Herakles, the Hero of Thebes, and Other Heroes of the Myth

We speak of these heroes as if they had once lived in the flesh and died like mortals, but no one can tell whether or not they are purely Heroes of the Myth.

CHAPTER XIX

JASON, THE HERO OF THESSALY

Phrixos and Helle

Bœotia is a district northwest of Athens and quite different from the Attic plain. The name means The Land of Cattle, because it abounds in fat pasture-lands, is moist and fertile, and its beautiful green meadows slope up to the wooded mountains and lead down to well-watered valleys. Bœotia was always the paradise of farmers, who from the conditions of their life became famous for their stupidity.

Thebes was the capital of Bœotia, but each district had its own smaller city and its own ruling family, whose sons called themselves kings. One of these petty kings, Athamas, had a son and daughter named Phrixos and Helle, and when their mother died he took another wife, the fair Ino, but she was not as good as she was fair, for she was jealous of her step-children. So she contrived a plot for getting rid of them which was well carried out. Ino persuaded all the women of the country to use the seed grain or hide it so that none of it could be used for the next year’s crop.

The women followed the queen’s advice and the next year there was a great famine in the land. The women did not dare to tell their secret, although their families were beginning to starve. Then Athamas sent to the Oracle at Delphi in order to find out the cause of the trouble, and how he might deliver the country from the distress.

But Ino secretly persuaded the messenger to say that the Oracle had given the following answer: “The famine will cease when Athamas has sacrificed Phrixos to Zeus.”

The king was almost stunned with grief when he received this message. How was it possible for him to sacrifice his own beloved son? But the wicked Ino published the false Oracle among the starving people, who, driven by hunger, clamored loudly for the death of Phrixos. The king being compelled by his people, allowed Phrixos to be led to the altar to be sacrificed.

But the spirit of the child’s own mother came down in the form of a cloud to save him. She brought a large ram whose fleece was of shining gold, and said to the two children: “My dear unfortunate little ones, come and sit on this golden sheep and he will fly away with you and carry you safely into a far country, where the wicked Ino will no longer have the power of injuring you.” Then she helped Phrixos to mount to the back of the ram and she placed his little sister Helle behind him with both her arms around him, and disappeared.

The ram flew up into the air like a bird and soared away over mountains and valleys and rivers and plains. Away, away they went through the blue sky until they reached the straits which separate Europe from Asia. There Helle lost her balance and fell into the sea. In vain did Phrixos try to save his sister, who cried and stretched out her arms to him. The poor child was swallowed by the waves and devoured by sea-monsters. From that time the sea in that place has been called the Hellespont.

Phrixos sailed on alone, on the back of the ram, which took him to the farthest shore of the Black Sea and landed him at Kolchis. There the king received Phrixos kindly. Phrixos sacrificed the ram to Zeus and hung up the golden fleece in a grove which was sacred to Ares, the God of War. The golden fleece was priceless in value and was guarded by a terrible sleepless dragon.

CHAPTER XX

JASON CLAIMS HIS THRONE

More than a hundred miles northwest of Athens is Thessaly, the most northern country of Greece. The greater part of it consists of mountains, the highest and steepest of all Greece. Among these the loftiest is Mount Olympos, whose summit, with its three snowy peaks standing out like glittering marble against the blue sky, rises high above the surrounding ridges. So glorious and so pure and so high did it appear to the ancient Greeks, that they imagined it to be the dwelling-place of the gods. It seemed the very end of the world as it rose up and shut off this horizon; and they believed the throne of Zeus, himself, to be on its summit.

When the shining crest was obscured by clouds, pious people from many countries around turned to it in awe and said that the Lord of Heaven had hid his face, and waited for him to hurl his lightnings and speak in thunder. And the people of Thessaly loved to walk in the Vale of Tempe, where the wild fig-tree and wild grape, the willow, and ivy clung with tough roots to the rugged rocks at the foot of the mountain.

The most mountainous portion of Thessaly was, of course, wild and inhospitable. The Centaurs were said to dwell in its gorges and caves, and it was claimed that they were wiser and gentler than the Centaurs of Arcadia. They were said to have gathered much lore of herbs and forest things, and to have been excellent surgeons. The same was told by fame of the Thessalian mountain-women, who, while as rugged and fierce as the men, were said to be extremely handsome and great mistresses in the art of making ointments and magic waters and juices for the casting of spells; in short, they were famous all over Greece as the most knowing and dangerous witches.

The land changed wonderfully where it sloped down to the sea. The narrow valleys spread out into broad plains. The moisture, gathered and treasured by the forests and protected by their shade, filtered through the soil, keeping the grass green for the large herds which at that time were the greatest wealth, both of farmer and king; while the thousand rivulets and streamlets that hurried down the mountain-side in brooks and torrents ran together and formed handsome rivers which scarcely ever became dry or even shallow, as did the small and stony streams of Attica. Many of the rivers of Attica are so small that they never reach the sea at all, but run into the sand and waste themselves, while the Thessalian rivers all carry their waters to the sea.

The largest of them, that which flows through the richest and most fertile country, is the Peneus, famed in song and story. In this beautiful land of Thessaly lived a king, Pelias. He really had no right to the throne, for he had an older brother. But that brother, being of a peaceful nature, allowed Pelias to take the crown from him, while he himself retired to some land he had in the mountains. His son, Jason, a handsome youth of great promise, he sent for his education to the wise Centaur, Chiron, who made his home in the deepest mountain-caves.

When Jason was twenty years old and his education in manly sports and in the art of war, in song and in music, was such as to do honor to his master, Chiron, he was directed by an Oracle to go straight to his uncle Pelias and boldly claim his father’s kingdom. This was an undertaking after his own heart. Shortly after this Pelias celebrated the yearly festival of Poseidon, the God of the Sea, by solemn sacrifices offered on the shore. This was a grand national occasion, so he invited everyone around and did not dare to leave Jason out.

Jason accepted the invitation. He donned the skin of a panther which he had killed himself, and taking two long spears, started on his way. Now Pelias had learned from an Oracle that he should lose his kingdom, and he was always in fear. The Oracle had said that a descendant of Œolus would take his crown and throne from him, and that this person would come to him with only one sandal on. Pelias, therefore, was always on the lookout for the man with one sandal.

As Jason came along he saw an old woman sitting on the bank of a river which he had to cross. She begged him to take her over. The young Greeks were taught that their first duty was to be helpful and respectful to old people. Jason willingly took the old woman in his arms and carried her over as if she had been a child. She thanked him and wished him good luck.

The current of the river was strong and rapid and it swept away one of Jason’s sandals. He set the old woman down on the shore after crossing and then stood in doubt as to whether he had better go back to look for his sandal. The old woman, however, advised him to proceed on his way. Then she disappeared. This meeting turned out to be of much greater importance to the young man than he could have imagined, for it was the goddess Hera, the Queen of Heaven, herself, who had taken the shape of an old woman to test his kindness and good-breeding. Being pleased with both, she remained his friend and protector.

The public square was full of people when Jason arrived. His face was comely, his figure heroic, and his long hair hung down to the panther’s skin on his shoulders. He carried two long spears and walked like a king. Everybody turned in wonder to gaze at him, and some of them said to one another, “This stranger is no mortal man – he must be Apollo in disguise.” Others said, “No, it is the God of War. Look at his powerful, athletic frame.”

Just at this moment Pelias came driving by on his chariot drawn by two fleet-footed mules. His eyes were also attracted by the beauty of the youthful stranger, but when he noticed that he wore only one sandal he trembled with fear. Pelias, being old and crafty, concealed his anxiety and received his young kinsman with cordial friendliness seemingly. Jason at once announced his right to the king’s throne, and Pelias admitted his claim.

But Pelias told him that he was too young to take such a responsible place, and suggested that so stalwart a youth ought to do some valiant deed to win the respect and admiration of his people before coming into power. “The people would not care for thee,” he said, “if thou shouldst take the crown as a birthright and not because of thy prowess.”

Then King Pelias proposed, as a suitable and honorable test of Jason’s qualities as hero and leader, that he should cross the Black Sea and bring from Kolchis the golden fleece of Phrixos’ ram. The wily old man had judged Jason at a glance and knew that no words or offer of his could appeal more powerfully to the young hero’s generous instincts; he also knew that the danger of such an undertaking would be attractive to his youthful imagination. But he smiled wickedly under his beard when Jason delightedly agreed to his proposal. Pelias thought to himself, “No sane man would ever go on such an expedition, and not the bravest man could return alive. He will never come back, and I shall remain the King of Iolkos.”

CHAPTER XXI

THE EXPEDITION

Jason cared little about the motives of the king in sending him after the Golden Fleece. His courage ran high and the anticipation of seeing other countries and doing valiant deeds filled his mind. He set about building a large ship, the finest the world had ever seen, and to do this he employed Argos, a famous shipbuilder. No expense or labor was spared, and when the ship was finished it was named the Argo in honor of the builder. It was the largest ship that had ever sailed from Greece.

When the ship was ready Jason assembled the noblest heroes of all Hellas, Herakles, Kastor and Pollux, Meleagros, Peleus, Admetos, Theseus, Orpheus and two sons of Boreas, and many others of great renown. Jason invited them to go with him on this expedition, and they gladly accepted the invitation. They praised the ship; it was such a remarkable piece of work, and said that Athena must have advised and helped Argos, for no human being could make such a good boat. Jason was to be the captain, and all those who embarked on it with him would receive the name Argonauts, which means those who sail in the Argo.

Before sailing, the heroes gathered around the altar of Zeus, and Jason offered up a sacrifice and prayed for a sign of good luck, if the God looked favorably on their undertaking. Zeus answered with a peal of thunder and a flash of lightning, which pleased Jason and gave the heroes courage. At first the voyage went so smoothly that it seemed like a grand holiday trip. As they sailed out from the olive-clad plains surrounding Iolkos, Orpheus with his god-like voice and magic lyre quieted the wild waves of the sea, and inspired the men on the Argo with love for battle.

In this way they sailed along until they came to the island of Lemnos, where they were received in kindly fashion and remained a long time enjoying the new scenes and the festivals. Then they set sail again and came to a small island where they stayed a short time. Herakles had broken his oar and he wanted to replace it. He left the ship, taking with him a beautiful youth, Hylas, and they went into the woods to cut down a tree to make a new oar.

But the wood-nymphs saw Hylas and said to each other, “We will keep this beautiful youth to ramble with us in the forest, for he is gentle and kind and would be an agreeable companion. He is strong and will protect us against the rude creatures that cause us alarm.” So they carried Hylas away and hid him, and Herakles would not leave the island without him. Then the Argo sailed on toward Kolchis, and the heroes mourned the loss of their two comrades.

They landed again soon on another island, where lived a king who was known to fame as a great boxer. He was cruel to travellers. He challenged them to boxing matches and killed them in the sport. The Argonauts asked him to give them a supply of fresh water for their ship, and in return he asked them to box with him. Pollux accepted the challenge, and gave him such a beating that his bones were broken. Then they took all the fresh water they needed and went back to the ship. After this, Pollux, instead of the cruel and boastful king, was known as the great boxer.

The Argo sailed on across the Ægean Sea and through the Hellespont, where the unfortunate Helle was drowned, and reached the straits of the Bosporus. There were the immense Symplegades, two high cliffs that were not solidly rooted in the ground, but clashed together under the power of the winds, making the passage through the sea dangerous. It seemed impossible for the Argo to pass them without being crushed.

But they were saved from this peril by the advice of Phineus, the blind old king of the district, who was also a soothsayer. Phineus had long suffered a terrible penalty, which the gods had sent on him for some unkindness, and he had been punished quite enough. Whenever he sat down to a meal the Harpies pounced upon his food, devouring the most of it and polluting the rest of it so that it was unspeakably filthy. When the Argonauts asked him to direct them past the Symplegades, he promised to do so if they would free him from the Harpies. This the Argonauts promised to do.

They set a table before him laden with food, and the Harpies rushed down with great cries, perching on the table, eating greedily and snatching the food with their brazen claws.

Then the winged sons of Boreas, who were with Jason, rose into the air and pursued the Harpies with swords. The feathers of the Harpies flew like dirt in a windstorm as they rushed screaming this way and that. They fled from that region, and so Phineus was rescued.

Phineus showed the Argonauts how to steer their ship. He advised them to let a pigeon fly across the Symplegades, and if the bird passed unhurt they should quickly follow. When the Argonauts had come near the rocks they let a pigeon loose from the prow of their ship. It flew through between the cliffs, and the clashing together of the rocks caught only the end of its tail. Watching for the moment when the rocks should open and swing away from each other, the Argonauts sailed between them, rowing with all their might.

They called on Hera for assistance, and the goddess bade the rocks move slowly. The cliffs did not have time to close together upon the ship, and she got through safely, except that a small portion of the rudder was broken off. From that time on the Symplegades became one rock and remained firm. After this the Argonauts sailed along the whole coast of the Black Sea toward the east, and finally reached Kolchis.

CHAPTER XXII

JASON FINDS THE GOLDEN FLEECE

When the Argonauts had drawn their ship up on the beach, Jason presented himself before the king and said: “Oh, king, we have come to ask thee for the Golden Fleece, which belongs to the Greeks at Iolkos. The ram which it covered was given to Phrixos and he dedicated it to Zeus; but the Fleece he hung up in the garden sacred to Ares. Moreover, the King of Iolkos has sent me to bring it back to Hellas.”

The king answered: “Oh, stranger, thou art welcome to the Fleece. Take it back to Hellas, I pray thee. But first thou must yoke two wild bulls, which no one has ever yet been able to manage, to a plough, and turn up furrows in a field and sow it with dragons’ teeth. The bulls snort fire with every breath and have brass hoofs. Beware lest they turn upon thee and burn thee to death with the fire of their nostrils, and trample thee into the earth.”

Jason did not know how to tame the terrible bulls, and began to ponder. But Medea, the daughter of the king, saw Jason and pitied him. Medea was very much of a witch and could make all sorts of charms and mixtures of enchantment. She gave a magic ointment to Jason and said: “Stranger, I would gladly help thee to tame the wild bulls. Take this box of magic ointment and anoint thyself, also the end of thy spear and thy shield. It will make thee proof against fire and steel for one day, so that they cannot harm thee.

“And thou shouldst know that out of the dragons’ teeth which thou art to sow, men will spring up all clad in armor. Hide thyself where these men cannot see thee, and when they stand close together throw stones among them.” Jason took the drug and did as he was told. He anointed himself and his spear and shield, and went in search of the fiery bulls.

As soon as he found them he went boldly up and hitched them to a plough. They breathed fire at him and tried to strike him with their brazen hoofs. But he ploughed the field, turning back furrow after furrow. Then he went back to sow the field with dragons’ teeth and hid himself nearby. Soon armed giants arose out of the ground. Jason threw a large stone into the midst of them, which made them think that some one of their own company was attacking the others. They began fighting among themselves, and became so furious with one another that they did not see Jason approach. He took his sword and slew them all. Then he returned to the king to receive the Golden Fleece.

But the king was surprised, for he had no intention of keeping his promise. He expected that Jason would be slain and never come back. And he was contriving a plot to burn the ship Argo, and kill Jason’s companions.

Jason had done all that the king had required of him and would not give up the idea of taking the Fleece, and the king refused to let him have it. Then Jason went back to Medea for advice. Her admiration for the hero was greater than ever, since she had seen how fearlessly he went about his tasks.

She led him to the grove where hung the Golden Fleece, and with her magic drugs put the watchful dragon that guarded it to sleep. Jason snatched the Fleece and made for the ship, taking Medea, who had promised to be his wife, with him. When the old king missed his daughter he was very angry, and gave pursuit. But Jason and his companions pushed the boat out into the sea, and unfurling the sails, they swiftly took their way over the waters toward their own land.

After many wanderings and perils, the Argonauts came to the Greek coast, and the Argo entered again the sea of their own beloved country. They reached Iolkos, bringing the world-famous Golden Fleece with them, and the people received them in triumph. But Pelias still refused to give up the throne to Jason, although he gladly took the Golden Fleece which the young hero had brought him. So Jason slew him and made himself King of Iolkos; and as Medea’s father had once reigned in Corinth, he added that country to his kingdom.

Jason lived in peace ten happy years in Kolchis, and his kingdom prospered; but a great trouble came upon his household. Medea, with her black arts of witchery and enchantment and her evil heart, could not always please him or hold his affections. He went to Corinth, where he met the gentle-hearted Kreusa, and her peaceful, kindly disposition won his heart. Now in those days a man was not despised and looked upon as a law-breaker if he married more than one wife, for the people had a different standard of right and wrong from that of the present day. And Jason in an unlucky hour took Kreusa for his wife.

Medea was maddened with jealousy when she heard of this, and she consulted the evil spirits of her witchcraft to find out how she could do away with Kreusa. She took a beautiful dress and a crown, and having sprinkled them with an enchanted juice, sent them to Kreusa. Her rival accepted the gifts and put them on, but she could never get them off again. They clung to her and burned into her flesh, so that she died. Then Medea took further revenge by burning Kreusa’s home; and when she found that Jason was angry with her she slew her children and fled from Iolkos in a fiery chariot drawn by winged serpents. Poor Jason, beside himself with grief, went to his good ship Argo, which was now kept as a sacred place for the worship of the gods, and there he died.

CHAPTER XXIII

ORPHEUS, THE HERO OF THE LYRE

In the same land of Thrace in which Jason’s family ruled, Orpheus, the greatest musician of Greece, was born. It was said that his mother was the Goddess of Song, and such was the power of his voice and his art of playing on the lyre that he could move stones and trees. When the wild beasts heard his music they left their dens and lay down at his feet, the birds in the trees stopped singing, and the fishes came to the surface of the sea to listen to him.

Orpheus had a wife, Eurydike, celebrated for her beauty and virtue, and he loved her very dearly. One day when Eurydike was gathering flowers on the bank of a lake a venomous snake bit her foot and she died. Orpheus could not be consoled. He went off into the wildest waste that he could find and there he mourned day and night till all nature shared in his grief. At last he made up his mind to go down into Hades and beg her back of King Pluto, for life was worthless without her.

Orpheus took his lyre, and singing as he went, found his way down to Hades through a dismal abyss. Grim Cerberus himself held his breath to listen to the marvellous music. Not one bark did he give from any of his three terrible heads, and when Orpheus passed him he crouched at his feet. So Orpheus entered Hades unhindered, and standing before the throne of Pluto and his pale queen Persephone, he said: “Oh, king and queen, I have not come down into Hades to see the gloomy Tartaros, nor in order to carry away the three-headed warder of your kingdom, the dreadful Cerberus. I came down to implore you to give me back my beloved wife, Eurydike. I cannot bear life without her. To me the world is a desert, and life a burden. Why should she die, so young and beautiful? Have pity on me! If I may not take her back, then I will not again see the light of the sun, but I, too, will remain in the gloomy Hades.”

Pluto and Persephone listened in silence to the pleadings of Orpheus. His pathetic voice and the sweet tones of his melodious lyre held them like a charm. The shades of the dead came flocking around him and mourned. Tantalos forgot his thirst and listened to the singer’s complaints. Sisyphos, who was compelled to roll a stone to the top of a mountain whence it always dashed back again to the bottom, ceased his dreadful labor to listen, and the Furies themselves first shed tears.

Persephone and Pluto were pitiless gods. Their hearts were long since hardened to the cries of the living who prayed for the restoration of their loved ones. But they could not resist the power of the enchanting sounds that Orpheus made. They called the spirit of the beautiful Eurydike to them and said to the musician: “Take thy wife Eurydike and go up again to the light of the sun. Let her gaze on the smiling sky and see the fields of the upper world. But beware of one thing. Let her follow thee and do not turn around to look at her before reaching the world of the living. If thou shouldst turn and look upon her she will return at once to her place among the dead.”

Orpheus left Hades in great haste and Eurydike followed him. In the midst of deepest silence they ascended through dismal rocky places. They neared their journey’s end. They could almost see the green earth when Orpheus was seized with a dreadful doubt. “I hear no sound whatever behind me,” he said to himself. “Is my beloved Eurydike really following me?” He turned his head a little. He saw Eurydike, who followed him like a shadow. But suddenly she began to be drawn backward. She stretched out her arms toward Orpheus as if imploring his help. Orpheus hurried to take her in his arms, but she vanished from his sight and Orpheus was alone again.