beside the sea the
sea serpent looked at Dionysia with sad eyes and said, "I too have
been growing older all these years, dear Dionysia. Now the time has
come that we can no longer play together. I shall never come out of
the sea to play with you any more, but I shall never forget you and I
shall always be your friend. I hope that you will never have any
trouble, but if you ever should, call my name and I will come to help
you." Then the sea serpent disappeared into the sea.
 About this time the wife of a neighbouring king died and as she lay
upon her death bed she gave the king a jewelled ring. "When the time
comes when you wish to wed again," she said, "I ask you to marry a
princess upon whose finger this ring shall be neither too tight nor
too loose."
 After a while the king began to look about for a princess to be his
bride. He visited many royal palaces and tried the ring upon the
finger of many royal princesses. Upon some the ring was too tight and
upon others it was too loose. There was no princess whose finger it
fitted perfectly.
 At last in his search the king came to the royal palace where the
princess Dionysia lived. The princess had dreams of her own of a young
and charming prince who would some day come to wed her, so she was not
pleased at all. The king was old and no longer handsome, and when he
tried the ring upon Dionysia's finger she hoped with all her heart
that it would not fit. It fitted perfectly.
 The princess Dionysia was frightened nearly to death. "Will I really
have to marry him?" she asked her royal father. Her father told her
what a very wealthy king he was with a great kingdom and a wonderful
royal palace ever so much more wonderful and grand than the palace
the princess Dionysia had always had for her home. Her father had no
patience at all with her for not being happy about it. "You ought to
consider yourself the most fortunate princess in all the world," he
said.
 Dionysia spent her days and nights weeping. Her father was afraid that
she would grow so thin that the ring would no longer fit her finger,
so he hastened the plans for the wedding.
 One day Dionysia walked up and down beside the sea, crying as if her
heart would break. All at once she stopped crying. "How stupid I have
been," she said. "My old playmate Labismena told me that if ever I was
in trouble she would come back and help me. With all my silly crying I
had forgotten about it."
 Dionysia walked up close to the sea and called softly, "Labismena,
Labismena." Out of the sea came the sea serpent just as she used to
come. The princess told the sea serpent all about the dreadful trouble
which was threatening to spoil her life.
 "Have no fear," said Labismena, "tell your father that you will marry
the king when the king presents you with a dress the colour of the
fields and all their flowers and that you will not marry him until he
gives it to you." Then the sea serpent disappeared again into the sea.
 Dionysia sent word through her father to her royal suitor that she
would wed him only when he procured her a dress the colour of the
fields and all their flowers. The king was very much in love with
Dionysia, so he was secretly filled with joy at this request. He
searched everywhere for a dress the colour of the fields and all their
flowers. It was a very difficult thing to find but at last he procured
one. He sent it to Dionysia at once.
 When Dionysia saw that the king had really found the dress for her she
was filled with grief. She thought that there was no escape and that
she would have to marry the king after all. As soon as she could get
away from the palace without being noticed she ran down to the sea and
again called, "Labismena, Labismena."
 The sea serpent at once came out of the sea. "Do not fear," she said
to Dionysia. "Go back and say that you will not wed the king until he
gives you a dress the colour of the sea and all its fishes."
 When the king heard this new request of Dionysia's he was rather
discouraged. However he searched for the dress and, at last, after
expending a great sum of money, he procured such a gown.
 When Dionysia saw that a dress the colour of the sea and all its
fishes had been found for her she again went to seek counsel from her
old playmate. "Do not be afraid," Labismena again said to her. "This
time you must ask the king to get you a dress the colour of the sky
and all its stars. You may also tell him that this is the last present
you will ask him to make you."
 When the king heard about the demand for a dress the colour of the sky
and all its stars he was completely disheartened, but when he heard
that Dionysia had promised that this would be the last present she
would ask he decided that it might be a good investment after all. He
set out to procure the dress with all possible speed. At last he found
one.
 When Dionysia saw the dress the colour of the sky and all its stars
she thought that this time there was no escape from marrying the king.
She called the sea serpent with an anxious heart for she was afraid
that now even Labismena could do nothing to help her.
 Labismena came out of the sea in answer to her call.
 "Go home to the palace and get your dress the colour of the field and
all its flowers," said the sea serpent, "and your dress the colour of
the sea and all its fishes, and your dress the colour of the sky and
all its stars. Then hurry back here to the sea for I have been
preparing a surprise for you."
 All the time the king had been procuring the wonderful gowns for
Dionysia the sea serpent had been building a ship for her. When
Dionysia returned from the royal palace with her lovely dresses all
carefully packed in a box there was a queer little boat awaiting her.
It was not at all like any other boat she had ever seen and she was
almost afraid to get into it when Labismena asked her to try it. "This
little ship which I have built for you," said Labismena, "will carry
you far away over the sea to the kingdom of a prince who is the most
charming prince in all the world. When you see him you will want to
marry him above all others."
 "O, Labismena! How can I ever thank you for all you have done for
me?" cried Dionysia.
 "You can do the greatest thing in the world for me," said Labismena;
"though I have never told you and I do not believe that you have ever
suspected it, I am really an enchanted princess. I shall have to
remain in the form of a sea serpent until the happiest maiden in all
the world, at the hour of her greatest happiness, calls my name three
times. You will be the very happiest girl in all the world on the day
of your marriage, and if you will remember to call my name three times
then you will break my enchantment and I shall once more be a lovely
princess instead of a sea serpent."
 Dionysia promised her friend that she would remember to do this. The
sea serpent asked her to promise three times to make sure. When
Dionysia had promised three times and again embraced her old playmate
and thanked her for all that she had done she sailed away in the
little ship. The sea serpent disappeared into the sea.
 Dionysia sailed and sailed in the little ship and at last it bore her
to a lovely island. She thought that she had reached her destination,
so she stepped out of the boat not forgetting to take her box of
dresses with her. As soon as she was out of the boat it sailed away.
"Now what shall I ever do?" said Dionysia. "The ship has gone away and
left me and how shall I ever earn my living? I have never done
anything useful in all my life."
 Dionysia surely had to do something to earn her living immediately, so
she at once set out to see what she could find to do. She went from
house to house asking for food and work. At last she came to the royal
palace. Here at the royal palace they told her that they had great
need of a maid to take care of the hens. Dionysia thought that this
was something which she could do, so she accepted the position at
once. It was, of course, very different work from being a princess in
a royal palace but it provided her with food and shelter, and when
Dionysia thought of having to marry the old king she was never sorry
that she had left home.
 Time passed and at last there was a great feast day celebrated in the
city. Everybody in the palace went except the little maid who minded
the hens. After everybody had gone away Dionysia decided that she
would go to the _festa_ too. She combed her hair and put on her gown
which was the colour of the fields and all their flowers. In this
wonderful gown she was sure nobody would ever guess that she was the
little maid who had been left at home to mind the hens. She did want
to go to the _festa_! She hurried there as fast as she could and
arrived just in time for the dances.
 Everybody at the _festa_ noticed the beautiful maiden in her gown the
colour of the fields and all their flowers. The prince fell madly in
love with her. Nobody had ever seen her before and nobody could find
out who the beautiful stranger was or where she came from. Before the
_festa_ was over Dionysia slipped away, and, when the rest of the
royal household returned home there was the little maid minding the
hens just as they had left her.
 The second day of the _festa_ everybody went early except the little
maid who looked after the hens. When the others had gone she put on
her dress the colour of the sea and all its fishes and went to the
_festa_. She attracted even more attention than she had the day
before.
 When the _festa_ was over and the royal household had returned to the
royal palace, the prince remarked to his mother, "Don't you think that
the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ looks like the little maid who
minds our hens?"
 "What nonsense," replied his mother. "How could the little maid who
minds our hens ever get such wonderful gowns to wear?" Just to make
sure, however, the prince told the royal councillor to find out if
the little maid who minds the royal hens had been to the _festa_. All
the servants told about leaving her at home with the hens and coming
back and finding her just as they had left her.
 "Whoever the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ may be," said the
prince, "she is the one above all others whom I want for my wife. I
shall find her some way."
 The third day of the _festa_ Dionysia went attired in her gown the
colour of the sky and all its stars. The prince fell more madly in
love with her than ever. He could not get her to tell him who she was
or where she lived but he gave her a beautiful jewel.
 When the prince returned home he would not eat any food. He grew thin
and pale. Every one around the palace tried his best to invent some
dish which would tempt the prince's appetite.
 Finally the little maid who took care of the hens said that she
thought she could prepare a dish which the prince would eat.
 Accordingly she made a dish of broth for the prince and in the bottom
of the dish she dropped the jewel which the prince had given her.
 When the broth was set before the prince he was about to send it away
untouched, just as he did everything else, but the sparkling jewel
attracted his attention.
 "Who made this dish of broth?" he asked as soon as he could speak.
 "It was made by the little maid who minds the hens," replied his
mother.
 "Send for the little maid to come to me at once," cried the prince. "I
knew that the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ looked like our little
maid who minds the hens."
 The prince married Dionysia the very next day and Dionysia was the
very happiest girl in all the world, for from the first moment that
she had seen the prince, she had known that he was the one above all
others whom she wished to marry.
 Alas! In Dionysia's excitement she forgot all about calling the name
of her old playmate, Labismena, at the hour of her marriage as she had
promised to do. She thought of nothing but the prince.
 There was no escape for Labismena. She had to remain in the form of a
sea serpent because of Dionysia's neglect. She had lost her chance to
come out of the sea and become a lovely princess herself and find a
charming prince of her own. For this reason her sad moan is heard in
the sea until this very day. Perhaps you have noticed it.
 You will often hear the call come from the sea as it breaks against
the shore, "Dionysia, Di-o-ny-si-a." No wonder that the sea moans. It
is enough to make a sea serpent sad to be forgotten by the very person
one has done most to help.
Source: http://fairytalesandfolklore.com/tale.php?tale=539

 Have anyone read the whole story? I hope so u.ú
See you
Hej då

MYTHOLOGY: ATHENA

Hej :)
How are you? I almost forgot about it D:
 ATHE′NA (Athênê or Athêna), one of the great divinities of the Greeks. (Homer Il. v. 880) calls her a daughter of Zeus, without any allusion to her mother or to the manner in which she was called into existence, while most of the later traditions agree in stating that she was born from the head of Zeus. According to Hesiod (Theog. 886, &c.), Metis, the first wife of Zeus, was the mother of Athena, but when Metis was pregnant with her, Zeus, on the advice of Gaea and Uranus, swallowed Metis up, and afterwards gave birth himself to Athena, who sprang from his head. (Hesiod, l. c. 924.) Pindar (Ol. vii. 35, &c.) adds, that Hephaestus split the head of Zeus with his axe, and that Athena sprang forth with a mighty war-shout. Others relate, that Prometheus or Hermes or Palamaon assisted Zeus in giving birth to Athena, and mentioned the river Triton as the place where the event took place. (Apollod. i. 4. § 6; Schol. ad Pind. Ol. vii. 66.) Other traditions again relate, that Athena sprang from the head of Zeus in full armour, a statement for which Stesichorus is said to have been the most ancient authority. (Tzetz. ad Lycoph. 355; Philostr. Icon. ii. 27; Schol. ad Apollon. iv. 1310.)
 All these traditions, however, agree in making Athena a daughter of Zeus; but a second set regard her as the daughter of Pallas, the winged giant, whom she afterwards killed on account of his attempting to violate her chastity, whose skin she used as her aegis, and whose wings she fastened to her own feet. (Tzetz. ad Lycoph. l. c.; Cic. de Nat. Deor. iii. 23.)
 A third tradition carries us to Libya, and calls Athena a daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis. Athena, says Herodotus (iv. 180), on one occasion became angry with her father and went to Zeus, who made her his own daughter. This passage shows more clearly than any other the manner in which genuine and ancient Hellenic myths were transplanted to Libya, where they were afterwards regarded as the sources of Hellenic ones. Respecting this Libyan Athena, it is farther related, that she was educated by the rivergod Triton, together with his own daughter Pallas. (Apollod. iii. 12. § 3.) In Libya she was also said to have invented the flute; for when Perseus had cut off the head of Medusa, and Stheno and Euryale, the sisters of Medusa, lamented her death, while plaintive sounds issued from the mouths of the serpents which surrounded their heads, Athena is said to have imitated these sounds on a reed. (Pind. Pyth. xii. 19, &c.; compare the other accounts in Hygin. Fab. 165; Apollod. i. 4. § 2 ; Paus. i. 24. § 1.)
 The connexion of Athena with Triton and Tritonis caused afterwards the various traditions about her birth-place, so that wherever there was a river or a well of that name, as in Crete, Thessaly, Boeotia, Arcadia, and Egypt, the inhabitants of those districts asserted that Athena was born there. It is from such birth-places on a river Triton that she seems to have been called Tritonis or Tritogeneia (Paus. ix. 33. § 5), though it should be observed that this surname is also explained in other ways; for some derive it from an ancient Cretan, Aeolic, or Boeotian word, tritô, signifying "head," so that it would mean " the goddess born from the head," and others think that it was intended to commemorate the circumstance of her being born on the third day of the month. (Tztez. ad Lycoph. 519.) The connexion of Athena with Triton naturally suggests, that we have to look for the most ancient seat of her worship in Greece to the banks of the river Triton in Boeotia, which emptied itself into lake Copais, and on which there were two ancient Pelasgian towns, Athenae and Eleusis, which were according to tradition swallowed up by the lake. From thence her worship was carried by the Minyans into Attica, Libya, and other countries. (Müller, Orchom. p. 355.) We must lastly notice one tradition, which made Athena a daughter of Itonius and sister of Iodama, who was killed by Athena (Paus. ix. 34. § 1; Tzetz. ad Lycoph. 355), and another according to which she was the daughter of Hephaestus.
 These various traditions about Athena arose, as in most other cases, from local legends and from identifications of the Greek Athena with other divinities. The common notion which the Greeks entertained about her, and which was most widely spread in the ancient world, is, that she was the daughter of Zeus, and if we take Metis to have been her mother, we have at once the clue to the character which she bears in the religion of Greece ; for, as her father was the most powerful and her mother the wisest among the gods, so Athena was a combination of the two, that is, a goddess in whom power and wisdom were harmoniously blended. From this fundamental idea may be derived the various aspects under which she appears in the ancient writers. She seems to have been a divinity of a purely ethical character, and not the representative of any particular physical power manifested in nature; her power and wisdom appear in her being the protectress and preserver of the state and of social institutions. Everything, therefore, which gives to the state strength and prosperity, such as agriculture, inventions, and industry, as well as everything which preserves and protects it from injurious influence from without, such as the defence of the walls, fortresses, and harbours, is under her immediate care.
 As the protectress of agriculture, Athena is represented as the inventor of the plough and rake: she created the olive tree, the greatest blessing of Attica, taught the people to yoke oxen to the plough, took care of the breeding of horses, and instructed men how to tame them by the bridle, her own invention. Allusions to this feature of her character are contained in the epithets boudeia, boarmia, agripha, hippia, or chalinitis. (Eustath. ad Hom. p. 1076; Tzetz. ad Lycoph. 520; Hesych. s. v. Hippia; Serv. ad Aen. iv. 402; Pind. Ol. xiii. 79.) At the beginning of spring thanks were offered to her in advance (procharistêria, Suid. s. v.) for the protection she was to afford to the fields.
 Besides the inventions relating to agriculture, others also connected with various kinds of science, industry, and art, are ascribed to her, and all her inventions are not of the kind which men make by chance or accident, but such as require thought and meditation. We may notice the invention of numbers (Liv. vii. 3), of the trumpet (Böckh, ad Pind. p. 344), the chariot, and navigation. [Aethyia.] In regard to all kinds of useful arts, she was believed to have made men acquainted with the means and instruments which are necessary for practising them, such as the art of producing fire.
 She was further believed to have invented nearly every kind of work in which women were employed, and she herself was skilled in such work : in short Athena and Hephaestus were the great patrons both of the useful and elegant arts. Hence she is called erganê (Paus. i. 24. § 3), and later writers make her the goddess of all widom, knowledge, and art, and represent her as sitting on the right hand side of her father Zeus, and supporting him with her counsel. (Hom. Od. xxiii 160, xviii. 190; Hymn. in Ven. 4, 7, &c.; Plut. Cim. 10; Ovid, Fast. iii. 833; Orph. Hymn. xxxi. 8; Spanh. ad Callim. p. 643; Horat. Carm. i. 12. 19; comp. Dict. of Ant. under Athênaia and Chalkeia.) As the goddess who made so many inventions necessary and useful in civilized life, she is characterized by various epithets and surnames, expressing the keenness of her sight or the power of her intellect, such as optiletis, ophthalmitis, oxuderkês, glaukôpis, poluboulos, polumêtis, and mêchanitis.
 As the patron divinity of the state, she was at Athens the protectress of the phratries and houses which formed the basis of the state. The festival of the Apaturia had a direct reference to this particular point in the character of the goddess. (Dict. of Ant. s. v. Apaturia.) She also maintained the authority of the law, and justice, and order, in the courts and the assembly of the people. This notion was as ancient as the Homeric poems, in which she is described as assisting Odysseus against the lawless conduct of the suitors. (Od. xiii. 394.) She was believed to have instituted the ancient court of the Areiopagus, and in cases where the votes of the judges were equally diviled, she gave the casting one in favour of the accused. (Aeschyl. Eum. 753; comp. Paus. i. 28. § 5.) The epithets which have reference to this part of the goddess's character are axiopoinos, the avenger (Paus. iii. 15. § 4), Boulaia, and aguraia. (iii. 11. § 8.)
 As Athena promoted the internal prosperity of the state, by encouraging agriculture and industry, and by maintaining law and order in all public transactions, so also she protected the state from outward enemies, and thus assumes the character of a warlike divinity, though in a very different sense from Ares, Eris, or Enyo. According to Homer (Il. v. 736, &c.), she does not even bear arms, but borrows them from Zeus; she keeps men from slaughter when prudence demands it (Il. i. 199, &c.), and repels Ares's savage love of war, and conquers him. (v. 840, &c., xxi. 406.) She does not love war for its own sake, but simply on account of the advantages which the state gains in engaging in it; and she therefore supports only such warlike undertakings as are begun with prudence, and are likely to be followed by favourable results. (x. 244, &c.) The epithets which she derives from her warlike character are ageleia, laphria, alkimachê, laossoos, and others. In times of war, towns, fortresses, and harbours are under her especial care, whence she is designated as erusiptolis, alalkomenêïs, polias, poliouchos, akraia, akria, klêdouchos, pulaitis, promachorma, and the like.
 As the prudent goddess of war, she is also the protectress of all heroes who are distinguished for prudence and good counsel, as well as for their strength and valour, such as Heracles, Perseus, Bellerophontes, Achilles, Diomedes, and Odysseus. In the war of Zeus against the giants, she assisted her father and Heracles with her counsel, and also took an active part in it, for she buried Enceladus under the island of Sicily, and slew Pallas. (Apollod. i. 6. § 1, &c.; comp. Spanheim, ad Callim. p. 643; Horat. Carm. i. 12. 19.) In the Trojan war she sided with the more civilised Greeks, though on their return home she visited them with storms, on account of the manner in which the Locrian Ajax had treated Cassandra in her temple. As a goddess of war and the protectress of heroes, Athena usually appears in armour, with the aegis and a golden staff, with which she bestows on her favourites youth and majesty. (Hom. Od. xvi. 172.)
 The character of Athena, as we have here traced it, holds a middle place between the male and female, whence she is called in an Orphic hymn (xxxi. 10) arsên kai thêlus, and hence also she is a virgin divinity (Hom. Hymn. ix. 3), whose heart is inaccessible to the passion of love, and who shuns matrimonial connexion. Teiresias was deprived of his sight for having seen her in the bath (Callim. Hymn. pp. 546,589), and Hephaestus, who made an attempt upon her chastity, was obliged to flee. (Apollod. iii. 6. § 7, 14. § 6; Hom. Il. ii. 547, &c.; comp. Tzetz. ad Lycophr. 111.) For this reason, the ancient traditions always describe the goddess as dressed; and when Ovid (Heroid. v. 36) makes her appear naked before Paris, he abandons the genuine old story. Her statue also was always dressed, and when it was carried about at the Attic festivals, it was entirely covered. But, notwithstanding the common opinion of her virgin character, there are some traditions of late origin which describe her as a mother. Thus, Apollo is called a son of Hephaestus and Athena -- a legend which may have arisen at the time when the Ionians introduced the worship of Apollo into Attica, and when this new divinity was placed in some family connexion with the ancient goddess of the country. (Müller, Dor. ii. 2. § 13.) Lychnus also is called a son of Hephaestus and Athena. (Spanheim, ad Callim. p. 644.)
 Athena was worshipped in all parts of Greece, and from the ancient towns on the lake Copais her worship was nitroduced at a very early period into Attica, where she became the great national divinity of the city and the country. Here she was afterwards regarded as the thea sôteira, ugieia, and paiônia, and the serpent, the symbol of perpetual renovation, was sacred to her. (Paus. i. 23. § 5, 31. § 3, 2. § 4.) At Lindus in Rhodes her worship was likewise very ancient. Among the things sacred to her we may mention the owl, serpent, cock, and olive-tree, which she was said to have created in her contest with Poseidon about the possession of Attica. (Plut. de Is. et Os.; Paus. vi. 26. § 2, i. 24. § 3; Hygin. Fab. 164.) At Corone in Messenia her statue bore a crow in its hand. (Paus. iv. 34. § 3.)
 The sacrifices offered to her consisted of bulls, whence she probably derived the surname of taurobolos (Suid. s. v.), rams, and cows. (Horn. Il. ii. 550; Ov. Met. iv. 754.) Eustathius (ad Hom. l. c.) remarks, that only female animals were sacrificed to her, but no female lambs. In Ilion, Locrian maidens or children are said to have been sacrificed to her every year as an atonement for the crime committed by the Locrian Ajax upon Cassandra; and Suidas (s. v. poinê) states, that these human sacrifices continued to be offered to her down to B. C. 346. Respecting the great festivals of Athena at Athens, see Dict. of Ant. s. vv. Panathenaea and Arrhephoria.
 Athena was frequently represented in works of art; but those in which her figure reached the highest ideal of perfection were the three statues by Pheidias. The first was the celebrated colossal statue of the goddess, of gold and ivory, which was erected on the acropolis of Athens; the second was a still greater bronze statue, made out of the spoils taken by the Athenians in the battle of Marathon; the third was a small bronze statue called the beautiful or the Lemnian Athena, because it had been dedicated at Athens by the Lemnians. The first of these statues represented the goddess in a standing position, bearing in her hand a Nike four cubits in height. The shield stood by her feet; her robe came down to her feet, on her breast was the head of Medusa, in her right hand she bore a lance, and at her feet there lay a serpent. (Paus. i. 24. § 7, 28. § 2.) We still possess a great number of representations of Athena in statues, colossal busts, reliefs, coins, and in vase-paintings.
 Among the attributes which characterise the goddess in these works of art, we mention -- 1. The helmet, which she usually wears on her head, but in a few instances carries in her hand. It is usually ornamented in the most beautiful manner with griffins, heads of rams, horses, and sphinxes. (Comp. Horn. Il. v. 743.) 2. The aegis. (Dict. of Ant. s. v. Aegis.) 3. The round Argolic shield. in the centre of which is represented the head of Medusa. 4. Objects sacred to her, such as an olive branch, a serpent, an owl, a cock, and a lance. Her garment is usually the Spartan tunic without sleeves, and over it she wears a cloak, the peplus, or, though rarely, the chlamys. The general expression of her figure is thoughtfulness and earnestness; her face is rather oval than round, the hair is rich and generally combed backwards over the temples, and floats freely down behind. The whole figure is majestic, and rather strong built than slender: the hips are small and the shoulders broad, so that the whole somewhat resembles a male figure.
Source: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
(Source: http://www.theoi.com/Olympios/Athena.html)

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