Before Perseus lifts the polished shield, before he hears the snakes move in the dark, before he learns how not to look at the thing he fears most, there is Athena.

This new entry in The Greek World, part of The Alexander Series, introduces children to Athena as the goddess of wisdom, war-craft, shields, strategy, weaving, cities, and difficult good sense. She is not the goddess of wild battle-rage. She is the goddess who knows that courage without judgement can get a person killed.

In Greek myth, heroes do not usually survive because they are simply brave.

Bravery helps, of course. So do strong arms, quick feet, sharp swords, and not making foolish boasts in front of gods. But very often, the hero who survives is the one who receives the right kind of help — and understands how to use it.

Athena’s help is not soft help.

She does not usually make the danger go away. She does not pat the hero on the shoulder and say that everything will be easy.

Athena gives clearer help than that.

She gives a plan.
She gives a warning.
She gives a tool.
She gives the kind of courage that can think.

Athena is one of the great Olympian gods, the daughter of Zeus, and one of the most important divine helpers in Greek myth.

She is often called grey-eyed Athena. This does not mean she is dull or pale. It means she sees clearly. Her gaze is bright, steady, and difficult to fool.

She was born in a very strange way, even by Greek standards, which are already quite strange. In many tellings, Zeus swallowed Metis, a goddess of wisdom, and later suffered a terrible pain in his head. When his head was opened, Athena sprang out fully grown, armed for battle.

This is not the sort of birth most families expect.

The Greeks used the story to show that Athena belonged to wisdom, power, and the mind of Zeus himself. She was not a helpless child among the gods. She arrived ready.

Athena is also connected with cities, especially Athens, which was named for her. She gave the people the olive tree: useful, patient, long-lived, and valuable. Poseidon struck the ground and offered a salt spring or a horse, depending on the telling. Athena offered the olive, and the city chose her.

That tells you something about Athena.

She is not only interested in winning a quarrel.

She is interested in what can last.

Athena often appears when a hero needs more than strength.

She helps Perseus face Medusa.
She helps Odysseus use cunning on his long journey home.
She helps Heracles in some of his impossible labours.
She stands near heroes when the task is too dangerous for ordinary courage.

But Athena’s favour is not the same as being rescued.

If Athena helps you, you may still have to walk into the dark. You may still have to fight. You may still have to keep your hands steady when your fear wants to shake them.

Athena does not make heroes useless by doing everything for them.

She makes them more able to do what must be done.

That is why she matters so much before the story of Perseus. Perseus is sent against a monster no one can look at and live. A sword alone will not be enough. A brave shout will not be enough. Running straight at the danger will be the worst possible idea.

He will need Athena’s kind of courage.

The thoughtful kind.

Continue reading: Athena at The Alexander Series on Substack.