In Greek mythology, the sea god Poseidon became infatuated with Medusa's beauty.
However, the powerful sea-god Poseidon fell in love with Medusa. He was particularly attracted to the priestess's beautiful golden hair. The god seduced Medusa and laid with her in Athena's temple. When Athena learned of these events, the goddess felt personally betrayed.
Ganymede, a beautiful Trojan young man, was aducted by Zeus to serve as his personal cupbearer and lover on mount Olympus among the other gods.
In Ovid, Poseidon rapes Medusa in Athena's temple. In McMullan, Poseidon lures her there under false pretences with the end goal of making romantic advances. In both, Medusa is an innocent victim, and in both Athena is unconcerned with Medusa's lack of complicity and punishes her, not Poseidon.
At the time she was beheaded, Medusa was namely pregnant by Poseidon, god of the sea. Two drops of her blood fell into the sea, from which the giant Chrysaor and the winged horse Pegasus sprang.
During that time, Medusa was pregnant by Poseidon. When Perseus beheaded her, Pegasus, a winged horse, and Chrysaor, a giant wielding a golden sword, sprang from her body.
Apollo, the god of sun and music, is considered the patron of same sex love, as he had many male lovers and was often invoked to bless homosexual unions. He is also called "the champion of male love" by Andrew Callimach.
Poseidon's Affairs
The product of this union was the divine horse, Arion. On another occasion, Poseidon seduced the gorgeous maiden, Medusa, in one of Athena's temples. Naturally, the virgin goddess was enraged that her temple was so defiled.
The Birth and Origins of Dionysus
However, Hera, Zeus' wife, manipulated Semele into demanding Zeus reveal himself in his divine form. Unable to withstand his divine radiance, Semele perished, but Zeus managed to save their unborn child by sewing him into his thigh.
Danaë and Zeus, in the form of golden rain, had sexual relations. Danaë became pregnant and had a son named Perseus. There are many paintings depicting Danaë and this myth of the golden rain.
One day Apollo saw Coronis and became enamoured of her. He lay with her in her home, and consequently she became pregnant. One time when Apollo was away performing his godly duties, Coronis fell in love with Ischys, son of Elatus. Going against her father's warnings, she slept with him in secret.
Nerites: Sea-god, male lover of Poseidon, transformed into a shellfish after a dispute. Confirmed lover. 1 demi-god lover.
But of the six females, three - Athena, Artemis and Hestia - are dedicated virgins, steadfast in their refusal to marry; while one- Zeus' consort Hera - is what might be called a semi-virgin, since she is able to renew her virginity annually by bathing in a sacred spring at Canathus, near Argos.
Medusa's real name before she was cursed was actually Medousa, which means "guardian" in Greek. She was a beautiful maiden with long, golden hair and was a priestess in the temple of Athena. However, she caught the attention of Poseidon, the god of the sea, and they had a secret affair in the temple.
In Greek mythology, the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice (Greek: Ὀρφεύς, Εὐρυδίκη, romanized: Orpheus, Eurydikē) concerns the pitiful love of Orpheus of Thrace, located in northeastern Greece, for the beautiful Eurydice.
Demeter was a daughter of Cronus and Rhea, and was swallowed by her father (along with the rest of Cronus and Rhea's children) shortly after her birth [See Origins]. After Zeus rescued his older siblings from their father, Demeter had an affair with her brother Zeus, which resulted in a daughter, Persephone.
While not frequently chosen for modern children, Dionysus provides a bold option for parents seeking a name with classical roots and dramatic flair. Its rarity ensures any bearer would have a truly unique identity with connections to ancient traditions.
The ancient Greeks believed in arete—excellence in body, mind, and spirit. Training wasn't about isolated muscle groups; it was about functional movement and mastery. They ran, wrestled, climbed, carried, and fought. Instead of building vanity muscles, they trained for survival, competition, and honor.
Hermes spirited the boy away to live with his aunt, Ino (one of his mother's sisters). Ino and her husband, Athamas, raised Dionysus as a girl to try to hide him from Hera's wrath, but Hera was not fooled and caused Ino to go mad. After several mishaps, Ino jumped into the sea, where she became the goddess Leucothea.
Yes, many Greek gods had male lovers, with the norm being bisexuality, though figures like Zeus (with Ganymede), Apollo (with Hyacinthus), Hermes, Dionysus, and the hero Heracles are famous examples, often involved in pederastic relationships or deep bonds that modern interpretation calls homosexual or bisexual. While gods like Ares, Hades, and Hephaestus had fewer or no male lovers, same-sex relationships were common across the pantheon, with Zeus often cited as the prime example of a powerful god with male paramours.
Poseidon claims Percy is his favorite son but he has at least two other good ones that have been just as Great: Thesus- Great King of Athens who slayed the minotaur (Posiedon's mistake) and did a bunch of other Heroic stuff.
Second, historical sources for Attica indicate that, although most men may have married, homosexual behavior was widespread among all levels of society and was considered no more opprobrious than heterosexual behavior.
Many people interpret Artemis to be either lesbian or asexual and for the larger pop mythology community it's no longer interpretation. Artemis is the queer goddess.
The third and final chapter identifies asexual resonances in Athena and Artemis' mythos. Based on these resonances, this thesis recommends Athena and Artemis as additions to the asexual historical tradition.