The myth of Hercules begins with his unusual birth. God the Thunderer Zeus had a penchant for earthly women. The beauty Alcmene, the wife of the king of Mycenae, liked him. Zeus tried to convince her to cheat on her husband with gentle speeches. But Alcmene was adamant. Then the thunderer decided to cheat. He drove all the animals of Hellas into the forest, where the king of Mycenae was hunting. Carried away by hunting, he did not return home to spend the night. And Zeus, in the form of a spouse, appeared to Alcmene.

On the day Hercules was to be born, the Thunderer swore in the presence of the gods that the boy would become the ruler of Mycenae. But Hera, the jealous wife of Zeus, realized that this was an illegitimate child. She postponed Alcmene's birth for the day. At the hour appointed by Zeus, Eurystheus was born. It was he who became the ruler of Mycenae, in whose service Hercules performed famous feats.

Myths about Hercules: 12 labors

Hera, having learned about the birth of the future hero, vowed to exterminate him. She sent two poisonous snakes to the cradle. But Hercules from birth showed strength and dexterity. He strangled the reptiles with his hands.

The myth of Hercules tells that later Hera sent madness to the hero. The man's mind was clouded when he played with his sons. He mistook children for monsters. When the fit of insanity passed, Hercules was horrified by his own act. Full of remorse, he decided to go to overseas countries.

Hercules sailed with the Argonauts on a ship to distant Colchis for the Golden Fleece. But his path did not last long - at the very shores of Greece the god Hermes appeared to the hero. He conveyed the will of the gods: let Hercules humble himself and go into the service of the king of Mycenae Eurystheus.

Jealous Hera, in a desire to get rid of the illegitimate son of Zeus, entered into an agreement with Eurystheus. She advised the ruler of Mycenae to choose the most difficult and dangerous tasks for the hero. The myths about the exploits of Hercules, one might say, appeared thanks to Hera. She herself, unwillingly, contributed to the age-old glory of the hero.

First feat

Eurystheus gave the first task to Hercules - to exterminate the Nemean lion. The monster was born from the giant Typhon and Echidna, a huge snake. The lion was striking in its size and bloodthirstiness. Its sturdy hide withstood the blows of swords, arrows blunt against it.

A lion lived in the vicinity of the city of Nemea, destroying all living things in its path. Hercules searched for his lair for a whole month. Finally, he discovered a cave that served as a refuge for the Nemean lion. Hercules filled the exit from the lair with a huge boulder, while he prepared to wait at the entrance. Finally there was a loud roar and a monster appeared.

The myth of Hercules tells that the hero's arrows bounced off the lion's skin. The sharp sword did not harm him. Then Hercules with his bare hands grabbed the monster by the throat and strangled him.

The hero returned to Mycenae victorious. When Eurystheus saw the defeated lion, he was frightened by the incredible strength of Hercules.

Second feat

Let's try to retell the second myth about Hercules briefly. Hera came up with a new deadly mission for the hero. In the poisonous swamp lurked a terrible monster - the Lernaean hydra. She had the body of a snake and nine heads.

The Lernaean hydra lived near the entrance to the world of the dead. She crawled out of her lair and devastated the surroundings. As the sister of the Nemean lion, she had a huge advantage - one of her nine heads was immortal. Therefore, it was impossible to kill the Lernaean hydra.

Iolaus offered his help to Hercules - he drove the hero to the poisonous swamp in his chariot. For a long time the hero fought with the hydra. But, having struck one head of the monster, Hercules saw two new ones appear in its place.

Helper Iolaus set fire to a nearby grove and began to burn the severed heads of the hydra. When Hercules cut off the last, immortal head, he buried it deep in the ground. From above, he rolled it over with a huge rock, so that the monster could never again appear on the ground.

The poisonous blood of the hydra impregnated Hercules with arrowheads. And then he returned to Mycenae, where a new assignment from Eurystheus awaited him.

Third feat

Myths about the exploits of Hercules indicate his strength, agility, speed. For more than a year, the hero chased the Kerinean deer to catch it - this was a new task for the ruler of Mycenae.

A beautiful fallow deer appeared in the vicinity of the Kerinean Mountains. Her horns sparkled with gold, and her hooves were cast in copper. The animal's skin sparkled in the sun. The Kerinean doe was created by the goddess of the hunt Artemis. She did this in reproach to people who exterminated flora and fauna.

The doe ran faster than the wind - it rushed, fleeing from Hercules, through Attica, Thesprotia, Boeotia. For a whole year, the hero tried to catch up with the beautiful fugitive. In desperation, Hercules took out a bow and shot in the leg of the animal. Throwing a net over the prey, he carried it to Mycenae.

Artemis appeared before him in anger. Ancient myths about Hercules tell that the hero obeyed her. He explained how the will of the gods made him serve Eurystheus. That he was not chasing a beautiful deer for himself. Artemis had mercy and allowed Hercules to take the animal to Mycenae.

Fourth feat

And Eurystheus has already prepared a new task for the hero. What is it? The fourth myth about Hercules will tell us about this. Its summary allows us to find out that a wild boar appeared in Arcadia. The Erymanthian boar destroyed livestock, forest animals, travelers with huge fangs ...

On the way, Hercules went to see the familiar centaur Foul. They opened wine, had fun, sang songs. Other centaurs, attracted by the scent of the wine, armed themselves with stones and stakes, and claimed that the wine had been donated to the entire community. A fight ensued. Hercules put the centaurs to flight with his poison arrows.

Continuing on his way, the hero soon saw the Erymanth boar. But the blows of the sword did not frighten the animal. Then Hercules raised his shield high. When the sun was reflected in it, the hero directed the beam directly into the eyes of the beast. Then he began to beat the shield with his sword. Blinded, the beast was frightened by the loud noise. He rushed high into the mountains, where he got stuck in deep snow. Then Hercules tied the boar, put it on his shoulders and brought it to Mycenae.

The inhabitants rejoiced at their deliverance from the formidable monster. Eurystheus, seeing the size of the boar, was so frightened that he hid in a bronze pithos.

Fifth feat

King Augeas was famous for his herds and stables. He fenced off the barnyard with a high hedge, because he was in fear around the clock that bulls and horses might be kidnapped. For days, Augeus tried to count the number of horses in the stables. But the herd was in motion, the horses moved, and the count had to start over.

The dirt accumulated from the horses filled all the stables. The smell from them was all over Arcadia, says myth 5. Hercules sent Eurystheus to clear the Augean stables of dung. The king thought that a strong and brave hero would disdain such a task.

Hercules realized that it was necessary to make a hole in the hedge. He broke the fence that surrounded the stables on both sides. The stream of the mountain river immediately washed away all the impurities.

The myth of Hercules briefly reports that after this feat, the hero made a sacrifice to the river god for unpleasant work. Then he rebuilt the fence and returned to Mycenae for a new assignment.

Sixth feat

Once, two huge birds appeared near the city of Stymphala, they tell the myths about Hercules. They had copper beaks and bronze feathers. Stymphalian birds have multiplied over time and formed a flock. They destroyed seedlings in the fields. They dropped their bronze feathers like arrows at everyone who came near them.

Hercules, before entering the battle, studied the habits of the creatures for a long time. He realized that by dropping feathers, birds become defenseless until new ones grow. The warrior goddess Athena appeared to Hercules and presented him with copper rattles. Hercules was delighted with the help, raised a loud noise with the instrument.

Stymphalian birds flew up in fright, began to shed their sharp feathers. Hercules, however, took refuge under the shield from their onslaught. After the birds dropped all their feathers, the hero shot them with a bow. And those, which did not have time to get into, flew away from these places.

Seventh feat

What will the seventh myth about Hercules tell about? The summary indicates that there are no more monstrous animals and birds left in Arcadia. But Eurystheus figured out where to send Hercules - to the island of Crete.

The sea god Poseidon presented a wondrous bull to King Minos so that the ruler would sacrifice it to the gods. But the king of Cretan liked the bull so much that he hid it in his herd. Poseidon learned about the king's deception. In anger, he struck the bull with madness. For a long time the monster rushed about, killing people in a frenzy, scattering herds.

Eurystheus, on a libel of Hera, wished to see the Cretan bull alive. Hercules realized that only force can pacify the animal. He went out to fight, grabbed the bull by the horns, bent its head to the ground. The animal sensed that the enemy was stronger. The Cretan bull stopped resisting. Then Hercules saddled him and drove into the sea. So, riding an animal, the hero returned to Arcadia.

The bull did not even try to throw Hercules off, calmly entered the stall of King Eurystheus. When the hero, tired after the new feat, went to bed, the ruler was afraid to keep the maddened bull and in fear set him free.

So the bull wandered around the outskirts of Arcadia until he was defeated by another hero of Hellas - Theseus.

Eighth feat

The myths about Hercules tell about the demonic horses of Diomedes. These carnivorous monsters devoured lost travelers. Seafarers who were killed were killed. When Hercules arrived in the country with an assistant, he immediately went in search of carnivorous horses. By neighing, he understood where the stables of King Diomedes were.

With a blow of his fist on the head, he pacified the first horse and threw a bridle around his neck. When the whole herd was bridled, Hercules with an assistant drove him to the ship. And then King Diomedes stood in the way with his army. Hercules defeated everyone, and when he returned to the shore, he saw that the horses had torn apart his assistant and fled.

The hero fed the body of King Diomedes to his own horses, drove them onto a ship and took them to Mycenae. The cowardly Eurystheus, at the sight of carnivorous horses in horror, ordered to let them go into the forest. There wild animals dealt with them.

Ninth feat

The 12 myths about Hercules are extremely interesting. They all tell about the strength and courage of the son of Zeus, about the amazing adventures that fell to his lot. The ninth tells about the belt of Hippolyta. The daughter of Eurystheus Admet wanted to get it. She heard that Ares, the god of war, gave the belt to the queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta.

Hercules went on a journey with his companions. The Amazons greeted them amiably and asked about the purpose of the trip. Hercules honestly told Queen Hippolyta about how the daughter of Eurystheus wanted to receive her belt as a gift.

Hippolyta agreed to give the jewelry to Hercules. But the goddess Hera interfered. She did not like the peaceful solution of the issue - she wanted to destroy the hero. Hera, having transformed into one of the Amazons, spread the rumor that Hercules wanted to sell them into slavery.

The warlike women believed the evil slander, and a battle ensued. Hercules and his companions defeated the Amazons. The son of Zeus completed this task with a heavy heart. Hercules, the hero of myths, did not want a battle with women, even if they were warriors.

Tenth feat

The tenth myth of Hercules continues our story. King Eurystheus thought for a long time before giving the hero a new task. He wanted to send his hated stepbrother to distant country so distant that it would take a month or more to sail there.

Hercules has come a long way. Defeated the son of the god Vulcan - the monster Kakusa. Later, the city of Rome was founded on the site of their battle.

In the green meadows of Erythia grazed the cows of Geryon, a giant with three bodies, three heads and three pairs of arms and legs. They were guarded by a two-headed dog. At the sight of Hercules, he growled and rushed at him. The hero quickly defeated the dog, but then the giant shepherd woke up. The goddess Athena doubled the strength of Hercules, and he knocked down the giant with a few blows of the club. Another victory was won by the hero.

Having sailed on a ship to Iberia, Hercules lay down to rest, letting the herd graze. With the first rays of the sun, he decided to drive the herd overland. The cows went through Iberia, Gaul, Italy. Near the sea, one of them rushed to the water and swam. She ended up on the island of Sicily. The local ruler Eriks did not want to give the cow to Hercules. I had to defeat him too.

With the fugitive, the hero returned to the flock and led him to the king Eurystheus. The latter sacrificed the cows to Hera, hoping to get rid of Hercules.

Eleventh feat

And again the long journey awaited the hero. Eurystheus sent Hercules for the golden apples of the Hesperides. They gave immortality and eternal youth. In the garden of the Hesperides, apples were guarded only by nymphs. And the garden itself was at the end of the earth, where Atlas held the firmament on his shoulders.

On the way to the end of the world, Hercules in the Caucasus mountains freed Prometheus. He fought with the son of the land of Gaia - Antaeus. Only by tearing the giant off the ground was the hero able to defeat him. Reaching Atlanta, Hercules told him about the purpose of his journey. They agreed that the hero would hold the heavens on his shoulders, and Atlas would ask the nymphs for apples.

Hercules was already exhausted under the weight of the arch, Atlas returned. The giant really did not want to take on his shoulders an exorbitant weight again. The sly man offered Hercules to hold the sky for another while he himself reached Mycenae and gave the apples to the king. But our hero is not that stupid. He agreed, but on condition that the giant will hold the heavens, and Hercules, in the meantime, will make himself a grass pillow - it's a very heavy burden. Atlas believed and took his place, and the hero took the apples and returned home.

Twelfth feat

The last task of Eurystheus was the most difficult, according to the 12th myth. The exploits of Hercules (a brief summary of them is presented in this article) takes the reader to the amazing world of mythology of Ancient Greece, a world full of amazing adventures, powerful and insidious gods and strong, brave heroes. But we got distracted. So, 12 feat. Hercules was to go down to the realm of the dead and kidnap the dog Cerberus. Three heads, a tail in the form of a snake - at the sight of this fiend of hell, blood froze in my veins.

Hercules went down to Hades and fought with Cerberus. Having defeated the dog, the hero brought him to Mycenae. The king did not allow the gate to be opened and shouted for Hercules to release the terrible monster back.

But the myths about Hercules do not end there. 12 feats that the hero performed in the service of Eurystheus, glorified him for centuries. Later he distinguished himself in military campaigns, arranged his personal life.

Thirteenth feat and death of Hercules

Hellas legends say that there are 13 feats of Hercules. The myth has carried the story of the king of Thespia to this day. Hercules stayed in his house when he was hunting the Kyferon lion. Thespius worried that his daughters would choose ugly suitors for themselves, give birth to ugly grandchildren. The king invited Hercules to impregnate his 50 daughters. So the hero hunted a lion during the day, and spent the nights with the royal daughters.

Many years later, Hercules married Deianira. They had many children. Once the couple were crossing a fast river. Deianira was transported by the centaur Nessus. He was seduced by the beauty of a woman and wanted to master her. Hercules hit him with a poisonous arrow. Experiencing terrible torment, Ness decided to take revenge on the hero. He persuaded Deianira to draw his blood. If Hercules stops loving her, you just need to soak his clothes with the blood of a centaur, and then the husband will not look at any woman again.

Deianira kept a vial with Nessus's gift. Returning from a military campaign, Hercules brought a young captive princess into the house. In a fit of jealousy, Deianera soaked her husband's clothes with blood. The poison quickly acted and began to deliver severe torment to Hercules, and there was no way to take off his clothes. The eldest son carried his father in his arms to Mount Etu, where he made a funeral pyre. When the flame flared up, a huge cloud covered Hercules. So the gods decided to take the hero to Olympus and grant him immortal life.

The name speaks for itself ...

Who is Eurystheus?

Eurystheus, in Greek mythology, the king of Tiryns and Mycenae, the great-grandson of Zeus, the grandson of Perseus, the son of Sfenel and Nikippa, who was born before Hercules and therefore received power over Mycenae and neighboring peoples. Following the orders of Eurystheus, Hercules performed his twelve labors. After Hercules ascended to Olympus, Eurystheus began to pursue his mother Alcmene and the sons of Heracles Heraclides; in the ensuing battle, Eurystheus and his sons (Alexander, Ifimedont, Eurybius, Mentor and Perimed) were killed.

First feat: 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, begotten by Typhon and the Echidna, was monstrous in size. He lived near the city of Nemea and devastated all the surrounding area. Hercules boldly set out on a dangerous feat. Arriving at Nemea, he immediately went to the mountains to find the lion's den. It was already noon when the hero reached the slopes of the mountains. Not a single living soul was 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 on the wooded slopes of the mountains and in the gorges of the lion's den, finally, when the sun began to lean to the west, Hercules found a lair in a gloomy gorge; it was in a huge cave that had two exits. Hercules filled one of the willows with huge stones and waited for the lion, hiding behind the stones. Toward evening, when dusk was already approaching, a monstrous lion with a long shaggy mane appeared. Hercules pulled the string of his bow and fired three arrows one after the other at the lion, but the arrows bounced off his skin - it was as hard as steel. The lion roared menacingly, its roar rolled like thunder over the mountains. Looking around in all directions, the lion stood in the gorge and looked with burning fury eyes for the one who dared to shoot arrows at him. But then he saw Hercules and threw himself with a huge jump on the hero. Like lightning, the club of Hercules flashed and fell with a thunderous blow on the lion's head. The lion fell to the ground, stunned by a terrible blow; Hercules threw himself on the lion, grabbed him with his mighty arms and strangled him. Having shouldered the slain lion on his mighty shoulders, Hercules returned to Nemea, sacrificed to Zeus and instituted the Nemean games in memory of his first feat. When Hercules brought the lion he had killed to Mycenae, Eurystheus turned pale with fear, looking at the monstrous lion. The king of Mycenae realized what superhuman strength Hercules possesses. He forbade him even to approach the gate of Mycenae; when Hercules brought evidence of his exploits, Eurystheus looked at them with horror from the high Mycenaean walls.

Second feat: Lernaean hydra

After the first feat, Eurystheus sent Hercules to kill the Lernean hydra. It was a monster with the body of a snake and nine dragon heads. Like the Nemean lion, the hydra was born of Typhon and the Echidna. The hydra lived in a swamp near the city of Lerna and, crawling out of their lair, destroyed whole herds and devastated all the surroundings. The fight against the nine-headed hydra was dangerous because one of its heads was immortal. Hercules set off to Lerna with Iphicles' son Iolaus. Arriving at the swamp near the city of Lerna, Hercules left Iolaus with a chariot in a nearby grove, and he went to look for the hydra. He found her in a cave surrounded by a swamp. Having red-hot his arrows, Hercules began to shoot them one after another into the hydra. The hydra was enraged by the arrows of Hercules. She crawled out, writhing 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 body and pressed her to the ground. With its tail, the hydra wrapped around the legs of Hercules and tried to knock him down. Like an unshakable rock, the hero stood and, with the waves of a heavy club, one after another knocked down the heads of the hydra. A club whistled in the air like a whirlwind; the heads of the hydra flew off, but the hydra was still alive. Then Hercules noticed that at the hydra, in place of each knocked off head, two new ones grow. Help came to the hydra. A monstrous cancer crawled out of the swamp and dug its ticks into the leg of Hercules. Then the hero called his friend Iolaus for help. Iolaus killed a monstrous crayfish, lit part of a nearby grove and burned the hydra's necks with burning tree trunks, from which Hercules knocked their heads off with his club. New heads have ceased to grow at the hydra. Weaker and weaker she resisted the son of Zeus. 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 her so that she could not come out into the light again. Then the great hero cut the body of the hydra and plunged his arrows into her poisonous bile. Since then, the wounds from the arrows of Hercules have become incurable. With great triumph, Hercules returned to Tiryns. But there a new commission from Eurystheus awaited him.

Third feat: Stymphalian birds

Eurystheus instructed Hercules to kill the Stymphalian birds. All the surroundings of the Arcadian city of Stymphala almost turned into the desert. They attacked both animals and people and tore them apart with their copper claws and beaks. But the most terrible thing was that the feathers of these birds were of solid bronze, and the birds, flying up, could drop them, like arrows, at anyone who would try 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 tympans, 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 hit the tympans; when the birds take off, shoot them with a bow. And so Hercules did. Ascending the hill, he struck the tympans, and there was such a deafening ringing that the birds flew in a huge flock over the forest and began circling in terror over it. They rained down their feathers, sharp as arrows, on the ground, but the feathers did not fall on Hercules, who was standing on the hill. The hero grabbed his bow and began to shoot the birds with deadly arrows. In fear, the Stymphalian birds soared up behind 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, and never returned to the vicinity of Stymphalus. So Hercules fulfilled this order of Eurystheus and returned to Tiryns, but immediately he had to go on an even more difficult feat.

Fourth feat: the Kerinean doe

Eurystheus knew that a wonderful Kerinean doe lived in Arcadia, sent by the goddess Artemis to punish people. This fallow deer devastated the fields. Eurystheus sent Hercules to catch her and ordered him to deliver the deer alive to Mycenae. This doe was extraordinarily beautiful, its horns were golden and its 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 Kerinean doe. She rushed through the mountains, across the plains, jumped over precipices, swam across rivers. Farther and farther north the deer was running. The hero did not lag behind her, he pursued her, not losing sight of her. Finally, Hercules reached the far north in pursuit of the Padua - the country of the Hyperboreans and the sources of Istria. Here the doe stopped. The hero wanted to grab her, but she escaped and, like an arrow, rushed back to the south. The pursuit began again. Hercules managed to overtake the doe only in Arcadia. Even after such a long chase, she did not lose her strength. Desperate to catch a doe, Hercules resorted to his not knowing miss arrows. He wounded the golden-horned doe with an arrow in the leg, and only then did he manage to catch her. Hercules put the wonderful doe on his shoulders and was about to carry it to Mycenae, when an angry Artemis appeared before him and said: - Didn't you, Hercules, know that this doe is mine? Why did you insult me ​​by wounding my beloved doe? Do you not know that I do not forgive insults? Or do you think that you are more powerful than the Olympian gods? Hercules bowed with reverence to the beautiful goddess and replied: - Oh, great daughter of Latona, do not blame me! I have never insulted the immortal gods living on the bright Olympus; I have always honored the celestials with rich victims and never considered myself equal to them, although I myself am the son of the thunderer Zeus. Not of my own free will I pursued your doe, but at the behest of Eurystheus. The gods themselves commanded me to serve him, and I dare not disobey Eurystheus! Artemis forgave Hercules for his guilt. The great son of the thunderer Zeus brought the Kerinean doe alive to Mycenae and gave it to Eurystheus.

Fifth feat: the Erymanthian boar and the battle with the centaurs

After the hunt for the copper-footed doe, which lasted a whole year, Hercules did not rest for long. Eurystheus again gave him an order: Hercules was to kill the Erymanthian boar. This boar, possessing monstrous strength, lived on Mount Erimanth and devastated the surroundings of the city of Psophis. He did not give people mercy and killed them with his huge fangs. Hercules went to Mount Erimanth. On the way, he visited the wise centaur Fall. Foul 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 the wondrous wine spread far away. Other centaurs also heard this fragrance. They were terribly angry with Fool for opening the vessel. Wine belonged not only to Fall, but was the property of all centaurs. The centaurs rushed to Fall's dwelling and attacked him and Hercules by surprise as the two feasted merrily with ivy wreaths on their heads. Hercules was not afraid of the centaurs. He quickly jumped up from his bed and began to throw huge smoking brands at the attackers. The centaurs fled, and Hercules wounded them with his poisonous arrows. The hero chased them all the way to Maleya. There the centaurs took refuge with a friend of Hercules, Chiron, the wisest of the centaurs. Hercules followed them into the cave. In anger he drew his bow, an arrow flashed in the air and plunged into the knee of one of the centaurs. Hercules did not hit the enemy, but his friend Chiron. Great sorrow gripped the hero when he saw who he had wounded. Hercules is in a hurry to wash and bandage his friend's wound, but nothing can help. Hercules knew that a wound from an arrow poisoned by the bile of a hydra was incurable. Chiron also knew that he was facing a painful death. In order not to suffer from a wound, he subsequently voluntarily descended into the dark kingdom of Hades. In deep sadness, Hercules left Chiron and soon reached Mount Erimanth. There, in a dense forest, he found a formidable boar and drove him out of the thicket with a cry. Hercules chased the boar for a long time, and finally drove him into deep snow at the top of the mountain. The boar got stuck in the snow, and Hercules, rushing at him, tied him up and took him alive to Mycenae. When Eurystheus saw the monstrous boar, he hid in a large bronze vessel out of fear.

Sixth feat: Animal Farm of King Augean

Soon Eurystheus gave a new assignment to Hercules. He had to cleanse the entire cattle yard of Augeus, the king of Elis, the son of the radiant Helios, from the manure. The sun god gave his son incalculable riches. The herds of Avgius 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 extraordinary beauty, shone like a star. Hercules proposed to Augius to cleanse his entire huge cattle yard in one day, if he agreed to give him a tenth of his flocks. Augeas agreed. It seemed to him impossible to do such a job in one day. Hercules, on the other hand, broke the wall that surrounded the stockyard on two opposite sides, and took 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 folded the walls. When the hero came to Augius to demand a reward, the proud king did not give him the promised tenth of the flocks, and Heracles had to return to Tiryns with nothing. The great hero took revenge on the king of Elis. A few years later, having already freed himself from service with Eurystheus, Hercules invaded Elis with a large army, defeated Avgius 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, which have been held since then by all Greeks every four years on a sacred plain, planted by Hercules himself with olives dedicated to the goddess Pallas Athena. The Olympic Games are the most important of all Greek festivals, during which world peace was declared throughout Greece. A few months before the Games, ambassadors were sent throughout Greece and the Greek colonies inviting them to Olympia. Games were held every four years. On them there were competitions in running, wrestling, fist fighting, throwing a disc and a spear, as well as in running chariots. The winners of the games received an olive wreath as an award and enjoyed great honor. The Greeks reckoned on the Olympic Games, considering the first events to take place in 776 BC. e. There were Olympic Games until 393 AD. e., when they were banned by Emperor Theodosius as incompatible with Christianity. Thirty years later, Emperor Theodosius II burned the temple of Zeus at Olympia and all the luxurious buildings that adorned the place where the Olympic Games took place. They turned into ruins and were gradually covered by the sand of the Alfea River. Only excavations carried out at the site of Olympia in the 19th century. n. BC, mainly from 1875 to 1881, gave us the opportunity to get an accurate picture of the past Olympia and the Olympic Games. Hercules took revenge on all the allies of Avgius. The king of Pylos, Neleus, paid in particular. Hercules, having come with an army to Pylos, took the city and killed Neleus and his eleven sons. Neleus' son Periklimenes, who was given the gift of the ruler of the sea, Poseidon, to turn into a lion, a snake and a bee, was not saved either. Hercules killed him when, turning into a bee, Periklimenes mounted one of the horses harnessed to Hercules' chariot. Only Neleus' son Nestor survived. Subsequently, Nestor became famous among the Greeks for his exploits and great wisdom.

Seventh feat: Cretan bull

To fulfill the seventh order of Eurystheus, Hercules had to leave Greece and go to the island of Crete. Eurystheus instructed him to bring the Cretan bull to Mycenae. This bull was sent by the earth-shaker Poseidon to the king of Crete Minos, the son of Europe; Minos had to sacrifice the bull to Poseidon. But Minos is sorry to sacrifice such a beautiful bull - he left him in his flock, and sacrificed one of his bulls to Poseidon. Poseidon was angry with Minos and sent rabies on the bull that came out of the sea. A bull ran 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 set him free. Sensing freedom again, the mad bull rushed through the entire Peloponnese to the north and finally came running to Attica on the Marathon field. There he was killed by the great Athenian hero Theseus.

Eighth feat: The horses of Diomedes

After taming the Cretan bull, Hercules, on behalf of Eurystheus, had to go to Thrace to the king of the Bistones, Diomedes. This king had horses of wondrous beauty and strength. They were chained in stalls with iron chains, as no bonds could hold them. King Diomedes fed these horses with human meat. He threw them to devour all the strangers who, driven by the storm, pestered his city. It was to this Thracian king that Hercules came with his companions. He took possession of the horses of Diomedes and took them to his ship. On the shore, Diomedes himself overtook Hercules with his warlike beastones. Having entrusted the protection of the horses to his beloved Abder, the son of Hermes, Hercules fought with Diomedes. Hercules had few companions, but still Diomedes was defeated and fell in battle. Hercules returned to the ship. How great was his despair when he saw that wild horses had torn apart his favorite Abder. Hercules arranged a magnificent funeral for his pet, made a high hill on his grave, and next to the grave he founded a city and named it after his pet Abdera. Hercules brought the horses of Diomedes to Eurystheus, who ordered them to be released. Wild horses fled to the mountains of Lyceion, covered with dense forest, and were torn to pieces by wild beasts there.

HERCULES AT ADMET
Mainly based on the tragedy of Euripides "Alkestida"
When Hercules sailed on a ship on the sea to the shores of Thrace for the horses of King Diomedes, he decided to visit his friend, King Admet, since the path lay past the city of Fer, where Admet ruled.
Hercules chose a difficult time for Admet. Great sorrow reigned in the house of King Fer. His wife Alkestida was about to die. Once the goddesses of fate, the great moiraes, at the request of Apollo, determined that Admet could get rid of death if at the last hour of his life someone agreed to voluntarily descend instead of him into the dark kingdom of Hades. When the hour of death came, Admet asked his elderly parents that one of them would agree to die in his place, but his parents refused. Not one of the inhabitants of Fer agreed to die voluntarily for the king Admet. Then the young, beautiful Alkestida decided to sacrifice her life for her beloved husband. On the day Admet was to die, his wife prepared for death. She washed the body and put on funeral garments and ornaments. Approaching the hearth, Alkestida turned to the goddess Hestia, who gives happiness in the house, with a fervent prayer:
- Oh, great goddess! The last time I kneel here before you. I pray you, protect my orphans, because today I must descend into the kingdom of gloomy Hades. Oh, do not let them die, as I die, prematurely! 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 sobbed bitterly on their mother's chest. The maids of Alkestida also cried. In despair, Admet embraced his young wife and begged her not to leave him. Already ready for the death of Alkestides; already approaching with inaudible steps to the palace of king Fer, the god of death, hated by the gods and people, Thanat, in order to cut off a lock of hair from the head of Alkestiis with a sword. The golden-haired Apollo himself asked him to postpone the hour of death of the wife of his beloved Admet, but Tanat is relentless. Alkestida senses the approach of death. She exclaims in horror:
“Oh, the two-oared boat of Charon is already approaching me, and the carrier of the souls of the dead is threateningly shouting to me, ruling the boat:“ Why are you delaying? Oh, let me go! My legs are getting weak. 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. Better to let the sun shine on you, not on me. Admet, you love our children no less than me. Oh, do not take your stepmother into their house, so that she does not offend them!
The unfortunate Admet suffers.
- You take all the joy of life with you, Alkestida! - he exclaims, - all my life now I will grieve for you. Oh, gods, gods, what kind of wife are you taking from me!
Alkestida says a little audibly:
- Goodbye! My eyes have already closed forever. Goodbye children! Now I am nothing. Goodbye Admet!
- Oh, take another look! Don't leave your children! Oh, let me die too! - Admet exclaimed with tears.
Alkestida's eyes closed, her body grows cold, she died. Admet weeps inconsolably over the deceased and bitterly laments his fate. He orders a magnificent funeral for his wife. For eight months he orders everyone in the city to mourn Alkestida, the best of women. The whole city is full of sorrow, because everyone loved the good queen.
They were already preparing to carry the body of Alkestida to her tomb, when Hercules comes to the city of Fera. He goes to Admet's palace and meets his friend at the palace gates. Admet met with honor the great son of the aegis Zeus. Not wanting to sadden the guest, Admet tries to hide his grief from him. But Hercules immediately noticed that his friend was deeply grieved, and asked about the reason for his grief. Admet gives an unclear answer to Hercules, and he decides that a distant relative who was sheltered by the king after the death of his father died. Admet orders his servants to take Hercules to the guest room and arrange a rich feast for him, and lock the doors to the female half so that the groans of sorrow do not reach Hercules' ears. Unaware of what misfortune befell his friend, Hercules is having a merry feast in Admet's palace. He drinks goblet after goblet. It is hard for the servants to serve a cheerful guest - after all, they know that their beloved mistress is no longer alive. No matter how hard they try, on the orders of Admet, to hide their grief, Hercules nevertheless notices tears in their eyes and sadness on their faces. He calls one of the servants to feast with him, says that the wine will give him oblivion and smooth out the wrinkles of sorrow on his brow, but the servant refuses. Then Hercules guesses that a grave grief befell the house of Admet. He begins to question the servant what happened to his friend, and finally the servant tells him:
- Oh, foreigner, Admet's wife went down to the kingdom of Hades today.
Hercules was saddened. It hurt him that he was feasting in an ivy wreath and singing at the house of a friend who had suffered such great grief. Hercules decided to thank the noble Admet for the fact that, despite the grief that befell him, he nevertheless received him so hospitably. The great hero's decision quickly ripened to take away from the gloomy god of death Thanat his prey - Alkestida.
Having learned from the servant where the tomb of Alkestida is, he hurries there sooner. Hiding behind the tomb, Hercules waits for Thanat to arrive to drink at the grave of the sacrificial blood. Then the flapping of the black wings of Thanat was heard, a burial chill blew; 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 to Thanat. He seized 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. He squeezed the chest of Hercules Thanat with his bony hands, he breathes his icy breath on him, and the cold of death blows from his wings to the hero. Yet the mighty son of the thunderer Zeus defeated Thanat. He tied Thanat and demanded as a ransom for freedom to bring the god of death back to life Alcestis. Thanat gave Hercules the life of Admet's wife, and the great hero led her back to her husband's palace.
Admet, 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 for death. All his happiness was stolen by Thanat and taken to the kingdom of Hades. What could be more difficult for him than the loss of his beloved wife! Admet regrets that she did not allow Alkestides to die with her, then death would have united them. Hades would receive two loyal souls instead of one. Together these souls of Acheron would swim across. Suddenly Hercules appeared before the mournful Admet. He leads a woman, covered by a veil, by the hand. Hercules asks Admet to leave this woman, which he inherited after a hard struggle, in the palace until his return from Thrace. Refuses Admet; he asks Hercules to take the woman to someone else. It is hard for Admet to see another woman in his palace when he lost the one he loved so much. Hercules insists and even wants Admet to bring the woman into the palace himself. He does not allow Admet's servants to touch her. Finally, Admet, unable to refuse his friend, takes the woman by the hand to lead her into his palace. Hercules tells him:
- You took her, 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 Alkestida? Stop longing! Be happy with life again!
- Oh, great gods! - Admet exclaimed, lifting the veil of the woman, - my wife Alkestida! Oh no, it's just her shadow! She stands silently, she has not uttered a word!
- No, it's not a shadow! - answered Hercules, - this is Alkestida. I obtained it in a difficult struggle with the Lord of Souls Thanat. She will be silent until she is freed from the power of the underground gods, bringing them atoning sacrifices; she will be silent until three times change from night to day; only then will she speak. Now goodbye, Admet! Be happy and always observe the great custom of hospitality, consecrated by my father, Zeus!
- Oh, great son of Zeus, you gave me the joy of life again! - Admet exclaimed, - how can I thank you? Stay with me as a guest. I will command in all my possessions to celebrate your victory, I will command you to bring great sacrifices to the gods. Stay with me!
Hercules did not stay with Admet; feat awaited him; he had to fulfill the order of Eurystheus and get him the horses of King Diomedes.

Ninth Feat: Hippolyta's Belt

The ninth feat of Hercules was his campaign to the country of the Amazons behind the belt of Queen Hippolyta. This belt was presented 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, certainly wanted to have this belt. To fulfill her desire, 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, I was the great hero of Attica Theseus in it.
A long way lay ahead of the heroes. They had to reach the farthest shores of the Euxine Pontus, since there was the country of the Amazons with the capital Themiscyra. On the way, Hercules landed with his companions on the island of Paros, 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, while driving others into the city, he kept them under siege until they sent the besieged ambassadors to Hercules and asked him to take two of them instead of the killed companions. Then Hercules lifted the siege and took the grandsons of Minos, Alkeus and Sfenelus instead of those killed.
From Paros, Hercules arrived in Mizia to the king Likus, who received him with great hospitality. Unexpectedly, the king of the bebriks attacked Lika. Hercules defeated the king of bebriks with his detachment and destroyed his capital, and gave all the land of bebriks to Lika. King Lik named this country in honor of Hercules Heraclea. After this feat, Hercules went further, and finally arrived at the city of the Amazons, Themiscira.
The fame of the exploits of the son of Zeus has long reached the country of the Amazons. Therefore, when the ship of Hercules docked at Themiscira, the Amazons with the queen came out to meet the hero. They looked in amazement at the great son of Zeus, who stood out, like an immortal god, among his companions-heroes. Queen Hippolyta asked the great hero 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, I did not come here of my own free will with an army, having made a long journey along the stormy sea; I was sent by the ruler of Mycenae Eurystheus. His daughter Admet wants to have your belt, a gift from the god Ares. Eurystheus has instructed me to get your belt.
Hippolyta was unable to deny anything to Hercules. She was already ready to voluntarily give him the belt, but the great Hera, wanting to destroy the hated Hercules, took the form of an Amazon, intervened in the crowd and began to convince the warriors to attack the army of Hercules.
“Hercules is not telling the truth,” Hera said to the Amazons, “he came to you with an insidious intent: the hero wants to kidnap your queen Hippolyta and take her as a slave to his house.
The Amazons believed Hera. They grabbed their arms and attacked the army of Hercules. Ahead of the Amazon army was Aella, swift as the wind. 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 a quick flight. All her speed did not help her, Hercules overtook her and struck her with his sparkling sword. Fell in battle and Protoe. She defeated 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. All of them were slain by the hero with his club; one after another they struck the ground, flashing their weapons. The Amazonian Melanippe, who was leading the army into battle, was captured by Hercules, and Antiope was also captured with her. The formidable warriors were defeated, their army fled, many of them fell at the hands of the heroes who were pursuing them. The Amazon made peace with Hercules. Hippolyta bought the freedom of the mighty Melanippe at the cost of her belt. The heroes took Antiope with them. Hercules gave her as a reward to Theseus for his great bravery.
So Hercules got Hippolyta's belt.

HERCULES SAVES HESION, THE DAUGHTER OF LAOMEDONT

On the way back to Tiryns from the country of the Amazons, Hercules arrived on ships with his army to Troy. A grievous spectacle appeared before the eyes of the heroes when they moored to the shore not far from Troy. They saw the beautiful daughter of the King of Troy Laomedont, Hesiona, chained to a rock near the very shore of the sea. She was doomed, like Andromeda, to be torn apart by a monster emerging from the sea. This monster was sent as punishment to Laomedon by Poseidon for refusing to pay him and Apollo a fee for the construction of the walls of Troy. The proud king, whom, according to Zeus' verdict, both gods were supposed 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 Laomedont, and Poseidon - a monster that devastated, sparing no one, the vicinity of Troy. Only by sacrificing his daughter's life could Laomedont save his country from a terrible disaster. Against his will, he had to chained his daughter Hesiona to a rock by the sea.
Seeing the unfortunate girl, Hercules volunteered to save her, and for the salvation of Hesiona he demanded from Laomedont as a reward for those horses that Zeus gave 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 a huge mouth, rushed to Hesiona. With a loud cry, Hercules ran out from behind the rampart, rushed at the monster and thrust his double-edged sword deep into his chest. Hercules saved Hesione.
When the son of Zeus demanded the promised reward from Laomedont, the king felt sorry to part with the wondrous horses, he did not give them to Hercules and even drove him out with threats from Troy. Heracles left the possession of Laomedont, holding 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 in number and the hero could not hope to soon seize the impregnable Troy. The great son of Zeus could not stay long under Troy - he had to hurry with the belt of Hippolyta to Mycenae.

Tenth feat: Geryon's Cows

Soon after returning from a campaign in the country 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 oceanis Calliroi, to Mycenae. The path to Geryon was far away. Hercules had to reach the westernmost end of the earth, those places where the radiant sun god Helios descends from the sky at sunset. Hercules set off on a long journey alone. He passed through Africa, through the barren deserts of Libya, through the lands of wild barbarians, and finally reached the limits of the earth. Here he erected two giant stone pillars on both sides of the narrow sea strait as an eternal monument of his feat.
After that, Hercules had to wander a lot until he reached the shores of the gray Ocean. In thought, the hero sat down on the shore by the ever-rustling waters of the Ocean. How was he to reach the island of Erifeia, where Geryon grazed his flocks? It was already late afternoon. Here appeared the chariot of Helios, descending to the waters of the Ocean. The bright rays of Helios blinded Hercules, and an unbearable, scorching heat swept over him. In anger, Hercules jumped up and grabbed his formidable bow, but the bright Helios did not get angry, he smiled at the hero, he liked the extraordinary courage of the great son of Zeus. Helios himself proposed to Hercules to cross to Eritheia in a golden boat, in which the sun god sailed every evening with his horses and chariot from the western to the eastern end of the earth to his golden palace. The delighted hero boldly jumped into the golden boat and quickly reached the shores of Erifeia.
As soon as he landed on the island, he smelled his formidable two-headed dog Orfo and rushed at the hero with a bark. Hercules killed him with one blow of his heavy club. Orfo was not the only one guarding Geryon's herds. Hercules also had to fight with Geryon's shepherd, the giant Eurytion. The son of Zeus quickly coped with the giant and drove the cows of Geryon to the seashore, where the golden boat of Helios stood. Geryon heard the mooing of his cows and went to the herd. Seeing that his dog Orfo and the giant Eurytion were killed, he chased after the thief of the herd and overtook him on the seashore. Geryon was a monstrous giant: he had three bodies, three heads, six arms and six legs. He covered himself with three shields during the battle, he threw three huge spears at once at the enemy. Hercules had to fight with such and such a giant, but the great warrior Athena-Pallas helped him. As soon as Hercules saw him, he immediately shot 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 menacingly waved his all-crushing mace, like lightning, struck the hero Geryon with it, and a three-body giant fell to the ground like a lifeless corpse. Hercules transported Geryon's cows from Eritheia in Helios' golden boat across the stormy Ocean and returned the boat to Helios. Half of the feat was over.

Much work still lay ahead. It was necessary to drive the bulls to Mycenae. Throughout Spain, through the Pyrenees mountains, through Gaul and the Alps, through Italy, Hercules drove the cows. In southern Italy, near the city of Regium, one of the cows escaped from the herd and swam across the strait to Sicily. There, King Eriks, the son of Poseidon, saw her, and took the cow into his flock. Hercules was looking for a cow for a long time. Finally, he asked the god Hephaestus to guard the herd, and he himself crossed over to Sicily and there he found his cow in the herd of King Eriks. The king did not want to return her to Hercules; hoping for his strength, he challenged Hercules to single combat. The winner was to be rewarded with a cow. Eriks could not afford such an enemy 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 him further. On the shores of the Ionian Sea, the goddess Hera sent fury to all the herd. Mad cows scattered in all directions. Only with great difficulty did Hercules catch most of the cows already in Thrace and finally drove them to Eurystheus in Mycenae. Eurystheus sacrificed them to the great goddess Hera.

Eleventh feat: Cerberus (Cerberus)

As soon as Hercules returned to Tiryns, he again sent him to the feat of Eurystheus. This was already the eleventh feat that Hercules was supposed to accomplish in the service of Eurystheus. Hercules had to overcome incredible difficulties during this feat. He was supposed to descend into the gloomy underworld of Hades, full of horrors, and bring to Eurystheus the guardian of the underworld, the terrible hellish dog Cerberus. Kerber had three heads, snakes wriggled around his neck, his tail ended in the head of a dragon with a huge mouth. Hercules went to Laconia and through the gloomy abyss at Tenar descended into the darkness of the underworld. At the very gates of the kingdom of Hades, Hercules saw the heroes Theseus and Periphoes, the king of Thessaly, adhered to the rock. The gods punished them in this way because they wanted to kidnap his wife Persephone from Hades. Theseus prayed to Hercules:
- Oh, great son of Zeus, free me! You see my torment! You alone can rid me of them!
Hercules extended his hand to Theseus and freed him. When he wanted to free Periphoi, the earth trembled, and Hercules realized that the gods did not want his release. Hercules submitted to the will of the gods and went on into the darkness of eternal night. The messenger of the gods Hermes, the guide of the souls of the dead, introduced Hercules to the underworld, and the beloved daughter of Zeus, Pallas Athena, was the companion of the great hero. 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 at the sight of Hercules. She turned with a prayer to the great son of Zeus:
- Oh, great Hercules, for one thing I pray to you in memory of our friendship, have pity on my orphaned sister, beautiful Deianira! She remained defenseless after my death. Take her as your wife, great hero! Be her protector!
Hercules promised to fulfill the request of his friend and went further after Hermes. To meet Hercules, the shadow of the terrible gorgon Medusa rose, she menacingly stretched out her copper arms and flapped her golden wings, snakes moved 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 only an ethereal shadow! She does not 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, in a lion's 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 to Hades, Hercules answered:
- Oh, the ruler of the souls of the dead, the 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 free will, I will not ask you of my own free will. Let me, lord Hades, take your three-headed dog Cerberus to Mycenae. Eurystheus ordered me to do this, whom I serve at the behest of the bright Olympian gods.
Hades answered the hero:
- I will fulfill, son of Zeus, your request; but you must tame Kerber without weapons. If you tame him, then I will allow you to take him to Eurystheus.
For a long time Hercules Kerberus was looking for the underworld. Finally, he found him on the banks of Acheront. Hercules wrapped his hands, strong as steel, around Cerberus's neck. Aida's dog howled menacingly; the whole underworld was filled with his howl. He struggled to escape from the embrace of Hercules, but only tightened his grip on the hero's mighty hands on Cerberus's neck. Kerber wrapped his tail around the hero's legs, the dragon's head dug its teeth into his body, but all in vain. The mighty Hercules squeezed his neck harder and harder. Finally, the half-strangled dog Aida fell at the hero's feet. Hercules tamed him and led him from the kingdom of darkness to Mycenae. Frightened by the daylight of Kerber; he was covered with cold sweat, poisonous foam dripped from his three mouths to the ground; wherever a drop of foam dripped, poisonous herbs grew.
Hercules led to the walls of Mycenae Kerberos. The cowardly Eurystheus was horrified at one glance at the terrible dog. Almost on his knees, he begged Hercules to take back to the kingdom of Hades Cerberus. Hercules fulfilled his request and returned Hades his terrible guard, Kerberus.

Twelfth feat: Apples of the Hesperides

The most difficult feat of Hercules in the service of Eurystheus was his last, twelfth feat. 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 by the Atlas daughters of the Hesperis. These apples grew on a golden tree grown by the goddess of the earth Gaia as a gift great Hera on the day of her wedding to 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 in sleep.
No one knew the path to the Hesperides and Atlas. Hercules wandered for a long time in Asia and Europe, he passed all the countries that he passed earlier on the way for Geryon's cows; everywhere Hercules asked about the path, but no one knew him. In his search, he went to the extreme north, to the river Eridanu, which always rolls its stormy, boundless waters. On the banks of Eridanus, beautiful nymphs met 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 should have attacked the sea prophetic elder Nereus by surprise when he came ashore from the depths of the sea, and learned from him the way to the Hesperides; except for Nereus, no one knew this path. Hercules searched for Nemea for a long time. Finally, he managed to find Nereus on the seashore. Hercules attacked the sea god. The struggle with the sea god was difficult. To free himself from the iron embrace of Hercules, Nereus took all sorts of forms, but still the hero did not let him go. Finally, he tied the weary Nereus, and the sea god had to, in order to gain freedom, reveal to Hercules the secret of the path to the gardens of the Hesperides. 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, nurtured and raised him. Antaeus forced all travelers to fight with him and all those whom he defeated in the struggle, mercilessly killed. The giant demanded that Hercules also fight him. No one could defeat Antaeus in single combat, not knowing the secret from where the giant received more and more strength during the struggle. 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 them from his mother, the great goddess of the earth. But one had only to tear Antaeus off the ground and lift him up into the air, as his strength disappeared. Hercules fought with Antaeus for a long time. several times he knocked him to the ground, but only the strength of Antaeus increased. Suddenly, during the struggle, the mighty Hercules Antaeus lifted high into the air - the strength of the son of Gaia dried up, and Hercules strangled him.
Then Hercules went and came to Egypt. There, tired of 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 Epaph Lysianassa, Busiris, saw the sleeping Hercules, and ordered to tie the sleeping hero. He wanted to sacrifice Hercules to his father Zeus. There was a nine-year crop failure in Egypt; The soothsayer Thrasius, who came from Cyprus, predicted that the crop failure would end only if Busiris annually sacrificed a foreigner to Zeus. Busiris ordered the seizure of the soothsayer Thrasius and was the first to sacrifice him. Since that time, the cruel king sacrificed to the thunderer of all foreigners who came to Egypt. They also brought Hercules to the altar, but the great hero tore the ropes with which he was tied, and killed Busiris himself and his son Amfidamant at the altar. This is how the cruel king of Egypt was punished.
Hercules still had to meet many dangers on his way, until he reached the ends of the earth, where the great titan Atlas stood. The hero looked in amazement at the mighty titan, who held the entire firmament on his broad shoulders.
- Oh, great titan Atlas! - Hercules turned to him, - I am the son of Zeus, Hercules. Eurystheus, king of the 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’ll give you three apples, son of Zeus,” Atlas replied, “you, while I go after them, must take my place and hold the firmament on your shoulders.
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 terribly pressed on the mighty shoulders of Hercules. He bent under the weight of the sky, his muscles swelled like mountains, sweat covered his entire body from tension, but superhuman forces and the help of the goddess Athena enabled him to hold the firmament until Atlas returned with three golden apples. Returning, Atlas said to the hero:
- Here are three apples, Hercules; if you like, I myself will take them to Mycenae, and you hold the firmament until my return; then I will take your place again.
Hercules understood the cunning of Atlas, he realized that he wanted the titan to completely free himself from his hard labor, and used cunning against the cunning.
- Okay, Atlas, I agree! - answered Hercules. “Just let me first make myself a pillow, I’ll put it on my shoulders so that the firmament does not press them so terribly.
Atlas fell back into place and shouldered the weight of the sky. Hercules raised his bow and quiver with 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 whole weight of the sky on my shoulders forever.
With these words, Hercules left the titan, and again Atlas had to hold the heavenly vault on his mighty shoulders, as before. Hercules returned to Eurystheus and gave him the golden apples. Eurystheus gave them to Hercules, and he gave apples to his patroness, the great daughter of Zeus, Pallas Athena. Athena returned the apples to the Hesperides so that they would remain forever in the orchards.
After his twelfth feat, Hercules freed himself from service with Eurystheus. Now he could return to the seven-fold Thebes. But the son of Zeus did not stay there for long. New exploits awaited him. He gave his wife Megara in marriage to his friend Iolaus, and he himself went back to Tiryns.
But not only victories awaited him, Hercules and serious troubles awaited him, since the great goddess Hera was still pursuing him

Ancient Greek culture has left behind a rich heritage. Among the many myths about omnipotent gods and beautiful goddesses, the myth of "12 labors of Hercules" stands out. The son of the god Zeus and Alcmene - the invincible strongman Hercules - became famous for his outstanding exploits when he was in the service of the Mycenaean king Eurystheus.

For better preparation for the literature lesson, we recommend reading the online summary of "The 12 labors of Hercules" by chapters. A brief description of each feat will also come in handy for a reader's diary.

main characters

Hercules- the son of Zeus, a brave and courageous young man, endowed with remarkable strength.

Other characters

Eurystheus- the cowardly king of Mycenae, to whom Hercules was assigned.

Zeus- a powerful god of thunder, the main of the host of the Olympian gods, the father of Hercules.

Athena Pallas- invincible warrior, goddess of wisdom and knowledge, patroness of Hercules.

Hera- the supreme goddess, the wife of Zeus, who, out of jealousy for Hercules, arranged all sorts of intrigues for him.

First feat. Nemean lion

The first assignment of the "weak, cowardly Eurystheus" was the murder of the Nemean lion. It was an incredible size predator, "born of Typhon and the Echidna", which instilled fear in the inhabitants of the city of Nemea.

Hercules obediently went in search of the bloodthirsty lion. He climbed high into the mountains, and wandered for a long time along the wooded slopes and gorges, trying to find the lair of this monster. Finally, he reached the goal of his journey - it was a large cave with two exits, one of which Hercules filled up with fragments of rocks, and he himself "began to wait for the lion, hiding behind the stones."

As dusk approached, "a monstrous lion with a long shaggy mane appeared." One after another, Hercules shot three arrows from his bow at him, but they all bounced off the animal's skin, hard, like steel. The lion growled furiously and prepared to attack. He jumped on his offender, but Hercules managed to get his club and with a powerful blow knocked the lion down. Without hesitating for a second, the hero "threw himself on the lion, grabbed him with his mighty arms and strangled him."

Having loaded the carcass of the lion he had killed, Hercules went to Nemea, where, in memory of his feat, he established the Nemean Games. King Eurystheus, seeing what monster Hercules could overcome with his bare hands, was seriously scared.

Second feat. Lernaean hydra

Eurystheus gave the next task to Hercules - to kill the Lernean hydra. This "monster with the body of a snake and nine dragon heads" was also the offspring of Echidna and Typhon. It was hidden from human eyes in a large swamp near the city of Lerna, and came to the surface only to satisfy its exorbitant appetite.

The hydra's greatest danger was that "one of its heads was immortal." To help in the fight against the invincible monster, Hercules called on Iolaus. Finding the lair of the hydra, Hercules lured her to the surface with red-hot arrows. He fearlessly began to cut off heads one after another, but “in place of each knocked off head” two new ones began to grow at the hydra.

At that moment, a huge cancer crawled out of the swamp, and grabbed the hero's leg with its pincer. Realizing that he could not cope with the two monsters alone, Hercules called Iolaus for help. The young man killed the cancer and began to burn the severed necks of the hydra with fire so that new heads would not grow.

With the last inhuman effort, Hercules defeated the Lernean hydra. He buried the immortal head deeply, and smeared his arrows with the poisonous bile of the hydra. With triumph, Hercules returned to Mycenae, but there he was already waiting for a new task of Eurystheus.

Third feat. Stymphalian birds

Huge bloodthirsty birds, which turned the once rich land into a real desert, became a real torment for the inhabitants of the city of Stymphala. Attacking people and livestock, they mercilessly tore them apart "with their copper claws and beaks." In addition, they deftly wielded sharp copper feathers, which they used, like arrows, dropping on the enemy or victim.

Hercules became thoughtful - the third task of Eurystheus turned out to be very difficult. The goddess Athena Pallas came to the rescue, who advised the hero to go to the nesting site of the Stymphalia birds, loudly strike the magic copper kettledrum, and then shoot the feathered predators from the bow.

Hercules did just that. When he struck the timpani, "there was such a deafening ringing" that the birds in horror rose into the air and began to circle chaotically. Hercules took a bow, poisoned arrows and killed many copper birds, and the survivors left Greece forever.

The fourth feat. Kerinean fallow deer

The next task of Hercules was the capture of the extraordinary Kerinean fallow deer, sent by "the goddess Artemis as punishment to people." Thin-legged, golden-legged, extraordinarily beautiful, this doe rushed through the mountains and valleys like the wind.

For a year, Hercules pursued the elusive doe, and overtook her only after he was wounded in the leg with an arrow. He wanted to go with his valuable booty to Mycenae, but an angry Artemis blocked his way. The goddess was very unhappy that the hero wounded her beloved doe. She took pity on only after Hercules asked for forgiveness for his act, which he did not of his own free will.

Fifth feat. Erymanth boar and the battle with the centaurs

After the fourth feat, Hercules did not enjoy rest for long - Eurystheus ordered him to kill the Erymanthian boar. It was a huge beast, "possessing monstrous strength" and devastating the surroundings of Psophis.

On the way to Mount Erimanthu, where the boar lived, Hercules decided to visit the "wise centaur Fol." To celebrate, Foul made a real feast, opening wine for the dear guest, the wondrous fragrance of which reached the other centaurs. They were terribly angry with Fall for buying off a vessel of valuable wine that belonged to all centaurs and attacking the feasting. However, Hercules was not at a loss, and quickly put to flight the impudent ones who found shelter with Chiron - "the wisest of the centaurs", a close friend of Hercules.

The hero accidentally wounded Chiron with a poisoned arrow, and he, not wanting to die in torment, "voluntarily descended into the dark kingdom of Hades." Suppressed by the curses, Hercules went in search of the Erymanthian bull. He found him in a dense forest, and after a short chase he caught him, tied him tightly and "took him alive to Mycenae." King Eurystheus, seeing the defeated monster, "hid in fear in a large bronze vessel."

The sixth feat. Animal Farm of King Avgius

After a while, Eurystheus instructed Hercules to go to the king Augius - the son of "radiant Helios", who became famous for his innumerable riches. The main pride of Avgius was the numerous herds of beautiful bulls, and Hercules had to "cleanse the entire cattle yard of the dung" of the king.

In turn, the hero offered Augustus a deal - to clean up the entire stockyard in one day in exchange for a tenth of the cattle. Realizing that it was impossible to do this, Augeas agreed. Hercules broke one of the walls of the cattle yard, directed the channels of two neighboring rivers there, and the water "carried away all the manure in one day," after which Hercules laid down the wall again.

When the hero demanded payment from the king, he refused to share his bulls with him. Hercules did not forget the insult inflicted on him, and a few years later he returned to Augius and "killed him with his deadly arrow." He sacrificed part of the rich booty to the gods of Olympus, and organized the famous Olympic Games, which since then have been held by the Greeks every four years.

The seventh feat. Cretan bull

To fulfill the next order of the Mycenaean king, Hercules had to go to the distant island of Crete in order to "bring the Cretan bull to Mycenae."

The king of Crete - Minos - was supposed to sacrifice this mighty bull to Poseidon. The ruler was sorry to part with such a beautiful bull, and he replaced it with another animal. Upon learning of this, Poseidon was terribly angry with Minos, and sent monstrous fury to the bull.

Since then, the cursed bull has been running all over the island, "destroying everything in its path." Local residents scattered in fear, barely seeing columns of dust in the distance, knocked out from under the hooves of an angry bull. And only the strong man Hercules managed to catch him and subdue him to his will. Riding the broad back of the bull, Hercules "swam on it across the sea from Crete to the Peloponnese."

Fearing the anger of Poseidon, Eurystheus did not dare to leave the Cretan bull in his herd, and set him free.

Eighth feat. Horses of diomedes

Having tamed the Cretan bull, Hercules went to Thrace, to the king Diomedes, who had "the wondrous beauty and strength of horses." They were so powerful that in the stalls they were not tied up with fetters, and chained with iron chains. The horses of Diomedes ate exclusively human meat.

Hercules easily took possession of the unusual horses, and led them to his ship. Learning about the loss, Diomedes with his army rushed in pursuit, but the hero managed to win an unequal battle.

When Hercules brought the zealous horses to Eurystheus, he set them free in fright.

The ninth feat. Hippolyta's Belt

The journey "to the land of the Amazons behind the belt of Queen Hippolyta" went down in history as the ninth feat of Hercules. The belt was presented to the queen of the Amazons by the god of war Ares himself, and she highly valued it as a symbol of her power. Upon learning of this, the daughter of Eurystheus was eager to get it. The Mycenaean king, always fulfilling the whims of his daughter, sent Hercules for the belt.

The hero and his faithful companions had to overcome a difficult path to get to the kingdom of the Amazons. However, the fame of his extraordinary exploits reached even such distant lands.

Hippolyta is so fascinated by Hercules that "she was already ready to voluntarily give him the belt." But at that moment, under the guise of an Amazon, Hera appeared, who fiercely hated Hercules, and began to spread rumors that he wanted to kidnap the great queen and "take her as a slave to his home."

Believing Hera, the Amazons rushed to Hercules and his army. Many of them died in a fierce battle. To save her faithful warriors, Hippolyta made peace with Hercules, and gave her belt as an offering.

Tenth feat. Geryon's cows

Returning with a valuable trophy to Mycenae, Hercules received a new task - to drive to the king "the cows of the great Geryon, the son of Chrysaor and the oceanis Calliroi."

The hero set off on a long journey. Before reaching his goal, he had to go "through Africa, through the barren deserts of Libya, through the countries of wild barbarians." Once at the "shores of the gray ocean", the son of Zeus thought about how to get him to the island. At that moment, the chariot of the shining god Helios appeared. The sun's rays blinded the hero, and he, in anger, "grabbed his formidable bow."

However, Helios was not angry with him - on the contrary, he offered to take him to the island on his golden boat. As soon as Hercules set foot on the ground, "the formidable two-headed dog Orfo sensed him and, with a bark, rushed at the hero." Having dealt with the monstrous dog, he began to fight the giant Eurytion, the shepherd of the royal flock.

Hearing the noise of the battle, Geryon himself appeared - a giant who "had three bodies, three heads, six arms and six legs." It was not easy for Hercules to defeat such an enemy, and “the great warrior Athena-Pallas” came to his aid.

Having defeated the three-body giant, Hercules safely ferried the herd across the stormy Ocean in the golden boat of Helios. However, the road to Mycenae was not easy - "the goddess Hera sent rabies to the whole herd." As a result, the cows scattered, and the hero, with great difficulty, managed to collect them back into the herd. When the cows were at Eurystheus, he immediately "sacrificed them to the great goddess Hera."

Eleventh feat. Kerber

Still not resting after the tenth feat, Hercules went to carry out the next order of Eurystheus. He was supposed to descend into the gloomy kingdom of Hades and bring the "terrible hellish dog Cerberus" to the king, who had three heads, and his tail "ended with the head of a dragon with a huge mouth."

Hercules descended into the underworld with the help of Hermes and Pallas Athena. During the journey, the hero saw many horrors before he appeared before the ruler of the kingdom of the dead, Hades, and his wife Persephone. Hercules managed to conquer the gods with his courage and unprecedented strength.

The hero admitted that, against his will, he found himself in a dark kingdom, and was forced to carry out the order of King Eurystheus. Hades graciously allowed Hercules to take Kerber with him, but only if he managed to tame the terrible dog.

Finding Cerberus, Hercules wrapped his mighty arms around his neck and squeezed until the dog was exhausted. Then the hero took him to Eurystheus, but at one glance at the underground monster he began to beg Hercules on his knees to take him back to Hades.

Twelfth feat. Apples of the Hesperides

The most difficult for Hercules was "his last, twelfth feat." Eurystheus instructed him to go to the titan Atlas, who "holds the firmament on his shoulders," and steal three golden apples from his gardens. These magical fruits grew on a golden tree, and were looked after by the titan's daughters - Hesperides.

The task was complicated by the fact that “no one knew the way to the Hesperides and Atlas,” and Hercules had to wander for a long time in Asia and Europe. Taking pity on the son of Zeus, the beautiful nymphs "gave him advice on how to find out the way to the gardens of the Hesperides." To do this, he had to catch the "sea prophetic elder Nereus" by surprise - he alone knew the right path to Atlas and his daughters.

On the way, Hercules had to fight the invincible giant Antaeus, who drew strength from the earth - his mother Gaia. Having solved the secret of Antaeus, Hercules raised him high above the ground. When the enemy ran out of strength, the hero strangled him.

Hercules still had to meet many dangers on his way, before "he reached the end of the earth, where the great titan Atlas stood." He turned with great respect to the titan with a request to take three golden apples from his famous gardens.

Atlas invited Hercules to hold "the firmament on his shoulders" while he went for apples. The hero agreed, and immediately "an incredible weight fell on the shoulders of the son of Zeus." With great difficulty, he held the firmament, his strength was melting before our eyes. Hercules realized that the titan wanted to swap places with him by cunning, and he had no choice but to deceive Atlas himself. He took the apples and went to Mycenae with a clear conscience.

Eurystheus was much surprised that Hercules managed to accomplish such a great feat, and gave him gold blocks. As a token of gratitude, the hero presented them to his patroness, Pallas Athena, and she, in turn, "returned the apples to the Hesperides so that they would remain forever in the gardens."

After the successful completion of the twelfth feat, Hercules "freed himself from service with Eurystheus." New heroic adventures awaited him ahead ...

Conclusion

The greatest hero of Ancient Greece for many years attracted attention not only with brave deeds, but also with the unthinkable suffering that befell him. His courage, endurance and fortitude invariably aroused respect and admiration.

A brief retelling of "The 12 labors of Hercules" will be especially useful in preparation for a literature lesson.

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Twelve labors of Hercules

For a long time and gloriously ruled the golden-rich Mycenae, King Perseus and Queen Andromeda, and the gods sent them a lot of children. The eldest of the sons was named Electrion. Electrion was no longer young when he had to take the throne of his father. The gods did not offend Electrion with their offspring: Electrion had many sons, one better than the other, and only one daughter - the beautiful Alcmene.
It seemed that there was no kingdom in all Hellas more prosperous than the kingdom of Mycenaean. But one day the Tafians attacked the country - fierce sea robbers who lived on the islands at the very entrance to the Gulf of Corinth, where the Aheloy river flows into the sea.
The king of the Tafians was Pterelai, a man endowed with superhuman strength. Poseidon, who was Pterelai's grandfather, gave him a golden hair, which, while growing on the head of the Tafian king, made him invincible.
The land of Argolis groaned from the invasion of these robbers. Tafians burned villages, drove cattle, trampled fields. Electrion sent his sons against them, but they all perished at the hands of Pterelai. One day, Electrion transformed from a blessed father into an unfortunate old man. From former happiness, only the beloved daughter of Alcmena remained.
For a long time already, Amphitryon, king of the neighboring city of Tiryns, had wooed Alcmene, and although he was Alcmene's cousin, such marriages were not prohibited by Hellenic customs. Electrion agreed to give his only daughter in marriage to his nephew, but set a condition: before Alcmene becomes Amphitryon's wife, he must avenge the death of his sons. "First, the death of Pterelai, then the wedding," said Electrion.
Amphitryon immediately set off to battle the Tafian king. But he did not succeed in fighting Pterelai - he had already loaded the loot onto the ships and, raising the sails, went to sea. And the cattle stolen by Pterelai was found: there was so much loot from the Tafians that they had to abandon the cattle.
Amphitryon drove the herd back to Mycenae and called his uncle to count all the returned animals. Electrion began to count. I counted for a long time, got lost and started again. Suddenly one cow, having fought off the herd, wandered towards a steep cliff. "Stop, you foolish creature! You will fall down! You will break your legs!" - Amphitrion shouted and threw a heavy club at her. At the same moment there was a cry of unbearable pain - the club, bouncing off the horns of the cow, hit Electrion right in the forehead. When Amphitryon ran up to his uncle, he was already dead.
Spilled blood stains the murderer, whether the murder was premeditated or not. Expulsion was the mildest punishment for Amphitryon. On the same day, Amphitryon left along the Theban road to seek shelter and purification from the filth of the spilled blood, and Alcmenes, promised to him as a wife, followed.
The Mycenaean throne was orphaned. All the direct heirs of Electrion have gone to the kingdom of shadows. Sfenel, the younger brother of the ingloriously perished Mycenaean king, took advantage of this. He sat on the throne of Mycenae, and then subjugated Tiryns, the city of the exiled Amphitryon, to his power.
Amphitryon himself, and with him Alcmene, found shelter with the king of Boeotian Thebes, Creon. Creon performed a ritual of purification over Amphitryon and invited the exiles to settle in his city forever. But faithful to the oath given to Electrion, Amphitryon, leaving Alcmene in Thebes, set off against Pterelai.
This campaign was long - Pterelai with his golden hair was invincible. Only once did Kometo, the daughter of Pterelai, see her father's sworn enemy from the height of the fortress wall. At first glance, she fell in love with Amphitryon with insane passionate love and decided that for a great service he would not deny her his love. At night, sneaking into her father's chambers, she pulled out his magical golden hair - a guarantee of invincibility. And then the power of Poseidon's grandson left. Not suspecting anything about the betrayal of his daughter, Pterelai went out to single combat with Amphitryon and immediately fell at his hand.
The Tafians saw the death of their king, threw down their weapons, surrendered at the mercy of the victor. And Kometo went out to meet Amphitrion and, proud, began to tell that he owed her victory. Amphitryon looked at her sternly. It was not a fire of love, but a fire of anger that awakened the story of the traitor in his heart. Unable to listen to the speeches of the daughter of Pterelai any longer, Amphitryon said to his soldiers: "Send this parricide to Hades, for she is more guilty than I in the death of King Pterelai."
Immediately, Kometo was executed, and then, having divided the spoils of war, Amphitryon and his soldiers went to Thebes.
Amphitryon did not know that when he was returning home, the ruler of Olympus himself turned his gaze to the beautiful Alcmene. Having assumed the guise of Amphitryon, he appeared in Thebes, and, having convinced Alcmene that her brothers had already been avenged, spent the whole night with her. Alcmene mistook Zeus for her legal husband. She gladly accepted the caresses of the lord of Olympus, listened with bated breath to the story of the victory over Pterelai ...
The next day, Amphitryon, who returned to his home victorious, noticed with surprise that Alcmene was not at all surprised and delighted with his arrival. He asked her: "Why do you greet me as if I had not left home since yesterday?" Alcmena was surprised: "You are meeting? But you came back yesterday! And didn't you spend last night with me?"
The world was clouded in the eyes of Amphitryon: he realized that Alcmene had broken the vow of marital fidelity and inflicted on him the greatest insult that a wife can inflict on her husband.
The law of Hellas was harsh: the wife's unfaithfulness gave her entirely into the hands of her husband - he was free to either execute for treason, or forgive. Alcmene did not feel any guilt for herself, but in fear for her life, she fled to the altar of Zeus - to seek refuge. The right of refuge was sacred: anyone who touched the altar with his hand was considered inviolable. Amphitryon could not violate this divine right. But his anger was so great that he ordered to surround the altar with dry branches and set them on fire. Then Alcmene had one of two options: either voluntarily leave the altar, or suffocate in the flame and smoke of the fire.
When the fire was built, Amphitryon himself brought the torch to it. The fire blazed instantly. But in the next instant, the sky over Thebes turned black with clouds, and pouring rain poured down. The fire was extinguished. Under deafening peals of thunder, three lightning bolts fell right at the feet of Amphitryon.
"This is a sign! The gods do not want Alcmene to die! Call blind Tiresias! Tiresias will interpret the will of the gods!" - shouted the people gathered at the altar. When they brought Tiresias, an old man endowed with a prophetic gift, Alcmenes, standing in front of him, told him about everything that had happened: about the return of Amphitryon, about the night spent with him and his accusations of treason.
Tiresias listened to Alcmene and plunged into deep thought. But then joy lit up his face, and he said: "Amphitryon, give your wife a hand, she is pure before you. Soothsayers are not free to reveal to mortals the secret thoughts of the gods. Know one thing: in the fulfillment of time, Alcmene will give birth to two twin boys. Of these, your son there will be only one. He will be powerful and just like you. The other will be the son of Zeus and surpass all the heroes who lived before him. Hera, his persecutor, will not be able to prevent him from gaining immortality. "
"The persecutor?" - Alcmena asked fearfully.
“Yes,” Tiresias continued, “Zeus’s plans are inaccessible not only to mortals, their meaning is incomprehensible even to the gods. Hera does not know the secrets of fate. She is a strict guardian of monogamy. She does not tolerate the chosen ones of her divine husband, and her anger passes on to the children born by them from Zeus. You cannot escape the wrath of Hera and your son, Alcmene. "

Birth of Hercules

At the top of Olympus, where the reserved garden of the gods is laid out among an impregnable cliff, the celestials feasted under the crowns of evergreen trees.
Zeus looked into the distance, where in distant Boeotia, in the holy city of Thebes, his beloved son was to be born on this day. Favorite favorite.
"Gods and goddesses of Olympus, heed my word," said Zeus, "that baby of my blood, who will soon be born in the offspring of Perseus, will receive from me power over all of Argolis and all the peoples around."
The cup of nectar shook in Hera's hands, and the sacred drink spilled onto the white marble of the banquet table. “I don’t believe your word, Olympian,” she said, “you won’t keep it!” Oh, if Zeus had looked around, he would have noticed the goddess of insanity Ata behind his back. But he didn't look back.
"No, Hera," Zeus replied, "although you are smart, yet a lot is hidden from your mind, and you will in vain contradict me. I will fulfill my word. I swear by the waters of the Styx."
After these words, a barely perceptible smile flashed on Hera's lips - this oath was what she needed. Without answering her husband, she left the banquet table. Hera knew that on this day two women were to give birth: Nikippa, the wife of the king of Mycenae Sfenela, and Alcmene, the wife of Amphitryon. Hera also knew that Alcmene would give birth to twins, two twin boys - one from Zeus, the other from her husband, Amphitryon.
The day, declared by the Thunderer as the birthday of the future greatest hero, was approaching sunset, and with her power Hera delayed the birth of Alcmene and accelerated it to Nikippa.
So, when the chariot of Helios sank into the waters of the Western Sea, a frail baby was born with a plaintive cry - the son of Nikippa, and the twin sons of Alcmene were born when the dawn of the next day dawned.
In the morning the gods of Olympus gathered again at the banquet table. Joy shone in Hera's eyes. She raised the cup of nectar and said: "I congratulate you, my divine husband, yesterday I was born in the house of Sfenel, the son of your son Perseus, the future king of Argolis and all the peoples around him. His parents called him Eurystheus. Look, keep your oath - an oath with terrible water. Styx ".
Zeus understood the insidiousness of his wife. Black haze clouded the bright face of the Thunderbolt. Fearing his anger, they quieted down, expecting a thunderstorm, even the guests - the gods of Olympus. Only Ata giggled viciously behind the ruler of the world.
"It is you, a vile deceiver," exclaimed Zeus, "helped Hera so deftly deceive me! You love with the products of your insidious mind to confuse not only mortals, but also the gods! You dared to deceive even me! But this deception will be your last deception here, on Olympus! "
The Thunderer fell upon the goddess Ata. He threw her from Olympus to earth and forever forbade her to appear among the gods. Then Zeus turned to Hera and said to her: “I know, now you will pursue the son of Alcmene, you will prepare many intrigues for him ... But he will overcome all obstacles, all trials, and your efforts will only magnify him and increase his glory. earthly path, I will take him to Olympus, and you yourself will accept the son of Alcmene into the circle of immortals. "

Childhood of Hercules

Almost a year has passed since the day Alcmene gave birth to her babies. The one who was born first was named Alcides, the second - Iphicles.
The twins-brothers grew up strong and healthy. But Zeus, knowing the bad character of his wife, did not cease to be afraid of the wiles of Hera. "What will Hera come up with to destroy my son from the mortal Alcmene? What can I do so that she cannot harm him? What trick to invent, against her hatred?" - thought the Thunderer.
"We must make Hera the adoptive mother of the future hero," Zeus decided. To do this, he commanded Hermes, secretly, in the middle of the night, to bring the baby to Olympus, and with his own hands laid him on the chest of the sleeping Hera. The baby began to suck with such force that Hera woke up and pushed him away from her. A trickle of milk spread across the sky and became the Milky Way9.
"Little monster!" Cried Hera. "I will not become your nurse! I hate you! I was and will be your persecutor!"
Before dawn, Hermes transported the future great hero of Hellas back to the house of Amphitryon and laid him in the cradle next to his brother Iphicles. When Alcmene got up early in the morning to visit the kids, both of them were sleeping peacefully, and no one in the world except Zeus, Hermes and Hera knew about what happened that night.
A month has passed, maybe two. One evening Alcmene, having washed and fed the twins, laid them under a blanket of sheep's wool on a wide battle shield, which Amphitryon took away from Pterelai in battle.
Soon Amphitryon's house fell asleep. At dead midnight, two huge snakes sent by the Hero silently slipped into the room where the kids slept. From the slippery bodies of the serpent breathed the cold of the kingdom of the dead. Two terrible heads, two mouths, from which long forked tongues protruded with a hiss, bent over the sleeping babies. Feeling the icy breath of the monsters, Iphicles was the first to wake up. From fright, he screamed at the top of his throat, but the snakes needed another victim - they wrapped their rings around the body of Zeus's son and began to strangle him.
At the cry of Iphicles, Alcmene woke up and woke up her husband. "I hear the cry of a child," she said to Amphitryon, "it seems that something terrible is happening to the children!" Amphitryon tore off his sword from the wall and rushed into the children's room. There, huddled in the farthest corner, Iphicles shouted heart-rendingly. Alcides, tightly clutching the snakes strangled by him, proudly showed them to their parents.
While Alcmene calmed the fearful Iphicles, Amphitryon sent for the soothsayer Tiresias. When Tiresias was brought in, Amphitryon and Alcmene, interrupting each other, told him what had happened. "Is it not a sign of the gods that happened, and if so, how can we understand it?" Amphitryon asked the soothsayer.
"No, Amphitryon, this is not a sign, but Hera's hatred for one of your sons," Tiresias replied. his divine spouse and wants his destruction. But Hera is not able to destroy the one whom Zeus himself protects. Hera's anger is the greatness of Hercules. From now on, such a name will bear Alcides, for the name Hercules means "Glorified Hero".
From that day on, Alcides began to be called Hercules. The snakes strangled by him were burned, and the ashes were scattered in the wind, the house desecrated by monsters was fumigated with sulfur smoke and washed with spring water.
When Hercules grew up a little, Amphitryon taught him how to drive a chariot, one of the sons of Hermes - fistfighting, Euryth, the best shooter in Hellas, - the art of bowing.
All these lessons gave young Hercules great pleasure, and he hated only lessons in singing and playing the cithara. Often it was necessary for the singing teacher Lin, who was the brother of Orpheus, to punish his student. Once during a lesson, Lin hit Hercules, annoyed by his unwillingness to learn. In a rage from the offense inflicted on him, Hercules grabbed the cithara and hit Lin on the head with it. The blow was so strong that Lin fell dead.
They called Hercules to court for this murder. Justifying himself, the son of Alcmene said: "After all, the fairest of the judges, Radamant, says that anyone who is hit can return blow for blow." The judges of Hercules were acquitted, but Amphitryon, fearing that something like this would not happen yet, sent him to graze the flocks on the slopes of Citheron.

At the crossroads

Hercules grew up in the forests of Kiferon and became a mighty youth. In height, he was a whole head taller than everyone else, and his strength exceeded human strength. At first glance, one could recognize him as the son of Zeus, especially by his eyes, which shone with an extraordinary divine light. No one was equal to Hercules in athletic competitions, and he mastered the bow and spear so skillfully that he never missed.
While still very young, Hercules killed the formidable lion that lived in the wilds of Kyferon. He stripped off his skin, threw it over his shoulders, like a cloak, and began to wear instead of copper armor. The weapon of Hercules was a huge club, made by him from an ash tree, torn from the roots, as hard as a stone.
Having matured, Hercules defeated the king of the city of Orchomenes Ergin, to whom Thebes paid a large tribute every year. Since then, Orchomenus has paid tribute to Thebes, only twice as large. For this feat, the king of Thebes, Creon, gave Hercules his daughter Megara, and the gods sent him three beautiful sons.
Hercules would happily live in seven-fold Thebes, but Hera was still burning with hatred for the son of Zeus. She sent a terrible illness to Hercules: at times, a sudden insanity took possession of the great hero. Once Hercules, overtaken by such a seizure, killed his sons and brother Iphicles. When the mind returned to Hercules, he fell into deep sorrow. He left Thebes and went to the sacred Delphi to ask the god Apollo how to live on.
When the famous sanctuary of Apollo was no more than half a day away, Hercules overcame a dream. He lay down on the skin of the Kiferon lion in the shade of a hundred-year-old olive tree, and he had a prophetic dream.
Hercules dreamed that he was standing at a crossroads, not knowing which road to choose for him from the two that lay in front of him. Hercules sees: two women are walking towards him, one along the road on the left, the other along the one on the right. One was in a bright motley outfit, her face was whitened and rouged, her lips were tinted, her hair was skillfully braided into many small braids, and gold bracelets tinkled on her arms. The other, with smoothly combed hair, wore a simple white tunic.
The luxuriously dressed beauty walked up to Hercules with a dancing gait, gently took his hands and, looking into his eyes, said: "You doubt, you are thinking, your face is gloomy, your eyebrows are frowned ... Why are you bothering yourself with thoughts? Look at me and smile quickly! Life is beautiful! , there are so many joys in it! Life is a holiday, the only concern is to get as much pleasure as possible: eat deliciously, sleep sweetly and have fun with friends and girlfriends. Happy is the one who lives like a guest at a feast. My name is Nega. Come with me, and you will be happy! Your whole life will pass like a light enchanting dream, and you will leave it with gratitude, as a guest leaves a pleasant meal. "
So spoke the beauty and pulled Hercules along. Fascinated by her beauty, he was ready to follow her. But then another woman, the one who was in strict clothes, turned to him: "Be ashamed!" She said. beautiful - he fights against evil and injustice, he cleans the earth of monsters. Strength and intelligence are given to man to fight. The stronger a man, the more difficult his life. "
“Do you hear?” The beauty laughed. “Go, follow her, and you will not know joy, you will have neither rest nor rest.
“Rest is good after work,” another objected. “Today is a holiday, tomorrow is a feast, and the day after tomorrow, boredom will creep into the heart. just as no one needs a late guest, so no one needs a loafer. Only the one who has not spared his strength, worked all his life, deserves honor in old age and a good memory after death. "
After these words, the woman's face shone with divine light, and Hercules suddenly saw a helmet on her head, a spear in her hand, the head of the gorgon Medusa on her scaly aegis ... "Athena! Is that you? I'm coming after you!" - Hercules exclaimed and woke up.
He lay in the shade of a century-old olive tree on the skin of the Citheron lion. Before him lay the road to the sacred Delphi, to the temple of Apollo. "There are many paths-roads on earth, and there are only two life: the road of Idleness and the road of Labor. I chose my life path," Hercules thought and set off.
In Delphi, the oracle of Apollo, through the lips of the priestess-Pythia, predicted to Hercules that he would gain great glory, gain immortality and a grateful memory for centuries if he performed twelve great feats at the behest of King Eurystheus.
"I am going to Mycenae," Hercules said to his family and friends when he returned to Thebes.
Nobody dared to dissuade him. And Iolaus, the closest friend of Hercules, went with him.

Nemean lion (first feat)

From the day Tsarevich Eurystheus was born, he was surrounded by care and affection. True, nature gave him neither intelligence, nor strength, nor courage, but she gave him no small power. When Sfenel died, still young Eurystheus inherited the power of his father and became the king of all Argolis.

Surrounded by a crowd of courtiers, Eurystheus haughtily received Hercules. “By the oath of Zeus,” he said, “I have been entrusted with power over all of Argolis and, above all, over all the descendants of Perseus, among whom I am the eldest by birth. Everyone serves me as best he can. The gods gave you strength, you will serve me with strength. In our land there is a glorious temple of Zeus in Nemea. But lately pilgrims no longer visit it with the same zeal. They are frightened by the monstrous lion, who chose the Nemean grove as his place of residence. I command you to cleanse the land of Nemea from this uninvited guest. How will you get rid of this monster - your business. But know that the sword and spear will hardly help you, for this lion, begotten by Typhon and the Echidna, is reputed to be invulnerable. " Silently Hercules listened to King Eurystheus, only nodded his head in agreement.
On the same day, leaving Iolaus in Mycenae, Hercules went to Nemea to accomplish his first feat - to kill the Nemean lion.
The land of Nemea met Hercules with silence and desolation: only weeds grew in the fields, the vineyards dried up. So great was the fear of the monstrous lion that the inhabitants of the city were afraid to leave their homes. Hercules tried to find out the way to the lion's den, but heard only one answer: "The lion will find you himself as soon as you enter the forest." People did not believe that a mortal, no matter how powerful a hero he was, could defeat a terrible beast.
For a long time Hercules searched for the lion's den along the wooded slopes and deaf ravines. Only in the evening, hearing a formidable growl emanating from a gloomy cave, Hercules realized: the hour of the duel with the monster had come.
Slowly, angrily moving his eyes and with force whipping himself with his tail on the sides, a huge lion emerged from the cave. At the same time, three arrows of Hercules sang in the air and bounced off the monster's skin, hard as a bronze shell. The lion crouched down, preparing for a fatal jump, but the son of Zeus managed to get ahead of him: as lightning flashed the heavy club of Hercules and its crushing blow fell right into the head of the beast. The lion fell, but immediately got up and threw himself on the chest of Hercules. The mighty hands of Hercules closed on the shaggy lion's neck, squeezed, and released only when the lion was already dead.
The lion's carcass was so large that Hercules did not want to carry it to Mycenae. He tore off the skin of the lion along with his head, threw off the old skin of the Kiferon lion, which he had worn since his early youth, and put on a new skin of the Nemean lion, invulnerable to spears and arrows.
People scattered screaming at the sight of Hercules with a grinning lion's mouth on his head, and King Eurystheus, huddled in the far corner of the throne room, shouted: "Go away! Go away! And henceforth do not dare approach my palace! My orders will be conveyed to you by the herald!"

Lernaean hydra (second feat)

Hercules did not have to rest for a long time after defeating the Nemean lion. Already in the morning of the next day, Kopreus, the herald of Eurystheus, announced to Hercules that, by order of the king, he should go to the source near the city of Lerna, where a ten-headed monster, Hydra, settled in a nearby swamp.
"This time, I hope you will take me with you," Iolaus said to Hercules. "We will go there in a chariot, and I will be your driver."
"I agree, but on condition: you will only be a spectator. I will fight the Hydra one-on-one," Hercules answered him.
Not far from Argos, a source of crystal clear water gushed out of the ground. But a weak stream could not make its way to the river or the sea and spread around in the lowland. The water stagnated, overgrown with reeds, and the valley turned into a swamp. The bright green that always covered the swamp attracted the tired traveler, but as soon as he stepped onto the green lawn, a ten-headed hydra emerged from the bog with hiss and hiss, twisted its long slippery necks around a man, pulled him into the swamp and devoured him.
This hydra was the sister of the Nemean lion, the same monstrous offspring of Typhon and Echidna. In the evening, when the hydra, having had enough, fell asleep, the poisonous breath of its ten mouths rose over the swamp and poisoned the air. Anyone who breathed this air inevitably fell ill, was ill for a long time and died. Therefore, people tried not to approach the swamp, especially to settle near this terrible place.
At the hour when Hercules and Iolaus reached the Lernaean swamp, Hydra was full and dozing. To lure the monster out of the bog, Hercules began to shoot burning arrows into the middle of the swamp, lighting their ends with a torch held by Iolaus. Teasing Hydra, he forced her to crawl out of the swamp. With a cold tail covered with a fetid ooze, Hydra wrapped around the leg of Hercules and all ten heads hissed around him at once. Hercules wrapped himself more tightly in a lion's skin, a reliable protector from poisonous teeth and snake stings, took out his sword and began to chop one by one the terrible heads of Hydra.
But as soon as black blood flowed from the wound, two new ones grew in place of the severed head, even more vicious, even more terrible. Soon Hercules was surrounded by hissing heads like a living bush, and they all reached out to him, opening mouths splashing with poison.
Hercules could not budge - one of his legs was in the ring of a snake's tail, the other was stuck in the swamp slush. His hand was already tired of chopping off more and more heads of Hydra. Suddenly Hercules felt a sharp pain in his right leg and, bending down, saw a cancer, which dug into his heel with a claw. Hercules laughed: "Two against one? It's not fair! The fight is not equal. Now I have the right to call a friend for help! Help me, Iolaus! Burn the wound with fire as soon as my sword blows off the head of this creature!"

Iolaus didn't force himself to ask a second time. Hydra's head flew off - Iolaus burned the wound with a torch. And where the fire touched the decapitated neck, a new head did not grow. Soon the last head of the Hydra fell into the swamp. But she didn't want to die. Her severed heads opened their mouths, moved with evil eyes and spat poisonous black blood.
The body of the Hydra and many of her severed heads Hercules carried out of the swamp and buried deep in the ground. Then he dipped the tips of his arrows in the black blood of the Hydra, and they became deadly.
On the way back to Mycenae, Iolaus asked his mighty friend: "Aren't you proud, Hercules, of your victories? Your great-grandfather Perseus, the conqueror of the Gorgon Medusa, said that mortals die not only from a lack of strength, but also from its excess." Hercules just laughed back.

Kerinean Doe (third feat)

For a whole year after the extermination of the Lernaean hydra, Hercules and Iolaus enjoyed peace in Mycenae, amusing themselves with hunting and competitions. When the year passed, Koprey appeared to Hercules.
“Listen to the new order of King Eurystheus,” he said to Hercules. “A deer with golden horns and copper hooves began to appear on the slopes of the Arcadian mountains. seeing people, the doe in the blink of an eye hides in an impenetrable forest. Bring this doe alive to King Eurystheus. For the conqueror of the Nemean lion and the Lernaean hydra, it will be simple fun to do. "
With these words Koprey left.
Hercules thought. “Catching the Kerinean doe is more difficult than defeating the Nemean lion and exterminating the Lernaean hydra,” he said to Iolaus. “I have heard many stories about this doe. She is the sacred animal of the hunter goddess Artemis. That is why Eurystheus ordered to catch the doe, but not kill her. He fears the wrath of Artemis. Get ready, Iolaus, on a long journey. We will carry out this order of Eurystheus. "
And Hercules went with Iolaus to the wild mountains of Arcadia. Hercules did not take either his heavy club or a bow with poisonous arrows, but he took with him a strong ax and a sharp knife.
The impregnable mountain slopes of Arcadia, overgrown with impenetrable forest, were the main obstacle on the path of true friends. They cut through glades, fell trees and threw them over deep abysses, punched steps on steep cliffs, climbing higher and higher. Snow avalanches showered them with icy dust, storm clouds rushed right over their heads ...
Once, when the first rays of the rising sun painted a pale pink color of snow on a mountain peak, Hercules saw a doe with golden horns. "Look, here it is, the Kerinean doe," Hercules whispered to Iolaus.
The doe stood so close that it would have been easy to kill her, but they had to take her alive. It seemed to Hercules that the doe was looking at him with a sneer: try, catch me, catch me, if you can.
But as soon as Hercules moved, the deer rushed away faster than the wind. How could the hero miss her? What labors and hardships it cost to search for this doe! Hercules rushed after her in pursuit. All day he chased the elusive animal, then the second, the third ... Iolaus was somewhere far behind. And the deer, not knowing fatigue, rushed through the mountains, across the plains, jumped over precipices, swam across rivers, running farther and farther north - to the country of Hyperboreans. At the head of the river Istr, the doe finally stopped and looked again directly into the eyes of her pursuer. Only this time I saw Hercules in her eyes reproachful.
For a long time they stood against each other - a mighty hero and a swift-footed animal. Then Hercules took a step, another, coming closer and closer to the doe. Now they are separated by the distance of the outstretched hand: it remains only to grab the doe by the horns. But the doe, jumping to the side, again rushed like an arrow fired from a bow, now back to the south.
And again the chase began across the plains and forests. Hercules guessed: the doe aspires to its native mountains of Arcadia, under the protection of its patroness Artemis. Hercules was desperate - Artemis would not give him the sacred animal, but the Thunderer's son could not stop, give up in pursuit.
Thrace, Thessaly, Boeotia were left behind, and the pursuit continued. The mountains of Arcadia were very close when the doe submitted to Hercules: maybe her strength left her, or maybe she realized that it was impossible to escape from fate. Heracles tied the golden-horned doe, put it on his shoulders and went slowly to Mycenae.
Suddenly, on the forest path, a beautiful maiden appeared in front of him in a short light tunic, with a hunting bow in her hands and a quiver over her shoulders. Her face was angry, her eyes sparkled with indignation. With a commanding gesture, she stopped Hercules and said: "O greedy mortals! Are there not enough roads and fields in wide valleys for you? Why are you breaking the silence of my reserved forest? What wrong has this helpless doe done to you, man?"
Hercules recognized the beautiful maiden - Artemis the hunter.
“Do not be angry with me, goddess!” He answered her. “I did not come here of my own free will. Whether you are a goddess or not, sooner or later people will come to these heights. It is so beautiful here, you can see far around here, the air is clean here, and the man himself, having risen here, will become cleaner and better. "
The goddess's gaze softened. She went to the tied doe, gently patted it and said: "Well, Hercules, go your own way. I will not take your prey from you. And you, friend, will soon return to me!" With these words, Artemis disappeared, as if she had disappeared into thin air.
Arriving in Mycenae, Hercules, at the special request of Eurystheus, showed him the Kerinean doe - the cowardly king was not afraid of the doe. "Take it to yourself, Hercules. You can fry it and eat it. I don't need this doe," said Eurystheus.
Hercules remembered the words of Artemis: "Soon you will return to me!" To fulfill these words, he sacrificed the deer to the goddess-hunter.

Erymanthian Boar (fourth feat)

Both in summer and in autumn, when the harvest ripens in the fields, the peasants who lived at the foot of Mount Erimanth looked anxiously at their plots in the morning and each time they found traces of terrible devastation: the land was dug up, the crops were trampled down and uprooted, and the fruits in the orchards crushed by someone's brute force.
People said that on the slopes of the mountain, covered with a dense oak forest, a wild boar settled, which at night came down from the mountain and devastated the fields. But his fangs and hooves were so terrible that no one dared to go into the forest and kill the beast.
And for the fourth time Koprey appeared to Hercules and gave him another order from Eurystheus: to catch the Erymanthian boar.
“Catching the Erymanthian boar is not a tricky thing,” Hercules said to Iolaus when Koprey left, “but it’s not easy to get to him: centaurs block the approaches to Erimanth, and it’s harder to get through the possessions of these unbridled, lawless half-humans, half-horses, than to catch some wild boar ".
"Where did these centaurs come from?" Iolaus asked.
"I tell you, friend, that I know about them ... Once upon a time there lived the king of the Lapith tribe Ixion," Hercules began the story. "Ixion was the first among mortals to desecrate himself with kindred blood. A pit full of hot coals. A terrible death was accepted by Dioineus. For cleansing Ixion turned to Zeus himself, and Zeus not only cleansed the killer, but also brought him closer to his throne. There, on Olympus, the mortal Ixion began to seek the love of Hera, the divine wife of the greatest of To find out the limit of the dishonor of Ixion, Zeus gave the appearance of Hera to Tuche-Nephele, who had stopped over Olympus. From this lawless union of the imaginary Hera and Ixion, the lawless centaurs went. So the dishonor of the king of the Lapiths was proved. By the verdict of Zeus, Ixion was thrown into the most gloomy ones. depths of Hades and forever chained to the ever-spinning wheel of fire, while cruel, merciless centaurs, having moved from Thessaly to the north of the Peloponnese, still live near Mount Erimanth. and to all this lawless brotherhood, only the wise centaur Chiron, who possesses the gift of immortality, and the hospitable centaur Foul are friendly to people, and the rest are just waiting for an opportunity to trample anyone who walks on two legs with their hooves. Here I have to fight with them. "
"We have to fight," Iolaus corrected Hercules.
"No, my friend, you will have to stay," Hercules objected. "I can handle the centaurs alone."
For many days Hercules walked to Mount Erymanth to fulfill the fourth order of Eurystheus. Several times he saw from afar herds of centaurs racing madly, as if in a fit of madness. Some gods know on what day of the journey Hercules saw a cave, in front of which an elderly centaur was standing extremely calmly and calmly.
"Who are you, daredevil, not afraid to wander into our domain?" The centaur asked.
"I am a royal hunter," Hercules replied. "The king ordered me to get a wild boar that lives on this mountain. Can you tell me how to find it?"
"Oh, this boar is very annoying for us, the inhabitants of this mountain. I will show you his trail. But first, be my guest. My name is Foul. I, unlike my brethren, respect the law of hospitality. Come into my cave, I will pour you a cup of good wine. "
Hercules accepted the invitation of Fola, and, calling his name, entered the centaur's dwelling. Immediately a huge wineskin was opened and the bowls raised. The fragrance of the wondrous wine spread far away. Other centaurs smelled this fragrance and descended upon the cave of Fol. They were terribly angry with Fool for opening a wineskin for a man with the coveted wine. Threatening death to Hercules, they demanded that he leave the cave and surrender.
Hercules was not afraid. From the depths of the cave, he began to hurl burning brands from the hearth at the centaurs. "Call Chiron! Chiron here!" Shouted the centaurs. Hercules was surprised: is the wise Chiron among this herd? He left the cave to greet the noble centaur, and at the same moment stones were thrown at the son of Zeus, which were thrown at him by half-horse-half-people mad with anger.
What was left for Hercules to do? He drew on his bow striking without a miss and began to shoot arrows at the centaurs poisoned by the blood of the Lernaean hydra.
One by one, dead centaurs fell to the ground. The Cloud-Nephela took pity on her children, it poured down a torrential rain. It is easy for four-legged centaurs to jump on wet soil, but Hercules slipped, and for the first time his arrow flew past the target. The hero aimed at the most ferocious and strongest centaur, but hit an old, gray-haired one standing at a distance, who did not take part in the battle. The centaurs heard the woeful groan of their wounded comrade and fled. The battle is over. Everything calmed down, only the wounded old centaur was barely audible groaning. Foul, hiding there, came out of the cave.
"Gods! It's Chiron!" He shouted when he saw the wounded centaur.
"Chiron? - asked Hercules. - Oh, what have I done! I was so eager to meet you, the wisest of the wise, I so wanted to listen to your speeches. And now - I see you dying, and I am your killer!"
"An involuntary killer," Chiron replied, "and I absolve you of the blame. Only one thing is bad: I am the son of Cronus and the nymph Filyra, a centaur who absorbed immortality with his mother's milk. I cannot die, but the poison of the Lernaean hydra, which the arrow was impregnated with, that wounded me, brings me unbearable suffering. Can it really last forever? Gods, well, let me die! I return you my immortality and I pray you: take my life and let my voluntary death be a guarantee of the release of the just titan Prometheus.22 There is no guilt for Prometheus. ! Great Zeus! Calm down your unrighteous anger! "
These were the last words of the wise Chiron. The ground shook. Zeus heard Chiron's prayer. Peace spread over the face of the wounded and his breathing stopped.
Foul and Hercules carried the body of the dead Chiron into the cave. Foul took an arrow from his wound. “How does this little piece of wood strike to death?” Foul asked. "Carefully!" - shouted Hercules. But it was too late: Foul dropped an arrow, and it stuck in his leg. The centaur opened his mouth to cry out in pain, but without even gasping, he fell down dead.
Hercules carried the killed centaurs into the cave, filled it with a large stone, like a tomb, and headed into the thicket of the Erymanthian forest.
He tracked down the boar without difficulty, caught it, took it to Mycenae and showed it to Koprey. Eurystheus did not even want to look at the prey of Hercules. As soon as he heard the roar of the Erymanthian boar, the cowardly king hid in a large copper vessel for water.
Hercules laughed, ordered the boar to roast and arrange a treat for the people.

Stimphalian birds (Fifth feat)

The death of Chiron and his voluntary departure from life shocked Hercules. He never left the house, conducting an endless conversation with Iolaus about two worlds: the world of the living and the world of the dead.
“What is the meaning of life? What is its Truth?” Hercules Iolaus asked, and answered himself. “Living life fights the dead, and this is the whole truth - in their struggle. and sadness. In the world of dead life there is no Truth - there is only oblivion. I am mortal, but there is thought in me. Is it not she who fights death? But to fight, strength is needed. Is not thought power? Does not thought conquer both great and The higher the thought, the stronger. Thought feeds on knowledge, and knowledge always serves people - otherwise it dies. But what do I know? My knowledge is no more than a spark in the radiance of a star rain. When this spark goes out, the truth for me will disappear, and darkness will come. "
"Or maybe the darkness is also the truth?" Iolaus asked.
So the friends talked day and night.
One evening, their conversation was interrupted by Koprey, who appeared with a new order from Eurystheus.
“The king,” said Koprey, “instead of another feat, he invites you, Hercules, to hunt wild ducks or something like that. There was a rumor that birds called Stimfalids were bred on Lake Stimfal. You must shoot them - that's all.” ...
When the herald of Eurystheus left, Hercules said to Iolaus: "I also heard about these birds. These are the birds of Ares, the god of war. They have copper beaks and claws. But their main strength is not in their beaks and claws, but in the copper feathers that they throw, like arrows, and killing people with them, they feed on human flesh. And yet I think that the real danger for us is not in the copper-fin Stimfalids, but in what we will see. "
"You said it well," Iolaus replied, "I see that you want to take me with you!"

Stimfalskoe lake lay, although in Arcadia, but not far from the borders of Argolis. After two days of travel, Hercules and Iolaus came to a gloomy hollow, at the bottom of which Lake Stimfalskoe glittered.
Everything around was deserted and wild: bare stones, no grass, no flower, no tree. The wind did not stir the ripples of the smooth surface of the lake, the lizard did not bask in the sun. There was dead silence.
Hercules and Iolaus sat down on stones near the water and silently looked at the motionless lake. Longing attacked them, fatigue bound their body, it became difficult to breathe.
"Something is wrong with me," Hercules said. "It's hard for me to breathe, and the bow falls out of my hands ... This lake breathes with the poisonous haze of the underworld. I feel the musty air of the kingdom of the dead ... Oh, Zeus! Let me die not here, but on some mountain peak! "
“The dream of death is taking possession of me too,” Iolaus whispered under his breath.
Suddenly, a simple wooden rattle fell from the sky at Iolaus's feet, which peasants chase birds from gardens and orchards. She was sent by Athena, a wise mentor and helper of people. Iolaus grabbed her and began to shake her. She crackled loudly over the sleeping lake, and the echo multiplied the noise she made a hundredfold. And then a huge bird rose from the poplar grove, followed by another, a third, many ... In a long line, blocking the sun, they glided over the smooth surface of Lake Stymphalian. Another moment and a hail of sharp copper feathers fell on the shore, where Hercules was sitting with his friend.
It is good that Hercules did not part with his cloak made of the skin of the Nemean lion - he managed to cover himself with it and cover Iolaus. The deadly feathers of Stemphalides were now fearless. Hercules grabbed his bow and from under his cloak began to hit the monstrous birds one after another.
Many Stymphalides, slain by the arrows of Hercules, fell into the black waters of the lake. Now it was no longer calm, the water bubbled in it, white steam rose to the sky. The surviving birds soared under the clouds and disappeared from sight. In fear, they flew far beyond the borders of Hellas - to the shores of the Euxine Pontus and never returned.
“We’ll get away from here sooner before we are once again clouded with poisonous haze,” said Hercules and, throwing Athena's rattle into the boiling water, walked away.
The further the friends went from the sworn place, the more cheerful they felt. But for a long time a strange languor and aching bones reminded them of the deadly breath of Lake Stimfalskoye.

Augean stables (sixth feat)

The Stimphalian birds were the last offspring of monsters in the Peloponnese, and since the power of Eurystheus did not extend beyond the borders of the Peloponnesus, Hercules decided that his service to the king was over.
But the mighty power of Hercules did not allow him to live in idleness. He longed for exploits and was even delighted when Koprey appeared to him.
"Eurystheus," said the herald, "commands you to cleanse the stables of the Elid king Augean from the manure in one day."
"You should have been entrusted with this business," Iolaus grumbled. "By the way, you have a suitable name."
"You mustn't insult the herald," Hercules interrupted him sternly.
Augeus really owned countless herds of fine horses. They grazed in the fertile valley of the Alpheus, and the stables, which had not been cleaned in years, were full of dung.
Hercules came to Elis and said to Augeas: "If you give me a tenth of your horses, I will clear the stables in one day."
Augeas laughed: he thought that the stables could not be cleaned at all. "One tenth of my herds are yours, Hercules," agreed Augeas, "but if tomorrow morning all the stables are clean."
Hercules demanded that they give him a shovel, and Augeas ordered to bring it to the hero. "How long will you have to work with this shovel!" - he said. "Only one day," Hercules answered and went to the coast of Alpheus.
For half a day, Hercules worked diligently with a shovel. He dammed the river bed and led its waters directly to the royal stables. By the evening, the rapid stream of Alfey carried away all the manure from the stables, and together with the manure both stalls, feeders, and even dilapidated walls.
"Do not seek, king, - said Hercules, - I cleared your stables not only from manure, but also from everything that has long rotted away. I did more than I promised. Now you give me what you promised."
Augeas was greedy, he did not want to give up his horses. He ordered his two nephews to ambush Hercules and kill him. How could two mere mortals cope with the son of Zeus! And the ambush set up by them did not help - the nephews of Augius fell at the hands of Hercules.
Great was Hercules' indignation at the treachery of the Elide king. "It is impossible, punishing the instrument of the crime, to leave the culprit unpunished," thought Hercules.
Having dispersed the palace guards, Hercules killed Avgius in an honest duel. The inhabitants of Elis began to ask the victor to take the throne of Avgius and become their king. But Hercules indignantly rejected this request. “I slayed Avgius,” he said, “not in order to take possession of his kingdom. There is a son of Avgius who has not done anything wrong before the gods. Let him rule over you. Before I leave, I want to make a grateful sacrifice to Olympian Zeus and to establish games in his honor. Let from now on and until the end of time, every four years athletes from all over Hellas gather here for competitions. And may, while the Olympic Games are on, peace reigns on earth. "

Cretan bull (seventh feat)

Six times Hercules has already returned to Mycenae and, by order of Ephrisfeus, set off on a journey full of dangers. He did six glorious deeds: he killed the Nemean lion, destroyed the Lernean hydra, caught the Kerinean doe, defeated the Erymanthian boar, drove the Stimphalian birds out of Hellas, and cleared the stables of King Augean in one day.
Days dragged on for days, and Eurystheus seemed to have forgotten about the existence of Hercules. Once a messenger came to Hercules from Jason, the son of the Iolkian king, who was robbed of power over the city of Iolcus by his relative Pelias.
“My lord Jason,” the messenger said, “is gathering the most brave heroes of Hellas to go with them by sea to the end of the world, to Colchis, for the skin of a golden fleece. The king of Colchis, Eet, does not rightfully own this rune. - a matter of valor and honor. Do you accept Iason's invitation? "
“Damn this service to the cowardly Eurystheus!” Hercules cried out. “I'm not a slave to him!
So Hercules came to the Thessalian Iolk. The best sons of Hellas have already gathered there to set off on a sturdy high-speed ship called "Argo" to the kingdom of Eeta.
When the "Argo" passed the middle of the way to distant Colchis, a misfortune happened: Gilas, the youngest among the Argonauts and a great friend of Hercules, disappeared.
For a long time Hercules was looking for his favorite on the inhospitable coast, where the Argonauts landed to replenish their supplies of fresh water, but he never found him. Saddened by the loss of a friend, Hercules refused to sail further with the Argonauts and returned to Mycenae.

And there a new order from Eurystheus awaited him: to tame the Cretan bull and deliver it to Argolis. This bull once sailed to the island of Crete, and the Cretan king Minos promised the god of the seas Poseidon to sacrifice the bull to him. But Minos liked the snow-white bull with golden horns so much that the king kept him for himself, and sacrificed another bull to Poseidon. The god of the sea was angry and sent fury to the golden-horned handsome man. A mad bull broke out of the stall, fled from the royal court and became a thunderstorm for the whole island.
Having received the order of Eurystheus, Hercules went to the seashore and boarded a Phoenician ship heading for Crete.
It was the intrigues of Hera or the dictates of fate, but as soon as the ship went out into the open sea, a fierce storm flew in. For a long time the ship was rushing among the raging waves until it crashed on the shore of a foreign unfamiliar country.
Here trees grew that looked like bunches of large feathers: thick stems emerged right from the trunk, on which leaves swayed, so large that a person could hide under everyone.
Hercules and his surviving companions walked along the coast along the hot yellow sand and came to a large city by the sea. "You are in Egypt," said the inhabitants of the city, "and Egypt is ruled by the great Busiris, a mighty and formidable king."
Hercules asked to take him to the king. But as soon as he entered the palace, he was seized and chained.
"You came on time, stranger," the ruler of Egypt told him. "Today is a holiday in my country, and I will sacrifice you and your companions to our gods."
"The gods do not accept human sacrifice," Hercules objected to him.
Busiris laughed: "Not one hundred years in Egypt they sacrifice all foreigners, and the gods have not yet become angry with us. We, the Egyptians, have surpassed all nations in piety, and it is not for you to teach us."
When Hercules was brought to the altar and a priest in a long white robe raised a sacrificial knife over him, the mighty son of Zeus easily broke the chains with which he was chained. With a piece of chain, he hit the priest, threw the royal guard, then took away the sword from Busiris and stabbed the cruel king.
Struck by the strength of the hero, the Egyptians did not dare to touch him. Hercules freed his companions and hurried with them to the harbor. There they found a ship that, for a modest fee, took them to Crete.
The very feat for which he was sent was not difficult for Hercules. Having met with a mad Cretan bull, Hercules jumped on his back, wrapped a chain around his horns and pulled it tight. The bull tried in vain to throw off an unexpected burden from his back - Hercules sat firmly, squeezing his ribs more and more with his legs. Lowing pitifully, the bull ran to the sea, rushed into the waves and swam. At sea, the rage left him, and he became as meek as a working ox in the field. Guided by the hand of Hercules, the bull swam across the sea to the Peloponnese.
Hercules himself took the bull to the barnyard of Eurystheus. But the shepherds could not keep him in the stable. The bull broke free and went for a walk throughout the Peloponnese, not giving in to anyone, until he was caught by young Theseus, the son of the Athenian king Aegeus.

Horses of Diomedes (eighth feat)

And again he ordered Eurystheus to set off on a long journey, this time to the north - to Thrace. "You must take the horses away from the Thracian king Diomedes and drive them to Mycenae," said Koprey, "this is the new order of the king."
Hercules was indignant: "I am not a robber, not a thief! Fighting evil is my lot, and Eurystheus makes me commit an evil deed!"
"Calm down, Hercules! By abducting horses you will not stain your honor, for these horses are cannibals. Diomedes feeds them with human meat, and to stop this blasphemy is a godly deed," said Koprey and left.
I had to obey Hercules. With a heavy heart, he set off on the road, deciding that the path to Thrace was long, and he would have time to think about what to do.
Hercules came first to the seven-fold Thebes, the city in which he was born, visited the old king Creon and his former friends. Then he moved on through Thermopylae to Thessaly. Here he was warmly received by Admet, the king of the city of Fera. He ordered to prepare a room for Hercules in the palace and treat the guest well, but for some reason he himself refused to take part in the meal.
Hercules did not know that on that day great sorrow befell the house of Admetus: Admet's wife, Queen Alkesta, died prematurely. And it happened like this ...
When Apollo killed the monstrous serpent Python, spawned by Gaia, Zeus ordered the radiant god to serve a mortal for a whole year and thus atone for the filth of shed blood. Apollo came to King Admet and grazed his flocks for a whole year. Happiness came to the king's house: the fields gave a bountiful harvest, the herds multiplied. But more precious than all the riches was the young queen Alkesta, whom Apollo helped Admetus get to be his wife.
Alcesta's father, the ruler Iolka Pelius, announced that he would give his daughter only to the one who came for the bride in a chariot drawn by a lion and a bear. Apollo tamed the wild beasts - they obediently harnessed themselves to the chariot and took Admet to Alcesta's father. Alkesta became the wife of Admet.
There was no happier married couple in all Hellas than Admet and Alkesta. When the service life of Apollo, the god of light, ended, he wanted to make another gift to Admet. At the request of Apollo Moira, the goddess of fate who hold in their hands the thread of every human life, they agreed to postpone Admet's death hour if there is a person who wants to voluntarily leave this life instead of Admet.
And then came the day when the death demon Thanatos came for Admet. Moira was asked: "Who wants to die instead of Admet? .." But neither friends, nor faithful servants, nor elderly parents - no one wanted to part with their life and die for another.
Then the beautiful Alkesta said: "Admet! I will gladly go to the kingdom of the dead instead of you. All the same, I cannot live in this world without you. Live, Admet, but never bring another woman into our house. And now let Thanatos come for me. ". Immediately a black shadow fell on the queen's face, and her breath stopped.
They dressed Alcesta in clean white clothes, laid her on a stretcher and carried her body to the royal tomb. For a long time, her husband, her children and close relatives stood at the body of Alkesta, looking for the last time at the face of his dearest person. Then they closed the stone doors of the royal tomb and left.
And Hercules at this time, in a cool, clean room, was eating exquisite food alone. The old servant who served him wine looked at him sternly and sadly.
“Why are you looking at me so sternly?” Hercules asked. “Your master has accepted me as a friend, but you look at me as an enemy.” But the old servant shook his head reproachfully and said: "It is not good to laugh and drink when there is grief in the house."
Hercules was surprised: "Woe? What happened in this happy house?" And he heard in response that Admet's wife had died, and at this hour Thanatos must take her shadow to the abode of Hades. Then Hercules decided on an unprecedented task: to snatch Alkesta from the hands of the demon of death.
Night had already fallen to the ground. Hercules, unnoticed, left the palace and quietly made his way to the royal tomb. There he hid behind a tree and waited. And then the flapping of the black wings of Thanatos was heard, who flew to the tomb to drink the sacrificial blood and carry the pale shadow of the deceased to the underworld. Hercules prepared for a battle with the very demon of death.
As soon as Thanatos sank to the ground, Hercules grabbed him with his mighty hands, and a merciless struggle began between them: Hercules was strangling Thanatos, Thanatos was strangling Hercules. The coldness of death blows from the demon's wings, the forces of Hercules leave, but Thanatos also weakens, wheezing with an intercepted throat.
Stronger than the demon of death was the son of Zeus. Thanatos pleaded: "Let me go, mortal! What ransom do you want for my freedom!" "Give life back to Alkeste," Hercules replied. And the half-strangled Thanatos croaked: "I agree ..".
Admet sat alone in his empty house. All his happiness was stolen by Thanatos. What could be more difficult for him than the loss of his beloved wife. "It would be better if I died with her," thought Admet, "our shadows would cross the underground rivers together, and Hades would get two shadows instead of one."
Admet's sorrowful thoughts were interrupted by Hercules who suddenly entered. A woman entered with him, covered from head to toe with a thick veil.
"Enough, Admet," said Hercules, "rejoice, it's enough for you to indulge in sorrow. Look what woman I brought you! I got her for you in a duel. She will make you happy again."
"Take away, Hercules, this woman from my house," answered Admet. "I promised Alkeste that I would never take another wife for myself."
Then Hercules took off the veil from the woman, and Admet saw Alcesta. He rushed to her, but stopped in fear: after all, he himself closed the doors of her tomb ...
"Do not be afraid," Hercules reassured him. "She is alive, Thanatos gave her to me, and I return her to you. Live and be happy for many years!"
"Oh, the great son of Zeus! - exclaimed Admet. - You have returned to me the joy of life! How can I thank you? Remain forever an honored guest in my house! I will command in all my possessions to celebrate your victory!"
"Thank you for your hospitality," Hercules replied. "I would have stayed with you for another day or two. But ... Oh, those horses of Diomedes!"
The fun replaced the sadness. In Admet's house, they took off their mourning clothes and feasted merrily, and Hercules was already walking on, pleased that he had managed to make Admet happy.
Having reached the sea, Hercules boarded a ship and reached the coast of Thrace by sea. On the way, he learned a lot about Diomedes' horses. When an unfamiliar ship approached the Thracian shores, Diomedes sent his servants to invite visitors to visit. He generously treated them and bragged about his four miraculous horses, said that no one can bridle them, and therefore they are chained to stalls with strong chains. Of course, the guests expressed a desire to see extraordinary horses. Then the cruel king took guests to the stables and gave them to his favorites to be eaten.
Now all the doubts of Hercules were dispelled: ridding the world of the man-eating horses and the bloodthirsty king was a deed worthy of a hero.
Hercules came to the palace of Diomedes and demanded that the king give him the horses voluntarily. But Diomedes sent a whole army against Hercules. The hero easily scattered this army, and gave Diomedes himself to be devoured by his own man-eating horses. Then he loaded the horses onto the ship and delivered them safely to King Eurystheus. Eurystheus ordered to take the horses to the Lyceum mountains, and release them in the forest. There, wild animals were torn to pieces by man-eating horses.

Hippolyta's Belt (ninth feat)

King Eurystheus had a young daughter, Admet. One day she came to her father and said: "They say that far in the east there is a kingdom where women rule. Armed with arrows, they gallop on war horses and fight bravely against their enemies. They call themselves Amazons, despise men and are proud of their invincibility. My patroness Hera revealed to me that all the power of the Amazons is hidden in a simple leather belt, which the god of war Ares gave to his daughter, the queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta. While she wears this belt, no one can defeat her, and with her all the Amazons. Father! I want to be invincible like this woman, and reign without sharing power with anyone. I want to get the belt of Hippolyta! "
So there was another thing for Hercules worthy of his strength and courage. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to go for the belt of the queen of the Amazons.
Far is the way to the land of the Amazons. To reach the kingdom of Hippolyta, it was necessary to cross the Middle Sea to its eastern shores, and there, passing through two narrow straits, sail further east along the waters of another sea - Pontus Euxine. Where the hot river Fermodont flows into the Euxine Sea, there is Themiscira - the main city of the country of the Amazons.
Hercules equipped the ship, invited his faithful friends with him - Iolaus, the Athenian prince Theseus and others. On the appointed day, Hercules' ship set sail and went to sea.
The first anchorage of the ship was on the island of Paros, where the sons of the Cretan king Minos ruled. On this island, the sons of Minos killed two companions of Hercules. Hercules got angry with the princes. He killed many inhabitants of Paros, while others drove into the city and kept them under siege until the besieged ambassadors were sent to Hercules with a request that he take any two inhabitants of the city instead of the killed companions. Then Hercules lifted the siege and took the grandsons of Minos Alkeus and Sfenelus instead of those killed.
From Paros, Hercules arrived in Mysia to the king Likus, who received him with great hospitality. In gratitude, Hercules helped Lik to defeat the tribe of lawless bebriks, with whom Lik had been at enmity for a long time.
Further, the path of the ship ran to Troy. The Trojan kingdom was ruled at that time by Laomedont, one of the most arrogant kings, who despised even the gods. Once he decided to strengthen the already impregnable Trojan walls. To test the Trojan king, Apollo and Poseidon offered him their help for a very small fee. For a whole year, like simple bricklayers, the gods worked, strengthening the fortress walls of Troy, but they did not receive the promised reward. The arrogant king even threatened to cut off their ears if they demanded payment for their work. Then the angry Apollo sent a plague to the possessions of Laomedont, and Poseidon - a monster that devastated, sparing no one, the vicinity of Troy. The king called the soothsayers, and they announced to him: "Give your beloved daughter Hesion to be devoured by a monster, and the gods will tame their wrath." It was necessary for Laomedont, at the request of the people, to leave young Hesiona on the shore, tightly tying her to the sea cliff.
Here Hercules saw Hesion when his ship approached the Trojan coast. He took off the fetters from the young maiden, doomed to a terrible death, and took her to her father. "I return to you, king, your beloved daughter. On the way to your palace, I learned that she is an atoning sacrifice for your arrogance. And do not you regret giving your beloved child to be devoured by the sea monster? I would like to fight this monster, and, if my strength is enough, defeat him. And I ask for a small fee: only four good horses. "
Laomedont gladly accepted the offer of Hercules, and promised not ordinary horses as a reward, but immortals, whom he received from Zeus as a ransom for the son of Ganymede, carried away by the Thunderer to Olympus.
Hercules went to the seashore. He began to wait for the monster to come out of the sea. I waited all day. Only in the evening did the monster crawl out onto land. It opened its gigantic mouth and rushed at Hercules. And Hercules only needed this: he himself jumped into the throat of the monster and began to strike with a sharp sword from within his insatiable womb.

The monster died. Hercules got out of his womb, washed off the disgusting thick mucus from himself with sea water and went for the promised reward.
"A dead monster lies on the shore," Hercules said to Laomedont. "Go, look at him, if you want. Where are your four immortal horses?"
The Trojan king laughed: “Why do you need horses, Hercules?
“Okay, - restraining his anger, Hercules answered, - I really have a ship, and soon I will return on it to continue the conversation with you about what can be called good and what is bad.”
And again the ship of Hercules went to sea. His path lay through the narrow strait separating Europe from Asia, through the Hellespont to the stormy Pontus of Euxine.
This part of the journey was well known to Hercules: he passed here with Jason in the high-speed "Argo". But then the death of his favorite, young Hilas, forced Hercules to return halfway back to Mycenae.
Hercules looked sadly at the shore, where his young friend disappeared. And the ship, cutting through the green waves, quickly raced farther and farther east.
Finally, the fresh wind of the Euxine Pontus, tirelessly filling the sail, brought the ship of Hercules to the mouth of the river, swirling with steam. This was Fermodont. From here it was already a stone's throw to the capital of the Amazons, Themiscira.
The gates of Themiscira were locked when Hercules approached the city with a small detachment. The gate was guarded by an Amazon guard in a leather helmet, a short tunic, a small, moon-like shield in her hands and an ax with two semicircular blades.
"Why did you, foreigners, come to our land? What do you need in the kingdom of women warriors?" The guard asked.
"Not of my own free will I came here with my friends," Hercules answered her. "King Mycenaeus Eurystheus sent me. His daughter Admeta wants to own your queen's belt. If your queen gives me this belt, I will serve her any service."
"The queen will be reported about this, - said the guard, - wait."
Soon a detachment of horsemen marched out of the city gates. It was Queen Hippolyta with her inner circle. “Who needs my belt? Isn't it you, bearded giant?” Hippolyta asked, turning to Hercules. get it, but only in battle. "
Without another word, Hippolyta turned her horse around and headed into the city, followed by her armed detachment. Only the closest friend of Hippolyta, the beautiful Antiope, hesitated a little: she could not take her eyes off the stately companion of Hercules, the Athenian prince Theseus.
Like an indomitable forest fire, love for Theseus flared up in Antiope's heart. She knew that the Amazons were invincible as long as Hippolyta was in possession of the coveted belt, she knew that a battle with aliens was inevitable and that Theseus would inevitably die in this battle.
Late at night, Antiope made her way to the camp of Hercules, quietly entered Theseus' tent and put at his feet the belt of Hippolyta that she had stolen from her.
And early in the morning, a battle broke out under the walls of Themiscira. Like a whirlwind, the Amazons flew into the camp of Hercules. Ahead of all was the most impetuous of the Amazons, Aela. It was with her that Hercules fought. Reflecting her onslaught, he put her to flight and struck with a sword. Another Amazon, Protoe, slain seven companions of Hercules, but she herself fell at the hands of the son of Zeus. Then three Amazons attacked Hercules at once, three magnificent hunters, whom Artemis herself took with her to hunt - they had no equal in javelin throwing. Three spears flew at once at Hercules, but they all missed the mark.
Fear seized the Amazons. "Woe to us! Where is your belt, Hippolyta!" They shouted.
A pang of conscience squeezed the heart of Antiope, who betrayed her friends, but love for Theseus defeated all other feelings in her.
With despair in her soul, Queen Hippolyta rushed into the thick of the battle. She knew that her cherished belt was in the hands of the enemy. Hercules struck her with his arrow.
Seeing the death of their queen, the Amazons fled. Many of them were taken prisoner, many were killed.
Hercules gave the captive Antiope to Theseus. Here the reason for such an easy victory over the Amazons was revealed. "Take, friend, the belt of Hippolyta," Theseus said to Hercules, "and say thank you to my captive Antiope." Hercules did not answer, for there was something dishonest in the victory over the Amazons. "
In Mycenae, Hercules gave the belt of Hippolyta to Eurystheus, and he gave it to his daughter Admeta, but she was afraid to own it. "May this divine belt return to the gods," decided Admeta and gave it to the temple of Hera, as a gift to the goddess.
Hercules did not forget the insult inflicted on him by Laomedont. Now, having executed the next order of Eurystheus, Hercules decided that it was time to take revenge on the Trojan king for his treachery. With a small retinue, he landed on the Trojan coast. After a short siege, proud Troy fell. Laomedont and his sons were put to death, except for the youngest named Podark. "I give life to the last of the Trojan kings," said Hercules, "but first he must be sold as a slave." When the Gift was put up for sale, his sister Hesiona, rescued by Hercules from the sea monster, ransomed her brother, giving him a gilded veil that adorned her head. So Podark received the name Priam, which means "bought". By the will of fate, he really turned out to be the last Trojan king.

Geryon's Herd (tenth feat)

Hercules did not have to wait long for a new order from Eurystheus. This time he was to go west, where the sun chariot descends in the evening, to the Crimson Island in the middle of the ocean, where the three-headed giant Geryon grazes his herd of purple cows. The king ordered to drive these cows to Mycenae.
And Hercules went to the sunset. He passed many countries and finally came to high mountains at the end of the earth, and began to look for an outlet to the ocean. High granite mountains stood in a continuous impenetrable ridge. Then Hercules loosened two huge steep slopes and pushed them apart. Water gushed between them, and it was the water of the Ocean. The sea that lay in the middle of the earth and which people call the Mediterranean joined the Ocean. They still stand there on the shore of the strait, like two stone guards, huge, majestic Hercules Pillars.
Hercules passed through the mountains and saw the endless ocean surface. Somewhere in the middle of the ocean lay the Crimson Island - the island of the three-headed Geryon. But where is the place where the sun goes beyond the boundless waters of the gray ocean?
Hercules waited for the evening, sees: the ancient titan - Helios-Sun - descends on his fiery chariot drawn by four horses. He scorched the body of Hercules with unbearable heat. "Hey! - shouted Hercules to the titan, - don't you want to incinerate me with your rays! Beware, I am the son of Zeus! From my arrows and the gods lose their immortality!" Heracles drew a bow, put an arrow on it and aimed at the solar titan. Instantly freshened up around, Hercules lowered the onion - again the heat began to grow.
The unbearable light made Hercules close his eyes, and when he opened them, he saw Helios standing nearby. "I see now that you are really the son of Zeus, - said Helios, - courage in you beyond human measure. I will help you. Sit in my golden boat, and do not be afraid of my heat, you will not burn with fire, unless your skin turns black a little."
A huge golden boat, similar to a bowl, received the solar titan with his chariot and Hercules.
Soon an island appeared among the waves - indeed Crimson. Everything on it was painted purple-red: rocks, sand, trunks and foliage of trees ...
"Here it is, the island of Erifia, - said Helios. - This is the goal of your path. Farewell, Hercules, I must hurry. During the night I have to go around the whole earth, so that in the morning, as always, ascend to heaven in the east."
Hercules went ashore, and a dark night enveloped him, - Helios sailed away in a golden boat on his eternal road further. And Hercules lay down on the ground, covered himself with a lion's skin and fell asleep.
He slept soundly and woke up only in the morning from a hoarse barking. Above him stood a huge shaggy dog ​​with hair the color of fresh blood and barked ferociously. "Take him, Orff, rip his throat!" Hercules heard, and the dog immediately rushed at him.
The cudgel of Hercules was always at his fingertips - one swing, and the monstrous dog, spawned by Typhon and the Echidna, rolled on the ground with his head pierced. But then a new adversary appeared - a huge shepherd. His hair, beard, face, clothes, like everything on this island, were fiery red. He brandished his shepherd's stick and, spewing curses, attacked Hercules. This fight was not long. The son of Zeus hit the shepherd in the chest, so much so that he laid him dead next to the killed dog.
Now Hercules could and look around. He saw a herd at the edge of the forest: the cows were red, and the bulls were black. They were guarded by another shepherd, but with a black face, black beard and black clothes. Hercules did not have to fight with him: at the sight of the hero, he rushed off into the forest with a cry.
Only one enemy remained with Hercules - the three-headed giant Geryon. From behind the forest, a terrible triple roar was heard, the owner of the herd himself was in a hurry to the pasture.
Hercules has never seen such a monster! Three bodies were fused in it: three pairs of arms, three pairs of legs, three heads, and only one belly was common - a huge one, like a wine vat at folk games. Quickly moving his legs, like a giant insect, he rushed to Hercules.
Hercules raised his bow - an arrow soaked in the poison of the Lernaean hydra whistled, pierced Geryon's middle chest, and his middle head bent, and two hands hung helplessly. The first arrow was followed by a second, followed by a third. But Geryon was still alive - the blood of his huge body slowly absorbed the poison. Like three lightning bolts, Hercules struck three crushing blows on Geryon's heads, and only then did he come to an end.

The feat was accomplished. It remained to bring the herd to Mycenae. Near the killed shepherd, Hercules found a pipe, put it to his lips, played, and the herd obediently followed him to the ocean shore.
In the evening, when Helios sailed to the shore on a golden boat, Hercules asked him to transport him with the herd to the mainland. “How can I do this?” - Helios was surprised. “What will people say when they see the sun coming back? your intercessor Pallas Athena. "
And so Hercules did. He swam the Ocean to the east, to the coast big land And he drove the herd of Geryon through the mountains, through foreign countries - to Mycenae. An arduous path lay before him.
When Hercules drove the herd through Italy, one of the cows fell into the sea, but did not drown, but, having crossed the stormy strait, got out to the opposite shore, the shore of the smoky island of Trinacria. The king of the island, Eric, was incredibly happy to see a cow of such an unusual red color and decided to keep it for himself. Hercules, however, left the herd in the care of Hephaestus, whom Athena sent to help her pet and, having moved to the island, began to demand the cow back. King Eric did not want to return the priceless cow. He offered Hercules a duel, and a cow was to be the winner's reward. This single combat did not last long. Defeated Hercules Eric, returned with the cow to the herd and drove him on.
Many more difficulties awaited Hercules on the way back: the robber Cacus, who lived on the Avetino hill, stole part of the herd and hid it in his cave, but Hercules killed him and returned the stolen cows; here, in Italy, he killed another robber named Croton and said over his body that the time would come when a great city named after him would arise on this place.
Finally Hercules reached the shores of the Ionian Sea. The end of the arduous journey was near, the native land of Hellas was very close. However, where the Adriatic Gulf protrudes most into the land, Hera sent a gadfly to the herd. As if the whole herd was enraged by his bites, bulls and cows rushed to run, Hercules followed them. The chase continued for days and nights. Epirus and Thrace were left behind, and a herd was lost in the endless Scythian steppe.
For a long time Hercules searched for the missing animals, but he could not find even a trace of them. One cold night, he wrapped himself in a lion's skin and fell fast asleep on the side of a rocky hill. Through a dream he heard an insinuating voice: "Hercules ... Hercules ... I have your flock ... Do you want me to return it to you ..."
Hercules woke up and saw in the ghostly moonlight a half-virgin-half-snake: her head and body were female, and instead of legs - a snake body.
“I know you,” Hercules said to her. “You are Echidna, daughter of Tartarus and Gaia.
"I do not hold a grudge against you, Hercules," replied Echidna, "not by your will, but by the will of fate, my children died. But be fair, hero, because your hand, even if directed by fate, took their lives. So give them in return for the three you killed, three alive. Become my spouse only for one night! Let me give birth to three sons from you! For this I will return your flock to you. " Hercules nodded his head in agreement: "Only for one night ..."
In the morning, Echidna returned the herd to Hercules safe and sound - not a single cow, not a single bull was missing.
"What should I do with three sons, whom I already carry in my womb," Echidna asked. "When they grow big," Hercules replied, "give them my bow and belt. If any of them bend my bow and girdle like I do, then appoint him as ruler of this vast country."
Having said this, Hercules gave Echidna his bow and belt. Then he played the shepherd's flute and went his own way. Behind him obediently walked and Geryon's herd.
Echidna named the triplets that were born on time as Agathirs, Gelon and Scythians. Only the Scythian managed to pull the bow of his father, and only he was fitted with the belt of Hercules. He became the lord of the free, green Black Sea steppes, giving this land his name - Great Scythia.
Hercules returned to Mycenae. He fulfilled the tenth order of Eurystheus with dignity. But, as before, Eurystheus did not even want to look at the cows and bulls of Geryon. By his order, the whole flock was sacrificed to the goddess Hera.

Apples of the Hesperides (eleventh feat)

Long ago, when the gods celebrated the wedding of Zeus and Hera on the bright Olympus, Gaia-Earth gave the bride a magic tree on which golden apples grew. These apples had the ability to restore youth. But none of the people knew where the garden was, where the wonderful apple tree was growing. It was rumored that this garden belongs to the Hesperid nymphs and is located at the very edge of the earth, where the titan Atlas holds the firmament on his shoulders, and the gigantic hundred-headed serpent Ladon, born of the sea deity Forcy and the titanide Keto, guards the apple tree with the golden fruits of youth.
While Hercules wandered the earth, fulfilling the orders of the king, Eurystheus became older and weaker every day. He was already beginning to fear that Hercules would take away his power and become king himself. So Eurystheus decided to send Hercules for golden apples in the hope that he would not return from such and such a distance - he would either perish on the way, or perish in a fight with Ladon.
As always, Eurystheus conveyed his order through the herald Koprey. Heracles Koprey listened, silently threw a lion's skin over his shoulders, took a bow with arrows and a faithful companion, a club, and once again set off on the road.
Again Hercules went through all of Hellas, all of Thrace, visited the country of Hyperboreans and finally came to the distant river Eridanus. The nymphs who lived on the banks of this river were filled with pity for the wandering hero and advised him to turn to the prophetic sea elder Nereus, who knew everything in the world. "If not the wise old man Nereus, then no one can show you the way," the nymphs said to Hercules.
Hercules went to the sea, began to call Nereus. The waves poured onto the shore, and on the frisky dolphins, the cheerful Nereids, the daughters of the sea elder, emerged from the depths of the sea, and behind them appeared Nereus himself with a long gray beard. "What do you want from me, mortal?" - asked Nereus. "Show me the way to the garden of the Hesperides, where, according to rumors, an apple tree with the golden fruits of youth grows," Hercules asked.
So Nereus answered the hero: "I know everything, I see everything that is hidden from the eyes of people - but I don't tell everyone about that. And I won't tell you anything. Go, mortal, on your way." Hercules got angry, and with the words "you will say, old man, when I lightly squeeze you," he grabbed Nereus with his mighty arms.
In an instant, the sea elder turned into a big fish and slipped out of the embrace of Hercules. Hercules stepped on the tail of the fish - she hissed and turned into a snake. Hercules grabbed the snake - it turned into fire. Heracles scooped up water from the sea, wanted to pour the fire - the fire turned into water, and the water ran to the sea, to its native element.
Yes, it's not so easy to leave the son of Zeus! Hercules dug a hole in the sand and he blocked the water's path to the sea. And the water suddenly rose like a pillar and became a tree. Heracles waved his sword, wanted to cut down a tree - the tree turned into a white bird-seagull.
What was there left to do for Hercules? He raised his bow and drew the string. It was then, frightened by the deadly arrow, Nereus obeyed. He took on his original appearance and said: "You are strong, mortal, and brave beyond human measure. All the secrets of the world can be revealed to such a hero. Listen to me and remember. The path to the garden in which an apple tree with golden fruits grows lies across the sea in the heat Libya. Then follow the sea coast to the west until you reach the end of the earth. There you will see the titan Atlant, who has been holding the firmament on his shoulders for a thousand years - so he is punished for rebellion against Zeus. The garden of the Hesperides-nymphs is nearby. In that garden what you are looking for. But how to pick the cherished apples for you - decide for yourself. The hundred-headed snake Ladon will not let you get close to Hera's apple tree. "
“Accept my gratitude, prophetic old man, - Hercules said to Nerei, - but I want to ask you for one more service: take me to the other side of the sea.
Nereus scraped his gray beard and, with a sigh, offered Hercules his back.
On the same day, at noon, Hercules found himself in sultry Libya. For a long time he wandered along the loose sands under the burning rays of the sun and met a giant as tall as a ship's mast.
"Stop!" Shouted the giant. "What do you want in my wilderness?"
"I go to the ends of the world, looking for the garden of the Hesperides, where the tree of youth grows," Hercules replied.
The giant blocked the way to Hercules. “I am the master here,” he said menacingly. “I am Antaeus, the son of Gaia-Earth. I don’t let anyone pass through my possessions. And the giant pointed to a pile of skulls and bones, half buried in sand.
Hercules had to fight with the son of the Earth. Hercules and Antaeus attacked each other at once, clasped their hands. Antaeus was huge, heavy and strong as a stone, but Hercules turned out to be more agile: having contrived, he threw Antaeus to the ground and pressed him to the sand. But as if Antaeus's forces had multiplied tenfold, he threw Hercules off of himself like a feather, and hand-to-hand combat began again. For the second time, Hercules knocked over Antaeus, and again the son of the Earth easily rose, as if he had gained strength from the fall ... Hercules was surprised at the giant's strength, but before he met him for the third time in a mortal duel, he realized: Antaeus is the son of the Earth, she, mother- Gaia gives her son new strength every time he touches her.
The outcome of the duel was now a foregone conclusion. Hercules, grasping Antaeus tightly, lifted him up above the ground and held him like that until he suffocated in his arms.
Now the path to the garden of the Hesperides was clear. Hercules reached the edge of the world without interference, where the sky touches the earth. Here he saw the titan Atlant propping up the firmament with his shoulders.

"Who are you and why did you come here?" - Atlas asked Hercules.
"I need apples from the tree of youth that grows in the garden of the Hesperides," Hercules replied.
Atlas laughed: "You cannot get these apples. They are guarded by a hundred-headed dragon. He does not sleep day or night and does not let anyone near the tree. But I can help you: after all, the Hesperides are my daughters. You just stand in my place and hold heaven, and I'll go and get some apples. Will three be enough for you? "
Hercules agreed, put his weapon and lion's skin on the ground, stood next to the titan and put his shoulders under the firmament. Atlas straightened his tired back and went for the golden apples.
The crystal dome of the sky fell on the shoulders of Hercules with a terrible weight, but he stood like an indestructible rock and waited ...
Finally Atlas returned. Three golden apples sparkled in his hands. “Who should I give them to?” He asked. “Tell me, I’ll go and give it. I so want to walk on the ground. How tired I am of standing here at the end of the world and holding this hard sky! I am glad that I have found myself a replacement.”
"Wait," Hercules said calmly, "let me just put the lion's skin on my shoulders. Put the apples on the ground and hold the sky until I get comfortable."
Apparently not far off was the mind of the titan Atlas. He put the apples on the ground and again lifted the sky onto his shoulders. And Hercules picked up the golden apples, wrapped himself in a lion's skin, bowed to Atlanta and left without even looking back.
Hercules continued to walk even when night fell to the ground. He hurried to Mycenae, anticipating that the end of his service to King Eurystheus was coming. Stars were falling from the night sky. It was Atlas who was shaking the firmament in anger at Hercules.
"Here, Eurystheus, I brought you the apples of the Hesperides. Now you can become young again," said Hercules, returning to Mycenae.
Eurystheus extended his hands to the golden apples, but immediately pulled it back. He was scared. "These are Hera's apples," he thought, "what if she will punish me if I eat them."
Eurystheus stamped his feet. "Get lost with these apples!" He shouted at Hercules. "Get out of my palace! You can throw these apples away!"
Hercules left. He walked home and wondered what to do with the apples of youth. Suddenly, the goddess of wisdom Athena appeared before him. "Wisdom is more precious than youth" - as if someone whispered to him. Hercules handed the apples to Athena, she took them with a smile and disappeared.

The Taming of Cerberus (twelfth feat)

A few days later, a herald entered the house of Hercules and said: "King Eurystheus sends you a new, this time the last order. Fulfill it - and you are free. You must go down to the kingdom of Hades and bring the three-headed dog Cerberus, the guardian of the underworld, to Mycenae."
This order was worth eleven previous ones. Descend into the realm of the dead, tame the monstrous dog and return to earth alive? This is hardly possible even for the son of Zeus! Hercules bypassed the whole earth from east to west, fought with monsters and fierce robbers, paved the way to the extreme reaches of the earth and swam across the ocean with the Sun. Now he had to go where no mortal had ever come back — to the land of the dead.
"I will drag Cerberus on a rope, like a homeless dog, right to the palace, but after that I am no longer a servant of Eurystheus," Hercules said to the king's herald and, banging his mighty fist on the table, set off on the road.
Hercules walked, looked at the blooming land, at the blue sea, at the whole warm, sunny world, and longing squeezed his heart. It is frightening for the living to leave at will to the kingdom of the dead!
Hercules reached the very south of the Peloponnese, here in the Tenar cave, was the entrance to the abode of Hades. He found Tenara's cave and began to descend into the depths of the earth along the bed of an underground river. Suddenly, behind his back, he heard light steps. Hercules looked back and in the whitish gloom he saw Hermes, the winged messenger of Zeus.
"The Lord of Olympus has commissioned me to be your guide, Hercules," said Hermes. He took the hero by the hand, and together they began to descend deeper and deeper into the womb of Gaia.
Soon, in the swirling vapors of the earthly breath, they saw a white rock.
“This is Leukada,” Hermes explained, “the river of Oblivion, quiet Lethe flows under it. On the rock, the shadows of the dead leave memories of their earthly life, and Lethe covers them with water. Only after drinking sacrificial blood, the shadows of the dead can remember for a short time who they and what happened to them when they lived in the world of the living.
The River of Oblivion flowed into another, muddy, muddy river Acheron. A fragile wooden canoe stood on its shore, and a sullen, bearded carrier was waiting for the newcomers.
"Hello, Charon!" Said Hermes.
Charon silently pointed to a spot in the boat. Hermes, followed by Hercules, entered the boat, and the water rumbled softly under her keel.
On the other side was a grove of black poplars. The shadows of the dead darted uneasily among the trees. Their movements were disorderly, they collided with each other like a crowd of suddenly blind people.
“These are the shadows of people, over whose bodies no funeral rite has been performed,” whispered Hermes.
Behind the poplar grove was a wall with brass gates. They were wide open, and in front of them sat a gigantic three-headed dog - the guardian of the underworld.

The dog wagged its tail quite amiably and, like an ordinary yard dog, shook its six ears. Only the tangle of small black snakes that grew on his back instead of wool hissed and stuck out their forked tongues, and the dragon's head at the end of its tail bared its sharp teeth.
"He did not sense in you, Hercules, his mortal enemy, - said Hermes, - however, he shows complacency to everyone who comes in. But to those who try to leave, he is merciless."
Outside the gate lay a vast meadow overgrown with pale yellow flowers. A host of shadows hovered over the meadow. Their pale, ghostly faces expressed neither joy nor suffering. Hercules recognized many, but no one recognized him.
Behind the meadow appeared the palace of the ruler of the kingdom of the dead, Hades and his wife Persephone. But Hermes led Hercules to a turbulent stream rustling nearby.
"This is a river called Styx, - said Hermes, - the oath by the waters of this river is terrible even for the gods. It plunges into the depths of the earth, into Tartarus, the most terrible place even here, in the kingdom of Hades." No mortal has seen what I am going to show you now. "
Hermes caught Hercules, and in smooth circles they sank to the very bottom of the abyss. Complete darkness reigned here, the space around was only occasionally illuminated by a crimson light, like a reflection of a distant fire.
"We are in the bowels of the kingdom of Hades," Hermes continued, "to an abyss of torment. Here those who have stained themselves with crimes and unrighteous life are suffering. Look: Sisyphus is rolling a heavy stone uphill from Corinth. His work is meaningless - at the very top the stone will break off. and roll down, and Sisyphus, exhausted, drenched in sweat, again rolls him to the top. And so - forever. And there is Tantalus, who was once the favorite of the gods and the happiest of mortals. He stands up to his throat in water. His lips are blackened with thirst, but he will never be able to get drunk: as soon as he bends down to the water, the water will disappear. Look, Hercules, tell people about what you saw when you return to earth. Let them know that there is no crime without retribution for it. "
After these words, Hermes again grabbed the camp of Hercules with his hand, and they found themselves in front of the copper doors, which had turned green from time to time, of the palace of the ruler of the kingdom of the dead, Hades.
"Now I must leave you, - said Hermes. You must accomplish your last feat in the service of King Eurystheus without my help." In his winged sandals, Hermes soared into the air and quickly disappeared from sight.
And Hercules raised a club, with which he never parted, and hit it on the brass doors. They shuddered, but withstood the blow. Gathering all his strength, Hercules struck a second time - the rumble was heard throughout the underworld, but the copper doors still stood unshakably. For the third time, Hercules lowered a heavy club along the alignments - the clang of broken locks was heard, and the doors swung open.
Hercules entered the palace chambers and saw Hades himself, the lord of the kingdom of the dead, and his wife Persephone. They sat on two gilded thrones and looked in amazement at a living person. Hercules, majestic and calm, fearlessly stood before them, leaning on his huge club.
"A man in a lion's skin, with a club and a bow over his shoulders? Yes, it is not otherwise Hercules, the son of Zeus, has come to us," - said Hades. - What do you want? Ask. I will not deny you anything. You are my nephew after all, after all. "
"Oh, ruler of the kingdom of the dead," answered Hercules, "do not be angry with me for my invasion! And I have only one request: give me the dog Cerberus. I must take him to King Eurystheus. This is his last order. I will carry it out - and I will be free. ".
"I let you take Cerberus to the ground," Hades said, "if he lets you out of here and if you take him without weapons, with your bare hands."
Heracles thanked Aida and went back to the gate, which was guarded by Cerberus. They were now closed. Cerberus slept in front of them, laying all three of his heads on the black road.
Hearing Hercules' footsteps, Cerberus woke up, jumped up, growled and rushed swiftly at Hercules. Hercules put forward his left hand, wrapped in a lion's skin, and with his right grabbed the dog by the neck. Cerberus howled, his wild howl spread throughout the underworld. With the teeth of all three heads, he dug into the lion's skin, the snakes on the dog's back began to spit poison, and the dragon's head, growing at the tip of his tail, snapped sharp teeth at Hercules' bare feet.
And Hercules did not feel pain. He tightly squeezed the dog's neck and dragged him along with him to the river bank, to the ferry. There, on the shore, the half-strangled Kerber fell to the ground, his three tongues fell out of his mouths, the snake's heads drooped, and the evil eyes of the dragon's head closed. Hercules threw a chain around the dog's neck, pulled it twice, and the terrible dog got up and dutifully dragged himself along after the winner.
The carrier Charon was horrified when he saw Hercules leading Cerberus on the chain. "Take me to the other side, old man," Hercules said to Charon. "And don't think that I stole this dog: Hades allowed me to take the dog to the ground."
The old carrier did not dare to contradict Hercules. Dangerously avoiding Cerberus, he put Hercules in the boat and nimbly worked the oars.
Having crossed the Acheron River, Hercules went on the already familiar road to the Oblivion River. Cerberus, head down to the ground, minced dejectedly beside him.
So they reached the meadow overgrown with yellow flowers. The exit to the ground, to warmth and light, was very close. Suddenly Hercules heard a plaintive groan: "Stop, friend Hercules, help!"
Hercules sees: two people have grown to the granite rock. He recognized one at once. It was Theseus, the Athenian prince, with whom they once sailed to Colchis, for the golden fleece, and mined Hippolyta's belt. Another, completely exhausted, Hercules recognized with difficulty. It was Peyrita, king of Thessaly. He was never a friend of Hercules, but they still knew each other.
“Oh, great son of Zeus,” Theseus continued to moan. “Free us. Pride brought us to great torment. We dared to take away his wife from Hades himself and now we pay for it. We have been standing here for more than one year, adhered to this rock. Hades punished us for our insolence. Free us! There is no more strength to stand here, neither alive nor dead. "
Hercules extended his hand to Theseus - the rock cracked and Theseus freed. Hercules extended his hand to Peyrito - the earth shook, and Hercules realized that the gods did not want his release. Heracles obeyed the will of the gods and went with the liberated Theseus to the earth, to the warmth and the sun.
When the exit to the ground was very close, Cerberus began to squeal pitifully and almost crawled after Hercules. And when they went out into the open space, the sun's rays blinded the underground guard, he trembled, yellow foam dripped from his mouths, and wherever it fell to the ground, poisonous grass grew.
Theseus, gray-haired, bent over like a hundred-year-old man, went to his native Athens, and Hercules - in the other direction, to Mycenae, which he hated.
In Mycenae, Hercules, as promised, brought Cerberus directly to the royal palace. Eurystheus came to indescribable horror at one glance at the terrible dog.
Hercules laughed, looking at the cowardly king. "Well, run, come back and wait for Eurystheus at the copper gates of Hades," said Hercules and took off the chain from Cerberus. And the dog in an instant rushed back to the kingdom of the dead.
Thus ended the service of Hercules to King Eurystheus. But the hero was waiting for new feats and new tests.

In slavery to Queen Omphale

Freed from service to King Eurystheus, Hercules returned to Thebes. Here he gave his wife Megara to his faithful friend Iolaus, explaining his act by the fact that his marriage to Megara was accompanied by unfavorable omens. In fact, the reason that prompted Hercules to part with Megara was different: between the spouses stood the shadows of their common children, whom Hercules killed many years ago in a fit of insanity.
In the hope of finding family happiness, Hercules began to look for a new wife. He heard that Eurytus, the one who taught the young Hercules the art of bowing, offers his daughter Iola as wife to someone who surpasses him in accuracy.
Hercules went to Eurytus and easily defeated him in the competition. Such an outcome annoyed Evryta immensely. After drinking a fair amount of wine for greater confidence, he said to Hercules: "I don't trust my daughter to such a villain like you. Or did you not kill your children from Megara? Besides, you are a slave of Eurystheus and deserve only beating from a free man."
Hercules left Evryta, did not take revenge on him for the offensive words: one way or another, but they were still true.
Soon after, twelve strong-legged mares disappeared from Evryta. They were stolen by the famous thief and swindler Autolycus, but suspicion fell on Hercules. The eldest son of Evrit, named Iphit, caught up with Hercules near the city of Tiryns and began to demand the return of the kidnapped. The hero felt hurt for calling him a villain, a slave, and now they call him a thief. He climbed with Iphit on a high rock and asked: "Look around and tell me, do you see your mares grazing somewhere?" Ifit confessed: "I don't see them." Hercules roared beside himself with anger and with the words "then look for them in Hades!" pushed Iphit off the cliff.
So again the son of Zeus stained his hands with human blood. What was there for him to do? Hercules went to the king of Pylos Neleus and asked him to perform a ritual of purification over him. But Neleus refused to fulfill Hercules' request.
Hercules was saddened. In his native country, he became almost an outcast! Then Hercules decided to go to the Delphic oracle to ask the Pythia for advice on how to live on. But here a new blow awaited him: the Oracle refused to answer his question. "I have no good advice for people like you. Go away, do not desecrate the sanctuary of Apollo with your presence," she said to Hercules. "Then I must establish my own sanctuary!" He shouted. Pushing the Pythia off the golden tripod on which she was sitting, Hercules put it on his shoulders and headed for the exit.
But the path of Hercules was blocked by the golden-haired god Apollo himself. A struggle ensued between the sons of the Thunderer - the immortal Apollo and the mortal Hercules.
The struggle between the god and the hero continued until Zeus, throwing lightning between them, forced them to shake hands as a sign of reconciliation.
Hercules returned the tripod, and the Pythia, seated on it again, gave the following prophecy: "With three years of humiliating slavery, you will atone for your guilt, Hercules."
“Whose slave should I become?” Hercules asked humbly.
"The Lydian queen Omphale will buy you," answered the Oracle.
Again Hercules had to be deprived of his freedom. As the Oracle predicted, Hercules was bought by Queen Omphale. She inherited the kingdom from her husband Tmol, who accidentally died under the hooves of a ferocious bull.
The cheerful queen Omphale did not send Hercules on long campaigns and did not demand heroic deeds and victories from him. She took from Hercules his bow and arrows, took off the lion's skin from her shoulders, dressed up in a woman's dress and amused herself, blushing his cheeks, drawing his eyebrows and tint his lips.
Throughout Hellas, it was said that Hercules parted with his weapon, instead of him he now wears a women's turban and a belt embroidered with flowers, that golden bracelets ring on his hands, and a pearl necklace glistens around his neck. They said that Hercules spends all the time in the circle of Ionian beauties, combing wool or spinning it, flinching at every shout of the mistress, and that Omphale often punishes her slave with a gilded shoe when his awkward fingers break the spindle.
And so it was in reality. This captivity at Omphale was more difficult for Hercules than the most cunning assignments of Eurytheus. Often Hercules was so longing and languishing that, touched by his gloomy appearance, the queen gave him a bow and arrows and let him go for a walk around the surroundings. Once, having asked for leave from Omphale, Hercules went so far that he wandered into a neighboring country. Tired, he lay down under a tree and fell asleep. Through his sleep, he felt as if a multitude of ants or annoying autumn flies were crawling over his body.
Hercules opened his eyes and saw that it was not ants or flies that interrupted his sleep - they were tiny kerkopi men, mischievous creatures of the Ocean and the Titanide of Tethys. They were reputed to be the most notorious liars and deceivers in the world. Kerkops have long wandered the world and invented more and more new tricks just to annoy people with these tricks.
Without hesitation, Hercules caught all the kerkops, tied them by the arms and legs, strung them on a long stick and, putting it on his shoulder, went back to the palace of Omphale.
On the way, the kerkops squeaked loudly, but not out of fear, but out of anger. They scolded Hercules, threatened him and at the same time goggled their tiny eyes so menacingly that Hercules laughed.
"Oh, what a fear this little people have overtaken on me," Hercules said, choking with laughter, "it is better to let them go in peace!"
He untied his tiny captives and set them free, and he himself returned to Omphale and began to demand freedom for himself.
But Omphale did not let go of Hercules. "I bought you for three years," she said. "You will serve them and only then will you leave."

Deianira

Three agonizing years of slave service with Queen Omphale passed, and Hercules regained the long-awaited freedom. He walked home. His heart rejoiced, and to the beat of his beating he never tired of repeating: "Free! Free!"
In battles with monsters, on long campaigns, in wanderings around the world, the life of Hercules passed. He traveled all over the world, visited many cities, but did not live anywhere for a long time - he did not have a family or a home of his own.
"It's time for me, an eternal wanderer, to live a quiet life: in my own house, with a loving wife, surrounded by children and grandchildren. It's not difficult to build a house, but where can I find a wife with whom I would be happy?" - so thought Hercules, returning to Hellas.
Then he remembered that several years ago he had the opportunity to take part in the hunt for the wild Calydonian boar. At the invitation of King Oinei, many heroes came to Calydon to hunt this beast. The hunt was led by the son of Oinei, Prince Meleager. When the boar was defeated, Hercules continued on his way and completely forgot about this hunt.
Only now, before the inner gaze of Hercules, the eyes of Meleager's younger sister Deianira appeared clear and deep, like those of a fearful mountain deer.
"Then she was still quite a girl, and now, probably, a bride. This is who can become a good wife for me," thought Hercules and went to the city of Calydon in the hope of marrying Deianira.
Hercules came to Calydon on time - the old king Oineus was giving his youngest daughter in marriage. Many suitors came to Calydon to seek Deianira's hand. Among them was the river god Aheloy - a monster with bull horns on his head, a green beard, along which water was flowing all the time.
Oinei decided that Deianiru will receive the one who becomes the winner in single combat with Aheloy. Seeing such a rival, all the suitors, except Hercules, fled in fear.
Hercules had to measure his strength with Aheloy. But before starting the fight, Aheloy began to mock Hercules and denigrate his mother Alcmene.
Frowning, the son of Zeus listened to the offensive words, but suddenly his eyes flashed with anger, and he said: "Aheloy, hands serve me better than tongue! Be the winner in words, I will be the winner in deeds."

He grabbed Hercules Acheloy, squeezed his body with his mighty hands, but the river god stood firm, like an unshakable rock stands. The rivals parted and came together again like two angry bulls. No matter how he strained Aheloy's forces, Hercules pushed him lower and lower to the ground. The knees of the river god bent down, he fell to the ground, but in order not to be defeated, Aheloy turned into a snake.
Hercules laughed: "Even in the cradle I learned to fight with snakes! True, you, Aheloy, are superior to other snakes, but you cannot be compared to the Lernaean hydra. Although it grew two heads instead of one cut down, I still defeated it!"
Then Aheloy turned into a bull and again attacked Hercules. And Hercules grabbed him by the horns and threw him to the ground with such force that he broke one horn of the river god.
Aheloy was defeated, and Deianira became the wife of Hercules.
After the wedding, Hercules and Deianira did not stay long in Oiney's house. Once, during a feast, Hercules hit the boy Evnom, the son of Architel, for spilling water on his hands, intended for washing his feet. The son of Zeus did not know how to measure the strength of his hands: the blow was so strong that the boy fell dead.
Hercules was saddened, and although Architeles forgave him the involuntary murder of his son, the young couple left Calydon and went to the city of Trachines, where they decided to build their own house.
On the way, Hercules and his wife came to the river Ever. The centaur Nessus carried travelers across this turbulent river for a fee on his broad back. Deianira sat on the back of the centaur, and Hercules, throwing a club and a bow to the other side, decided to swim across the river.
As soon as Hercules came out of the water, he heard Deianira's cry. She called for help from her husband. The centaur, captivated by the beauty of Deianira, wanted to kidnap her.
"Where are you running?" Hercules shouted to Nessa, "Don't you think that your legs will save you? No matter how fast you rush, my arrow will still overtake you!"
Hercules pulled on his bow - a deadly arrow flew off a tight bowstring and overtook Ness (according to another version of the myth, Hercules strikes Ness with a sword). Nessus fell, blood poured from his wound in a stream, mixed with the poison of the Lernaean hydra.

The dying centaur instantly thought of how to avenge Hercules for his death. "Look, beauty," said Ness to Deianira, "my wound is fatal and the blood around it is already clotted. Collect it, save it - it has miraculous power. his love to you.
She believed Deianira the centaur, collected his blood and hid it.
Ness died. Hercules and Deianira settled in Trachines and lived there until the thirst for a new feat again called the son of Zeus on the road.

Liberation of Prometheus

Leaving Deianira with six young children in Trachins, Hercules again went to the very end of the world. The unheard of he had to do - to free the rebellious titan Prometheus, at the behest of Zeus, chained to the gray Caucasian rock.
Once upon a time, there were very few people in the world. Like wild animals, they roamed the forests in pursuit of prey. They ate raw meat, wild fruits and roots, animal skins served as clothing, and hid in caves and tree hollows from the weather. Their minds were like those of small children, and they were helpless and defenseless.
Prometheus took pity on people. He went to his friend the god-blacksmith Hephaestus and found the divine master at work: Hephaestus forged fiery arrows-lightning for Zeus the Thunderer. Prometheus stood and watched his skillful work. When Hephaestus began fanning the fire in the furnace with his bellows, and sparkling sparks scattered across the forge, Prometheus caught one sacred spark and hid it in an empty reed, which, having prepared it in advance, he held in his hand.
Prometheus brought this reed with a spark of sacred fire to people, and people lit fires, hearths and lamps from it everywhere on earth. With the help of fire, people learned to heat their homes, cook food, and process metals hidden in the ground. The light of the sacred fire clarified the thoughts of people, kindled the desire for happiness in their hearts.
Prometheus watched with pride as people became stronger, wiser and more skillful in any work. And Zeus from the heights of Olympus looked at the growing human tribe with great displeasure. "If things go like this, people will soon stop honoring the gods," the Thunderer grumbled.
Then Prometheus concluded a treaty with Zeus: people, as proof of the superiority of the immortal gods over the tribe of mortals, will bring sacrifices to the gods with animal meat and earthly fruits.
The first sacrifice was made by Prometheus himself. He slaughtered the bull, wrapped the meat in the hide, put the not very tasty entrails on top, and next to it he put another heap - from the head and bones, which he hid under the shiny and aromatic fat. Then he asked Zeus which of the piles he would like to receive as a sacrifice to the immortal god. Zeus pointed to a pile covered in grease. Since that time, people brought the bones and fat of sacrificial animals to the altars of the gods, and from delicious meat they prepared feast dishes for themselves.
The gods did not want to put up with this and asked Zeus to take revenge on Prometheus for deception. He summoned Prometheus to him and said to him: "You have been guilty twice before the gods. The first time, when you stole the sacred fire and gave it to people, the second - when you deceived us, immortals, leaving us the bones of sacrificial animals instead of meat. But I am ready to forgive you. My condition is: you tell me the name of a son who has not yet been born by me, who wants to deprive me of my power over the world, and I will grant you my forgiveness. Just don’t say that this name is unknown to you. After all, the future is open to you, it’s not for nothing that your name is Prometheus, which means Provider ".
"I know this name, Thunderer," replied Prometheus, "but I will not name it, for it is not my secret, but implacable Doom."
Zeus's eyes flashed with anger, he summoned his servants, Force and Power, ordered them to take Prometheus to a desert mountainous country and forever chained him with indestructible shackles to a wild rock above the stormy sea.
The will of Zeus is the law even for the immortal gods. Hephaestus himself, although he was a friend to Prometheus, chained his arms and legs to the rock with chains of gray iron and pierced his chest with a sharp diamond wedge, nailing him to the rock for centuries.
Immortal, like the gods of Olympus, was the titan Prometheus, and therefore he was doomed alive to unheard of torment. The sun burned his withered body, an icy wind showered with prickly snow dust. Every day, at the appointed hour, a huge eagle flew in, tore the titan's body with its claws and pecked at its liver. And at night, Prometheus's wounds healed.
For a thousand and another thousand years, the torment of the rebellious titan continued, and all these long thousand years Prometheus believed, no, he knew that the time would come and a great hero would appear among people who would come to free him.
And then, finally, the day has come. Prometheus heard the steps of a man walking through the mountains and saw the hero, who had been waiting for many centuries.
Hercules passed wild mountains, bottomless abysses, deep snows, approached Prometheus and already raised his sword to knock off the shackles from the titan, but an eagle scream was heard high in the sky: this is the eagle of Zeus hurrying to his bloody feast at the appointed hour. Then Hercules raised his bow, threw an arrow at the flying eagle and struck him. An eagle fell into the sea, and the waves carried it away into the boundless distance. And Hercules broke the chains that bind Prometheus, took out a diamond point from his chest and said: "You are free, titan-martyr, people have not forgotten you. They sent me to return you freedom."
The freed Prometheus straightened up, sighed deeply and looked with enlightened eyes at the earth and at the hero who had brought him freedom.
Zeus reconciled with the unbending titan Prometheus. He ordered Hephaestus to make a ring from the link of the Promethean chain and insert a stone into it - a fragment of the rock to which the titanium was chained. Zeus ordered Prometheus to put this ring on his finger and always wear it, as a sign that the word of the ruler of the world has not been violated and Prometheus is forever chained to a rock.

Death of Hercules and his ascension to Olympus

"So I have accomplished my last feat," thought Hercules, returning to Trakhiny to his beloved wife and children. He did not know that the gods of Olympus would demand one more feat from him. A clan of giants, the sons of Gaia-Earth, rebelled against the immortal inhabitants of heaven. Some of them were similar to people, albeit of enormous size, while others had bodies ending in tangle of snakes. There were mortal giants, but they were not afraid of the gods, because they knew: by the will of Providence, only a mortal person could defeat them.
The day has come for the battle of the gods and giants. In the Phlegrian fields, giants and gods converged. The thunder of this battle echoed throughout the world. Fearing death at the hands of the gods, the giants pressed the inhabitants of Olympus. They threw at them burning trunks of ancient trees, huge rocks and even whole mountains, which, falling into the sea, turned into islands.
In the midst of the battle, Hercules came to the aid of the gods. He was summoned by the daughter of Zeus, Athena Pallas. She, the wisest of the Olympic gods, guessed that the hero who is able to exterminate the tribe of giants is Hercules.
The mortal Hercules stood in line with the immortals. The bowstring of his formidable bow rang, an arrow flashed, filled with the poison of the Lernaean hydra, and pierced the chest of the most powerful of the giants, Alcyoneus. The second arrow hit the giant Ephialtes' right eye. The giants trembled and fled. But to all of them, fleeing in panic from the battlefield, Hercules sent death with his arrows unaware of a miss.
"My gratitude knows no bounds," Zeus said to Hercules after the battle. "Your body is mortal, but from now on your name will be immortal."
And again the road. Again Hercules walks through the mountains, forests and roads of Hellas. Goes home, to his wife Deianira, to the sons of Gill, Glen, Ctesippus, Onit, to the curly-haired daughter of Macarius ...
And Deianira, accustomed to the constant absence of her husband, was very worried this time. She was about to send her eldest son Gill in search of his father, but a messenger from Hercules appeared and said that her husband was alive and well, returned home and sent home gifts: jewelry, gold dishes and a captive - a girl of extraordinary beauty.
"Who's that girl?" Deianira asked. The messenger answered slyly: "Oh, this is not a simple prisoner, but the daughter of King Evritus Iola, whom Hercules once wanted to marry."
She saw Deianira that Iola was younger and more beautiful, and thought: "Looks like Hercules has stopped loving me, and if he hasn't stopped loving me yet, he will certainly soon stop loving me."
It was then that Deianir remembered the dying advice of the centaur Ness: with his caked blood, she rubbed the new, festive clothes, which she herself weaved for her husband, and sent her with a messenger to meet Hercules.
Hercules accepted his wife's gift and wanted to put it on immediately. But as soon as the clothes touched the body, the poison of Ness's blood, mixed with the blood of the Lernaean hydra, penetrated into the body of Hercules.
Like a hot flame engulfed Hercules. He began to tear the cursed clothes on himself, but it grew to the body and caused unbearable torment. Tears rolled from Hercules' eyes. He, who did not bow to the most formidable dangers, fought with monsters and even with gods, was now crushed by the suffering that a weak loving woman brought on him.
But there was no salvation ...
When Deianira learned that she had killed her husband with her own hands, she threw herself on the sword on the matrimonial bed.
All his children from Deianira came to the valley where Hercules was dying, the elderly mother of Alcmenes came, friends came - Iolaus, Philoctet ... With his lips already chilling, Hercules said to them: "Not here I want to die, not in this damp valley. Take me to a high mountain. so that you can see the sea from her. There, in free space, lay down my funeral pyre. When I go to another world, you, my son Gill, marry Iola, and may my descendants - Heraclides always live on earth. the last will ".

On the celestial Mount Etna, which rises above Thermopylae, a funeral pyre for Hercules was laid in the reserved meadow of Zeus. A still living hero was put on the skin of the Nemean lion.
The torment of Hercules did not stop, and the son of Zeus prayed: "The dead have no suffering! Set fire to the fire soon! Deliver me from intolerable torment! Gill! My son! Go ahead! Bring the torch to the fire!"
The son of Hercules was horrified: "Have mercy, father, how can I become your killer !?"
"You will not be a killer, but a healer of my suffering," Hercules replied to Gill.
Here Philoctetes, a longtime friend and comrade of Hercules, approached the funeral pyre and set fire to the resinous logs.
"Blessed be, Philoctetus, I give you my bow as a keepsake, take care of it," the last words of Hercules were heard through the smoke rising to the sky.
The sun is already setting behind the mountains of the west. When it rises over the eastern sea, the daughter of Hercules, Macarius, will approach the burnt out funeral pyre, collect white ash in an urn - the remains of her father.

**** ***

And on the bright summit of Olympus golden tables shine. There are more of them than there used to be: there will be a feast for guests of the old and new world. All the gods of Olympus are waiting for the great hero of Hellas on the threshold of their abode. A golden chariot appeared high in the sky. It is Athena rushing to the sacred mountain of a new god - Hercules, born to mortals, but who deserved immortality with his life.
“Rejoice, persecuted by me, glorified by me, exalted by me!” Herakles greets Hera. “From now on, as the husband of my daughter, the Goddess of Youth Hebe, you will also be my son.
Hera hugs Hercules, and Hebe pours the groom a cup of nectar - the drink of immortality.

Heraclides

After Hercules finished his earthly journey, his children and mother Alcmene moved to Tiryns. They did not live long there. Out of hatred for Hercules, Eurystheus drove the hero's children out of his possessions and pursued them wherever they tried to hide. For a long time, the children of Hercules and the elderly Alkmena wandered all over Argolis. Finally, Iolaus, a friend and nephew of Hercules, took them in. But even here the hate of Eurystheus overtook the unfortunate, and he and Iolaus had to flee to Athens, where Theseus' son Demophon then ruled.
Learning that Heraclides took refuge in Athens, Eurystheus sent his messenger Kopreus to demand from Demophon the extradition of the descendants of Hercules. Demophon refused to Koprey, and the threat of Eurystheus to war did not frighten him.
Eurystheus learned about this and was even delighted. "And I will destroy the Heraclides, and I will annex Athens to my possessions," he decided.
Soon the army of Eurystheus invaded Attica. Athens faced a battle with a powerful enemy. The Athenians asked the gods about the outcome of the battle, and the gods revealed to them that Athens would be victorious only if they sacrificed a virgin girl.
Macarius, daughter of Hercules and Deianira, having learned about this prediction, decided to sacrifice her life to save her brothers and sisters.
Both troops met on the Marathon Plain. Before the battle, Macarius was sacrificed. That battle was cruel and bloody. The Athenians won. King Eurystheus took to flight. Two chariots pursued the cowardly persecutor Hercules: the chariot of Gill and the chariot of Iolaus. Gill almost overtook Eurystheus, but then Iolaus prayed to the gods of Olympus. He prayed them to return him at least one day to his youth and former strength. The gods heard Iolaus' plea. Two bright stars rolled down from the sky and a cloud fell on Iolaus's chariot, and when it parted, Iolaus appeared in all the splendor of his youth - mighty, fearless.
Iolaus Eurystheus overtook and captured him. The bound Eurystheus was brought to Athens. Alcmene came into a fierce anger when she saw her son's sworn enemy. It was as if Erinia had pounced on Efrisfei, tore out his eyes and strangled him. On the same day, all the sons of Eurystheus were executed.
The throne of the ruler of Argolis was emptied. All rights to it were now with the Heraclids. Gill entered Argolis with a large army. But, like a divine sign, a plague broke out in the army. The eldest son of Hercules hurried to the Delphic oracle to find out when the time of return would come, and he heard: "After the third fruit."
Believing that he needed to wait three years, Gill gave the army a three-year vacation, and then re-entered the land of his homeland. Here he was met by Atreus, a distant relative of Eurystheus, who seized the empty Mycenaean throne.
To avoid unnecessary bloodshed, Gill challenged any person of his equal origin to a duel. "If I am the winner," he set the condition, "let the throne and the kingdom become mine, and if I fail, then we, the sons of Hercules, will return this way in three generations." Echem, king of the city of Tegea, an ally of Atreus, accepted the challenge.
Gill misunderstood the divination of the Delphic oracle: not for three years, but for three whole generations, the road to the homeland of Heraclides was closed by the will of the gods. Gill fell in a duel, and for the Heraclids long years of wandering began.
As predicted, in the fourth generation, the descendants of Hercules managed to conquer what belonged to them by right of birth. Hercules' great-grandsons Temen, Cresfont and the twins Proclus and Eurysthenes conquered the entire Peloponnese. The huge peninsula was divided by lot: Argolis went to Temen, Sparta to the twins Proclus and Eurysthenes, Messinia to Kressfon.

1. GERMAN LION. Having received the oracle, Hercules went to Tiryns and began to carry out what Eurystheus ordered. First, he was ordered to bring the skin of a Nemean lion. This beast, born of Typhon and the Echidna, and devouring people and cattle indiscriminately, was invulnerable. Hercules, of course, did not fail to make sure of this for himself: having arrived in Nemea and found a lion, he shot him with a bow, and the arrow bounced off the beast without causing him any harm. The cunning beast immediately realized that before him was the son of Zeus. Therefore, he did not attack the hunter, as was his custom, but began to run away. Hercules, however, knocked out his club and began to pursue the beast. The lion fled into the cave, and Hercules filled up the entrance with stones and decided to catch his breath. However, he first explored the area and saw that another entrance leads into the same cave. Through this entrance, Hercules entered the cave. Having overtaken the lion and grabbing it by the throat with his hand, he strangled him and, carrying him on his shoulders, brought him to Mycenae. Eurystheus, seeing a strangled lion, was horrified, rightly believing that if Hercules got tired of carrying out his orders, then Hercules himself would be much easier to strangle. Therefore, he ordered the hero not to enter the city henceforth, but to show the booty, placing it in front of the city gates. The guards ordered to lock the gates as soon as they saw Hercules, and to issue orders, he began to send a messenger from Mycenae to Tiryns, in ancient Greek, a herald.

2. LERNEY HYDRA. The second feat of Eurystheus appointed Hercules to kill the Lernean hydra. This water snake was another offspring of Typhon and Echidna. She grew up in the swamps of Lerna and went to the plains, stealing cattle and devastating the surrounding lands. She had a huge body and nine heads, of which eight were mortal, and the ninth, located in the middle, was immortal. Hercules arrived in Lerna in a chariot driven by his nephew Iolaus, and found the hydra's lair on a hill near the source of Amimone. Throwing flaming arrows there, Hercules forced the hydra out and after a stubborn struggle grabbed it. She hung on him, wrapped around one leg. Hercules began to knock her heads off with a club, but instead of the knocked off heads, new ones immediately grew. In addition, her friend crawled out to help the hydra - a huge cancer that grabbed Hercules in the leg. Hercules killed the cancer with a blow with a club and himself called Iolaus for help. He lit part of a nearby grove and began to burn the bases of the hydra's heads with burning smut, preventing them from growing. In this way, Hercules overcame the reborn heads of the hydra and, finally chopping off the immortal head, buried it in the ground and piled a heavy stone on this place. Cutting the body of the hydra, Hercules dipped his arrows in her poisonous bile. Eurystheus, being on a high wall, categorically declared to Hercules, who was standing with Iolaus on a chariot in front of the locked gates, that he would not include this feat among the ten that Hercules had to accomplish, for he defeated the hydra not alone, but with the help of Iolaus. After this statement, Eurystheus immediately disappeared, because he saw that Hercules was pulling an arrow from his quiver, poisoned by the bile of the hydra.

3. KERINEAN DOE. By the third feat, Eurystheus appointed Hercules to bring the Kerinean fallow deer alive to Mycenae. This doe was a golden-horned deer and was dedicated to the goddess Artemis. Therefore, Hercules did not want to hurt or kill her and pursued her for a whole year, until she, exhausted from fatigue, ran up Mount Artemisius and from there went down to the Ladona River. When the doe was about to cross the river, Hercules captured her, wounding her with a bow shot. Taking her on his shoulders, Hercules with his burden hurried through Arcadia. Artemis met him on the way and, taking away the doe, began to scold him for wounded the animal dedicated to her. But Hercules told his divine sister that with all her claims she turned to Eurystheus, whose orders he was ordered to carry out, whether he liked it or not. Mumbling that she would remember this to Eurystheus, and having treated the doe, the goddess ordered her to obey Hercules, he also brought her to Mycenae, showed Eurystheus and let her go on all four sides.

4. ERIMANTHIAN WEDDING. By the fourth feat Eurystheus appointed him to bring the Erymanthian boar alive. This beast devastated the vicinity of the city of Psofida in Arcadia, rushing from Mount Erimanth. Passing through Fola, Hercules came to the cave in which the centaur Fola lived (after his name and named Foloya), This centaur did not come from Kronos, like Chiron, and not from the Centaur, the son of Ixion and Nephela, from which all other centaurs originated. The father of Fol was Silenus, the son of Pan, and the mother, as many say, was the nymph Melia. However, there are those who say that a child should be like at least one of his parents, while Foul does not at all look like a nymph, and with Silenus he has only one ponytail in common. In their opinion, the Foul stemmed from the connection of Silenus with some mare, which can be expected from the constantly drunk Silenus.
Foul welcomed Hercules and began to treat him to fried meat, while he himself ate raw. When Hercules asked for wine, Foul replied that he was afraid to open the common barrel belonging to all centaurs. Hercules advised him to be bolder and opened this barrel himself. Soon, attracted by the smell of wine, the centaurs fled to the cave of Fol, grabbing a huge stone, or a whole pine tree. But Hercules repelled those who broke into the cave, throwing burning brands, while at the rest he began to shoot from a bow, pursuing them all the way to Maleia. From there the centaurs fled to Chiron, who, having been driven out by the Lapiths from Mount Pelion, settled near Maleia. Not seeing Chiron because of the centaurs crowding around, Hercules fired an arrow, and she, piercing the centaur Elat, sat down in the knee of Chiron. Grieved by this, Hercules ran up and, pulling out an arrow, applied the medicine that Chiron had given him to the wound. The wound turned out to be incurable, but Chiron could not die, as he was immortal. (Suffering from the wound, he then begged Zeus to take his immortality in exchange for the release of Prometheus.) At this time, the surviving centaurs fled in all directions, and Nephela, saving her offspring from possible persecution, shed heavy rain on the ground, from which Hercules' bowstring weakened and the ground became slippery. Returning to Foloy, Hercules found Fola dead along with the others. Foul, having pulled out an arrow from the corpse, began to wonder how such a small object could destroy such huge centaurs. But the arrow slipped out of his hands, fell on his leg and wounded him, and since it was poisoned by the bile of the hydra, Foul died immediately. Hercules buried Fola, and his grave is still preserved, but Hyginus * in his Astronomy assures that now this tomb is empty, since the gods turned Fola into a constellation called the Centaur.
Hercules, having buried Fool, climbed Erimanth and, finding a boar, pursued him, driving him into deep snow. He tied the hunted beast and brought it to Mycenae.
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* Guy Julius Gigin (64 BC – 17) - Roman writer.

5. AUGIAN STABLES. As the next feat, Eurystheus ordered Hercules to remove during the day all the manure that had accumulated in the barnyard of Augeus. Augeas was the king of Elis and was considered the son of Forbant. Forbant, the son of Lapith and Arsinoma, married to Girmina, the sister of Alektor, the king of the Elide tribe of the Epeans, helped the latter in the fight against Pelops and was famous as a fist fighter. Girmina gave birth to Avgius and Actor, but Avgius' father was actually Helios, who gave his son a huge herd of cattle, the stalls for which were not cleared until the arrival of Hercules for thirty years. Coming to Augius, Hercules, without mentioning the order of Eurystheus, said that in one day he would remove all the manure from the farmyard if he received a tenth of the cattle for this. Augeas, not believing that this was possible, agreed with a witness, which was his son Philae. Hercules dismantled the wall of the barnyard and, diverting the water of the nearby rivers Alfea and Peneus with a channel, let them into the barnyard, releasing water through the opposite exit. But Augeas found out that all this was done by order of Eurystheus, and then he not only did not pay, but even began to assert that he had not promised anything at all as payment for this work and that he was even ready to sue about this. When the judges sat down, Philaeus summoned by Hercules, acting as a witness, incriminated his father that he really agreed to pay Hercules for the work. But before the judges had time to cast their vote, the angry Augeas ordered both Philaeus and Hercules to get out of Elis. Philaeus retired to the island of Dulichy and settled there. When Hercules appeared before Eurystheus, he told Hercules that this feat would not be counted among the ten that Hercules should have performed, since Hercules performed it for a fee.

6. STYMPHALIAN BIRDS. In the forest surrounding the Stymphalian swamp, birds of a special breed lived, such birds were not found anywhere else. They had copper beaks, copper wings, and copper claws. They threw their copper feathers like arrows, killed people with them and ate human flesh. Stymphalian birds brought and bred Ares, then he got tired of it and he drove them into the forest. By the sixth feat Eurystheus appointed Hercules to drive these birds away. The Stymphalian swamp was located in Arcadia in the vicinity of the city of Stymphala, by the name of which it was called Stymphalian. Arriving there, Hercules could not figure out how to drive these birds out of the forest, but Athena came to his aid and gave him copper rattles made by Hephaestus. Hercules, sitting under a mountain located near the swamp, began to hit these rattles, and it turned out that the birds could not stand this noise at all and took off in fear. Acting in this way, Hercules shot almost all of them, and the few who survived flew out of this forest forever.

7. CRETE BULL. By the seventh feat Eurystheus appointed Hercules to deliver the Cretan bull to Mycenae. Poseidon sent this bull from the sea at the request of Minos, and the king of Crete was supposed to sacrifice it to Poseidon, but amazed by the beauty of this bull sent him to the pasture, and sacrificed to Poseidon another, which we have already described in detail earlier *. The angry Poseidon infuriated the bull so that it was impossible to approach him. He grazed wherever he wanted and devastated Crete, uprooting crops and destroying garden fences. Arriving in Crete, Hercules began to ask Minos to give him the bull, and Minos said: "Take it if you can." Hercules, however, overpowered the bull, grabbing the horns directed at him, put the yoke on it and delivered it to Eurystheus. Eurystheus wanted to dedicate the bull to Hera and asked the oracle about this, but received the answer that Hera categorically refuses such a gift. Apparently, Hera was annoyed that the glory of Hercules increased with each of his feats. In the end, Eurystheus ordered the release of the bull, and he crossed the region of Sparta, all of Arcadia and then, passing Isthmus and arriving in Attica for Marathon, began to devastate the fields of local residents and was killed by Theseus.
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* Chapter 9 (7).

8. MALES OF DIOMEDES. The next feat Eurystheus appointed Hercules to bring to Mycenae four mares belonging to the Thracian Diomedes, the son of Ares and Cyrene, who reigned over the Bistones, a warlike Thracian tribe. This horse breed was obviously bred by Ares himself, because the mares of Diomedes ate exclusively human flesh. Having sailed there with a few volunteers, Hercules interrupted the guards, dispersed the grooms and drove the mares to the sea. Having tied them on the ship, he instructed Abder, a fellow from Locrida, who, as some claim, was the son of Hermes, to look after them. Hercules himself fought with the Beestons, because they ran with weapons in their hands to take away the horses, and attacked his companions who were on the shore. Having fought with the Beestons, the heroes killed many, including Diomedes himself, and put the rest to flight. Arriving on the ship, they found that the mares had torn apart Abder, who inadvertently came too close to them. He was buried at the place where the city of Abdera was later founded, and Hercules drove the horses to Eurystheus. He wanted to dedicate them to Hera, but the goddess refused this gift too. Then Eurystheus ordered them to be released, and they came to Olympus, where the gods sent a flock of wolves at them, which tore these mares to pieces.
They say that horses of this breed were found in Thrace for quite some time and brought people a lot of trouble. The last such horse was killed in the 4th century. BC e. under Alexander the Great, and there were those who even claimed that by Alexander the Great himself.

9. HIPPOLITUS'S BELT. By the ninth feat, Eurystheus appointed Hercules to bring the belt of Hippolyta, the daughter of the Naiad of Harmony and the god Ares, who was the queen of the Amazons who lived on the banks of the Thermodont River. This river flows into the Pontus, now Turkey is there and the Turks call it Terme. The Amazons were a warlike tribe that got what they needed by war and plunder. When they had to converge with men and give birth, they fed only girls, and the boys were sent to their fathers. Hippolyta possessed a belt that Ares gave her, and Hercules was sent for this belt, because he wished to have a daughter, Eurystheus Admet. What was special about this belt and what it looked like is now impossible to establish. It is reported that he testified that Hippolyta was the queen of the Amazons, but Admeta apparently did not intend to take her place. Robert Graves in his essay * calls the belt gold, but this is clearly his invention: gold is twenty times heavier than water and the belt would weigh at least ten kilograms, which was why the queen was girded with such a weight.
Be that as it may, Hercules recruited a team, which reportedly included his nephew Iolaus, the sons of Eacus Peleus and Telamon, and several others who wished to go with him on this expedition. Having equipped the ship, Hercules arrived in Mizia to Likus, the son of Daskil, where he was warmly received. At that time there was a war with the bebriks. Hercules took part in the battle and killed many Bebriks, including their king Migdon, brother of Amik. Having separated a part of the land from the state of the Bebriks, Hercules gave it to Likus, and he called the whole land Heraclea.
After that, Hercules arrived at the harbor of the city of Themyscira. Hippolyta was nearby and, approaching the place where Hercules and his companions went ashore, asked what they needed here. Hercules replied that her belt was needed and he was ready to redeem it at any price. Having carefully looked at Hercules, Hippolyta replied that she would give him this belt if he agreed to spend the night with her. Ipollita clearly hoped that after that she would certainly have a daughter (she had only daughters before that) and, moreover, almost as strong as Hercules. In this she, of course, was mistaken, since she did not know genetics, and Hercules was designed in such a way that he could transmit only Y chromosomes to his offspring, simply put, only guys could be born from him **. Even all fifty daughters of Thespius bore only sons from him, and the elder and the youngest even two each.
Hercules willingly agreed with Hippolyta's condition, although she did not shine with special beauty and was somewhat masculine, but the whole thing was ruined by the goddess Hera, to whom the exploits of Hercules were like a thorn in her leg. Taking the form of one of the Amazons, she ran to them and shouted: "The queen is being forcibly taken away by foreigners who have arrived!" The Amazons, fully armed, rushed on horseback to the ship. When Hercules saw them armed, he understood the matter in such a way that Hypollita spoke his teeth until her army was assembled. Deciding that there was an insidious plan, Hercules, without hesitation, killed Hippolyta, took possession of the belt and, together with his friends, entered into battle with the rest of the Amazons. After interrupting some and driving off the rest, Hercules sailed away and, passing Pontus and Propontis, moored to Troy.
It happened then that this city suffered a misfortune, which was the result of the wrath of the gods Apollo and Poseidon. These gods, incited by the goddess Hero, rebelled against Zeus and, when he was sleeping, tied him with rawhide belts with many knots, so that, upon waking, Zeus could not move. He was rescued by Thetis, bringing Briareus to the rescue, who immediately untied all the knots with his hundred hands. As punishment, Poseidon and Apollo were given into slavery for two years to the king of Troy Laomedont, who forced them to surround Pergamum *** with walls. After serving their sentence, the gods demanded payment for their work. When Laomedont refused to pay, Apollo sent a plague to Troy, and Poseidon - a sea monster, brought by the tide and kidnapping everyone who met on the plain. Since a prediction was received that deliverance from disasters would come only if Laomedont gave his daughter to Hesion to be devoured by a monster, he tied her to the coastal rocks. Hercules, seeing the girl put up for eating, said that he would save her if Laomedont gave him the horses received from Zeus as a ransom for Ganymede. This ransom was received by Ganymede's father Troy, who was Laomedont's grandfather. Laomedont promised to give up the horses; when Hercules killed the monster and saved Hesion, Laomedont did not want to pay, saying that he had to coordinate this issue with Eurystheus. Hercules threatened to go to Troy by war, and sailed from under Troy. Having brought the belt to Mycenae, he gave it to Eurystheus.

The following should be said about the Amazons. They lived along the banks of Thermodont until the time of Alexander the Great, and then suddenly disappeared, they said that Ares had moved them to another place. This place was discovered much later, during the times of great discoveries. In the report of the Spanish royal officials Juan de San Martin and Antonio de Lebrija, who personally took part in the campaign of the conquistador Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada **** through the territory of present-day Colombia, it is said:
“When the camp was in the valley of Bogotá, we received news of a people of women living on their own without Indian [men] living with them; therefore we called them the Amazons. These, as those who told us about them say, they conceive [children] from some of the slaves they bought, and if they give birth to a son, they send him to his father, and if this is a daughter, then they raise her to increase their republic. They say that they use slaves only for conception from them, who are immediately sent back, and therefore at the right moment they are sent away and just as they have them. " (Report made in July 1539)
In the summer of 1542, the people of the detachment of the conquistador Francisco de Orellana had already seen the Amazons with their own eyes and entered into battle with them *****. After that, the river, along which the Amazons settled, began to be called the River of the Amazons, and then simply the Amazon. So it is called today.
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* Robert Graves, Myths of Ancient Greece.
** Few authors argued, however, that Hercules had the only daughter Macarius from the second wife of Deianira, but Macarius is not listed in the complete list of Heracles' children compiled by Appolodor.
*** Pergamum is the citadel of Troy.
**** The appearance of this conquistador served Cervantes to describe Don Quixote.
***** Skeptics, upon learning of this, said that women probably participated in the battle on an equal basis with men, whom the Spaniards did not recognize due to the fact that they were as long-haired as women. But then what about the above report!

10. COWS OF HERION. By the tenth feat, Eurystheus appointed Hercules to bring the cows of Geryon from the island of Erithea, located far to the west in the Ocean, and at the same time not pay a single obol for them (the Greek kopeck was called obol). Geryon, who lived on this island, was the son of Chrysaor and Oceanida Kalliroi. He possessed a body that had grown together from three human bodies, connected to each other to the waist and divided above the waist. With three pairs of powerful hands, Geryon, according to Pausanias, was considered the most powerful of the people who lived then, and Eurystheus was sure that Hercules would definitely break his neck here. In addition, the red cows that belonged to Geryon were herded by Eurytion, the not weak son of Ares and one of Geryon's daughters, and the two-headed dog Orph, the offspring of Typhon and Echidna, was guarded by the two-headed dog.
Going after the cows of Geryon, Hercules went through all of Europe, hunting for food along the way, and arrived in the city of Tartess *, lying in the lower reaches of the Betis River, which is now called the Guadalquivir, and then crossed the strait to Libya. In memory of his campaign, he erected two identical stone steles on opposite sides of the strait. It's scary to say how much they weighed, but Hercules coped with them, and they still stand there and are called the Pillars of Hercules. One of these pillars is now owned by the state of Morocco and the other is owned by Great Britain **.
Diodorus Siculus *** wrote that in addition to these pillars, Hercules threw rocks into the strait in order to narrow it and prevent whales and all other ocean monsters from entering from the ocean, but this seems doubtful, since even now the strait is wide enough and gray whales swim into Mediterranean Sea without any hindrances. The Romans, on the contrary, argued that there was no strait to Hercules at all, there was a mountain range, and Hercules, pushing the rocks apart, formed this very strait so that there was a way for ships. This, of course, is even more doubtful, since it turns out that Hercules overdid it: the width of the strait anywhere is at least 14 kilometers, this is much more than is needed for the passage of not only Roman galleys, but also modern ocean steamers.
The crew of the ship that ferried Hercules to Libya refused to sail to Erithea: they are far away, and the ocean is stormy, and they are afraid of Geryon. Therefore, Hercules, having landed, began to think about what to do, but Helios-Sun prevented him from thinking, who fried so that he literally melted his brains. Angry, Hercules grabbed a bow and directed an arrow at Helios, who immediately hid behind a cloud. Then Hercules began to ask for forgiveness, saying that his nervous system let him down. Helios, cautiously peering out from behind the cloud, asked what his problem was. When Hercules answered, Helios offered him his goblet, in which, having finished the day's journey along the celestial track, each time he swam with the chariot back home.
In this cup, Hercules crossed the Ocean and arrived at Erithea. We were not able to find out for sure what drove this cup. The Roman grammar Servius suggested that Hercules made a sail from the lion's skin that he always wore on himself, and Athena, who always sympathizes with heroes (and this one was also her brother), asked the winds to blow in the right direction.
When Hercules approached where the herd was grazing, the dog, sensing him, rushed to him, but Hercules laid her down with a club, and then killed the shepherd Eurytion, who ran to her aid. After that, Hercules drove the herd to the sea. Seeing this, Menet, who was grazing the cows of Hades in the same place, ran to Geryon and told about what had happened, but when Geryon began to catch up with Hercules, he shot him with a bow, hitting the heart with an arrow. After that, Hercules drove the cows into the goblet and, having crossed the Ocean, returned the goblet to Helios.
We fear that the reader will now begin to say, “Wow, times! A robbery in broad daylight, and even with the murder of two persons and a dog, was considered a feat! " Therefore, we remind the reader that those killed were giants, and the dog was a monster with two heads. The murder of giants and monsters was considered a feat even in the fertile times of Don Quixote. Exclusively due to this fact, now there are no giants, no dogs with two heads, no Lernaean hydras, no chimeras, or other monsters.
Let us return, however, to our rams, that is, to Hercules. He already drove the cows to the Ionian Sea, but then the villainous Hera sent horseflies on the cows, and the herd rushed to Thrace, dividing into parts in the area of ​​the Thracian foothills. Hercules managed to catch only part of the herd and drive him in the direction of the Hellespont, while the other part remained wild. Having driven the cows to the Strimon River, Hercules threw rocks into this river, which made it unnavigable. Having driven the cows to Eurystheus, Hercules gave them to him, and he sacrificed the cows to the goddess Hera.
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* Tartess is a city extremely rich in silver, copper, lead, which were mined in large quantities in the Sierra Morena mountains. Tartess, moreover, for almost 1,500 years was the main intermediary in the export of tin from Britain and in the manufacture of bronze for all the countries of the Mediterranean. " The city was destroyed in the 6th century. BC e. the main competitors are the Carthaginians. Its location is determined by numerous hoards.
** The adjacent territory of Gibraltar is also the property of Great Britain. After her name, the strait is called Gibraltar.
*** Diodorus Siculus, Historical Library, IV, 18, 5.

11. APPLES OF HESPERIDES. After ten feats were accomplished, Eurystheus refused to count the cleansing of the Augean stables and the victory over the hydra and appointed Hercules the eleventh feat - to bring golden apples from the Hesperides. These apples were from the apple tree that Gaia gave Hera for her wedding. They were guarded by the immortal dragon Ladon, the son of Typhon and Echidna, who, according to Apollodorus, had a hundred heads that made various and rather unpleasant sounds. The apple tree was looked after by the maidens of the Hesperides - Aigla, Erithea, Hestia and Arethus.
Hercules, setting off on a journey, passed through Illyria and came to the seashore, where he found Nereus sleeping and tied him, although he desperately resisted, repeatedly changing his appearance. He did not release Nereus before he learned from him where these same apples were. Having learned the way, Hercules crossed Libya. The giant Antaeus, the son of Gaia and Poseidon and the brother of Charybdis, reigned in this country, who forced all foreigners to engage in single combat with him and, of course, killed them. Moreover, during the struggle, Antey, touching the ground, each time became stronger, so Hercules, forced to fight with him, lifted him into the air and, squeezing him in his arms, killed him, breaking his spine.
After Libya, Hercules went to wander around Egypt. In this country, the son of Poseidon, Busiris, reigned, who slaughtered all foreigners on the altar of Zeus in accordance with the oracle he received. Egypt had suffered from crop failure for many years, and Thrasias, a learned diviner who came from Cyprus, said that the crop failure would end if the Egyptians stabbed a stranger on the altar of Zeus every year. In vain he said this, because Busiris was the first to order him to be stabbed, and then began to kill other foreigners who arrived in the country. No one left a message about whether the crop failure ended after this, but if it did, it was most likely not because of these measures taken, since Thrasius was a rather nasty soothsayer, and maybe even an impostor, since he did not foresee that will happen to him after his divination: it is unlikely that he himself wanted to settle scores with his life in such an original way.
When Hercules appeared in Egypt, the guards grabbed him and dragged him to the altar, where Busiris himself was located. But Hercules killed both those who captured him and Busiris himself. Arriving in Ethiopia, Hercules put things in order there too: he killed the king Emathion, the son of Titon, who had seized power from his brother Memnon. Returning power to Memnon, Hercules again crossed to the opposite mainland, reached the Caucasus, shot from a bow an eagle that ate the liver of Prometheus: this eagle was the offspring of Typhon and Echidna. Having freed Prometheus, Hercules put an olive wreath on him instead of the shackles removed, so as not to let Pope Zeus, who vowed never to free Prometheus from the shackles.
Chiron, whose leg hurt, hurt, as we reported in the previous chapter, with an arrow poisoned by the bile of Hydra, therefore agreed with Zeus to give up his immortality in exchange for the release of Prometheus. After the release of Prometheus, Chiron had to do something, and Zeus, not wanting to send such a deserved centaur to Hades, turned him into a constellation, because the constellations never hurt anything. However, this was not done right away: Zeus planned the Trojan War and it was necessary for someone to educate its main character Achilles, and no one could have done it better than Chiron. Therefore, Chiron was turned into a constellation only when Achilles was nine years old.
When Hercules was going to go to the Hyperboreans, where Atlas was, Prometheus advised not to go for the apples himself, but to send Atlant after them, taking the firmament on his shoulders. Atlas will be pleased to get rid of him at least for a while and will willingly go for fruit. Hercules did so, but Atlas, having cut off three apples from the Hesperides and not wanting to take the firmament back onto his shoulders, announced to Hercules that he would take the apples to Eurystheus. Hercules agreed, but asked Atlant to temporarily take the vault of heaven on his shoulders while he made himself a pillow on his head. The delighted Atlas, putting the apples on the ground, complied with this request, Hercules, of course, immediately ran away from him, taking the apples with him. Having brought apples to Mycenae, Hercules began to give them to Eurystheus, but he did not take them, saying that he was giving these apples to Hercules. Then Athena intervened and, muttering that there was nothing to dispose of other people's property, she took the apples and carried them back to the tree, where they again safely rooted in their place.

12. CERBER. By the twelfth feat, Eurystheus appointed Hercules to bring Cerberus from Hades. This dog had three canine heads and a dragon's tail, and the heads of various snakes stuck out on its back. Arriving at Tenar - a cape in Laconic, where there is an underground passage leading to Hades, Hercules descended underground, reached the Styx stream and, having tumbled into Charon's boat, which was already overcrowded with the dead, said: "Let's go!" Charon had a hint about the payment, but Hercules looked at him so fiercely that Charon chose not to insist. When Hercules landed on the other side, the shadows of the dead, seeing him, fled, with the exception of Meleager and the gorgon Medusa. Hercules drew his sword and struck the gorgon, but the sword passed through her unhindered and he saw that in front of him was an empty ghost. Hercules talked a little with Meleager, although what you can talk about with a shadow who drank water from Lethe and forgot everything earthly. However, the Roman grammar Servius claimed that during this conversation Meleager advised Hercules to marry his sister Deianira. Coming then to the rock, Hercules saw Theseus and Pirithous glued to it (we will tell about how they got there in one of the next chapters when it comes to Theseus). Both began to stretch out their hands to him so that he would bring them into the light with his mighty power. Hercules with difficulty tore Theseus off the rock, but when he took hold of Pirithous, the earth shook, and Hercules left him. Wanting to nourish the souls of the dead with blood, Hercules killed one of the cows that belonged to Hades. Menet, who was grazing cows, challenged Hercules to a single combat, but Hercules squeezed him so much that he broke his ribs, but let him go, because Persephone, having come to the noise with her husband Pluto, told him that if Menet became a shadow, then it would be of use he will not be any, and asked to keep Menet alive, unless, of course, Hercules claims to be in his place. When Hercules began to ask Pluto to give him Cerberus, he allowed him to take the dog if he defeated it without the help of the weapon that he had, because the dog would still be useful to him. Hercules found the dog near Acheron and, being protected on all sides by a shell and covered with a lion's skin, grabbed the dog's head and did not let go, although the dragon, replacing Kerberus's tail, bit him. However, the lion's skin that covered the hero got more. Hercules strangled the monster until he tamed it, and brought it to the surface of the earth in the area of ​​the city of Trezen. Having shown Cerberus to Eurystheus, he returned the dog to Hades.