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. Athena retaliated by transforming Medusa into a hideous monster with snakes for hair who would turn anyone who looked at her into stone.
Athena and Poseidon entered into a contest to be the patron of Athens. Poseidon produces a spring of water but it was salty. Athena bested Poseidon by producing an olive tree on the Acropolis. Poseidon also raped Medusa—a mortal who had the reputation of being beautiful—in Athena's temple, desecrating it.
In his dispute with Athena for dominion over Athens, the two gods had a contest as to which one could give the Athenians the best gift. Poseidon shoved his trident into the Acropolis and produced a flowing stream or a horse. Undismayed, Athena gave the Athenians an olive tree. And Poseidon challenged Athena to combat.
Medusa and Poseidon engaged in a love affair and would have two children together, but not before Athena discovered the illicit affair. When Athena discovered the affair, she was enraged and immediately cursed Medusa by taking away her beauty.
Athena was enraged at the disrespect to her shrine and took her revenge. Again, because she couldn't punish Poseidon for insolence, she only took it out on Medusa cursing her.
Poseidon was a god, and Athena was a goddess. She was not powerful enough to punish Poseidon. He is a elder god, which makes him second only to Zeus.
“Instead of punishing Poseidon, Athena turns her rage against Medusa, on the one hand because she is not able to punish the powerful Poseidon, and on the other hand because she is envious of Medusa´s beauty.”
In fact, she was gorgeous and attracted the attention of the sea god Poseidon. There was a problem though; Medusa had taken an oath of chastity in order to serve the virgin goddess Athena in her temple. Instead of taking no for an answer, Poseidon brutally attacked and raped Medusa inside of Athena's temple.
She was lovely, according to the poem—until she was raped in Athena's temple by Poseidon. Athena then punished her for this violation, by turning her into the monstrous, stony-glanced creature that we know.
When Medusa had an affair with the sea god Poseidon, Athena punished her. She turned Medusa into a hideous hag, making her hair into writhing snakes and her skin was turned a greenish hue. Anyone who locked gaze with Medusa was turned into stone. The hero Perseus was sent on a quest to kill Medusa.
Athena and Poseidon didn't have a great relationship(which frankly wasn't unusual for the Olympians). They were rivals. One example of their rivalry was their fight over Athens. Both of them wanted to be the patron god of the new city.
She never had a true lover or someone to hug and hold her; all she had was her loving mother, caring father and most of all her brothers and sisters. For some very strange reason it was hopeless that she would fall in love; Hephaestus tried once, yet failed. Athena was well known for giving advice/mentoring heroes.
According to legend, Athena became the patron goddess of the city of Athens after a competition with Poseidon, though he remained on the Acropolis in the form of his surrogate, Erechtheus. After the fight, Poseidon sent a monstrous flood to the Attic plain to punish the Athenians for not choosing him.
Poseidon came into conflict with a variety of figures in land disputes. Notable among these was a contest for sovereignty over Attica, which he lost to the goddess Athena. Despite losing, Poseidon was also worshipped there, particularly at Colonus (as hippios, “of horses”).
ATHENE (Athena) The goddess of warcraft was, according to some, the daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis (contrary to the usual account in which she springs fully-grown from the head of Zeus).
From that time forward, Poseidon and Athena were rivals. This plays out in the story of the Odyssey where Poseidon tries to thwart Odysseus while Athena tries to help him on his journey.
The myth of Medusa carries with it a plethora of issues. Yes, she was a monster, but she was also a victim. Garbati's work is a reminder that monsters are not always villains, and that the characterisation of good or evil is often complex.
In fact, Athena was jealous of Medusa's beauty and lustrous hair. Poseidon ravaged her and took what she held dearly, her purity. Athena, outraged by this incident, cursed Medusa and turned her wonderful hair into venomous snakes, her beautiful face turned so ugly that any man who gazed upon would turn to stone.
Trivia. Athena was infected by evils with greed, as she presumably became ambitious to rule over the world, and possibly became jealous of Zeus' authority over the Greek pantheon. She also allowed her ambition cloud her judgment, as she manipulated Kratos to kill the Olympians.
So, when Poseidon raped Medusa she became pregnant. When her head was chopped off by Perseus, her children came to be. Pegasus and Chrysaor sprung from the severed neck of Medusa. Pegasus is also one of the most famous characters in Greek mythology, the winged white horse.
The snake-haired Medusa does not become widespread until the first century B.C. The Roman author Ovid describes the mortal Medusa as a beautiful maiden seduced by Poseidon in a temple of Athena. Such a sacrilege attracted the goddess' wrath, and she punished Medusa by turning her hair to snakes.
Poseidon (Neptune), god of the sea, also noticed the girl – Medusa – and decided she would be his. Fleeing from him, Medusa came to the temple of Athena (Minerva), goddess of wisdom. Poseidon captured Medusa in the temple and violated her.
Graves, as did the ancient Greeks, associated snakes with death and destruction. Athena has been depicted with snakes near her and with snake haired Medusa's head upon her shield. This symbolically was to enforce Athena's power of victory through death and destruction of the enemy.
There are several variations of the myth, some of which claim that Medusa was seduced by Poseidon, falling in love with him and choosing to forego her dedication to Athena. The more common version suggests that Medusa remained loyal to the Goddess and was taken by Poseidon against her will.
Personality. By all accounts Poseidon was not specifically evil but rather just casually cruel. He frequently fought with his brother.