What does he do, when he's in play? What is play, or "Capital P" Play, for Mars?
Play, for Mars, might be a very competitive thing. But I think Capital P Play for Mars would be something for which there is no competition, no equivalent to winning or losing, victory, or loss.
Rather, I think Play for Mars would be just the opposite - no downside. Because so much of his work is colored by the inherent notion of conflict, opposition, and the effort to vanquish the opposition, I think Play for Mars, the kind that leads to his own personal development and is also "Fun" would be loss-less adventure. Experimentation. Gaiety and laughing without inhibition. Silly joy.
I need to understand this guy better. Partly because I'm born under the sign of the Ram. Aries is part of my blueprint. But also because I haven't been a very active in play over the past many years, especially non-competitive play. And also because I think I'm missing an essential tool in the toolkit for surviving and evolving. For manifesting my dreams and visions. Play is something I need to learn, and, perhaps, need to teach.
Or so the stars suggested to me tonight as I walked the dog out under the moonlight.
You might also take a look at Tyr, his Norse cousin, for another look at what Play means to a war god -- the Norse know better than anyone how to kick back. And consider also, the children of Mars, to better understand his aspects: Romulus and Remus (empire builders!), Cupid, and as Ares, the goddess of Harmony, the Amazons (in general and also some of their queens in particular), gods of panic and fear, etc. It's actually quite interesting to me that Ares has so many daughters in contrast to a god like Zeus, who had very few, if any, besides Helen.
ReplyDeleteThis might be more information than you need, but I find that if you want to get to the heart of it, exploring the relationships of that particular god with his family and friends goes a long way.
I suggest looking to prehistory and the antecedents of Mars. The energy seems to that of adventure, exploration, and the joy of challenging oneself.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ladies! Good suggestions. I think looking at both ancestors and descendants is quite illuminating. What essences coalesced into Mars, and what key characteristics displayed themselves in his progeny? Pretty cool ideas.
ReplyDeleteAres had many daughters? I didn't know that. That IS interesting to contemplate...
I blogged about the Daughters of Ares over at Good to Begin Well, with a solid link for you to take a closer look yourself, and some GREAT discussion about Ares/Mars in the comments.
ReplyDeleteHey - how come you didn't provide the link to the post? We want to explore!
ReplyDeleteHa. I was not sure if it was cool to link or not, but here it is: http://blog.amaliadillin.com/2011/12/daughters-of-ares.html
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