The
Judgment of Poseidon
It is good to be here today, Zeus. I feel very lucky to be here
competing, and I thank you for giving me this opportunity.
Brother, I may
not be the strongest god or the smartest god but I feel like I have
been the best god I can be. That is not say I don't realize the powers
that I hold or that I am ungrateful for the life that I hold. I know
the importance of my duties as ruler of the rivers and seas. I hold the
power to create massive storms upon the water tops and to then quiet
them in an instant.
I do not want to
boast to you, brother, because I know that I am not perfect. There have
been times where I was weak; I take these moments as lesson though.
Remember, Zeus, when the goddess Demeter and I had quarreled over the
land just east of Mt. Olympus? We had gone to you and the other gods to
help decide to whom the land truly belonged to. So we all decided that
Demeter and I would have a competition. Whoever of us could make
the most useful gift for the people would be the owner.
I thought the
people would be able to make great use out of a spring of water. So I
proceeded with my great three-speared trident and struck the land so
that a stream of fresh salt water from the sea would gush from the land
for the people to use.
I had thought having the salt-water spring would be helpful to the
people so they
would not have to travel so far to edges of the sea. Unfortunately, I
had made that decision too quickly for I forgot the people could not
drink the salty water from the sea as I could. Demeter's gift of the
great olive tree ended up being of better use to the people because of
its supply of oil and fruits. Demeter won the land but that it is not
say my spring was of no use to the people. The people could not drink
from it but they surely have been able to admire the beautiful spring
that I created. This competition also helped me learn and understand
more about the people.
I bring
much more beauty to this world that just the waters from that spring. I
love nothing
more than to see the faces of the people as they gaze in wonderment at
some
of my creations. It is unfortunate that the people can’t see deep
enough in the waters to know the beauty of the coral castle that I have
built. They can, however, look down and see my wondrous gardens of sea
green plants and vines that appear upon the floors of the sea. They can
also gaze upon my chariot as the sea shell carriage glides over the
waters. They can all see the beautiful creatures that support and
accompany me with the chariot, like the great sea-horses and the strong
green-haired Tritons that have chests like men and fish tails for
legs. I am proud to provide all these for the people to see and admire.
I am
grateful to be worshiped by the people and I take great pride in the
temples they have created for me along the shores of the sea. I wish
for you to think of not only all that I have done, but what my other
competitors have done as well. I wish for you, Zeus, to take all this
in and make the decision that is best for you. I thank you again,
brother,
for all you have done today and all that you will do tomorrow.
Authors Note
The original
story of Poseidon, the God of the Sea, is told in a third person point
of view. The main focus of the original story was on Poseidon's
gorgeous castle and the creatures which followed him as he crossed the
sea. The original story also discussed the nymphs, who were similar to
Tritons but could only come out at night because the light of day was
too bright for their eyes.
I changed the
story about Poseidon and the quarrel over the land also.
The original story never named the goddess that Poseidon quarreled
with. I felt it would be very fitting to have the goddess be Demeter
since she is his competitor and also goddess of the earth.
However, in other versions of the story it is the Goddess Athena that
Poseidon competes with. The land that they fight over is actually what
is now the city of Athens. The original
story also stated that Poseidon's salt-water spring was of no use at
all the
people, except to prove that the competition had taken place. I wanted
the spring to be something the people admired so that it could redeem
Poseidon. I tried to make Poseidon a little more submissive than
Demeter and Hades. He is a great and powerful god but I wanted him to
have less of an ego than the other gods for contrast; maybe
this will be something Zeus comes to respect in the end.
Story: Hades, King of the Dead
Author: Caroline H. and Samuel B.
Harding
Book: Greek Gods, Heroes, and Men
Year Published: 1905
Web Source: Baldwin
Project