Greek Mythology Read online

  Acastus

  Actor, of Phocis

  Admetus, of Pherae

  Amphiaraus, of Argos

  Antaeus, of Samos

  Argus, shipbuilder

  Ascalaphus, demigod, son of Ares

  Asterius, of Pelopia

  Atalanta, a huntress

  Augeias, a native of Elis

  Butes, a native of Athens

  Caeneus, a Lapith

  Calais, son of Boreas, the North Wind

  Canthus, of Euboea

  Castor, along with Pollux or Polydeuces, one of the Dioscuri

  Cepheus, son of Aleus of Arcadia

  Corionis, another Lapith

  Echion, demigod, son of Hermes

  Erginus, a native of Miletus

  Euphemus

  Euryalus

  Heracles, demigod, son of Zeus

  Hylas, friend, and companion to Heracles

  Idas, of Messene

  Idmon, demigod, son of Apollo and native of Argos

  Iphicles

  Iphitus, of Mycenae

  Laertes, of Argos

  Lynceus, a brother to Idas

  Melampus, demigod, son of Poseidon

  Meleager, a native of Calydon

  Mopsus, yet another Lapith

  Naupilus, demigod, son of Poseidon and native of Argos

  Oileus, brother to Ajax, a well-known hero

  Orpheus, a poet

  Palaemon, demigod, son of Hephaestus

  Peleus, a member of the race of Myrmidons

  Peneleos, a native of Boetia

  Periclymenus, demigod, son of Poseidon

  Phalerus, a native of Athens

  Phanus, demigod, a native of Crete and son to Dionysus

  Poeas, a native of Magnesia

  Polydeuces (or Pollux), brother to Castor and one of the Dioscuri

  Polyphemus, a native of Arcadia

  Staphylus, a native of Crete and brother to Phanus

  Typhus, the ship’s helmsman on the Argo

  Zetes, another son of Boreas

  Chapter 6: Tales of Zeus

  As king of the gods, there were naturally many myths and legends about Zeus. Zeus was the father figure who presided over the affairs of both god and Man from his perch on Mount Olympus. That being said, Greek myth was pretty clear that most of Zeus’s role in the affairs of Man was of an amorous nature. If Zeus was not chasing after this fair maid or that, he was trying to fix the mess that Hera’s jealousy had created. As everything in Greek mythology seemed to be symbolic, perhaps Zeus symbolized the creative power of men, a power that was often most visible in their propensity for... well, procreation.

  Zeus and Ganymede

  Zeus had many loves. Most of them were men, but not all of them were. Ganymede was a beautiful youth, usually described as being a prince of Troy. He was the great-grandson of Dardanus, the founder of Troy and the namesake for the Dardanelles, part of the passage from the Aegean Sea to the Black Sea. Enamored of the youth, Zeus spirited him off to Mount Olympus to be the cupbearer to the gods. Some say that he accomplished this by taking the form of wind while others said Zeus did this by transforming himself into an apple. This mythological event was a popular inspiration for art throughout the Greco-Roman period.

  Zeus and Leda

  The myth of Zeus and Leda was one of many that were immortalized in art. Leda was the beautiful daughter of the king of Aetolia, a region of Greece. She was the wife of the king of Sparta, a certain Tyndareus. Zeus became enamored of her and desired to have his way with her. Zeus took the form of a swan in order to seduce her. She mated with Zeus while he was in the form of a swan and subsequently laid an egg. From this egg hatched Helen (known as Helen of Troy) and Polydeuces, one of the Dioscuri. Leda also sired Castor (another of the Dioscuri) and Clytemnestra by her husband Tyndareus. These last came by normal, vaginal birth.

  Zeus and Leto

  Leto was most famous for being the mother of the important gods Apollo and Artemis. Leto is also important, mythologically speaking, for being one of the many conquests of Zeus. It was said that Leto was known for being very gentle. In particular, the poet Hesiod described her thus. Because Leto had lain with Zeus, she earned the ire of Hera, who was prone to tormenting those whom Zeus had chosen to rest his eyes upon.

  Leto was being relentlessly pursued by Hera, who was therefore forced to wander from city to city looking for shelter. She finally found refuge on the small island of Delos. It was here that she would give birth to the twin gods Apollo and Artemis. Legend said that it had been Artemis who was born first. Artemis instantly grew to be a woman and assisted her mother in giving birth to Apollo. Apollo followed shortly after. Because Delos was the birthplace of Apollo, it became a famous place throughout the Greek world and a site of refuge during both Greek and Roman times.

  Chapter 7: Tales of Apollo

  Apollo was one of the more important gods of Mount Olympus. He was the god of the sun and was worshipped all over Greece. Indeed, few of the Olympian gods had more stories told about them than Apollo. Although Zeus edges Apollo out somewhat because of his numerous loves (and the numerous forms he took to seduce the women involved in these loves), Apollo perhaps is a close second when it comes to the number of myths and legends. Apollo sired several important children, and he was also the most famous oracle in the Greek world: the oracle of Delphi.

  The Children of Apollo

  Apollo loved many beautiful women, not all of whom fared well. Apollo loved the nymph Daphne, who did everything she could to save herself from the god’s touch. She was transformed into a laurel tree, which the god made his sacred emblem. Corionis was not more fortunate. Corionis, too, was loved by Apollo, but she deserted him after giving birth to Aesculapius, the god of medicine and healing. Artemis revenged herself for this affront to her brother by killing her in a hail of arrows. The infant son of Apollo was snatched away to be raised by Hermes.

  Apollo had a son called Aristaeus by the nymph Cyrene. But perhaps the most famous son of Apollo in Greek myth was Phaeton. Technically, Phaeton was the son of Helios, the embodiment of the sun. Helios was originally a distinct god who eventually was united with Apollo as Apollo Helios. The favored place of Helios or Apollo Helios was the island of Rhodes.

  Phaeton was the son of Apollo Helios, but his friends would not believe him. He asked his father to let him drive his chariot and Apollo reluctantly agreed. Phaeton was not able to control the horse to drive the chariot and he eventually devastated the land that became Libya. Zeus hurled a thunderbolt at him and the young man was turned into a swan. He would live out the rest of his life among the Heliades, who were his sisters. They had been turned into weeping willows because they mourned the death of their brother. This was one of many stories told in the Metamorphoses of Ovid.

  Apollo and Cassandra

  Cassandra is famous as a princess of Troy, but she was well-known for the wrong reasons. This princess was known because no one would believe her prophecies. She had Apollo to thank for this. Apollo had fallen in love with the beautiful daughter of King Priam of Troy. He gave her the gift of foretelling the future, but she disappointed him by falling in love with another. Apollo punished her by taking away her ability to persuade, leaving her only her skill for prophecy. Therefore, Cassandra was relegated to telling startling accurate prophecies that no one believed.

  The Oracle of Delphi

  Delphi was regarded by the Greeks as the center of the world. There was placed here a navel stone. Delphi was the place where the infamous Oracle presided. She was able to speak the words of the divinities of Mount Olympus, and her prophecies always came true. Delphi was sacred to Apollo, but it was believed that it had previously been sacred to another, namely Gaia, the earth goddess and grandmother of Zeus.

  When Delphi was sacred to Gaia it was called Pytho. It is from the name Pytho that the Pythian Games originated. The Oracle of Apollo was also called the Pythia. The Pythian Games were among the most important games in the Greek world. Many
came to compete in the games, just as many came to seek the knowledge of the Pythia. The name also references the Python who was a snake that Apollo vanquished. The ruins of the temple of Apollo can still be seen at Delphi, which rests on the slopes of the famed Mount Parnassus.

  Laocoon

  Laocoon was a priest of Apollo whose death has been immortalized in art. A popular statue group from the Hellenistic Age displayed the manner in which this man died, and a copy from the Roman period remains to be appreciated in the present day. Laocoon was a Trojan priest who unfortunately earned the ire of the god Apollo. Some stories place him as one of the many sons of Priam. Laocoon broke his vow of celibacy by marrying and proceeding to sire children with his wife.

  Laocoon was chosen by the Trojans to make sacrifices to the god Poseidon after the previous priest died. Before beginning his priestly duties, Laocoon warned King Priam to “beware of Greeks bearing gifts,” referring to the Trojan horse that the Greeks were hiding in to sneak into the city. Laocoon went to the altar with his sons Antipas and Thymbreus. While standing at the altar of Poseidon, two sea serpents rose from the sea wrapped their bodies around the three and killed them. The enormous serpents had been sent by Apollo to punish Laocoon.

  Apollo and Hyacinthus

  The Greek gods loved beautiful things, especially beautiful women. Their roving eyes paid special attention to the aesthetic sights that the world of humans had to offer. Zeus was infamous for this, but Apollo was also guilty of this wandering eye. Hyacinthus was one of the loves of Apollo. He would end his life as a flower, one that still exists today.

  Hyacinthus was usually described as a prince of Sparta, the son of King Amyclas and Queen Diomede. Others describe Hyacinthus as being the son of Pierus and Clio, the latter one of the Muses. Hyacinthus was killed by the West Wind, Zephyrus. A discus was sent flying by the West Wind and it struck the young man in the head. Apollo saved the youth that he had loved by transforming him into a pleasant-smelling flower: the hyacinth.

  Chapter 8: The Twelve Labors of Heracles

  Heracles was arguably the greatest hero of Greek legend. He certainly was the most famous. Though his feats bring comparisons to others like Perseus and Theseus, neither of these two could claim the twelve labors that Heracles had to overcome. The source of his labors was a punishment laid upon him by the gods. Heracles was prone to fits of madness, not unlike the “Berzerker” rages that Norsemen were prone to in the sagas. It was during such a rage that Heracles slew not only his brother’s children but his own.

  Heracles’s punishment was to serve the king of Argos, a certain Eurystheus. Like Heracles’s parents, this king was descended from the hero Perseus. As part of his atonement for his crimes, Heracles was bidden to complete twelve labors over a time period of twelve years. These twelve labors were regarded as impossible; they certainly would have been impossible for an ordinary man. In spite of the practical impossibility of his task, Heracles managed to best them all, making him a permanent fixture as the greatest of men (though he technically was a demigod since he was the son of Zeus). As Heracles is sometimes depicted where a lion’s skin, it should come as no surprise that his first task was to overcome the Nemean lion.

  First Labor: The Nemean Lion

  The first labor involved the besting of a lion known as the Nemean lion. This lion was so-called because it lived at a place called Nemea near Corinth. This area would later become the site of a famous athletic competition held every two years called the Nemean Games. This was part of a cycle of games that the best athletes in the historical period attended (a cycle which naturally included the Olympic Games, the most famous games in the Greek world).

  The Nemean lion was an enormous creature who was the offspring of Selene, the embodiment of the moon. The Nemean lived in a cave that could only be entered by one of two ways. After many attempts to best the lion, Heracles came up with an idea. He would seal off one of the entrances, allowing only one route of egress. Then, Heracles battled the lion and strangled it with his bare hands, much as he had the serpents in his crib when he was a babe. It was said that the two mouths of the cave of the Nemean lion embodied the twelve labors themselves, which had a beginning and an end.

  Second Labor: The Hydra of Lernea

  Hydras were monsters with multiple heads. A head regrew each time one was lopped off, making the hydra a seemingly unbeatable flow. Indeed, the Hydra of Lernea sounds like the worst boss in a 1990s Nintendo game. At this point, Heracles was accompanied by his friend Iolaus, who would be around for many of the labors. Iolaus helped Heracles by burning the stumps of the hydra’s heads after Heracles lopped them off to prevent the heads from growing back.

  With his heads unable to regrow, the hydra slowly was defeated until Heracles was finally able to vanquish the terrible beast. But this labor was not done. Heracles dipped his arrows in the blood of the hydra, thus fortifying them with a deadly poison.

  Third Labor: The Wild Boar of Erymanthus

  The wild boar was a vicious animal that inhabited an area of fields and woods. At the time of this labor, the fields of the Wild Boar of Erymanthus were covered with snow. Heracles hunted the animal through fields that were inches deep with snow. Heracles decided that the best way to best the animal was to capture it and deliver it rather than merely to slay it and give Eurystheus of Argos the proof of his victory. Perhaps Heracles real goal was to scare the king as the gods and heroes were known for being playful.

  So Heracles brought the Wild Boar of Erymanthus alive back to King Eurystheus of Argos. It was said that the king was so frightened by the sight of the famous wild boar that he hid so as not to be harmed. He hid in a bronze jar large enough for a man where Heracles found him.

  Fourth Labor: The Hind of Ceryneia

  You may be starting to see a pattern. The earlier labors of Heracles seem to involve the besting of large or fabulous creatures, which seems little more than an exercise in brute strength on the part of the Theban hero. The Hind of Ceryneia was so-called because it lived in Arcadia, which is a forested land in the center of the Peloponnese peninsula. This was a large peninsula that essentially covered the southern half of Greece. On this peninsula were located several cities, including Sparta, Argos, and Elis. Corinth was located on the isthmus that connected this peninsula to mainland Greece. The main cities of Arcadia were called Tegea and Mantinea.

  It was said that the Hind of Ceryneia was a beautiful animal: a deer. The task of Heracles was to capture this hind. Slaying it might have angered the goddess Artemis, so merely capturing it would spare the hero this goddess’s wrath. The deer ran very swiftly, making it difficult for the hero to capture it. It was said to have feet made of bronze and antlers the color of gold metal. The hind was so swift that Heracles was only able to capture it after a year of trying. He took the hind to Eurystheus unharmed.

  Fifth Labor: The Stymphalian Birds

  There is something truly frightening about birds, and the Stymphalian birds were no exception. These were birds of bronze, with their claws, beaks, and wings all made of this powerful metal. The Stymphalian Birds had an appetite for the flesh of humans. The birds were so numerous that their shape blotted out the sun when they all took flight together. Heracles’s first obstacle here was to find a way to frighten them. The second part was then to cause them to never to return to the lands they ravaged again. Heracles managed to frighten the birds by using a giant bronze rattle to create a horrible noise. Heracles was aided in the making of this rattle by the goddess Athena, who apparently was not overly fond of birds (or at least not birds of this sort). The rattle worked and the Stymphalian Birds flew off, never to be heard from again.

  It was said that the healing powers attributed to Heracles were associated with his feats in this labor. Heracles healed the land by getting rid of fearsome animals that plagued it. It was said that Heracles had the ability to heal ague or fever. As fevers were poorly understood at this time, the ability to heal them was enough to gather around one many devotee
s. Also, the acquisition of fever in Greece was associated with living in marshy areas where there were a number of large birds predominating, like ibises and cranes. The Stymphalian birds may have been modeled on these birds associated with Egyptian art.

  Sixth Labor: The Augean Stables

  The midway point of Heracles’s labors was one of the more interesting ones. Heracles was tasked with cleaning the stables of King Augeus. Heracles only had one day to accomplish this labor. Augeus was king of Elis, which was located on the Western end of the Peloponnesus. This was the area of Greece where the Olympian Games would later be held.

  Heracles had a tall order in cleaning these pestilent stables, but he managed to accomplish the task. He did this by ingeniously diverting the course of two rivers. These rivers lay nearby to the stables of King Augeus, and by diverting them he was able to wash the stables of their dung and disease without having to handle each stall or horse individually. This labor has led to a euphemism which refers to the task of having to clean an area that is dirty, even if the dirt represents a religious or moral problem.

  Seventh Labor: The Cretan Bull

  Crete was a land associated with bulls. This is because the Cretans had perfected the art of bull dancing since the Minoan period. Indeed, some of the earliest artists to be found in modern-day Greece comes from the Minoan period on Crete. At the time of this labor, a bull was terrorizing the island. Heracles’s task was to capture this bull and return with it in hand to mainland Greece. This bull was later killed by Theseus, who was known for his prowess against bulls. In besting this labor, Heracles managed to accomplish one of the tasks that were associated with heroes. This sort of test had also been imposed on Jason and Theseus.