2. Nemesis, Tyche (Fortuna), and Agathodæmon (Bonus Eventus).—Nemesis really denotes the apportionment of that fate which is justly deserved, and a consequent repugnance to that which is not. Homer does not acknowledge Nemesis as a goddess, and so it is probable that her claim to public veneration dates from a later period. She was regarded as a goddess of equality, who watches over the equilibrium of the moral universe, and sees that happiness and misfortune are allotted to man according to merit. Hence arose, subsequently, the idea of an avenging deity, who visits with condign punishment the crimes and wickedness of mankind. In this character she resembles the Furies. The Romans likewise introduced Nemesis into their system; at least her statue stood on the Capitol, though popular superstition never regarded her with a friendly eye.
The various conceptions of Nemesis are again displayed in works of art. The kindly, gentle goddess, who dispenses what is just, is depicted as a young woman of grave and thoughtful aspect, holding in her hand the instruments of measurement and control (cubit, bridle, and rudder). As the stern avenger of human crimes, she appears with wings in a chariot drawn by griffins, with a sword or whip in her hand.
Tyche, the goddess of good fortune, was, according to common accounts, the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. She was usually honoured as the tutelary deity of towns, and as such had temples and statues in many populous cities of Greece and Asia. In course of time, however, the idea gained ground that Tyche was the author of evil as well as of good fortune. She resembled, in this respect, the Fortuna of the Romans, who was regarded as the source of all that is unexpected in human life. Servius Tullius was said to have introduced into Rome the worship of Fortuna, whose favourite he had certainly every reason to regard himself. He erected a temple to her under the name of Fors Fortuna, and made the 24th of June the common festival of the goddess. Later, her worship became still more extensive. Under the most different surnames, some of which referred to the state (Fortuna populi Romani), and others to every description of private affairs, she had a great number of temples and chapels erected in her honour. She had also celebrated temples in Antium and Præneste.
Ancient artists endowed this goddess with various attributes, the most important of which was the rudder, which she held in her hand in token of her power to control the fortunes of mankind. She is also endowed with a sceptre for the same purpose, and with a horn of plenty as the giver of good fortune; sometimes she is also represented with the youthful Plutus in her arms. The later conception of an impartial goddess of fate is apparent in those art-monuments which depict her standing on a ball or wheel. Among the larger existing works, we may mention a copy preserved in the Vatican of a Tyche by Eutychides of Sicyon, which was formerly exhibited in Antioch. The goddess here wears a mural crown on her head as the tutelary deity of towns, and has a sheaf of corn in her right hand.
Besides Fortuna, the Romans honoured a deity called Felicitas as the goddess of positive good fortune. Lucullus is said to have erected a temple to her in Rome, which was adorned with the works of art brought by Mummius from the spoils of Corinth. Even this did not suffice for the religious needs of the people, and we find that the belief in personal protecting deities grew rapidly among both Greeks and Romans. These deities were termed by the Greeks “dæmones,” and by the Romans “genii.” They were believed to be the invisible counsellors of every individual, accompanying him from birth to death, through all the stages of life, with advice and comfort. Offerings of wine, cake, incense, and garlands were made to them, particularly on birthdays.
II.—THE GODS OF THE SEA AND WATERS.
1. Poseidon (Neptunus).—Poseidon, or Neptunus, as he was called by the Romans, was the son of Cronus and Rhea. Homer calls him the younger brother of Zeus, in which case his subjection to the latter is only natural. According to the common account, however, Zeus was the youngest of the sons of Cronus, but acquired the sovereignty over his brothers by having overthrown their cruel father. Poseidon was accordingly indebted to his brother for his dominion over the sea and its deities, and was therefore subject to him. He usually dwelt, not in Olympus, but at the bottom of the sea. Here he was supposed to inhabit, with Amphitrite his wife, a magnificent golden palace in the neighbourhood of Ægæ. Originally, like Oceanus and Pontus, he was a mere symbol of the watery element, but he afterwards attained an entirely independent personality. Even in Homer he no longer appears as the sea itself, but as its mighty ruler, who with his powerful arms upholds and circumscribes the earth. He is violent and impetuous, like the element he represents. When he strikes the sea with his trident, the symbol of his sovereignty, the waves rise with violence, dash in pieces the ships, and inundate the land far and wide. Poseidon likewise possesses the power of producing earthquakes, cleaving rocks, and raising islands in the midst of the sea. On the other hand, a word or look from him suffices to allay the wildest tempest. Virgil, in the first book of the Æneid, has given a beautiful description of the taming of the fierce elements by the god.
Poseidon was naturally regarded as the chief god of all the seafaring classes, such as fishermen, boatmen, and sailors, who esteemed him as their patron and tutelary deity. To him they addressed their prayers before entering on a voyage, to him they brought their offerings in gratitude for their safe return from the perils of the deep.
Poseidon, therefore, enjoyed the highest reputation among the seafaring Ionians. His temples, altars, and statues were most numerous in the harbours and seaport towns, and on islands and promontories. Among the numerous shrines of this deity we may mention that of Corinth, in the neighbourhood of which were celebrated in his honour the Isthmian games, which subsequently became a national festival in Greece, Pylus, Athens, and the islands of Rhodes, Cos, and Tenos.
It was only natural that many legends, local and provincial, should exist about a god who played such an important part in the lives of seafaring folk. In the Trojan epos he figures as a violent enemy of Troy, his indignation having been provoked by the injustice of the Trojan king, Laomedon. Poseidon had built the walls of Troy at the king’s request with the aid of Apollo, but Laomedon having cheated him in the matter of the stipulated reward, Poseidon thereupon sent a terrible sea-monster, which laid waste the crops and slew the inhabitants. They had recourse to the oracle, which counselled the sacrifice of the king’s daughter Hesione. The unhappy maiden was exposed to the monster, but was rescued by Heracles. The fable of this monster, which is manifestly a symbol of the inundation of the sea, is repeated in many succeeding stories (e.g., in the story of Perseus, who rescued in a similar way Andromeda, the daughter of the king of Æthiopia). There are numberless stories, in which Poseidon appears as the father of the different national heroes. The most important is, perhaps, the legend of Theseus, of which we shall speak later on. There was scarcely a Grecian town or district which did not lay claim to divine origin for the person of its founder or ancestral hero. Again, the conception of the wild stormy nature of the sea caused Poseidon to be represented as the father of various giants and monsters. By the nymph Thoösa he became the father of the savage Polyphemus, slain by Odysseus, who thus provoked the implacable enmity of Poseidon. The giant Antæus, who fought with Heracles, was also said to be a son of Poseidon; besides many other monsters, such as Procrustes, Cercyon, and the Aloïdæ.