The Routledge Handbook O GREEK MYTHOLOGY Based on H.J.Rose's Handbook of Greck Mythology ROBIN HARD Also available as a printed book see title verso for ISBN details
CHAPTER EIGHT THE LIFE OF HERAKLES AND RETURN OF THE HERAKLIDS THE BIRTH OF HERAKLES AND HIS EARLY LIFE AT THEBES Alkmene arrives in Thebes with Alkmene,and mounts a campaign against the Teleboans lthough Herakles was an Argive of Perseid stock by descent,he was born abroad in Thebes after his putarive ather AMPHTRYON departediniwith his mother ALKMENE.As was described at the end of the last chapter,Amphitryon was exiled by his uncle Sthenelos for having killed another uncle,Elektryon,king of Mycenae (by accident in the usual account);and Alkmene,the daughter of Elektryon,who was already betrothed to him,accompanied him to his new home, as did Likymnios,her only surviving brother.Her other brothers had all been killed by Teleboan raiders shortly before the death of her father (see p.244 for the circumstances).Kreon,the current ruler of Thebes,purified Amphitryon of the man- slaughter and welcomed him to his city.Although Amphitryon now pressed Alkmene to marry him (or to consummate their marriage if they were already married),she declared that she would not accept him into her bed until he had exacted vengeance on the Teleboans for the death of her brothers.!So he made imme- diate preparations for a campaign against the Teleboans,who lived in a group of islands just outside the entrance of the Corinthian Gulf;and his forthcoming absence would provide Zeus with an ideal opportunity to approach Alkmene to father his great son Herakles. When Amphitryon asked Kreon to assist him on the expedition,the king promised to fight as his ally if he would first rescue the Thebans from the depredations of the TEUMESSIAN FOX,a large and ferocious vixen which had established its lair on Mt Teumessos,about five miles north-east of Thebes;it had been sent by the gods to ravage the land and presented an exceptionally difficult problem because it was fated never to be caught.Knowing that Kephalos,son of Deion,owned a dog that was fated always to catch its prey (see p.372 for its origin),Amphitryon visited him at his home in Attica,and asked him to allow it to be used against the fox in return for a share of the spoils from the forthcoming war.Or in another version,Kephalos 246
THE LIFE OF HERAKLES AND RETURN OF THE HERAKLIDS THE BIRTH OF HERAKLES AND HIS EARLY LIFE AT THEBES Alkmene arrives in Thebes with Alkmene, and mounts a campaign against the Teleboans Although Herakles was an Argive of Perseid stock by descent, he was born abroad in Thebes after his putative father AMPHITRYON departed into exile with his mother ALKMENE. As was described at the end of the last chapter, Amphitryon was exiled by his uncle Sthenelos for having killed another uncle, Elektryon, king of Mycenae (by accident in the usual account); and Alkmene, the daughter of Elektryon, who was already betrothed to him, accompanied him to his new home, as did Likymnios, her only surviving brother. Her other brothers had all been killed by Teleboan raiders shortly before the death of her father (see p. 244 for the circumstances). Kreon, the current ruler of Thebes, purified Amphitryon of the manslaughter and welcomed him to his city. Although Amphitryon now pressed Alkmene to marry him (or to consummate their marriage if they were already married), she declared that she would not accept him into her bed until he had exacted vengeance on the Teleboans for the death of her brothers.1 So he made immediate preparations for a campaign against the Teleboans, who lived in a group of islands just outside the entrance of the Corinthian Gulf; and his forthcoming absence would provide Zeus with an ideal opportunity to approach Alkmene to father his great son Herakles. When Amphitryon asked Kreon to assist him on the expedition, the king promised to fight as his ally if he would first rescue the Thebans from the depredations of the TEUMESSIAN FOX, a large and ferocious vixen which had established its lair on Mt Teumessos, about five miles north-east of Thebes; it had been sent by the gods to ravage the land and presented an exceptionally difficult problem because it was fated never to be caught. Knowing that Kephalos, son of Deion, owned a dog that was fated always to catch its prey (see p. 372 for its origin), Amphitryon visited him at his home in Attica, and asked him to allow it to be used against the fox in return for a share of the spoils from the forthcoming war. Or in another version, Kephalos CHAPTER EIGHT 246
-The life of Herakles- was already in Thebes,having come there to be purifed after accidentally killing his wife Prokris,and had brought the dog with him.He agreed to Amphitryon's request in any case,and a paradoxical situation arose when a beast that was fated to catch its prey was set in pursuit of another that was fated never to be caught.Zeus was obliged to intervene,and resolved the problem very neatly by turning both animals to stone, so that the dog never fails in the hunt and the fox is never caught.2 Or in a later version from the astronomical literature that rather spoils the story,he turned the fox to stone but transferred the dog to the sky to become the constellation of the Great Dog (Canis Major).3 After winning Kreon's support by this means,Amphitryon collected together further allies,including Kephalos,Panopeus (from Phocis,see p.565)and Heleios, the youngest son of Perseus,4 and sailed away with them to attack the Teleboans. Although he ravaged most of their islands with little difficulty,he was initially unable to capture Taphos,the island of PTERELAOS,the king of the Teleboans, because Poseidon had implanted a golden hair in his head which rendered him immortal as long as it remained in place.As we saw in the last chapter(see p.244), Pterelaos was descended from Poseidon,as his grandson in the usual account.The assailants finally received help from an unexpected quarter when KOMAITHO,the daughter of the king,fell in love with Amphitryon (or Kephalos in one account) after seeing him at a distance,and tried to win his favour by pulling the magical hair from her father's head.When Pterelaos died as a consequence,Amphitryon was able to complete his conquest;but instead of repaying Komaitho as she would have wished,he killed her in horror at her unfilial act of treachery.>For a very similar story set in Megara,see p.340. The conception and birth of Herakles As soon as the spoils had been gathered together,Amphitryon set sail for Boeotia, eager to prove his success to his beloved and win his way into her bed.Shortly before he arrived,however,Zeus forestalled him by assuming his guise to seduce Alkmene.On being assured that vengeance had been executed against the Teleboans as she had demanded,and receiving a magnificent cup from the spoils by way of proof,Alkmene welcomed the disguised god into her arms;and he extended the time of their love-making by lengthening the night to three times its usual length. Later in the same night or on the next night,her true husband arrived home to report his triumph and so claim his promised reward.Surprised and disappointed to find that her welcome was none too passionate,he questioned her about the matter;and when she protested that she had received him warmly enough a very short time before,he consulted the seer Teiresias,who informed him of Zeus's decep- tion.He made love with her on that night all the same,and she became pregnant with twin sons of contrasting nature,HERAKLES,a mighty hero and future god as her child by Zeus,and IPHIKLES (or Iphiklos),a hero of no very exceptional stature as her child by Amphitryon.6 It was not only on account of her beauty that Zeus set out to seduce Alkmene, but also because he wanted to father a very great hero by her who would bring benefit to the human race,and even to the gods themselves by helping them in 247
was already in Thebes, having come there to be purified after accidentally killing his wife Prokris, and had brought the dog with him. He agreed to Amphitryon’s request in any case, and a paradoxical situation arose when a beast that was fated to catch its prey was set in pursuit of another that was fated never to be caught. Zeus was obliged to intervene, and resolved the problem very neatly by turning both animals to stone, so that the dog never fails in the hunt and the fox is never caught.2 Or in a later version from the astronomical literature that rather spoils the story, he turned the fox to stone but transferred the dog to the sky to become the constellation of the Great Dog (Canis Major).3 After winning Kreon’s support by this means, Amphitryon collected together further allies, including Kephalos, Panopeus (from Phocis, see p. 565) and Heleios, the youngest son of Perseus,4 and sailed away with them to attack the Teleboans. Although he ravaged most of their islands with little difficulty, he was initially unable to capture Taphos, the island of PTERELAOS, the king of the Teleboans, because Poseidon had implanted a golden hair in his head which rendered him immortal as long as it remained in place. As we saw in the last chapter (see p. 244), Pterelaos was descended from Poseidon, as his grandson in the usual account. The assailants finally received help from an unexpected quarter when KOMAITHO, the daughter of the king, fell in love with Amphitryon (or Kephalos in one account) after seeing him at a distance, and tried to win his favour by pulling the magical hair from her father’s head. When Pterelaos died as a consequence, Amphitryon was able to complete his conquest; but instead of repaying Komaitho as she would have wished, he killed her in horror at her unfilial act of treachery.5 For a very similar story set in Megara, see p. 340. The conception and birth of Herakles As soon as the spoils had been gathered together, Amphitryon set sail for Boeotia, eager to prove his success to his beloved and win his way into her bed. Shortly before he arrived, however, Zeus forestalled him by assuming his guise to seduce Alkmene. On being assured that vengeance had been executed against the Teleboans as she had demanded, and receiving a magnificent cup from the spoils by way of proof, Alkmene welcomed the disguised god into her arms; and he extended the time of their love-making by lengthening the night to three times its usual length. Later in the same night or on the next night, her true husband arrived home to report his triumph and so claim his promised reward. Surprised and disappointed to find that her welcome was none too passionate, he questioned her about the matter; and when she protested that she had received him warmly enough a very short time before, he consulted the seer Teiresias, who informed him of Zeus’s deception. He made love with her on that night all the same, and she became pregnant with twin sons of contrasting nature, HERAKLES, a mighty hero and future god as her child by Zeus, and IPHIKLES (or Iphiklos), a hero of no very exceptional stature as her child by Amphitryon.6 It was not only on account of her beauty that Zeus set out to seduce Alkmene, but also because he wanted to father a very great hero by her who would bring benefit to the human race, and even to the gods themselves by helping them in 1111 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 11110 11 12 13 14 11115 16 17 18 19 11120 21 22 23 24 25111 26 27 28 29 11130 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 11140 41 42 43 44 45 11146 — The life of Herakles — 247
-The life of Herakles- their war against the Giants.He originally intended,furthermore,that this son of his should be a mighty ruler in Argos,but this part of his plan was foiled by Hera. As the story is recounted in the Iliad,Zeus boasted of his intentions to the other gods,telling them that Eileithuia,the goddess of childbirth,would bring a man to birth on that day who would be king over all who lived around him (i.e.in Argos), and would be born from the race of those who came from Zeus's blood (i.e.from the Perseids,who were descended from Perseus,son of Zeus).By making this ill- advised declaration,he alerted Hera,who resented all her husband's illegitimate children and immediately plotted to rob this one of his intended inheritance.She happened to know that Alkmene was not the only woman who was expecting a child of Perseid descent since the wife of Sthenelos,king of Mycenae,was also heavily pregnant.So she persuaded Zeus to swear formally that the son of his stock who would be born on that day would enjoy the destiny that he had announced;and she then instructed the Eileithuiai (goddesses of childbirth)to delay Alkmene's delivery,while she herself hurried down from Olympos to ensure that the wife of Sthenelos should bring her child to birth at once in the seventh month of her preg- nancy.As a consequence,Eurystheus,the son of Sthenelos,was born on that day instead of Herakles,and Zeus was therefore obliged by his oath to grant him the inheritance that he had been planning to grant to Herakles.?This meant that Eurystheus became the great king of Mycenae (in succession to his father,see p.245),while Herakles never had a kingdom of his own.Herakles was therefore destined to spend most of his life outside his ancestral homeland,and to be sub- ordinate to Eurystheus even while he was there. According to a tale first recorded in the Hellenistic era,the birth of Herakles was finally expe- dited through the ingenuity of a servant or friend of Alkmene.In the familiar version by Ovid,the goddess of childbirth,here appearing under her Latin name of Lucina,delayed the hero's birth by seven days and nights by sitting outside Alkmene's bedroom door with her legs crossed and her fingers intertwined(gestures of enclosure that would achieve their effect by a form of sympathetic magic).Alkmene had a clever servant-maid,however,who noticed the attitude of the goddess and recognized why she had adopted it.So this maid, GALANTHIS,suddenly ran out to her and cried,'You must congratulate my mistress because she has given birth to a child!',prompting the goddess to leap up in astonishment and unlock her fingers and uncross her legs.The charm was undone as a consequence,and Herakles could be born at last.Angered by the girl's deception and by her subsequent laughter,the goddess turned her into a weasel,a beast that runs around the house much as Galanthis had done as a busy maidservant (for weasels-or more strictly,ferrets,i.e.domesticated polecats-were kept in the house in antiquity to keep down pests,much like cats in modern times).8 Or in a Greek version ascribed to the Hellenistic poet Nicander,Galinthias,as she is called here,was of high birth as a daughter of Proitos(a prominent Theban who gave his name to the Proitidian gates of the city),and was thus a friend and former playmate of Alkmene rather than a servant of hers.The story is much the same as in Ovid,except that the Moirai(Fates)assisted the goddess of childbirth in her task,and it was they who turned Galinthias into a weasel.This Greek account refers to an important matter,however,which is passed over by Ovid,the cultic implications of the myth.For we are told that Hekate made the weasel her attendant out of pity for Galinthias,and that Herakles later commem- orated her services to him by erecting an altar to her outside his house at Thebes and offering sacrifices on it,hence the sacrifices that the Thebans used to offer to Galinthias before their 248
their war against the Giants. He originally intended, furthermore, that this son of his should be a mighty ruler in Argos, but this part of his plan was foiled by Hera. As the story is recounted in the Iliad, Zeus boasted of his intentions to the other gods, telling them that Eileithuia, the goddess of childbirth, would bring a man to birth on that day who would be king over all who lived around him (i.e. in Argos), and would be born from the race of those who came from Zeus’s blood (i.e. from the Perseids, who were descended from Perseus, son of Zeus). By making this illadvised declaration, he alerted Hera, who resented all her husband’s illegitimate children and immediately plotted to rob this one of his intended inheritance. She happened to know that Alkmene was not the only woman who was expecting a child of Perseid descent since the wife of Sthenelos, king of Mycenae, was also heavily pregnant. So she persuaded Zeus to swear formally that the son of his stock who would be born on that day would enjoy the destiny that he had announced; and she then instructed the Eileithuiai (goddesses of childbirth) to delay Alkmene’s delivery, while she herself hurried down from Olympos to ensure that the wife of Sthenelos should bring her child to birth at once in the seventh month of her pregnancy. As a consequence, Eurystheus, the son of Sthenelos, was born on that day instead of Herakles, and Zeus was therefore obliged by his oath to grant him the inheritance that he had been planning to grant to Herakles.7 This meant that Eurystheus became the great king of Mycenae (in succession to his father, see p. 245), while Herakles never had a kingdom of his own. Herakles was therefore destined to spend most of his life outside his ancestral homeland, and to be subordinate to Eurystheus even while he was there. According to a tale first recorded in the Hellenistic era, the birth of Herakles was finally expedited through the ingenuity of a servant or friend of Alkmene. In the familiar version by Ovid, the goddess of childbirth, here appearing under her Latin name of Lucina, delayed the hero’s birth by seven days and nights by sitting outside Alkmene’s bedroom door with her legs crossed and her fingers intertwined (gestures of enclosure that would achieve their effect by a form of sympathetic magic). Alkmene had a clever servant-maid, however, who noticed the attitude of the goddess and recognized why she had adopted it. So this maid, GALANTHIS, suddenly ran out to her and cried, ‘You must congratulate my mistress because she has given birth to a child!’, prompting the goddess to leap up in astonishment and unlock her fingers and uncross her legs. The charm was undone as a consequence, and Herakles could be born at last. Angered by the girl’s deception and by her subsequent laughter, the goddess turned her into a weasel, a beast that runs around the house much as Galanthis had done as a busy maidservant (for weasels – or more strictly, ferrets, i.e. domesticated polecats – were kept in the house in antiquity to keep down pests, much like cats in modern times).8 Or in a Greek version ascribed to the Hellenistic poet Nicander, Galinthias, as she is called here, was of high birth as a daughter of Proitos (a prominent Theban who gave his name to the Proitidian gates of the city), and was thus a friend and former playmate of Alkmene rather than a servant of hers. The story is much the same as in Ovid, except that the Moirai (Fates) assisted the goddess of childbirth in her task, and it was they who turned Galinthias into a weasel. This Greek account refers to an important matter, however, which is passed over by Ovid, the cultic implications of the myth. For we are told that Hekate made the weasel her attendant out of pity for Galinthias, and that Herakles later commemorated her services to him by erecting an altar to her outside his house at Thebes and offering sacrifices on it, hence the sacrifices that the Thebans used to offer to Galinthias before their — The life of Herakles — 248
-The life of Herakles- festival of Herakles.It would seem that Galinthias was a heroine who had been honoured at Thebes from an early period and that someone was inspired to devise this transformation myth as an aetiology for the cult because her name was reminiscent of that of a weasel (gale in Greek).9 Pausanias records another version of the deception story in which the Pharmakides (Witches),the beings who were sent by Hera to delay the birth,were tricked by Historis, a daughter of Teiresias;there is no mention here of any transformation.0 The childhood and education of Herakles,and his murder of Linos When Herakles was eight or ten months old,or even newly born,two huge snakes were sent by Hera to attack him and his half-brother in their cradle;but the infant hero seized them by their necks,one in each hand,and choked them to death.In the two fullest accounts of the episode by Pindar and Theocritus,the seer Teiresias was summoned to comment on the marvel,and took this as an opportunity to foretell the extraordinary destiny that lay in wait for Herakles,predicting that he would finally be received among the gods after overcoming many such dangers.1 In an alternative version,the snakes were not sent by the goddess but by Amphitryon,who introduced them into the children's cradle to enable him to discover which of them was his son; when Herakles stayed to confront the snakes while Iphikles tried to escape,he recog- nized at once that Herakles was the child with divine blood in him.12 A further tale of the hero's infancy tells how Hera was deceived into suckling him.In the most familiar version of the story,Hermes took the baby Herakles up to Olympos and applied him to Hera's breast while she was asleep (or without revealing his true identity to her);and when she awoke (or learned who he was), 25 望高7@ Figure 8.I The baby Herakles strangles the serpents sent by Hera. Red-figure column krater.Perugia,Museo Nazionale;mus nat 73. 249
festival of Herakles. It would seem that Galinthias was a heroine who had been honoured at Thebes from an early period and that someone was inspired to devise this transformation myth as an aetiology for the cult because her name was reminiscent of that of a weasel (galee¯ in Greek).9 Pausanias records another version of the deception story in which the Pharmakides (Witches), the beings who were sent by Hera to delay the birth, were tricked by Historis, a daughter of Teiresias; there is no mention here of any transformation.10 The childhood and education of Herakles, and his murder of Linos When Herakles was eight or ten months old, or even newly born, two huge snakes were sent by Hera to attack him and his half-brother in their cradle; but the infant hero seized them by their necks, one in each hand, and choked them to death. In the two fullest accounts of the episode by Pindar and Theocritus, the seer Teiresias was summoned to comment on the marvel, and took this as an opportunity to foretell the extraordinary destiny that lay in wait for Herakles, predicting that he would finally be received among the gods after overcoming many such dangers.11 In an alternative version, the snakes were not sent by the goddess but by Amphitryon, who introduced them into the children’s cradle to enable him to discover which of them was his son; when Herakles stayed to confront the snakes while Iphikles tried to escape, he recognized at once that Herakles was the child with divine blood in him.12 A further tale of the hero’s infancy tells how Hera was deceived into suckling him. In the most familiar version of the story, Hermes took the baby Herakles up to Olympos and applied him to Hera’s breast while she was asleep (or without revealing his true identity to her); and when she awoke (or learned who he was), 1111 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 11110 11 12 13 14 11115 16 17 18 19 11120 21 22 23 24 25111 26 27 28 29 11130 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 11140 41 42 43 44 45 11146 — The life of Herakles — 249 Figure 8.1 The baby Herakles strangles the serpents sent by Hera. Red-figure column krater. Perugia, Museo Nazionale; mus nat 73
-The life of Herakles- she pushed him away in such violent haste that some milk spilled out of her breast to form the Milky Way.She conferred immortality on him by her involuntary action, or the episode prefigured his future apotheosis at least.13 As would be expected,the hero's education was traditionally said to have been entrusted to the most celebrated experts.He learned the art of bowmanship from Eurytos of Oichalia,who was a grandson of Apollo(see p.412)and a skilled archer like his divine ancestor,as were all the male members of his family.In one form of his legend,indeed,Eurytos was eventually killed by Apollo because he dared to chal- lenge the god to an archery contest;but it was more commonly said that he died at the hand of his greatest pupil,Herakles himself(see p.283).Autolykos instructed Herakles in the art of wrestling;so great a trickster(see p.431)was presumably a past master of all the wiles of the ring.Herakles learned the art of chariot-driving from his father,and the art of war from Kastor.14 Music was less to his taste,however, and less suited to his natural abilities.His music-teacher,LINOS,became so exas- perated by his slowness that he eventually lost patience and struck him,to the great indignation of his young pupil,who struck back in anger with his lyre or plectrum, with fatal effect.Although Herakles escaped prosecution by citing a law of the great Cretan law-maker Rhadamanthys(see p.351)that justified retaliation in self-defence, his father decided that it would be prudent to cut his education short at this point, and sent him out into the countryside to tend the family herds.15 There are three separate bodies of myth associated with musicians called Linos,the other two relating to figures of that name who would have lived at an earlier period in mythical history.The idea on which all these stories are founded,namely that there had once been a young musician called Linos who had met a premature and pitiable death,was inspired by the existence of an ancient reaping-song known as the Linos-song',which had a refrain of ailinon which could be interpreted as meaning 'alas for Linos!'(although it was in fact a word of foreign origin). According to Argive tradition,Apollo fathered a son Linos by a princess of that land, Psamathe,who was the daughter of an early Argive ruler called Krotopos.She sent the child out to be exposed for fear of her father's anger,but the shepherd who was supposed to perform the task reared him as his own son instead,until the child happened to be torn apart by his dogs.On hearing of this,Psamathe was so distressed that she told the whole story to her father,who refused to believe that she had really borne the child to a god and ordered that she should be put to death.When Argos was struck by a plague as a conse- quence through the anger of Apollo,the citizens were advised by an oracle to appease the dead mother and child,and achieved this by means of prayers and laments(hence the origin of the Linos-song).Or in a rather different version,the infant Linos was torn apart by the king's sheep-dogs after he was exposed,and Apollo reacted by sending Poine (Vengeance personified)against Argos.Poine snatched the children of the city from their mothers until she was killed by a hero called Koroibos.When a plague broke out afterwards,Koroibos visited the oracle of Apollo at Delphi to discover how he could atone for the killing,and was instructed to take a tripod from the sanctuary and raise a temple to Apollo wherever he first dropped it.The tripod slipped from his hands on Mt Gerania in the Megarid;and the tomb of Koroibos could be seen nearby at the market-place at Megara.6 A Boeotian tradition suggested that Linos was borne to a certain Amphimaros,son of Poseidon,by the Muse Ourania.As befitted the child of a Muse,he grew up to become the finest of musicians,but soon provoked his own death at the hand of Apollo by claiming to 250
she pushed him away in such violent haste that some milk spilled out of her breast to form the Milky Way. She conferred immortality on him by her involuntary action, or the episode prefigured his future apotheosis at least.13 As would be expected, the hero’s education was traditionally said to have been entrusted to the most celebrated experts. He learned the art of bowmanship from Eurytos of Oichalia, who was a grandson of Apollo (see p. 412) and a skilled archer like his divine ancestor, as were all the male members of his family. In one form of his legend, indeed, Eurytos was eventually killed by Apollo because he dared to challenge the god to an archery contest; but it was more commonly said that he died at the hand of his greatest pupil, Herakles himself (see p. 283). Autolykos instructed Herakles in the art of wrestling; so great a trickster (see p. 431) was presumably a past master of all the wiles of the ring. Herakles learned the art of chariot-driving from his father, and the art of war from Kastor.14 Music was less to his taste, however, and less suited to his natural abilities. His music-teacher, LINOS, became so exasperated by his slowness that he eventually lost patience and struck him, to the great indignation of his young pupil, who struck back in anger with his lyre or plectrum, with fatal effect. Although Herakles escaped prosecution by citing a law of the great Cretan law-maker Rhadamanthys (see p. 351) that justified retaliation in self-defence, his father decided that it would be prudent to cut his education short at this point, and sent him out into the countryside to tend the family herds.15 There are three separate bodies of myth associated with musicians called Linos, the other two relating to figures of that name who would have lived at an earlier period in mythical history. The idea on which all these stories are founded, namely that there had once been a young musician called Linos who had met a premature and pitiable death, was inspired by the existence of an ancient reaping-song known as the ‘Linos-song’, which had a refrain of ailinon which could be interpreted as meaning ‘alas for Linos!’ (although it was in fact a word of foreign origin). According to Argive tradition, Apollo fathered a son Linos by a princess of that land, Psamathe, who was the daughter of an early Argive ruler called Krotopos. She sent the child out to be exposed for fear of her father’s anger, but the shepherd who was supposed to perform the task reared him as his own son instead, until the child happened to be torn apart by his dogs. On hearing of this, Psamathe was so distressed that she told the whole story to her father, who refused to believe that she had really borne the child to a god and ordered that she should be put to death. When Argos was struck by a plague as a consequence through the anger of Apollo, the citizens were advised by an oracle to appease the dead mother and child, and achieved this by means of prayers and laments (hence the origin of the Linos-song). Or in a rather different version, the infant Linos was torn apart by the king’s sheep-dogs after he was exposed, and Apollo reacted by sending Poine (Vengeance personified) against Argos. Poine snatched the children of the city from their mothers until she was killed by a hero called Koroibos. When a plague broke out afterwards, Koroibos visited the oracle of Apollo at Delphi to discover how he could atone for the killing, and was instructed to take a tripod from the sanctuary and raise a temple to Apollo wherever he first dropped it. The tripod slipped from his hands on Mt Gerania in the Megarid; and the tomb of Koroibos could be seen nearby at the market-place at Megara.16 A Boeotian tradition suggested that Linos was borne to a certain Amphimaros, son of Poseidon, by the Muse Ourania. As befitted the child of a Muse, he grew up to become the finest of musicians, but soon provoked his own death at the hand of Apollo by claiming to — The life of Herakles — 250
-The life of Herakles- rival the god as a singer.When grief for his death then spread through the world,the Linos- song was devised as a lament for him.This Linos,who is also described as a son of Apollo himself,was said to have been buried at Thebes.17 As in the case of legendary musicians such as Orpheus and Mousaios,Linos'name came to be attached to apocryphal poems in historical times. The lion of Kithairon,the daughters of Thespios, and a first campaign When Herakles reached the age of eighteen,he embarked on his first adventure, setting off to confront the lion of Kithairon,a ferocious beast that haunted the mountain-range of that name on the southern borders of Boeotia.Since it was preying not only on Amphitryon's cattle but also on those of THESPIOS,the eponymous ruler of Thespiai in south-western Boeotia,Herakles stayed at his court for fifty nights while trying to track the beast.Now the king had fifty daughters,and he was so impressed by the young hero's strength that he wanted to ensure that each of his daughters should conceive a child to him.He achieved this in one account by introducing a different daughter into his bed each night,so that Herakles slept with each in turn in the fond belief that he was sleeping with the same girl on each occasion.18 Or in versions which savour more of folklore,Herakles enjoyed the favours of all fifty in seven nights,or of forty-nine of them in a single night.19 In the latter account,one of them refused to have anything to do with him,and he paid her back by forcing her to serve as his virgin priestess (a story that explained why the temple of Herakles at Thespiai was served by a virgin priestess who remained in that post until her death).This episode of the daughters of Thespios, which has its comical side as so often with Herakles,has no inherent connection with that of the lion-hunt.Diodorus tells it,indeed,as a separate story,stating that Thespios invited the young Herakles to a sacrifice and feast for the specific purpose of ensuring that all his daughters would bear children to him.20 Each of his daugh- ters bore a son to Herakles in any case,apart from the eldest (and the youngest too in one account)who bore him twins instead.The children were known as the THES- PIADES after their grandfather.Herakles sent most of them to Sardinia when they grew up to found a colony under the leadership of his nephew Iolaos,except for a few who remained behind,seven at Thespiai and one or two at Thebes,to become founders of noble families in the province of their birth.21 As for the myth of the lion-hunt,it was cast wholly into the shade by the more diverting story of the daughters of Thespios,and nothing is recorded of it beyond the fact that Herakles eventually killed the beast.22 Apollodorus is exceptional in suggesting that Herakles took his lionskin cloak from this lion;in other accounts,he took it from the Nemean lion(see p.257),which was invulner- able and would therefore have an impenetrable hide.According to a conficting legend,the lion of Kithairon was killed by Alkathoos,son of Pelops,rather than by Herakles(see further 0nP.567).23 As Herakles was travelling back from the hunt,he happened to run across some heralds who had been sent by ERGINOS,king of Orchomenos,to collect an annual 25I
rival the god as a singer. When grief for his death then spread through the world, the Linossong was devised as a lament for him. This Linos, who is also described as a son of Apollo himself, was said to have been buried at Thebes.17 As in the case of legendary musicians such as Orpheus and Mousaios, Linos’ name came to be attached to apocryphal poems in historical times. The lion of Kithairon, the daughters of Thespios, and a first campaign When Herakles reached the age of eighteen, he embarked on his first adventure, setting off to confront the lion of Kithairon, a ferocious beast that haunted the mountain-range of that name on the southern borders of Boeotia. Since it was preying not only on Amphitryon’s cattle but also on those of THESPIOS, the eponymous ruler of Thespiai in south-western Boeotia, Herakles stayed at his court for fifty nights while trying to track the beast. Now the king had fifty daughters, and he was so impressed by the young hero’s strength that he wanted to ensure that each of his daughters should conceive a child to him. He achieved this in one account by introducing a different daughter into his bed each night, so that Herakles slept with each in turn in the fond belief that he was sleeping with the same girl on each occasion.18 Or in versions which savour more of folklore, Herakles enjoyed the favours of all fifty in seven nights, or of forty-nine of them in a single night.19 In the latter account, one of them refused to have anything to do with him, and he paid her back by forcing her to serve as his virgin priestess (a story that explained why the temple of Herakles at Thespiai was served by a virgin priestess who remained in that post until her death). This episode of the daughters of Thespios, which has its comical side as so often with Herakles, has no inherent connection with that of the lion-hunt. Diodorus tells it, indeed, as a separate story, stating that Thespios invited the young Herakles to a sacrifice and feast for the specific purpose of ensuring that all his daughters would bear children to him.20 Each of his daughters bore a son to Herakles in any case, apart from the eldest (and the youngest too in one account) who bore him twins instead. The children were known as the THESPIADES after their grandfather. Herakles sent most of them to Sardinia when they grew up to found a colony under the leadership of his nephew Iolaos, except for a few who remained behind, seven at Thespiai and one or two at Thebes, to become founders of noble families in the province of their birth.21 As for the myth of the lion-hunt, it was cast wholly into the shade by the more diverting story of the daughters of Thespios, and nothing is recorded of it beyond the fact that Herakles eventually killed the beast.22 Apollodorus is exceptional in suggesting that Herakles took his lionskin cloak from this lion; in other accounts, he took it from the Nemean lion (see p. 257), which was invulnerable and would therefore have an impenetrable hide. According to a conflicting legend, the lion of Kithairon was killed by Alkathoos, son of Pelops, rather than by Herakles (see further on p. 567).23 As Herakles was travelling back from the hunt, he happened to run across some heralds who had been sent by ERGINOS, king of Orchomenos, to collect an annual 1111 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 11110 11 12 13 14 11115 16 17 18 19 11120 21 22 23 24 25111 26 27 28 29 11130 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 11140 41 42 43 44 45 11146 — The life of Herakles — 251
-The life of Herakles- tribute that the Thebans were obliged to pay to him.This tribute had come to be imposed on them in the following circumstances.Some years earlier,Klymenos, the father of Erginos,had visited Onchestos,a town that lay between Orchomenos (a powerful city in north-eastern Boeotia,see p.558)and Thebes,to attend a festival of Poseidon;and in the course of the celebrations,he had been murdered by some Thebans as the result of some trivial quarrel,or had been fatally wounded by a stone hurled by the charioteer of Kreon's father Menoikeus.After hearing of his father's death (or after receiving a direct order from his dying father),Erginos had waged a successful campaign against the Thebans,and had forced them to agree to send him an annual tribute of a hundred cattle for twenty years.Herakles was so angered by this imposition and by the arrogant behaviour of the heralds that he cut off their noses,ears and hands,and hung them around their necks on cords,telling them to take these to their king by way of tribute.Erginos responded by launching a second expedition against Thebes;but Herakles was available to command the Thebans on this occasion,and he soon killed Erginos and put his followers to flight.He then forced the Orchomenians to pay tribute to the Thebans,demanding that they should send twice as much as they had been receiving.24 In a Hellenistic account recorded by Diodorus,Erginos had taken precautions against a future revolt by depriving the Thebans of their weapons.So when he demanded that Herakles should be surrendered for having assaulted his heralds,Kreon was ready to yield to his superior power.Herakles procured arms for the Thebans,however,by stripping their temples of all the weapons that had been dedicated in them,and persuaded the young men of the city to strike for their freedom.On hearing that Erginos was advancing against the city, Herakles attacked him and his troops on narrow ground to deprive him of the advantage of his superior numbers,and killed him along with much of his army.He was then able to attack Orchomenos unexpectedly and burn it to the ground.25 Some said that he destroyed the power of Orchomenos forever (see further on p.558) Herakles founds a family in Thebes with Megara,but kills their children in a fit of madness Kreon rewarded Herakles for his services in the war by granting him his daughter MEGARA as a wife.He lived happily with her at Thebes for some years,fathering several children by her(from two to eight in varying accounts),until Hera finally intervened by inspiring him with a fit of homicidal madness.While in this state, he murdered his children,either by throwing them into a fire or by shooting them down with his arrows;and in some accounts,he also killed some or all of the chil- dren of his half-brother Iphikles.Apollodorus follows Pherecydes in stating that he threw his children into a fire,and adds that he inflicted the same fate on two chil- dren of Iphikles.26 Or in Diodorus'version,he first tried to kill his nephew Iolaos, but shot his own children when Iolaos managed to escape.27 Or in another account by Nicolaus of Damascus (a writer associated with the court of Herod the Great), Herakles killed two of the children of Iphikles and then his own children,tearing the last from his mother's breast;and he would have killed Megara too if she had not been rescued by Iphikles,who also saved his own eldest son Iolaos.28 According to a local tradition at Thebes,Herakles would have killed his aged father too,an 252
tribute that the Thebans were obliged to pay to him. This tribute had come to be imposed on them in the following circumstances. Some years earlier, Klymenos, the father of Erginos, had visited Onchestos, a town that lay between Orchomenos (a powerful city in north-eastern Boeotia, see p. 558) and Thebes, to attend a festival of Poseidon; and in the course of the celebrations, he had been murdered by some Thebans as the result of some trivial quarrel, or had been fatally wounded by a stone hurled by the charioteer of Kreon’s father Menoikeus. After hearing of his father’s death (or after receiving a direct order from his dying father), Erginos had waged a successful campaign against the Thebans, and had forced them to agree to send him an annual tribute of a hundred cattle for twenty years. Herakles was so angered by this imposition and by the arrogant behaviour of the heralds that he cut off their noses, ears and hands, and hung them around their necks on cords, telling them to take these to their king by way of tribute. Erginos responded by launching a second expedition against Thebes; but Herakles was available to command the Thebans on this occasion, and he soon killed Erginos and put his followers to flight. He then forced the Orchomenians to pay tribute to the Thebans, demanding that they should send twice as much as they had been receiving.24 In a Hellenistic account recorded by Diodorus, Erginos had taken precautions against a future revolt by depriving the Thebans of their weapons. So when he demanded that Herakles should be surrendered for having assaulted his heralds, Kreon was ready to yield to his superior power. Herakles procured arms for the Thebans, however, by stripping their temples of all the weapons that had been dedicated in them, and persuaded the young men of the city to strike for their freedom. On hearing that Erginos was advancing against the city, Herakles attacked him and his troops on narrow ground to deprive him of the advantage of his superior numbers, and killed him along with much of his army. He was then able to attack Orchomenos unexpectedly and burn it to the ground.25 Some said that he destroyed the power of Orchomenos forever (see further on p. 558) Herakles founds a family in Thebes with Megara, but kills their children in a fit of madness Kreon rewarded Herakles for his services in the war by granting him his daughter MEGARA as a wife. He lived happily with her at Thebes for some years, fathering several children by her (from two to eight in varying accounts), until Hera finally intervened by inspiring him with a fit of homicidal madness. While in this state, he murdered his children, either by throwing them into a fire or by shooting them down with his arrows; and in some accounts, he also killed some or all of the children of his half-brother Iphikles. Apollodorus follows Pherecydes in stating that he threw his children into a fire, and adds that he inflicted the same fate on two children of Iphikles.26 Or in Diodorus’ version, he first tried to kill his nephew Iolaos, but shot his own children when Iolaos managed to escape.27 Or in another account by Nicolaus of Damascus (a writer associated with the court of Herod the Great), Herakles killed two of the children of Iphikles and then his own children, tearing the last from his mother’s breast; and he would have killed Megara too if she had not been rescued by Iphikles, who also saved his own eldest son Iolaos.28 According to a local tradition at Thebes, Herakles would have killed his aged father too, an — The life of Herakles — 252
-The life of Herakles- even graver crime in Greek eyes,if it had not been for the prompt action of Athena, who stunned him by hurling a stone at him;this stone,which was known as the sopbronister (i.e.stone of wisdom or restraint),could be seen in the city in historical times.29 Megara is mentioned in the Odyssey among the famous women of earlier times who were seen by Odysseus in the Underworld;the poet tells us nothing about her except that she was a daughter of Kreon and the wife of Herakles.30 This story of the murder of her chil- dren was recounted by Stesichorus in the first half of the sixth century BC.31 In referring to the cult of the eight dead sons of Herakles at the Elektran gates of Thebes,Pindar calls them bronze-armoured (or -armed,chaleoarai),32 which would imply that they were grown up at the time of their death.The poet or his source may have altered the story to make it less shameful for Herakles,by representing his victims as having been more than defence- less children. According to Apollodorus,Kreon offered his younger daughter to Iphikles at the same time as he offered Megara to Herakles;but Iphikles had already fathered his only signifi- cant son,Iolaos,by a previous wife,Automedousa,daughter of Alkathoos.33 In his surviving play on the episode,the Madness of Herakles,Euripides provides a peculiar account apparently of his own devising.While Herakles was away fetching Kerberos from Hades as his final labour,a certain Lykos (who was descended from the famous Lykos whose Theban career will be described in Chapter 9)killed Kreon to seize power at Thebes;and Megara found herself under threat,and sought refuge at the altar of Zeus with her children. On returning to find that Lykos had been planning to burn them to death,Herakles came to their rescue and killed the usurper;but was then driven mad by Hera,who sent Lyssa(Manic Fury personified)against him,causing him to slaughter his wife and children.Having heard rumours that Herakles was under threat from Lykos,Theseus arrived at Thebes after the hero had returned to his senses,and invited him back to Athens to be purified. Herakles is instructed to perform twelve labours for Eurystheus When Herakles recovered his sanity and realized what he had done,he went into voluntary exile,first visiting his former host Thespios,who agreed to purify him in accordance with the formal demands of Greek religion;and he then went to Delphi to ask where he should settle in the future.The Pythian priestess told him to go to Tiryns in the Argolid,where he was to live for ten years while he performed a series of labours that would be imposed on him by Eurystheus,king of Mycenae; and at the same time,she was able to give him the more welcome message that he would win immortality as the fruit of his toils and humiliations.34 Or in the version offered by Nicolaus of Damascus,Eurystheus invited him to come to Tiryns when he went into exile,and he accepted the offer,remembering that Amphitryon had once received an oracle saying that Herakles would have to serve Eurystheus and would win glory as a result.35 Or in Diodorus'account,Eurystheus had summoned him to perform the labours before his madness,but he had paid no attention until Zeus had let him know by some means that he would have to do so;he had then consulted the Delphic oracle,which gave him the same message as in the initial account above;and while he was still pondering on the matter (for he was under- standably depressed at the thought that he would be subjected to a man who was 253
even graver crime in Greek eyes, if it had not been for the prompt action of Athena, who stunned him by hurling a stone at him; this stone, which was known as the so¯ phroniste¯r (i.e. stone of wisdom or restraint), could be seen in the city in historical times.29 Megara is mentioned in the Odyssey among the famous women of earlier times who were seen by Odysseus in the Underworld; the poet tells us nothing about her except that she was a daughter of Kreon and the wife of Herakles.30 This story of the murder of her children was recounted by Stesichorus in the first half of the sixth century BC. 31 In referring to the cult of the eight dead sons of Herakles at the Elektran gates of Thebes, Pindar calls them bronze-armoured (or -armed, chalkoarai),32 which would imply that they were grown up at the time of their death. The poet or his source may have altered the story to make it less shameful for Herakles, by representing his victims as having been more than defenceless children. According to Apollodorus, Kreon offered his younger daughter to Iphikles at the same time as he offered Megara to Herakles; but Iphikles had already fathered his only signifi- cant son, Iolaos, by a previous wife, Automedousa, daughter of Alkathoos.33 In his surviving play on the episode, the Madness of Herakles, Euripides provides a peculiar account apparently of his own devising. While Herakles was away fetching Kerberos from Hades as his final labour, a certain Lykos (who was descended from the famous Lykos whose Theban career will be described in Chapter 9) killed Kreon to seize power at Thebes; and Megara found herself under threat, and sought refuge at the altar of Zeus with her children. On returning to find that Lykos had been planning to burn them to death, Herakles came to their rescue and killed the usurper; but was then driven mad by Hera, who sent Lyssa (Manic Fury personified) against him, causing him to slaughter his wife and children. Having heard rumours that Herakles was under threat from Lykos, Theseus arrived at Thebes after the hero had returned to his senses, and invited him back to Athens to be purified. Herakles is instructed to perform twelve labours for Eurystheus When Herakles recovered his sanity and realized what he had done, he went into voluntary exile, first visiting his former host Thespios, who agreed to purify him in accordance with the formal demands of Greek religion; and he then went to Delphi to ask where he should settle in the future. The Pythian priestess told him to go to Tiryns in the Argolid, where he was to live for ten years while he performed a series of labours that would be imposed on him by Eurystheus, king of Mycenae; and at the same time, she was able to give him the more welcome message that he would win immortality as the fruit of his toils and humiliations.34 Or in the version offered by Nicolaus of Damascus, Eurystheus invited him to come to Tiryns when he went into exile, and he accepted the offer, remembering that Amphitryon had once received an oracle saying that Herakles would have to serve Eurystheus and would win glory as a result.35 Or in Diodorus’ account, Eurystheus had summoned him to perform the labours before his madness, but he had paid no attention until Zeus had let him know by some means that he would have to do so; he had then consulted the Delphic oracle, which gave him the same message as in the initial account above; and while he was still pondering on the matter (for he was understandably depressed at the thought that he would be subjected to a man who was 1111 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 11110 11 12 13 14 11115 16 17 18 19 11120 21 22 23 24 25111 26 27 28 29 11130 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 11140 41 42 43 44 45 11146 — The life of Herakles — 253
-The life of Herakles- much inferior to him),Hera sent him mad,causing him to kill his children,and he finally embarked on his labours after a long period of mourning.36 It was sometimes claimed that the priestess at Delphi first gave the hero his name of Herakles when telling him of his forthcoming labours,and that he had originally been named Alkaios (or Alkeides)after his putative grandfather;in that case,Apollo is supposed to have given him the name Herakles because he would win imperishable glory,kleos,by doing favours, cra,to men,ie.through his labours(noa yae av0 OuLφQwv x，入eosdφ0 TOV EEELS).37 It is certainly true that his name,which really means 'Glory of Hera',seems inappropriate for a hero who received nothing but hostility from Hera(at least until his apotheosis).Other mythographers devised varied explanations,suggesting,for instance,that the Argives conferred the name on him after his first exploit in strangling the pair of snakes as a baby, to indicate that he had gained glory,eleos,through Hera(who had sent the snakes with the intention of killing him!).38 THE LABOURS OF HERAKLES The cycle of labours At some stage in the development of the mythology of Herakles,perhaps as late as the fifth century BC,a canonic list came to be established of the tasks that he was supposed to have performed for Eurystheus.These were known to the Greeks as the atbloi,a term generally rendered as labores in Latin,hence our modern expression, 'the labours',although neither of these translations quite catches the flavour of the original;an atblos was literally a contest,especially for a prize,and by extension a struggle or ordeal that involves toil and trouble.The term could therefore be applied most appropriately to describe the arduous tasks that were performed by Herakles for Eurystheus,all the more so since he was thought to have won immortality as the ultimate reward for his labours.Homer already uses the word (though not as yet with the latter suggestion)when referring to the harsh labours,chalepous aetblous, that were imposed on the hero by Eurystheus.39 There is no reason to suppose, however,that Homer knew of any ordered cycle of labours.Although some of the exploits that were later included in the canonic cycle are recorded as early as the eighth century BC in works of art,and all but one-the clearing of the Augeian stables-are attested by the sixth century,it is not known when they came to be classed together as the cycle of labours that he performed for Eurystheus.The full canonic sequence first appears in a series of carvings for the metopes for the temple of Zeus at Olympia,which can be dated to c.460 BC.Some have argued that these sculptures played a decisive role in establishing the canonic list,and that the stan- dard number was thus determined by architectural considerations;or else the sequence may have imposed itself through an earlier epic account,perhaps in the Heraeleia of Herodotus'uncle Panyasis;but this remains a matter for conjecture. According to a classification that was devised by the early Greek mythographers, the exploits of Herakles could be divided into three main classes.These atbloi,or labours,were distinguished on the one hand from the parerga,or incidentals,the chance adventures that befell the hero while he was performing his labours,and on 254
much inferior to him), Hera sent him mad, causing him to kill his children, and he finally embarked on his labours after a long period of mourning.36 It was sometimes claimed that the priestess at Delphi first gave the hero his name of Herakles when telling him of his forthcoming labours, and that he had originally been named Alkaios (or Alkeides) after his putative grandfather; in that case, Apollo is supposed to have given him the name Herakles because he would win imperishable glory, kleos, by doing favours, era, to men, i.e. through his labours (ρα γρ νθρπ ισι φρων κλ ς φθιτ ν !"εις).37 It is certainly true that his name, which really means ‘Glory of Hera’, seems inappropriate for a hero who received nothing but hostility from Hera (at least until his apotheosis). Other mythographers devised varied explanations, suggesting, for instance, that the Argives conferred the name on him after his first exploit in strangling the pair of snakes as a baby, to indicate that he had gained glory, kleos, through Hera (who had sent the snakes with the intention of killing him!).38 THE LABOURS OF HERAKLES The cycle of labours At some stage in the development of the mythology of Herakles, perhaps as late as the fifth century BC, a canonic list came to be established of the tasks that he was supposed to have performed for Eurystheus. These were known to the Greeks as the athloi, a term generally rendered as labores in Latin, hence our modern expression, ‘the labours’, although neither of these translations quite catches the flavour of the original; an athlos was literally a contest, especially for a prize, and by extension a struggle or ordeal that involves toil and trouble. The term could therefore be applied most appropriately to describe the arduous tasks that were performed by Herakles for Eurystheus, all the more so since he was thought to have won immortality as the ultimate reward for his labours. Homer already uses the word (though not as yet with the latter suggestion) when referring to the harsh labours, chalepous aethlous, that were imposed on the hero by Eurystheus.39 There is no reason to suppose, however, that Homer knew of any ordered cycle of labours. Although some of the exploits that were later included in the canonic cycle are recorded as early as the eighth century BC in works of art, and all but one – the clearing of the Augeian stables – are attested by the sixth century, it is not known when they came to be classed together as the cycle of labours that he performed for Eurystheus. The full canonic sequence first appears in a series of carvings for the metopes for the temple of Zeus at Olympia, which can be dated to c. 460 BC. Some have argued that these sculptures played a decisive role in establishing the canonic list, and that the standard number was thus determined by architectural considerations; or else the sequence may have imposed itself through an earlier epic account, perhaps in the Herakleia of Herodotus’ uncle Panyasis; but this remains a matter for conjecture. According to a classification that was devised by the early Greek mythographers, the exploits of Herakles could be divided into three main classes. These athloi, or labours, were distinguished on the one hand from the parerga, or incidentals, the chance adventures that befell the hero while he was performing his labours, and on — The life of Herakles — 254