 section 11 of myths and legends this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Lauren Lazarus myths and legends of ancient Greece and Rome by E. M. Barron's Hermes Mercury Hermes was the swift-footed messenger and trusted ambassador of all the gods and conductor of shades to Hades. He presided over the rearing and education of the young and encouraged gymnastic exercises and athletic pursuits for which reason all gymnasiums and wrestling schools throughout Greece were adorned with his statues. He is said to have invented the alphabet and to have taught the art of interpreting foreign languages and his versatility, sagacity, and cunning were so extraordinary that Zeus invariably chose him as his attendant when disguised as a mortal he journeyed on earth. Hermes was worshipped as God of eloquence most probably from the fact that in his office as ambassador this faculty was indispensable to the successful issue of the negotiations with which he was entrusted. He was regarded as the God who granted increase in prosperity to flocks and herds and on this account was worshipped with special veneration by herdsmen. In ancient times trade was conducted chiefly by means of the exchange of cattle. Hermes therefore as God of herdsmen came to be regarded as the protector of merchants and as ready wit and adroitness are valuable qualities both in buying and selling he was also looked upon as the patron of art of this and cunning. Indeed so deeply was this notion rooted in the minds of the Greek people that he was popularly believed to be also the God of thieves and of all persons who live by their wits. As the patron of commerce Hermes was naturally supposed to be the promoter of intercourse among nations hence he is essentially the God of travelers over whose safety he presided and he severely punished those who refused assistance to the lost or weary wayfarer. He was also guardian of streets and roads and his statues called Hermae which were pillars of stones surrounded by a head of Hermes were placed at crossroads and frequently in streets and public squares. Being the God of all undertakings in which gain was a feature he was worshipped as the giver of wealth and good luck and any unexpected stroke of fortune was attributed to his influence. He also presided over the game of dice in which he is said to have been instructed by Apollo. Hermes was the son of Zeus and Maya the eldest and most beautiful of the seven Pleiades daughters of Atlas and was born in a cave of Mount Silene in Arcadia. As a mere babe he exhibited an extraordinary faculty for cunning and dissimulation. In fact he was a thief from his cradle for not many hours after his birth we find him creeping stealthily out of the cave in which he was born in order to steal some oxen belonging to his brother Apollo who was at this time feeding the flocks of Admitus. But he had not proceeded very far on his expedition before he found a tortoise which he killed and stretching seven strings across the empty shell invented a lyre upon which he at once began to play with exquisite skill. When he had sufficiently amused himself with the instrument he placed it in his cradle and then resumed his journey to Piaria where the cattle of Admitus were grazing. Arriving at sunset at his destination he succeeded in separating fifty oxen from his brother's herd which he now drove before him taking the precaution to cover his feet with sandals made of twigs of myrtle in order to escape detection. But the little rogue was not unobserved for the theft had been witnessed by an old shepherd named Batas who was tending the flocks of Nelius, king of Pylos, father of Nestor. Hermes, frightened at being discovered, brabbed him with the finest cow in the herd not to betray him and Batas promised to keep the secret. But Hermes, astute as he was dishonest, determined to test the shepherd's integrity. Failing to go away he assumed the form of Admitus and then returning to the spot offered the old man two of his best oxen if he would disclose the author of the theft. The ruse succeeded for the avarice's shepherd unable to resist the tempting bait gave the desired information upon which Hermes, exerting his divine power, changed him into a lump of touchstone as a punishment for his treachery and avarice. Hermes now killed two of the oxen, which he sacrificed to himself and the other gods, concealing the remainder in the cave. He then carefully extinguished the fire, and after throwing his twig shoes into the river Alpheus, returned to Silani. Apollo, by means of his all-seeing power, soon discovered who it was that had robbed him, and hastening to Silani demanded restitution of his property. On his complaining to Maia of her son's conduct, she pointed to the innocent babe then lying apparently fast asleep in his cradle, whereupon Apollo angrily aroused the pretended sleeper and charged him with the theft. But the child stoutly denied all knowledge of it, and so cleverly did he play his part that he even inquired in the most naïve manner what sort of animals cows were. Apollo threatened to throw him into Tartarus if he would not confess the truth, but all to no purpose. At last he seized the babe in his arms and brought him into the presence of his August father, who was seated in the council chamber of the gods. Zeus listened to the charge made by Apollo and then certainly desired Hermes to say where he had hidden the cattle. The child, who was still in swaddling clothes, looked out bravely into his father's face and said, Now, do I look capable of driving away a herd of cattle? I, who was only born yesterday and whose feet are much too soft and tender to tread in rough places? Until this moment I lay in sweet sleep on my mother's bosom and have never even crossed the threshold of our dwelling. You know well that I am not guilty, but if you wish I will affirm it by the most solemn oaths. As the child stood before him, looking the picture of innocence, Zeus could not refrain from smiling at his cleverness and cunning. But being perfectly aware of his guilt, he commanded him to conduct Apollo to the cave where he concealed the herd, and Hermes, seeing that further subterfuge was useless, unhesitatingly obeyed. But when the divine shepherd was about to drive his cattle back into Pea area, Hermes, as though by chance, touched the cords of his lyre. Hitherto Apollo had heard nothing but the music of his own three stringed lyre, and the shrinks, or pan's pipe. And as he listened and tranced to the delightful strains of this new instrument, his longing to possess it became so great that he gladly offered the oxen an exchange, promising at the same time to give Hermes full dominion over flocks and herds, as well as over horses and all the wild animals of the woods and forests. The offer was accepted, and a reconciliation being thus effected between the brothers, Hermes became henceforth God of herdsmen, whilst Apollo devoted himself enthusiastically to the art of music. They now proceeded together to Olympus, where Apollo introduced Hermes as his chosen friend and companion, and having made him swear by the sticks that he would never steal his lyre or bow, nor invade his sanctuary at Delphi, he presented him with the Caduchias, or Golden Wand. This wand was surmounted by wings, and on presenting it to Hermes, Apollo informed him that it possessed the faculty of uniting in love, all beings divided by hate. Wishing to prove the truth of this assertion, Hermes threw it down between two snakes which were fighting, whereupon the angry combatants clasped each other in a loving embrace, and curling round the staff remained ever after permanently attached to it. The wand itself typified power, the serpent's wisdom, and the wings despatch, all qualities characteristic of a trustworthy ambassador. The young God was now presented by his father with a winged silver cap, Pettisus, and also with silver wings for his feet, Tolaria, and was forthwith appointed Herald of the Gods, and conductor of shades to Hades, which office had hitherto been filled by Aedes. As messenger of the gods, we find him employed on all occasions requiring special skill, tact, or despatch. Thus he conducts Hera, Athene, and Aphrodite to Paris, leads Preum to Achilles to demand the body of Hector, binds Prometheus to Mount Caucasus, secures Ixion to the eternally revolving wheel, destroys Argus, the hundred-eyed guardian of Io, etc., etc. As conductor of shades, Hermes was always invoked by the dying to grant them a safe and speedy passage across the sticks. He also possessed the power of bringing back departed spirits to the upper world, and was therefore the mediator between the living and the dead. The poets relate many amusing stories of the youthful tricks played by this mischief-loving god upon the other immortals. For instance, he had the audacity to extract the Medusa's head from the shield of Athene, which he playfully attached to the back of Hephaestus. He also stole the girdle of Aphrodite, deprived Artemis of her arrows and Aries of his spear. But these acts were always performed with such graceful dexterity, combined with such perfect good humor, that even the gods and goddesses he thus provoked were feigned to pardon him, and he became a universal favorite with them all. It is said that Hermes was one day flying over Athens, when looking down into the city, he beheld a number of maidens returning in solemn procession from the temple of Palistheni. Foremost among them was Hersi, the beautiful daughter of King Seacrops, and Hermes was so struck with her exceeding loveliness that he determined to seek an interview with her. He accordingly presented himself at the royal palace, and begged her sister, Agralos, to favor his suit. But being of an avaricious turn of mind, she refused to do so without the payment of an enormous sum of money. It did not take the messenger of the gods long to obtain the means of fulfilling this condition, and he soon returned with a well-filled purse. But meanwhile, Athene, to punish the acupidity of Agralos, had caused the demon of Envy to take possession of her, and the consequence was that being unable to contemplate the happiness of her sister, she sat down before the door and resolutely refused to allow Hermes to enter. He tried every persuasion and blandishment in his power, but she still remained obstinate. At last, his patience being exhausted, he changed her into a mass of black stone, and the obstacle to his wishes being removed, he succeeded in persuading hercy to become his wife. In his statues, Hermes is represented as a beardless youth, with broad chest and graceful but muscular limbs. The face is handsome and intelligent, and a genial smile of kindly benevolence plays around the delicately chiseled lips. As messenger of the gods, he wears the petticescentillaria, and bears in his hand the caduchias or the heralds staff. As God of eloquence, he is often represented with chains of gold hanging from his lips, whilst as the patron of merchants he bears a purse in his hand. The wonderful excavations in Olympia, to which allusion has already been made, have brought to light an exquisite marble group of Hermes and the infant Bacchus by praxiteles. In this great work of art, Hermes is represented as a young and handsome man, who is looking down kindly and affectionately at the child resting on his arm. But unfortunately nothing remains of the infant save the right hand, which is laid lovingly on the shoulder of his protector. The sacrifices to Hermes consisted of incense, honey, cakes, pigs, and especially lambs and young goats. As God of eloquence, the tongues of animals were sacrificed to him. Mercury Mercury was the Roman god of commerce and gain. We find mention of a temple having been erected to him near the Circus Maximus, as early as B.C. 495. And he also had a temple and a sacred fount near the Porta Capena. Magic powers were ascribed to the latter and on the Festival of Mercury, which took place on the 25th of May. It was the custom for merchants to sprinkle themselves and their merchandise with this holy water in order to ensure large profits from their wares. The Fatalis, Roman priest whose duty it was to act as guardians of the public faith, refused to recognize the identity of Mercury with Hermes, and ordered him to be represented with a sacred branch as the emblem of peace instead of the Caduceus. In later times, however, he was completely identified with the Greek Hermes. End of Section 11. Section 12 of Myths and Legends. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or how to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Myths and Legends of H.N. Greece by E.M. Barrens. Section 12. Dionysus, Bacchus. Dionysus, also called Bacchus from Baca, Barry, was the God of wine and the personification of the blessings of nature in general. The worship of this divinity, which is supposed to have been introduced into Greece from Asia in all probability from India, first took root in Thrace, whence it gradually spread into other parts of Greece. Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Sennily, and was snatched by Zeus from the devouring flames in which his mother perished when he appeared to her in all the splendor of his divine glory. The motherless child was entrusted to the charge of Hermes, who conveyed him to Sennily's sister, I know. But Hera, still implacable in her vengeance, visited Althamus, the husband of I know, with madness and the child's life being no longer safe, he was transferred to the fostering care of the nymphs of Mount Nysa. An aged sader named Salinas, the son of Pan, took upon himself the office of guardian and preceptor to the young God who, in his turn, became much attached to his tutor. Hence we see Salinas always figuring as one of the chief personages in the various expeditions of the wine God. Dionysus passed an innocent and uneventful childhood roaming through the woods and forests, surrounded by nymphs, saders, and shepherds. During one of these rambles, he found a fruit growing wild of a most refreshing and cooling nature. This was the vine from which he subsequently learned to extract a juice which formed a most exhilarating beverage. After his companions had partaken freely of it, they felt their whole being pervaded by an unwanted sense of pleasurable excitement and gave full vent to their overflowing exuberance by shouting, singing, and dancing. Their numbers were soon swelled by a crowd eager to taste a beverage productive of such extraordinary results and anxious to join in the worship of a divinity to whom they were indebted for this new enjoyment. Dionysus, on his part, seeing how agreeably his discovery had affected his immediate followers, resolved to extend the boon to mankind in general. He saw that wine used in moderation would enable man to enjoy a happier and more sociable existence and that under its invigorating influence, the sorrowful might for a while forget their grief and the sick their pain. He accordingly gathered round him his zealous followers, and they set forth on their travels planting the vine and teaching it cultivation wherever they went. We now behold Dionysus at the head of a large army composed of men, women, fawns, and satyrs, all bearing in their hands the thyrsis, a staff entwined with vine branches surmounted by a fur cone and clashing together symbols and other musical instruments. Seated in a chariot drawn by Panthers and accompanied by thousands of enthusiastic followers, Dionysus made a triumphal progress through Syria, Egypt, Arabia, India, et cetera, conquering all before him, founding cities and establishing on every side a more civilized and sociable mode of life among the inhabitants of the various countries through which he passed. When Dionysus returned to Greece from his Eastern expedition, he encountered great opposition from Lycurgus, King of Thrace, and Pentheus, King of Thebes. The former, highly disapproving of the wild rebels, which attended the worship of the wine god, drove away his attendants, the Nymphs of Nysa, from that sacred mountain and so effectually intimidated Dionysus that he precipitated himself into the sea where he was received into the arms of the ocean nymph, Thetis. But the impious king bitterly expiated his sacrilegious conduct. He was punished with the loss of his reason and, during one of his mad proxisms, killed his own son, Dryas, whom he mistook for a vine. Pemphius, King of Thebes, seeing his subjects so completely infatuated by the riotous worship of this new divinity and fearing the demoralizing effects of the unseemly nocturnal orgies held in honor of the wine god, strictly prohibited his people from taking any part in the wild Buccanean rebels. Anxious to save him from the consequences of his impiety, Dionysus appeared to him under the form of a youth in the king's train and earnestly warned him to desist from his denunciations. But the well-meant admonition failed in its purpose for Pentheus only became more incensed at this interference and commanding Dionysus to be cast into prison caused the most cruel preparations to be made for his immediate execution. But the god soon freed himself from his ignoble confinements for scarcely had his jailers departed ere the prison doors opened of themselves and bursting asunder his iron chains he escaped to rejoin his devoted followers. Meanwhile, the mother of the king and her sisters, inspired with Buccanean fury, had repaired to Mount Scythron in order to join the worshipers of the wine god in those dreadful orgies which were solemnized exclusively by women and which no man was allowed to be present. Enraged at finding his commands thus openly disregarded by the members of his own family Pentheus resolved to witness for himself the excesses of which he had heard such terrible reports and for this purpose concealed himself behind a tree on Mount Scythron. But his hiding place being discovered he was dragged out by the half maddened crew of Bacantes and horrible to relate he was torn in pieces by his own mother Agave and her two sisters. An incident which occurred to Dionysus on one of his travels has been a favorite subject with the classical poets. One day as some typhrenian pirates approached the shores of Greece they beheld Dionysus in the form of a beautiful youth attired in radiant garments thinking to secure a rich prize they seized him bound him and conveyed him on board their vessel resolved to carry him with them to Asia and there sell him as a slave but the fetters dropped from his limbs and the pilot who was the first to perceive the miracle called upon his companions to restore the youth carefully to the spot whence they had taken him assuring them that he was a god and that adverse winds and storms would in all probability result from their impious conduct but refusing to part with their prisoner they set sail for the open sea suddenly to the alarm of all on board the ship stood still masts and sails were covered with clustering vines and wreaths of ivy leaves streams of fragrant wine inundated the vessel and heavenly strains of music were heard around the terrified crew too late repentant crowded round the pilot for protection and in treated him to steer for the shore but the hour of retribution had arrived Dionysus assumed the form of a lion whilst beside him appeared a bear which with a terrific roar rushed upon the captain and tore him in pieces the sailors in an agony of terror leaped overboard and were changed into dolphins the discreet and pious Steersman was alone permitted to escape the fate of his companions and to him Dionysus who had resumed his true form addressed words of kind and affectionate encouragement and announced his name and dignity they now set sail and Dionysus desired the pilot to land him at the island of Noxus where he found the lovely Ariadne daughter of Minos king of Crete she had been abandoned by Theseus on this lonely spot and when Dionysus now beheld her was lying fast asleep on a rock worn out with sorrow and weeping wrapped in admiration the god stood gazing at the beautiful vision before him and when she had length unclosed her eyes he revealed himself to her and in gentle tones sought to banish her grief grateful for his kind sympathy coming as it did at the moment when she had deemed herself forsaken and friendless she gradually regained her former serenity and yielding to his entreaties consented to become his wife Dionysus having established his worship in various parts of the world descended to the realm of shades in search of his ill-fated mother whom he conducted to Olympus where under the name of Theoni she was admitted into the assembly of the immortal gods among the most noted worshipers of Dionysus was Midas the wealthy king of Frigia the same who as already related gave judgment against Apollo upon one occasion Selenus the preceptor and friend of Dionysus being in an intoxicated condition straight into the rose gardens of this monarch where he was found by some of the king's attendants who bound him with roses and conducted him to the presence of their royal master Midas treated the aged sader with the greatest consideration and after entertaining him hospitably for 10 days led him back to Dionysus who was so grateful for the kind attention shown to his old friend that he offered to grant Midas any favor he chose to demand whereupon the avaricious monarch not content with his boundless wealth and still thirsting for more desired that everything he touched might turn into gold the request was complied with in so literal a sense that the now wretched Midas bitterly repented his folly and cupidity for when the pangs of hunger assailed him and he essayed to appease his cravings the food became gold air he could swallow it as he raised the cup of wine to his parched lips the sparkling draft was changed into the metal he had so coveted and when at length wearied and faint he stretched his aching frame on his hitherto luxurious couch this also was transformed into the substance which had now become the curse of his existence the despairing king at last implored the god to take back the fatal gift and Dionysus pitying his unhappy plight desired him to bathe in the river Pectolis a small stream in Lydia in order to lose the power which had become the bane of his life Midas joyfully obeying the injunction was at once freed from the consequences of his avaricious demand and from this time forth the sands of the river Pectolis have ever contained grains of gold representations of Dionysus are of two kinds according to the earliest conceptions he appears as a grave and dignified man in the prime of life his countenance is earnest thoughtful and benevolent he wears a full beard and is draped from head to foot in the garb of an eastern monarch but the sculptors of a later period represent him as a youth of singular beauty though of somewhat effeminate appearance the expression of the countenance is gentle and winning the limbs are supple and gracefully molded and the hair which is adorned by a wreath of vine or ivy leaves falls over the shoulders in long curls in one hand he bears the theorists and in the other a drinking cup with two handles these being his distinguishing attributes he is often represented writing on a panther or seated in a chariot drawn by lions, tigers, panthers, or lynxes being the god of wine which is calculated to promote sociability he rarely appears alone but is usually accompanied by bacontes, satyrs, and mountain nymphs the finest modern representation of Ariadne is that by Donnecker at Frankfurt on the main in this statue she appears writing on a panther the beautiful upturned face inclines slightly over the left shoulder the features are regular and finely cut and a wreath of ivy leaves encircles the well-shaped head with her right hand she gracefully clasps the folds of drapery which fall away negligently from her rounded form whilst the other rests lightly and caressingly on the head of the animal Dionysus was regarded as the patron of the drama and at the state festival of the Dionysia which was celebrated with great pomp in the city of Athens dramatic entertainment took place in his honor for which all the renowned Greek dramatists of antiquity composed their immortal tragedies and comedies he was also a prophetic divinity and possessed oracles the principle of which was that on Mount Rodope in Thrace the tiger, lynx, panther, dolphin, serpent, and ass were sacred to this god his favorite plants were the vine, ivy, laurel, and asphodel his sacrifices consisted of goats probably on account of their being destructive to vineyards Bacchus or Lieber the Romans headed divinity called Lieber who presided over vegetation and was on this account identified with the Greek Dionysus and worshiped under the name of Bacchus the festival of Lieber called the Liberalia Liberalia was celebrated on the 17th of March end of section 12 this recording by Aaron Elliott St. Louis, Missouri section 13 of Myths and Legends this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome by E. M. Barons 80s, Pluto 80s, Aedunus, or Hades was the son of Cronus and Rhea and the youngest brother of Zeus and Poseidon he was the ruler of that subterranean region called Erebus which was inhabited by the shades or spirits of the dead and also by those dethroned and exiled deities who had been vanquished by Zeus and his allies 80s, the grim and gloomy monarch of this lower world was the successor of Erebus that ancient primeval divinity after whom these realms were called see footnote 131 the early Greeks regarded 80s in the light of their greatest foe and Homer tells us that he was of all the gods the most detested being in their eyes the grim robber who stole from them their nearest and dearest and eventually deprived each of them of their share in terrestrial existence his name was so feared that it was never mentioned by mortals who when they invoked him struck the earth with their hands and in sacrificing to him turned away their faces the belief of the people with regard to a future state was in the Homeric age a sad and cheerless one it was supposed that when a mortal ceased to exist his spirit tenanted the shadowy outline of the human form it had quitted these shadows or shades as they were called were driven by 80s into his dominions where they passed their time some in brooding over the vicissitudes of fortune which they had experienced on earth others in regretting the lost pleasures they had enjoyed in life but all in a condition of semi-consciousness from which the intellect could only be roused to full activity by drinking of the blood of the sacrifices offered to their shades by living friends which for a time endowed them with their former mental vigor the only beings supposed to enjoy any happiness in a future state were the heroes whose acts of daring and deeds of prowess had during their life reflected honor on the land of their birth and even these according to Homer pined after their career of earthly activity he tells us that when Odysseus visited the lower world at the command of Cersei and held communion with the shades of the heroes of the Trojan War Achilles assured him that he would rather be the poorest day laborer on earth than reign supreme over the realm of shades the early greek poets offer but scanty illusions to arabus Homer appears purposely to envelope these realms in vagueness and mystery in order probably to heighten the sensation of awe inseparably connected with the lower world see footnote 132 in the odyssey he describes the entrance to arabus as being beyond the further most edge of oceanus in the far west where dwelt this samarians enveloped in eternal mists and darkness in later times however in consequence of extended intercourse with foreign nations new ideas became gradually introduced and we find egyptian theories with regard to a future state taking root in Greece which become eventually the religious belief of the whole nation it is now that the poets and philosophers and more especially the teachers of the elisunian mysteries begin to inculcate the doctrine of the future reward and punishment of good and bad deeds eighties who had hitherto been regarded as the dread enemy of mankind who delights in his grim office and keeps the shades imprisoned in his dominions after withdrawing them from the joys of existence now receives them with hospitality and friendship and hermes replaces him as conductor of shades to eighties under this new aspect eighties usurps the functions of a totally different divinity called plutus the god of riches and is henceforth regarded as the giver of wealth to mankind in the shape of those precious metals which lie concealed in the bowels of the earth the later poets mentioned various entrances to arabes which were for the most part caves and fissures there is one in the mountain of Tenerum another in Thesprosia and a third, the most celebrated of all in Italy near the prestiferous lake Avernus over which it is said no bird could fly so noxious were its exhalations in the dominions of eighties there were four great rivers three of which had to be crossed by all the shades these three were archeron sorrow cosetus lamentation and sticks intense darkness the sacred stream which flowed nine times round these realms the shades were ferried over the sticks by the grim unshaven old boatman Charon who however only took those whose bodies had received funeral rites on earth and who had brought with them his indispensable toll which was a small coin or obelisk usually placed under the tongue of a dead person for this purpose see footnote 133 if these conditions had not been fulfilled the unhappy shades were left behind to wander up and down the banks for a hundred years as restless spirits on the opposite bank of the sticks was the tribunal of Minos the supreme judge before whom all shades had to appear and who after hearing full confession of their actions whilst on earth pronounced the sentence of happiness or misery to which their deeds had entitled them this tribunal was guarded by the terrible triple-headed dog Seribus who with his three necks bristling with snakes lay at full length on the ground a formidable sentinel who permitted all shades to enter but none to return the happy spirits destined to enjoy the delights of Elysium passed out on the right and proceeded to the golden palace where 80s and Persephone held their royal court from whom they receded a kindly greeting ere they set out for the illicent fields which lay beyond see footnote 47 this blissful region was replete with all that could charm the senses or please the imagination the air was balmy and fragrant rippling brooks flowed peacefully through the smiling meadows which glowed with the varied hues of a thousand flowers whilst the groves resounded with the joyous songs of birds the occupations and amusements of the happy shades were of the same nature as those which they had delighted in whilst on earth here the warrior found his horses chariots and arms the musician his lyre and the hunter his quiver and bow in a secluded veil of Elysium there flowed a gentle silent stream called Leith Oblivion whose waters had the effect of dispelling care and producing utter forgetfulness of former events according to the Pythagorean doctrine of the transmigration of souls it was supposed that after the shades had inhabited Elysium for a thousand years they were destined to animate other bodies on earth and before leaving Elysium they drank of the river Leith in order that they might enter upon their new career without any remembrance of the past see footnote 134 the guilty souls after leaving the presence of Minos were conducted to the great judgment hall of Hades whose massive walls of solid element were surrounded by the river Flegethon the waves of which rolled flames of fire and lit up with their lurid glare these awful realms in the interior sat the dread judge Radamontus who declared to each comer the precise torments which awaited him in Tartarus the wretched sinners were then seized by the furies who scourged them with their whips and dragged them along to the great gate which closed the opening to Tartarus into whose awful depths they were hurled to suffer endless torture Tartarus was a vast and gloomy expanse as far below Hades as the earth is distant from the skies there the titans fallen from their high estate dragged out a dreary and monotonous existence there also were Otis and Effialtes those giant sons of Poseidon who with impious hands had attempted to scale Olympus and he thrown its mighty ruler principal among the sufferers in this abode of gloom where Titius, Tantalus, Sisyphus, Ixion and the Denades Titius, one of the earth-born giants had insulted Hera on her way to Pitho for which offense Zeus flung him into Tartarus where he suffered dreadful torture inflicted by two vultures which perpetually nod his liver Tantalus was a wise and wealthy king of Lydia with whom the gods themselves condescended to associate he was even permitted to sit at table with Zeus who delighted in his conversation and listened with interest to the wisdom of his observations Tantalus, however, elated at these distinguished marks of divine favor presumed upon his position and used unbecoming language to Zeus himself he also stole nectar and ambrosia from the table of the gods with which he regaled his friends but his greatest crime consisted in killing his own son Pelops and serving him up at one of the banquets to the gods in order to test their omniscience see footnote 135 for these heinous offenses he was condemned by Zeus to eternal punishment in Tartarus where tortured with an ever-burning thirst he was plunged up to the chin in water which as he stooped to drink always receded from his parched lips tall trees with spreading branches laden with delicious fruits hung temptingly over his head but no sooner did he raise himself to grasp them then a wind arose and carried them beyond his reach Sisyphus was a great tyrant who according to some accounts barbarously murdered all travelers who came into his dominions by hurling upon them enormous pieces of rock in punishment for his crimes he was condemned to roll incessantly a huge block of stone up a steep hill which as soon as it reached the summit always rolled back again to the plain below Ixion was a king of Thessaly to whom Zeus accorded the privilege of joining the festive banquets of the gods but taking advantage of his exalted position he presumed to aspire to the favor of Hera which so greatly incensed Zeus that he struck him with his thunderbolts and commanded Hermes to throw him into Tartarus and bind him to an ever-revolving wheel the Denades were the 50 daughters of Danas king of Argos who had married their 50 cousins the son of Egyptus by the command of their father who had been warned by an oracle that his son-in-law would cause his death they all killed their husbands in one night Hypermenestria alone accepted their punishment in the lower world was to fill with water a vessel full of holes a never-ending and useless task Aedes is usually represented as a man of mature years and stern majestic mean bearing a striking resemblance to his brother Zeus but the gloomy and inexorable expression of the face contrasts forcibly with that peculiar benignity which so characterizes the countenance of the mighty ruler of heaven he is seated on a throne of ebony with his queen the grave and sad persophone beside him and wears a full beard and long flowing black hair which hangs straight down over his forehead see footnote 136 in his hand he either bears a two-pronged fork or the keys of the lower world and at his feet sits Cerberus he is sometimes seen in a chariot of gold drawn by four black horses and wearing on his head a helmet made for him by the Cyclops which rendered the wearer invisible this helmet he frequently lent to mortals and immortals Aedes who was universally worshipped throughout Greece had temples erected to his honor in Ellis Olympia and also at Athens his sacrifices which took place at night consisted of black sheep and the blood instead of being sprinkled on the altars or received in vessels as at other sacrifices was permitted to run down into a trench dug for this purpose the officiating priests wore black robes and were crowned with Cyprus the narcissist's maiden hair and Cyprus were sacred to this divinity Pluto before the introduction into Rome of the religion and literature of Greece the Romans had no belief in a realm of future happiness or misery corresponding to the Greek Hades hence they had no god of the lower world identical with Aedes they supposed that there was in the center of the earth a vast gloomy and impenetrably dark cavity called Orcus which formed a place of eternal rest for the dead but with the introduction of Greek mythology the Roman Orcus became the Greek Hades and all the Greek notions with regard to a future state now obtained with the Romans who worshiped Aedes under the name of Pluto his other appellations being Disz from Dives Rich and Orcus from the dominions over which he ruled in Rome there were no temples erected to this divinity Plutus Plutus the son of Demeter and a mortal called Iazian was the god of wealth and is represented as being lame when he makes his appearance and winged when he takes his departure he was supposed to be both blind and foolish because he bestows his gifts without discrimination and frequently upon the most unworthy objects Plutus was believed to have his abode in the bowels of the earth which was probably the reason why in later times Aedes became confounded with this divinity End of section 13 Recording by Anthony Wilson Minor Divinities The Harpies The Harpies who like the Furies were employed by the gods as instruments for the punishment of the guilty were three female divinities daughters of Thaumus and Electra called Ilo, Ossipity and Salino They were represented with the head of a fair haired maiden and the body of a vulture and were perpetually devoured by the pangs of insatiable hunger which caused them to torment their victims by robbing them of their food This they either devoured with great gluttony or defiled in such a manner as to render it unfit to be eaten Their wonderfully rapid flight far surpassed that of birds or even of the winds themselves If any mortal suddenly and unaccountably disappeared the Harpies were believed to have carried him off Thus they were supposed to have borne away the daughters of King Pandarius to act as servants to the Arrhenes The Harpies would appear to be personifications of sudden tempests which with ruthless violence sweep over whole districts carrying off or injuring all before them Arrhenes, Humanities, Fiori, Diori The Arrhenes or Furies were female divinities who personified the torturing pangs of an evil conscience and the remorse which inevitably follows wrongdoing Their names were Electo, Magyra, and Tysiphonii and their origin was variously accounted for According to Hesiod they sprang from the blood of Uranus when wounded by Cronus and were hence supposed to be the embodiment of all the terrible implications which the defeated deity called down upon the head of his rebellious son According to other accounts they were the daughters of Knight Their place of abode was the lower world where they were employed by Aedes and Persephone to chastise and torment those shades who during their earthly career had committed crimes and had not been reconciled to the gods before descending to Hades But their sphere of action was not confined to the realm of shades for they appeared upon earth as the avenging deities who relentlessly pursued and punished murderers purgeurors those who had failed in duty to their parents in hospitality to strangers or in the respect due to old age Nothing escaped the piercing glance of these terrible divinities from whom flight was unavailing for no corner of the earth was so remote as to be beyond their reach nor did any mortal dare to offer to their victims an asylum from their persecutions The fairies are frequently represented with wings their bodies are black blood drips from their eyes and snakes twine in their hair In their hands they bear either a dagger scourge torch or serpent When they pursued orrestes they constantly held up a mirror to his horrified gaze in which he beheld the face of his murdered mother These divinities were also called humanities which signifies the well-meaning or soothed goddesses This appellation was given to them because they were so feared and dreaded that people dared not call them by their proper title and hoped by this means to propitiate their wrath In later times the fairies came to be regarded as salutary agencies who, by severely punishing sin upheld the cause of morality and social order and thus contributed to the welfare of mankind They now lose their awe-inspiring aspect and are represented, more especially in Athens as earnest maidens, dressed, like Artemis in short tunics suitable for the chase but still retaining in their hands the wand of office in the form of a snake Their sacrifices consisted of black sheep and a libation composed of a mixture of honey and water called nephalia A celebrated temple was erected to the humanities at Athens near the Areopagus Moirai, or fates, Parkae The ancients believed that the duration of human existence and the destinies of mortals were regulated by three sister goddesses called Clotho, Lekesis, and Atropos who were the daughters of Zeus and Themis The power which they wielded over the fate of man was significantly indicated under the figure of a thread which they spun out for the life of each human being from his birth to the grave This occupation they divided between them Clotho wound the flax around the distaff ready for her sister Lekesis who spanned out the thread of life which Atropos with her scissors relentlessly snapped us under when the career of an individual was about to terminate Homer speaks of one Moira only the daughter of knight who represents the moral force by which the universe is governed and to whom both mortals and immortals were forced to submit Zeus himself being powerless to avert her decrees but in later times this conception of one inexorable all-conquering fate became amplified by the poets into that above described and the Moiraer henceforth the special presiding deities over the life and death of mortals The Moiraer represented by the poets as stern inexorable female divinities aged hideous and also lame which is evidently meant to indicate the slow and halting march of destiny which they controlled painters and sculptors on the other hand depicted them as beautiful maidens of a grave but kindly aspect there is a charming representation of Lekesis which depicts her in all the grace of youth and beauty she is sitting spinning and at her feet lie two masks one comic the other tragic as though to convey the idea that to a divinity of fate the brightest and saddest scenes of earthly existence are alike and different and that she quietly and steadily pursues her occupation regardless of human wheel or woe when represented at the feet of Aedes in the lower world they are clad in dark robes but when they appear in Olympus they wear bright garments bespangled with stars and are seated on radiant thrones with crowns on their heads it was considered the function of the Moiraer to indicate to the Furies the precise torture which the wicked should undergo for their crimes they were regarded as prophetic divinities and had sanctuaries in many parts of Greece the Moiraer mentioned as assisting the Charites to conduct Persephone to the upper world at her periodical reunion with her mother Demeter they also appear in company with Eilatia goddess of birth Nemesis Nemesis the daughter of Nyx represents that power which adjusts the balance of human affairs by awarding to each individual the fate which his actions deserve she rewards humble unacknowledged merit punishes crime deprives the worthless of undeserved good fortune humiliates the proud and overbearing and visits all evil on the wrongdoer thus maintaining that proper balance of things which the Greeks recognized as a necessary condition of all civilized life but though Nemesis and her original character was the distributor of rewards as well as punishments the world was so full of sin that she found but little occupation in her first capacity and hence became finally regarded as the avenging goddess only we have seen a striking instance of the manner in which this divinity punishes the proud and arrogant in the history of Nairobi Apollo and Artemis were merely the instruments for avenging the insult offered to their mother but it was Nemesis who prompted the deed and presided over its execution Homer makes no mention of Nemesis it is therefore evident that she was a conception of later times when higher views of morality had obtained among the Greek nation Nemesis is represented as a beautiful woman of thoughtful and benign aspect and regal bearing a diadem crowns her majestic brow and she bears in her hand a rudder balance and cubit fitting emblems of the manner in which she guides ways and measures all human events she is also sometimes seen with a wheel to symbolize the rapidity with which she executes justice as the avenger of evil she appears winged bearing in her hand either a scourge or a sword and seated in a chariot drawn by griffins Nemesis is frequently called Adrastia and also Ramnusia from Ramna Sanatica the chief seat of her worship which contained a celebrated statue of the goddess Nemesis was worshipped by the Romans who invoked her on the capital as a divinity who possessed the power of averting the pernicious consequences of envy End of section 14 Section 15 of Myths and Legends This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Lucy LaFaro New South Wales Australia Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome By E. M. Behrens Section 15 Third Dynasty Night and Her Children Nyx through Eros and Psyche Nyx Nox Nyx the daughter of Chaos being the personification of night was according to the poetic ideas of the Greeks considered to be the mother of everything mysterious and inexplicable such as death, sleep, dreams etc She became united to Erebus and their children were Aether and Hmera Air and Daylight Evidently a simile of the poets to indicate that darkness always precedes light Nyx inhabited a palace in the dark regions of the lower world and is represented as a beautiful woman seated in a chariot drawn by two black horses She is clothed in dark robes, wears a long veil and is accompanied by the stars which follow in her train Thanatos, Moors and Hypness, Somnus Thanatos, Death and his twin brother Hypness, Sleep were the children of Nyx Their dwelling was in the realm of shades and when they appear among mortals Thanatos is feared and hated as the enemy of mankind whose hard heart knows no pity while his brother Hypness is universally loved and welcomed as their kindest and most beneficial friend But though the ancients regarded Thanatos as a gloomy and mournful divinity they did not represent him with any exterior repulsiveness On the contrary he appears as a beautiful youth who holds in his hand an inverted torch emblematical of the light of life being extinguished whilst his disengaged arm is thrown lovingly around the shoulder of his brother Hypness Hypness is sometimes depicted standing erect with closed eyes At others he is in a recumbent position beside his brother Thanatos and usually bears a poppy stalk in his hand A most interesting description of the abode of Hypness is given by Ovid in his metamorphosis He tells us how the god of sleep dwelt in a mountain cave near the realm of the Sumerians which the sun never pierced with his rays No sound disturbed the stillness no song of birds not a branch moved and no human voice broke the profound silence which reigned everywhere From the lowermost rocks of the cave issued the river Lethe and one might almost have supposed that its course was arrested were it not for the low monotonous hum of the water which invited slumber The entrance was partially hidden by numberless white and red poppies which Mother Knight had gathered and planted there and from the juice of which she extracts drowsiness which she scatters in liquid drops all over the earth as soon as the sun god has sunk to rest In the centre of the cave stands a couch of blackest ebony with a bed of down over which is laid a covalent of sable hue Here the god himself reposes surrounded by innumerable forms These are idle dreams more numerous than the sands of the sea Chief among them is Morpheus that change for god who may assume any shape or form he pleases Nor can the god of sleep resist his own power for though he may rouse himself for a while his soon succumbs to the drowsy influences which surround him Morpheus Morpheus the son of Hypness was the god of dreams he is always represented winged and appears sometimes as a youth sometimes as an old man in his hand he bears a cluster of poppies and as he steps with noiseless footsteps over the earth he gently scatters the seeds of this sleep producing plant over the eyes of weary mortals Homer describes the house of dreams as having two gates one whence issue all deceptive and flattering visions being formed of ivory the other through which proceed those dreams which are fulfilled of horn the Gorgons the Gorgons Steno Urielii and Medusa were the three daughters of forces and Ceto and were the personification of those benumbing and as it were petrifying sensations which result from sudden and extreme fear they were frightful winged monsters whose bodies were covered with scales hissing wriggling snakes cluttered round their heads instead of hair their hands were of brass their teeth resembled the tusks of a wild boar and their whole aspect was so appalling that they are said to have turned into stone all who beheld them these terrible sisters were supposed to dwell in that remote and mysterious region in the far west beyond the sacred stream of Oceanus the Gorgons were the servants of 80s who made use of them to terrify and over all those shades doomed to be kept in a constant state of unrest as a punishment for their misdeeds whilst the furies on their part scourged them with their whips and tortured them incessantly the most celebrated of the three sisters was Medusa who alone was mortal she was originally a golden head and very beautiful maiden who as a priestess of Athena was devoted to a life of celibacy but being wooed by Poseidon whom she loved in return she forgot her vows and became united to him in marriage for this offence she was punished by the goddess in a most terrible manner each wavy lock of the beautiful hair which had so charmed her husband was changed into a venomous snake her once gentle love-inspiring eyes now became bloodshot furious orbs which excited fear and disgust in the mind of the beholder whilst her former rosette hue and milk-white skin assumed to be her own milk-white skin assumed a loathsome green tinge seeing herself thus transformed into a repulsive object Medusa fled from her home never to return wandering about aboard, dreaded and shunned by all the world she now developed into a character worthy of her outward appearance in her despair she fled to Africa where as she passed mercilessly from place to place infant snakes dropped from her hair and thus according to the belief of the ancients that country became the hotbed of these venomous reptiles with the curse of Athena upon her she turned into stone whomsoever she gazed upon till at last after a life of nameless misery deliverance came to her in the shape of death in the process it is well to observe that when the gorgons are spoken of in the singular it is Medusa who is alluded to Medusa was the mother of Pegasus and Chrysail father of the three-headed winged giant Gereonese who was slain by Heracles Gree the Gree who acted as servants to their sisters the gorgons were also three in number their names were Befrido, Ennio and Dino in their original conception they were merely personifications of kindly and venerable old age possessing all its benevolent attributes without its natural infirmities they were old and grey from their birth and so they ever remained in later times however they came to be regarded as misshapen females decrepit and hideously ugly having only one eye one tooth and one grey wig between them which they lent to each other when one of them wished to appear before the world when Perseus entered upon this expedition to slay the Medusa he repaired to the adobe of the Gree in the far west to inquire the way to the gorgons and on their refusing to give any information he rubbed them of their one eye tooth and wig and did not restore them until he received the necessary directions Sphinx the Sphinx was an ancient Egyptian divinity her personified wisdom and the fertility of nature she is represented as a lion cochant with the head and bust of a woman and wears a peculiar sort of hood which completely envelops her head and falls down on either side of the face transplanted into Greece this sublime and mysterious Egyptian deity degenerates into an insignificant and yet malignant power and though she also deals in mysteries they are as we shall see of a totally different character and altogether inimical to human life the Sphinx is represented according to greek genealogy as the offspring of typhon and echidna Hera being upon one occasion displeased with the Thebans sent them this awful monster as a punishment for their offences taking her seat on a rocky evidence near the city of Thebes commanding a pass which the Thebans were compelled to traverse in their usual way of business she propounded to all comers a riddle and if they failed she tore them in pieces during the reign of King Creon so many people had fallen a sacrifice to this monster that he determined to use every effort to rid the country of so terrible a scourge on consulting the Oracle of Delphi he was informed that the only way to destroy the Sphinx was to solve one of her riddles when she would immediately precipitate herself from the rock on which she was seated Creon accordingly made a public declaration to the effect that whoever could give the true interpretation of a riddle propounded by the monster should obtain the crown and the hand of his sister, Jocasti Oedipus offered himself as a candidate and proceeding to the spot where she kept guard received from her the following riddle for solution he was in the morning on four legs at noon on two and in the evening on three Oedipus replied that it must be man who during his infancy creeps on or forwards in his prime walks erect on two legs and when old age has enfeebled his powers calls a staff to his assistance and thus has as it were three legs the Sphinx no sooner heard this reply which was the correct solution of her riddle then she flung herself over the precipice and perished in the abyss below the Greek Sphinx may be recognised by having wings and by being of smaller dimensions than the Egyptian Sphinx Taiki for tuna and Ananki necessitas Taiki for tuna Taiki personified that peculiar combination of circumstances which we call luck or fortune and was considered to be the source of all unexpected events in human life whether good or evil if a person succeeded in all he undertook without possessing any special merit of his own Taiki was supposed to have smiled on his birth undeserved ill luck followed him through life and all his efforts resulted in failure it was ascribed to her adverse influence this goddess of fortune is variously represented sometimes she is depicted bearing in her hand two rudders with one of which she steers the bark of the fortunate and with the other that of the unfortunate among mortals in later times she appears blindfolded and stands on a ball or wheel indicative of the fickleness of ever-revolving changes of fortune she frequently bears the scepter and cornucopia or horn of plenty and is usually winged in her temple at Thebes she is represented holding inferred plutus in her arms to symbolise her power of purchase and prosperity Taiki was worshipped in various parts of Greece but more particularly by the Athenians who believed in her special pre-election for their city Fortuna Taiki was worshipped in Rome under the name of Fortuna and held a position of much greater importance among the Romans than the Greeks in later times Fortuna never represented either winged or standing on a ball she merely bears the cornucopia it is evident therefore that she had come to be regarded as the goddess of good luck only who brings blessings to man and not as with the Greeks as the personification of the fluctuations of fortune in addition to Fortuna the Romans worshipped Felicitas as the river of positive good fortune and Anki Necessitas as an Anki Taiki assumes quite another character and becomes the embodiment of those immutable laws of nature by which certain causes produce certain inevitable results in a statue of this divinity at Athens she was represented with hands of bronze and surrounded with nails and hammers the hands of bronze indicated the irresistible power of the inevitable and the hammer and chains the fetters which she forged for man Anki was worshipped in Rome under the name of Necessitas Kerr in addition to the Mori who presided over the life of mortals there was another divinity called Kerr appointed for each human being in the event of his birth the Kerr belonging to an individual was believed to develop with his growth either for good or evil and when the ultimate fate of a mortal was about to be decided his Kerr was weighed in the balance and according to the preponderance of its worth or worthlessness life or death was awarded to the human being in question it becomes evident therefore that according to the belief of the early Greeks each individual had in his power to a certain extent to shorten or prolong his own existence the Kerris who are frequently mentioned by Homer were the goddesses who delighted in the slaughter of the battlefield Aiti Aiti the daughter of Zeus and Eris was a divinity who delighted in evil having instigated Hera to deprive Heracles of his birthright her father seized her by the hair of her head and hurled her from Olympus forbidding her under the most solemn implications ever to return henceforth she wandered among mankind sowing dissension working mischief and ewing men to all actions inimical to their welfare and happiness hence the relation took place between friends who had quarrelled Aiti was blamed as the original cause of disagreement Momus Momus the son of Nix was the god of rivalry and ridicule who delighted to criticize with bitter sarcasm the actions of gods and men and contrived to discover in all things some defect or blemish thus when Prometheus created the first man Momus considered his work incomplete because there was no aperture in the breast through which his inmost thoughts might be read he also found fault with the house built by Athena because being unprovided with the means of locomotion it could never be removed from an unhealthy locality Aphrodite alone defied his criticism for to his great chagrin he could find no fault with her perfect form in what manner the ancients represented this god is unknown in modern art he is depicted like a king's jester with a fool's cap and bells Eros Cupid Amor and Psyche according to Hesiod's theogeny Eros the divine spirit of love sprang forth from chaos while all were still in confusion and by his beneficent power reduced to order and harmony the shapeless conflicting elements which under his influence began to assume distinct forms this ancient Eros is represented as a full grown and very beautiful youth crowned with flowers and leaning on a shepherds crook in the course of time this beautiful conception gradually faded away and though occasional mention still continues to be made of the Eros of Chaos he is replaced by the son of Aphrodite the popular mischief loving little god of love so familiar to us all in one of the myths concerning Eros Aphrodite is described as complaining to Themis that her son did not appear to increase in stature whereupon Themis suggested that his small proportions were probably attributable to the fact of his being always alone and advised his mother to let him have a companion Aphrodite accordingly gave him as a playfellow his younger brother Anteros required love and soon had the gratification of seeing the little Eros have but curious to relate this desirable result only continued as long as the brothers remained together for the moment they were separated Eros shrank once more to his original size by degrees the conception of Eros became multiplied and we hear of little love gods Amors who appear under the most charming and diversified forms these love gods and their exhaustible subjects for the exercise of their imagination are represented as being engaged in various occupations such as hunting, fishing rowing, driving chariots and even busying themselves in mechanical labour perhaps no myth is more charming and interesting than that of Eros and Psyche which is as follows Psyche the youngest of three princesses was so transcendently beautiful that Aphrodite herself became jealous of her and no mortal dared to aspire to the honour of her hand as her sisters who were by no means equal to her in attractions were married and Psyche still remained unwetted her father consulted the oracle of Delphi and in obedience to the divine response caused her to be dressed as though for the grave and conducted to the edge of a yawning precipice was she alone then she felt herself lifted up and wafted away by the gentle west wind Zephyrus who transported her to a verdant meadow in the midst of which stood a stately palace surrounded by groves and fountains here dwelt Eros the god of love in whose arms Zephyrus deposited his lovely burden Eros himself unseen wooed her in the softest accents of affection but warned her as she valued his love not to endeavour to behold his form for some time Psyche was obedient to the injunction of her immortal spouse and made no effort to gratify her natural curiosity but unfortunately in the midst of her happiness she was seized with an unconquerable longing for the society of her sisters and her parents with her desire they were conducted by Zephyrus to her fairy-like abode filled with envy at the sight of her felicity they poisoned her mind against her husband and telling her that her unseen lover was a frightful monster they gave her a sharp dagger which they persuaded her to use for the purpose of delivering herself from his power after the departure of her sisters Psyche resolved to take the first opportunity of following their malicious counsel she accordingly rose in the dead of night and taking a lamp in one hand and a dagger in the other stealthily approached the couch where Eros was reposing when instead of the frightful monster she had expected to see the beauteous form of the god of love greeted her view overcome with surprise and admiration Psyche stooped down to gaze closely on his lovely features when from the lamp which she held in her trembling hand there fell a drop of burning oil upon the shoulder of the sleeping god who instantly awoke and seeing Psyche standing over him with the instrument of death in her hand sorrowfully reproached her for her treacherous designs and spreading out his wings flew away in despair at having lost her lover the unhappy Psyche endeavoured to put an end to her existence by throwing herself into the nearest river but instead of closing over her the waters bore her gently to the opposite bank where Pan, the god of Sheppards received her and consoled her with the hope of becoming eventually reconciled to her husband meanwhile her wicked sisters in expectation of meeting with the same good fortune which had befallen Psyche on the edge of the rock but were both precipitated into the chasm below Psyche herself filled with a restless yearning for her lost love wandered all over the world in search of him at length she appealed to Aphrodite to take compassion on her but the goddess of beauty still jealous of her charms imposed upon her the hardest tasks the accomplishment of which often appeared impossible in these she was always assisted by invisible beneficent beings sent to her by Eros who still loved her and continued to watch over her welfare Psyche had to undergo a long and severe penance before she became worthy to regain the happiness which she had so foolishly trifled away at last Aphrodite commanded her to descend into the underworld and obtain from Persephone a box containing all the charms of beauty Psyche's courage now failed her for she concluded that death must of necessity precede her entrance into the realm of shades about to abandon herself to despair she heard a voice which warned her of every danger to be avoided on her perilous journey and instructed her with regard to certain precautions to be observed these were as follows not to omit to provide herself with the ferryman's toll for Charon and the cake to pacify Severus also to refrain from taking any part in the banquets of Aedes and Persephone and above all things to bring the box of beauty charms unopened to Aphrodite in conclusion the voice assured her that compliance with the above conditions would ensure for her a safe return to the realms of light but Alas Psyche who had implicitly followed all injunctions could not withstand the temptation of the last condition and hardly had she quitted the lower world when unable to resist the curiosity which devoured her raised the lid of the box with eager expectation but instead of the wondrous charms of beauty which she expected to behold they issued from the casket a dense black vapour which had the effect of throwing her into a death-like sleep out of which Eros who had long hovered round her unseen at length awoke her with the point of one of his golden arrows he gently reproached her with this second proof of her curiosity and folly and then having persuaded Aphrodite to be reconciled to his beloved he induced Zeus to admit her among the immortal gods their reunion was celebrated amidst the rejoicings of all the Olympian deities the graces shared perfume on their path the hours sprinkled roses over the sky Apollo added the music of his lyre and the muses united their voices in a glad chorus of delight this myth would appear to be an allegory which signifies that the soul before it can be reunited to its original divine essence must be purified by the chastening sorrows and sufferings of its earthly career Eros is represented as a lovely boy with rounded limbs and a merry roguish expression he has golden wings and a quiver slung over his shoulder which contained his magical and unerring arrows in one hand he bears his golden bow and in the other a torch he is also frequently depicted riding on a lion dolphin or eagle or seated in a chariot drawn by stags or wild boars undoubtedly emblematical of the power of love as the subduer of all nature even of the wild animals in Rome Eros is worshipped under the name of Amor or Cupid End of Section 15 Section 16 of Myths and Legends this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Lucy LaFaro New South Wales Australia Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome by E. M. Behrens Section 16 Third Dynasty Night and Her Children Hymen Through the Charities or Graces Hymen Hymen or Hymennaeus of Apollo and the Muse Urania was the God who presided over marriage and nuptial and was hence invoked at all marriage festivities there is a myth concerning this divinity which tells us that Hymen was a beautiful youth of very poor parents who fell in love with a wealthy maiden so far above him in rank that he did not cherish the hope of ever becoming united to her still he missed no opportunity of seeing her and upon one occasion disguised himself as a girl and joined a troop of maidens who in company with his beloved were proceeding from Athens to Eleusis in order to attend a festival of Demeter on their way they were surprised by pirates who carried them off to a desert island where the Ruffians after drinking deeply fell into a heavy sleep Hymen seizing the opportunity slew them all and then set sail for Athens where he found the parents of the maidens in the greatest distress at their unaccountable disappearance he comforted them with the assurance that their children should be restored to them provided they would promise to give him in marriage the maiden he loved the condition being gladly complied with he at once returned to the island and called back the maidens in safety to Athens whereupon he became united to the object of his love and the union proved so remarkably happy that henceforth the name of Hymen became synonymous with conjugal felicity Iris the rainbow Iris the daughter of Thormis and Electra personified the rainbow and was the special attendant and messenger of the queen of heaven whose commands she executed with single attack intelligence and swiftness most primitive nations have regarded the rainbow as a bridge of communication between heaven and earth and this is doubtless the reason why Iris who represented that beautiful phenomenon of nature should have been invested by the Greeks with the office of communicating between gods and men who originally represented seated behind the chariot of Hera ready to do the bidding of her royal mistress she appears under the form of a slender maiden of great beauty robed in an airy fabric of variegated hues resembling mother of pearl her sandals are bright as burnished silver she has golden wings and wherever she appears a radiance of light and a sweet odour as of delicate spring flowers pervades the air Hebe Juventus Hebe was the personification of eternal youth under its most attractive and joyous aspect she was the daughter of Zeus and Hera and though of such distinguished rank is nevertheless represented as cup bearer to the gods a forcible exemplification of the old patriarchal custom in accordance with which the daughters of the house even when of the highest lineage personally assisted in serving the guests Hebe is represented as a comely modest maiden small of a beautifully rounded contour with an up-brown tresses and sparkling eyes she is often depicted pouring out nectar from an upraised vessel or bearing in her hand a shallow dish supposed to contain ambrosia the ever youth renewing food of the immortals in consequence of an act of awkwardness which caused her to slit while serving the gods Hebe was deprived of her office which was henceforth delegated to Ganymede's son of Tross Hebe afterwards became the bride of Heracles when after his apotheosis he was received among the immortals Juventus Juventus was the Roman divinity identified with Hebe whose attributes however were regarded by the Romans as applying more particularly to the imperishable vigor and immortal glory of the state in Rome several temples were erected in the honour of this goddess Ganymede's Ganymede's the youngest son of Tross, king of Troy was one day drawing water from a well on Mount Ida when he was observed by Zeus who struck with his wonderful beauty sent his eagle to transport him to Olympus where he was endowed with immortality and appointed cup bearer to the gods Ganymede's is represented as a youth of exquisite beauty with short golden locks beautifully chiseled features beaming blue eyes and pouting lips the muses of all the Olympic diaries none occupy a more distinguished position than the muses the nine beautiful daughters of Zeus and Nemosony in their original signification they presided merely over music, song and dance but with the progress of civilisation scientists claimed their special presiding divinities and we see these graceful creations in later times sharing among them various functions such as poetry astronomy etc the muses were honoured alike by mortals and immortals in Olympus where Apollo acted as their leader no banquet or festivity was considered complete without their joy inspiring presence and on earth no social gathering was celebrated without libations being poured out to them nor was any task involving intellectual effort ever undertaken without earnestly supplicating their assistance they endowed their chosen favourites with knowledge, wisdom and understanding they bestowed upon the orator the gift of eloquence inspired the poet with his and the musician with his sweetest harmonies like so many of the Greek divinities however the refined conception of the muses is somewhat marred by the acerbity with which they punished any effort on the part of mortals to rival them in their divine powers an instance of this is seen in the case of Themyrus a Thracian bard who presumed to invite them to the trial of skill in music having vanquished him they not only afflicted him with blindness but deprived him also of the power of song another example of the manner in which the gods punished presumption and vanity is seen in the story of the daughters of King Pyrus proud of the perfection to which they had brought their skill in music they presumed to challenge the muses themselves in the art over which they especially presided the contest took place on Mount Helicon and it is said that when the mortal maidens commenced their song the sky became dark and misty whereas when the muses raised their heavenly voices all nature seemed to rejoice and Mount Helicon itself moved with exaltation the priorities were clearly defeated and were transformed by the muses into singing birds as a punishment for having dared to challenge comparison with the immortals undeterred by the above example the sirens also entered into a similar contest the songs of the muses were loyal and true whilst those of the sirens were the false and deceptive strains with which so many unfortunate mariners had been rewered to their death the sirens were defeated by the muses and as a mark of humiliation were deprived of the feathers with which their bodies were adorned the oldest seat of the worship of the muses was Pairia in Thrace where they were supposed to have first seen the light of day Pairia is a district on one of the sloping declarities of Mount Olympus when it's a number of rivulets as they flow towards the plains beneath produce their sweet soothing sounds which may possibly have suggested this spot as a fitting home for the presiding divinities of song they dwelt on the summits of Mount Helicon Parnassus and Pindus and loved to haunt the springs and fountains which gushed forth amidst these rocky heights all of which were sacred to them and to poetic inspiration Agonipi and Hippocrini on Mount Helicon and the Castilian spring on Mount Parnassus were sacred to the muses the latter flowed between two lofty rocks above the city of Delphi and in ancient times its waters were introduced into a square stone basin where they were retained for the use and the priests of Apollo the libations to these divinities consisted of water milk and honey but never of wine their names and functions are as follows Calliope the most honoured of the muses presided over heroic song and epic poetry and is represented with a pencil in her hand and a slate upon her knee the muse of history holds in her hand a roll of parchment and wears a wreath of laurel Melpomani the muse of tragedy bears a tragic mask Thalia the muse of comedy carries in her right hand a shepherd's crook and has a comic mask beside her Polyhymnia the muse of sacred hymns she is always represented in a thoughtful attitude and entirely enveloped in rich folds of drapery Terpsichore the muse of dance and round delay is represented in the act of playing on a seven stringed lyre Urania the muse of astronomy stands erect and bears in her left hand a celestial globe Utterpi the muse of harmony is wearing a musical instrument usually a flute Erato the muse of love and hymnial songs wears a wreath of laurel and is striking the chords of a lyre with regard to the origin of the muses it is said that they were created by Zeus in answer to a request on the part of the victorious deities after the war with the Titans that some special divinities should be called into existence in order to commemorate in song the glorious deities of the Olympian gods Pegasus Pegasus was a beautiful winged horse who sprang from the body of Medusa when she was slain by the hero Perseus the son of Zeus and Dene spreading out his wings he immediately flew to the top of Mount Olympus where he was received with delight and admiration by all the immortals a place in his palace was assigned to him by Zeus who employed him to carry his thunder and lightning Pegasus permitted none but the gods to mount him except in the case of Belerophon whom at the command of Athena he carried a loft in order that he might slay the Chimera with his arrows the later poets represent Pegasus as being at the service of the muses and for this reason he is more celebrated in modern times than in antiquity he would appear to represent that poetical inspiration which tends to develop man's higher nature and causes the mind to soar heavenwards the only mention of the ancients of Pegasus in connection with the muses is the story of his having produced with his hoofs the famous fountain it is said that during their contest with the parides the muses played and sang on the summit of Mount Helicon with such extraordinary power and sweetness that heaven and earth stood still to listen whilst the mountain raised itself in joyous ecstasy towards the abode of the celestial gods Poseidon seeing his special function thus interfered with sent Pegasus to check the boldness of the mountain endearing to move without his permission when Pegasus reached the summit he stamped the foot with his hoofs and out gushed the waters of Hippocrine afterwards so renowned as the sacred fountain whence the muses quaffed their richest drafts of inspiration the Hesperides the Hesperides the daughters of Atlas dwelt in an island in the far west they derived their name they were appointed by Hera to act as guardians to a tree bearing golden apples which had been presented to her by Gaia on the occasion of her marriage with Zeus it is said that the Hesperides being unable to withstand the temptation of tasting the golden fruit confided to their care were deprived of their office which was henceforth delegated to the terrible dragon Laedon who now became the ever-watchful sentinel of these precious treasures the names of the Hesperides were Eagle Arithusa and Hesperia Charities Gracie Graces all those gentler attributes which beautify and refine human existence were personified by the Greeks under the form of three lovely sisters Ephrosyne Aglaea and Thalia the daughters of Zeus and Euronomy or according to later writers of Dionysus and Aphrodite they are represented as beautiful slender maidens in the full bloom of youth with hands and arms lovingly intertwined and are either undraped or wear a fleecy transparent garment of an ethereal fabric they portray every gentle emotion of the heart which vents itself in friendship and benevolence and were believed to preside over those qualities which constitute grace modesty unconscious beauty gentleness, kindness innocent joy purity of mind and body and eternal youth they not only possessed the most perfect beauty themselves but also conferred this gift upon others all the enjoyments of life were enhanced by their presence and were deemed incomplete without them and wherever joy or pleasure grace and gaiety reigned there they were supposed to be present temples and altars were everywhere erected in their honour and people of all ages and every rank in life and treated their favour insects was burnt daily upon their altars and at every banquet they were invoked and a libation poured out to them as they not only heightened all enjoyment but also by their refining influence moderated the exciting effects of wine music, eloquence poetry and art though the direct work of the muses received at the hands of the graces an additional touch of refinement and beauty for each reason they are always regarded as friends of the muses with whom they lived on Mount Olympus their special function was to act in conjunction with the seasons as attendance upon Aphrodite whom they adorned with wreaths of flowers and she emerges from their hands like the queen of spring perfumed with the odour of roses and violets and all sweet-centred blossoms the graces are frequently seen in their divinities thus they carry music for Apollo myrtles for Aphrodite etc and frequently accompany the muses eros or Dionysus End of section 16