The Day Ares Lost The War

                                              The Day Ares Lost The War

In Greek mythology, Ares is the god of war, but a women is also represented as the goddess of war, courage, inspiration, wisdom, law and justice. Her name is Athena.

Imagine Ares and Athena in the 21st century. Ares even before knowing Athena pursues her in work, school and wants to control her schedules, her friends, her conversations. He begins chasing her in all things she does, places and people around her. He calls her but says nothing repeatedly.

After sending her several messages to mobile and email, he begins follow her on facebook and other communications tools.
Athena has an university degree and a job she loves.

But Athena is not the only one, Ares persecutes. He has a women in his kingdom that takes care of his children and domestic issues. Her name is Pandora. Ares controles all Pandora hours. She has to justify everything she does, the money she spends, who she talks too, type of conversations and hours she spends outside home. He gets mad and insults her, calls her bad names. He makes her feel emotional inferior. Sometimes he beats her. He beats her so hard that she thinks she can die and starts to feel she has guilt or she deserves it.

Pandora always forgives. Ares gives her roses says "I love you. You are mine. You are the only women that I want just for me". Pandora feels special and she has hope in his change.

Violence against women can assume several forms. All women are potential victims. Young, old, rich or poor.

What is violence? Buy this, I mean, what is crime ?

Insults, controls, violation of private life, physical and emotional abuse, control of clothing. In general all type of acts that makes a women feel emotional inferior.
This is typicall bad relationships based on psycological problems. Good relationships never lead to negative feelings or self-estime attacks.

Its wrong to understand violence only as physical violence. We have a notion of violence against women in the 1993 United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women. In artice 1. Its an act based on physical, sexual or psycological harm that can occurs in private or in public life.
The truth is that if they don´t get out this relationships these women can die.

Violence against women is much more than violence in a relationship. Like happened with Athena.

Like in Greek mythology women are also powerful. Ares is the god of war but Athena is much more. She is the goddess of war, wisdom, inspiration, courage, law and justice.
So, what Athena can do?
Use wisdom to do criminal complaints, protect herself, talk to people about it; use inspiration to not make a war against herself but look within her and create a good sel-estime.
She uses law to achieve justice; she uses courage to live without restrictions, not letting people tell her what to do or where she can go.
 She uses the title of goddess to say no. She says no, because she knows what love is and she wants to be free.
.. and Ares lost the war he made because he doesnt know what love is.

Susana Monteiro