15 labors of Hercules summary. The sacred essence of the myths about Hercules

Hercules performed 12 labors to make amends, cleanse himself of the blood of the innocent children he killed, and receive the forgiveness of the gods.

In addition, Zeus entered into an agreement with Hera that Hercules would perform 12 great labors and be freed from his power.

What feats did Hercules perform?

1) fight with the Nemean lion, which Hercules strangled;

2) the destruction of the Lernaean Hydra, whose poison Hercules smeared on his arrows, and therefore the slightest wound from an arrow was considered fatal;

3) hunting for the Erimanth boar, which devastated Arcadia;

4) catch the Kerynean fallow deer with golden horns and copper legs;

5) the destruction of the Stymphalian birds, which had copper claws, wings, beaks and feathers, which ruled them for arrows;

6) receiving for the daughter of Eurystheus Admet the belt of the Amazon queen Hippolyta;

7) cleaning the Augean stables within one day;

8) overcoming the Cretan bull spewing flame (Poseidon gave this bull to Minos);

9) victory over King Diomedes, who threw foreigners to be devoured by his human mares;

10) the theft of the cows of the terrible three-headed giant Geryon, who lived in the far west on the island of Erithia. Hercules crossed all of Europe and Libya and, in memory of this campaign, built pillars for Hercules (Gibraltar and Ceuta);

11) the theft of golden apples from the garden of the Hesperides: Atlas got the apples while Hercules supported the sky in his place;

12) the last and most difficult feat is the taming of Kerber. Hercules descended to the kingdom of Hades near Tenar, defeated the hundred-headed dog without any weapons, carried him bound to the world and, showing him to Eurystheus, took him back.

1 labor of Hercules summary

This lion was of monstrous size. He lived near the city of Nemea and devastated all the surrounding areas. Hercules tracked him down and hit him with a club.
The lion fell to the ground; Hercules rushed at the lion, grabbed him with his powerful arms and strangled him. Hercules brought the lion he killed to Mycenae.

2 labor of Hercules summary

A hydra lived in a swamp near the city of Lerna, it destroyed herds and devastated the surrounding area. The fight with the nine-headed hydra was dangerous, because... one of the heads was immortal. Hercules began to cut off the heads of the hydra, but new ones grew. When Iolaus burned the hydra's necks, from which Hercules knocked off the heads, new ones stopped growing. Finally, the immortal head flew off. The monstrous hydra was defeated.

3 labor of Hercules summary

Stymphalian birds tore apart animals and people with their copper claws and beaks. The warrior Pallas Athena told Hercules how to act. Climbing the hill, the hero struck the tympanum, and the birds flew up in a huge flock over the forest. The hero grabbed his bow and began to strike the birds with deadly arrows. In fear, the Stymphalian birds soared into the clouds and disappeared from the eyes of Hercules.

4 labors of Hercules summary

Eurystheus sent Hercules to catch an unusually beautiful doe with golden horns. For a whole year, Hercules pursued the Cerynean doe. Desperate to catch the doe, Hercules resorted to his never-missing arrows.
He wounded the golden-horned doe in the leg with an arrow, and only then did he manage to catch her. The great hero brought the Cerynean doe alive to Mycenae and gave it to Eurystheus.

5 labor of Hercules summary

The boar, possessing monstrous strength, devastated the surroundings of the city of Psofis. Hercules chased the boar for a long time, and finally drove it into deep snow on the top of a mountain.
The boar got stuck in the snow, and Hercules, rushing at him, tied him up and carried him alive to Mycenae.

6 labors of Hercules summary

The sun god gave his son innumerable wealth. Augeas' herds were especially numerous.
Hercules invited Augeas to cleanse his entire huge cattle yard in one day if he agreed to give him a tenth of his herds.
Augeas agreed. Hercules kept his word.

7th labor of Hercules summary

A bull rushed all over the island and destroyed everything in its path.
The great Hercules caught the bull and tamed it. He sat on the broad back of a bull and swam on it across the sea from Crete to the Peloponnese.

8 labors of Hercules summary

King Diomedes had horses of marvelous beauty and strength. They were chained with iron chains in stalls, but the hero took possession of Diomedes' horses and took them to his ship. He then entered into battle with Diomedes and won.

9 labor of Hercules summary

Hippolyta had a belt of power over all the Amazons, which Eurystheus' daughter, Admeta, wanted to have.
Hercules went for the belt, the Amazons attacked him, a battle ensued, and many warriors were killed. But Hercules won.

10 labors of Hercules summary

Geryon was a monstrous giant: he had three torsos, three heads, six arms and six legs. He covered himself with three shields during the battle, and he threw three huge spears at once at the enemy. Hercules was helped by the great Pallas Athena. Hercules waved his club menacingly and struck Geryon. The three-body giant fell to the ground as a corpse.

11 labors of Hercules summary

Hercules had to go to the great titan Atlas, who holds the firmament on his shoulders, and get three golden apples from his gardens. Atlas invited the hero to take his place while he went to get some apples. Hercules agreed. He exerted all his strength and held the firmament until Atlas returned with three golden apples.

12 labors of Hercules summary

Hercules was supposed to lead to Eurystheus terrible dog Kerbera.
The dog had three heads and snakes writhed around its neck. Hercules tamed him and led him from the kingdom of darkness to Mycenae.
The cowardly Eurystheus was horrified at one glance at the terrible dog. Hercules returned Hades his terrible guard Cerberus.

In Greek mythology, Hercules is the greatest hero, the son of Zeus and the mortal woman Alcmene, wife of Amphitryon. In the absence of her husband, who at that time was fighting against the tribes of TV fighters, Zeus, attracted by the beauty of Alcmene, appeared to her, taking on the image of Amphitryon. Their wedding night lasted three nights in a row...

Twelve Labors of Hercules

Retelling by V.V. and L.V. Uspenskikh

Retelling by V.N. Vladko
Per. from Ukrainian A.I. Belinsky

Several years before the treacherous Pelias treacherously seized the royal throne in noisy Iolka, wondrous deeds took place at the other end of the Greek land - where among the mountains and valleys of Argolis lay the ancient city of Mycenae.

In those days there lived in this city a girl named Alcmene.

She was so beautiful that, having met her on their way, people stopped and looked after her in silent surprise.

She was so smart that the wisest elders sometimes questioned her and were amazed at her reasonable answers.

She was so kind that the timid doves from the temple of Aphrodite, without running wild, descended to coo on her shoulders, and the nightingale sang its ringing songs at night near the very wall of her house...

Hearing such words, Hera asked with a sly smile: “And if two boys are born on this day, who will be the king then?” “The one who is born first,” answered Zeus. After all, he was sure that Hercules would be born first. He knew nothing about Eurystheus, the future son of Sthenel. But Hera smiled even more slyly...

As soon as it got dark, Hera went into the poisonous swamp, chose the two strongest and most terrible snakes there and slowly brought them to Amphitryon’s house. To avoid any mistake, Hera decided to kill both boys. One snake was supposed to bite Hercules, and the other - Iphicles...

Hercules studied the sciences willingly, but playing the cithara was not good for him, because he broke the strings every time he touched them with his finger. This made the old teacher Lin very angry, and one day he severely beat Hercules. Hercules was offended...

Hercules raised his head in surprise: he thought that someone had entered. But he didn't see anyone. And this is the goddess Ate, unnoticed by anyone, sneaking into the house. Quietly approaching Hercules from behind, she threw a magical invisible bandage over his eyes, stupefied his mind and drove the hero crazy...

Hearing the will of the gods, Hercules shuddered with anger and resentment. He knew that Eurystheus was an insignificant, crappy person and all the people laughed at his amazing cowardice. They said that Eurystheus was afraid even of his own shadow. But, remembering that it was the gods who were sending him punishment for the murdered children, Hercules resigned himself...

Hercules' sword shone like lightning. One after another, he cut off seven more heads, but he could not cut off the ninth, the most evil and largest, because it was immortal. The sharp blade of the sword passed through this head as if through soft jelly, leaving no traces on it...

Hearing the voice, the centaur reared up, turned on his hind legs and galloped up to Hercules with a gentle neigh. Thinking that the centaur would not understand his speech, Hercules showed with signs that he wanted to eat and drink. But the centaur spoke in correct and beautiful Greek...

After listening to Eurystheus’ new order, Hercules thought deeply. He knew that the Kerynean doe had tireless copper legs, that she was cunning and careful. He also knew that the doe was the favorite of the goddess Artemis the hunter. Artemis did not allow anyone to touch her beloved animals...

Before he even reached the forest, he saw whole clouds of huge Stymphalian birds. They circled in the air, jumped on the ground, sat in trees and squealed so loudly that Hercules’ ears began to ring. When they rose in flocks into the air, there was such a clanging and ringing that Hercules thought: Are these birds copper feathers?..

All the bulls were so large and fierce that not a single person could enter their stalls. As a result, the animals were covered with manure and dirt right up to their ridges. The heavy smell of rotten straw rose above the stables, and people in the surrounding area moaned, suffocating from these noxious fumes...

He sailed on a light ship to the island of Crete, and the ship's rowers marveled at the good nature and strength of the great hero. Crete was empty and deserted in those days. The roads were overgrown with thistles and thorny acanthus, the fields were deserted: everyone was afraid of the terrible bull. The mighty hero boldly set out to meet the monster...

How dare you demand anything from me? - Thanatos was indignant. - I am a god, and you are a mere mortal. “I know that you are a god,” Hercules answered calmly. “But you are an ordinary god, and I am not an ordinary mortal.” I am Hercules! Haven't you heard of me?

Having said goodbye to Admetus and his beautiful wife, Hercules boarded a ship and sailed to Thrace, where the palace of Diomedes rose above the depths of the sea, on black rocks, and terrible mares neighed angrily. At that hour when he approached the stable, Diomedes was hunting in the forests of his country...

For a long time, the light boats of Hercules foamed the waves with their sharp bows. He sailed for a long time from sweet Greece in the direction where the sun rises in summer. Finally, the capital of the Amazons, Themyscira, rose in front of him on the seashore. The companions of Hercules pulled their light ships ashore, lit fires around them and set up camp under the walls of the great city. Soon the sounds of trumpets were heard. Queen Hippolyta herself came to the camp to find out what the strangers needed in her land...

Far from Greece, in the direction where in the evening the sun descends in a blazing circle into the green waves of the ocean, lay among the ever-murmuring waters the deserted island of Erythea. It was wild and uninhabited. Only from time to time loud, heavy footsteps could be heard on it. This huge three-headed giant, like a cloud, Geryon came here to inspect the herds of his bulls. They grazed in safety and peace on the green meadows of Erythea...

At the edge of the world, above a dark and terrible abyss, with his legs spread wide, a bent giant stands, huge as a mountain. With his mighty hands he rested his hands on the sky and supported the vault of heaven above us. As soon as he lets go of his heavy burden even for a minute, the sky will fall down to the ground, the clouds will fall off it, the moon and sun will fall, and bright stars will fall down. Everything will end. This giant, the holder of the sky, is Atlas...

There is no exit for human shadows from Tartarus to earth: all exits from it are guarded by the sleepless dog Kerber. This watchful guard has three heads, three heads on long necks, and from each neck a thick mane falls down - not of hair, but of terrible poisonous snakes. The evil Kerberus has a long tail, but look closely: it’s not a tail. This fierce dragon grew on his back. It curls into rings and develops, sticks out a sharp sting and hisses...

March 31, 2019

Korea, Ancient holiday Hansik: do not eat hot food to appease the fire, symbolizing the coming warmth, and bring gifts to the graves of ancestors

1284- Bishop Ely founds Peterhouse, the oldest and smallest college of the University of Cambridge

1461- Jonah of Moscow, the last Moscow saint who bore the title of Metropolitan of Kyiv, died; canonized

1499- the future Pope Pius IV (Giovanni Angelo de' Medici) was born

1675- the future Pope Benedict XIV (Prospero Lambertini) was born

1682- burning of Avvakum and his followers by order of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich and Patriarch Joachim

1860- Rodney Gypsy Smith, evangelist, born

1869- Allan Kardec (Hippolyte Leon Denizard-Rivaille), the founder of spiritualism, died

1927- born Eduardo Martinez Somalo, Catholic cardinal

1930- Born Julián Herranz Cassado, Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church

1959- Tibetan Buddhist leader Dalai Lama fled Chinese-occupied Tibet

Random Aphorism

One and the same religion significantly changes its content according to the degree economic development peoples professing it

Plekhanov G.

Random Joke

Two rabbis are riding a motorcycle. The traffic policeman sees this and thinks - let me go after them, I’ll catch them doing something. He drives and drives... And those - well, they are just exemplary drivers, they drive, they don’t break the rules, they give way to those who need to. The policeman can’t stand it, stops them and asks how they manage to drive without a single violation... - Well, God is with us! - Yeah! Well then, you will be fined 100 shekels for riding a motorcycle with three of you.

The Creator sat on the Throne and reflected. Behind Him stretched the boundless expanse of heaven, bathed in the splendor of light and colors; in front of Him the black night of Space stood like a wall. He rose to the very zenith, like a majestic steep mountain, and His divine head shone in the heights like a distant sun...

Sabbath day. As usual, no one follows it. Nobody but our family. Sinners everywhere gather in crowds and indulge in fun. Men, women, girls, boys - everyone drinks wine, fights, dances, gambles, laughs, screams, sings. And they do all sorts of other abominations...

Received the Mad Prophet today. He good man, and, in my opinion, his intelligence is much better than his reputation. He received this nickname a long time ago and completely undeservedly, since he simply makes forecasts and does not prophesy. He doesn't pretend to be. He makes his forecasts based on history and statistics...

The first day of the fourth month of the year 747 from the beginning of the world. Today I am 60 years old, for I was born in the year 687 from the beginning of the world. My relatives came to me and begged me to marry so that our family would not be cut off. I am still young to take on such concerns, although I know that my father Enoch, and my grandfather Jared, and my great-grandfather Maleleel, and great-great-grandfather Cainan, all married at the age that I have reached on this day...

Another discovery. One day I noticed that William McKinley looked very sick. This is the very first lion, and I became very attached to him from the very beginning. I examined the poor fellow, looking for the cause of his illness, and discovered that he had an unchewed head of cabbage stuck in his throat. I couldn't pull it out, so I took a broomstick and pushed it in...

...Love, peace, peace, endless quiet joy - this is how we knew life in the Garden of Eden. Living was a pleasure. The passing time left no traces - no suffering, no decrepitude; illnesses, sorrows, and worries had no place in Eden. They were hiding behind its fence, but could not penetrate it...

I'm almost a day old. I showed up yesterday. So, at least, it seems to me. And, probably, this is exactly so, because if there was the day before yesterday, I did not exist then, otherwise I would remember it. It is possible, however, that I simply did not notice when it was the day before yesterday, although it was...

This is a new creature with long hair I'm very bored. It sticks out in front of my eyes all the time and follows me on my heels. I don’t like it at all: I’m not used to society. I wish I could go to other animals...

Dagestanis is a term for the peoples originally living in Dagestan. There are about 30 peoples and ethnographic groups in Dagestan. In addition to Russians, Azerbaijanis and Chechens, who make up a significant proportion of the population of the republic, these are Avars, Dargins, Kumti, Lezgins, Laks, Tabasarans, Nogais, Rutuls, Aguls, Tats, etc.

Circassians (self-named Adyghe) are a people in Karachay-Cherkessia. In Turkey and other countries of Western Asia, Circassians are also called all people from the North. Caucasus. Believers are Sunni Muslims. The Kabardino-Circassian language belongs to the Caucasian (Iberian-Caucasian) languages ​​(Abkhazian-Adyghe group). Writing based on the Russian alphabet.

Current page: 1 (book has 5 pages in total)

Lev Vasilievich Uspensky, Vsevolod Vasilievich Uspensky
Twelve Labors of Hercules

This book contains legends from ancient times.

They were put together by the ancient Greeks back in those distant times, when people were just beginning to study the world around them, just beginning to explore and explain it.

Combining truth and fiction, they came up with and told amazing stories. This is how many legends about gods, heroes and fantastic creatures arose – legends , naively explaining the structure of the world and the fate of people. We call these legends by the Greek word “myths”.

Infinitely long ago, two and a half thousand years ago, Greek children, sitting on the warm sand at the city gates or on the stone slabs of temples, listened as in a sing-song voice, plucking the strings of a quiet cithara in tune, blind rhapsodist singers began these amazing stories:

LISTEN, GOOD PEOPLE, ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED ONCE!..

BIRTH OF HERCULES

Several years before the treacherous Pelias treacherously seized the royal throne in noisy Iolka, wondrous deeds took place at the other end of the Greek land - where among the mountains and valleys of Argolis lay the ancient city of Mycenae.

In those days there lived in this city a girl named Alcmene.

She was so beautiful that, having met her on their way, people stopped and looked after her in silent surprise.

She was so smart that the wisest elders sometimes questioned her and were amazed at her reasonable answers.

She was so kind that the timid doves from the temple of Aphrodite, without running wild, descended to coo on her shoulders, and the nightingale Philomela sang his sonorous songs at night near the very wall of her house.

And hearing him sing among the rose bushes and vines, people said to each other: “Look! Philomela himself praises the beauty of Alcmene and is amazed at her!”

Alkmena grew up carefree in her father's house and did not even think that she would ever have to leave him. But fate decided otherwise...

One day, a dusty chariot drove into the city gates of Mycenae. A tall warrior in shining armor rode four tired horses. This brave Amphitryon, brother of the Argive king Sphenel, came to Mycenae to seek his fortune.

Hearing the rumble of wheels and the snoring of horses, Alkmena went out onto the porch of her house. The sun was setting at that moment. Its rays scattered like red gold through the hair of the beautiful girl, and enveloped her entire body in a purple sheen. And as soon as Amphitryon saw her on the porch by the door, he forgot everything in the world.

Less than a few days later, Amphitryon went to Alcmene’s father and began to ask him to marry his daughter to him. Having learned who this young warrior was, the old man did not object to him.

The Mycenaeans celebrated the wedding feast cheerfully and noisily, and then Amphitryon put his wife on a magnificently decorated chariot and took her away from Mycenae. But they did not go to Amphitryon’s hometown - Argos: he could not return there.

Not long ago, while hunting, he accidentally killed his nephew Electrius, the son of the old king Sfenel, with a spear. The enraged Sfenel drove his brother out of his possessions and forbade him to approach the Argive walls. He bitterly mourned his lost son and prayed to the gods to send him another child. But the gods remained deaf to his pleas.

That is why Amphitryon and Alcmene settled not in Argos, but in Theivae, where Amphitryon’s uncle, Creon, was king.

Their life flowed quietly. Only one thing upset Alkmene: her husband was such a passionate hunter that, in order to chase wild animals, he left his young wife at home for whole days.

Every evening she went out to the gates of the palace to wait for the servants loaded with booty and her husband, tired of hunting. Every evening the setting sun, as it happened in Mycenae, again dressed her in its purple clothes. Then one day, on the threshold of the palace, the mighty Zeus, the most powerful of all the Greek gods, saw Alcmene, illuminated by the scarlet light of dawn, and, upon seeing her, fell in love with her at first sight.

Zeus was not only powerful, but also cunning and treacherous.

Although he already had a wife, the proud goddess Hera, he wanted to take Alcmene as his wife. However, no matter how much he appeared to her in sleepy visions, no matter how much he persuaded her to stop loving Amphitryon, it was all in vain.

Then the insidious god decided to conquer her with crafty deception. He made sure that all the game from all the forests of Greece came running to those Theban valleys where Amphitryon was hunting at that time. In vain the frantic hunter killed horned deer, fanged boars, light-footed goats: every hour there were more and more of them around him. The servants called their master home, but he could not tear himself away from his favorite pastime and hunted day after day, week after week, getting further and further into the depths of the forest wilds. Meanwhile, Zeus himself turned into a man, exactly like Amphitryon, jumped onto his chariot and rode to the Theban palace.

Hearing the familiar clatter of hooves and the clanking of armor, Alkmena ran out onto the porch, rejoicing that she would finally see her long-awaited husband. The wonderful resemblance deceived her. She trustingly threw herself on the neck of the lying god and, calling him her dear Amphitryon, led him into the house. So, with the help of magic and deception, Zeus became the husband of the beautiful Alcmene, while the real Amphitryon hunted animals far from his palace.

A lot of time passed, and a son was to be born to Alcmene and Zeus. And then one night, when Alcmene was sleeping peacefully, the real Amphitryon returned. Seeing him in the morning, she was not at all surprised by this: after all, she was sure that her husband had been home for a long time. That is why this deception, invented by Zeus, remained unsolved. The Lord of the gods, leaving the Theban palace, returned to his transcendental home on high mountain Olympus. Knowing that Amphitryon’s elder brother, the Argive king Sthenelus, had no children, he planned to make his son the heir of Sthenelus and, when he was born, give him the Argive kingdom.

Having learned about this, the jealous goddess Hera, the first wife of Zeus, became very angry. She hated Alcmene with great hatred. She never wanted the son of this Alcmene to become king of Argive.

Having planned to destroy the boy as soon as he was born, Hera secretly appeared to Sfenel and promised that he would have a son, Eurystheus.

Knowing nothing about this, Zeus called all the gods to a council and said:

– Listen to me, goddesses and gods. On the first day of the full moon, when the moon becomes completely round, a boy will be born. He will reign in Argos. Don't think of doing anything bad to him!

Hearing these words, Hera asked with a sly smile:

– And if two boys are born on this day, who will be the king then?

“The one who is born first,” answered Zeus. After all, he was sure that Hercules would be born first. He knew nothing about Eurystheus, the future son of Sthenel.

But Hera smiled even more slyly and said:

– Great Zeus, you often make promises that you then forget about. Swear before all the gods that the king of Argos will be the boy who is born first on the day of the full moon.

Zeus swore willingly. Then Hera did not waste time. She called the goddess of madness and stupidity, Atu, and ordered her to steal Zeus’ memory. As soon as Zeus lost his memory, he forgot about Alcmene and the child who was supposed to be born to her.

That is why it happened that the son of Zeus, Hercules, lost his father even before his birth. But he found a kind and caring stepfather in Amphitryon.

Meanwhile, the day of the full moon arrived. Hera threw on black clothes so that no one would recognize her, and flew to Argos. There she made sure that the son of the Argive king Eurystheus was born a whole hour earlier than the son of Alcmene Hercules.

When both boys were already lying in their cradles, one in Argos and the other in Thebes, Hera returned to Mount Olympus, the home of the gods, and ordered the goddess of fools, Ata, to restore Zeus's memory. Then she called all the gods and goddesses and said:

“Listen to me, Father Zeus, and you, gods, be witnesses.” Today, on the day of the full moon, the first to be born was Ephrystheus, the son of the Argive king Sfenel. Do you remember everything that Zeus said? Now Eurystheus will be king over Argos, and little Hercules must obey him in everything!

Hearing this, Zeus flew into a terrible rage.

He immediately guessed that he had been fooled by Ata - Stupidity. Grabbing the goddess of fools by the red hair, he threw her down from Olympus. Since then, Ata does not dare return to the home of the gods. But she’s always rubbing shoulders with people. And if any of you wants to do something stupid, let him ask himself: is this not the tricks of the big-mouthed and long-eared red-haired Ata?

HOW HERCULES STRUGGLED THE SNAKES

Having punished Atu, Zeus only did the first half of the job. So he immediately turned to the gods and said:

- Listen to me, gods! I will not take back my oath: Eurystheus will be the Argive king. But on the other hand, I will make Hercules more powerful and stronger than all the kings on earth. When this boy grows up, he will perform twelve great feats, and as a reward for these feats, you gods will make him immortal. So I decided, Zeus. Woe to anyone who tries to change my mind.

Having said this, Zeus looked menacingly at Hera, but Hera thought to herself: “It remains to be seen whether Hercules will be able to accomplish at least one feat. In any case, Ata and I will intervene in his affairs in our own way.”

Seeing Hera's gloomy face, Zeus thought. He called his beloved daughter Athena to him and asked her to watch day and night that no one did any harm to Hercules.

Meanwhile, the boy Hercules lay calmly in his cradle next to his brother Iphicles. They were born twins, on the same day and hour, but they were completely different from each other. Hercules was a strong, healthy boy. On the very first day, he made such a fuss in the cramped cradle that it had to be secured to the floor, otherwise it would have tipped over. And Iphicles was sleepy and weak, he lay motionless, like all newborn children.

Night has come. Athena, the goddess of wisdom, sent her favorite owl, the smartest of all birds, to Amphitryon. A fluffy owl silently flew over the cradle of Hercules and fanned him with soft wings. This made the child grow smarter every hour. But the goddess Hera decided to destroy him; she never wanted the son of the hated Alcmene to become stronger and more powerful -

her favorite Eurystheus.

As soon as it got dark, Hera went into the poisonous swamp, chose the two strongest and most terrible snakes there and slowly brought them to Amphitryon’s house. To avoid any mistake, Hera decided to kill both boys. One snake was supposed to bite Hercules, and the other Iphicles. The worst thing was that, as soon as the children fell asleep, the owl silently fell from the ledge and flew away. She definitely needed to punish the rats who had chewed up the yarn of the goddess Athena.

The tired mother of the twins, Alkmena, also fell asleep, leaving twelve tall servants at the cradle, on the advice of the wise owl. But the servants soon got tired of sitting in the dark. One by one they began to doze off. Their heads sank lower and lower. They all yawned at once until they fell into a deep sleep. And the snakes crawled and crawled, and across the wide courtyard, straight up the stairs, they crawled to the cradle of Hercules.

Exactly at midnight, little Hercules woke up. He lay in the dark, sucked his fist and listened with all his ears, because he was smart beyond his age. Suddenly he heard a fuss and rustling on the threshold, then a quiet whistle and hissing on the floor. The curious boy raised his head and looked over the edge of the cradle. At that same moment he saw a large snake head next to his head. Hercules got a little scared and leaned back. Then he noticed another snake, which greedily reached out to little Iphicles. Immediately Hercules grabbed the snakes with both hands below their heads and began to strangle them with all his might. The snakes hissed like water on coals and thrashed their tails on the stone floor, but the boy held them tightly and clenched his fists more and more tightly. The noise woke up the lazy maids. Seeing the snakes, they, disheveled and undressed, rushed out and began screaming loudly and calling for help. Their screams woke up everyone in the house. People ran with torches, shadows darted around the rooms. The Cadmean warriors who were standing guard at the palace gates came running, waving their swords. Amphitryon, frightened by the noise, ran into the house, sparkling with golden armor.

By the light of the torches, everyone crowded around the cradle. But little Hercules was already fast asleep, strangled snakes clutched in his fists; they were now dangling like two ropes on the sides of the cradle. At the sight of such a miracle, Amphitryon, the Cadmean warriors, and all twelve lazy servants began to back away from the cradle, shaking their heads and whispering to each other. They were so surprised.

They all decided that it means that the gods themselves care about Hercules, since they awarded the newborn boy with such amazing power. People have nothing to fear for his fate.

But this was a big mistake.

HOW HERCULES GREW AND WHY HE KILLED HIS TEACHER LIN

The next day, Amphitryon called to him the soothsayer Tiresias, who knew how to predict the future. As soon as Elder Tiresias looked at Hercules, he immediately realized that in front of him lay not an ordinary child, but the son of the great Zeus. Tiresias predicted to Amphitryon that when Hercules grows up, he will not only defeat all animals and people, but will also help the gods themselves cope with the terrible hundred-armed giants who live on the edge of the earth. Tiresias advised Amphitryon to take care and raise the boy as best as possible.

Amphitryon considered Hercules his son and loved him even more than Iphicles. Therefore, as soon as the boy grew up, he invited the most famous warriors and sages to be his teacher. The skillful Efryt, who never made a mistake, taught Hercules to shoot with a bow, Autolycus showed him how to fight with other boys more skillfully, the great hero Castor taught him to cut with a sword and throw a spear, and Amphitryon himself constantly took him on his chariot and let him drive four hot horses.

Soon Hercules became more skillful and stronger not only than all his peers, but also many adults.

He was so strong and big that, playing with other boys with seven pebbles, ball and rounders, he never knew how to calculate his strength. Instead of pebbles, he put large cobblestones on his palm and threw them so high that all the children rushed away from him, afraid that the stones would break their heads. And Hercules hit the ball so hard that the boys fell head over heels. It was then that misfortune happened to Hercules.

Strict Lin taught him all the sciences and art of playing the large seven-string cithara. Hercules studied the sciences willingly, but playing the cithara was not good for him, because he broke the strings every time he touched them with his fingers. This made the strict teacher Lin very angry, and one day he painfully beat Hercules. Hercules was offended. He threw the cithara away from him with all his might and accidentally hit Lin with it. As always, he forgot about his extraordinary strength. Kifara touched the very edge of the teacher, but killed him outright.

Having learned about this, Amphitryon was afraid that Hercules, possessing such terrible power, would do some more trouble and cripple little Iphicles or other city children. After consulting with Tiresias, he decided to temporarily send Hercules outside the city and entrusted him with grazing his flocks in the Kiferon mountain meadows.

Above me are steep rocks, Below me, below, is a river.

Clouds run like sheep, Sheep run like clouds.

The brittle grasses, bending towards the dried soil, ring

Under the feet of fine-wooled, loudly bleating lambs...

Goat-footed Pan, living in the golden forest shadow!

You protect and preserve my sheep from the wolf.

Let them, when they run to the stream to get drunk on a warm evening,

Their elastic hooves will not stumble upon a snake...

Let them play, let them fight, But then, by the end of the day,

Let everyone gather together on the lawn around me!

GODDESS HERA STRIKES HERCULES WITH MADNESS

Many years later. Hercules grew up and matured. He became a strong and brave young man, a mighty fighter, a brave defender of his homeland.

One day, when he went hunting, the neighboring king Ergin attacked Thebes in his absence. He subjugated the Thebans and forced them to pay him an exorbitant tribute.

But Hercules, as soon as he returned home from the hunt, gathered together with his brother Iphicles a large detachment of brave men, attacked the army of Ergin with him, killed him in a fierce battle and freed his homeland from enemies.

As a reward for this, the Theban king Creon gave Hercules his daughter, the beautiful Megara, as his wife. This wedding was joyful, and the merry wedding feast was noisy. The gods themselves descended from Olympus and feasted with Hercules. One of the younger sons of the great Zeus, the tireless Hermes, the messenger of the gods, who flies everywhere in his winged sandals, gave the hero a beautiful sword. The god of light and joy Apollo gave him a bow with golden arrows. The skillful Hephaestus forged a shell for him with his own hands, and the goddess Athena clothed him in expensive clothes that she wove for him herself. Only the evil Hera did not give Hercules anything: she still hated both Hercules and his mother Alcmene.

Hercules and Megara lived happily in Creon's palace. Soon they had two children. But Hera, who at this time again became the wife of Zeus, was jealous of their happiness. She constantly quarreled with Zeus, and she was annoyed that many people on earth live more friendly than the gods on Olympus.

One day the children were playing at the feet of Hercules on the skin of a lion. They liked to look at the huge lion's paws and stick their little fists into the grinning mouth. Hercules admired the children. A light fire burned peacefully in the hearth. Suddenly the door creaked lightly. The quiet flames began to rush around in fright, shaking large shadows on the ceiling. Hercules raised his head in surprise: he thought that someone had entered. But he didn't see anyone.

And this is the goddess Ata, unnoticed by anyone, sneaking into the house. Quietly approaching Hercules from behind, she threw a magical invisible bandage over his eyes, stupefied his mind and drove the hero crazy.

Ata did this on the orders of Hera, and it began to seem to the distraught Hercules that the lion skin lying at his feet suddenly came to life, and the children turned into terrible two-headed monsters.

Wildly rolling his bloodshot eyes, Hercules jumped up from his seat, attacked the children with a roar and killed them one by one. Then he began to rush around the house, destroying and breaking everything that came to his hand. In vain did Megara and Iphicles, who had come running to the noise, try to calm him down. He chased them and chased them around the house until they ran out into the street. Then the blindfold of madness fell from his eyes, and the rage immediately passed. Hercules stopped, looking around in surprise. He could not understand why his wife and brother were running away from him as fast as they could. Thoughtful, he returned home, trying to remember what had happened to him, but as soon as he saw the corpses of his children, he almost went crazy again with grief and despair. Covering his face with his hands, he ran out, afraid to look back at his ruined house, and ran until night fell. It was so hard and bitter for him that he decided never to return home and went to another city, to his friend Thespius.

Thespius, son of Archegon, was wise man and a good friend. Greatly saddened by the misfortune that had befallen him

friend, he did not needlessly reproach him and upset him with useless lamentations. He did better.

“Listen to me, Hercules!” he said. “Only the weak sigh over what has already happened and cry over what cannot be returned.” Those who are strong in soul strive to make amends for the past with good deeds in the future. And you can do it.

Yesterday, when I walked through the city market near the Temple of Artemis, I saw a crowd of young men; They were excitedly discussing some news. I listened to their speeches and learned about their glorious plans. In distant Iolka, Jason, the son of Eson, gathers a mighty squad to sail for the Golden Fleece, for the treasure of the Aeolids, Phrixus and Helle. Your muscles are strong, Hercules, your gaze is clear. Listen to me: go to Iolcus, to Jason. He will accomplish many feats on his way, and if you glorify your name with good deeds, the gods will forgive you for your transgression...

This is what Hercules did. Through the narrow Isthmian Isthmus, through hilly Boeotia and coastal Locris, passing the seven gates of Thebes, he made his way to the glorious city of the Argonauts and sailed with them on a long journey.

He obediently obeyed young Jason on the road, although he himself was older and stronger than him. Resignedly he rowed with a heavy oar on board the fast-flying Argo.

But the gods destined for him a fate different from the fate of the Argonauts. When one day, having gone ashore on a small island, he went deeper into the forest to replace the broken oar with a new one, on the orders of Jason, in the thicket of trees he was met by the crafty and fleet-footed Hermes, a young man with bird wings on a round hat and with another pair of wings on the backs of his light sandals.

“My brother Hercules!” he said to him. “Listen to the command of our father Zeus.” Leave the glorious Argonauts now: their exploits are too easy for you. Go to Argos. Your rival Eurystheus reigns there, the one who was born on short hour earlier than you. Become the servant of the despicable coward Eurystheus. Do whatever he commands you, whatever the mighty one commands. When you have completed all the hard lessons, the almighty gods, I think, will grant you forgiveness...

Hercules. The myth of Hercules, 12 labors of Hercules. N. A. Kun. Legends and myths of Ancient Greece

Hercules (from the Romans Hercules) is the greatest hero of Greece. Initially, he was considered a solar god, striking everything dark and evil with his unmissable arrows, a god who heals and sends diseases. He had a lot in common with the god Apollo. But Hercules is a god and hero found not only among the Greeks; We know many such hero-gods. Of these, the Babylonian Gilgamesh and the Phoenician Melqart are especially interesting, the myths about which influenced the myths about Hercules; and these heroes went to the ends of the world, performed great feats and suffered, like Hercules. Poets of all times have constantly used the myths of Hercules; their attention was attracted by the exploits and suffering that befell Hercules. On a starry night we can see Hercules (under his Roman name Hercules) in the sky, since one of the constellations is named after him, and next to the constellation Hercules we see the constellation Hydra, that monstrous multi-headed hydra that Hercules killed.

The myths about Hercules are based on the tragedies of Sophocles (“The Trachinian Woman”) and Euripides (“Hercules”), as well as from the legends mentioned in the “Description of Hellas” by Pausanias

The birth and upbringing of Hercules

In Mycenae (One of ancient cities Greece, was located in Argolis in the Peloponnese) ruled by King Electryon. He was kidnapped by the Teleboi (a tribe that lived in the west of central Greece, in Acarnania), led by the sons of King Pterelai, a herd. The TV fighters killed the sons of Electrion when they wanted to recapture the stolen property. King Electryon then announced that he would give the hand of his beautiful daughter Alcmene to the one who would return his flocks to him and avenge the death of his sons. The hero Amphitryon managed to return the herds to Electryon without a fight, since the king of the TV fighters Pterelaus entrusted the guard of the stolen herds to the king of Elis (Region in the north-west of the Peloponnese) Polyxenes, and he gave them to Amphitryon. Amphitryon returned his herds to Electryon and received the hand of Alcmene. Amphitryon did not stay long in Mycenae. During a wedding feast, in a dispute over herds, Amphitryon killed Electryon, and he and his wife Alcmene had to flee from Mycenae. Alcmene followed her young husband to a foreign land only on the condition that he would take revenge on the sons of Pterelai for the murder of her brothers. Therefore, having arrived in Thebes, to King Creon, with whom Amphitryon found refuge, he set off with an army against the TV fighters. In his absence, Zeus, captivated by the beauty of Alcmene, appeared to her, taking on the image of Amphitryon. Amphitryon soon returned. And from Zeus and Amphitryon two twin sons were to be born to Alcmene. (hercules hercules)
On the day when the great son of Zeus and Alcmene was supposed to be born, the gods gathered on high Olympus. Rejoicing that his son would soon be born, the aegis-power Zeus said to the gods:
- Listen, gods and goddesses, what I tell you: my heart tells me to say this! Today a great hero will be born; he will rule over all his relatives who descend from my son, the great Perseus.
But Zeus’s wife, the royal Hera, angry that Zeus took the mortal Alcmene as his wife, decided by cunning to deprive Alcmene’s son of power over all the Perseids - she already hated the son of Zeus before birth. Therefore, hiding her cunning in the depths of her heart, Hera said to Zeus:
- You are telling a lie, great thunderer! You will never keep your word! Give me the great unbreakable oath of the gods that the one who is born today as the first of the Perseid race will rule over his relatives. (hercules hercules)
The goddess of deception Ata took possession of the mind of Zeus, and, not suspecting Hera’s cunning, the thunderer made an unbreakable oath. Hera immediately left bright Olympus and rushed to Argos in her golden chariot. There she hastened the birth of a son to the godlike wife of the Perseid Sthenel, and on that day a weak, sick child, the son of Sthenel, Eurystheus, was born in the gens of Perseus. Hera quickly returned to bright Olympus and said to the great cloud-killer Zeus:
- Oh, father Zeus, throwing lightning, listen to me! Now the son Eurystheus was born in glorious Argos to the Perseid Sthenel. He was the first to be born today and should rule over all the descendants of Perseus.
The great Zeus was saddened; now he only understood all the deceit of Hera. He was angry with the goddess of deception Atu, who had taken possession of his mind; in anger, Zeus grabbed her by the hair and threw her down from bright Olympus. The ruler of gods and people forbade her to come to Olympus. Since then, the goddess of deception Ata has lived among people.
Zeus made the fate of his son easier. He concluded an unbreakable agreement with Hera that his son would not be under the rule of Eurystheus all his life. He will perform only twelve great feats on behalf of Eurystheus, and after that he will not only be freed from his power, but will even receive immortality. The Thunderer knew that his son would have to overcome many great dangers, so he ordered his beloved daughter Pallas Athena to help the son of Alcmene. Zeus often had to grieve later when he saw his son carrying out great labors in the service of the weak, cowardly Eurystheus, but he could not break the oath given to Hera.
On the same day as the birth of her son Sthenel, twins were born to Alcmene: the eldest, the son of Zeus, named Alcides at birth, and the younger, the son of Amphitryon, named Iphicles. Alcides was the greatest son of Greece. He was later named by the soothsayer Pythia Hercules. Under this name he became famous, received immortality and was accepted into the host of the bright gods of Olympus. (read the labors of Hercules)
Hera began to pursue Hercules from the very first day of his life. Having learned that Hercules was born and was lying, wrapped in swaddling clothes, with her brother Iphicles, she sent two snakes to destroy the newborn hero. It was already night when the snakes crawled into Alkmena’s chamber, their eyes sparkling. They quietly crawled to the cradle where the twins lay, and were about to wrap themselves around the body of little Hercules and strangle him, when the son of Zeus woke up. He stretched out his small hands to the snakes, grabbed them by the necks and squeezed them with such force that he immediately strangled them. Alcmene jumped up from her bed in horror; Seeing the snakes in the cradle, the women who were alone screamed loudly. Everyone rushed to Alcides' cradle. Amphitryon came running to the scream of the women with a drawn sword. They all surrounded the cradle and saw an extraordinary miracle: the little newborn Hercules was holding two huge strangled snakes, which were still writhing weakly in his tiny hands. Amazed by the strength of his adopted son, Amphitryon called the soothsayer Tiresias and asked him about the fate of the newborn. Then the prophetic elder told how many great feats Hercules would accomplish, and predicted that he would achieve immortality at the end of his life.
Having learned what great glory awaited Alcmene's eldest son, Amphitryon gave him an education worthy of a hero. Amphitryon not only cared about developing the strength of Hercules, he also cared about his education. He was taught to read, write, sing and play the cithara. But Hercules was far from being as successful in science and music as he was in wrestling, archery and the ability to wield weapons. Often the music teacher, Orpheus' brother Lin, had to get angry with his student and even punish him. One day during a lesson, Lin hit Hercules, irritated by his reluctance to learn. An angry Hercules grabbed the cithara and hit Lin on the head with it. Young Hercules did not calculate the force of the blow. The blow of the cithara was so strong that Lin fell dead on the spot. Hercules was summoned to court for this murder. Justifying himself, the son of Alcmene said:

After all, the fairest of judges, Rhadamanthus, says that anyone who is struck can return blow for blow.
The judges acquitted Hercules, but his stepfather Amphitryon, fearing that something similar might happen again, sent Hercules to the wooded Kiferon to graze his flocks.

Hercules in Thebes

Hercules grew up in the forests of Cithaeron and became a mighty young man. He was a full head taller than everyone else, and his strength far exceeded that of a man. At first glance, one could recognize him as the son of Zeus, especially by his eyes, which shone with some extraordinary, divine light. No one was equal to Hercules in dexterity in military exercises, and he wielded a bow and spear so skillfully that he never missed. While still a young man, Hercules killed the formidable lion of Cithaeron, who lived on the tops of the mountains. Young Hercules attacked him, killed him and skinned him. He put this skin on himself, threw it like a cloak over his powerful shoulders, tied it with his paws on his chest, and the skin from the lion’s head served as his helmet. Hercules made himself a huge club from an ash tree that was as hard as iron and uprooted from the Nemean Grove. Hermes gave Hercules a sword, Apollo gave him a bow and arrows, Hephaestus made him a golden armor, and Athena herself wove clothes for him.
Having matured, Hercules defeated King Orchomen Ergin, to whom Thebes paid a large tribute annually. He killed Ergin during the battle, and imposed a tribute on the Minyan Orchomen, which was twice as much as what Thebes paid. For this feat, the king of Thebes, Creon, gave Hercules his daughter Megara as his wife, and the gods sent him three beautiful sons. (hercules hercules)
Hercules lived happily in the seven-gate Thebes. But the great goddess Hera still burned with hatred for the son of Zeus. She sent a terrible illness to Hercules. The great hero lost his mind, madness took possession of him. In a fit of rage, Hercules killed all his children and the children of his brother Iphicles. When the fit passed, deep sorrow took possession of Hercules. Cleansed from the filth of the involuntary murder he committed, Hercules left Thebes and went to the sacred Delphi to ask the god Apollo what he should do. Apollo ordered Hercules to go to the homeland of his ancestors in Tiryns and serve Eurystheus for twelve years. Through the mouth of the Pythia, the son of Latona predicted to Hercules that he would receive immortality if he performed twelve great labors at the command of Eurystheus.

Hercules in the service of Eurystheus

Hercules settled in Tiryns and became the servant of the weak, cowardly Eurystheus. Eurystheus was afraid of the mighty hero and did not let him into Mycenae. He conveyed all his orders to the son of Zeus in Tiryns through his messenger Copreus.

1 Labor of Hercules (Nemean Lion)

Hercules did not have to wait long for the first order of King Eurystheus. He instructed Hercules to kill the Nemean lion. This lion, born of Typhon and Echidna, was of monstrous size. He lived near the city of Nemea (City in Argolis, in the northeast of the Peloponnese) and devastated the entire surrounding area. Hercules boldly set out on a dangerous feat. Arriving in Nemea, he immediately went to the mountains to find the lion's lair. It was already midday when the hero reached the slopes of the mountains. There was not a single living soul to be seen anywhere: neither shepherds nor farmers. All living things fled from these places in fear of the terrible lion. For a long time Hercules searched for the lion's lair along the wooded slopes of the mountains and in the gorges; finally, when the sun began to lean towards the west, Hercules found a lair in a gloomy gorge; it was located in a huge cave that had two exits. Hercules blocked one of the exits with huge stones and began to wait for the lion, hiding behind the stones. (1 labor of Hercules) Towards evening, when dusk was already approaching, a monstrous lion with a long shaggy mane appeared. Hercules pulled the string of his bow and shot three arrows one after another at the lion, but the arrows bounced off his skin - it was hard as steel. The lion roared menacingly, his roar rolled like thunder across the mountains. Looking around in all directions, the lion stood in the gorge and looked with his eyes burning with rage for the one who dared to shoot arrows at him. But then he saw Hercules and rushed with a huge leap at the hero. The club of Hercules flashed like lightning and fell like a thunderbolt on the lion’s head. The lion fell to the ground, stunned by a terrible blow; Hercules rushed at the lion, grabbed him with his powerful arms and strangled him. Placing the dead lion on his mighty shoulders, Hercules returned to Nemea, made a sacrifice to Zeus and established the Nemean Games in memory of his first feat (the Nemean Games are a pan-Greek festival that took place every two years in the Nemean Valley in Argolis; they were celebrated in honor of Zeus in the middle of summer During the games, which lasted for several days, they competed in running, wrestling, fist fighting, throwing a discus and a spear, and also in chariot racing. During the games, general peace was declared throughout Greece). When Hercules brought the lion he had killed to Mycenae, Eurystheus turned pale with fear as he looked at the monstrous lion. The king of Mycenae realized what superhuman strength Hercules possessed. He forbade him even to approach the gates of Mycenae; when Hercules brought evidence of his exploits, Eurystheus looked at them with horror from the high Mycenaean walls. (1 labor of Hercules)

2nd Labor of Hercules (Lernaean Hydra)

After the first feat, Eurystheus sent Hercules to kill the Lernaean hydra. It was a monster with the body of a snake and nine heads of a dragon. Like the Nemean lion, the hydra was generated by Typhon and Echidna. The hydra lived in a swamp near the city of Lerna (a city on the shores of the Argolid Gulf in Argolis) and, crawling out of its lair, destroyed entire herds and devastated the entire surrounding area. The fight with the nine-headed hydra was dangerous because one of its heads was immortal. Hercules set off on a journey to Lerna with Iphicles’ son Iolaus. Arriving at a swamp near the city of Lerna, Hercules left Iolaus with his chariot in a nearby grove, and he himself went to look for the hydra. He found her in a cave surrounded by a swamp. Having heated his arrows red-hot, Hercules began to shoot them one after another into the hydra. The arrows of Hercules enraged the Hydra. (2nd Labor of Hercules) She crawled out, wriggling a body covered with shiny scales, from the darkness of the cave, rose menacingly on her huge tail and was about to rush at the hero, but the son of Zeus stepped on her torso with his foot and pressed her to the ground. The hydra wrapped its tail around the legs of Hercules and tried to knock him down. Like an unshakable rock, the hero stood and, with swings of a heavy club, knocked off the heads of the hydra one after another. The club whistled in the air like a whirlwind; The hydra's heads flew off, but the hydra was still alive. Then Hercules noticed that in the hydra, in place of each knocked-down head, two new ones grew. Help for the hydra also appeared. A monstrous cancer crawled out of the swamp and dug its pincers into Hercules’ leg. Then the hero called his friend Iolaus for help. Iolaus killed the monstrous cancer, set fire to part of the nearby grove and, with burning tree trunks, burned the hydra's necks, from which Hercules knocked off the heads with his club. The hydra has stopped growing new heads. She resisted the son of Zeus weaker and weaker. Finally, the immortal head flew off the hydra. The monstrous hydra was defeated and fell dead to the ground. The victor Hercules buried her immortal head deeply and piled a huge rock on it so that it could not come out into the light again. Then the great hero cut open the body of the hydra and plunged his arrows into its poisonous bile. Since then, the wounds from Hercules' arrows have become incurable. Hercules returned to Tiryns with great triumph. But there a new assignment from Eurystheus was waiting for him. (2 labor of Hercules)

3rd Labor of Hercules (Stymphalian Birds)

Eurystheus instructed Hercules to kill the Stymphalian birds. These birds almost turned the entire environs of the Arcadian city of Stymphalus into a desert. They attacked both animals and people and tore them apart with their copper claws and beaks. But the worst thing was that the feathers of these birds were made of solid bronze, and the birds, having taken off, could drop them, like arrows, on anyone who decided to attack them. It was difficult for Hercules to fulfill this order of Eurystheus. The warrior Pallas Athena came to his aid. She gave Hercules two copper tympani, they were forged by the god Hephaestus, and ordered Hercules to stand on a high hill near the forest where the Stymphalian birds nested, and strike the tympani; when the birds fly up, shoot them with a bow. This is what Hercules did. (3rd labor of Hercules) Having ascended the hill, he struck the tympani, and such a deafening ringing arose that the birds in a huge flock took off above the forest and began to circle above him in horror. They rained down their feathers, sharp as arrows, onto the ground, but the feathers did not hit Hercules standing on the hill. The hero grabbed his bow and began to strike the birds with deadly arrows. In fear, the Stymphalian birds soared into the clouds and disappeared from the eyes of Hercules. The birds flew far beyond the borders of Greece, to the shores of the Euxine Pontus (as the Greeks called the Black Sea), and never returned to the vicinity of Stymphalos. So Hercules fulfilled this order of Eurystheus and returned to Tiryns, but he immediately had to go to an even more difficult feat. (hercules hercules) (3rd labor of Hercules)

4th Labor of Hercules (Cerenean Hind)

Eurystheus knew that a wonderful Kerynean doe lived in Arcadia, sent by the goddess Artemis to punish people. This doe devastated the fields. Eurystheus sent Hercules to catch her and ordered him to deliver the doe alive to Mycenae. This doe was extremely beautiful, her horns were golden and her legs were copper. Like the wind, she rushed through the mountains and valleys of Arcadia, never knowing fatigue. For a whole year, Hercules pursued the Cerynean doe. She rushed through the mountains, across the plains, jumped over chasms, swam across rivers. The doe ran further and further north. The hero did not lag behind her, he pursued her without losing sight of her. Finally, in pursuit of the padya, Hercules reached the far north - the country of the Hyperboreans and the sources of the Istra (Modern Danube; the Greeks, knowing little geography, thought that the Danube originated in the far north of the earth). Here the doe stopped. The hero wanted to grab her, but she escaped and, like an arrow, rushed back to the south. The chase began again. Hercules only managed to overtake a doe in Arcadia. Even after such a long chase, she did not lose strength. Desperate to catch the doe, Hercules resorted to his never-missing arrows. He wounded the golden-horned doe in the leg with an arrow, and only then did he manage to catch her. Hercules put the wonderful doe on his shoulders and was about to carry her to Mycenae, when an angry Artemis appeared before him and said: (4th labor of Hercules)
- Didn’t you know, Hercules, that this doe is mine? Why did you insult me ​​by wounding my beloved doe? Don't you know that I don't forgive insults? Or do you think that you are more powerful than the Olympian gods?
Hercules bowed with reverence before the beautiful goddess and answered:
- Oh, great daughter of Latona, don’t blame me! I have never insulted the immortal gods living on bright Olympus; I have always honored the inhabitants of heaven with rich sacrifices and never considered myself equal to them, although I myself am the son of the thunderer Zeus. I did not pursue your doe of my own free will, but at the command of Eurystheus. The gods themselves commanded me to serve him, and I do not dare disobey Eurystheus! (4th labor of Hercules)
Artemis forgave Hercules for his guilt. The great son of the thunderer Zeus brought the Cerynean doe alive to Mycenae and gave it to Eurystheus.

5 labor of Hercules
(Erymanthian boar and the battle with the centaurs)

After hunting the copper-legged fallow deer, which lasted a whole year, Hercules did not rest for long. Eurystheus again gave him an assignment: Hercules had to kill the Erymanthian boar. This boar, possessing monstrous strength, lived on Mount Erymanthes (the Mountain and the city of the same name in Arcadia in the Peloponnese, where the city of Psofis is also located) and devastated the surroundings of the city of Psofis. He gave no mercy to people and killed them with his huge fangs. Hercules went to Mount Erymanthus. On the way he visited the wise centaur Fol. He accepted the great son of Zeus with honor and arranged a feast for him. During the feast, the centaur opened a large vessel of wine to treat the hero better. The fragrance of wonderful wine spread far away. Other centaurs also heard this fragrance. They were terribly angry with Pholus because he opened the vessel. Wine belonged not only to Fol, but was the property of all centaurs. (5th labor of Hercules) The centaurs rushed to the dwelling of Pholus and surprised him and Hercules when the two of them were happily feasting, decorating their heads with ivy wreaths. Hercules was not afraid of the centaurs. He quickly jumped up from his bed and began throwing huge smoking brands at the attackers. The centaurs fled, and Hercules wounded them with his poisonous arrows. The hero pursued them all the way to Malea. There the centaurs took refuge with Hercules' friend, Chiron, the wisest of the centaurs. Following them, Hercules burst into the cave. In anger, he pulled his bow, an arrow flashed in the air and pierced the knee of one of the centaurs. Hercules did not defeat the enemy, but his friend Chiron. Great sorrow gripped the hero when he saw who he had wounded. Hercules hurries to wash and bandage his friend’s wound, but nothing can help. Hercules knew that a wound from an arrow poisoned with hydra bile was incurable. Chiron also knew that he was facing a painful death. In order not to suffer from the wound, he subsequently voluntarily descended into the dark kingdom of Hades.
In deep sadness, Hercules left Chiron and soon reached Mount Erymantha. There, in a dense forest, he found a formidable boar and drove it out of the thicket with a cry. Hercules chased the boar for a long time, and finally drove it into deep snow on the top of a mountain. The boar got stuck in the snow, and Hercules, rushing at him, tied him up and carried him alive to Mycenae. When Eurystheus saw the monstrous boar, he hid in a large bronze vessel out of fear. (5th labor of Hercules)

6th Labor of Hercules (Augeas Animal Farm)

Soon Eurystheus gave a new assignment to Hercules. He had to clear the entire farmyard of Augeas, king of Elis (Area in the north-west of the Peloponnese), son of the radiant Helios, from manure. The sun god gave his son innumerable wealth. Augeas' herds were especially numerous. Among his herds were three hundred bulls with legs as white as snow, two hundred bulls were red like Sidonian purple, twelve bulls dedicated to the god Helios were white like swans, and one bull, distinguished by its extraordinary beauty, shone like a star. Hercules invited Augeas to cleanse his entire huge cattle yard in one day if he agreed to give him a tenth of his herds. Augeas agreed. It seemed impossible to him to complete such work in one day. Hercules broke the wall surrounding the barnyard on two opposite sides and diverted the water of two rivers, Alpheus and Peneus, into it. The water of these rivers in one day carried away all the manure from the barnyard, and Hercules again built the walls. When the hero came to Augeas to demand a reward, the proud king did not give him the promised tenth of the herds, and Hercules had to return to Tiryns with nothing. (6th labor of Hercules)
The great hero took terrible revenge on the king of Elis. A few years later, having already been freed from service with Eurystheus, Hercules invaded Elis with a large army, defeated Augeas in a bloody battle and killed him with his deadly arrow. After the victory, Hercules gathered an army and all the rich booty near the city of Pisa, made sacrifices to the Olympic gods and established the Olympic Games (the Olympic Games are the most important of the pan-Greek festivals, during which universal peace was declared throughout Greece. A few months before the games throughout Greece and the Greek Ambassadors were sent to the colonies, inviting them to the games at Olympia. The Games were held every four years. Competitions took place in running, wrestling, fist fighting, discus and javelin throwing, as well as chariot racing. The winners of the games received an olive wreath as a reward and used them. with great honor. The Greeks counted the years according to the Olympic Games, considering the first to take place in 776 BC. The Olympic Games existed until 393 AD, when they were banned by Emperor Theodosius as incompatible with Christianity. II burned the temple of Zeus at Olympia and all the luxurious buildings that decorated the place where the Olympic Games took place. They turned into ruins and were gradually covered by the sand of the Alpheus River. Only excavations carried out at the site of Olympia in the 19th century. n. e., mainly from 1875 to 1881, gave us the opportunity to get an accurate idea of ​​​​the past Olympia and the Olympic Games.), which have been held since then by all Greeks every four years on the sacred plain, planted by Hercules himself dedicated to the goddess Athena -Pallad with olives.
Hercules took revenge on all of Augeas’s allies. The king of Pylos, Neleus, paid especially. Hercules, coming with an army to Pylos, took the city and killed Neleus and his eleven sons. Neleus’s son Periclymenus, who was given the gift of turning into a lion, snake and bee by the ruler of the sea, Poseidon, did not escape either. Hercules killed him when, having turned into a bee, Periclymenes sat on one of the horses harnessed to Hercules' chariot. Only Neleus' son Nestor survived. Nestor subsequently became famous among the Greeks for his exploits and great wisdom. (6th labor of Hercules)

7th labor of Hercules (Cretan bull)

To fulfill Eurystheus' seventh order, Hercules had to leave Greece and go to the island of Crete. Eurystheus instructed him to bring a Cretan bull to Mycenae. This bull was sent to the king of Crete Minos, son of Europa, by the shaker of the earth Poseidon; Minos had to sacrifice a bull to Poseidon. But Minos felt sorry for sacrificing such a beautiful bull - he left it in his herd, and sacrificed one of his bulls to Poseidon. (7th Labor of Hercules) Poseidon was angry with Minos and sent the bull that came out of the sea into a frenzy. A bull rushed all over the island and destroyed everything in its path. The great hero Hercules caught the bull and tamed it. He sat on the broad back of a bull and swam on it across the sea from Crete to the Peloponnese. Hercules brought the bull to Mycenae, but Eurystheus was afraid to leave Poseidon's bull in his herd and let him go free. Sensing freedom again, the mad bull rushed across the entire Peloponnese to the north and finally ran to Attica to the Marathon field. There he was killed by the great Athenian hero Theseus. (7th labor of Hercules)

8th labor of Hercules (Horses of Diomedes)

After taming the Cretan bull, Hercules, on behalf of Eurystheus, had to go to Thrace to the king of the Bistons (Bistons are a mythical people who, according to the Greeks, lived in Thrace) Diomedes. This king had horses of marvelous beauty and strength. They were chained with iron chains in the stalls, since no fetters could hold them. King Diomedes fed these horses with human meat. (8th Labor of Hercules) He threw to them all the foreigners who, driven by the storm, pestered his city to be devoured. It was to this Thracian king that Hercules appeared with his companions. He took possession of Diomedes' horses and took them to his ship. On the shore, Hercules was overtaken by Diomedes himself with his warlike bistons. Having entrusted the guard of the horses to his beloved Abdera, the son of Hermes, Hercules entered into battle with Diomedes. Hercules had few companions, but Diomedes was still defeated and fell in battle. Hercules returned to the ship. How great was his despair when he saw that wild horses had torn to pieces his favorite Abdera. Hercules gave a magnificent funeral to his favorite, built a high hill on his grave, and next to the grave he founded a city and named it Abdera in honor of his favorite. Hercules brought the horses of Diomedes to Eurystheus, and he ordered them to be released. The wild horses fled to the mountains of Lykeion (Mountains in the Peloponnese), covered with dense forest, and were torn to pieces by wild animals there. (8 labors of Hercules)

Hercules at Admetus

Based mainly on Euripides' tragedy "Alcestis"

When Hercules sailed on a ship across the sea to the shores of Thrace for the horses of King Diomedes, he decided to visit his friend, King Admetus, since the path lay past the city of Fer (the most ancient city in Thessaly), where Admetus ruled.
Hercules chose a difficult time for Admet. Great grief reigned in the house of King Fer. His wife Alcestis was supposed to die. Once upon a time, the goddesses of fate, the great Moirai, at the request of Apollo, determined that Admetus could get rid of death if, in the last hour of his life, someone agreed to voluntarily descend in his place to the dark kingdom of Hades. When the hour of death came, Admetus asked his elderly parents that one of them would agree to die in his place, but the parents refused. None of the inhabitants of Fer agreed to die voluntarily for King Admet. Then the young, beautiful Alcestis decided to sacrifice her life for her beloved husband. On the day when Admetus was supposed to die, his wife prepared for death. She washed the body and put on funeral clothes and jewelry. Approaching the hearth, Alcestis turned to the goddess Hestia, who gives happiness in the house, with a fervent prayer:
- Oh, great goddess! For the last time I kneel here before you. I pray to you, protect my orphans, because today I must descend into the kingdom of dark Hades. Oh, don’t let them die like I am dying, untimely! May their life be happy and rich here in their homeland.
Then Alcestis went around all the altars of the gods and decorated them with myrtle.
Finally, she went to her chambers and fell in tears on her bed. Her children came to her - a son and a daughter. They wept bitterly on their mother's chest. Alcestis's maids also cried. In despair, Admet hugged his young wife and begged her not to leave him. Alcestis is already ready for death; Tanat, the god of death, hated by gods and people, is already approaching the palace of King Fer with silent steps to cut off a strand of hair from Alcestis’s head with a sword. The golden-haired Apollo himself asked him to delay the hour of death of the wife of his favorite Admetus, but Tanat was inexorable. Alcestis feels the approach of death. She exclaims in horror:
- Oh, Charon’s two-oared boat is already approaching me, and the carrier of the souls of the dead menacingly shouts to me, driving the boat: “Why are you delaying? Hurry, hurry! Time is running out! Don't delay us. Everything is ready! Hurry up!” Oh, let me go! My legs are getting weaker. Death is approaching. Black night covers my eyes! Oh children, children! Your mother is no longer alive! Live happily! Admet, your life was dearer to me than my own life. Let it be better for you, and not for me, to shine. Admet, you love our children no less than me. Oh, don’t take a stepmother into their house so that she doesn’t offend them!
The unfortunate Admetus suffers.
- You take all the joy of life with you, Alcestis! he exclaims, “I will now grieve for you all my life.” Oh gods, gods, what a wife you are taking away from me!
Alcestis says barely audibly:
- Goodbye! My eyes have already closed forever. Goodbye children! Now I am nothing. Farewell, Admet!
- Oh, look at least once again! Don't leave your children! Oh, let me die too! - Admet exclaimed with tears.
Alcestis's eyes closed, her body grew cold, she died. Admet sobs inconsolably over the deceased and bitterly complains about his fate. He orders a magnificent funeral to be prepared for his wife. For eight months he orders everyone in the city to mourn Alcestis, the best of women. The whole city is full of sorrow, since everyone loved the good queen.
They were already preparing to carry the body of Alcestis to her tomb, when Hercules came to the city of Thera. He goes to Admetus's palace and meets his friend at the palace gates. Admet greeted the great son of the aegis-power Zeus with honor. Not wanting to sadden the guest, Admet tries to hide his grief from him. But Hercules immediately noticed that his friend was deeply saddened, and asked about the reason for his grief. Admet gives an unclear answer to Hercules, and he decides that Admet’s distant relative died, whom the king sheltered after the death of his father. Admetus orders his servants to take Hercules to the guest room and arrange a rich feast for him, and to lock the doors to the women’s quarters so that the groans of sorrow do not reach Hercules’ ears. Unaware of the misfortune that befell his friend, Hercules happily feasts in the palace of Admetus. He drinks cup after cup. It is difficult for the servants to serve the cheerful guest - after all, they know that their beloved mistress is no longer alive. No matter how hard they try, by order of Admetus, to hide their grief, Hercules still notices tears in their eyes and sadness on their faces. He invites one of the servants to feast with him, says that the wine will give him oblivion and smooth out the wrinkles of sadness on his brow, but the servant refuses. Then Hercules realizes that a grave grief has befallen the house of Admetus. He starts asking the servant what happened to his friend, and finally the servant tells him:
- Oh, stranger, the wife of Admetus descended today to the kingdom of Hades.
Hercules was saddened. It pained him that he had feasted in a wreath of ivy and sung in the house of a friend who had suffered such great grief. Hercules decided to thank the noble Admetus for the fact that, despite the grief that befell him, he still received him so hospitably. The great hero quickly decided to take away his prey Alcestis from the gloomy god of death Tanat.
Having learned from the servant where the tomb of Alcestis is located, he hurries there as soon as possible. Hiding behind the tomb, Hercules waits for Tanat to fly in to drink at the grave of sacrificial blood. Then the flapping of Tanat’s black wings was heard, and a breath of grave cold blew in; the gloomy god of death flew to the tomb and greedily pressed his lips to the sacrificial blood. Hercules jumped out of the ambush and rushed at Tanat. He grabbed the god of death with his mighty arms, and a terrible struggle began between them. Straining all his strength, Hercules fights with the god of death. Tanat squeezed the chest of Hercules with his bony hands, he breathes on him with his chilling breath, and from his wings the cold of death blows on the hero. Nevertheless, the mighty son of the thunderer Zeus defeated Tanat. He tied up Tanat and demanded that the god of death bring Alcestis back to life as a ransom for freedom. Thanat gave Hercules the life of Admetus's wife, and the great hero led her back to her husband's palace. (hercules hercules)
Admetus, returning to the palace after his wife’s funeral, bitterly mourned his irreplaceable loss. It was hard for him to stay in the empty palace. Where should he go? He envies the dead. He hates life. He calls death. All his happiness was stolen by Tanat and taken to the kingdom of Hades. What could be harder for him than the loss of his beloved wife! Admet regrets that she did not allow Alcestis to die with her, then their death would have united them. Hades would have received two souls faithful to each other instead of one. Together these souls would cross the Acheron. Suddenly Hercules appeared before the mournful Admetus. He leads a woman covered with a veil by the hand. Hercules asks Admetus to leave this woman, who he got after a difficult struggle, in the palace until his return from Thrace. Admet refuses; he asks Hercules to take the woman to someone else. It’s hard for Admet to see another woman in his palace when he lost the one he loved so much. Hercules insists and even wants Admetus to bring the woman into the palace himself. He does not allow Admetus' servants to touch her. Finally, Admetus, unable to refuse his friend, takes the woman by the hand to lead her into his palace. Hercules tells him:
- You took it, Admet! So protect her! Now you can say that the son of Zeus is a true friend. Look at the woman! Doesn't she look like your wife Alcestis? Stop being sad! Be happy with life again!
- Oh, great gods! - Admetus exclaimed, lifting the woman’s veil, “my wife Alcestis!” Oh no, it's just her shadow! She stands silently, she didn’t say a word!
- No, it’s not a shadow! - Hercules answered, - this is Alcestis. I obtained it in a difficult struggle with the lord of souls, Thanat. She will remain silent until she frees herself from the power of the underground gods, bringing them atonement sacrifices; she will remain silent until night gives way to day three times; only then will she speak. Now farewell, Admet! Be happy and always observe the great custom of hospitality, sanctified by my father himself - Zeus!
- Oh, great son of Zeus, you gave me the joy of life again! - Admet exclaimed, - how can I thank you? Stay as my guest. I will command that your victory be celebrated in all my domains, I will command that great sacrifices be made to the gods. Stay with me!
Hercules did not stay with Admetus; a feat awaited him; he had to fulfill the order of Eurystheus and get him the horses of King Diomedes.

9th Labor of Hercules (Hippolyta's Belt)

The ninth labor of Hercules was his trip to the land of the Amazons under the belt of Queen Hippolyta. This belt was given to Hippolyta by the god of war Ares, and she wore it as a sign of her power over all the Amazons. The daughter of Eurystheus Admet, a priestess of the goddess Hera, definitely wanted to have this belt. To fulfill her wish, Eurystheus sent Hercules for the belt. Gathering a small detachment of heroes, the great son of Zeus set off on a long journey on only one ship. Although the detachment of Hercules was small, there were many glorious heroes in this detachment, including the great hero of Attica, Theseus. (read the labors of Hercules) (9 labors of Hercules)
The heroes had a long journey ahead of them. They had to reach the farthest shores of the Euxine Pontus, since there was the country of the Amazons with the capital Themiscyra. Along the way, Hercules landed with his companions on the island of Paros (One of the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea, famous in ancient times for its marble), where the sons of Minos ruled. On this island the sons of Minos killed two companions of Hercules. Hercules, angry at this, immediately began a war with the sons of Minos. He killed many of the inhabitants of Paros, but drove others into the city and kept them under siege until the besieged sent envoys to Hercules and asked him to take two of them instead of the killed companions. Then Hercules lifted the siege and took the grandchildren of Minos, Alcaeus and Sthenelus instead of those killed.
From Paros, Hercules arrived in Mysia (a country on the western coast of Asia Minor with the main city of Pergamum) to King Lycus, who received him with great hospitality. The king of the Bebriks unexpectedly attacked Lik. Hercules defeated the king of the Bebriks with his detachment and destroyed his capital, and gave the entire land of the Bebriks to Lika. King Lycus named this country Hercules in honor of Hercules. After this feat, Hercules went further, and finally arrived at the city of the Amazons, Themiscyra.
The fame of the exploits of the son of Zeus has long reached the land of the Amazons. Therefore, when Hercules’ ship landed at Themiscyra, the Amazons and the queen came out to meet the hero. They looked with surprise at the great son of Zeus, who stood out like an immortal god among his heroic companions. Queen Hippolyta asked the great hero Hercules: (9 labors of Hercules)
- Glorious son of Zeus, tell me what brought you to our city? Are you bringing us peace or war?
This is how Hercules answered the queen:
- Queen, it was not of my own free will that I came here with an army, having made a long journey across a stormy sea; Eurystheus, the ruler of Mycenae, sent me. His daughter Admeta wants to have your belt, a gift from the god Ares. Eurystheus instructed me to get your belt.
Hippolyta was unable to refuse Hercules anything. She was ready to voluntarily give him the belt, but the great Hera, wanting to destroy Hercules, whom she hated, took the form of an Amazon, intervened in the crowd and began to convince the warriors to attack the army of Hercules.
“Hercules is telling a lie,” Hera said to the Amazons, “he came to you with insidious intent: the hero wants to kidnap your queen Hippolyta and take her as a slave to his home.”
The Amazons believed Hera. They grabbed their weapons and attacked the army of Hercules. Aella, fast as the wind, rushed ahead of the Amazon army. She was the first to attack Hercules, like a stormy whirlwind. The great hero repelled her onslaught and put her to flight. Aella thought to escape from the hero by quick flight. All her speed did not help her; Hercules overtook her and struck her with his sparkling sword. Protoya also fell in battle. She killed seven heroes from among the companions of Hercules with her own hand, but she did not escape the arrow of the great son of Zeus. Then seven Amazons attacked Hercules at once; they were companions of Artemis herself: no one was equal to them in the art of wielding a spear. Covering themselves with shields, they launched their spears at Hercules. but the spears flew past this time. The hero struck them all down with his club; one after another they burst onto the ground, sparkling with their weapons. The Amazon Melanippe, who led the army into battle, was captured by Hercules, and Antiope was captured with her. The formidable warriors were defeated, their army fled, many of them fell at the hands of the heroes pursuing them. The Amazons made peace with Hercules. Hippolyta bought the freedom of the mighty Melanippe at the price of her belt. The heroes took Antiope with them. Hercules gave it as a reward to Theseus for his great courage. This is how Hercules obtained Hippolyta’s belt. (9th labor of Hercules)

Hercules saves Hesione, daughter of Laomedon

On the way back to Tiryns from the land of the Amazons, Hercules arrived on ships with his army to Troy. A difficult sight appeared before the eyes of the heroes when they landed on the shore near Troy. They saw the beautiful daughter of King Laomedon of Troy, Hesione, chained to a rock near the seashore. She was doomed, like Andromeda, to be torn to pieces by a monster emerging from the sea. This monster was sent by Poseidon as punishment to Laomedon for refusing to pay him and Apollo a fee for the construction of the walls of Troy. The proud king, whom, according to the verdict of Zeus, both gods had to serve, even threatened to cut off their ears if they demanded payment. Then, the angry Apollo sent a terrible pestilence to all the possessions of Laomedon, and Poseidon sent a monster that devastated the surroundings of Troy, sparing no one. Only by sacrificing the life of his daughter could Laomedon save his country from a terrible disaster. Against his will, he had to chain his daughter Hesione to a rock by the sea.
Seeing the unfortunate girl, Hercules volunteered to save her, and for saving Hesione he demanded from Laomedon as a reward those horses that the thunderer Zeus had given to the king of Troy as a ransom for his son Ganymede. He was once kidnapped by the eagle of Zeus and carried to Olympus. Laomedont agreed to Hercules' demands. The great hero ordered the Trojans to build a rampart on the seashore and hid behind it. As soon as Hercules hid behind the rampart, a monster swam out of the sea and, opening its huge mouth, rushed at Hesione. With a loud cry, Hercules ran out from behind the rampart, rushed at the monster and plunged his double-edged sword deep into its chest. Hercules saved Hesione.
When the son of Zeus demanded the promised reward from Laomedon, the king felt sorry to part with the wondrous horses; he did not give them to Hercules and even drove him out of Troy with threats. Hercules left the possessions of Laomedont, hiding his anger deep in his heart. Now he could not take revenge on the king who had deceived him, since his army was too small and the hero could not hope to soon capture impregnable Troy. The great son of Zeus could not stay near Troy for a long time - he had to rush to Mycenae with Hippolyta’s belt. (hercules hercules)

10th Labor of Hercules (Cows of Geryon)

Soon after returning from a campaign in the land of the Amazons, Hercules set out on a new feat. Eurystheus instructed him to drive the cows of the great Geryon, the son of Chrysaor and the oceanid Callirhoe, to Mycenae. The path to Geryon was long. Hercules needed to reach the westernmost edge of the earth, those places where the radiant sun god Helios descends from the sky at sunset. Hercules went on a long journey alone. He passed through Africa, through the barren deserts of Libya, through the countries of savage barbarians and finally reached the ends of the earth. Here he erected two giant stone pillars on both sides of a narrow sea strait as an eternal monument to his feat. (Pillars of Hercules, or Pillars of Hercules. The Greeks believed that Hercules placed the rocks along the shores of the Strait of Gibraltar)
After this, Hercules had to wander a lot more until he reached the shores of the gray Ocean. The hero sat down in thought on the shore near the ever-noisy waters of the Ocean. How could he reach the island of Erythea, where Geryon grazed his flocks? The day was already approaching evening. Here the chariot of Helios appeared, descending to the waters of the Ocean. The bright rays of Helios blinded Hercules, and he was engulfed in unbearable, scorching heat. Hercules jumped up in anger and grabbed his formidable bow, but the bright Helios did not get angry, he smiled friendly at the hero, he liked the extraordinary courage of the great son of Zeus. Helios himself invited Hercules to cross to Erythea in a golden canoe, in which the sun god sailed every evening with his horses and chariot from the western to the eastern edge of the earth to his golden palace. The delighted hero boldly jumped into the golden boat and quickly reached the shores of Erythea. (10 labors of Hercules)
As soon as he landed on the island, the formidable two-headed dog Orfo sensed it and barked at the hero. Hercules killed him with one blow of his heavy club. Ortho was not the only one guarding Geryon's herds. Hercules also had to fight with the shepherd of Geryon, the giant Eurytion. The son of Zeus quickly dealt with the giant and drove the cows of Geryon to the seashore, where the golden boat of Helios stood. Geryon heard the lowing of his cows and went to the herd. Seeing that his dog Ortho and the giant Eurytion had been killed, he chased the herd thief and overtook him on the seashore. Geryon was a monstrous giant: he had three torsos, three heads, six arms and six legs. He covered himself with three shields during the battle, and he threw three huge spears at once at the enemy. Hercules had to fight such and such a giant, but the great warrior Pallas Athena helped him. As soon as Hercules saw him, he immediately fired his deadly arrow at the giant. An arrow pierced the eye of one of Geryon's heads. The first arrow was followed by a second, followed by a third. Hercules waved his all-crushing club menacingly, like lightning, struck the hero Geryon with it, and the three-body giant fell to the ground as a lifeless corpse. Hercules transported Geryon's cows from Erythea in the golden shuttle of Helios across the stormy Ocean and returned the shuttle to Helios. Half the feat was over. (read the labors of Hercules)
Much work still lay ahead. It was necessary to drive the bulls to Mycenae. Hercules drove cows across all of Spain, through the Pyrenees Mountains, through Gaul and the Alps, through Italy. In the south of Italy, near the city of Regium, one of the cows escaped from the herd and swam across the strait to Sicily. There King Eryx, son of Poseidon, saw her and took the cow into his herd. Hercules looked for a cow for a long time. Finally, he asked the god Hephaestus to guard the herd, and he himself crossed to Sicily and there he found his cow in the herd of King Eryx. The king did not want to return her to Hercules; Relying on his strength, he challenged Hercules to single combat. The winner was to be rewarded with a cow. Eryx was unable to cope with such an opponent as Hercules. The son of Zeus squeezed the king in his mighty embrace and strangled him. Hercules returned with the cow to his herd and drove it further. On the shores of the Ionian Sea, the goddess Hera sent rabies through the entire herd. Mad cows ran away in all directions. Only with great difficulty did Hercules catch it most the cows were already in Thrace and finally drove them to Eurystheus in Mycenae. Eurystheus sacrificed them to the great goddess Hera. (10 labors of Hercules)

11th Labor of Hercules (Kerberos)

As soon as Hercules returned to Tiryns, Eurystheus again sent him to the feat. This was already the eleventh labor that Hercules had to perform in the service of Eurystheus. Hercules had to overcome incredible difficulties during this feat. He had to descend into the gloomy, horror-filled underworld of Hades and bring the guardian of the underworld, the terrible hellhound Kerbera. Kerberus had three heads, snakes writhed around his neck, and his tail ended with the head of a dragon with a huge mouth. Hercules went to Laconia and through a gloomy abyss at Tenara (Cape, the southern tip of the Peloponnese) descended into the darkness of the underworld. At the very gates of the kingdom of Hades, Hercules saw the heroes Theseus and Perithous, king of Thessaly, rooted to the rock. They were punished this way by the gods because they wanted to kidnap his wife Persephone from Hades. Theseus prayed to Hercules: (11 labors of Hercules)
- Oh, great son of Zeus, free me! You see my torment! You alone have the power to rid me of them!
Hercules extended his hand to Theseus and freed him. When he wanted to free Perithous, the earth trembled, and Hercules realized that the gods did not want his release. Hercules submitted to the will of the gods and went further into the darkness of eternal night. Hercules was introduced into the underground kingdom by the messenger of the gods, Hermes, the guide of the souls of the dead, and the companion of the great hero was the beloved daughter of Zeus herself, Pallas Athena. When Hercules entered the kingdom of Hades, the shadows of the dead scattered in horror. Only the shadow of the hero Meleager did not run away at the sight of Hercules. She turned with a prayer to the great son of Zeus:
- Oh, great Hercules, I ask you one thing in memory of our friendship, take pity on my orphaned sister, the beautiful Deianira! She remained defenseless after my death. Take her as your wife, great hero! Be her protector!
Hercules promised to fulfill his friend’s request and went further after Hermes. The shadow of the terrible gorgon Medusa rose towards Hercules, she menacingly extended her copper hands and flapped her golden wings, snakes stirred on her head. The fearless hero grabbed the sword, but Hermes stopped him with the words:
- Don't grab the sword, Hercules! After all, this is just an ethereal shadow! She doesn't threaten you with death!
Hercules saw many horrors on his way; Finally, he appeared before the throne of Hades. The ruler of the kingdom of the dead and his wife Persephone looked with delight at the great son of the thunderer Zeus, who fearlessly descended into the kingdom of darkness and sorrow. He, majestic, calm, stood before the throne of Hades, leaning on his huge club, wearing a lion skin thrown over his shoulders, and with a bow over his shoulders. Hades graciously greeted the son of his great brother Zeus and asked what made him leave the light of the sun and descend into the kingdom of darkness. Bowing before Hades, Hercules answered:
- Oh, ruler of the souls of the dead, great Hades, do not be angry with me for my request, Omnipotent! You know that I did not come to your kingdom of my own will, and it is not of my own will that I will ask you. Allow me, Lord Hades, to take your three-headed dog Kerberus to Mycenae. Eurystheus, whom I serve at the command of the bright Olympian gods, told me to do this.
Hades answered the hero:
- I will fulfill your request, son of Zeus; but you must tame Kerberus without weapons. If you tame him, then I will allow you to take him to Eurystheus. (11 labors of Hercules)
For a long time Hercules searched for Kerberus in the underworld. Finally, he found him on the banks of Acheron. Hercules wrapped his arms, strong as steel, around Kerberus’ neck. The dog Hades howled menacingly; the entire underground kingdom was filled with his howl. He tried to escape from Hercules’s embrace, but the hero’s mighty hands only squeezed Kerberus’s neck tighter. Kerberus wrapped his tail around the hero’s legs, the dragon’s head sank its teeth into his body, but all in vain. The mighty Hercules squeezed his neck harder and harder. Finally, the half-strangled dog Hades fell at the hero’s feet. Hercules tamed him and led him from the kingdom of darkness to Mycenae. Scared daylight Kerber; he was covered all over with cold sweat, poisonous foam dripped from his three mouths onto the ground; Everywhere where even a drop of foam dropped, poisonous herbs grew.
Hercules led Kerber to the walls of Mycenae. The cowardly Eurystheus was horrified at one glance at the terrible dog. Almost on his knees he begged Hercules to be taken back to the kingdom of Hades Kerberos. Hercules fulfilled his request and returned Hades his terrible guard Kerberus.

12th Labor of Hercules (Apples of the Hesperides)

The most difficult labor of Hercules in the service of Eurystheus was his last, twelfth labor. He had to go to the great titan Atlas, who holds the firmament on his shoulders, and get three golden apples from his gardens, which were watched over by the daughters of Atlas, the Hesperides. These apples grew on a golden tree, grown by the goddess of the earth Gaia as a gift to the great Hera on the day of her wedding with Zeus. To accomplish this feat, it was necessary first of all to find out the way to the gardens of the Hesperides, guarded by a dragon who never closed his eyes to sleep. (12 labors of Hercules)
No one knew the way to the Hesperides and Atlas. Hercules wandered for a long time through Asia and Europe, he passed through all the countries that he had previously passed on the way to fetch Geryon’s cows; Everywhere Hercules asked about the path, but no one knew it. In his search, he went to the farthest north, to the Eridanus (Mythical River) river, which eternally rolls its stormy, boundless waters. On the banks of Eridanus, beautiful nymphs greeted the great son of Zeus with honor and gave him advice on how to find out the way to the gardens of the Hesperides. Hercules was supposed to attack the sea prophetic old man Nereus by surprise when he came ashore from the depths of the sea, and learn from him the way to the Hesperides; except Nereus, no one knew this path. Hercules searched for Nemeus for a long time. Finally, he managed to find Nereus on the seashore. Hercules attacked the sea god. The fight with the sea god was difficult. To free himself from the iron embrace of Hercules, Nereus took on all sorts of forms, but still his hero did not let go. Finally, he tied up the tired Nereus, and the sea god had to reveal to Hercules the secret of the way to the gardens of the Hesperides in order to gain freedom. Having learned this secret, the son of Zeus released the sea elder and set off on a long journey.
Again he had to go through Libya. Here he met the giant Antaeus, the son of Poseidon, the god of the seas, and the goddess of the earth Gaia, who gave birth to him, fed him and raised him. Antaeus forced all travelers to fight with him and mercilessly killed everyone whom he defeated in the fight. The giant demanded that Hercules fight him too. No one could defeat Antaeus in single combat without knowing the secret from where the giant received more and more strength during the fight. The secret was this: when Antaeus felt that he was beginning to lose strength, he touched the earth, his mother, and his strength was renewed: he drew it from his mother, the great goddess of the earth. But as soon as Antaeus was torn off the ground and lifted into the air, his strength disappeared. Hercules fought with Antaeus for a long time. several times he knocked him to the ground, but Antaeus’ strength only increased. Suddenly, during the struggle, the mighty Hercules lifted Antaeus high into the air - the strength of the son of Gaia dried up, and Hercules strangled him.
Hercules went further and came to Egypt. There, tired from the long journey, he fell asleep in the shade of a small grove on the banks of the Nile. The king of Egypt, the son of Poseidon and the daughter of Epaphus Lysianassa, Busiris, saw the sleeping Hercules, and ordered the sleeping hero to be tied up. He wanted to sacrifice Hercules to his father Zeus. There was a crop failure in Egypt for nine years; The soothsayer Thrasios, who came from Cyprus, predicted that the crop failure would stop only if Busiris annually sacrificed a foreigner to Zeus. Busiris ordered the capture of the soothsayer Thrasius and was the first to sacrifice him. From then on, the cruel king sacrificed to the Thunderer all the foreigners who came to Egypt. They brought Hercules to the altar, but the great hero tore the ropes with which he was bound and killed Busiris himself and his son Amphidamantus at the altar. This is how the cruel king of Egypt was punished. (12 labors of Hercules)
Hercules had to meet many more dangers on his way until he reached the edge of the earth, where the great titan Atlas stood. The hero looked with amazement at the mighty titan, holding the entire vault of heaven on his broad shoulders.
- Oh, the great titan Atlas! - Hercules turned to him, - I am the son of Zeus, Hercules. Eurystheus, the king of gold-rich Mycenae, sent me to you. Eurystheus commanded me to get from you three golden apples from the golden tree in the gardens of the Hesperides.
“I will give you three apples, son of Zeus,” answered Atlas, “while I go after them, you must stand in my place and hold the vault of heaven on your shoulders.” (read the labors of Hercules)
Hercules agreed. He took the place of Atlas. An incredible weight fell on the shoulders of the son of Zeus. He strained all his strength and held the firmament. The weight pressed terribly on Hercules’ mighty shoulders. He bent under the weight of the sky, his muscles bulged like mountains, sweat covered his entire body from tension, but superhuman strength and the help of the goddess Athena gave him the opportunity to hold the firmament until Atlas returned with three golden apples. Returning, Atlas said to the hero:
- Here are three apples, Hercules; if you want, I myself will take them to Mycenae, and you hold the firmament until my return; then I will take your place again.
- Hercules understood Atlas’s cunning, he realized that the titan wanted to completely free himself from his hard work, and against cunning he used cunning.
- Okay, Atlas, I agree! - Hercules answered. “Just let me make myself a pillow first, I’ll put it on my shoulders so that the vault of heaven doesn’t press them so terribly.”
Atlas stood up again in his place and shouldered the weight of the sky. Hercules picked up his bow and quiver of arrows, took his club and golden apples and said:
- Goodbye, Atlas! I held the vault of the sky while you went for the apples of the Hesperides, but I don’t want to carry the entire weight of the sky on my shoulders forever.
With these words, Hercules left the titan, and Atlas again had to hold the vault of heaven on his mighty shoulders, as before. Hercules returned to Eurystheus and gave him the golden apples. Eurystheus gave them to Hercules, and he gave the apples to his patroness, the great daughter of Zeus, Pallas Athena. Athena returned the apples to the Hesperides so that they would remain in the gardens forever.
After his twelfth labor, Hercules was freed from service with Eurystheus. Now he could return to the seven gates of Thebes. But the son of Zeus did not stay there long. New exploits awaited him. He gave his wife Megara as a wife to his friend Iolaus, and he himself went back to Tiryns.
But not only victories awaited him; Hercules also faced grave troubles, since the great goddess Hera continued to pursue him. (12 labors of Hercules)

Hercules and Eurytus

On the island of Euboea, in the city of Oichalia, King Eurytus ruled. The fame of Eurytus as the most skilled archer spread far throughout Greece. The archer Apollo himself was his teacher, even giving him a bow and arrows. Once upon a time, in his youth, Hercules also learned from Eurytus how to shoot a bow. It was this king who announced throughout Greece that he would give his beautiful daughter Iola as a wife to the hero who would defeat him in an archery competition. Hercules, having just completed his service with Eurystheus, went to Oichalia, where many heroes of Greece had gathered, and took part in the competition. Hercules easily defeated King Eurytus and demanded that he give him his daughter Iola as his wife. Eurytus did not fulfill his promise. Forgetting the sacred custom of hospitality, he began to mock the great hero. He said that he would not give his daughter to the one who was the slave of Eurystheus. Finally, Eurytus and his arrogant sons kicked out Hercules, who was drunk during the feast, from the palace and even from Oichalia. Hercules left Oikhalia. Full of deep sadness, he left Euboea, because the great hero fell in love with the beautiful Iola. Having harbored anger in his heart against Eurytus, who had insulted him, he returned to Tiryns. (read the labors of Hercules)
After some time, the most cunning of the Greeks, Autolycus, the son of Hermes, stole the herd from Eurytus. Eurytus blamed Hercules for this disaster. The king of Oikhalia thought that the hero stole his herds, wanting to take revenge for the insult. Only Iphitus, the eldest son of Eurytus, did not want to believe that the great Hercules could steal his father’s herds. Iphitus even volunteered to find the herds, just to prove the innocence of Hercules, with whom he had the closest friendship. During the search, Iphit came to Tiryns. Hercules warmly received his friend. One day, when the two of them stood on the high walls of the fortress of Tiryns, built on a high rock, Hercules was suddenly overcome by a furious anger sent to him by the great goddess Hera. Hercules in anger remembered the insult that Eurytus and his sons inflicted on him; no longer able to control himself, he grabbed Ifit and threw him from the wall of the fortress. The unfortunate Ifit fell to his death. With this murder, committed against his will, Hercules angered Zeus, since he violated the sacred custom of hospitality and the sanctity of the bonds of friendship. As punishment, the great thunderer sent a serious illness to his son.
Hercules suffered for a long time, and finally, exhausted by illness, he went to Delphi to ask Apollo how to get rid of this punishment of the gods. But the soothsayer Pythia did not give him an answer. She even expelled Hercules from the temple as having defiled himself by murder. Enraged by this, Hercules stole from the temple the tripod from which the Pythia gave divinations. This angered Apollo. The golden-haired god appeared to Hercules and demanded that he return the tripod, but Hercules refused him. A fierce struggle ensued between the sons of Zeus, the immortal god Apollo, and the mortal, the greatest of heroes, Hercules. Zeus did not want Hercules to die. He threw his brilliant lightning from Olympus between his sons and, separating them, stopped the fight. The brothers were reconciled. Then the Pythia gave the following answer to Hercules:
- You will receive healing only when you are sold into slavery for three years. Give the money received for you to Eurytus as a ransom for his son Iphitus, who you killed.
Again Hercules had to lose his freedom. He was given into slavery to Queen Lydia, daughter of Jordan, Omphale. Hermes himself took the money received for Hercules to Euryta. But the proud king of Oichalia did not accept them; he remained as before the enemy of Hercules.

Hercules and Deianira

After Eurytus drove Hercules out of Oichalia, the great hero came to Calydon, a city in Aetolia. Oineus ruled there. Hercules came to Oineus to ask for the hand of his daughter Deianira, since he had promised Meleager in the kingdom of shadows to marry her. In Calydon, Hercules met a formidable opponent. Many heroes sought the hand of the beautiful Deianira, and among them was the river god Aheloy. Finally, Oeneus decided that the one who emerges victorious in the fight would receive Deianira’s hand. All the suitors refused to fight the mighty Achelous. Only Hercules remained. He had to fight with the god of the river. Seeing Hercules’ determination to measure his strength against him, Ahelous said to him:
- Are you saying that you were born by Zeus and Alcmene? You lie that Zeus is your father!
And Ahelous began to mock the great son of Zeus and defame his mother Alcmene. Frowning his eyebrows, Hercules looked sternly at Achelous; His eyes flashed with the fire of anger, and he said:
- Aheloy, my hands serve me better than my tongue! Be a winner in words, but I will be a winner in deeds.
Hercules approached Achelous with a firm step and grabbed him with his powerful arms. Huge Achelous stood firmly; the great Hercules could not bring him down; all his efforts were in vain. So Aheloy stood, as an unshakable rock stands, and the sea waves do not shake it, hitting it with thunderous noise. Hercules and Ahelous fight chest to chest, like two bulls locked with their crooked horns. Hercules attacked Achelous three times, and on the fourth time, escaping from Achelous’s hands, the hero grabbed him from behind. Like a heavy mountain, he crushed the river god to the very ground. Achelous could hardly, having gathered all his strength, free his hands, covered with sweat; No matter how hard he strained his strength, Hercules pressed him harder and harder to the ground. Aheloy bowed down with a groan, his knees bent, and his head touched the very ground. In order not to be defeated, Aheloy resorted to cunning; he turned into a snake. As soon as Ahelous turned into a snake and slipped out of the hands of Hercules, Hercules exclaimed laughing: (read the exploits of Hercules)
- Even in the cradle I learned to fight snakes! True, you are superior to other snakes, Ahelous, but you are no match for the Lernaean hydra. Although she grew two new ones instead of the cut-off head, I still defeated her.
Hercules grabbed the snake’s neck with his hands and squeezed it as if with iron pincers. Aheloy tried to escape from the hero’s hands, but could not. Then he turned into a bull and again attacked Hercules. Hercules grabbed the bull Achelous by the horns and threw him to the ground. Hercules knocked him down with such terrible force that he broke one of his horns. He was defeated by Ahelous and gave the Fires to Dejanira as a wife to Hercules.
After the wedding, Hercules remained in the palace of Oeneus; but he did not stay with him long. Once during a feast, Hercules struck the son of Architelos, Eunom, because the boy poured water prepared for washing his feet on his hands. The blow was so strong that the boy fell dead. Hercules was saddened, and although Architelos forgave him for the involuntary murder of his son, the hero still left Calydon and went with his wife Deianeira to Tiryns.
During the journey, Hercules came with his wife to the Evenu River (a river in Aetolia, a region in the west of Central Greece). The centaur Nessus carried travelers across this stormy river for a fee on his broad back. Nessus offered to carry Deianira to the other side, and Hercules placed her on the back of a centaur. The hero himself threw his club and bow to the other side and swam across the stormy river. Hercules had just come ashore when he suddenly heard the loud cry of Deianira. She called her husband for help. The centaur, captivated by her beauty, wanted to kidnap her. The son of Zeus shouted menacingly to Ness:
-Where are you running? Don't you think that your legs will save you? No, you will not be saved! No matter how fast you run, will my arrow still catch you?
Hercules pulled his bow, and an arrow flew off the tight bowstring. The deadly arrow overtook Nessus, pierced his back, and its tip came out through the centaur’s chest. The mortally wounded Ness fell to his knees. Blood flows from his wound in a stream, mixed with the poison of the Lernaean hydra. Nessus did not want to die unavenged; he collected his blood and gave it to Deianira, saying:
- Oh, daughter of Oeneus, I was the last to carry you across the stormy waters of Even! Take my blood and keep it! If Hercules stops loving you, this blood will return his love to you, and no woman will be dearer to him than you, just rub Hercules’ clothes with it. (hercules labors)
Dejanira took the blood of Nessus and hid it. Nessus died. Hercules and Deianira arrived in Tiryns and lived there until the involuntary murder of Hercules’ friend Iphitus forced them to leave the glorious city.

Hercules and Omphales

For the murder of Iphitus, Hercules was sold into slavery to Queen Lydia Omphale. Never before had Hercules experienced such hardships as in the service of the proud Lydian queen. The greatest of heroes suffered constant humiliation from her. It seemed that Omphale found pleasure in mocking the son of Zeus. Dressing Hercules in women's clothing, she forced him to spin and weave with her maids. The hero who struck the Lernaean hydra with his heavy club, the hero who brought the terrible Cerberus from the kingdom of Hades, strangled the Nemean lion with his hands and held the weight of the heavenly vault on his shoulders, the hero, at whose very name his enemies trembled, had to sit, bent over, at the weaving machine. machine or spin wool with hands accustomed to wielding a sharp sword, pulling the string of a tight bow and striking enemies with a heavy club. And Omphale, having put on the lion skin of Hercules, which covered her entirely and dragged behind her on the ground, in his golden shell, girded with his sword and with difficulty shouldering the heavy club of the hero, stood in front of the son of Zeus and mocked him - her slave Omphale seemed to set out to extinguish in Hercules all his invincible strength. Hercules had to endure everything, because he was in complete slavery to Omphale, and this was supposed to last three long years.
Only occasionally did Omphale release the hero from her palace. One day, having left the palace of Omphale, Hercules fell asleep in the shade of a grove in the vicinity of Ephesus (a city on the western coast of Asia Minor). During his sleep, the Kerkopi dwarfs crept up to him and wanted to steal his weapon from him, but Hercules woke up just at the time when the Kerkops grabbed his bow and arrows. The hero caught them and tied their hands and feet. Hercules passed a large pole between the cerkopes' bound legs and carried them to Ephesus. But the Cerkopes made Hercules laugh so much with their antics that the great hero let them go.
During his slavery to Omphale, Hercules came to Aulis (a city in Boeotia), to King Sileus, who forced all the strangers who came to him to work like slaves in the vineyards. He also forced Hercules to work. The angry hero tore out all the vines from Sileus and killed the king himself, who did not honor the sacred custom of hospitality. During his slavery to Omphale, Hercules took part in the campaign of the Argonauts. But finally, the period of punishment ended, and the great son of Zeus was free again.

Hercules takes Troy

As soon as Hercules freed himself from slavery to Omphale, he immediately gathered a large army of heroes and set off on eighteen ships to Troy to take revenge on King Laomedont, who had deceived him. Arriving at Troy, he entrusted the guard of the ships to Oicles with a small detachment, while he himself with the entire army moved to the walls of Troy. As soon as Hercules left the ships with his army, Laomedon attacked Oicles, killed Oicles and killed almost his entire detachment. Hearing the noise of the battle near the ships, Hercules returned, put Laomedon to flight and drove him to Troy. The siege of Troy did not last long. They broke in, climbing onto high walls, to the city of heroes. The hero Telamon was the first to enter the city. Hercules, the greatest of heroes, could not bear for anyone to surpass him. Drawing his sword, he rushed at Telamon, who had preceded him. Seeing that imminent death threatened him, Telamon quickly bent down and began to collect stones. Hercules was surprised and asked:
- What are you doing, Telamon?
- Oh, greatest son of Zeus, I erect an altar to Hercules the victor! - answered the cunning Telamon and with his answer pacified the anger of the son of Zeus.
During the capture of the city, Hercules killed Laomedon and all his sons with his arrows; only the youngest of them, Podar, was spared by the hero. Hercules gave the beautiful daughter of Laomedon Hesion as a wife to Telamon, who distinguished himself by his courage, and allowed her to choose one of the prisoners and set him free. Hesione chose her brother Podarcus.
- He must become a slave before all prisoners! - Hercules exclaimed, - only if you give a ransom for him, will he be released.
Hesione took the veil from her head and gave it as a ransom for her brother. Since then they began to call Gift - Priam (i.e. bought). Hercules gave him power over Troy, and he himself went with his army to new exploits. (hercules labors)
When Hercules sailed across the sea with his army, returning from Troy, the goddess Hera, wanting to destroy the hated son of Zeus, sent a great storm. And so that Zeus would not see the danger that threatened his son, Hera begged the god of sleep Hypnos to put the aegis-power Zeus to sleep. The storm brought Hercules to the island of Kos (One of the Sporades islands off the coast of Asia Minor).
The inhabitants of Kos mistook the ship of Hercules for a robber and, throwing stones at it, did not allow it to land on the shore. At night, Hercules landed on the island, defeated the inhabitants of Kos, killed their king, the son of Poseidon Eurypylus, and devastated the entire island.
Zeus was terribly angry when he woke up and found out what danger his son Hercules was in danger of. In anger, he chained Hera in golden, indestructible shackles and hung her between earth and sky, tying two heavy anvils to her feet. Each of the Olympians who wanted to come to the aid of Hera was overthrown from high Olympus by the formidable and angry Zeus. For a long time he searched for Hypnos; the ruler of gods and mortals would have overthrown him from Olympus if the goddess Night had not sheltered the god of sleep.

Hercules fights with the gods against the giants

Father Zeus sent his beloved daughter Pallas Athena to Hercules on the island of Kos to call upon the great hero to help in their fight against the giants. The giants were born by the goddess Gaia from drops of the blood of Uranus, overthrown by Cronus. These were monstrous giants with snakes instead of legs, with shaggy long hair on their heads and beards.
The giants had terrible power, they were proud of their power and wanted to take away the power over the world from the bright Olympian gods. They entered into battle with the gods on the Phlegrean fields, which lay on the Chalcis peninsula of Pallene. The gods of Olympus were not afraid of them. The mother of the giants, Gaia, gave them a healing remedy that made them invulnerable to the weapons of the gods. Only a mortal could kill the giants; Gaia did not protect them from mortal weapons. Gaia searched all over the world for a healing herb that was supposed to protect the giants from the weapons of mortals, but Zeus forbade the goddesses of dawn Eos and the moon Selene and the radiant sun god Helios to shine, and he himself cut off the healing herb.
Not fearing death at the hands of the gods, the giants rushed into battle. The battle lasted a long time. The giants threw huge rocks and burning trunks of ancient trees at the gods. The thunder of battle echoed throughout the world.
Finally, Hercules appeared with Pallas Athena. The string of the formidable bow of the son of Zeus rang, an arrow filled with the poison of the Lernaean hydra flashed, and pierced the chest of the mightiest of the giants, Alcyoneus. A giant struck the ground. His death on Pallene could not be comprehended, here he was immortal - having fallen to the ground, he rose after a while even more powerful than before. Hercules quickly threw him onto his shoulders and carried him away from Pallena; outside of it a giant died. After the death of Alcyoneus, the giant Porphyrion attacked Hercules and Hera, he tore off Hera’s veil and was about to grab her, but Zeus threw him to the ground with his lightning, and Hercules took his life with his arrow. Apollo pierced the left eye of the giant Ephialtes with his golden arrow, and Hercules killed him by hitting him in the right eye with an arrow. The giant Eurytus was struck down by Dionysus with his thyrsus, and the giant Clytius by Hephaestus, throwing a whole block of red-hot iron at him. Pallas Athena brought down the entire island of Sicily on the fleeing giant Enceladus.
The giant Polybotes, fleeing by sea from the pursuit of the formidable earth-shaker Poseidon, fled to the island of Kos. Poseidon broke off part of the Scythe with his trident and threw it on Polybotes. This is how the island of Nisyros was formed. Hermes defeated the giant Hippolytus, Artemis - Gration, the great Moirai - the giants Agria and Foon, who fought with copper clubs. All the other giants were struck down by the thunderer Zeus with his sparkling lightning, but the great Hercules sent death to them all with his never-missing arrows.

The death of Hercules and his acceptance into the host of the Olympian gods

Based on Sophocles' tragedy "The Trachinian Women"

When Hercules was sold into slavery to Omphale for the murder of Iphitus, Deianira and her children had to leave Tiryns. The wife of Hercules was given shelter by the king of the Thessalian city of Trakhina Keik. Three years and three months have already passed since Hercules left Deianira. Hercules' wife was worried about the fate of her husband. There was no news from Hercules. Dejanira didn’t even know if her husband was still alive. Deianira was tormented by heavy forebodings. She called her son Gill and said to him:
- Oh, my beloved son! It's a shame you're not looking for your father. It's been fifteen months now that he hasn't let anyone know about himself.
“If you can believe the rumors,” Gill answered his mother, “then they say that after my father had been a slave for Omphale for three years, when his period of slavery ended, he went with an army to Euboea to the city of Oichalia to take revenge on King Eurytus for insult.
- My son! - Gilla's mother interrupted, - your father Hercules has never left me before, leaving for great deeds, in such anxiety as the last time. Even when parting, he left me a tablet with an old prediction written on it, given to him in Dodona (a city in Epirus, in the west of northern Greece, with the famous oracle of Zeus in ancient times). It is said there that if Hercules stays in a foreign land for three years and three months, then either death befalls him, or, upon returning home, he will lead a joyful and calm life. When Hercules left me, he left me an order that his children should inherit from the lands of his fathers in the event of his death. I'm worried about my husband's fate. After all, he told me about the siege of Oikhalia, that he would either die under the city, or, having taken it, he would live happily. No, my son, go, I pray you, find your father. (hercules labors)
Gill, obedient to the will of his mother, set off on a long journey to Euboea, to Oichalia, to look for his father.
Some time later, after Gill left Trakhina, a messenger came running to Dejanira. He tells her that Ambassador Lichas is coming from Hercules. Likhas will bring good news. Hercules is alive. He defeated Eurytus, took and destroyed the city of Oichalia and will soon return to Trakhina in the glory of victory. Following the messenger, Lichas comes to Deianira. He leads the captives, and among them Iola, daughter of Eurytus. Joyfully greets Deianir Lichas. Hercules' ambassador tells her that Hercules is still powerful and healthy. He plans to celebrate his victory and prepares to make rich sacrifices before he leaves Euboea. Dejanira looks at the prisoners; Noticing a beautiful woman among them, he asks Likhas:
- Tell me, Lichas, who is this woman? Who are her father and mother? She grieves the most. Isn't this the daughter of Eurytus himself?
But Lichas answers the wife of Hercules:
- I don’t know, queen, who she is. This woman probably belongs to a noble Euboean family. She didn't say a word during the journey. She has been shedding tears of sorrow ever since she left her hometown.
- Unhappy! - exclaimed Dejanira, - I will not add new suffering to this grief! Lead the prisoners, Likhas, to the palace, I will now come after you!
Lichas went with the prisoners to the palace. As soon as he left, a servant approached Deianira and said to her:
- Wait, queen, listen to me. Likhas did not tell you the whole truth. He knows who this woman is; This is Eurytus's daughter, Iola. Out of love for her, Hercules once competed with Eurytus in archery. The proud king did not give him, the winner, his daughter as a wife, as he had promised - having insulted him, he drove the great hero out of the city. For the sake of Iola, Hercules now took Oichalia and killed King Eurytus. The son of Zeus did not send Iola here as a slave - he wants to take her as his wife.
Dejanira was saddened. She reproaches Lichas for hiding the truth from her. Lichas confesses that Hercules, captivated by the beauty of Iola, really wants to marry her. Dejanira is grieving. Hercules forgot her during a long separation. Now he loves someone else. What should she, the unfortunate one, do? She loves the great son of Zeus and cannot give him to another. Dejanira, heartbroken, remembers the blood that the centaur Nessus once gave her, and what he told her before his death. Dejanira decides to resort to the blood of a centaur. After all, he told her: “Rub Hercules’ clothes with my blood, and he will love you forever, no woman will be dearer to him than you.” Dejanira is afraid to resort to a magical remedy, but her love for Hercules and the fear of losing him finally overcome her fears. She takes out the blood of Nessus, which she had kept in a vessel for so long so that a ray of sun would not fall on it, so that the fire in the hearth would not warm it. Dejanira rubs it on the luxurious cloak that she wove as a gift to Hercules, puts it in a tightly closed box, calls Lichas and says to him:
- Hurry, Lichas, to Euboea and take this box to Hercules. It contains a cloak. Let Hercules wear this cloak when he sacrifices to Zeus. Tell him that no mortal should put on this cloak except him, so that not even a ray of bright Helios touches the cloak before he puts it on. Hurry up, Lichas!
Likhas left with a cloak. After his departure, Deianira became restless. She went to the palace and, to her horror, saw that the wool with which she rubbed the cloak with the blood of Nessus had decayed. Dejanira threw this wool on the floor. A ray of sun fell on the wool and warmed the blood of the centaur, poisoned by the poison of the Lernaean hydra. Along with the blood, the hydra's poison heated up and turned the wool into ashes, and poisonous foam appeared on the floor where the wool lay. Dejanira was horrified; she is afraid that Hercules will die wearing a poisoned cloak. Hercules' wife is tormented more and more by the premonition of an irreparable misfortune.
A little time has passed since Lichas left for Euboea with a poisoned cloak. Gill, who has returned to Trakhina, enters the palace. He is pale, his eyes are full of tears. Looking at his mother, he exclaims:
- Oh, how I would like to see one of three things: either that you were not alive, or that someone else would call you mother, and not me, or that you would have a better mind than now! Know that you ruined own husband, my father!
- Oh grief! - Dejanira exclaimed in horror. - What are you saying, my son? Which person told you this? How can you accuse me of such an atrocity! (hercules labors)
“I myself saw my father’s suffering, I didn’t learn this from people!”
Gill tells his mother what happened on Mount Kaneion, near the city of Oichalia: 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 a cloak - a gift from his wife - and began the sacrifice. First, he sacrificed twelve selected bulls to Zeus, but in total the hero sacrificed one hundred sacrifices to the Olympian gods. The flames on the altars flared up brightly. Hercules stood reverently raising his hands to the sky and called on the gods. The fire that burned hotly on the altars warmed the body of Hercules, and sweat appeared on his body. Suddenly a poisoned cloak stuck to the hero’s body. Convulsions ran through Hercules' body. He felt terrible pain. Suffering terribly, the hero called Lichas and asked him why he had brought this cloak. What could innocent Lichas answer him? He could only say that Dejanira had sent him with the cloak. Hercules, unconscious of the terrible pain, grabbed Lichas by the leg and hit him against a rock around which the sea waves roared. Likhas fell to his death. Hercules fell to the ground. He struggled in unspeakable pain. His cry carried far across Euboea. Hercules cursed his marriage to Deianira. The great hero called his son and with a heavy groan told him:
- Oh, my son, do not leave me in misfortune, - even if death threatens you, do not leave me! Lift me up! Take me away from here! Take me to a place where no mortal could see me. Oh, if you feel compassion for me, don’t let me die here!
They lifted Hercules, put him on a stretcher, and carried him to the ship to transport him to Trakhina. This is what Gill told his mother and ended the story with these words:
- Now you will all see the great son of Zeus here, maybe still alive, or maybe already dead. Oh, may the harsh Erinyes and the avenger Dike (Goddess of Justice) punish you, mother! You have destroyed the best man the earth has ever bore! You will never see such a hero!
Silently she went to Dejanira's palace, without uttering a single word. There, in the palace, she grabbed a double-edged sword. The old nanny saw Dejanira. She calls Gill rather. Gill hurries to her mother, but she has already pierced her chest with a sword. With a loud cry, the unfortunate son rushed to his mother, he hugs her and covers her cold body with kisses.
At this time, the dying Hercules is brought to the palace. He fell asleep during the journey, but when the stretcher was lowered to the ground at the entrance to the palace, Hercules woke up. The great hero was unconscious of the terrible pain.
- Oh, great Zeus! - he exclaims, - what country am I in? Oh, where are you, men of Greece? Help me! For your sake, I cleared the earth and sea from monsters and evil, but now none of you wants to save me from severe suffering with fire or a sharp sword! Oh, you, brother of Zeus, great Hades, put me to sleep, put me to sleep, the unfortunate one, put me to sleep with fast-flying death!
“Father, listen to me, I beg you,” Gill asks with tears, “the mother unwittingly committed this crime.” Why do you want revenge? Having learned that she herself was the cause of your death, she pierced your heart with the edge of a sword!
- Oh, gods, she died, and I could not take revenge on her! It was not by my hand that the treacherous Dejanira died!
- Father, it’s not her fault! says Gill. - Seeing Iola, daughter Euryta, in her house, my mother wanted to use a magical means to return your love. She rubbed her cloak with the blood of the centaur Nessus, killed by your arrow, not knowing that this blood was poisoned by the poison of the Lernaean hydra.
- Oh, woe, woe! - Hercules exclaims. - So this is how the prediction of my father Zeus came true! He told me that I would not die by the hand of a living man, that I was destined to die from the machinations of Hades, who had descended into the dark kingdom. This is how Nessus, who was struck down by me, destroyed me! So this is the peace the oracle in Dodona promised me - the peace of death! Yes, it’s true - the dead have no worries! Fulfill my last wish, Gill! Take me and my faithful friends to high Oeta (a mountain in Thessaly near the city of Trakhina), build a funeral pyre on its top, place me on the pyre and set it on fire. Do it quickly, stop my suffering!
- Oh, have mercy, father, are you really forcing me to be your killer! - Gill begs his father.
- No, you will not be a murderer, but a healer of my suffering! I still have a wish, make it come true! - Hercules asks his son. - Take Eurytus’s daughter, Iola, as your wife.
But Gill refuses to fulfill his father’s request and says:
- No, father, I cannot marry the one who was responsible for the death of my mother!
- Oh, submit to my will, Gill! Don’t cause the subsided suffering in me again! Let me die in peace! - Hercules persistently begs his son.
Gill humbled himself and humbly answers his father:
- Okay, father. I will submit to your dying will.
Hercules hurries his son, asking him to quickly fulfill his last request.
- Hurry, my son! Hurry to put me on the fire before this unbearable torment begins again! Carry me! Goodbye Gill!
The friends of Hercules and Gill lifted the stretcher and carried Hercules to high Oeta. There they built a huge fire and laid the greatest of the heroes on it. The suffering of Hercules becomes more and more intense, the poison of the Lernaean hydra penetrates deeper into his body. Hercules tears off his poisoned cloak, it sticks tightly to his body; Hercules tears off pieces of skin along with his cloak, and the terrible torment becomes even more unbearable. The only salvation from these superhuman torments is death. It is easier to die in the flames of a fire, it is impossible to endure them, but none of the hero’s friends dares to set the fire on fire. Finally, Philoctetes came to Oeta, Hercules persuaded him to set fire to the fire and, as a reward for this, gave him his bow and arrows, poisoned by the poison of the hydra. Philoctetes lit the fire, the flames of the fire flared up brightly, but the lightning of Zeus flashed even brighter. Thunder rolled across the sky. On a golden chariot they brought Pallas Athena to the fire (According to some versions of the myth, the chariot was not Athena, but the goddess of victory - Nike) with Hermes and they carried the greatest of the heroes, Hercules, to the bright Olympus. The great gods met him there. Hercules became the immortal god. Hera herself, forgetting her hatred, gave Hercules her daughter, the eternally young goddess Hebe, as his wife. Since then, Hercules has lived on bright Olympus in the host of the great immortal gods. This was his reward for all his great deeds on earth, for all his great suffering. (hercules labors)

Conclusion (my opinion)