Online reading of the book myths of ancient Greece creation myths. Legends and myths of ancient Greece
Will rule over all relatives. Hera, having learned about this, accelerated the birth of Perseid's wife Sthenel, who gave birth to the weak and cowardly Eurystheus. Zeus involuntarily had to agree that Hercules, who was born after this by Alcmena, would obey Eurystheus - but not all his life, but only until he accomplished 12 great feats in his service.
From early childhood, Hercules was distinguished by enormous strength. Already in the cradle, he strangled two huge snakes sent by Hera to destroy the baby. Hercules spent his childhood in Thebes, Boeotia. He liberated this city from the power of neighboring Orkhomenes, and in gratitude, the Theban king Creon gave his daughter, Megara, to Hercules. Soon, Hera sent Hercules into a fit of madness, during which he killed his children and the children of his half-brother Iphicles (according to the tragedies of Euripides (“”) and Seneca, Hercules also killed his wife Megara). The Delphic oracle, in atonement for this sin, ordered Hercules to go to Eurystheus and, on his orders, perform the 12 labors that were destined for him by fate.
The first labor of Hercules (summary)
Hercules kills the Nemean lion. Copy from the statue of Lysippos
The second labor of Hercules (summary)
The second labor of Hercules was the fight against the Lernaean Hydra. Painting by A. Pollaiolo, c. 1475
The third labor of Hercules (summary)
Hercules and the Stymphalian Birds. Statue of A. Bourdelle, 1909
The fourth labor of Hercules (summary)
The Fourth Labor of Hercules - Kerenean Hind
The fifth labor of Hercules (summary)
Hercules and the Erymanthian boar. Statue of L. Tuyon, 1904
The sixth labor of Hercules (summary)
King Augeas of Elis, the son of the sun god Helios, received from his father numerous herds of white and red bulls. His huge barnyard had not been cleared for 30 years. Hercules offered Augeas to clear the stall in a day, asking in return for a tenth of his herds. Believing that the hero could not cope with the work in one day, Augeias agreed. Hercules blocked the rivers Alpheus and Peneus with a dam and diverted their water to Augeas's farmyard - all the manure was washed away from it in a day.
The sixth labor - Hercules cleans the stables of Augeas. Roman mosaic from the 3rd century. according to R.H. from Valencia
The seventh labor of Hercules (summary)
Seventh labor - Hercules and the Cretan bull. Roman mosaic from the 3rd century. according to R.H. from Valencia
The Eighth Labor of Hercules (summary)
The Thracian king Diomedes owned horses of wondrous beauty and strength, which could only be kept in a stall with iron chains. Diomedes fed the horses with human meat, killing the foreigners who came to him. Hercules led the horses away by force and defeated Diomedes, who rushed in pursuit, in battle. During this time, the horses tore to pieces Hercules' companion, Abdera, who was guarding them on the ships.
The Ninth Labor of Hercules (summary)
The queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta, wore a belt given to her by the god Ares as a sign of her power. Eurystheus's daughter, Admeta, wanted this belt. Hercules with a detachment of heroes sailed to the kingdom of the Amazons, to the shores of the Pontus Euxine (Black Sea). Hippolyta, at the request of Hercules, wanted to give up the belt voluntarily, but other Amazons attacked the hero and killed several of his companions. Hercules defeated seven of the strongest warriors in battle and put their army to flight. Hippolyta gave him the belt as a ransom for the captured Amazon Melanippe.
On the way back from the country of the Amazons, Hercules saved Hesion, the daughter of the Trojan king Laomendon, who, like Andromeda, was doomed to be sacrificed to a sea monster, at the walls of Troy. Hercules killed the monster, but Laomedont did not give him the promised reward - the horses of Zeus belonging to the Trojans. For this, Hercules, a few years later, made a campaign against Troy, took it and killed the entire family of Laomedon, leaving only one of his sons, Priam, alive. Priam ruled Troy during the glorious Trojan War.
The tenth labor of Hercules (summary)
On the westernmost edge of the earth, the giant Geryon, who had three bodies, three heads, six arms and six legs, was tending cows. By order of Eurystheus, Hercules went after these cows. The long journey to the west itself was already a feat, and in memory of it, Hercules erected two stone (Hercules) pillars on both sides of a narrow strait near the shores of the Ocean (modern Gibraltar). Geryon lived on the island of Erithia. So that Hercules could reach him, the sun god Helios gave him his horses and a golden boat, on which he himself sails across the sky every day.
Having killed Geryon's guards - the giant Eurytion and two-headed dog Ortho - Hercules captured the cows and drove them to the sea. But then Geryon himself rushed at him, covering his three bodies with three shields and throwing three spears at once. However, Hercules shot him with a bow and finished him off with a club, and transported the cows on Helios’s shuttle across the Ocean. On the way to Greece, one of the cows ran away from Hercules to Sicily. To free her, the hero had to kill the Sicilian king Eryx in a duel. Then Hera, hostile to Hercules, sent rabies into the herd, and the cows that had fled from the shores of the Ionian Sea were barely caught in Thrace. Eurystheus, having received Geryon's cows, sacrificed them to Hera.
The Eleventh Labor of Hercules (summary)
By order of Eurystheus, Hercules descended through the Tenar abyss into the dark kingdom of the god of the dead Hades in order to take away his guard from there - the three-headed dog Cerberus, whose tail ended with the head of a dragon. At the very gates of the underworld, Hercules freed the Athenian hero Theseus, rooted to a rock, who, together with his friend, Periphoes, was punished by the gods for trying to steal his wife Persephone from Hades. In the kingdom of the dead, Hercules met the shadow of the hero Meleager, to whom he promised to become the protector of his lonely sister Deianira and marry her. The ruler of the underworld, Hades, himself allowed Hercules to take Cerberus away - but only if the hero was able to tame him. Having found Cerberus, Hercules began to fight him. He half-strangled the dog, pulled him out of the ground and brought him to Mycenae. Cowardly Eurystheus at one glance at terrible dog began to beg Hercules to take her back, which he did.
The Eleventh Labor of Hercules - Cerberus
The Twelfth Labor of Hercules (summary)
Hercules had to find the way to the great titan Atlas (Atlas), who holds the firmament on his shoulders at the edge of the earth. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to take three golden apples from the golden tree in the garden of Atlas. To find out the way to Atlas, Hercules, on the advice of the nymphs, lay in wait for the sea god Nereus on the seashore, grabbed him and held him until he showed the right road. On the way to Atlas through Libya, Hercules had to fight the cruel giant Antaeus, who received new powers by touching his mother, Earth-Gaea. After a long fight, Hercules lifted Antaeus into the air and strangled him without lowering him to the ground. In Egypt, King Busiris wanted to sacrifice Hercules to the gods, but the angry hero killed Busiris along with his son.
The fight of Hercules with Antaeus. Artist O. Coudet, 1819
Photo - Jastrow
Atlas himself went to his garden for three golden apples, but Hercules at that time needed to hold the vault of heaven for him. Atlas wanted to deceive Hercules: he offered to personally take the apples to Eurystheus, provided that at this time Hercules continued to hold the sky for him. But the hero, realizing that the cunning titan would not return, did not fall into deception. Hercules asked Atlas to relieve him under the sky for a short rest, and he himself took the apples and left.
The sequence of the 12 main labors of Hercules varies in different mythological sources. The eleventh and twelfth labors especially often change places: a number of ancient authors consider the descent into Hades for Cerberus to be the last achievement of Hercules, and the journey to the Garden of the Hesperides as the penultimate.
Other labors of Hercules
After completing 12 labors, Hercules, freed from the power of Eurystheus, defeated the best archer in Greece, Eurytus, king of the Euboean Oichalia, in a shooting competition. Eurytus did not give Hercules the promised reward for this - his daughter Iola. Hercules then married Deianira, the sister of Meleager, whom he met in the kingdom of Hades, in the city of Calydon. Seeking the hand of Deianira, Hercules endured a difficult duel with the river god Achelous, who during the fight turned into a snake and a bull.
Hercules and Deianira went to Tiryns. Along the way, Dejanira was attempted to be kidnapped by the centaur Nessus, who offered to transport the couple across the river. Hercules killed Nessus with arrows soaked in the bile of the Lernaean hydra. Before his death, Nessus, secretly from Hercules, advised Deianira to collect his blood poisoned by the hydra poison. The centaur assured that if Dejanira rubbed Hercules’ clothes with her, then no other woman would ever please him.
In Tiryns, during a fit of madness again sent by Hero, Hercules killed his close friend, the son of Eurytus, Iphitus. Zeus punished Hercules with a serious illness for this. Trying to find out a cure for it, Hercules went on a rampage in the Delphic temple and fought with the god Apollo. Finally it was revealed to him that he must sell himself into slavery for three years to the Lydian queen Omphale. For three years Omphale subjected Hercules to terrible humiliation: she forced him to wear women's clothing and spin, and she herself carried the lion’s skin and the hero’s club. However, Omphale allowed Hercules to take part in the campaign of the Argonauts.
Freed from slavery to Omphale, Hercules took Troy and took revenge on its king, Laomedon, for his previous deception. He then took part in the battle of the gods with the giants. The mother of the giants, the goddess Gaia, made these children of hers invulnerable to the weapons of the gods. Only a mortal could kill giants. During the battle, the gods threw the giants to the ground with weapons and lightning, and Hercules finished them off with his arrows.
Death of Hercules
Following this, Hercules set out on a campaign against King Eurytus, who had insulted him. Having defeated Eurytus, Hercules captured his daughter, the beautiful Iola, whom he should have received after a previous competition with her father in archery. Having learned that Hercules was going to marry Iola, Dejanira, in an attempt to return her husband’s love, sent him a cloak soaked in the blood of the centaur Nessus, soaked in the poison of the Lernaean Hydra. As soon as Hercules put on this cloak, it stuck to his body. The poison penetrated the hero’s skin and began to cause terrible pain. Dejanira, having learned about her mistake, committed suicide. This myth became the plot of Sophocles’ tragedy “The Trachinian Women”
Realizing that death was near, Hercules ordered his eldest son, Gill, to take him to the Thessalian Mount Eta and build a funeral pyre there. Hercules gave his bow with poisoned arrows to the hero Philoctetes, a future participant in the Trojan War, who agreed to set the flame on fire.
As soon as the fire ignited, the gods Athena and Hermes descended from the sky in thunder and lightning, and carried Hercules to Olympus in a golden chariot. Hercules married the eternally young goddess Hebe there and was accepted into the ranks of the immortals.
After the death of Hercules, the cowardly Eurystheus began to persecute his children (Heraclides). They had to take refuge in Athens, with the son of Theseus, Demophon. The army of Eurystheus invaded Athenian soil, but was defeated by an army led by the eldest son of Hercules, Gill. The Heraclids became the ancestors of one of the four main branches of the Greek people - Dorians. Three generations after Gill, the Dorian invasion of the south ended with the conquest of the Peloponnese, which the Heraclides considered the rightful inheritance of their father, treacherously taken from him by the cunning of the goddess Hera. In the news of the captures of the Dorians, legends and myths are already mixed with memories of genuine historical events.
In the beginning there was nothing, neither Heaven nor Earth. Chaos alone - dark and boundless - filled everything. He was the source and beginning of life. Everything came from it: the world, the Earth, and the immortal gods.
At first, Gaia, the goddess of the Earth, emerged from Chaos, a universal safe haven, giving life to everything that lives and grows on it. In the depths of the deep earth, in its darkest core, the gloomy Tartarus was born - a terrible abyss full of darkness. As far from the earth as from the bright Sky, so far lies Tartarus. Tartarus is fenced off from the world with a copper fence, night reigns in his kingdom, the roots of the earth entangle him and he is washed by the bitter-salty sea.
From Chaos the most beautiful Eros was also born, which, with the power of Love, spilled in the world forever, can conquer hearts.
Boundless Chaos gave birth to the Eternal Darkness - Erebus and the Black Night - Nyukta, they, combined, gave birth to the eternal Light - Ether and the bright Day - Hemera. The light spread throughout the world, and night and day began to replace each other.
The foremother of the gods, Gaia, gave birth to an equal Starry Sky - Uranus, which, like an endless cover, envelops the Earth. Gaia-Earth reaches out to him, raising sharp mountain peaks, giving birth, not yet united with Uranus, to the ever-noisy Sea.
Mother Earth gave birth to the Sky, Mountains and Sea, and they have no father.
Uranus took the fertile Gaia as his wife, and six sons and daughters - mighty titans - were born to the divine couple. Their firstborn, the son Ocean, deep, whose waters gently wash the Earth, shared his bed with Tethys, giving life to all the rivers that rush to the sea. The gray Ocean gave birth to three thousand sons - river gods - and three thousand daughters - oceanids, so that they would give joy and prosperity to all living things, filling them with moisture.
Another pair of titans - Hyperion and Theia - gave birth to the Sun-Helios, Selene-Moon and the beautiful Eos-Dawn. From Eos came the stars that sparkle in the sky at night, and the winds - the swift northern wind Boreas, the eastern wind Eurus, the moist southern Note and gentle West wind Zephyr bringing white clouds of rain.
Three more giants - the Cyclops - were also given birth to by Mother Gaia, who were similar to the titans in everything, but had only one eye in their forehead. Gaia also gave birth to three hundred-armed and fifty-headed giants, the Hecatoncheires, possessing immeasurable strength. Nothing could stand against them. They were so strong and terrible that Father Uranus hated them at first sight, and imprisoned them in the bowels of the Earth so that they could not be born again.
Mother Gaia suffered, the terrible burden contained in her depths crushed her. And then she called her children, telling them that Lord Uranus was the first to plan the crime, and punishment should fall on him. However, the titans were afraid to go against their father; only the cunning Cronus - the youngest of the titan children born by Gaia - agreed to help the Mother overthrow Uranus. With the iron sickle that Gaia handed over, Cronus cut off his Father’s reproductive member. From the drops of blood that spilled onto the ground, the terrible Erinyes were born, who knew no mercy. From the foam of the sea, what for a long time washed a piece of divine flesh, the beautiful Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was born.
The crippled Uranus became angry, cursing his children. The punishment for villainy was the terrible deities born of the Goddess of the Night: Tanata - death, Eridu - discord, Apatu - deception, Ker - destruction, Hypnos - a dream with a swarm of dark, heavy visions, Nemesis who knows no mercy - revenge for crimes. Nyukta gave birth to many deities that bring suffering into the world.
These gods brought horror, strife and misfortune into the world, where Cronus reigned on the throne of his father.
But there is another legend.
The interest of many people around the world in ancient Greek mythology does not decrease even after millennia, on the contrary, from time to time there are even outbursts of interest. Some people are interested in them scientific point sight, others simply enjoy immersing themselves in the unique world of heroes and gods, but there are virtually no people indifferent to Greek mythology. Among the many different myths, one can be identified that is of paramount importance, this is the myth of the creation of the whole world and the story of how the ancient Greeks imagined this process.
This ancient legend about the immense Chaos that always existed outside of time and space. One day he was affected by an unknown and powerful force, under the influence of which he began to deform and change, which ultimately led to the creation of the Universe. Thus, Chaos became the progenitor of the world that surrounds modern people. His first creation was Time, associated with the great ancient god Chronos. Also, soon after him, new creatures arose from Chaos: Gaia - the Earth and Tartarus, which is the personification of the Incomprehensible Abyss. Another creation of Chaos was Eros - an indefinable force of attraction, the only force to which the very creation of the primordial Universe was subordinated; later, the god of love would be given the same name.
The famous expression “Light from darkness” also comes from those distant times when Chaos gave birth to Erebus and Nyx, who became the embodiment of darkness and impenetrable night, respectively. Their union had a very strange result, which cannot be called anything other than a paradox, since its result was the appearance of Ether and Hemera, who personified the Eternal Light and the Shining Day. Gaia, after her awakening, contributed to the emergence of Uranus and Heaven, which was destined to become a permanent home and place of residence for the assembled pantheon of immortal cults.
Then Gaia was created and Pontus, he and Uranus were her husband. The union of Gaia and her first husband Uranus gave birth to powerful titans, cyclops and giants with a hundred arms, whose strength was so great that their own father began to fear them. Fearing that the children would eventually rebel and take away his power, he sent them into the Incomprehensible Abyss, but Gaia raised her children to revolt, as a result of which Kronos became the ruler of the world. This son of Uranus was the progenitor of all the famous Olympian gods, who are described in various ancient Greek myths.
However, the legend described is only one of the myths of Ancient Greece about the creation of the world; there is also another version of the creation of the Universe, which has been known since pre-Hellenic times. According to him, Eurynome, ancient goddess everything that exists, rose from Chaos and discovered that she was in empty space, where there was nothing and nothing to rely on. Then she began the process of creation, dividing the sky and the sea, in whose waves she danced, creating the wind. In order to keep warm amid the gusts of the cold northern wind, the naked Eurynome danced faster and more openly, which awakened desire in the giant snake Ophion. He entwined the goddess, and they conceived a child through the penetration of the north wind.
After the fertilization process, Eurynome turned into a dove, which laid the World Egg, which was hatched by the great serpent. From this Egg the planets, the earth, as well as all living beings and everything that surrounded them in this world appeared. Ophion and Eurynome settled on Olympus, but soon a quarrel arose between them, and the snake was expelled by the goddess to the underworld. Eurynome continued the process of creation, creating planetary forces and their patrons, the titans, and from the teeth that she knocked out of Ophion, the first people arose.
Myths of Ancient Greece
MYTHS ABOUT HERCULES
The most beloved hero of the ancient Greeks was Hercules, the son of Zeus and the mortal woman Alcmene. Traditionally he was depicted as tall, powerful, muscular, dressed in a lion's skin and armed with a huge stick. The myths tell how the cowardly and vain king Eurystheus, seeking the death of Hercules, gave him all sorts of incredible tasks. Fulfilling them, Hercules performed twelve labors. In particular, he defeated a monster - a giant lion and a nine-headed hydra, caught a golden-horned fallow deer and a cannibal boar. You will learn these and other victories of the famous hero of Hellas by reading the myths about Hercules.
Augean stables
Feat fifth
King Eurystheus could not come to his senses for a long time - not so much from fright as from despair: after all, Hercules again returned victorious from a difficult ordeal, and also to the king’s nuisance, he dragged the boar that was supposed to tear the hero into pieces.
“What should I wish for him now?” - the unlucky king racked his brains, and, apparently, he would not have thought of anything if not for his powerful ally Hera.
The dashing goddess once appeared to Eurystheus in a dream and suggested something to the hero that was not only impossible, but also shameful and humiliating even for an ordinary person.
Before it even dawned on us, Eurystheus sent his herald Conrey to Hercules with a strict order: immediately go to Elis to King Augius and clean out all his stables in one day.
Hearing this strange order, Hercules was completely offended.
Clean the stables! - he shouted indignantly. - What are you talking about, Kopreya?
And suddenly the hero stopped speaking, noticing the mocking smile of the royal herald. Hercules's face was filled with anger, and he lowered his heavy brow and did not even hear when Copreus walked away.
Hercules. Statue from the eastern pediment of the Temple of Athena on the island of Aegina. Marble. Beginning V century n. e.
So, the punishment of the gods is terrible! But his own guilt, which still lies like an indestructible burden on his heart, is even more terrible. Can he refuse, even bad, even the most shameful, repentance? King Eurystheus laughs with his minions, so what? We must not turn on them, but show Zeus’ will.
In Elis, Hercules immediately went not to the palace of Augeas, but to numerous stables surrounded by a strong fence. Only now the hero realized what a difficult task Eurystheus had wished for him. The entire yard inside the wall was a complete swamp, and a mind-blowing stench emanated from it. After asking people, Hercules learned that no one had ever cleaned the stables. In the evening, the cattle were herded here, and she just drank in that manure. And the disgusting stench from the royal stables reached all the way to the surrounding villages, poisoning people’s air and life.
Of course, it’s shameful for a hero to dig in manure, but then people can breathe freely and remember him kind words gratitude. But how can you do it in one day? Hercules thought for a long time, walking around the circle of the wall, then he moved up to the fast river Peneus and sat down to rest for a while.
King Eurystheus, apparently, is consoled by the thought that Hercules, the famous hero, will carry stinking buckets of manure on his own shoulders and will himself become disgusting and smelly. No, Eurystheus will not wait for Hercules to dirty his hands. Besides, he himself only gave one day.
Augeas was sincerely surprised when he saw the famous Hercules in front of him, and especially when he heard that he had undertaken to clean out all the stables in one day.
Is one person really that weak? - asked the king of Yelida, doubting whether to believe it or not. - If we gathered people from all over my state, they wouldn’t be able to do it in a day.
“And I will do it myself,” Hercules calmly answered.
No, you won't! - Augius became stubborn. - I bet you won’t do it.
And I’ll pledge it,” the hero grinned. - If I win, you will give me a tithe of your livestock, okay?
OK! - without hesitation, the king agreed, determined that Hercules would certainly lose.
Augie's eldest son Phileus was called as a witness. The prince broke their hands, and the owner said:
Today, Hercules, be my guest, and tomorrow morning you can get down to business.
The next morning, as soon as the rays and fingers of the golden-arable Eos began to glow in the sky, Hercules left the palace, carrying pitchforks and shovels on his shoulders. He did not go to the stables, but into the forest, to the Penei River, its waves rushing violently from the mountain.
A few steps from the shore, Hercules stood up, threw off the lion's skin and began to dig a large ditch down to the stables. It was hard work, only a mighty hero could do it - the hard, rocky soil barely gave way, and every now and then the shovels and picks broke.
All day long, without straightening up, Hercules dug that ditch, only glanced at the sun from time to time, and then worked with all his might. Having dug the ditch all the way to the gates of the royal stables, Hercules finally stopped, walked around the wall and knocked out a large hole in it from the opposite side. And then he ordered the servants not to let the cattle near the stables, although the sun was already at the edge of the evening.
Augeas himself came out of the palace to see what Hercules was doing, and did not see him anywhere. The king smiled disdainfully, for the hero did not even think about cleaning the stables. And the day has already faded...
And dull powerful blows were heard from the forest - then Hercules was already connecting the moat with Peneus. And then transparent, clean streams rushed down a new channel, straight to the stables, swirled in the yard and carried away all the manure, straw, and swamp through a hole made in that side of the wall.
Hercules silently watched as the water worked for him. People came running from everywhere, exclamations of sincere delight and joyful laughter were heard from the crowd, and Prince Philei aloud praised Hercules, his mind and hands.
The water bubbled for a long time, and then the hero moved back to the river, blocked the stream with stones, and the water again took its course. All the stables were clean, washed with water, and the last rays of the setting sun were reflected in small transparent puddles.
What did the king lose? - Hercules cheerfully shouted to the gloomy Augeas. “Your shepherds will have to count out a tithe of cattle for me in the morning, and I will drive it home tomorrow.”
Why rush, my guest is still in Elis,” the king said reluctantly.
No, I can't hesitate. After all, Eurystheus had apparently already come up with some other job for me.
Did Eurystheus send you here? - Augeas asked briskly. - Why are you stripping my cattle then?
Didn't we pawn? - Hercules said offendedly.
Yes, they were pawning, I am a witness to this, a ringing voice was heard, and Tsarevich Filey stood next to the hero.
Stick your tongue! - Augeias yelled furiously at his son. - Well, get out of my sight!
And the prince stood motionless by Hercules. And Augeas started screaming:
Get out of here, both of you! Get out both!
Thus the couple of Elis lost both their guest and their son.
Prince Philaeus went to his relatives on the island of Dulichium, and Hercules, like an obedient slave, went to Mycenae.
Translation by Ekaterina Glovatskaya
1. When did Hercules realize what a difficult task Eurystheus had given him?
2. Determine what thoughts, feelings and moods of the characters need to be conveyed by reading the dialogue between Augeas and Hercules. Read this passage of the myth in person.
3. Do you agree that liberation from the dirt of the Augean stables can be called a feat? Justify your opinion.
4. Prepare a retelling of the myth on behalf of Hercules.
Interesting to know
A lot has come to us from myths catchphrases, which have become permanent and frequently used. As if on wings, they flew from one language to another, from antiquity to modernity. Some of them are associated with the myths of Hercules. So, when it comes to pollution or extremely neglected business, the expression “Augean stables” comes to the rescue. Nowadays, the phrase “strong as Hercules” is also used.
Dog Kerber
The twelfth feat
Now Hercules only had to serve King Euristheus for the last time, and from this thought joy, like the sun, illuminated the hero. True, the king was conceiving more and more difficult tasks, and now, finally, he demanded from the hero an unheard-of, incredible thing. Eurystheus ordered the watchdog Kerberus, a ferocious monster, the offspring of Echidna and Typhon, to be brought from the underworld of the dead. Kerberus had three heads on one long neck, a large mane of poisonous snakes, and instead of a tail he had a writhing dragon.
This dog guarded the exit from the kingdom of the powerful god Hades, where the shadows of the dead wander in the pitch darkness, and woe was that unfortunate woman who was again eager to land on the ground, into the sunlight. Kerberus rushed at her, chopped her, pulled her back into the black darkness. And then he returned to his place, and from there his ferocious barking was heard every now and then.
When people learned that Hercules was to bring that underground monster to King Eurystheus, there was screaming and crying in Mycenae: all because they felt sorry for their beloved hero. And the king did not pay attention to the crying and hurried Hercules. And the son of Zeus calmly listened to the capricious royal will and, as always, immediately got ready for the long journey.
Walking through green fields and meadows, the hero rejoiced at the gentle spring sun and often involuntarily smiled at it - after all, soon the sunshine would go out for him for a long time, and maybe forever.
The closer Hercules came to the Tenara gorge,1 the sun's rays became dimmer and everything around became gloomy and inhospitable. The sky was filled with sad clouds that hid the clear sun, and a poisonous, dizzy spirit rose from the cracked earth.
Here is finally the black gorge that leads to the underground kingdom of the dead. For a moment, Hercules stopped, sighed heavily, and then decisively stepped forward.
1 Tenor - a rocky cape in the south of the Peloponnese (a peninsula in southern Greece); The ancient Greeks imagined that among its rocks there was an entrance to the underworld.
At first, Hades was terribly angry that some mortal insolent dared to descend into his kingdom and also approach the throne. But, recognizing the glorious son of Zeus, Hades only darkly asked:
What do you want, hero?
It is not me, mighty Hades, but King Eutheus who needs Kerberus, I must bring him to Mycenae.
So, take Kerberus when you overcome him, said the insidious Hades. “I just give you the only condition: be able to overcome him without any weapons.” Now you can go, look for Kerberus somewhere on the shore of Acheron1. And don't come back here again.
Among the steep black rocks, Acheron, the river of sorrow, walked quietly, slowly and difficultly. Hercules stood on the shore and watched. Suddenly, amid the eerie silence, a furious growl was heard. And the beast was late: Hercules was the first to jump and squeeze the dog’s neck with all his might. Three dog heads were spinning and growling madly, and could not reach the hero. The dragon that Kerberus had instead of a tail bit into Hercules, but he did not react to it. He squeezed the ugly neck harder and harder until the exhausted dog fell at his feet.
Then Hercules pulled Kerber's chain around his neck and dragged the beast to Charon. The old carrier, gloomy, frowning, apparently already knew Hades' will, so he silently transported both of them to the other side, and the hero train underground dog steep path up.
It slowly became brighter, the black darkness receded before the sunshine, and Kerberus became worried, began to kick himself, what went on became stronger, but Hercules, without stopping for a moment, pulled him up.
Here comes the sun, shining and beautiful. The hero already laughed, such exuberant joy understood him. And the underground dog turned his eyes away from the sun and barked furiously, only foam flew around his three mouths. Where shreds of that foam fell, the grass died and became a terrible poison.
When the Mycenaeans saw the three-headed monster with Hercules on the chain, they all scattered. No one warned King Eurystheus, and he did not have time to hide in his favorite barrel; he even left the palace out of nothing to do just when Hercules appeared.
1 underground river Acheron of Sorrow, through which the boatman Charon transported the souls of the dead to the kingdom of Hades.
Hercules, Cerberus and Eurystheus. Vase painting. Around 525 BC e.
Seeing Kerber, the king became pale, shook and could neither move from his place nor get a word. Probably, then for the first time he realized how strong and brave Hercules was. At least, when the servants carried the half-conscious king to the palace, he barely said with three lips:
The hero is now free... Let him go...
Hercules went home to his native Thebes. And first he opened the chain, and freed Kerber instantly disappeared from sight - with one leap he found himself in the underworld and stood, as before, near the exit from it on guard.
Translation by Ekaterina Glovatskaya
We strive to be creative readers
1. Retell the myth close to the text.
2. What gives the reader the idea of Kerber’s dog?
3. What fantastic elements are present in the myth?
4. Which character from Joan Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” reminds you of Kerber’s dog? What exactly?
5. Prepare a description of Hercules based on the myths you read.
Interesting to know
Many mythical heroes “appeared” in the sky in the form of constellations. Hercules was also awarded this honor, the conventional outlines of which can be found on a star map called the constellation Hercules. However, the animals with which the hero had to fight also received their place in heaven. These are a lion and a cancer (it was he who grabbed Hercules by the leg during his duel with the hydra). The constellations Leo and Cancer are located on the side of the sky opposite the constellation Hercules, as if they are afraid to be near the hero. According to the beliefs of the ancient Greeks, for special services in their favor, they were immortalized among the stars by Hera, who in every possible way opposed Hercules.
Let’s summarize what we learned during our trip “The Paths of Myths”
1. Continue the sentence: “Myths are...”.
2. Name the word that is missing in this diagram:
3. How different peoples explained the origin of the world in myths?
4. Read an excerpt from Taras Shevchenko’s poem “Caucasus”. Is the name of the mythical hero missing here? What is the greatness of his feat?
Behind the mountains are mountains shrouded in cloud,
Sown with grief, watered with blood.
From time immemorial...
There the eagle punishes
What a day good ribs
And it breaks my heart.
5. Think about why artists different countries turned to the myth of Prometheus.
6. The name of which myth is encrypted in the puzzle? Explain the figurative meaning of this expression.
7. How do you understand the words in the epigraph of the section?
8. Why do myths attract our contemporaries?
9. What performances, animated films or films based on myths have you watched?
10. Compare the information about ancient Greek mythology obtained in history lessons ancient world and foreign literature.
11. What did the ancient Greeks value in a person? Give examples from myths you have read.
12. Write an essay on the topic “My favorite mythological hero.”
Interesting to know
In ancient Greek mythology, the sea deity is the soothsayer Proteus, who possesses much knowledge and has the ability to change his appearance. He can turn into someone and what - various animals, fire, water, wood.
Think about why skilled translators are called talents from the genus of Proteus.
Dear readers!
In November 2012, I published an essay “Hercules - Classics of Mythology or Mythology of the Classics?”, which aroused great interest from readers and a sharp reaction from the authorities, represented by the TV channel TV 3. And this is not surprising, since “my Hercules” from a legendary hero turned into Antihero. But I claim that Hercules is an Anti-Hero, a cold-blooded, maniacal killer not only of warriors, but also of women and children, a thief, robber and brigand. Who needed to make Hercules a Hero? The answer to this question can be found in the history of ancient Greece. Hercules was turned into a Hero and mythologized by the Dorians, the conquerors of ancient Greece. Their new Hero, Hercules, was supposed to “justify” the countless cruel crimes of the Dorians. And for the defeated Achaeans (one of the main ancient Greek tribes), Hercules was a cruel conqueror who ravaged dozens of cities and killed many warriors, kings, women, children and old people.
These are the anti-heroes-hercules that have appeared in Ukraine these days, on the Maidan. And it’s scary that the USA and Europe are doing everything to turn these killers into new “Hero-Hercules...”
That's why I decided to remind everyone about Hercules the Antihero in a new, edited version of my essay. (Published in the almanac “Swan” No. 704 dated March 23, 2014, USA, Boston)
HERCULES ANTIHERO
Is there any other mythological hero as fundamental, as majestic, as revered, as authoritative and as indisputable as Hercules? Probably not. Hercules is a classic of ancient Greek mythology. Hercules is a modern classic, since the “glorious exploits” of Hercules have survived to this day, they are studied in literature lessons in the sixth grade of all Russian schools. Teachers " highest category» are developing teaching methods and lesson plans for studying the exploits of Hercules, so that our children absorb the spirit of the hero and learn life from his actions.
But heroes, just like antiheroes, are created by people. People put heroes on pedestals, and people knock heroes off their pedestals. And this is the same classic of the genre.
The author is not going to rewrite classical mythology, and certainly not to overthrow Hercules from his pedestal. Today this is (alas) impossible. Hercules is a Hero for the Ages (?) But no one deprived the author of the opportunity for a creative approach to established views on classical historical mythology. Having carefully studied life path Hercules, the author realized that irony, sarcasm and even disrespect towards the legendary “hero” are acceptable and justified. Moreover, the author takes the liberty of asserting that the Hero Hercules, erected on a pedestal, is in fact an Anti-Hero. Are you ready for this take on the classic Hero? By the way, Hercules simply means “hero”. Our “hero” from birth had the name Alcides, which he later abandoned (more on this below), becoming simply Hercules.
If you carefully (as a researcher) study the life path and description of the exploits of Hercules, known to us from the legends and myths of ancient Greece, according to Homer and Ovid, you can discover amazing things. The three main virtues of Hercules are clearly revealed.
First virtue. Uncomplaining servility before King Ephrystheus, who hired Alcides-Hercules to serve, giving him the nickname “Hercules.” But why did the son of Zeus begin to serve the cowardly and insignificant king Ephrystheus? He had a very serious reason for this. After the murder of his wife and children (three sons) in Fifa, and at the same time his nephews (mythology explains this as an attack of madness sent down on him by the Goddess Hera), Hercules fled from justice to Mycenae, where his cousin Ephrystheus ruled. The king of Mycenae knew what a terrible crime Hercules had committed and, taking him into his service, openly and with impunity mocked him. No matter how King Eurystheus mocked Hercules, he gave him all sorts of absurd orders. Hercules humiliatedly endured everything and complied with it meekly, just to avoid justice. Just look at the 11th labor of Hercules, when Eurystheus sent him to the underworld of Hades, for terrible dog Kerberus (Cerberus), and only to order Hercules to take Cerberus back to hell. What about the eighth feat? Was it worth sailing to distant lands for the horses of Diomedes, stealing the horses, killing a bunch of people there, including King Diomedes, so that King Eurystheus would immediately release the horses? Well, would a self-respecting hero endure such bullying? But Hercules endured, and it’s clear why - to avoid justice for the murder of his family. And remember the story of Hercules’ slavery to Queen Lydia Omphale, to whom he was profitably sold by Euphrystheus for three whole years. And all three years the queen openly mocked Hercules. For all three years, the hero Hercules wore a woman’s dress and sat at the loom! But Hercules, like a slave, resignedly endured these humiliations.
Second virtue. Tendency to theft and robbery. Hercules stole Diomedes' horses. He stole the cows of the giant Geryon (the 10th labor of Hercules, in which Helios the Sun helped him!). It should be noted that if any of the Greek kings lost cattle, everyone immediately blamed Hercules for the theft. Such was the glorious reputation of Hercules! And the story with Hippolyta’s belt (9th labor)? In fact, Hercules went to the land of the Amazons in order to either steal the belt or kill all the Amazons and take possession of the belt. From mythology it is clear that Hercules killed the Amazons. Is it heroic to fight with women? But in ancient Greece such acts were considered “feats”, since then all of Greece lived by robberies, armed attacks and wars.
Third virtue. Manic vindictiveness and cruelty, developing into a manic passion for murder. This is perhaps the main feature of Hercules’ nature. This “virtue” manifested itself in Hercules from childhood. Remember how the boy Hercules hit his music teacher on the head with a lyre (something like a lyre) and killed him. Why did he kill? And because the teacher dared to punish a capricious student. Well, how do you like this “innocent” childish prank that went unpunished?
We already know that as a young man, in his first marriage to Megara, Hercules, in a fit of rage, killed his children - three sons, and then, at the same time, killed the children of his brother Iphicles. This sick tendency to kill children manifested itself in Hercules in his third marriage to Deenira. The little boy poured water on Hercules' hands, intended for washing his feet. The penalty for the mistake was severe. Hercules hit the boy so hard that the baby fell dead. And this cold-blooded murder went unpunished.
Remember why Hercules killed King Augeas? Only because he did not receive the promised payment from him for cleaning the stables. Carefully re-read the sixth labor of Hercules, and you will see that the river waters, which cleansed the stables, also destroyed them. And do you have to pay for this kind of work? And for refusal to pay - do you have to kill? Do you remember how you killed him? In a “fair” fight - with a poisoned deadly arrow! Hercules at the same time dealt with all of Augeas’s allies. He killed the king of Pylos, Neleus, and his eleven sons. The most amazing thing is that in honor of his “glorious victories” Hercules established the Olympic Games! The same Olympic Games that are held on our planet every four years.
What about the murder of King Diomedes? King Ephrystheus ordered Hercules to steal the famous horses that devour people from King Diomedes. Stealing, robbing, killing - this was what the “hero” Hercules liked. The horses were stolen, and Poor Diomedes fell from the sword of Hercules, only because he tried to recapture his wonderful horses, which Hercules stole from him. And the fate of King Leomedon? The king did not want to give the horses to Hercules, which he liked so much, and the hero harbored a terrible grudge against the king. After some time, Hercules specifically attacked Troy to kill King Leomedon - and he killed! And the poor Sicilian king Eryx? Why did he die at the hands of Hercules? And because he did not want to return to the hero one cow that had strayed from the herd of cows stolen by Hercules from the giant Geryon! And the twelfth feat of the hero? When Hercules headed to the gardens of the Hesperides to steal golden apples that belonged to Hera herself, the wife of Zeus (!), he met the prophetic old man Nereus on his way. Only Nereus knew the way to the Hesperides gardens, but he did not want to reveal this secret to Hercules. Well, in vain. You made it worse for yourself. Hercules tormented the old man so much, tormented and tortured him so much that the poor old man split. Truly a heroic feat! Once, in a fit of rage, Hercules killed his best friend Ifita. How Hercules killed the good old centaur Chiron, you remember - with a poisoned arrow, intoxicated with wine. In fact, poisoned arrows were Hercules' favorite "tool". You can kill anyone without any problems. The main thing is to become a winner! Even mythological stories do not whitewash the “cowardice” of Hercules. Thus, the king of Lydia Lycus argued that Hercules was a coward who avoided a fair fight and preferred to kill his opponents with his poisoned arrows.
But modern ideologists from history and mythology have their own view of the murders committed by Hercules, and they convey this view, which should be “the only true one,” to the people with the help of channel TV 3 (12/26/2012 “Battles of the Gods. Hercules”) . Just look at their assertion that the first (and almost the only) person Hercules killed was King Diomedes, whose horses Hercules stole. At the same time, it was especially emphasized that the “FIRST MAN” whom Hercules killed was Diomedes. “Smart and honest” ideologists completely forgot about the early murders of Hercules: King Augeas; King Neleus and his eleven sons; kings Leomedont and Eryx; a little boy who poured water on Hercules’ hands, intended for washing his feet, and several dozen more warriors who defended their kings... Not a word about this!
What confuses me most is that Hercules killed his compatriots right and left. He did not defend Greece from enemies, like the Russian Hero Ilya Muromets, he terrorized Greece, but went down in History as the greatest ancient Greek hero. Why is that? There is a historical explanation for this. Such great hero needed by the Dorians, one of the main ancient Greek tribes. At the turn of the 13th-12th centuries BC, the Dorians invaded the territory of Central Greece (“Dorian Invasion”), which marked the beginning of the colonization of Greece. At this time, the mythologization of Hercules by the Dorians as a glorious and invincible hero took place. And for the defeated Achaeans (one of the main ancient Greek tribes), Hercules was a cruel conqueror who ravaged dozens of cities and killed many warriors, kings, women, children and old people.
I'm already tired of listing all the murders of Hercules. Yes, to be honest, I just don’t feel at ease. The fact that Hercules had a seriously disturbed psyche is beyond doubt. Medical fact. Even Hercules himself realized that attacks of madness were affecting him. It would be naive to believe that the mind of Hercules was eclipsed by the wrath of the Goddess Hera. This was “normal”, natural behavior of a warrior, a “hero” in conditions of continuous wars and robberies. Today, Hercules would be recognized as a murderous maniac, extremely dangerous to society, but not a hero worthy of emulation.
Now, let’s briefly analyze the exploits of Hercules and try to objectively evaluate his heroism. The first feat was strangling the Nemean lion. Counted. Hero.
The second labor is the Lernaean Hydra. In place of each severed head, the hydra immediately grew two new ones. Hercules was exhausted from fighting the hydra. In addition, he was grabbed by the leg by a monstrous cancer. And Hercules could not stand it, and called his friend Iolaus to help. Iolaus killed the crab. And then he began to cauterize the hydra’s necks, from which Hercules knocked off the heads. That's how the hydra was defeated. I think that Iolaus showed real heroism and ingenuity, and the glory went to Hercules. Any objective judge would not chalk this victory up to Hercules.
The third feat is the Stymphalian birds. Monstrous birds made of copper and bronze, shooting deadly feather arrows. Remember how Pallas Athena helped Hercules? She gave Hercules two copper tympani. Their roar scared the birds so much that they flew away somewhere forever. (There is a version that they flew to Georgia. That is why Zurab Tsereteli loves working with bronze so much). So who is the hero: Hercules or Pallas Athena?
The fourth feat is the Kerenean Hind. Amazing animal with golden horns. Probably the only copy in the Red Book. Hercules did not spare either an arrow or a doe for the sake of the next “feat”.
The fifth feat is the Erymanthian boar and the centaurs. Well, Hercules killed the boar. At the same time he killed his friend the centaur Chiron with a poisoned arrow. Feat? The sixth feat is the barnyard of King Augeas. We have already dealt with this “feat”. A lot of crap... manure, a lot of blood, brutal murders committed by Hercules, and on the plus side - the Olympic Games. And thanks for that.
The seventh labor is the Cretan bull. Hercules swam from Crete to Greece on a mad bull. His king Eurystheus set the bull free, and the mad bull began to rush throughout Greece! I really don’t know, maybe in Greece swimming on a mad bull is really considered a feat?
The eighth labor is the horses of Diomedes. Already figured it out. One can only add that the man-eating horses devoured Hercules’ beloved friend Abdera, the son of Hermes. Stealing horses. Murder of Diomedes. Death of a friend. Feat? Crime! But mythology tries to whitewash Hercules: he, they say, “was forced to kill the villain Diomedes, who fed people to his terrible horses.” So Hercules saved people from two evils at once. You have to be very naive to perceive this act of Hercules as a heroic feat.
The ninth labor is Hippolyta's belt. If anyone thinks that killing women is a feat, then count this “feat” to Hercules.
The tenth labor is the cows of Geryon. Hercules stole a herd of cows from the giant Geryon, and “courageously” killed the giant himself with a poisoned deadly arrow. A little later, Hercules killed the Sicilian king Eryx for appropriating one cow for himself. A remarkable feat. Theft and murder went unpunished.
Eleventh labor - Cerberus. This has already been mentioned. Hercules pulled Cerberus out of hell and then brought him back to hell. A dubious feat for the sane, but “unparalleled heroism and fearlessness” for those who cultivated the image of the hero Hercules.
The twelfth labor is the theft of the apples of the Hesperides. All that is impressive in this “feat” of Hercules is his torture of the old man Nereus, from whom he knocked out the road to the Hesperides.
I wonder how many labors of Hercules you counted? More than one?
What do you think now about the classic mythology genre? Do you still see Hercules as an unquestioned hero? Do you want to be like Hercules? But our children in literature lessons in schools are presented with Hercules as a hero from whom they should follow an example...
In conclusion, it is absolutely necessary to dwell on the last minutes of the life of Hercules. How did he die? This question was answered 2500 years ago by the Athenian playwright and tragedian Sophocles (496-406 BC) in his tragedy “The Trachian Women”. Let me remind you of the plot of this Sophoclean tragedy in my brief poetic summary:
"FUCKYANKS"
The tragedy of Sophocles, Athenian playwright and tragedian (496-406 BC)
Who are the “fucking girls”? That's what the girls from the city of Trakh'ina were called,
that they lived in this small, remote place.
Here the hero Hercules ended his life,
It all happened, as Sophocles says, something like this:
When, in the service of Ephrystheus, an insignificant king,
Hercules performed his deeds (only wasting his strength in vain),
in the kingdom of the dead he met the mighty Mele "agr,
who noted with dignity the exploits of our hero
and Dejanira, his sister, proposed to Hercules as a wife.
Hercules went to Dejanira to marry her,
but the river god Ahela decided to take away his “daughter-in-law.”
A battle took place between them, in which Hercules won
and without much difficulty he received Deianira as his wife.
When Hercules and his wife were returning home,
he met a mighty centaur at the crossing.
The centaur really liked Deianira,
and he decided that he would get her by force.
But Hercules had arrows with deadly poison.
The centaur was unlucky to be nearby.
Hercules struck the centaur with a poisoned arrow.
(I didn’t want to fight him, I was afraid that I wouldn’t have enough strength.
How can one not remember what King Lycus said about Hercules:
“Hercules is not a hero, but a coward. He will only see danger, in an instant
kills the enemy with a poisoned arrow,
but he doesn’t know the fair rules of the fight”).
The centaur, dying, gave his blood to Deianira
and at the same time he said to her:
“If Hercules suddenly falls in love with another,
smear his clothes with my blood, and he will forget the other.”
One day, Hercules was visiting Ehalia and his time there was not in vain.
Hercules took a liking to the young maiden Iola - the daughter of the king.
Hercules demanded that his daughter be given to himself as a concubine,
but the king’s son did not allow his sister to be taken away:
“You, pathetic slave, who served the insignificant king so resignedly for 12 years,
You don’t deserve the king’s daughter, my sister!”
Hercules was offended and he threw the king’s son off the wall.
Of course he killed. How not to admit your guilt.
And again he fell into slavery for three years
(For some reason, no one in Trakhino found out about this).
And the faithful wife waits for her husband patiently, doomedly,
enthusiastically embroidering my husband's clothes.
Three years have passed. Hercules became free.
Revenge! Revenge! And he killed everyone in Ehalia. Like this!
And he captured young women (they would be suitable as concubines)
and, of course, they will be useful as slaves!).
He sent the concubines to Trakhina,
and he told his wife and the messenger,
that very soon he will return on his own,
only the sacrifices will be celebrated in heaven.
And one of the newly sent slaves told his wife,
that among the captives there is Iola, whom Hercules has already tasted.
Then jealousy flared up in Dejanira’s heart,
She sent a messenger with a cloak to Hercules,
and sprinkled the cloak of the murdered centaur with blood,
and so that Hercules would not stop loving her, she asked Heaven.
I didn’t know that the blood was poisoned with a deadly poison,
but I was only thinking about Hercules being nearby.
Hercules lit a fire for sacrifices,
when a messenger with a cloak from the house galloped up to him.
Our hero threw his cloak over his naked torso,
the poison came to life from the fire of the fire, penetrated the hero and knocked him to the ground.
And then Hercules realized that the poison of his arrow had returned to him,
turned into cruel, unbearable pain.
Monstrous pain burns him,
our hero suffers in cruel torment,
I can't bear the pain anymore,
and he ordered his friends to burn himself on a sacrificial pyre.
This is how our hero died.
Having learned about this, the wife committed suicide.
And the son of Hercules took young Iola as his wife,
so before his death Hercules ordered his son...
This is how Hercules “left us” with a completely unheroic death. This episode is also reflected in the mythology of Hercules (“The Death of Hercules”, “The Poisoned Cloak of Hercules” and is depicted in the paintings of great artists (for example, the painting “The Death of Hercules” by Francisco de Subaran, Museo del Prado)
We open the book by N.A. Kun “Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece” (1957 edition) on page 167 and read: “Hercules, having erected an altar, was already preparing to make sacrifices to the gods and, first of all, to his father Zeus, when Lichas came with a cloak. The son of Zeus put on his cloak and began the sacrifice. .. The fire that burned hotly on the altars warmed the body of Hercules... and the poisoned cloak stuck to the body of Hercules. Convulsions ran through Hercules’ body, and he felt terrible pain...” The cloak was poisoned deadly poison. Hercules experienced inhuman torment and begged his friends to kill him. It is better to die quickly than to suffer painfully indefinitely. Friends fulfilled the will of Hercules and burned him at the stake. This is what really happened. Hercules did not intend to die and commit self-immolation. He was going to live and live forever! The brutal poisoning of Hercules was an accident.
But modern ideologists from history are trying to present the death of Hercules as the greatest, the courageous act of Hercules, as a conscious act of self-immolation. Like, Hercules could no longer bear his cross as a murderer of family, children, innocent people, and therefore made the courageous decision to commit an act of self-immolation in order to cleanse himself of filth, of his sins. And a special program on TV 3 was dedicated to this frank ideological concoction (12/26/2012 at 20:45 documentary story “Battle of the Gods. Hercules”). Who really needs, for educational, ideological purposes, of course, Hercules to look like a shining example to follow, like a “Hero of the Soviet Union.” When mythology becomes a tool of ideology, it begins to be rewritten. Maybe N.A.’s book is already getting ready for re-release. Kun's "Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece", into which the necessary ideological adjustments will be made?
P.S. Don’t you think that today in Ukraine, on the Maidan, new “heroes” like Hercules are being born?
19.11.2012 - 05.11.2014
And now that the reader has seen the new Hercules, I offer nine funny tales about the exploits of the hero Hercules. I think that the author (me) has every reason and, of course, the creative right, to treat the exploits of Hercules with humor and irony.
Yours, Alexey Leonidovich Gorshkov
TALES ABOUT THE EXPLOITS OF THE BOGATYR HERCULES
Childhood of Hercules
A long time ago, so long ago that it’s hard to even remember, in one small country called Greece, there lived a hero named Hercules. Since childhood, he was so strong that his peers were afraid to even approach him. Yes, try it, come over. You'll get hit on the head right away, just in case, so that everyone knows how strong Hercules is. Hercules did not go to school. What for? There is strength - no need for intelligence. So he showed everyone his strength. As a child they tried to teach him to write, read, sing and play the cithara, but little Hercules preferred to master the bow and sword. One day, during a music lesson, his music teacher Lin, the brother of the famous Orpheus, punished Hercules, irritated by his reluctance to learn. Little Hercules flew into a rage, grabbed the cithara and hit Lin on the head with it. The blow was so strong that poor Lin fell dead. The court acquitted Hercules because he was a minor illegitimate son of Zeus.
For days the boy disappeared somewhere, and returned home hungry, like a wolf, and ate so much of everything that even ten adults would not have been able to handle. Very soon his poor parents were no longer able to feed the hero. And then Hercules wondered, how can he continue to live with an empty stomach?
And that same night, as he thought about this, he had a dream. He dreams that he is lying on green grass in the forest, enjoying strawberries. Suddenly, a beautiful young girl in translucent clothes comes up to him and says: “Hercules! Life is a holiday! Live like a guest at a feast. Eat deliciously, sleep well, have fun with friends and girlfriends. Come with me and I will turn your life into sweet bliss! By the way, my name is Nega.” But then another young woman, wearing the warrior’s armor sparkling, approaches Hercules and says: “Rest can only be appreciated after hard work. Sad is the fate of a man who lives as a guest at someone else's feast. Nobody likes overstaying guests and slackers. People love heroes! I am the invincible Athena. If you want to be a hero, follow my path."
After this dream, Hercules left his parents' house and went for a walk around Greece. He spent all day running around his little Greece, and gave such slaps to everyone who came to hand that the poor fellows scattered across the numerous islands neighboring Greece. They say that the Greeks settled on the islands, which they later annexed to Greece. Maybe this was the first labor of Hercules?
Well, so the glorious hero Hercules lived and grew up until he was sixteen years old. By this time, he had already walked all over Greece, slapped everyone on the head, and reached Mycenae, where there was the residence of the Greek king Eurystheus, who was a relative of Hercules. And the king, of course, had heard a lot about the heroic strength of Hercules and his exploits. The king was afraid, as if he too would have to move to some small island. The king did not want this at all. He could not have been better off on the royal throne. And, since the king went to school as a child and gained a little intelligence, he decided to outwit the hero Hercules. King Eurystheus called the hero Hercules to his throne and said to him:
“I’ve heard about your heroic strength, but I just don’t believe that you are stronger than anyone in the world.”
Hercules was offended, clenched his fists and shouted:
- Yes, right now, as soon as I give you a slap on the head, you’ll fly first class all the way to Rhodes!
King Eurystheus did not want to fly anywhere, so he hastened to calm the hero.
- Well, hush, hush, hush... don’t fume! But whether you are stronger than everyone else in the world, this still needs to be checked.
- So check it! Hurry up! Otherwise I'm hungry!
Here the king says to him:
- To test your strength, I will give you the first task. An unprecedented monster appeared in the mountains of Nemea. Huge lion. This lion is the size of an elephant. And angry and strong, like a thousand lions. No one has been able to deal with him until now. Go ahead and kill this lion. And if you kill, you will receive a royal reward. If you fail, you will become my slave.
- Yes, I’ll kill this mangy cat with one left hand! - Hercules said arrogantly, and headed to the mountains of Nemea to look for a shabby cat.
THE FIRST LABOR OF HERCULES
Nemean lion
Hercules approached the Nemean Mountains and began to look for Leo. I searched all day, and only in the evening I found a huge cave where Leo lived. Here we should remember that in those distant times people did not have the kind of weapons that they have now. There were no rifles. There were no pistols. There were no grenades. Well, there was nothing that could kill such a monster. All Hercules had was a bow and arrows, a spear and a club.
Hercules approached the cave and shouted loudly:
- Well, come out, Lyova from Mogilev! I'll rip your head off right now!
A huge lion reluctantly came out of the cave and roared so loudly that the trees bent and all their leaves fell off.
- Who dared to wake me up?! Is it you, you insignificant little man?
- Now you will understand who woke you up, fat hippopotamus! - Hercules exclaimed.
He took his bow and shot three arrows at the Lion, one after the other. But the arrows bounced off the Lion's skin. Hercules threw his spear. But the spear broke on the Lion's skin. Then Hercules launched his mighty club at Leo. But the Lion opened his huge mouth and swallowed the club like a fly.
And then a huge lion rushed at Hercules, and would certainly have crushed him like a cockroach if the hero had not managed to jump to the side. And as soon as he jumped back, he started running as fast as he could. The lion is behind him. Hercules from him. The monster attacks - the hero retreats. And so the lion managed to drive Hercules to the edge of the abyss. It’s time for Hercules to read some kind of prayer, but he doesn’t know a single one. Hercules looked around and saw a huge bird flying in the sky. The hero took out a grilled chicken from his saddle bag, which he was going to have a snack with after he dealt with Lev, and threw it up. The huge bird saw the small bird, albeit fried, and swooped down. And a huge lion approaches Hercules with huge leaps. Yes, the hero managed to jump and grab the tail of a huge bird. Well, this mighty bird carried Hercules right out of the Lion’s mouth. And the huge lion ran so fast that his braking distance was insufficient to stop on the edge of the abyss, and he fell off the cliff into the abyss.
And Hercules ordered the huge Eagle to land if he did not want something to be torn away from him. The eagle, of course, immediately landed, and Hercules let him go, and even left him a roast bird - as a bonus. Hercules found a dead Lion, cut off his head, chopped off all four paws and tore off his skin. The shoemaker sewed two pairs of strong sandals from the lion's paws - Hercules ran in them for a hundred years, and they never wore down. From the skin of a lion, the furrier sewed a pair of capes for Hercules that not a single arrow could pierce. Why not a bulletproof vest?! And Hercules brought the head of the lion to King Eurystheus. The cunning king then put this head up for auction at Sotheby's. They say that the head of the Nemean lion was bought for a lot of money by some anonymous buyer from Russia.
So Hercules accomplished his first feat. I’m not sure that this was a feat, but the Greeks insist on it. I won't argue.
SECOND LABOR OF HERCULES
Lernaean Hydra
When Hercules brought King Eurystheus his first battle trophy - the head of a huge lion, the king questioned the hero's feat. Were there any witnesses? Oh, they weren’t! So you can't prove that you killed the lion? No, brother. This will not work. If you want to get into the Guinness Book of Records, you must provide documentary evidence of your feat, and also a bunch of witnesses. So, buddy, I'm giving you one more chance. Go and kill the Lernaean Hydra, who lives three kilometers from the city of Lerna. Find out the exact address from my secretary.
And the cunning Eurystheus sent Hydra to kill Hercules because he really loved cranberries in sugar. And cranberries grew only in that swamp and nowhere else. And when the terrible Hydra appeared in that swamp, they stopped collecting cranberries. Who wants to die for the sake of the king’s whim?
Hercules had to go fight Hydra. He found her in a huge swamp two and a half kilometers from Lerna. Hercules approached the paradise of the swamp and shouted loudly:
- Hey, Hydra-Mydra! Get out! Let's measure our strength!
At his cry, a huge snake head, the size of a barrel, poked out of the swamp. Behind her is the second one. Next is the third. Fourth. Fifth. Sixth. Seventh. Eighth. Ninth! Although Hercules did not know how to count, since he did not study at school, he realized that Hydra had many heads. This means that there will be difficult work ahead.
And all nine heads of the Hydra, when they saw Hercules, began to hiss with a terrible hiss, from the sound of which you can die with fear:
- So it’s you, insignificant little man! It is you, Hercules, who killed my brother the Nemean lion! Now I will tear you into small pieces!
- Let's see who can defeat whom, swamp creature! - exclaimed the hero.
Hercules grabbed the club and, well, let’s hit the hydra’s heads. Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! He knocked off all the heads, but only saw that in place of the cut off heads, new ones immediately grew. Hercules began waving his club again. And all the Hydra's heads grew back. Hercules fought for three hours without a break, but he just couldn’t defeat the Hydra. Yes, here his friend Iolaus helped him, whom Hercules took with him as a witness so that he could apply for the feat in the Guinness Book. While Hercules was waving his club, Iolaus dragged a barrel of gunpowder to the swamp, which he took with him, just in case. Iolaus inserted a wick into the barrel, set it on fire, and threw the barrel into the swamp. And he shouts to his friend: “Go away, Hercules! Now it’s crazy!” Hercules barely managed to get out of the swamp.
Then it exploded. It tore the hydra into thousands of pieces, and scattered these pieces throughout Greece. Since then, the hydra has been sitting in every swamp in Greece. Now do you understand why there are no cranberries in Greece? Now the Greeks buy cranberries from Russia.
Hercules found a pair of severed heads of the Hydra in a swampy swamp, and, as a trophy, brought them to King Eurystheus. And King Eurystheus again does not believe him. Why did you only bring two heads? Hydra had nine of them. And you only have one witness. I told you that there must be a whole bunch of witnesses. So, my friend, here's another task for you. Go and kill all the Stymphalian birds. They do not allow people and animals to live. And no one can deal with them. So you prove that you are the strongest!
And you ask: where did the two hydrina heads go? That's right - right there. For Sotheby's auction.
THE THIRD LABOR OF HERCULES
Stymphalian birds
Hercules walked for two days and two nights to the city of Stymphala, in the vicinity of which terrible birds ruled. Their beaks and claws were made of copper and bronze. Their huge carcasses were covered with copper and bronze feathers. It was these feathers that scattered with swift arrows, killing all living things. A huge flock of these birds settled in a dense forest at the foot of a high hill. Moreover, one half of the flock was copper, and the other was bronze.
Hercules wondered how to cope with these birds? There are thousands of them, but he only has fifty arrows. And then Palada Athena appeared to him and said: “Take this iron mouthpiece and go to the top of the hill. At night, when the birds are sleeping, take a megaphone and scream at the top of your lungs! The birds will get scared and start fighting each other.”
Hercules took the iron mouthpiece and headed towards the hill. He approached the hill and saw that the entire hill was surrounded by a high fence, and near the closed iron gates, there was a watchman’s booth, and a sign on it: “Private territory. No entry!" And just below it is written in clumsy handwriting: “Entrance – 1000 drachmas.” Well, since Hercules was illiterate (he didn’t go to school), he couldn’t read the inscription, but simply kicked out the iron gate with his left foot and climbed to the top of the hill. The hero hid behind a huge boulder and sat in the shelter until nightfall, satisfying his hunger with his favorite grilled chicken. And when night came, Hercules began to scream into an iron megaphone at the top of his lungs: “I’ll kill you!” I'll kill everyone! I’ll rip everyone’s heads off!” There was such a commotion in the forest! You can’t see anything, you can only hear the sound of copper and bronze ringing. Here bird arrows flew towards Hercules. He managed to hide behind a boulder, but several arrows hit him, but the skin of the Nemean lion saved him.
In the morning, Hercules sees that the entire huge flock of birds has gathered at the watering hole - a small lake on the edge of the forest. “So much for you! - thought Hercules. “I can’t handle these birds.” He went down the hill, went up to the watchman's booth, and in it the watchman was fast asleep. Doesn't look like a Greek. He looks not like a Kyrgyz, not like an Uzbek, not like an African. Hercules woke him up and asked:
- Why are you sleeping so calmly? Aren't you afraid of birds?
- Not afraid. “They are afraid of me,” the watchman answers.
- Why are they afraid of you, such a bastard? – Hercules was surprised.
“They are afraid because they know that I can kill them all,” the watchman answers calmly.
- Kill??? – Hercules didn’t believe it.
- Very simple. I'll do some magic on a dead rat and they'll kill each other.
- Well, then do some magic, come on! - Hercules ordered.
- I can not. “I need their feathers,” the watchman answers.
Hercules pulled out from the lion's skin two feathers stuck in it - copper and bronze - and handed them to the watchman.
- Here you are. Do some magic, come on!
The watchman, either Kyrgyz, or Uzbek, or African, thought for a moment and said:
- It’s better not to cast magic on a rat, but on dead birds. Bring me some. Red and bronze.
And on the lawn, after the night bird fight, a dozen dead birds lay. Hercules brought copper and bronze birds and gave them to the watchman. Well, then I began the ritual of witchcraft. He took the carcass of a bronze bird and stuck a copper feather into it. He stuck a bronze feather into the copper bird. And he began to mutter something, I don’t understand what. And then, as he waved his hands, as he screamed, that’s where it all began.
The whole flock of birds rose into the air and immediately split in half. On one side there are copper birds, and on the other there are bronze birds. And a mortal battle began between them. The birds fought all day, and by evening the bronze ones began to overcome the red ones. The Reds could not stand it and flew away from the battlefield. And the bronze ones also flew away somewhere from these parts, and never returned.
Hercules was surprised at the watchman’s witchcraft, and as a sign of gratitude, he put in place the iron gate that he had demolished the other day. Then the hero picked up a couple of dead birds and headed to the palace of Eurystheus. And the king again did not count Hercules for his feat, citing the fact that half of the birds had scattered somewhere. And there was an order - to kill everyone!
They say that a flock of bronze birds found refuge somewhere in the Caucasus mountains. And there were so many of them there that Zurab Tsereteli still has no problems with bronze. And the red birds reached distant Russia, where many centuries later they caused such unrest that great countries everything turned red for 74 years.
Here's the story.
FOURTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Kerynean fallow deer
After a six-month vacation, which King Eurystheus gave to Hercules, the king summoned the hero to himself and ordered him to get ready for a new campaign. He ordered Hercules to catch a doe with golden horns and deliver her alive to his palace. The king knew that this doe was listed in the Red Book, so he ordered not to kill it, but to bring it alive. Seeing Hercules off on the road, the king joked: for you, hero, winner of the Nemean lion, Lernaean hydra and bronze birds, this task of mine will be simple fun.
Hercules headed to the mountains of Arcadia, where this wonderful doe lived. After many days of searching, he finally saw the doe. Hercules chased after her, but the doe ran faster than the wind, and it was impossible to catch up with her. It's much simpler these days. I got on a helicopter with some governor and prosecutor, and in no time caught up with any doe and any other goat from any Red Book. And Hercules had to run after the doe on his own two feet. Good thing - the sturdy sandals saved his feet from the sharp rocks. For a whole year Hercules chased the doe. I was completely exhausted. I lost ten kilograms. And the doe seems to be playing with him. He lets you in and quickly disappears. He stops and waits again. Hercules could not stand such mockery, and one day he shot an arrow at this nasty doe. The arrow hit the doe's leg. The poor animal became lame and could no longer run. Here Hercules caught the doe. He put her on his shoulders and headed back.
Suddenly he sees a beautiful maiden in the form of a ranger coming towards him. She approached Hercules and introduced herself:
- Artemis. Reserve security service.
And Hercules says to her:
- I have no time to chat, beauty. I hasten to King Eurystheus with the trophy. If you want, leave your address. When I'm free, we'll chat.
And Artemis says to him in a stern, stern voice:
- You are a young man, you injured a rare animal, which is listed in the Red Book. There is no other doe like this on earth - this is the only one. You committed a crime and now you are facing prison.”
Hercules did not want to sit in prison at all, especially since he had heard a lot about the inclinations of the prisoners. And he began to beg Artemis to let him go. Artemis took pity on him and forgave him. And Hercules, before saying goodbye, says to her:
- Listen, Artemis. Do me a favor. Give me a document proving that I caught a golden-horned doe.”
“No problem,” Artemis answered and handed him a piece of paper with a seal.
Hercules was delighted that he now had documentary evidence of his feat. This means that soon his name will be written down in the Guinness Book forever.
When Hercules returned to the palace of Eurystheus, the first thing he did was hand the king a document with a seal.
- What is this? - Was the king surprised? -Where is the doe?
- I caught the doe, but the ranger Artemis took it from me. And instead of a doe, she gave me this document with a seal confirming my feat,” Hercules proudly declared.
The king read the document and angrily exclaimed:
- Idiot! This is a fine! I need to pay a fine of one hundred thousand drachmas or face prison!
Hercules immediately retreated to the door, and the king shouted after him:
- These are the idiots who will ruin my Greece, in the end! Get out of my sight!
For three whole months Hercules hid in some wilderness, fearing the wrath of the king. And for the first time the hero regretted that he did not go to school.
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THE FIFTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Erymanthian boar
While Hercules was hiding from the royal wrath, his peasants living near Mount Erymanthos came to King Eurystheus with a request to save them from the wild boar that was destroying all their crops. The king called the Minister of the Interior, Grandfather, and ordered him to find Hercules and give him the royal order - to find and kill the wild boar. The minister's detectives quickly found Hercules and handed him the royal order. Hercules began to get ready for the journey. And his friend Iolaus says to him: take me with you - I’ll come in handy.
While Hercules and Iolaus walked to Mount Erymanthos, Iolaus told that the wild boar's rookery was guarded by evil and ruthless centaurs - horses with human bodies and heads. And among all these centaurs, only two - Phol and Chiron - are friendly towards people.
On the way, Hercules and Iolaus met a large cave in which the kind, old centaur Pholus lived. Fol sat alone all day long and was terribly bored. And when he saw two travelers, he was very happy and invited them to visit. Pholus began to treat Hercules and Iolaus with the best wine, the aroma of which spread throughout the entire area. The smell of wine reached the centaurs and enraged them. “Who is Fol sharing our wine with?” After all, this wine belonged not only to Fol, but to all of them. And the centaurs galloped to Fola's cave. And when they arrived, they saw Hercules and Iolaus and invited them to surrender without a fight.
- The Greeks don't give up! - Hercules exclaimed and began to throw arrows from his bow at the centaurs. The centaurs were frightened by the poisoned arrows and began to run in all directions. Yes, that's the problem. Drunk, Hercules shot one arrow at the old, gray-haired, wise, kind centaur Chiron, and mortally wounded him. The arrow was poisoned with poison from which there was no escape. Phol ran up to his friend Chiron, pulled the arrow out of his wound, and dropped it through carelessness. An arrow pierced Fol's leg and he died instantly.
Hercules carried the bodies of Chiron and Pholus into the cave, blocked the entrance with stones, and went to the forest in which the boar lived. And the centaur Fol managed to open the way to the boar for him while they were drinking wine. Hercules found the boar's lair. The boar jumped out of his lair and quickly rushed at Hercules. Hercules barely had time to jump to the side, otherwise the boar would have torn his stomach open with its huge fangs. And the boar ran into a pine tree so hard that it broke the tree and died from the terrible blow. Hercules brought the dead boar to King Eurystheus, but he again did not count his feat. Drunken “exploits” are not considered feats. 10/22/2012
THE SIXTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Augean stables
King Augeas of Elis had huge herds of horses, and since no one wanted, even for good money, to clean the stables from manure, over time, the stables were filled with horse goods to nowhere. Even the horses themselves refused to enter their stables, much less sleep in them. Here you go. Since Augeas did not have his own full-time sewer man, he turned to the neighboring king, Eurystheus, with a request to help in this dirty business. Eurystheus immediately remembered how Hercules had set him up for one hundred thousand drachmas, and ordered him to go to Augeas and clean out his stables. Hercules reached Augeas, saw his countless herds of horses and dirty stables, and said:
- That's it, King Augeias. I will clean out your stables in one day, but on condition that I receive one tenth of your horses for the work.
Augeas understood that it was impossible to clear all the stables of manure in one day, and therefore willingly agreed to this condition.
“Give me a shovel,” Hercules demanded.
- Bring a shovel to the hero! - Augeas ordered.
Hercules got to work. First of all, he broke down the walls of the stables on both sides. Then he began to work diligently with a shovel. He began to destroy a large dam, which protected the city from the harmful floods of two rivers - Alpheus and Penea. The hero worked hard for half a day until he destroyed the dam. The rapid flow instantly cleared the stables of manure, demolishing all the stables and half the city at the same time. When Hercules demanded a well-deserved reward from King Augeas, the greedy Augeas refused to pay. “Like, you, Hercules, destroyed half of my city. So, you have to pay me, not I you.” The hero Hercules took terrible revenge on the king of Elis for such an insult. He killed him in a fair fight with a poisoned arrow from a bow. And after that, he made sacrifices to the Olympian gods and established Olympic Games, which have been held every four years since then.
This was probably the first work of Hercules, which he completed independently - without anyone’s help. Who would have thought that Hercules had such talent as a sewer man! Maybe this was his calling?
We should be grateful to Hercules for establishing the Olympic Games. True, I must admit, I could not even think that in order to establish the Olympic Games, it was necessary to get rid of a pile of manure and the king.
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THE SEVENTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Cretan bull
One day, a snow-white bull with golden horns swam to the shore of the island of Crete. King Minos of Crete was so amazed by this event that he promised to sacrifice this bull to the god of the seas, Poseidon. But then Minos felt sorry for this unusually beautiful bull, and he sacrificed another bull to Poseidon. But gods, that’s what gods are for, that they see everything and know everything. Poseidon was angry with Minos and sent the white bull into a frenzy. The mad bull rushed all over the island and destroyed everything in its path.
It was then that King Minos turned to King Eurystheus with a request to catch the mad bull. You already guessed that Eurystheus entrusted this action to Hercules. Hercules arrived in Cyprus on the next line flight of the Onassis ship company, and as soon as he landed on the shores of Cyprus, he immediately asked: “Well, where is the mad bull?” When he found out that a mad bull was running all over the island, the first thing he did was get himself vaccinated against rabies, have a snack, and then he started running all over the island. Don't get used to it! Finally, he came face to face with a mad bull. Without hesitation, Hercules punched the bull in the nose, and while he was shaking his head in pain, he jumped on his back and menacingly shouted: “Come on, go ahead!” Otherwise, yay... I'll tear it off! Although the bull was mad, he understood that he was in danger - if he lost his egg... then the cows would no longer be interesting. Therefore, the bull did not resist. He ran to the sea, threw himself into the water and swam towards Greece. And when the bull swam to Greece, he ran away again, and now began to rush all over Greece. But what was Hercules’ fault in this? He did his job. The bull was delivered to Greece. But the feat was again not counted. What kind of feat is it - to swim on a mad bull in the sea?
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THE EIGHTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Horses of Diomedes
The king of Thrace, Diomedes, had horses of marvelous beauty and incredible strength. Since childhood, they have been chained to stalls with triple chains. Because they were always striving for freedom, not wanting to serve anyone. And these wonderful horses never ate ordinary horse food: grass, hay, oats. They ate only human flesh.
King Eurystheus ordered Hercules to get to Thrace, steal the horses of Diomedes and bring them to Mycenae. Hercules sailed to Thrace on a ship, along with his beloved friend Abdera. Hercules came to King Diomedes and said to him:
- Sell, king, your horses. I will pay you thirty thousand drachmas for them.
- Yes, my horses are not worth a million drachmas! - Diomedes laughs.
“Well, since they don’t cost anything, give them away just like that,” says Hercules.
- You've lost your mind, buddy! Where has it been seen that priceless horses are given to some stranger at his first request? Maybe you're drunk? So go and get some sleep!
Hercules was terribly offended by the words of King Diomedes, and harbored a mortal grudge against him. At night, Hercules and his companions sneaked into the stables of Diomedes and took his horses to his ship. Diomedes and his soldiers rushed after Hercules. A battle began, in which Hercules emerged victorious, killing King Diomedes and his soldiers. When Hercules boarded the ship, he was horrified to see how the horses of Diomedes were devouring his beloved friend Abdera.
Hercules arranged a magnificent funeral for his beloved friend. Near his grave he founded a city, which he called Abdera. When Hercules brought the horses to Eurystheus, he ordered them to be released. The horses ran away into the mountains, covered with dense forest, where they were torn to pieces by wild animals with pleasure.
This is the story of the eighth labor of Hercules. Although, to be honest, I don’t understand at all - what was the feat? Hercules stole the horses and lost his beloved friend. He killed King Diomedes, who was defending his horses. Somehow I don’t dare call this a feat. But the Greeks insist on this. Well, okay, the Greeks know better.
THE NINTH LABOR OF HERCULES
Belt of Hippolyta
Where the Fermodon River flows into the waters of the Eucine Sea, stands the city of Themiscyra, the main city of the Amazon country. This country is ruled by militant Amazon women. They despise men and are proud of their invincibility. And the Amazons are ruled by the powerful Hippolyta. The god of war Ares gave Hippolyta a leather belt, and as long as she wears this belt, no one can defeat her and the Amazons.
The young, but wayward and capricious daughter of King Eurystheus, Admet, found out about this. She came to her father and demanded that he take out this leather belt of Hippolyta and give it to her for her birthday. Eurystheus immediately ordered Hercules to bring him Hippolyta's belt.
Hercules gathered a small detachment of warriors and set off on a long journey on one ship. On the path of Hercules there was the island of Paros, where the hero was going to replenish his supplies of food and water. Unexpectedly, the sons of the ruler of the island, Minos, killed two of Hercules’ companions. The enraged Hercules killed half of the inhabitants of Paros, drove the survivors into the city, and threatened to starve everyone to death. The inhabitants of Paros were frightened and gave Hercules, instead of his two killed warriors, the grandchildren of Myros - Alcaeus and Sthenel.
Hercules swam further, not forgetting to shed the blood of those he did not like along the way. Finally he sailed to Themiscyra. Hercules went ashore along with his squad, and on the shore he was met by Hippolyta herself and many Amazons. At first, the Amazons wanted to kill the detachment of Hercules, but the queen stopped them. She was attracted by the mighty hero Hercules, and she invited him and his warriors to a feast. The Amazons and their guests feasted all day, and at night the Amazons took the guests to their bedrooms. And for every warrior from Hercules’s squad there were ten Amazons. And Hercules spent that night and many subsequent nights with fifty Amazons and their queen Hippolyta. Hercules and his warriors stayed for almost a whole year in the hospitable land of the Amazons. And when the time came to return home, Queen Hippolyta gave Hercules her leather belt.
They say that soon after the departure of Hercules, children were born to the Amazons. And fifty boys, when they started talking, said - we won’t go to school!
Hercules returned to Mycenae and gave Hippolyta’s belt to King Eurystheus. The king gave the belt to his beloved daughter Admete. But Admeta was afraid to own this belt and gave it to the temple of the goddess Hera.
Well, was it worth Hercules embarking on such dangerous adventures? Although it was probably worth it. Perhaps this is the greatest feat of Hercules. How do you think?
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