Myths of ancient Greece. Myths about the gods of ancient Greece

Nikolay Kun

Legends and myths of Ancient Greece

Part one. Gods and heroes

Myths about the gods and their struggle with giants and titans are presented mainly based on Hesiod’s poem “Theogony” (The Origin of the Gods). Some legends are also borrowed from Homer’s poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey” and the poem “Metamorphoses” (Transformations) by the Roman poet Ovid.

In the beginning there was only eternal, boundless, dark Chaos. It contained the source of life in the world. Everything arose from boundless Chaos - the whole world and the immortal gods. The goddess Earth, Gaia, also came from Chaos. It spreads wide, powerful, giving life to everything that lives and grows on it. Far under the Earth, as far as the vast, bright sky is far from us, in immeasurable depths, the gloomy Tartarus was born - a terrible abyss full of eternal darkness. From Chaos, the source of life, was born the mighty force that animates everything, Love - Eros. The world began to be created. Boundless Chaos gave birth to the Eternal Darkness - Erebus and the dark Night - Nyukta. And from Night and Darkness came the eternal Light - Ether and the joyful bright Day - Hemera. The light spread throughout the world, and night and day began to replace each other.

The mighty, fertile Earth gave birth to the boundless blue Sky - Uranus, and the Sky spread over the Earth. The high Mountains born of the Earth rose proudly towards him, and the ever-noisy Sea spread widely.

Mother Earth gave birth to the Sky, Mountains and Sea, and they have no father.

Uranus - Heaven - reigned in the world. He took the fertile Earth as his wife. Uranus and Gaia had six sons and six daughters - powerful, formidable titans. Their son, the Titan Ocean, flowing around the entire earth like a boundless river, and the goddess Thetis gave birth to all the rivers that roll their waves to the sea, and the sea goddesses - the Oceanids. Titan Hipperion and Theia gave the world children: the Sun - Helios, the Moon - Selene and the ruddy Dawn - pink-fingered Eos (Aurora). From Astraeus and Eos came all the stars that burn in the dark night sky, and all the winds: stormy North wind Boreas, eastern Eurus, humid southern Noth and the western gentle wind Zephyr, carrying clouds heavy with rain.

In addition to the titans, the mighty Earth gave birth to three giants - cyclops with one eye in the forehead - and three huge, like mountains, fifty-headed giants - hundred-armed (hecatoncheires), so named because each of them had a hundred hands. Nothing can resist their terrible power; their elemental power knows no bounds.

Uranus hated his giant children; he imprisoned them in deep darkness in the bowels of the Earth goddess and did not allow them to come into the light. Their mother Earth suffered. She was oppressed by this terrible burden contained in her depths. She summoned her children, the Titans, and convinced them to rebel against their father Uranus, but they were afraid to raise their hands against their father. Only the youngest of them, the treacherous Kron, overthrew his father by cunning and took away his power.

As punishment for Kron, the Goddess Night gave birth to a whole host of terrible substances: Tanata - death, Eris - discord, Apata - deception, Ker - destruction, Hypnos - a dream with a swarm of dark, heavy visions, Nemesis who knows no mercy - revenge for crimes - and many others. Horror, strife, deception, struggle and misfortune brought these gods into the world where Cronus reigned on the throne of his father.

The picture of the life of the gods on Olympus is given from the works of Homer - the Iliad and the Odyssey, which glorify the tribal aristocracy and the basileus leading it as the best people, standing much higher than the rest of the population. The gods of Olympus differ from aristocrats and basileus only in that they are immortal, powerful and can work miracles.

Birth of Zeus

Kron was not sure that power would remain in his hands forever. He was afraid that his children would rebel against him and would subject him to the same fate to which he doomed his father Uranus. He was afraid of his children. And Kron ordered his wife Rhea to bring him the children that were born and mercilessly swallowed them. Rhea was horrified when she saw the fate of her children. Cronus has already swallowed five: Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades (Hades) and Poseidon.

Rhea did not want to lose her last child. On the advice of her parents, Uranus-Heaven and Gaia-Earth, she retired to the island of Crete, and there, in a deep cave, she was born younger son Zeus. In this cave, Rhea hid her son from her cruel father, and instead of her son she gave him a long stone wrapped in swaddling clothes to swallow. Krohn had no idea that he had been deceived by his wife.

Meanwhile, Zeus grew up in Crete. The nymphs Adrastea and Idea cherished little Zeus; they fed him with the milk of the divine goat Amalthea. The bees brought honey to little Zeus from the slopes of the high mountain Dikta. At the entrance to the cave, the young Kuretes struck their shields with their swords every time little Zeus cried, so that Kronus would not hear him cry and Zeus would not suffer the fate of his brothers and sisters.

Zeus overthrows Cronus. The fight of the Olympian gods with the titans

The beautiful and powerful god Zeus grew up and matured. He rebelled against his father and forced him to bring back into the world the children he had absorbed. One after another, Kron spewed out his children-gods, beautiful and bright, from the mouth. They began to fight with Kron and the Titans for power over the world.

This struggle was terrible and stubborn. The children of Kron established themselves on high Olympus. Some of the titans also took their side, and the first were the titan Ocean and his daughter Styx and their children Zeal, Power and Victory. This struggle was dangerous for the Olympian gods. Their opponents, the Titans, were powerful and formidable. But the Cyclopes came to the aid of Zeus. They forged thunder and lightning for him, Zeus threw them at the titans. The struggle had already lasted ten years, but victory did not lean on either side. Finally, Zeus decided to free the hundred-armed giants Hecatoncheires from the bowels of the earth; he called them to help. Terrible, huge as mountains, they emerged from the bowels of the earth and rushed into battle. They tore entire rocks from the mountains and threw them at the titans. Hundreds of rocks flew towards the titans when they approached Olympus. The earth groaned, a roar filled the air, everything around was shaking. Even Tartarus shuddered from this struggle.

Zeus threw fiery lightning and deafeningly roaring thunder one after another. Fire engulfed the entire earth, the seas boiled, smoke and stench covered everything with a thick veil.

Finally, the mighty titans wavered. Their strength was broken, they were defeated. The Olympians chained them and cast them into gloomy Tartarus, into eternal darkness. At the copper indestructible gates of Tartarus, the hundred-armed hecatoncheires stood guard, and they guard so that the mighty titans do not break free from Tartarus again. The power of the titans in the world has passed.

Nikolay Kun

Legends and myths of Ancient Greece

Part one

Gods and heroes

Origin of the world and gods

Myths about the gods and their struggle with giants and titans are presented mainly based on Hesiod’s poem “Theogony” (“The Origin of the Gods”). Some legends are also borrowed from Homer’s poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey” and the poem “Metamorphoses” (“Metamorphoses”) by the Roman poet Ovid.

In the beginning there was only eternal, boundless, dark Chaos. It contained the source of life. Everything arose from boundless Chaos - the whole world and the immortal gods. The goddess Earth, Gaia, also came from Chaos. It spreads wide, powerful, giving life to everything that lives and grows on it. Far under the Earth, as far as the vast bright sky is far from us, in immeasurable depths the gloomy Tartarus was born - a terrible abyss full of eternal darkness. From Chaos was born a mighty force that animates everything, Love - Eros. Boundless Chaos gave birth to the eternal Darkness - Erebus and the dark Night - Nyukta. And from Night and Darkness came the eternal Light - Ether and the joyful bright Day - Hemera. The light spread throughout the world, and night and day began to replace each other.

Uranus - Heaven - reigned in the world. He took the fertile Earth as his wife. Uranus and Gaia had six sons and six daughters - powerful, formidable titans. Their son, the Titan Ocean, flowing around the entire earth, and the goddess Thetis gave birth to all the rivers that roll their waves to the sea, and the sea goddesses - the Oceanids. Titan Hipperion and Theia gave the world children: the Sun - Helios, the Moon - Selene and the ruddy Dawn - pink-fingered Eos (Aurora). From Astraeus and Eos came the stars that burn in the dark night sky, and the winds: the stormy northern wind Boreas, the eastern Eurus, the humid southern Notus and the gentle western wind Zephyr, carrying clouds heavy with rain.

Uranus hated his giant children; he imprisoned them in deep darkness in the bowels of the Earth goddess and did not allow them to come into the light. Their mother Earth suffered. She was oppressed by the terrible burden contained in her depths. She summoned her children, the Titans, and convinced them to rebel against their father Uranus, but they were afraid to raise their hand against their father. Only the youngest of them, the treacherous Kron, overthrew his father by cunning and took away his power.

As punishment for Kron, the Goddess Night gave birth to a whole host of terrible deities: Tanata - death, Eris - discord, Apata - deception, Ker - destruction, Hypnos - a dream with a swarm of gloomy heavy visions, Nemesis who knows no mercy - revenge for crimes - and many others. Horror, strife, deception, struggle and misfortune brought these gods into the world where Cronus reigned on the throne of his father.

Birth of Zeus

Kron was not sure that power would remain in his hands forever. He was afraid that his children would rebel against him and doom him to the same fate to which he doomed his father Uranus. And Kron ordered his wife Rhea to bring him the children that were born and mercilessly swallowed them. Rhea was horrified when she saw the fate of her children. Cronus has already swallowed five: Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades (Hades) and Poseidon.

Rhea did not want to lose her last child. On the advice of her parents, Uranus-Heaven and Gaia-Earth, she retired to the island of Crete, and there, in a deep cave, her son Zeus was born. In this cave, Rhea hid him from his cruel father, and gave Krona a long stone wrapped in swaddling clothes to swallow instead of his son. Krohn had no idea that he had been deceived.

Meanwhile, Zeus grew up in Crete. The nymphs Adrastea and Idea cherished little Zeus. They fed him with the milk of the divine goat Amalthea. Bees brought honey to Zeus from the slopes of the high mountain Dikta. Whenever little Zeus cried, the young Kuretes guarding the cave struck their shields with swords so that Kronos would not hear his crying and Zeus would not suffer the fate of his brothers and sisters.

Zeus overthrows Cronus. The fight of the Olympian gods with the titans

Zeus grew up and matured. He rebelled against his father and forced him to bring back into the world the children he had swallowed. One by one, Kron spewed out his children-gods from the mouth. They began to fight with Kron and the Titans for power over the world.

This struggle was terrible and stubborn. The children of Kron established themselves on high Olympus. Some titans also took their side, and the first were the titan Ocean and his daughter Styx with their children Zeal, Power and Victory.

This struggle was dangerous for the Olympian gods. Their opponents were powerful and formidable. But the Cyclopes came to the aid of Zeus. They forged thunder and lightning for him, Zeus threw them at the titans. The struggle lasted ten years, but victory did not lean on either side. Finally, Zeus decided to free the hundred-armed giants Hecatoncheires from the bowels of the earth and call on them for help. Terrible, huge as mountains, they emerged from the bowels of the earth and rushed into battle. They tore entire rocks from the mountains and threw them at the titans. Hundreds of rocks flew towards the titans as they approached Olympus. The earth groaned, a roar filled the air, everything around was shaking. Even Tartarus shuddered from this struggle. Zeus threw fiery lightning and deafeningly roaring thunder one after another. Fire engulfed the entire earth, the seas boiled, smoke and stench covered everything with a thick veil.

Finally the titans wavered. Their strength was broken, they were defeated. The Olympians chained them and cast them into gloomy Tartarus, into eternal darkness. At the indestructible copper gates of Tartarus, hundred-armed giants - Hecatoncheires - stood guard so that the mighty titans would not break free from Tartarus. The power of the titans in the world has passed.

The fight between Zeus and Typhon

But the struggle did not end there. Gaia-Earth was angry with the Olympian Zeus for treating her defeated titan children so harshly. She married the gloomy Tartarus and gave birth to the terrible hundred-headed monster Typhon. Huge, with a hundred dragon heads, Typhon rose from the bowels of the earth. He shook the air with a wild howl. The barking of dogs, human voices, the roar of an angry bull, the roar of a lion were heard in this howl. Turbulent flames swirled around Typhon, and the earth shook under his heavy steps. The gods shuddered in horror. But Zeus the Thunderer boldly rushed towards Typhon, and the battle began. Lightning flashed again in the hands of Zeus, and thunder rumbled. The earth and the firmament shook to the ground. The earth burst into flames, just as during the fight against the titans. The seas were boiling at the mere approach of Typhon. Hundreds of fiery lightning arrows rained down from the thunderer Zeus; It seemed that even the air and dark thunderclouds were burning from their fire. Zeus incinerated all of Typhon's hundred heads. Typhon collapsed to the ground, such heat emanated from his body that everything around him melted. Zeus raised Typhon's body and threw it into the gloomy Tartarus, which gave birth to him. But even in Tartarus, Typhon also threatens the gods and all living things. It causes storms and eruptions; he gave birth to Echidna, half-woman, half-snake, the terrible two-headed dog Ortho, the hellish dog Kerberus (Cerberus), the Lernaean Hydra and the Chimera; Typhon often shakes the earth.

The Olympian gods defeated their enemies. No one could resist their power anymore. They could now calmly rule the world. The most powerful of them, the thunderer Zeus, took the sky for himself, Poseidon took the sea, and Hades took the underground kingdom of the souls of the dead. The land remained in common possession. Although the sons of Kron divided the power over the world among themselves, the lord of the sky, Zeus, still reigns over everyone; he rules people and gods, he knows everything in the world.

Zeus reigns high on bright Olympus, surrounded by a host of gods. Here are his wife Hera, and golden-haired Apollo with his sister Artemis, and golden Aphrodite, and the mighty daughter of Zeus Athena, and many other gods. Three beautiful oras guard the entrance to high Olympus and raise a thick cloud covering the gates when the gods descend to earth or ascend to the bright halls of Zeus. High above Olympus the blue bottomless sky stretches, and golden light pours from it. There is no rain or snow in the kingdom of Zeus; There is always a bright, joyful summer there. And the clouds swirl below, sometimes covering the distant land. There, on earth, spring and summer are replaced by autumn and winter, joy and fun are replaced by misfortune and grief. True, even the gods know sorrows, but they soon pass, and joy reigns again on Olympus.

The gods feast in their golden palaces, built by the son of Zeus Hephaestus. King Zeus sits on a high golden throne. The courageous, beautiful face of Zeus breathes with greatness and a proudly calm consciousness of power and might. At the throne are his goddess of the world, Eirene, and the constant companion of Zeus, the winged goddess of victory Nike. Here comes the majestic goddess Hera, wife of Zeus. Zeus honors his wife; Hera, the patroness of marriage, is treated with honor by all the gods of Olympus. When, shining with her beauty, in a magnificent outfit, Hera enters the banquet hall, all the gods stand up and bow before the thunderer’s wife. And she goes to the golden throne and sits next to Zeus. Near the throne of Hera stands her messenger, the goddess of the rainbow, the light-winged Iris, always ready to quickly fly on rainbow wings to the farthest ends of the earth and carry out the commands of Hera.

The gods are feasting. The daughter of Zeus, young Hebe, and the son of the king of Troy, Ganymede, the favorite of Zeus, who received immortality from him, offer them ambrosia and nectar - the food and drink of the gods. Beautiful harites and muses delight them with singing and dancing. Holding hands, they dance in circles, and the gods admire their light movements and wondrous, eternally youthful beauty. The feast of the Olympians becomes more fun. At these feasts the gods decide all matters; at them they determine the fate of the world and people.

From Olympus, Zeus sends his gifts to people and establishes order and laws on earth. The fate of people is in the hands of Zeus: happiness and unhappiness, good and evil, life and death. Two large vessels stand at the gates of Zeus's palace. In one vessel there are gifts of good, in the other - evil. Zeus draws good and evil from vessels and sends them to people. Woe to the man to whom the Thunderer draws gifts only from a vessel of evil. Woe to those who violate the order established by Zeus on earth and do not comply with his laws. The son of Kron will move his thick eyebrows menacingly, black clouds will cloud the sky. The great Zeus will be angry, and the hair on his head will rise terribly, his eyes will light up with an unbearable brilliance; he will wave his right hand - thunderclaps will roll across the entire sky, fiery lightning will flash and high Olympus will shake.

The goddess Themis, who preserves the laws, stands at the throne of Zeus. She convenes, at the command of the Thunderer, meetings of the gods on Olympus and public assemblies on earth, watches that order and law are not violated. On Olympus is also the daughter of Zeus, the goddess Dike, who oversees justice. Zeus severely punishes unrighteous judges when Dike informs him that they do not comply with the laws given by Zeus. Goddess Dike is the defender of truth and the enemy of deception.

But although Zeus sends happiness and misfortune to people, the fate of people is still determined by the inexorable goddesses of fate - the Moirai, who live on Olympus. The fate of Zeus himself is in their hands. Fate rules over mortals and gods. No one can escape the dictates of inexorable fate. There is no such force, such power that could change at least something in what is intended for gods and mortals. Some Moirai know the dictates of fate. Moira Clotho spins the life thread of a person, determining his lifespan. The thread breaks and life ends. Moira Lechesis takes out, without looking, the lot that falls to a person in life. No one is able to change the fate determined by the moiras, since the third moira, Atropos, puts everything that her sisters meant in a person’s life in a long scroll, and what is included in the scroll of fate is inevitable. The great, harsh moiras are inexorable.

There is also a goddess of fate on Olympus - Tyukhe, the goddess of happiness and prosperity. From the cornucopia, the horn of the divine goat Amalthea, whose milk Zeus was fed, she pours gifts to people, and happy is the person who meets life path goddess of happiness Tyukhe. But how rarely does this happen, and how unhappy is the person from whom the goddess Tyukhe, who had just given him her gifts, turns away!

Thus, surrounded by a host of gods, Zeus reigns on Olympus, protecting order throughout the world.

Poseidon and the deities of the sea

Deep in the depths of the sea stands the wonderful palace of the brother of the thunderer Zeus, the earth shaker Poseidon. Poseidon rules over the seas, and the waves of the sea are obedient to the slightest movement of his hand, armed with a formidable trident. There, in the depths of the sea, lives with Poseidon and his beautiful wife Amphitrite, the daughter of the prophetic sea elder Nereus, who was kidnapped by Poseidon from her father. He once saw how she led a round dance with her Nereid sisters on the shore of the island of Naxos. The god of the sea was captivated by the beautiful Amphitrite and wanted to take her away in his chariot. But Amphitrite took refuge with the titan Atlas, who holds the vault of heaven on his mighty shoulders. For a long time Poseidon could not find the beautiful daughter of Nereus. Finally, a dolphin opened her hiding place to him; For this service, Poseidon placed the dolphin among the celestial constellations. Poseidon stole the beautiful daughter Nereus from Atlas and married her.

Since then, Amphitrite has lived with her husband Poseidon in an underwater palace. Sea waves roar high above the palace. A host of sea deities surround Poseidon, obedient to his will. Among them is Poseidon's son Triton, who with the thunderous sound of his shell trumpet causes menacing storms. Among the deities are the beautiful sisters of Amphitrite, the Nereids. Poseidon rules over the sea. When he rushes across the sea in his chariot drawn by marvelous horses, the ever-noisy waves part. Equal in beauty to Zeus himself, Poseidon quickly rushes across the boundless sea, and dolphins play around him, fish swim out of sea depth and crowd around his chariot. When Poseidon waves his formidable trident, then sea waves, covered with white crests of foam, rise like mountains, and a fierce storm rages on the sea. The sea waves crash noisily against the coastal rocks and shake the earth. But Poseidon extends his trident over the waves - and they calm down. The storm subsides, the sea is calm again, smooth as a mirror, and barely audibly splashes along the shore - blue, boundless.

Among the deities surrounding Poseidon is the prophetic sea elder Nereus, who knows all the innermost secrets of the future. Nereus is alien to lies and deception; He reveals only the truth to gods and mortals. The advice given by the prophetic elder is wise. Nereus has fifty beautiful daughters. Young Nereids splash merrily in the waves of the sea, sparkling with beauty. Holding hands, a line of them swim out of the depths of the sea and dance in a circle on the shore under the gentle splash of the waves of the calm sea quietly rushing onto the shore. The echo of the coastal rocks repeats the sounds of their gentle singing, like the quiet roar of the sea. The Nereids patronize the sailor and give him a happy voyage.

Among the deities of the sea is the old man Proteus, who, like the sea, changes his image and turns, at will, into various animals and monsters. He is also a prophetic god, you just need to be able to catch him unexpectedly, master him and force him to reveal the secret of the future. Among the companions of the earth shaker Poseidon is the god Glaucus, the patron saint of sailors and fishermen, and he has the gift of divination. Often, emerging from the depths of the sea, he discovered the future and gave wise advice to people. The gods of the sea are mighty, their power is great, but the great brother of Zeus, Poseidon, rules over them all.

All seas and all lands flow around the gray Ocean - the titan god, equal to Zeus himself in honor and glory. He lives far on the borders of the world, and the affairs of the earth do not disturb his heart. Three thousand sons - river gods and three thousand daughters - Oceanids, goddesses of streams and springs, near the Ocean. The sons and daughters of the Ocean give prosperity and joy to mortals with their ever-rolling life-giving water; they water the whole earth and all living things with it.

Kingdom of Dark Hades

Deep underground, the inexorable, gloomy brother of Zeus, Hades, reigns. The rays of the bright sun never penetrate there. Bottomless abysses lead from the surface of the earth to the sad kingdom of Hades. Dark rivers flow through it. The chilling sacred river Styx flows there, the gods themselves swear by its waters.

Cocytus and Acheron roll their waves there; the souls of the dead resound with lamentations full of sadness on their gloomy shores. In the underground kingdom flow the waters of the Lethe River, giving oblivion of all earthly things. Across the gloomy fields of the kingdom of Hades, overgrown with pale asphodel flowers, ethereal light shadows of the dead rush. They complain about their joyless life without light and without desires. Their moans are heard quietly, barely perceptible, like the rustling of withered leaves driven by the autumn wind. There is no return for anyone from this kingdom of sadness. The three-headed dog Kerber, on whose neck snakes move with a menacing hiss, guards the exit. The stern old Charon, the carrier of the souls of the dead, will not carry a single soul through the gloomy waters of Acheron back to where the sun of life shines brightly.

Peter Paul Rubens. The Rape of Ganymede. 1611–1612

The ruler of this kingdom, Hades, sits on a golden throne with his wife Persephone. He is served by the inexorable goddesses of vengeance, Erinyes. Menacing, with whips and snakes, they pursue the criminal; they do not give him a minute of peace and torment him with remorse; You can’t hide from them anywhere, they find their prey everywhere. The judges of the kingdom of the dead, Minos and Rhadamanthus, sit at the throne of Hades.

Here, at the throne, is the god of death Tanat with a sword in his hands, in a black cloak, with huge black wings. These wings blow with grave cold when Tanat flies to the bed of a dying man to cut off a strand of hair from his head with her sword and tear out his soul. Next to Tanat are the gloomy Kera. On wings they rush, frantic, across the battlefield. The Kers rejoice as they see the slain warriors fall one after another; With their blood-red lips they fall to the wounds, greedily drink the hot blood of the slain and tear out their souls from the body. Here, at the throne of Hades, is the beautiful young god of sleep, Hypnos. He silently flies on his wings above the ground with poppy heads in his hands and pours a sleeping pill from the horn. Hypnos gently touches the eyes of people with her wonderful rod, quietly closes her eyelids and plunges mortals into a sweet sleep. The god Hypnos is powerful, neither mortals, nor gods, nor even the thunderer Zeus himself can resist him: and Hypnos closes his menacing eyes and plunges him into deep sleep.

The gods of dreams also rush about in the dark kingdom of Hades. Among them there are gods who give prophetic and joyful dreams, but there are also gods who give terrible, depressing dreams that frighten and torment people. There are gods of false dreams: they mislead a person and often lead him to death.

The kingdom of Hades is full of darkness and horror. There the terrible ghost of Empus with donkey legs wanders in the darkness; Having lured people into a secluded place in the darkness of the night by cunning, it drinks all the blood and devours their still trembling body. The monstrous Lamia also wanders there; she sneaks into the bedrooms of happy mothers at night and steals their children to drink their blood. The great goddess Hecate rules over all ghosts and monsters. She has three bodies and three heads. On a moonless night she wanders in deep darkness along the roads and at the graves with all her terrible retinue, surrounded by Stygian dogs. She sends horrors and painful dreams to the earth and destroys people. Hecate is called upon as an assistant in witchcraft, but she is also the only assistant against witchcraft for those who honor her and sacrifice dogs to her at the crossroads, where three roads diverge. The kingdom of Hades is terrible, and people hate it.

The goddess Hera, the wife of Zeus, patronizes marriage and protects the holiness and inviolability of marriages. She sends the spouses numerous offspring and blesses the mother during the birth of the child.

After Hera and her brothers and sisters were spewed out of his mouth by Kronus, defeated by Zeus, Hera's mother Rhea carried her to the ends of the earth to the gray Ocean; Hera was raised there by Thetis. Hera lived for a long time away from Olympus, in peace and quiet. The Thunderer Zeus saw her, fell in love and kidnapped her from Thetis. The gods celebrated the wedding of Zeus and Hera magnificently. Iris and the Charites clothed Hera in luxurious clothes, and she shone with her majestic beauty among the gods of Olympus, sitting on a golden throne next to Zeus. All the gods presented gifts to the queen Hera, and the goddess Earth-Gaia grew from her bowels a wondrous apple tree with golden fruits as a gift to Hera. Everything in nature praised Hera and Zeus.

Hera reigns on high Olympus. She, like her husband Zeus, commands thunder and lightning, at her word the sky is covered with dark rain clouds, and with a wave of her hand she raises menacing storms.

Hera is beautiful, hair-eyed, lily-armed, from under her crown a wave of wondrous curls fall, her eyes glow with power and calm majesty. The gods honor Hera, and her husband, the cloud suppressor Zeus, honors her and consults with her. But quarrels between Zeus and Hera are also common. Hera often objects to Zeus and argues with him at the councils of the gods. Then the Thunderer gets angry and threatens his wife with punishment. Hera falls silent and holds back her anger. She remembers how Zeus bound her with golden chains, hung her between the earth and the sky, tied two heavy anvils to her feet, and subjected her to scourging.

Hera is powerful, there is no goddess equal to her in power. Majestic, in long luxurious clothes woven by Athena herself, in a chariot drawn by two immortal horses, she rides down from Olympus. The chariot is all made of silver, the wheels are made of pure gold, and their spokes sparkle with copper. Fragrance spreads across the ground where Hera passes. All living things bow before her, the great queen of Olympus.

Hera often suffers insults from her husband Zeus. This is what happened when Zeus fell in love with the beautiful Io and, in order to hide her from Hera, turned Io into a cow. But the Thunderer did not save Io. Hera saw the snow-white cow Io and demanded that Zeus give it to her. Zeus could not refuse Hera. Hera, having taken possession of Io, gave her under the protection of the stoic Argus. Unhappy Io could not tell anyone about her suffering: turned into a cow, she was speechless. Sleepless Argus guarded Io. Zeus saw her suffering. Calling on his son Hermes, he ordered him to kidnap Io.

Hermes quickly rushed to the top of the mountain where the steadfast guard Io stood guard. He put Argus to sleep with his speeches. As soon as his hundred eyes closed, Hermes drew his curved sword and cut off Argus’s head with one blow. Io was freed. But Zeus did not save Io from the wrath of Hera. She sent a monstrous gadfly. With its terrible sting, the gadfly drove the unfortunate sufferer Io from country to country, distraught with torment. She did not find peace anywhere. In a frantic run, Io rushed further and further, and the gadfly flew after her, constantly stabbing her body with a sting; the sting of the gadfly burned Io like a hot iron. Where did Io run, what countries did she visit! Finally, after long wanderings, she reached in the country of the Scythians, in the far north, the rock to which the titan Prometheus was chained. He predicted to the unfortunate woman that only in Egypt would she get rid of her torment. Io rushed on, driven by the gadfly. She endured much torment and saw many dangers before she reached Egypt. There, on the banks of the blessed Nile, Zeus returned her to her former image, and her son Epaphus was born. He was the first king of Egypt and the founder of a generation of heroes, to which the greatest hero of Greece, Hercules, belonged.

Birth of Apollo

The god of light, golden-haired Apollo, was born on the island of Delos. His mother Latona, persecuted by the goddess Hera, could not find shelter anywhere. Pursued by the dragon Python sent by Hera, she wandered all over the world and finally took refuge in Delos, which at that time was rushing along the waves of a stormy sea. As soon as Latona entered Delos, huge pillars rose from the depths of the sea and stopped this deserted island. He became unshakable in the place where he still stands. The sea roared around Delos. The cliffs of Delos rose sadly, bare, without the slightest vegetation. Only sea gulls found shelter on these rocks and filled them with their sad cry. But then the god Apollo was born, and streams of bright light spread everywhere. They covered the rocks of Delos like gold. Everything around blossomed and sparkled: the coastal cliffs, Mount Kint, the valley, and the sea. The goddesses gathered on Delos loudly praised the born god, offering him ambrosia and nectar. All nature rejoiced along with the goddesses.

The struggle between Apollo and Python and the foundation of the Delphic Oracle

Young, radiant Apollo rushed across the azure sky with a cithara in his hands, with a silver bow over his shoulders; golden arrows rang loudly in his quiver. Proud, jubilant, Apollo rushed high above the earth, threatening everything evil, everything born of darkness. He strove to where Python lived, who was pursuing his mother Latona; he wanted to take revenge on him for all the evil that he caused her.

Apollo quickly reached the gloomy gorge, the home of Python. Rocks rose all around, reaching high into the sky. Darkness reigned in the gorge. A mountain stream, gray with foam, rushed rapidly along its bottom, and fog swirled above the stream. The terrible Python crawled out of his lair. His huge body, covered with scales, twisted between the rocks in countless rings. Rocks and mountains trembled from the weight of his body and moved from place. The furious Python brought devastation to everything, he spread death all around. The nymphs and all living things fled in horror. Python rose, powerful, furious, opened his terrible mouth and was ready to swallow Apollo. Then the ringing of the string of a silver bow was heard, as a spark flashed in the air of a golden arrow that could not miss, followed by another, a third; arrows rained down on Python, and he fell lifeless to the ground. The triumphant victory song (paean) of the golden-haired Apollo, the conqueror of Python, sounded loudly, and the golden strings of the god’s cithara echoed it. Apollo buried the body of Python in the ground where the sacred Delphi stands, and founded a sanctuary and an oracle in Delphi in order to prophesy in it to people the will of his father Zeus.

From a high shore far out to sea, Apollo saw a ship of Cretan sailors. Having turned into a dolphin, he rushed into the blue sea, overtook the ship and flew up from the sea waves to its stern like a radiant star. Apollo brought the ship to the pier of the city of Chris and led the Cretan sailors through a fertile valley to Delphi. He made them the first priests of his sanctuary.

Based on Ovid's poem "Metamorphoses".

The bright, joyful god Apollo knows sadness, and grief befell him. He experienced grief shortly after defeating Python. When Apollo, proud of his victory, stood over the monster killed by his arrows, he saw next to him the young god of love Eros, pulling his golden bow. Laughing, Apollo said to him:

“What do you need, child, such a formidable weapon?” It’s better for me to send the smashing golden arrows with which I just killed Python. Can you be equal in glory to me, Arrowhead? Do you really want to achieve greater glory than me?

The offended Eros answered Apollo:

- Your arrows, Phoebus-Apollo, do not miss, they strike everyone, but my arrow will strike you.

Eros flapped his golden wings and in the blink of an eye flew up to high Parnassus. There he took two arrows from his quiver. One, wounding the heart and evoking love, he pierced the heart of Apollo, the other - killing love - Eros sent into the heart of the nymph Daphne, daughter of the river god Peneus.

Once he met the beautiful Daphne Apollo and fell in love with her. But as soon as Daphne saw the golden-haired Apollo, she began to run with the speed of the wind: after all, the arrow of Eros, killing love, pierced her heart. The silver-bowed god hurried after her.

“Stop, beautiful nymph,” cried Apollo, “why are you running from me, like a lamb pursued by a wolf?” Like a dove fleeing from an eagle, you rush! After all, I’m not your enemy! Look, you hurt your feet on the sharp thorns of the thorns. Oh wait, stop! After all, I am Apollo, the son of the thunderer Zeus, and not a mere mortal shepherd.

Mother Earth gave birth to the Sky, Mountains and Sea, and they have no father.

Uranus - Heaven - reigned in the world. He took the fertile Earth as his wife. Uranus and Gaia had six sons and six daughters - powerful, formidable titans. Their son, the Titan Ocean, flowing around the entire earth like a boundless river, and the goddess Thetis gave birth to all the rivers that roll their waves to the sea, and the sea goddesses - the Oceanids. Titan Hipperion and Theia gave the world children: the Sun - Helios, the Moon - Selene and the ruddy Dawn - pink-fingered Eos (Aurora). From Astraeus and Eos came all the stars that burn in the dark night sky, and all the winds: the stormy northern wind Boreas, the eastern Eurus, the humid southern Notus and the gentle western wind Zephyr, carrying clouds heavy with rain.

Birth of Zeus

Rhea did not want to lose her last child. On the advice of her parents, Uranus-Heaven and Gaia-Earth, she retired to the island of Crete, and there, in a deep cave, her youngest son Zeus was born. In this cave, Rhea hid her son from her cruel father, and instead of her son she gave him a long stone wrapped in swaddling clothes to swallow. Krohn had no idea that he had been deceived by his wife.

Zeus overthrows Cronus. The fight of the Olympian gods with the titans

Zeus threw fiery lightning and deafeningly roaring thunder one after another. Fire engulfed the entire earth, the seas boiled, smoke and stench covered everything with a thick veil.

The fight between Zeus and Typhon

But the struggle did not end there. Gaia-Earth was angry with the Olympian Zeus for treating her defeated titan children so harshly. She married the gloomy Tartarus and gave birth to the terrible hundred-headed monster Typhon. Huge, with a hundred dragon heads, Typhon rose from the bowels of the earth. He shook the air with a wild howl. The barking of dogs, human voices, the roar of an angry bull, the roar of a lion were heard in this howl. Turbulent flames swirled around Typhon, and the earth shook under his heavy steps. The gods shuddered with horror, but Zeus the Thunderer boldly rushed at him, and the battle broke out. Lightning flashed again in the hands of Zeus, and thunder rumbled. The earth and the firmament were shaken to the core. The earth flared up again with a bright flame, just as during the fight with the titans. The seas were boiling at the mere approach of Typhon. Hundreds of fiery lightning arrows rained down from the thunderer Zeus; it seemed as if their fire was making the very air burn and the dark thunderclouds were burning. Zeus incinerated all of Typhon's hundred heads. Typhon collapsed to the ground; such heat emanated from his body that everything around him melted. Zeus raised Typhon's body and threw it into the gloomy Tartarus, which gave birth to him. But even in Tartarus, Typhon also threatens the gods and all living things. It causes storms and eruptions; he gave birth to Echidna, half-woman, half-snake, the terrible two-headed dog Orph, the hellish dog Kerberus, the Lernaean Hydra and the Chimera; Typhon often shakes the earth.

Prologue

The ruler of Olympus, the formidable and omnipotent Zeus, knew that by the will of fate, in the upcoming battle of the Olympians with the mortal giants, they would be able to win only if a hero fought on the side of the gods. And he decided that this mortal should be his son from an earthly woman. Turning his gaze to the earth, Zeus was struck by the beauty of Alcmene, the wife of Amphitryon, who ruled in Thebes.

The lovely Alcmene was faithful and loving wife. Even Zeus himself could not count on her voluntarily agreeing to become the mother of his son. So he resorted to a trick.

Having waited until Amphitryon went to war, Zeus took his form and appeared before Alcmene, surrounded by warriors. Faithful Alkmena saw her beloved husband returning from the war and joyfully rushed to meet him.

When the allotted time had passed, Alkmena gave birth to twin boys. One, named Alcides, was the son of Zeus, the other - Iphicles - the son of Amphitryon. The couple loved both equally, without making any distinction between them.

Zeus triumphed - his son, born Alcmene, was destined to become an unprecedented hero; he intended to make him ruler of Mycenae.

However, Zeus's wife, Hera, was offended by her husband's betrayal with a mortal woman; she hated Alcides and decided to destroy him.

And then one day, when happy Alcmene was rejoicing, admiring her sons, a voice came from heaven:

“Alcmene, you have angered the queen of heaven and you will be severely punished for it.” Your husband will die in battle, your children will die, and you yourself will go to Hades in the kingdom of the dead. But you can avoid this fate if you take Alcides to a deserted place and leave him there alone.

Shedding bitter tears, Alcmene fulfilled the will of Hera. However, Zeus kept a vigilant eye on Alcides and, seeing that his son was in danger of death, sent his faithful friend, the winged Hermes, to the baby, ordering him to bring his son. When Hermes delivered the child to Zeus, he ordered it to be secretly placed on the divine breast of the sleeping Hera. Alcides began to greedily suck the milk, but Hera woke up.

Realizing what had happened, she wanted to kill the hated baby. But he had already managed to receive immortality along with her milk.

Legend has it that when Hera tore Alcides from her breast, milk sprayed from her nipple, and from its drops a starry path was formed in the sky, called the Milky Way.

The vindictive Hera made another attempt to destroy the son of Alcmene. One night, when the twin brothers were sleeping peacefully, Hera sent two monstrous snakes. When they crawled up to them, the bedroom suddenly lit up brightly, and the children woke up. Iphicles, seeing the reptiles, ran away in fear, and Alcides grabbed the snakes wrapped around his body by the necks with his strong hands and strangled them.

Surprised by his strength and courage, Amphitryon and Alcmene decided to turn to the soothsayer Tiresias to find out what future awaited their Alcides.

The answer they received amazed and delighted them: their son would be famous as the bravest of heroes; he will immortalize his name by completing twelve labors and defeat many different monsters; he will defeat many famous warriors, and then will ascend to the starry dome of the sky and will be received on Olympus.

Having learned that his son was destined for the future of a warrior, Amphitryon decided to send him to learn how to master all types of weapons, fight and win, hunt and drive a chariot.

Alcides studied with joy and diligence and very soon surpassed Amphitryon himself in the art of war.

But Hera again set a trap for Alcides. By that time, he was already married to the beautiful Megara, the daughter of King Creon, and they had three glorious sons, who brought a lot of joy to their parents with their children's games and amusements.

Hera, who saw their joy, burned with evil jealousy. She sent madness to Alcides, in a fit of which he killed Megara and his sons, who seemed to him to be Cyclopes. Waking up and realizing what he had done, the unfortunate Alcides began to sob over the bodies of the dead and decided to drown himself in the sea, but the goddess Athena came down from Olympus and told him that the atrocity he had committed was not his fault, but the result of Hera’s insidious plan.

Having cleansed himself, according to ancient custom, from the filth of the murder he had unwittingly committed, Alcides went to the Delphic oracle, a servant of the god Apollo. He ordered him to follow to the homeland of his ancestors, to Tiryns, and remain in the service of King Eurystheus, to be with him, at the command of the gods, in the position of a slave. From the mouth of the Pythia, Alcides learned that he had been given a new name and from now on he would be called Hercules, that he would have to perform twelve commands of his master to atone for his guilt, and that only after this he would find forgiveness for the shed blood of innocent victims. So Hercules became the servant of the weak and cowardly king of Mycenae. He was afraid of him, did not let him into the city and conveyed all orders through his messenger Koprey.

Labor One: Hercules and the Nemean Lion

King Eurystheus ordered Hercules to go to Nemea and kill the bloodthirsty lion that lived in the vicinity of this city. A lot of local residents and the travelers were eaten by this lion, and not a single hero has yet managed to defeat him, since the evil beast was the offspring of the monster Typhon and the evil Echidna, who endowed him with extraordinary strength and invulnerability.

Arriving in Nemea, Hercules immediately found the cave of the Nemean Lion, but there was no beast in it. Then the hero hid and began to wait.

And so, when it got dark, a lion appeared: he was returning from the hunt, having had his fill of a flock of sheep and their shepherd. Seeing Hercules, the beast bristled, his fierce eyes filled with anger, and the lion's roar shook the area, reaching the limits of Olympus.

But the menacing roar and saber-shaped fangs did not frighten Hercules. He raised his bow, pulled the string and released the arrow. However, having hit the lion’s skin, the arrow flew off to the side without causing any harm to the giant, for his skin was enchanted and therefore invulnerable.

When Hercules had used up all the arrows, the lion jumped at him, but was met by a blow from a club of such force that it split in two. The lion trembled, the magic skin helped him to stand. However, the beast hastened to hide in its lair. Fearless Hercules followed him and saw in the pitch darkness two eyes of his enemy glowing like burning torches. The fight continued with renewed vigor.

No one knows, the struggle continued for an hour or two, or maybe a day, two or even three, but finally Hercules firmly grabbed the monster by the throat, squeezed it with an iron grip and held it until the lion died.

Hercules, knowing that he had to perform eleven more labors, each more dangerous than the other, decided that it would be a good idea to remove his wonderful skin from the lion in order to protect himself from the sword and arrows.

However, this turned out to be difficult: the knife that Hercules tried to use did not cut through the skin. Then our hero realized that since the skin is invulnerable to an attacker, it means that it cannot be taken with a knife or sword, and only the giant lion’s own claws can rip it open. Hercules skinned the lion using his own claws and put on the skin as a cloak. In addition, in order to protect his head in the future, he removed the skull from the lion and made a helmet out of it.

Having defeated the giant Nemean lion and completed his first feat, Hercules set off on his way back to Mycenae for a new assignment from King Eurystheus.

Labor two: Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra

The terrible Nemean lion had a monstrous sister - the Lernaean Hydra, born from the same Typhon and the half-snake, half-woman Echidna. She lived in the swampy environs of the city of Lerna, exterminating everyone who wandered into her domain - both people and livestock.

This hydra had nine huge, hideous dragon heads, one of which, the largest, was immortal. Moreover, in place of each cut-off head, two new ones could grow. For this reason, it was impossible to cope with it, and the number of victims of the voracious creature grew and multiplied.

The cowardly king Eurystheus knew about all this and had almost no doubt that, having entered into battle with the Lernaean monster, Hercules was doomed to death. Therefore, as soon as the rumor reached him that Hercules had defeated the Nemean Lion and was standing under the walls of Mycenae, awaiting a new task, he ordered his messenger Copreus to run to the hero and give him the order to immediately go to Lerna and kill the hydra.

But before continuing the story about the new feat of Hercules, a few words should be said about Iolaus from the city of Tiryns, the nephew of Hercules, the son of his brother Iphicles. He loved his uncle and was his faithful companion. Having learned that Hercules had been sent to Lerna, the boy fervently begged to take him with him, offering to ride in a chariot.

Hercules and Iphicles, aware of the mortal dangers a trip to Lerna would entail, resolutely refused him, but the persistent Iolaus broke the resistance of his brothers and persuaded his father to let him go on the journey, and his uncle to take him with them. Iolaus harnessed the horses to the chariot, and very soon it took them to the abode of the Lernaean Hydra.

The swamps of Lerna were terrible. Poisonous fumes hung over them like a bluish fog, and all approaches to the hydra’s lair were covered with the remains of its victims. There were so many of them that the monster did not have time to devour them, and the bodies spread a terrible stench.

Hercules and Iolaus crept closer to the lair with large armfuls of hay and firewood. Having dumped them in a heap, they made a fire. Hercules heated the tips of his arrows on fire and began to send them one after another into the swamp monster.

Feeling the pricks, the hydra woke up from its sleep, rose from the swampy, stinking slurry and turned to its offender. It presented an eerie sight: nine huge vile hissing heads with long snake-like tongues, spraying poisonous saliva, swaying in the air.

Hercules jumped up to the monster and cut off one of its heads, but two others immediately grew in place of the cut one. The hero cut them down too, but instead of the two that fell off, four new ones grew; he cut down these four, and in return received eight. Soon the Lernaean Hydra threatened the hero with fifty heads. Hercules realized that this enemy could not be overcome by force alone. Then he ordered Iolaus to cauterize the fresh wounds of the hydra with burning brands, and the heads would not grow back.

Finally, the last one remained, the largest, the immortal. He cut her down too, and she, falling to the ground, continued to emanate poisonous bile and tried to grab the hero with her terrible fangs. Hercules buried her in the ground and rolled her over with a huge stone.

Having cut the body of the Lernaean Hydra, the far-sighted Hercules soaked the tips of his arrows in poisonous bile, after which he and Iolaus went to Tiryns.

Labor Three: Hercules and the Stymphalian Birds

When Hercules arrived from Tiryns to Mycenae and the news of his victory over the Lernaean Hydra reached the ears of King Eurystheus, the latter was mortally frightened: of course, Hercules managed to defeat two hitherto invincible monsters - the Nemean Lion and the Lernaean Hydra! As before, not allowing the victorious hero to reach him, he sent Copreus to him and ordered him to immediately set off again and destroy the Stymphalian birds.

These monstrous birds lived on the muddy banks in the vicinity of the seaside city of Stymphala and practically turned them into a desert, killing people and livestock. As tall as a man, with large copper beaks and claws, they swooped down from above, pecking to death and tearing their victims with their claws. In addition, in flight, they threw hard feathers from their bronze wings, which fell like arrows and destroyed all living things. Not a single hero had yet managed to cope with the witch flock, and the entire earth in the area was strewn with human bones. King Eurystheus hoped that Hercules would share the fate of these unfortunates. But the cowardly ruler did not rely on monstrous birds alone. He also counted on the cruel god of war Ares, who guarded the feathered killers.

And Hercules, obedient to his vow, put two tympani on his back and boldly went to Stymphalus.

People who knew about the treachery of Eurystheus warned the brave man about the deadly trap set for him by the king, talked about the merciless Ares and advised him to return, but Hercules would not have been the son of the almighty Zeus if he had chickened out and refused the battle. Many volunteered to go with him, but Hercules, realizing that these brave people were doomed to death, rejected their offers.

Arriving at the seashore, Hercules climbed a hill overlooking the swamps and began beating the tympanum. Their deafening thunder sent the birds of prey soaring into the air, and soon the sky turned black with their mourning plumage. Ares's favorites circled above the ground, and the air shook with their piercing screams. According to legend, that noise even reached Mycenae, and the cowardly Eurystheus rejoiced, hoping that Hercules would not return alive from Stymphalus.

And the hero, covered from the deadly bronze feathers that fell on him with a cloak made of the skin of the Nemean lion and protected by a helmet from his skull, pulled out a bow from behind his back and began to strike the Stymphalian birds with arrows. That's when the poisonous bile of the Lernaean Hydra came in handy! The arrows poisoned by it killed the birds on the spot, and they fell to the ground, covering it with their huge carcasses. Hercules struck them with arrows, pierced them with a spear, chopped them with a sword and crushed them with a club, until only a small flock remained. And this flock, frightened, left the muddy shores of Stymphalus forever and flew to an island in the Euxine Sea, which, at the request of the bloodthirsty Ares, was raised from the bottom of the sea by Tethys.

Ares, enraged by the death of his favorites and inflamed with burning hatred towards Hercules, grabbed a sword and stood in the way of the brave hero. But the stern, courageous look of Hercules shook Ares’s confidence in his abilities, he wavered in spirit and retreated, vowing, however, to fully support Hera in her machinations against Hercules, who exterminated the Stymphalian birds.

Hercules, as proof of his feat, put the carcass of one of the defeated birds on his back and went to Tiryns.

And on the way he was met by joyful people and thanked him for ridding their region of winged killers.

Labor Four: Hercules and Artemis' Hind

Arriving at Mycenae, Hercules did not stay there even a day. King Eurystheus hastened to get rid of him and ordered him to immediately go to the mountains of Arcadia in order to catch the fleet-footed doe of the goddess Artemis there. The beautiful doe, with golden horns and copper legs, at the command of the goddess of hunting Artemis, dissatisfied with the meager sacrifices to her temple, rushed through the fields and gardens, devastating crops, destroying fruit trees and trampling pastures.

The doe was swifter than arrows, faster than the wind, and catching her seemed unthinkable. King Eurystheus hoped that Hercules would not be able to carry out this task, and he, Eurystheus, would finally do the goddess Hera a favor and gain her favor and protection.

But the name and glory of Hercules did not fade over the centuries because he never retreated from danger and boldly accepted any challenge, without fear of angering even the gods. Without hesitation, he went to the Arcadia Mountains, walked all over them, looking for the refuge of the wonderful fallow deer, and finally found it. But he barely had time to glance at the fleet-footed miracle when the doe took off and rushed away like the wind.

The doe rushed across the mountains and valleys, not knowing fatigue. She ran further and further north. Having reached the country of the Hyperboreans, the doe stopped, but did not fall into the hands of the hero, but turned south.

For a whole year, Hercules pursued the doe and overtook her in Arcadia, near the blue river Ladon, behind which stood the temple of the goddess Artemis. A little more - and the doe will hide within its boundaries, and then - under the protection of Artemis - she will no longer be accessible.

Hercules was not going to use a bow, hoping to catch the fugitive with his hands, but realized that the prey was eluding him, and therefore pulled the bowstring, aimed at the doe and hit her with an arrow in the leg. Hercules grabbed the fugitive by the golden horns, took the arrow out of her leg, tied the doe’s legs with a belt, threw her on her back and got ready to head back.

But then the goddess Artemis stepped in his way. Appearing at the top of a high rock, she ordered her pet to be released.

“Hercules,” she said, “you have already incurred the wrath of Hera and Ares, and now you want to experience my wrath as well!”

But Hercules refused to let go of the doe and said that he was fulfilling the will of the goddess Hera, transmitted to him through King Eurystheus, and therefore the demand was not from him, but from Eurystheus.

“I,” he said, “save people from the devastating raids of this deer, and I am very happy about it.”

And, not listening to the shouts and threats of the goddess Artemis, he went with his prey to King Eurystheus.

Fifth Labor: Hercules and the Erymanthian Boar

The cowardly Eurystheus hoped that after fights with the Nemean Lion, the Lernaean Hydra and a fight with the Stymphalian birds, as well as a whole year of chasing the Artemis doe, Hercules was completely exhausted and his strength was running out. And as soon as they had time to report to him that Hercules was standing in front of the gates of Mycenae, he ordered Copreus to run to the hero and convey the order to immediately set off for a new feat: to catch and bring from Mount Erymanth the ferocious boar that is rampaging through the forests of Psophida, ravaging villages and killing people.

And Hercules again hurried on the road so that, having fulfilled the command of Hera and Eurystheus, he would earn forgiveness for his involuntary sin of murder. And his path again lay through Arcadia, from where he had just come.

On the way, Hercules visited his old friend, the centaur Pholus. This centaur was meek in disposition and kind in heart, so he greeted his friend cordially and opened a barrel of glorious wine in honor of the guest.

When the fragrance of fine wine reached the other centaurs (and it must be said that this wine was a common property), they rushed to the dwelling of Fol. Seeing in whose honor the barrel was opened, they began to vying with each other to scold Fol, reproaching him for giving divine wine to a despised slave. When they armed themselves with stones and tree trunks, Hercules gave them a worthy rebuff and killed some of them, and put the survivors to flight. In this battle, Hercules’ friends Pholus and Chiron accidentally died, in whose home the centaurs pursued by the hero took refuge.

The distressed Hercules continued his journey to Erymanthus and, entering the mountain, began to look for the terrible boar. Soon he discovered it in the thicket of the forest. The beast was huge, its tusks reached human height. Artemis managed to warn the Erymanthian boar about the danger, and he was on his guard. Seeing Hercules, he immediately uprooted a huge oak tree and tried to kill the hero with it. But Hercules dodged and wanted to kill the boar with the trunk of this tree, but in time he remembered Eurystheus’ order to bring him the beast alive. Throwing stones at the boar, Hercules began to drive him upward, to where the deep snow lay. When the beast got stuck in them and was unable to move, the hero overtook him and stunned him with a blow to the head. After this, Hercules put the huge carcass on his back and carried it to Mycenae. Upon learning that Hercules not only remained safe and sound, but was also dragging a monstrous boar on the back, King Eurystheus was so horrified that he immediately hid in a bronze vessel buried in the ground - pithos.

- Kill him now! - he shouted from there to Hercules. - Or let go on all four sides. I do not need him. Follow the order! Or have you forgotten that you are my slave, and I am your master?!

And Hercules answered:

“I agreed to be your slave in order to wash away the shed blood of my family and friends from my conscience!” And know, Eurystheus: I do all this not for your sake, but for the people! And this boar is also in their honor.

The boar was killed, skinned, put on a spit and a fire was lit under it. Only the aroma of fried meat calmed the wild fear of King Eurystheus, and he agreed to crawl out of the pithos. However, infinitely angry, he ordered Hercules to immediately go to Elis, to King Augeas, the son of the sun god Helios.

Labor Six: Hercules and the Augean Stables

King Augeas, the son of the radiant Helios, owned a huge herd of wonderful bulls: some of them were white-footed, others were white like swans (they were dedicated to the sun god), and red as purple. The most beautiful of Augeas's bulls, Phaeton, shone like a star.

For a hundred years the stables of Augius had not been cleaned; manure had been accumulating there for a hundred years. The king many times ordered his slaves to clean out the stables, but they could not cope, and Augeias killed them every time for this. Many slaves died without being able to clean the stables, and now Hercules was sent to Augeas.

Eurystheus rejoiced, reasoning as follows: it is one thing to fight monsters, and another thing to clear from dung in a year what cannot be cleared in a lifetime. The cowardly and treacherous king hoped that Hercules would not cope and Augeas would kill him.

Upon learning that Hercules had only arrived for a year, Augeas burst out laughing:

“You won’t be able to clean out my stables in a year or even in ten years, or perhaps even in your entire life.” However, although your end is clear to me, you must get to work. And if you fail to complete it within the allotted time, you will be killed immediately.

But the hero did not flinch, knowing that a person is strong not only by the strength of the body, but also by the strength of the mind.

“No, Augeias,” he answered, “I don’t have time to stretch out this work for a year, I still have a lot of things to do.” I'll clean out the stables for you in one day.

- You're crazy! - Augeas laughed. “It’s unthinkable to clean out in a day what they couldn’t clean out over decades.” For such a feat I would give you three hundred of my best bulls! But you just won’t see them as your own ears!

But Hercules still insisted on his own and made Augeas promise that he would fulfill his promise: he would give him three hundred of the best bulls if the stables were cleaned in one day. After this, Hercules began to perform the sixth labor.

First, with a powerful club, he broke through the walls of the stables from opposite ends. Then he dug deep ditches to the nearest rivers - Alpheus and Peneus. When everything was ready, Hercules directed the rivers along a new channel, and the river water rushed in a powerful stream to the gap in the wall of the stables and carried out centuries-old deposits of manure and other sewage through another gap. Not even a day had passed before the Augean stables were cleaned and washed. After this, Hercules repaired the gaps in the walls, buried the dug ditches and returned the rivers to their original channels, so that no traces remained.

Augeas marveled a lot at the result of Hercules’ work, realizing that he had lost the argument. But he was not going to give Hercules the promised bulls, and he considered it possible to break the word given to the slave. So he told Hercules and advised him to go home as soon as possible.

“Okay,” Hercules answered, “but remember: soon I will be a free man again and will definitely return here to punish you for perjury.”

Hercules kept his promise and took revenge on the king of Elis. A few years later he returned with an army, defeated the army of Augeas and killed him with a deadly arrow. Hercules personally planted the plain with olives and dedicated them to the goddess Athena. And then he made sacrifices to the Olympian gods and established Olympic Games, held on the sacred plain.

Labor seventh: Hercules and the Cretan bull

Having cleaned out the stables of King Augeas, Hercules received a new task: to catch and deliver to Mycenae alive Poseidon’s bull, which was rampaging through Crete.

This bull was sent to the king of Crete Minos by the sea lord Poseidon so that he would sacrifice the animal to him. But Minos kept the bull for himself and sacrificed one of his bulls. The angry Poseidon sent the bull into a frenzy, and now the bull rushed around the island, exterminating people and livestock, trampling fields with its heavy hooves, breaking its strong sides garden trees, destroyed houses and outbuildings and brought a lot of other troubles. The inhabitants of the island, including the king himself, were afraid to go beyond their homes. Seeing the terrible monster, everyone ran away in fear.

Knowing that the bull had to be brought to Mycenae alive, Hercules wove a large and strong net from a thin copper thread. Having blocked the bull's path, he began to tease him, shout and throw stones at him.

The bull roared, his eyes became bloodshot, and, putting out his terrible horns, he rushed at Hercules. However, the bull fell into the spread net and became entangled in it, and the mighty Hercules grabbed him by the horns and bent the bull's head to the ground. The formidable Poseidon bull was tamed.

The inhabitants of Crete came out to Hercules, warmly thanking him for his deliverance and praising his courage and strength. King Minos, freed from forced seclusion in his palace, also came out to him with gratitude. And Hercules, having said goodbye to the islanders, sat on the back of a tamed bull and swam on it on the way back from Crete to the Peloponnese. Having stepped onto the ground, he threw a lasso over his horns and led him to Mycenae.

When King Eurystheus was informed that Hercules had returned, brought the monstrous Cretan bull on a leash and locked it in the royal stables, the cowardly ruler again hid in the bronze pithos and ordered the terrible bull to be set free. The bull sensed the will, rushed north, ran to Attica and began to devastate the fields in the vicinity of Marathon. He was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.

Labor Eight: Hercules and the Horses of Diomedes

After Hercules miraculously defeated the Nemean Lion, dealt with the Lernaean Hydra, caught the Artemis Hind, defeated the Erymanthian Boar, exterminated the Stymphalian Birds, cleaned out the Augean stables and tamed the Poseidon Bull, King Eurystheus thought deeply. He gave Hercules tasks that no mortal could complete; Hercules entered into a duel with such monsters that it was impossible to defeat them. And yet, the hero emerged from all the trials with honor, showing miracles of courage and ingenuity. What new task could Eurystheus give him so that the hero would not be able to do it? Unable to come up with anything, he turned to his patroness Hera with a request to invent a new test for Hercules.

Hera remembered that in distant Thrace one of the sons of Ares, Diomedes, lives and rules the Biston people, and that Diomedes has unprecedented horses in strong copper-walled stables, all black, fleet-footed like the wind, and voracious like cannibals. They ate human flesh, and Diomedes fed them to foreigners who came into his country. It seemed that even Hercules could not defeat these monstrous horses. Eurystheus hoped that Hercules would not be able to accomplish this feat and would die without getting rid of his guilt for the shed blood of innocent victims.

Hercules listened with dignity to Eurystheus’ new order, asked the king for a ship to accommodate the herd, and sailed from Argolis.

On the way, Hercules' ship was caught in a terrible storm, and he had to land on the shores of Thessaly to wait out the bad weather. There, in Ferah, he reigned good friend- Admetus, and Hercules decided to visit him.

In those days, Admet was experiencing great grief. Shortly before the arrival of Hercules, the ruler of the kingdom of the dead, Hades, intended to take him to himself. A messenger sent from him, Thanatos, the god of death, conveyed the will of Hades to Admet: “Admet, get ready! I will pick you up! However, I can let you live a little longer if one of the people agrees to descend into my kingdom instead of you.” Admetus understood that no one would agree to go to the kingdom of the dead instead of him. However, there was one person who loved Admetus so much that without hesitation he agreed to give his life for him - his kind and beautiful wife Alcestis! Without saying a word to anyone, she persuaded Thanatos to take her instead of Admetus, and the god of death drew his formidable sword, cut off a lock of hair from the lovely Alcestis, after which she died, thereby prolonging Admetus’ life. And so he lost his beloved wife and was now in mourning.

However, seeing his friend on the threshold, Admet did not show Hercules his grief, but kissed his dear guest and ordered a feast to be held in his honor. But the insightful Hercules noticed that the owner of the house was very sad and could hardly hold back his tears. Secretly from him, Hercules interviewed the servants and found out the reason for his friend’s grief.

“Dear Admetus,” he thought, “you are hiding your suffering, not wanting to upset your friend. So know this: I will return your Alcestis to you!”

Hercules knew that on the first night after a person’s death, Thanatos should come for his shadow and that there should be no one near the deceased. Therefore, when everyone fell asleep, our hero crept into the chambers of Alcestis and took refuge there, lying in wait for the god of death. At night, as soon as he heard the rustle of Thanatos’s black wings, Hercules jumped out of his hiding place and grabbed him with strong hands. Their duel continued all night, and at dawn Hercules knocked the winged god to the ground and tied him tightly. After this, threatening to break the sword of Thanatos, Hercules made God swear that he would return Alcestis to the kingdom of the living and leave Admetus alive. Thanatos was forced to take an oath and fulfill it.

So Hercules defeated the god of death Thanatos. After waiting for the storm to subside at sea, he sailed from the Thessalian shores and continued his journey to the country of the bloodthirsty Diomedes.

By the time Hercules set foot on the land of the Bystonians, King Diomedes had already been warned by the god Ares about the hero's arrival. Therefore, as soon as he went ashore, a hundred Diomedean warriors attacked him. Hercules fought with them for a long time until he killed them all, and then he went to Diomedes’ stables, tightly entangled his terrible horses with chains, securely wrapped their muzzles and drove them to his ship. At this time, Diomedes and a team of warriors attacked Hercules, but after three days of battle the Bystonians were defeated. God Ares was terribly angry with Hercules, but did not dare to measure his strength with him and retreated.

After this, Hercules' ship took a reverse course and, after the allotted time, arrived in Mycenae. Hercules drove the bloodthirsty horses of Diomedes into the Eurystheus stables and went to the king for a new task.

And Eurystheus, frightened to death, again hid in his bronze vessel and ordered to immediately open the gates of the stables and let the horses out. His order was carried out, and when the freed horses rushed to the dense forests of Olympus, Zeus sent wolves at them, who killed them all.

Hercules received a new task from Eurystheus: to go and get Hippolyta’s belt for him.

Labor Nine: Hercules and the Belt of Hippolyta

The brave warrior Hippolyta and her beautiful sister Antiope were daughters of the god Ares and together ruled the country of Amazon warriors on the distant Euxine coast. Hippolyta had a magic belt, a symbol of royal power, and Eurystheus ordered Hercules to get it and bring it to Mycenae.

The famous heroes Theseus, Peleus and Telamon, having heard that Hercules would have to fight the brave Amazons, wished to go with him to support him in the battle. Hercules did not refuse help - the friends met in the city of Argos and sailed by ship to the farthest shores of the Euxine Pontus.

Many days passed before their ship reached the wide sandy shores of the Amazon country. As soon as they got ashore, the heroes found themselves surrounded by beautiful warrior warriors, confidently wielding bows and spears. Hippolyta commanded them. She was quite surprised by the unexpected visit of four glorious warriors.

- Who are you and what do you need? - she asked them. — Did you come in peace or in war?

Hercules bowed to the beautiful queen and answered:

- My name is Hercules, and this is Theseus, Peleus and Telamon. I was sent here by order of King Eurystheus of Mycenae to bring him your wonderful belt. I am forced to ask you for it by the will of the goddess Hera, whose priestess is the daughter of Eurystheus. Will you give it up willingly or will I have to take it by force?

Queen Hippolyta did not feel any desire to fight with the beautiful strangers, so she replied that she would give them the belt voluntarily. But the vengeful Hera, who overheard their conversation, became furious at Hippolyta’s compliance. She turned into an Amazon, approached the queen and began to confuse and frighten her, claiming that Hercules was a deceiver and had not come for the belt, but to kidnap Hippolyta. Hera's eloquence embarrassed Hippolyta and angered the Amazons. Having lost their minds, the warriors attacked the heroes, and a battle ensued. But how could they resist Hercules and his friends?! Soon the warlike Amazons were defeated, and the beautiful Antiope and the leader of the Amazon army Melanippe were captured.

Hippolyta, who adored Melanippe, trembled when she saw her favorite captured, and gave Hercules her belt, asking for freedom for Melanippe. Hercules released this captive, and Antiope went to Theseus, who took her with him.

Labor tenth: Hercules and Geryon's flock

Hercules performed his tenth labor at the very ends of the earth: he drove a herd of cows that belonged to the giant Geryon to Mycenae.

Geryon was the son of the giant Chrysaor and the oceanid Callirhoe. He lived on the island of Erythea, on the western edge of the earth. The gods gave him a herd of fiery red cows, which Hercules had to drive away on the orders of Eurystheus.

On the seashore, Hercules cut down a large tree, made a raft from it and sailed on it to the coast of Africa. There he walked through the entire desert of Libya and

reached the end of the world, where the strait between Europe and Africa is located. Here Hercules decided to make a stop and, in memory of the exploits and ordeals that befell him, erected two giant stone pillars on both sides of the strait. They still stand there today and are called the Pillars of Hercules.

Having rested, Hercules began to think about how to get to Erythea. There were no trees nearby, there was nothing to build a raft from. Helios was already descending to the waters of the ocean, and its rays blinded and scorched Hercules. He, in anger, pointed his deadly bow at God, but Helios, amazed at such a mortal’s courage, stopped him and said:

- Lower your bow, Hercules. I am Helios, the god of the sun, who warms the earth and all life on it. I know that you need to get to Erythea. Take my round boat, forged from gold and silver by the god Hephaestus, and sail on it to the island. But know this: defeating Geryon will not be easy; he has three torsos fused at the waist, three heads and three pairs of arms and legs. When fighting, he shoots three arrows and throws three spears at once.

But the son of Zeus was not afraid of meeting such an enemy. He thanked Helios, got into a round boat and sailed to Erythea.

Having reached the island of the terrible Geryon and going ashore, Hercules began to look out for the owner of these places, but first he met the huge shepherd Eurytion. His two-headed dog Orff barked at the hero, but fell from the blow of a heavy club.

Hercules also dealt with the giant shepherd and drove the cows to the shore. Geryon heard the mooing of the cows and went to the herd. The battle with the many-armed giant was very difficult, but Hercules defeated him and loaded the cows onto the canoe. Having crossed from the island, he returned the boat to Helios, and placed Geryon’s herd on the ship.

Having reached the shores of Europe, Hercules drove the cows to Mycenae. He walked through the Pyrenees, all of Gaul, and then Italy. In Italy, one cow strayed from the herd and sailed to the island of Sicily, where Poseidon's son Erice drove her into his barnyard. To return the fugitive, Hercules crossed to Sicily.

There he killed Eriks, returned with the cow to the herd and drove the animals further.

On the shores of the Ionian Sea, Hera sent madness to the cows, and they scattered different sides. Again Hercules had to look for them. Finally, he drove the herd to Mycenae, where Eurystheus sacrificed cows to the goddess Hera.

Labor Eleven: Hercules and Hades Kerber

Hercules had two labors left to complete, and King Eurystheus was beside himself with despair and fear, wondering what other monster to send Hercules to so that he would finally find his death? How to kill a hated hero and thereby please the goddess Hera? Eurystheus was unable to come up with anything and in desperation turned to his patroness with a request to find for Hercules a test that would be beyond his strength and fatal.

“Don’t despair, Eurystheus,” Hera answered, “I didn’t make you king so that you would tremble before your slave.” And I will not allow Hercules to continue to gain victories. We will send him to a place from which there is no return. Tell him to go down to Hades and bring the watchdog Kerberus from there! He will not be able to return alive!

Eurystheus was incredibly happy and, thanking Hera, ordered Hercules to convey his will: to bring him the dog of Hades alive!

Kerberus had three heads, snakes writhed around his neck, and at the end of his tail was the head of a dragon with a huge mouth. Having received the task, Hercules went to look for the entrance to the underground kingdom of Hades and soon found a deep cave leading there. On the way to the kingdom of the dead, the hero had to overcome many obstacles created by evil spirits and various monsters. At the very gates of the kingdom of Hades, Hercules saw his friend Theseus, who accompanied him on a campaign for Hippolyta’s belt. Theseus and Pirithous were punished for attempting to kidnap Hades' wife Persephone and sat chained to a stone bench. Hercules freed them and showed them the way to earth.

After this, Hercules approached the throne of Hades and told him that he had come for Cerberus.

“Don’t interfere with me,” he said, “I’ll take him away anyway!”

“Take it,” answered Hades, “but only without weapons, with your bare hands.”

Hercules threw down all his weapons and, jumping up to the monstrous Kerberus, grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and lifted him into the air. The snakes wriggling on the dog’s neck hissed, all three heads scary dog twisted from side to side, trying to bite him, but Hercules squeezed his throat tightly, and the half-strangled Kerberus could not resist.

Hercules put the guard of the dead on his back and set off on his way back. While the hero was carrying his terrible burden, poisonous saliva dripped from Kerberus’s mouth, and poisonous sweat dripped from his body. They say that where this saliva fell, poisonous plants grew - hemlock, belladonna and many others.

And King Eurystheus, having heard the terrible news that Hercules was bringing the monstrous guardian of the kingdom of Hades to his palace, again hid in the bronze pithos. He humbly begged Hercules to return his terrible dog to Hades.

Hercules laughed at the king’s cowardice, returned to the entrance to the kingdom of the dead, abandoned Kerberus there and went to Eurystheus for the last task.

Labor Twelve: Hercules and the Hesperides Apples

The last of the twelve labors of Hercules was the most difficult.

To accomplish it, the hero had to go through many trials and accomplish many valiant deeds, win many military victories, proving to the gods and mortals that he, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, is not only strong in body, mind and spirit, but also has a kind heart.

This time he was instructed to bring three golden apples growing in the garden of the Hesperides, daughters of the titan Atlas.

“I don’t know where this garden is, and I don’t want to know!” - said the heartless Eurystheus. - But you must deliver golden apples from it! If you bring it, I’ll set you free, but if you don’t bring it, you’ll die!

Having calmly listened to the order of the cowardly Eurystheus, Hercules began to think about how he could find this garden.

The goddess Athena told him that the location of the magical garden was known only to the sea god Nereus. However, the old man did not reveal that secret to anyone of his own free will. It was possible to force him to tell him where the garden was only by force.

Having thanked Athena, Hercules went to the seashore and, hiding, began to wait for Nereus. It took a long time to wait, but finally old man Nereus emerged from the sea and went ashore to bask in the sun.

As soon as he lay down on the sand, Hercules jumped on his back and tied him tightly. Trying to escape, Nereus changed his appearance, turning into a dog, a ram, a bull, and a horse, but he failed to deceive Hercules. In order to gain freedom, he had to point out the place where the garden with golden apples was located.

It turned out that the garden is located at the very edge of the earth, where Atlas holds the firmament on his mighty shoulders, and the garden is guarded by the Hesperides and the guardian monster Ladon with a single, but very keen eye.

Hercules knew about Prometheus (the father of the human race, the son of the Titan Napet), who, having sacrificed himself, stole fire from the Olympian gods and gave it to people.

As punishment for this and for the challenge posed to the gods, Zeus chained Prometheus to Elbrus, condemning him to eternal suffering. For many thousands of years he endured great torment. Every day Zeus's favorite eagle flew to him and pecked his liver. However, Prometheus steadfastly endured the torment and did not ask for mercy. Hercules revered the hero and had long wanted to free him.

Having learned from Nereus that Elbrus was in Colchis, Hercules decisively walked in that direction.

The hero had to go through many countries and seas to get to Elbrus, and he had to endure many trials. One day, the giant Antaeus, the son of the earth goddess Gaia, stood in his way.

Antaeus loved to compete with travelers, invariably defeated them and killed them mercilessly. No one knew that mother earth herself fed his strength, helping him cope with any enemy, and therefore Antaeus remained invincible.

Having met Hercules, he invited him to a duel and said that the loser would die! Two strongmen fought in a stubborn battle. There was no way to defeat Antaeus, but soon Hercules noticed that as soon as he lifted the enemy off the ground, he noticeably weakened, and once on the ground, he regained strength. Then Hercules grabbed Antaeus tighter, lifted him into the air and held him until he finally became completely exhausted and gave up.

So, overcoming obstacles, Hercules reached Colchis and soon saw Elbrus, and on it - Prometheus chained in chains.

Seeing an unfamiliar warrior, Prometheus was surprised and asked who he was and why he had come.

“My name is Hercules, I am the son of a mortal woman, and in gratitude from all the mortals to whom you have provided warmth and light, I will free you.” I am not afraid of Zeus or the wrath of the Olympians!

Just at this time, the rustling of mighty wings and a piercing scream were heard: a huge red-eyed eagle was flying from Olympus, preparing to plunge its iron beak into Prometheus’s liver.

Undeterred by the messenger of Zeus, Hercules pulled the string of his bow and fired a deadly arrow towards the eagle. The eagle, struck by her, let out a piercing cry and fell like a stone into the sea.

Then Hercules rested his foot on the rock, pulled the chain with which Prometheus was bound, and broke it, after which he pulled out a metal crutch from the hero’s chest and freed him.

At that second a terrible hurricane arose, the sky turned black, huge waves crashed against the rocks, and hailstones the size of egg fell from the sky. Olympus was angry and Zeus was raging. The almighty ruler of the gods wanted to immediately destroy Hercules, but the wise Athena intervened, reminding him that Hercules must participate on the side of the Olympians in their battle with the giants and that their success in this battle depended on it. Zeus had to reconcile his anger, but in order for his will not to be violated, Prometheus still had to be chained to a stone. Athena advised Zeus to command Hephaestus to forge a ring from a link in his chain and set a stone in it. The goddess said that she would give this ring to Prometheus, who would remain chained to the stone. Zeus did just that. They say that since then the custom of wearing rings with gems set in them began.

And Prometheus told Hercules how to quickly get to the Garden of the Hesperides, and went to rest on a secluded island, where the god Uranus lived separately.

Having covered a considerable distance, Hercules found himself in front of Atlas. He stood with his feet in the sea and supported the vault of heaven with his mighty shoulders, and behind him a wonderful garden was visible, where golden apples glittered in the golden foliage, emitting a subtle aroma.

Hercules told Atlanta his name, explained the purpose of his appearance here and asked to bring him three apples. Atlas replied that he would willingly fulfill his request if the guest would relieve him for a while and hold the sky. Hercules agreed. This burden was heavy! The strong bones of Hercules cracked, the muscles tensed and swelled, sweat flowed in streams over his powerful body, but the son of Zeus held the firmament. Atlas went to the garden, picked apples and, returning to Hercules, invited him to hold the firmament while you took the apples to Eurystheus.

But Hercules figured out his trick. When the treacherous Atlas was about to leave, Hercules said to him:

“I agree to hold the firmament, but my shoulders hurt.” Let me throw this lion's skin over myself to ease the pain. Hold the arch a little...

The foolish Atlas again shouldered the firmament, and the quick-witted Hercules picked up his bow and quiver of arrows, took the club and golden apples of the Hesperides and walked away, saying that he did not intend to stay there forever.

Epilogue

So the valiant Hercules completed his last, twelfth labor, and King Eurystheus had no choice but to announce in front of all the people that Hercules had completed all twelve labors, and therefore was now free.

But the misadventures of Hercules did not end there. The goddess Hera pursued him for a long time. By her evil will, our hero killed his friend Iphitus, for which he was sold into slavery to the evil and contentious queen Omphale for three years. During this time, he endured innumerable suffering and bullying, lost his loving wife Deianira, who decided (at the suggestion of Hera) that Hercules had stopped loving her, and pierced herself with an arrow. Hercules had to fight and defeat many monsters and gods. He fought with the god Apollo, defeated the river god Achelous in battle, killed the centaur Nessus, punished King Laomendont, helped his father Zeus in the battle with the giants...

Bellerophon, the son of the Corinthian king Glaucus, having killed one Corinthian, was forced to flee from hometown to the king of Tiryns Protes. But, unfortunately, Proetus's wife, Anthea, fell in love with Bellerofoit. When he rejected her, she became furious and told her husband that Bellerophon had allegedly sexually harassed her. In anger, Proetus wanted to kill Bellerophon, but did not dare to raise his hand against the guest. Proytes sent him with a letter to the king of Lycia, Iobates, in which he asked to take revenge on the young man for the insult. Iobates, having read the letter, sent Bellerophon to certain death, ordering him to kill the Chimera - a fire-breathing monster with the head of a lion, the body of a goat and a snake instead of a tail.

Once every 9 years, the Athenians paid Minos a heavy tribute - 14 boys and girls went to Crete, where they were devoured by the Minotaur, a monster imprisoned in the Labyrinth built by Daedalus. Theseus, son of the Athenian king Aegeus. decided to sail to Crete along with the doomed Athenians to kill the Minotaur. He told his father that if they were successful, their ship would have white sails on the way home. Ordinary black sails will become a signal that Theseus is dead. On Crete, the daughter of King Minos, Ariadne, fell in love with Theseus. She gave him a sword to kill the Minotaur and a ball of thread to find his way out of

Myths of ancient Greece. Myths about the gods of ancient Greece

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