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greek myths by Justin Young
Here are some interesting myths that I found:
THE MINOTAUR
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur was a deadly and terrifying monster - indeed, this creature was one of the many dark forces of chaos in ancient legend. The Minotaur played a small but significant part in myth, and is most memorable in his role as the half human, half bovine inhabitant of the mysterious labyrinth. In addition, he was also the enemy of the Greek hero Theseus. So let us learn more about how this strange being influenced legend and explore the mythology of the Minotaur.
The tale of the Minotaur begins with Minos, the king of Crete. According to mythology, the god Poseidon sent King Minos a stunningly perfect white bull. This bull was meant to be a sacrifice to the great god of the sea. However, Minos valued the animal too much to use it as a sacrificial victim. In some versions of the story, Poseidon then punished King Minos by making Pasiphae, Minos's wife, fall passionately in love with the bull.
This was a powerful curse. Queen Pasiphae had no choice but submit to her lust for the animal, so with the help of the legendary inventor and craftsman Daedalus, she managed to satisfy her unnatural desires. The result of this union was the birth of a monster, which was half man and half bull. He was referred to the Minotaur, or the bull of Minos. King Minos then tried to hide this horrible creature in a vast and convoluted maze - the labyrinth.
So the Minotaur survived in the gloom of the labyrinth. Either every year or every nine years, seven maidens and seven young men from Athens were offered to appease the appetite of the monster. And it was this horrible custom that eventually resulted in the Minotaur's death. For, according to the legend, the Greek hero Theseus volunteered to go to Crete in place of one of the seven youths. Once in Crete, assisted by the princess Ariadne, Theseus defeated the Minotaur and in this way ended the monster's reign of terror.
THE TROJAN WAR
ERIS, the goddess of strife, was not invited to the wedding of Peleus with the sea-nymph Thetis. Many gods came, for Hera had arranged the match, the centaur Cheiron had advised Peleus on how to sneak up and rape Thetis, and Zeus himself (and/or Poseidon) had wooed the bride until learning her son was destined to be greater than his father. Enraged by being left off the guest list, Eris tossed a golden apple into the wedding crowd. Inscribed "To the Fairest," it set off a unseemly dispute for the prize among three major Olympian goddesses-Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. The gods were too wise to try to judge a beauty contest among goddesses, and gave the job to a mortal, PARIS, one of many sons of King PRIAM of Troy.
All three goddesses tried to bribe Paris: Hera offered Paris power and riches. Athena offered Paris military glory. Aphrodite offered Paris the most beautiful woman in the world. Being young, Paris gave the prize to Aphrodite, even though he was already the lover of Oenone, a local water-nymph.
The most beautiful woman in the world was Helen, the wife of Menelaus of Sparta, known as Helen of Troy for her part in starting the Trojan War. Paris visited Sparta and, aided by Aphrodite, ran away with his hostess. Her husband's brother Agamemnon then summoned all Greece for a great expedition against Troy, thus involving them all in the tragic fate of the House of Atreus.
In the war itself, the Trojans were led by HECTOR (Hektor), another and the best of the many sons of Priam. Hector fights on despite the pleas of his wife Andromache.
The Greeks were commanded by Agamemnon, but their strongest fighter was ACHILLES , the son of Peleus and Thetis. His mother had dipped him in the river Styx to make him invulnerable but had held him by his heel, which remained mortal. She knew that if he went to Troy he would win glory and die early, so she hid him at the court of Lycomedes of Skyros (who had earlier hosted Theseus) disguised as a girl, till his fondness for weapons gave him away to Agamemnon's emissaries, Odysseus and Nestor. His stay at that court was not wasted, however, for he fell in love with Deidameia, one of his host's daughters, and sired a son Pyrrhus (Pyrrhos) , who later joined the army at Troy, earning the name of Neoptolemus (new recruit) and Menelaus's daughter Hermione as a bride.
It would take the Greeks ten years to capture Troy. In the meantime, they occupied themselves by raiding her allies and fighting among themselves. The worst such dispute was the 'Wrath of Achilles" which is the subject of Homer's Iliad, an epic poem in 24 books. It begins with a quarrel which leads Achilles to sulk in his tents, and ends with the deaths of Achilles's best friend Patroclus and Hector. Troy itself is doomed by the loss of Hector, but the war goes on.
After the Iliad. Achilles himself was later killed by Paris, who shot a poisoned arrow into his heel. Some say Achilles was killed while being betrothed to Priam's daughter Polyxena, who then committed suicide (or was sacrificed) at his tomb. When Achilles died, both Odysseus and AJAX [Aias] claimed his armor. In some versions, Ajax went mad and committed suicide when it was awarded to his rival. This would have been Ajax Major, the Great Ajax; the army at troy also included a Lesser Ajax, Ajax Minor.
The Greeks were now told they needed the poisoned arrows of Heracles to win. Their carekeeper, PHILOCTETES, was reluctant to help, since the Greeks had abandoned him on an island on their way to Troy, complaining about an unbearable stench from a wound in his foot. He was eventually cured and joined them. One of his arrows killed Paris. Helen was then married another son of Priam, Deiphobus.
Unable to break down the walls of Troy, the Greeks sailed off, leaving behind a giant wooden horse (the TROJAN HORSE). Sinon, left behind by the Greeks--he claimed it was because Odysseus is his enemy--told the Trojans the horse was a sacrifice to Athena. Both Priam's daughter CASSANDRA and the seer Laocoon,, the son of Antenor, warned against accepting the gift. But no one ever listened to Cassandra's warnings, a penalty for having accepted the gift of prophecy from Apollo and still not sleeping with him. And the gods sent a monstrous serpent from the sea to kill Laocoon and his sons. Convinced, the Trojans took the horse inside the walls, though they have to break down part of one of their gates to do so. That night the men inside it, led by Odysseus, emerged to open the gates of Troy to their comrades, who had sailed back. The Greeks burned Troy and killed its men, though Aeneas escaped so his heirs could found Rome. Even Hector's young son Astyanax was killed, his head dashed against a wall lest he grow up to seek revenge.
The women of Troy were carried off into slavery. Hector's widow ANDROMACHE was carried off by Neoptolemus, though in some accounts she eventually marries yet another son of Priam. Cassandra was taken from Athena's altar, raped by the Lesser Ajax, and taken away as a a concubine of Agamemnon. Helen, however, was still so beautiful that Menelaus forgave her and took her back as his wife.
The Return of Odysseus The story of the destruction of Troy may recall a real event that was part of a flurry of destructive events around 1200 B.C. which ended some Bronze Age civilizations. These may also be reflected in the stories of the difficult homecomings of the various victorious Greeks. One such story was that of ODYSSEUS, the King of Ithaka, the trickiest of the Greek heroes at Troy, and the hero of Homer's Odyssey, an epic in 24 books. In English poetry, Odysseus is often known by his Roman name, Ulysses.
From other sources, we know that Odysseus was a reluctant particpant in the war, although he had been sent to recruit Achilles. Odysseus himself had feigned madness to avoid enlisting, plowing crazily until one of those sent to summon him had placed his infant son TELEMAKHOS (Telemachus) in front of the plow. When Odysseus swerved to avoid him, it was ruled that he was sane enough to fight. Despite this setback, Odysseus was the craftiest of the Greeks, just as Achilles was the strongest warrior.
It took Odysseus ten years to make it back home from Troy, by which time the baby he had left behind, Telemakhos, was a grown young man, and his wife PENELOPE was being besieged by suitors convinced that he was dead and demanding she remarry. She'd promised she'd do so as soon as she finished a weaving task-but each night she plucked out all the work she had done that day. Although generally taken as a model of wifely fidelity, as she is in Homer, some other (late) sources give her as the mother of the goatlike deity Pan by Odysseus, by the suitors Antinoos or Amphinomos, or by all of the suitors together. Penelope was the daughter of the nymph Periboea and Icarius, the brother of King Tyndareus of Sparta.
Odysseus returns in disguise and slaughters the suitors with the help of his son. He himself eventually dies at the hand of Telegonus his son by the witch Kirke, encountered on the ride home. Accounts differ on how this came to be, but Telegonus had not recognized his father. Some say that Telegonus then married Penelope.
Here are some monster desciptios distributed by ben
Cyclopes
The Cyclopes were gigantic one eyed monsters. There were three of them representing thunder, lighting, and the lighting bolt. They are named Brontes, Steropes, and Arges. They were born to Gaea and Uranus. They were also the first smiths. When Cronus came to power he imprisoned the Cyclopes in Tartarus. The were released by Zeus and fought with him against the Titans. As a reward for their release the Cyclopes gave Zeus his weapons of lighting and thunder. They continued as his workers at Mount Olympus forging his thunerbolts
Arges was killed by Hermes while he guarded Io for Hera
Apollo killed at least one of the Cyclopes to retribution for Zeus killing his son Aesculapius.
Hecatoncheires means "hundred handed". They were gigantic and had fifty heads and one hundred arms each of great strength. There were three of them: Briareus also called Aegaeon, Cottus, and Gyges also called Gyes. They were born to Gaea and Uranus. Their mutual hatered of Uranus caused him to force the Hecatoncheires back into Gaea's womb. This parcipatated Gaea's rebellion against Uranus. When Cronus came to power he imprisoned the Cyclopes in Tartarus. The were released by Zeus and fought with him against the Titans. They were able to hurl huge boulders as many as a hundred at a time against their opponents. One of them, Briareus, served as Zeus's bodygaurd.
Giants
The Giants were generated from Uranus blood resulting from his castration by Cronus. They became powerful enough to try to unseat Zeus and the Olympians early in their rule. When the gods won they imprisoned the Giants in Tartarus.
Ash Tree Nymphs
The Ash Tree Nymphs were generated from Uranus blood resulting from his castration by Cronus.
Typhoeus
Typhoeus, was a fire breathing dragon with a hundred heads that never rest. It was birthed by Gaea as a last ditch effort to keep the Olympians from defeating her children the Titans. It came close to succeeding, setting most of the gods to flight and capturing Zeus. Hermes was able to free Zeus. Zeus was then able to dispatch Typhoeus with his lighting bolts. Typhoeus is buried under Mount Etna in Sicily.
Cerberus
Cerberus is the three headed dog with a dragon tail which guards the entrance to the underworld. Allowing the dead to enter but, never leave. Fetching Cerberus was the last labor of Heracles.
Sirens
The Sirens are sisters who lure sailors to their death. The song of the Sirens is irrestable but, the they reside beyound unpassable reefs which destroy the sailors boat when they try to reach the Sirens. Among those tempted were Jason on the Argo and Odysseus.
Centaur
The Centaur's are half man, and half horse. They have the body of a horse but, in place of the horse's head the have the torso, head and arms of a man. Most are wild and savage, known for lustfulness and drunkeness. The exception is the wise Centaur Chiron.
Chiron
Chiron was known for his exceptional goodness and wisdom. He was the only immortal centaur. He became the tutor for a number of famous greek heros including: Achilles, Aesculapius, Actaeon.
Despite his immortality he was to end up dying. Hercules stopped to vist Pholus. Hercules was thirsty and persuaded Pholus to open a jar of wine that was the common property of the centaurs. The other centaurs smelled the wine and came running. A fight broke out between Hercules and the centaurs. Chiron took no part in the fight but, was accedentally wounded by Hercules. As an immortal Chiron could not die but, lived in terrible pain.
Chiron then chose to trade his life for the release of Prometheus.
Here are the olimpians (also contibuted by ben)
Zeus
Zeus overthew his Father Cronus. He then drew lots with his brothers Poseidon and Hades. Zeus won the draw and became the supreme ruler of the gods. He is lord of the sky, the rain god. His weapon is a thunderbolt which he hurls at those who displease him. He is married to Hera but, is famous for his many affairs. He is also known to punish those that lie or break oaths.
Poseidon
Poseidon is the brother of Zeus. After the overthow of their Father Cronus he drew lots with Zeus and Hades, another brother, for shares of the world. His prize was to become lord of the sea. He was widely worshiped by seamen. He married Amphitrite, a granddaughter of the Titon Oceanus.
At one point he desired Demeter. To put him off Demeter asked him to make the most beautiful animal that the world had ever seen. So to impress her Poseidon created the first horse. In some accounts his first attempts were unsucessful and created a varity of other animals in his quest. By the time the horse was created his passion for Demeter had cooled.
His weapon is a trident, which can shake the earth, and shatter any object. He is second only to Zeus in power amongst the gods. He has a difficult quarrelsome personality. He was greedy. He had a series of disputes with other gods when he tried to take over their cities.
Hades
Hades is the brother of Zeus. After the overthow of their Father Cronus he drew lots with Zeus and Poseidon, another brother, for shares of the world. He had the worst draw and was made lord of the underworld, ruling over the dead. He is a greedy god who is greatly concerned with increasing his subjects. Those whose calling increase the number of dead are seen favorably. The Erinnyes are welcomed guests. He is exceedingly disinclined to allow any of his subjects leave.
He is also the god of wealth, due to the precious
Jason and the argonauts
the odessy
myth quizz
Perseus and medusa
Theseus
Theseus and the minotaur game
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