Hercules
(who was also known as Heracles), was the son of Zeus and
Alcmene, the wife of Amphitryon. As a father, Zeus had great hopes for his
offspring. On the day of his birth, he announced to all the gods the arrival of
a child to his kingdom who would become king. Hera, who was the guardian of married women, delayed the
arrival of Hercules. Eurystheus, the cousin of Hercules, who was a
"spineless creature", came into the world before Hercules. Zeus had
to live up to his promise and made Eurystheus king. As a result of this,
Hercules could only be a champion in his service to his family and the world.
Hercules demonstrated
his strength right from birth. He choked the serpents that had been sent to him
by the jealous Hera. When he was born, he was first named Alcide ("the
strong") but was renamed "Heracles" ("the glory of
Hera") after overcoming the tests that were imposed on him by Hera.
Hercules was
educated by Linus, the musician. He learned literature and music but was found
to be a mischievous student. When Linus wanted to beat him one day, Hercules
grabbed a stool and hit Linus with it, killing him. At his trial, Hercules was
acquitted on the grounds that he was only defending himself. Amphitryon feared
his adopted son (most likely due to his strength) and sent him to a Scythian
cattleman, Teutarus, who taught Hercules archery.
At
the age of eighteen, Hercules spent
fifty days trying to kill the lion of Cithaeron. Each night he returned to the
palace of King Thespius. Because King Thespius wanted to have Hercules father
his grand-children, he put one of his fifty daughters in Hercules' bed each
night. Thus, Hercules had fifty sons, the Thespeiades, who would eventually
colonize Sicily.
Hercules married
Megara, the daughter of the Theban king. However, this marriage was not
successful. Hera, who was still jealous of Hercules, made Hercules go mad
and made him kill his children and threaten Amphitryon, who would have died
because of Hercules if Athena hadn't
stopped him. To repent from his crime, he decided to leave his wife, Megara,
and put himself at the service of Eurystheus, his cousin who was now king.
Eurystheus
sent Hercules on a
mission over his twelve years of servitude, a mission with twelve labours. On
his mission of twelve labours, he strangled the Nemean lion and made himself
armour from the hide. Secondly, he cut off the many heads of the Lernaean Hydra
and brought back the enormous Erymanthian Boar alive. With his arrows, he shot
down the many birds of the Stymphalian Marsh who raided the crops and killed
men. As well, he cleaned the stables of Augeias by diverting the courses of two
big rivers, the Alpheus and the Peneius. He completed this task in just one day.
Furthermore, he brought back the angry Cretan Bull (alive for that matter) who
breathed fire through his nostrils. He killed Diomedes, who gave his horses
human flesh to eat. He also seized the girdle given by Ares to
Hippolyta. Using the sun's golden cup, he brought Geryon's cattle back to
Greece from the Far East, fighting along the way with enemies who included
Neleus, who was the king of Pylus. Hercules retrieved the golden apples from
the Garden of the Hesperides, challenging the giant, Antaeus, the Pygmies and
the dragon, Ladon, and freeing Prometheus on
the way. Lastly, from Hades, he brought Cerberus, the dog who defended the gates of Hades.
When
he returned back to Eurystheus, he brought back the results of each labour to
Eurystheus. Because Eurystheus was afraid of Hercules, Eurystheus shut himself within a bronze jar to
protect himself.
It
is impossible to list all the feats that Hercues achieved.
Hercules travelled everywhere, including the depths of hell. He stood up to the
forces of a different kind and succeeded in injuring Hades and Hera with his
arrows. Because of his feats, he was considered a superhuman, conceivably
already a god.
Hercules won the
hand of Deianeira and lived with her in Calydon. Soon, after being chased by
bad luck and Hera's vengefulness,
he accidentally killed one of his father-in-law's pages. As a result of this
incident, he had to leave with his wife and son and when they crossed the River
Evenus. Nessus, the boatman, tried to rape Deianeira. Before Nessus
was killed by Hercules, he had enough time to tell her that his blood was a
love potion which would bring back her husband's affection should she ever lose
his affection.
After, Hercules went
mad and went to ask Pythia, priestess of Apollo, of her opinion. She said that to free himself of this
evil, he must sell himself as a slave to someone. Omphale, the Queen of Lydia,
bought him and he was in her service for three years. This long separation
between Hercules and Deianeira led him to court Iole, who was the daughter of
Eurytus. However, when Deianeira was informed of this, she sent a new piece of clothing
to Hercules which she had soaked in Nessus' blood.
Hercules, who suspected nothing, put on the tunic and was
seized by incredible pain. He tried to tear the piece of clothing off but it
stuck to his skin; the love potion turned out to be poison. Hercules built a
pyre and asked his companions to ignite it.
When
the flames started to leap into the air, there was a strike of thunder, and Hercules was
taken up to heaven; he had just been immortalized. On Olympus, he married Hebe (the
goddess of eternal youth) and settled his differences with Hera.
