Mars, the Red Planet, has been an object of interest for scientists lately. It is because many space explorations have hinted that the planet may have a climate that can support life.
Man’s interest in Mars in not a new one, though. There are many ancient stories about Mars. Mythologies have stories that throw light on the general nature of this planet. Astrologers take special interest in it – Mangal or Ares as they call it – because its position during the birth of a child can make a difference in the child’s luck and future. To astrologers, it a malevolent planet, and brings bad luck to people if placed in wrong positions, but encourage extraordinary courage and power, if rightly placed in the horoscope.
Mythologically, Mars is deeply woven into the stories of the ages, coming down from the most ancient of times. In Babylon, Mars was called Nergal and was the god of war. He was also the scorching noonday sun, the god of plague, epidemics and disasters. Nergal, seeking power, stormed the Underworld, deposed or forced a compromise with the Queen of the Underworld, Ereshkigol, ruling alongside her as the Greek Hades and Persephone later did. Nergal was associated with both the Sun at its hottest point, noonday and with darkness the underworld which made it similar to Mars who was connected to both the Sun and Pluto.
In Hindu mythology, Mars is associated with Kartikeya, who came into being out of a need to fulfill a prophecy. The gods were being terrorized by a Tripurashur, a demon who, according to the prophecy, could only be slain by the seven-day old son of the great ascetic, Shiva. The panic-stricken sages prayed Shiva for mercy. So, he sent his son Kartikeya to deal with the demon. Later, Kartikeya fulfilled this prophecy by killing the demon in a fierce war that took place in the sky.
In Greek mythology, where we primarily get our Mars mythology, he was called Ares, more often spelled Aries. Ares was the son of Zeus and Hera and it is said that both parents detested him. His sister, Athene, called him “a thing of rage made of evil, a two-faced liar.” He seemed to delight in combat and violence for the pleasure of it. In battle, Ares was not the cool, commanding strategist his sister Athene was. Ares easily lost his temper and would rush into battle hotheadedly. He was driven by his passions and he paid for that unbridled personality by reaping the displeasure and disregard of the gods and men alike. He was considered murderous, a bloodstained man-killer, stormer of cities, and a coward who ran away when wounded. Indeed, when he was wounded in battle by Diomedes, he fled angrily back to the Mount Olympus, complaining to his father, Zeus, who rejected him again.
Because the Greeks did not hold Ares in high regard, there were no sacred places built to honor him. His holy places were the battlefields upon which there was only pain and death and destruction. He was commonly associated with Thrace, a region north of Greece that was inhabited by barbaric tribes.
Ares was not totally alone, however. He had the love of Aphrodite and the friendship of Hades who recruited the war heroes for the underworld. Mars joined the army of Hades, and set out for war.