Of All the Greek Heroes, Herakles Is Certainly the Most Famous. Every Aspect of His Life

Mythology

Herakles

January 12, 2006

Of all the Greek heroes, Herakles is certainly the most famous. Every aspect of his life from his birth to his death was extraordinary and his adventures led him from one end of the earth to the other. His mother was Alkmene, the wife of Amphitryon. As we've already seen Alkmene and Amphitryon were cousins and grandchildren of Perseus. Thus Herakles would be Perseus' great-grandson. Alkmene was also said to be the last mortal woman Zeus embraced.
Amphitryon and Alkmene
The King of Mycenae was Elektryon, Amphityon's uncle. The Taphians and Teleboans had raided Elektyon's cattle and killed eight of his sons. Elektryon went to war and left his nephew Amphitryon to rule Mycenae in his stead promising him the hand of Alkmene if he ruled well. Amphitryon received a message that the Taphians and Teleboans had sold Elektyon's cattle to the Eleans. Amphitryon ransomed the cattle back using money from Elektyon's coffers. / Herakles is most often depicted in art wearing
a lion skin and carrying a club.

When Elektryon returned from the war, having defeated the Teleboans, he was enraged to discover that Amphitryon had spent his money to ransom back his own cattle. A quarrel broke out and Amphitryon accidentally killed Elektryon with a thrown club. Amphitryon was banished from Mycenae to the court of King Kreon of Thebes and Alkmene went with him. The two were married and Amphitryon was purified of the murder of his uncle, but Alkmene refused to consummate the marriage until the murder of her eight brothers were avenged. Her father had already defeated the Taphians, but Amphitryon now sought Kreon's support to go to war against the Teleboans,.

Kreon agreed to help Amphityron raise an army if he could capture a beast called the Teumessian Vixen, a fox that was raiding farmer's livestock and even carrying away small babies from their cribs. Fate decreed that the animal was impossible to catch. Amphitryon consulted an oracle about how to catch this animal. The oracle told him about a dog named Lailaps who always caught whatever he pursued.

Lailaps (like the bronze man Talos) was a gift given by Zeus to Europa. The animal had a lifespan many times that of a normal dog and was passed down to Europa's son, King Minos. Once when Minos fell deathly ill he was cured by the Athenian Prokris, who was a daughter of King Erechtheus. Minos gave her Lailaps and a spear made by Hephaistos that never missed its target. As thanks Amphitryon borrowed the dog from Prokris and her husband Kephalos. Having secured the hound, Amphitryon returned to Thebes and sent it after the vixen.

Zeus was then faced with a conundrum. The two animals' respective fates created a dilemma that was impossible to resolve. The fox could not be caught, while the hound could not fail to catch whatever it pursued. Faced with such a problem the only solution Zeus could arrive at was to turn both the animals to stone. Thus the menace of the Teumassian Vixen was ended and Kreon was obliged to help Amphitryon raise his army.

While fighting the Teleboans, Aphitryon was seen by Komaitho, daughter of Pterelaos, chief of the Teleboans,. Komaitho fell in love with Amphitryon and met with him in secret. She told him that there was a prophecy that the Teleboans were invincible as long as her father Pterelaos lived. Pterelaos was a grandson of Poseidon and was kept immortal by one golden hair that grew on his head. Out of love for Amphitryon, Komaitho plucked her father's golden hair while he was asleep. Pterelaos died, and thus the Teleboans were finally defeated in battle. Some authors say that Amphitryon abandoned Komaitho and she killed herself in grief, others say he himself killed her for betraying her father. Either way, Komaitho dies and Amphitryon is victorious.

The Birth of Herakles

Having defeated the Teleboans,, Amphitryon sent a message that he was returning with his army. The night before Amphitryon arrived, Zeus visited Alkmene in the form of her husband. Zeus (in the guise of Amphitryon) presented a golden cup that Poseidon had given his son Teleboas (Pterelaos' father), as proof of his victory. How Zeus wound up with the cup is a mystery, although being king of the gods, perhaps we should just accept that he is capable of whatever he wishes. Zeus caused the stars to stop so that the night he spent with Alkmene was three times as long as a normal night. Zeus made the prediction that the next child born to the house of Thebes would unite and rule the entire land of Perseus (which is Argos). Zeus made this prediction anticipating that the next child born would be his child by Alkmene.

When Amphitryon arrived the next morning in his victory procession, Alkmene was confused and asked him if he did not visit her bed the previous night. Amphitryon is outraged by Alkmene's infidelity (although she herself was duped) and Alkmene fled to an altar in the temple of Zeus for protection. Amphitryon piled wood around the altar intending to burn his wife alive for her affair, but Zeus sent thunderbolts from the sky; a sign that Amphitryon rightly interpreted to mean that he is supposed to spare his wife. Because of this sign from Zeus Amphitryon is reconciled with Alkmene.

Shortly before Alkmene was due to deliver, Hera discovered that Alkmene was carrying Zeus child. Hera had also heard of the prophecy Zeus made concerning the next child born in the house of Thebes ruling the kingdom of Perseus. Another woman in the House of Thebes was also pregnant: Nikippe, aunt of Alkmene and wife of Sthenelos. Her child was due months after Alkmene, but Hera had her daughter Eilithyia (goddess of childbirth) delay Alkmene's delivery and speed up the delivery of Nikippe. Thus Nikippe's son Eurystheus was born first and since Zeus could not withdraw his prophecy it was Eurystheus who was destined to become ruler of Argos.
Alkmene finally delivered twins: she bore a son to her husband whom they named Iphikles and a son to Zeus whom they who would eventually take the name Herakles. Herakles' original name varies. While the author Pindar and a few others state that Herakles' original name was Alkides, the author Apollodoros gives his original name as Alkaios. Regardless, we'll soon see why Herakles was forced to give up his birth name. / Alkmene, mother of Herakles. From a 5th century red figure vase

There is a bizarre myth recorded by a few authors which states that Herakles was abandoned by Alkmene, who knew the child was not the son of her husband. She left the child on the side of the road where the child was found by the goddesses Hera and Athene. Seeing the child was hungry Hera attempted to nurse the child, but the young Herakles bit her breast and spat her milk into the sky. This became the Milky Way (and it fact this is how the Milky Way received its name). Athene returned the child to Alkmene and Hera understood that the son was the illegitimate child of Zeus. Of course this myth contradicts the myth of Zeus' prophecy about the child becoming ruler of the house of Thebes, for if Hera didn't discover Herakles was the son of Zeus until after he was born, how could she have known to speed up Nikippe's delivery?

The most famous myth concerning Herakles as an infant is the story that Hera sent a pair of serpents into Herakles' crib to kill the child as Iphikles and he were sleeping. Even as a child Herakles showed enormous strength and he strangled the two serpents one in each hand. Seeing this event Amphitryon realized that Herakles was the son of Zeus.
Herakles' Early Adventures
Amphitryon taught Herakles to drive a chariot. Autolykos taught him how to wrestle and Eurytos taught him how to shoot a bow. Herakles' music teacher was Linos who was either a son of Kalliope or Apollon. It was said that in an effort to improve Herakles' performance on the lyre, Linos would box his ears whenever he hit a wrong note. In a fit of rage Herakles killed Linos by throwing the lyre at him and cracking his skull. / Herakles strangles the serpents. Amphitryon watches while Alkmene lifts Iphikles out of the crib.
Herakles was purified of the murder of Linos, but Amphitryon sent him to live with his friend Thespios, who was the king and founder of the town of Thespiae near Thebes. There Herakles tended Thespios' flock of sheep on Mt Cithaeron. There was a lion in the area called the Thespian Lion and it was killing sheep belonging to the king. Herakles killed the lion earning the gratitude of the king. / 4th Century coin showing a bust of Athene on one side and Herakles fighting a lion on the other.

Some authors (such as Apollodoros) say the lion skin Herakles wore was from this lion, though most authors, even very early on say he did not acquire the lion skin he wore until his first labor for Eurystheus when he slew the Nemean Lion.

King Thespios was so impressed with Herakles he wanted his daughters to sire grandchildren by the hero. The king had fifty daughters and he fathered fifty-one sons by them. Among this number were two sets of twins. Only one of Thespios' daughters refused to lay with Herakles, and she was sent away to be a priestess for her refusal. Authors differ on the circumstances of this event: Apollodoros says it was done in fifty separate nights, while Pausanias claims it was done in one night. Regardless the result are fifty-one children, forty of who supposedly when they reached adulthood colonized the island of Sardinia near Italy.

At the end of his time in Thespiae, Herakles had one other notable adventure. He and Amphitryon traveled to Thebes where the found the city had been subdued by Erginos, the king of Minyas. It seems that the previous king of the Minyans was Klymenos who had been attacked by several people from Thebes (no author records the names of the attackers or even the reason for the attack). Before he died, Klymenos made his son, Erginos, swear he would avenge his death. Erginos sacked Thebes and demanded a steep tribute: one hundred cattle every year for twenty years.

When Herakles and Amphitryon arrived it was the first year of the tribute and the envoys sent by Erginos had come to collect the cattle. Herakles confronted the envoys and a fight broke out. Herakles subdued the envoys and cut off their nose and ears, made a necklace from the severed body parts, and send the envoys back to King Erginos wearing their own ears and noses around their necks. Needless to say this set off a war between the Minyans and Thebes, but with Herakles' and Amphitryon's aid the Thebeans easily won and put an end to the yearly tribute.

As a reward for the defeat of the Minyans, King Kreon of Thebes gave Herakles the hand of his daughter Megara. The couple lived in Thebes for a number of years and had a number of children together. Authors disagree on the number of children: Pherekydes says there were five children and Eripides says there were three. Regardless of the number of children, every author agrees that the children were all sons.

The Madness of Herakles and Servitude to Eurystheus

However Hera had not given up her hatred for Herakles. She sent a madness upon Herakles that caused him to commit terrible violence upon his own family. He attacked and murdered his own children, killing them and throwing their bodies into a fire. Certain authors say he also attacked and killed his wife Megara, and the author Apollodoros says that he also murdered two of his nephews (children of Iphikles). Supposedly Iphikles and his oldest son, Iolaos, only survived the attack because they were protected by Athene. Euripides also mentions that / Herakles prepares to throw a child onto a fire, while Megara recoils in fear.

Athene saved Amphitryon from death as well. According to Euripides Athene finally stopped the murderous rampage by knocking Herakles unconscious with a stone.

Herakles consulted the Delphi Oracle about how he could make atonement for his crimes. The oracle answered that he had to adopt the name "Herakles" (glory of Hera) and surrender his original name, Alkides. Also he had to become the servant of a lesser man and complete for him a number of labors. This man was his second cousin, Eurystheus who was king of Tiryns. Interestingly Euripides suggests that Herakles was bound to serve Eurystheus for twelve years and that he offered to perform the labors so that he might gain an early release from Eurystheus' servitude. Eurystheus was jealous of Herakles' fame and strength, and proved to be an unkind master to his heroic cousin.

Traditionally twelve labors are recorded. Later authors mention that he was originally assigned ten labors, but more were added after Eurystheus disqualified two of the original ten. The first six of the twelve labors occur in Peloponnesia and are thus sometimes called the Peloponnesian labors. These labors are: the slaying of the Nemean Lion, the slaying of the Lernaian Hydra, the capture of the Keryneian Hind, the capture of the Erymanthian Boar, the cleaning of the stables of Augeias, and the slaying of the Stymphalian Birds. The other six labors see Herakles traveling to the far corners of the earth. These labors are the capture of the Cretan Bull, the theft of the Mares of Diomedes, the theft of Hippolyta's girdle, the theft of Geryoneus' cattle, the quest for the apples of the Hesperides, and the capture of Kerberos.

The Labors of Herakles

All authors agree that the first labor was the slaying of the Nemean Lion. This isn't surprising since Herakles is most often depicted wearing a lion skin, and it makes sense chronologically for him to secure his trademark costume as early as possible. The lion was a child of Echidna (or possibly the Chimaira, the text is ambiguous) and according to Hesiod the beast was raised by Hera and sent to terror Nemea for failing to sacrifice to the gods. This labor is one of the most popular in art and there are many representations in statuary, vase painting and even on ancient coinage. / Herakles wrestles the Nemean Lion.

According to the myth, Herakles tried killing the creature with a sword but its skin was so tough that it bent the metal. Herakles instead stunned the beast with a club and then strangled it to death with a headlock. Some artistic depictions even show a bent sword on the ground near Herakles and the lion. The author Theokritos tells us that the beasts hide was so tough nothing could cut through it except the beast's own claws. Using its claws Herakles skinned the beast and wore its skin ever after.