Mention Ares and most people picture a blood-soaked god of battle.
Ancient poets certainly encouraged that image. In the Iliad, Ares appears as the embodiment of warfare’s chaos, violence, and destruction. He is feared, criticised, wounded, and even rebuked by Zeus himself.
Yet the myths tell a more complicated story.
Jump Menu
- Who Is Ares?
- Ares in Greek Mythology
- Ares and the Defence of Alcippe
- Ares and Modern Devotion
- Ares as Archetype
- Ares Correspondences
- The Warrior’s Path Tarot Spread
Ares is not only the force of conflict. He is also a defender of boundaries, a protector of those under his care, a father who avenges violence committed against his daughter, a patron of courage, and a deity whose modern revival has surprised even many long-time students of Greek religion.
Today, many contemporary devotees—particularly women—describe experiences of Ares that seem very different from his Homeric reputation. Rather than encountering him solely as a god of warfare, they speak of him as a source of protection, resilience, personal sovereignty, healthy anger, and the strength to stand against injustice.
This raises an interesting question.
Have modern practitioners simply reinvented Ares for a different age, or have these dimensions always existed beneath the surface of the surviving myths?
To understand Ares, we need to look beyond the stories that made him famous.
Who Is Ares?
Ares is the son of Zeus and Hera and one of the Twelve Olympians.
He is most commonly known as the Greek god of war, battle, courage, and martial power. Yet this familiar description only scratches the surface.
Unlike Athena, who represents strategic warfare, planning, discipline, and military intelligence, Ares embodies the immediate experience of conflict itself. He is the surge of adrenaline before a confrontation, the instinct to fight back when threatened, the courage to stand one’s ground, and the willingness to take action when action becomes necessary.
Where Athena asks us to think, Ares asks us to act.
Where Athena plans the campaign, Ares enters the battlefield.
Both are necessary.
Yet the ancient sources reveal a more complex deity than the popular image of a blood-soaked war god might suggest. In the Orphic Hymn to Ares, the god is invoked as a helper of humanity and asked to restrain the destructive impulses that lead to conflict.
The Orphic Hymn to Ares presents Ares not merely as the instigator of war but as a divine power capable of transforming destructive aggression into disciplined strength. Rather than glorifying violence for its own sake, the hymn asks Ares to guide human beings towards courage governed by wisdom and action tempered by self-control.
It is a vision of the god that resonates strongly with many modern devotees, who experience Ares not only as a warrior but also as a source of courage, protection, resilience, and personal sovereignty.
Ares in Greek Mythology
The surviving myths present Ares as one of the most controversial Olympians.
In Homer, he often appears as impulsive, passionate, and destructive. He fights alongside the Trojans during the Trojan War and is repeatedly associated with the suffering and unpredictability of battle.
Zeus himself criticises Ares for delighting in conflict.
Yet mythology also preserves very different images of the god.
Ares is the lover of Aphrodite, creating one of the most enduring divine pairings in Greek mythology. Their union symbolically joins passion and power, attraction and conflict, beauty and strength.
The myths also closely link Ares with the Amazons, the legendary warrior women who were sometimes described as his daughters or devotees. This connection may partly explain his appeal among many contemporary female practitioners.
Why Did the Greeks Distrust Ares?
Part of what makes Ares fascinating is that Greek culture itself often held mixed feelings about him.
The Greeks admired courage, but they also valued moderation, self-control, wisdom, and civic order.
Athena represented warfare disciplined by intelligence.
Ares represented warfare stripped down to its rawest reality.
Fear.
Rage.
Survival.
Violence.
Courage.
This made him both necessary and unsettling.
The Greeks understood that conflict could never be completely controlled. However sophisticated a civilisation becomes, there remain moments when decisions must be made, boundaries defended, and dangers confronted.
Ares embodies this uncomfortable truth.
Ares and the Defence of Alcippe
One of the most important myths for understanding Ares is often overlooked.
According to the tradition, Halirrhothios, a son of Poseidon, assaulted or attempted to violate Ares’ daughter Alcippe.
Ares responded by killing him.
Poseidon brought charges against Ares before the gods, and the trial was held on the hill later known as the Areopagus, the Hill of Ares, in Athens.
Ares was acquitted.
This story reveals a very different aspect of the god.
Here, Ares is not seeking conquest.
He is not fighting for glory.
He is defending someone under his protection.
For many modern devotees, this myth provides a key to understanding their experiences of Ares as a protector, guardian, and defender of personal sovereignty.
The story also raises enduring questions about justice, vengeance, and the use of force due to the violation of a sacred boundary.
Despite his difficult reputation in literature, Ares was genuinely worshipped throughout the Greek world.
The Areopagus in Athens preserved his association with justice and legal judgement.
Spartan traditions naturally honoured martial excellence and military discipline, although Ares never occupied quite the central role in Spartan religion that modern assumptions sometimes suggest.
In Thebes, Ares was closely linked to the city’s foundation myths through Cadmus and the dragon of Ares, whose teeth gave rise to the legendary Spartoi. The god, therefore, occupied a more prominent place in Theban tradition than he did in some other regions of Greece.
Various local cults dedicated sacrifices, offerings, and shrines to him.
As with many Greek gods, regional differences mattered. There was no single, universally accepted understanding of Ares.
Greek religion was inherently pluralistic.
The Ares worshipped in one city might not be understood in exactly the same way elsewhere.
Ares and Modern Devotion
Ares has experienced something of a revival among modern pagans, polytheists, and devotional practitioners.
Many contemporary devotees describe him as a patron of:
- Courage
- Self-defence
- Personal sovereignty
- Boundary-setting
- Recovery from abuse
- Military service
- Emergency services
- Physical training
- Martial arts
- Activism
This interpretation sometimes creates tension within modern Hellenic communities.
Some reconstructionist practitioners emphasise the ancient literary evidence and caution against projecting modern values onto the gods. Others point to their devotional relationships and personal experiences.
The tension itself is worth acknowledging.
The Greeks themselves understood the gods through local cults, epithets, and regional traditions. Different communities often emphasised different aspects of the same deity.
Rather than assuming Ares has changed, it may be more accurate to say that different facets of his nature become visible in different cultural and historical circumstances.
For a Bronze Age warrior, Ares may appear on the battlefield.
A modern practitioner leaving an abusive relationship, learning self-defence, or reclaiming personal sovereignty, may experience the same divine force differently.
Praying with the Ancient Hymns
As we have already seen, the Orphic Hymn to Ares presents the god not merely as a force of conflict but as a power capable of transforming destructive impulses into disciplined strength and peace.
The Homeric Hymn to Ares offers a complementary perspective. While it honours Ares as a bronze-clad warrior, protector of cities, father of Victory, and ally of justice, it ultimately asks the god for mastery over fear, destructive impulses, and unnecessary conflict.
One of its most striking passages reads:
“Pay heed, you ally of mortals, giver of flourishing youth,
And from on high shed down a gentle light on our life,
And martial strength to give me power to drive from my head
The bitter taint of cowardice…
Blessed One, courage to stay in the painless laws of peace.”
Taken together, the Homeric and Orphic hymns reveal a side of Ares that is often overlooked. Neither prayer glorifies violence for its own sake. Instead, both emphasise courage governed by wisdom, strength guided by self-control, and the responsible use of power. In many ways, the qualities celebrated by modern devotees are already present within these ancient prayers.
Working with Ares Today
Historically attested offerings to Ares include:
- Wine
- Olive oil
- Incense
- Votive offerings
- Martial dedications
Modern devotional adaptations often include:
- Strength training
- Martial arts practice
- Acts of courage
- Self-defence training
- Volunteer service
- Advocacy work
- Boundary-setting practices
These modern expressions should be recognised as adaptations rather than ancient practices.
Yet they often reflect qualities traditionally associated with the god.
One simple devotional practice is to light a red candle on a Tuesday and recite either the Homeric or Orphic Hymn to Ares before prayer, meditation, journaling, strength training, martial arts practice, or Tarot work. Rather than asking Ares to defeat enemies or remove obstacles, focus on cultivating courage, disciplined action, healthy boundaries, and resilience.
The Homeric Hymn is particularly suited to situations requiring confidence, leadership, protection, or the courage to face a difficult challenge. The Orphic Hymn lends itself especially well to inner work involving anger, fear, conflict, self-mastery, and the transformation of destructive patterns.
For those using the Warrior’s Path Tarot Spread below, either hymn may be recited before laying out the cards as a way of attuning to the qualities of courage, protection, responsibility, and right action associated with the god.
The goal is not blind aggression.
The goal is conscious strength.
Ares as Archetype
Psychologically, Ares represents the capacity for decisive action.
His gifts include:
- Courage
- Assertiveness
- Strength
- Vitality
- Protective instinct
- Healthy anger
- Boundaries
- Determination
His shadow expressions include:
- Rage
- Violence
- Recklessness
- Impulsivity
- Domination
- Addiction to conflict
Ares asks difficult questions.
Where have you surrendered your power?
Are you avoiding confrontation in any area of your life?
What requires protection?
Is now the right time to take action?
When is peace wisdom, and when is peace merely avoidance?
Ares Correspondences
Sacred Animals: Wolf, boar, dog
Colours: Red, iron-grey, black
Plants: Oak, nettle, thorn
Incense: Dragonsblood, frankincense
Planet: Mars
Element: Fire
Tarot Resonances: Strength, The Chariot, The Tower
Minor Arcana: 5 of Wands, 7 of Wands, Knight of Swords, Knight of Wands
The Warrior’s Path Tarot Spread
Before laying out the cards, ask the god to reveal where courage, protection, and conscious action are needed in your life.
1. What am I defending?
What truly matters beneath the surface of this situation?
2. Where have I surrendered power?
What boundary has become weak or unclear?
3. What conflict requires my attention?
What needs to be faced rather than avoided?
4. What fear blocks decisive action?
What keeps me hesitating?
5. What strength is awakening?
What inner resource is becoming available?
6. How can I wield power responsibly?
How can I act without becoming destructive?
7. Ares’ Gift
What quality of courage or protection wishes to emerge now?
Final Thoughts
Ares remains one of the most misunderstood figures in Greek religion.
To see him only as a god of violence is to miss much of what makes him compelling.
Ares is the force that rises when a boundary has been crossed.
He is the courage to act when action becomes necessary.
He is the refusal to surrender what must be protected.
Whether encountered as an Olympian deity, a psychological archetype, or both, Ares challenges us to examine our relationship with power itself.
Not power over others.
But the strength required to stand fully in our own.
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Lisa Eddy — Tanit Iris LeFay
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