The mountain of the Muses, Helicon, is also sacred to Helios, sun god, later subsumed into Apollo, a hunter and protector god of oaths/truth, honor, and revenge as well as other attributes (the lyre or kithara was played by Apollo and Artemis). Apollon became a sunlight god as well as companion of the Muses. He replaced Helios at his mountain, home of the Muses.
The Muses
Mnemosyne, one of the Elder Mousai
As you scroll down the Muses page, you will see a menu on the left that lists many pages of Muse related information. ["Index of Muses Pages"]
Mnemosyne is their mother and Helios is their cousin. Helios is cousin to Leto, mother of Apollo, too.
A
helicon is also a spiral tuba! Helicoidal is a spiral form - Helios 'circles' the Earth, but there is movement from north to south and back again, thus the connection of Helios to a spiral form as well as a circle.
Heliogram is communication via flashing sunlight off of mirrors.
Heliotherapy is using sunlight to heal.
Heliozoa are microscopic single celled aquatic animals. They have spherical shells with fine radiating 'spikes' or needles. Their name is derived from "
Helio-" 'sun, solar', and "zooion", 'animal'. This is a good illustration of how spirals are connected to Helios with his circular seeming orbit that is really a spiral because of the Earth's motion around the Sun.
The Hippocrene Spring or Fountain is opened by the white horse of the Sun, who flies high in the sky. (Other "Greek" gods also from Anatolia include Medusa, Pegasus, Artemis, Leto, Rhea/Kybele, Zeus, aspects of Hera, Aphrodite, etc., etc.)
It is also known that the lunar connection is 'seen' via the crescent hooves, white like the moon. Some are not white though, like these
Pegasos Aithiopikos:
The hippocampus is important in consciousness and magickal or meditative work. It has a connection to the Muses, and thus to Pegasus, the most famous of Poseidon's animal children.
Poseidon is the god of the horse in Hellenic myth. Horses came with migrants, invaders, and colonists from Asia, and were also brought by ship to islands. Thus Poseidon is a 'father' of horses, bringing them to different peoples and lands.
Poseidon is the "husband of Da", or Don, goddess of the Earth. She evolves into Da-Mater, a younger child-bearing age version of Dea Mater, Mother of the Gods. She is an aspect of her Mother, Rhea, even as Kore is an aspect of Demeter. A different theory is that his name means "Lord of the Waters".
here is the
Poseidon page on Theoi.com.
Demeter is also a mare goddess. Poseidon raped her in horse form, and she became Demeter Erinys "Furious", and gave birth to the goddess
Despoina, "She Whose Name Cannot Be Spoken".
Despoina is the embodiment of innocence and violation, peace and rage, giver of gifts and shuns the impious and wicked. She is likely a prototype of Persephone,and her shrines were in Arcadia. Her brother is the horse
Arion.
Pegasus has a brother,
Khrysaor.
Their mother is Medusa, boar toothed and bristled, snake haired, and winged. She/they are likely an aspect of Athene, also winged and associated with snakes and aggressive, war-like behavior.. This is from the Gorgon page:
Greek Name |
Transliteration |
Latin Spelling |
Translation
|
Medousa
Medoush | Medousa
Medousê | Medusa
Medusa | Guardian, Queen
(medeôn) |
| Eurualh | Euryalê | Euryale | Wide-Stepping (euryalê) * |
Sqennw
Sqeinw | Sthennô
Stheinô | Sthenno | Strong (sthenos) |
Medusa is Queen, Potnia. Potnos or Pos-eidon is Lord.
Gorgons are considered storm-bringers, winds, etc. and exhibit powers similar to Poseidon.
Pegasos is the beauty and warmth of the spring, the rain that makes the earth flourish and the warm breeze that encourages things to grow. He carries thunderbolts and lightning for his uncle Zeus.
Athene had Poseidon as a consort in ancient times and a suitor in her 'virgin' times. Athene had a son, Erichthonios, half serpent, half man, by Hephaestus (Ptah). If she were a pure maiden, she would not have intercourse. A virgin is a free woman, unmarried and unbound by marital "propriety" or the laws of men. Unmarried does not mean infertile or chaste. Virgin means no man rules her. Her similarities to Anat may be instructive to more ancient ways of perceiving or depicting this goddess. Anat is also a "pure maiden", a back-handed way to address the headstrong goddess.
The Libyans believed that Poseidon was the father of Athene and that Tritonis was her mother. (Lake Tritonis - also part of her connection with Neith or Egypt.) Her Greek mother, Metis, is probably a Greek version of Ma'at in her Wisdom aspect.
The serpent haired
Lamia is also a daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis. Lamia is similar to Medusa in form and parentage.
Khrysaor is also a title of Zeus, Apollo, Artemis, and Demeter. Khrysaor has a half-brother in the skies named
Orion, son of Poseidon.
Khrysaor is associated with the constellation of the winged boar, now called Ursa Major. Demeter Khrysaoros (golden blade) accepted pig sacrifices to ensure a fruitful planting of the newly harvested grain.
Poseidon also accepted boar or pig sacrifices.
Arion has a sister, Despoina. Despoina is also a title of Demeter, Persephone, Aphrodite, and Hekate.
She is horse headed on a human body. She is accompanied by a serpent (mother symbol) and a dolphin (father symbol).
Bellerophon is possibly a son of Poseidon also.
Here is a link to pages of
Greek Constellations.
Click
HERE for a good article that explains more about the Anatolian-Greek mythic, cultural, and
linguistic connections.
The energies of Pegasus are as much about the hidden Poseidon-Neptune-water-freedom-victory energy,
Poseidon Consort of the Mother as fertile, generous, abundant enlivener, and Medusa as Queen, the hidden or repressed Mother aspect of the warrior goddess who is transformed into an apotropaic demon that repels evil, remaining a decorative element on city walls and fulfilling a function as a protective aspect of the City Goddess. Protector, Helper, Liberator, Giver of the Waters of Truth and Beauty, Bringer of Rain in Spring, Inspiration, and Lightning.
