Poseidon is the Greek God of Oceans. He is Lord of the Seas, the Earth-shaker, Rain-maker and the Cloud-gatherer. To the Romans, he is Neptune, the Great Sea God.

Poseidon is the brother of Zeus and Hades. Together, they overthrew their father Cronus and the Titans and thereby became the ruling Greek Deities. During the long battle against the Titans, the brothers had help from many others, but one of the most renowned was the Cyclops. The Cyclops bestowed thunderbolts upon Zeus, a cloak of invisibility to Hades and a trident to Poseidon The weapons become symbols of the three Gods. When victory finally came to the brothers, they drew lots for who got what job. Zeus drew the Heavens and became King of the Gods, Hades got the Underworld and Poseidon drew the oceans. They agreed they would all share the Earth but as Poseidon was more often on the mortal realm, the job fell more to him than his brothers.

Poseidon built a great palace in his underwater realm and created beautiful white horses with golden manes to pull his chariot across the ocean for him. Despite the vastness of his oceans, Poseidon was never quite satisfied with his job and secretly wanted to replace his brother Zeus. He plotted often to overthrow his brother and quarrelled with the other Gods attempting to stir up strife. Zeus angered by his deceptions and aggression banished him from Olympus, forcing him to live on the mortal plane. Part of his punishment was that he was to help build the walls of Troy in Anatolia for King Laomedon. Apollo, who also was in Zeus’ bad graces at the time, was forced to join Poseidon in the task. Yet when the wall was completed, King Laomedon refused to pay them as agreed. Hence, when the Greeks attacked Troy, Poseidon supported them instead of King Laomedon and his people.

Poseidon was second only to Zeus in power and was often quarrelsome, greedy and unpredictable. When he walked amongst the mortals, he wore the guise of an old bearded man who most times carried his trademark trident. On his command, the oceans rose up in violence or were calm and placid and they often were a reflection of his moods and emotions. Poseidon was the creator of all sea life, including the sea monsters such as the Cetacean, Sea Serpents and the Kraken. He also created of all the equine. The horse is very special to Poseidon and are seen in the waves as they crash upon the shores. Surprisingly he was also associated to earthquakes.

Much like his brother Zeus, Poseidon fathered many children, most of them being illegitimate. He married the Goddess Amphitrite who gave him his son Triton, who was the first merfolk. He also spent time with Medusa and fathered Pegasus, the flying horse.

Poseidon was not an extremely gentle God. He fought regularly with many of his family and at times had a hard cruel side to him. However, he also had a caring and creative side and was responsible for bringing many of the life forms to this world. From his oceans sprang much new life. He is one of the better-known Greek Deities, perhaps because he spent more time with the mortals than many of his kin did. Poseidon is much like the ocean itself, feared and respected yet loved and revered.