Myth of Hercules, everything you need to know about him

Greek and Roman mythology is full of impressive myths that attract readers. The stories have managed to survive millions of years and the most popular ones have also gained their own recognition in the modern world. We invite you to read this article about the hercules myth, so you can learn everything you need to know about this character.

HERCULES MYTH

Who is Hercules?

Almost everyone knows the myth of Hercules, this famous hero is in fact, for Greek mythology, Heracles. His name is a combination of the word Kleos which means glory and the name of the goddess Hera, Hēraklḗs So it means "Glory of Hera"

This hero is very famous for his various stories. In fact, Hercules, or Heracles, is considered to be one of the best-known characters in both Greek and Roman mythology. On the other hand, Hercules was the son of Zeus, the god of thunder, and Alcmene, a mortal queen. He was adopted by Amphitryon and in his family tree, it is believed that he was a great-grandson of Perseus through his maternal line.

What many do not know about the myth of Hercules is that his original name is not Hercules. That is, at birth, he received the name Alceo (in some versions Alcides) in honor of his grandfather Alceo. He got his hero name in his adult life, so it could be considered a nickname. Apollo gave him his name to indicate that he had a status as a servant of Hera.

The myth of Hercules tells that his life was not easy, he had to go through many tests and sufferings to be able to live among the gods of Olympus. Known as one of the strongest mortals, the ancient Greeks theorized that his superhuman strength was a gift from the gods to make up for his lack of intelligence and ingenuity.

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The myth of Hercules

Because there are many stories about Hercules, they have different versions or have been modified to fit the modern narrative. However, the Hercules mythos are epic and quite different from what everyone expected of a hero.

It tells the myth of Hercules, that his character was terrible. On one of the hottest days on earth, he threatened the sun with his bow, as the high temperatures were bothering him.

Other characters stand out for their intelligence, their way of governing or even their kindness. Hercules is noted for having a changeable mood, his wits to get into trouble, and his selfish goals.

A clear difference that can be observed when compared to other characters is that within the myth of Hercules, he does not pretend to be a god, he does not behave as such either. His popularity is not because he is perfect. Quite the contrary, taking away his strength, Hercules was an ordinary man, with ordinary problems, strong-willed and proud.

The human being behind the myth

His cousin and friend Theseus, was completely different, he ruled Athens, while Hercules, was driven by his own passions. Many Greek playwrights paint this hero as the typical muscle jester of little intellect. Hercules was believed to be good-natured. He was willing to help anyone in need, many attributed this dedication to his being an impulsive man.

Many of the problems they faced were situations that he himself had created by letting himself be carried away by his emotions. For many, this was what made Hercules such a popular character, people who read his stories could identify with him. What he did in turn, was that he was loved by the Greek and Roman people, even when he wreaked havoc because of his selfishness.

If we analyze a little the stories of Hercules, we can notice how his basic characteristics were linked to the characteristics that could describe human beings. The only difference was that being a slightly more divine character (being considered a demigod by his father Zeus) these characteristics were amplified. Imagining Hercules is very simple, the stories were dedicated to exemplifying it in the best way.

Impact of the figure of Hercules

Over the years, his image has been widely used in various fields, although the best known is the 1997 film by Disney. The truth is that Hercules is one of the most used characters, putting himself almost at the same height as Zeus. Undeniably, this is due to the multitude of myths that can be attributed to him, the amount is so great, that it was impossible that he will not become an important character in the culture.

Regardless of whether it happened millions of years ago or not, today's society continues to use, study and learn about ancient myths and legends. Why? Because it is a simple way to learn about the thinking of our ancestors. Regardless of whether the stories are false or not, the myths, both Roman and Greek, had two purposes: Either explain a natural event or give some valuable teaching about behavior and its consequences.

The first purpose was forgotten when scientific explanations could be given. However, the second end is still preserved in the stories. People, from different cultures, races or religions continue to use the knowledge of myths and legends to pass on knowledge. Although they have continued to be adapted to fit more into modern society, this does not mean that there was a detachment from the original stories.

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The beginning of the end

It can be seen in the stories of the myth of Hercules, that he was one of his biggest critics. The myths reflect to us that Hercules could not be punished in the same way as the average human. So he had to become his own judge, judge and executioner. Hercules had to serve several penances for his actions, facing numerous punishments and vowing that he would not use his strength until he had fulfilled them.

Despite this, Hercules had to face several punishments that he did not deserve, Hera's hatred made the young hero find himself in several unfortunate situations, managed by the gods and not by his own hand. Hercules was a character who was in a constant battle, both with himself and with the rest of the world.

Many experts explain that the existence of Hercules is unlikely, however, if impact on Greek and Roman culture. The god among mortals was without a doubt, a loved and respected character. In some records, it is believed that several people worshiped him and that they maintained him for several decades.

The Greek Hercules

As we had already mentioned before, Hercules was a Roman character, since the Greeks had nicknamed him Heracles. Despite this distinction, we are talking about the same character, since the stories are exactly the same, which is why people have generalized his name so that he is known worldwide as Hercules and not as Heracles.

HERCULES MYTH

With some minor differences, Heracles is considered one of the most famous Greek characters in history, in fact, it is said that he represents the paradigm of virility and the champion of the Olympic order against the chthonic monsters. From ancient Greece to the present, it has been noted that the popularity of this character is due to the number of myths that he has.

Among the best known we have the myth of the twelve works, however, it is also full of other secondary stories, which intertwine many characters, causing Heracles or Hercules to be involved in multiple stories. Historians have had a hard time creating a chronological exposition that explains the events of Heracles' life in a simple way to avoid any time confusion.

Categories of the myth of Hercules

The French historian Pierre Grimal established in his Dictionary of Greek and Roman Mythology that the myths of Hercules were divided into three simple categories:

  • The cycle of the twelve labors.
  • Independent feats performed before the Twelve Labors
  • Side adventures that occur during jobs.

This division managed to create a relatively simple timeline, within the framework of the three cycles, are the stories of his birth, his death and later his apotheosis, which indicates a before and after in his history.

Documentation of the myth

The oldest mention of Heracles in history is his appearance in the works of Homer and Hesiod, however, the stories of his adventures did not appear until the works of Lindos Psinus (who was a native of Rhodes and whose history, origin and subsequent descent is unknown), Pisander of Camiros (a Rhodian poet of the 640 BC century) and Paniasis of Halicarnassus (Author of the work Heracleia from the XNUMXth century BC).

All the original works, except for a few fragments, have been lost to history, a fairly common trait among the various Greek myths and legends, which have failed to survive the evolution of society.

Time after his first appearances, the poets, commentators and mythographers of the Hellenistic era are the only ones whose writings have managed to reach the present day, they tell of the exploits of Heracles, which has been very important for their study and later for manage to create an iconology of this character through the years.

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In other mythologies

Observing Heracles through cultures is very curious, since the Greeks managed to spread the stories and even the cult of this character throughout the places where they settled, this achieved that the character was incorporated into various mythologies or even identify him with some previous mythical character. Among the Etruscans, who were highly receptive to Hellenic mythology, the character of Heracles became Hercle, son of Tinia and Uni.

It was thanks to these personifications that the Latins were able to develop the figure of Heracles to fit their society. On the other hand, in Roman mythology, Heracles became Hercules, however, he did not lose his history or characteristics, since the character was the same, the only thing that happened was that they added a couple of adventures with destinations within Italy and Lazio, so that these represented their culture but the original stories, such as the twelve jobs remained the same.

In other cases, it was the Greeks themselves who equated other mythical beings from different cultures with Hercules, that is, they adapted the characters of different societies so that they were represented as Hercules, such was the case of the Phoenician god Melkart or the Egyptian deities Khonsu and Herishef. Their very similar characteristics made the Greeks represent these characters as a single hero.

Birth and Childhood

Within the myth of Hercules, his very important birth to understand how the rest of his life unfolds. Zeus, the god of thunder and the heavens, lay with Alcmene, a queen, daughter of Electrion and granddaughter of Perseus for unknown reasons. There, he took the form of Alcmene's husband, Host of Thebes, who had gone to war with the Taphians.

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When Amphitryon returned, he also lay with his wife, causing her to become pregnant with twins, one of whom was the son of Zeus and the other the son of her husband. The future of Heracles and his brother Iphicles was already decided long before they were born. When these were about to be born, Zeus took it upon himself to swear that one of the children born under the house of Perseus that night would become a great king.

More about childhood

Several versions affirm that it was Hera who convinced Zeus to swear to the child and then take away his right to the crown, however, the most accepted version explains that Hera did not know anything about Zeus's infidelity until that night. After swearing, Hera found out what her husband had done, publicizing the adultery and creating a terrible hatred for the fruit of infidelity, that is, for any of the two babies that were her husband's.

Hera was known to be an extremely vindictive character, for which she dedicated herself to damaging the integrity of children, before her birth, Hera ran to Alcmene's house and made sure to slow down her labor by making her sit with her legs crossed and with knots in his clothes, moreover, he caused Eurystheus, the cousin of the twins, to be born two months earlier, so that he would be crowned as the king of Mycenae for his age.

Hera had the power to slow down childbirth for life, which stopped her, it was at the trick of Galantis, the maid, who had told her that she had already helped the babies to be born, Hera, confused, untied the knots of the clothes of Alcmene giving her a chance to give birth to her children.

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Little Hercules Adventures

The little ones were born in Thebes and the Greeks commemorated their birth by celebrating the fourth day of each Greek month. There are several versions that ensure that there were other ways in which Hera tried to slow down the birth, despite this, they all end the same way, being tricked by the maid.

A few months after his birth, Hera tried to get rid of the creature once again, sending Heracles two snakes to kill him while he slept in his cradle. What actually happened was that the young hero strangled a snake in each hand, demonstrating his immense strength, the nanny found him some time later, playing with the animal's body as if it were a toy.

This image (of baby Heracles strangling the snakes) became very popular and was widely represented in the art world. On the other hand, there is a myth that talks about the creation of the milky way and that includes Heracles. It is said that Zeus tricked Hera into suckling Heracles and that when he found out who he was, he took him away from his chest, causing a jet of milk to flow, which formed a stain in the sky (There is another version that implies that it was not Heracles but Hermes and that Hera ended up taking affection for the newborn)

Youth

The myth of Hercules is quite complex and extensive, despite the assassination attempt during his childhood, Heracles grew up healthy and strong, with his brother, they received different classes, especially a musical class by the teacher Lino. The personality and character of Heracles began to develop from his youth, it was quite different from the others, since he was a rebellious and undisciplined student.

HERCULES MYTH

Lino constantly scolded Heracles, which angered the young man and he ended up hitting him with a lyre, which ended in Lino's death. Heracles had to face a court and was accused of murder, but managed to get out of trouble, since he quoted a sentence of Radamanthys, according to which, it existed to explain the right to kill if it was for self-defense (although lino had not touched Heracles at any time, there was no one who could prove otherwise).

prolonged youth

Heracles was declared innocent but Amphitryon ended the fate of his son since it was noted that he was a victim of his own impulses, trying to avoid a terrible future, he sent Heracles to the field where he put him as manager of the herd, a job that It would make sure he didn't get mad anymore. There he continued with his studies and was able to venture into the art of weapons, choosing the bow and arrow as his favorite.

Heracles performed several impressive feats throughout his life, the most famous of which was killing the lion of Cithaeron, which was harassing and hunting all the local herds. Once dead, Heracles took her skin and clothed her, giving her an even more violent and powerful aura. On the other hand, another of the best known stories talks about how he was able to have the hand of Megara, the daughter of King Creon.

Other Manifestations and Feats

This happened when he was returning from a hunt, meeting a group of emissaries from the Minian king Erginus of Orchomenus, who had defeated the Thebans years after and who had imposed a tribute to be paid each year. Heracles attacked this Greek, cutting off his nose and ears and tying his neck. Finally, he sent this group back with the message that this was all the tribute he was going to receive.

The Theban king Creon was so pleased with his intervention that he gave him the hand of his eldest daughter, Princess Megara, with whom he ended up having several children. Megara's younger sister, Pyrrha, married Heracles's twin brother, Iphicles.

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The intervention of Hercules

Continuing a bit with the previous point, one of the stories that forms the myth of Hercules at the beginning is the narration of his intervention in the face of social injustice, the legend is quite interesting, since it is a short story that explains how the heart of hero is always in helping people. Legend has it that he was returning from killing the lion of Cithaeron, that he met several emissaries of King Erginos, these were claiming the tribute that the Thebans had to pay to the inhabitants of Orchomenus.

Hercules, enraged at this tribute, cut off the noses and ears of the emissaries, hanging them by the neck and telling the survivors that he would bring this tribute to his master. Erginos, outraged by the offense, went to Thebes to meet the hero, Hercules defeated him and imposed on the inhabitants of Orcémonos, double what they had imposed.

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The vigilante

The King of Thebes rewarded Hercules for his action, Creon gave him the hand of his eldest daughter, Princess Megara. This couple had three children (in some versions it is indicated that there were eight). Unfortunately for Hercules, he would not be able to have a happy ending for him, since Hera's hatred was so great that it caused Hercules to have a sudden attack of madness causing him to kill his family.

Humiliated and unable to bear the pain, Hercules tried to commit suicide, but when he asked the Pythia (who was the oracle of Delphi) for his penance, she revealed to him that he could and should purify himself of his crime and that he would only do this by placing himself at the service and mercy his cousin Eurystheus, the king of Mycenae, moreover, ordered him to take the Latin name of Hercules.

 the twelve labors

Although it is true that there are many stories that mention Hercules, either as a main or secondary character, the best known myth is that of the twelve labors, not only because they say that it took a very long time (twelve years, one year each job) but it was also what originated several secondary adventures, the same ones, he did while he was doing the jobs, causing more stories to be added to his repertoire.

The twelve labors were a punishment imposed by the Oracle of Delphi. Heracles had killed his wife and children in a fit of sudden madness caused by Hera, many versions of the myth speak that he also killed two of his nephews and in others, that Megara, his wife, was left alive.

The truth is that Heracles could not deal with the pain and humiliation he had, so when he woke up and realized what he had done, he decided to take his own life, moving away to wild lands, isolating himself from all society to await his death. His twin brother, Iphicles, sought out his brother and convinced him to go to the Oracle of Delphi to get a penance for his actions. The oracle told him that he should purify his soul and that for this he should surrender to Eurystheus and serve him.

Importance of the 12 jobs

Eurystheus was his cousin but he was also the man Heracles hated the most, as he had crowned himself king, robbing him of his rightful claim to the crown. Heracles agreed and under the command of the king successfully performed ten jobs, however, Hera, who had not yet overcome her husband's infidelity, decided to attack him once again and convinced Eurystheus to mark the second job as invalid, since his nephew Yolao had helped him and his fifth work, which was actually a work for Augeas.

This intervention by Hera caused Heracles to perform two more labors, giving a total of twelve labors as penance. Something extremely curious about this is that this mythical element of the twelve works was not part of the legend when it was created, as times changed, the versions that existed were so varied that it was adapted to fit twelve works and thus explain because there was such a variable number between the versions.

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Description of the 12 jobs

Although many people believe that Heracles' timeline is very confusing, his multiple tasks make it impossible to create an exact chronology, despite this, it has been theorized (according to different accounts) that the traditional order of works is as follows :

  1. Kill the Nemean lion and strip him of his skin
  2. Kill the Lernaean Hydra
  3. Capture the Cerinia Doe
  4. Catch the Erymanthian Boar
  5. Clean the stables of Augeans in a single day,
  6. Kill the birds of Stymphalus
  7. Capture the Cretan Bull
  8. Steal the Mares of Diomedes
  9. Take Hippolyta's Belt
  10. Carrying off Geryon's cattle
  11. Grabbing the apples from the garden of the Hesperides
  12. Capture cerberus and get him out of the underworld.

According to the chronicle of Jerome of Estridón, Heracles managed to complete his twelve labors in the year 1246 BC, this date is accepted by most historians.

Kill the Nemean Lion

The first job Heracles had to do for Eurystheus was to hunt down the Nemean lion and strip it of its skin. This lion was a ruthless being who lived in the city of Nemea, he dedicated himself to terrorizing all the inhabitants around him. Many people tried to defeat the creature, however, its skin so thick, that no weapon could penetrate it.

HERCULES MYTH

Heracles was entrusted to kill the beast, he went to Nemea and stayed in the house of Molorco, from there he went hunting for the lion, he made several attempts to bring it down, he used his arrows, he attacked him with his bronze sword and even He gave him a blow with a bronze club, however, everything was useless when he noticed that these weapons did not do him any damage.

Heracles planned a strategic blow and went to the animal's lair, it had two entrances, so he decided to cover one and leave the other free to flee. He goaded the lion so that it would find out why it was open and cornering it, he strangled it until the beast died. Heracles picked up the lion and carried his body to Mycenae, so that Eurystheus could see the beast, Eurystheus was so frightened that he refused him entry into the city, causing the rest of his completed works to be shown from outside.

More of the lion slaughter

On the other hand, the king ordered the blacksmiths to forge a bronze jar, which he himself hid underground, it served as a hiding place for him to announce himself to Heracles. Eurystheus entrusted his instructions to the hero through a Herald.

Despite having killed the creature, the job was not complete, as he had to shed its skin. He quickly realized that his tools were not being very useful, as the lion's impenetrable skin made the job impossible. Athena decided to help him, so transforming into an old witch, she instructed Heracles to use the lion's claws to do the job, once completed, he had finished his first job.

Heracles used the skin of the lion in the rest of his adventures, since it was a perfect armor, the claws were kept to create arrowheads and the head was used as a helmet.

Kill the Lerma Hydra

Heracles' second job was to kill the Hydra of Lerna, this was one of the oldest and most ruthless monsters in the chthonic aquatic world, its form was creepy as it had the body of a polycephalic serpent, its three heads (some versions five , nine or even a hundred) were terrible, but one of them was covered in bronze and immortal. This monster was very difficult to kill, her condition meant that when one of its heads was cut off, two others emerged in the place.

In turn, the creature was said to have toxic breath. She was raised by Hera under a plane tree near the Amimone spring, on Lake Lerna. There, the hydra guarded the entrance to the underworld. The murder of this creature was only planned since it was believed that she could kill Heracles, the Lernaean hydra was the sister of the Lion of Nemea, she was thirsty for revenge, Eurystheus saw the perfect opportunity to get rid of Heracles.

When the hero arrived at the swamp near Lake Lerma, he was accompanied by his nephew Yolao, since Heracles had asked for his help to defeat the beast. Both characters covered their noses and mouths to protect themselves from the hydra's toxic breath and ventured to the source of amimone, their refuge.

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The details of this fight are explained by Apollodorus, who indicates that Heracles shot flaming arrows into the fountain, forcing the hydra out.

the power of the sword

When she did, Heracles attacked her with his sword, cutting off several of their heads. There are other versions that indicate that Hera sent a crab called Carcinos to pinch Heracles' feet and thus distract him from their fight. However, Heracles they end up crushing the animal and it keeps fighting.

The hydra regenerates two heads where one was severed. Which made the hero see that it was impossible to win with this method. Iolaus suggested to Heracles to cauterize the wound in order to prevent a new head from growing, this idea was possibly inspired by Athena. To achieve this, Yolao and Heracles work together, while the hero was dedicated to cutting off the heads, Yolao passed a burning cloth over the stump cauterizing the wound.

With this joint work, both were able to defeat the Lerma hydra, leaving it headless. Heracles took the immortal head, which was completely useless without the rest of the body, and buried it under a large rock on the way between Lerna and Eleia. In this way, he managed to complete the second job of his.

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Additionally, Heracles is said to have dipped several of his arrowheads in the hydra's poisonous blood and used them throughout his adventures. Unfortunately, this work was later dismissed when Hera told Eurystheus that it was Iolaus who had burned the stumps, rendering all his efforts invalid.

Capture the Cerinea doe

The Cerinea hind had bronze hooves and gold antlers, it was not an evil animal, far from it, however, it was very strange and longed for, since it was said that it had been consecrated by the goddess Artemis, herself, who had tried to capture five hinds to harness them to his cart and only one had managed to escape.

Eurystheus instructed Heracles that his third job should be to capture this doe. Heracles chased this animal day after night for a whole year without being able to catch it. The speed of this animal was superior to that of common deer, since not even arrows could reach it.

He finally managed to capture it when it stopped in the country of the Hyperboreans to drink water, with an arrow, it pierced its two front legs, piercing only the skin, the sinew and the bone. Heracles did not wish to spill her blood as they said it was a terrible poison that could even kill a god.

The hero led the hind to Mycenae, where Eurystheus could see that he had completed the task. Heracles inspired other ancient heroes, such as Yhuidr and Casto.

Capture the Erymanthian Boar

Within the story of the work there is a secondary story that happens a little before Heracles finds the Erymanthus boar. This monster was a terrible creature that created earthquakes at will and destroyed the vegetation of the city of Erymanthus, wreaking havoc on its surroundings and also fed on young men, leaving the nearby town without them.

before work

While Heracles was on his way to Erymanthus, he made a short stop to visit an old friend, this was the centaur Pholus. Remembering his friendship and the good times they had spent together, he shared a meal with him and his wine.

The centaurs that were nearby were furious, since the wine was sacred and only centaurs should drink it, these creatures decided to attack Heracles, who initially resisted.

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Despite this, Heracles gradually grew enraged and killed several of the centaurs using arrows that were bathed in the hydra's blood. When only his, his friend and the dead centaurs were left, he decided to bury his victims. Folo took out one of the arrows from it and began to examine the arrow, he was curious to know how such a simple instrument could end the life of such incredible creatures.

Folo dropped the arrow and it buried itself in his skin, piercing and killing the centaur. Heracles buried his old friend at the foot of the mountain, which later would take the name of Foloe.

Work

After the burial of Pholus, Heracles continued on his way and eventually found the boar, after chasing it for several hours, he managed to corner it in a snowy area where he jumped on its back. Heracles did not kill the boar, he only chained it and brought it alive to Mycenae, the supernatural strength of this hero made it possible for him to carry the beast on his shoulders.

Clean Augean stables in one day

Cleaning the stables was a common task for the servants of the time, but, the Augean stables were extremely different stables, the cattle that resided there had been appointed by the gods to the king of the Elis, himself, could not contract any disease , on the other hand, was guarded by twelve bulls, which his father, the sun god Helios, had given to the king.

Not only was it the largest cattle in the country, but also, the stables had never been cleaned. Eurystheus gave this job to Heracles, since he thought that he could not complete it, since the amount of excrement there was so great, that it would be impossible to clean it in a single day.

Completing the task was so unlikely that Augeas himself made a personal bet with Heracles, if he managed to clear the settlements, Augeas would give him a portion of his cattle. Although nobody expected it, Heracles managed to clean the stables, it did not require his strength but a little ingenuity.

By diverting the course of the Aldeo and Peneo rivers, he achieved that through a channel that he himself had dug, the water would clean all the dirt that was in the place. Heracles, to everyone's surprise, had managed to finish his fifth labor.

related adventure

As we have mentioned before, within the myth of Hercules there are several jobs that generated additional adventures, in the case of the fifth job. Eurystheus and Augeas did not expect that Heracles could complete this work. Eurystheus told him that his work was invalid since he knew of the bet that both had agreed (Hera, once again, had told Eurystheus everything), the king said that the work had not been done by him but by the rivers, so should do some extra work.

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On the other hand, when Heracles demanded payment for his bet from Augeas, he refused using the same argument that Eurystheus had used. Heracles, instead of getting angry and killing him, decided to take the matter to court, obtaining the testimony of Phileo, the son of Augeas, who was in favor of the hero.

More about Augeas

Reluctantly, Augeas gave part of his cattle to Heracles but banished his son for having made him lose his mind, it is because of this that Heracles left Elis and seeks the alliance of other princes throughout Greece to defend Phileo. He declares war on Augeas and she counterattacks by beheading the Moliendas twin brothers, two efficient generals.

He did not win the war, in fact, the Augean army managed to assassinate his brother Iphicles. Some time later the Corinthians, who were allies of Heracles, officially declared peace, signing an Isthmian truce document and creating the Isthmian Games, a possible predecessor of the Olympic Games in Antiquity.

Despite this, Heracles did not forget that stab in the back, so three years later, he took advantage of the fact that the mills and their men were celebrating a festival in honor of Poseidon to trap them in an ambush, where he managed to slaughter the Augean army, kill his son Eurytus and kills the Molionids, leaving him without his best generals.

Some time later, he returned to recruit another exercised among the cities of the Peloponnese, with which he struck his final blow, sacked the Elis and killed Augias, putting Phileo, who had been exiled, as the legitimate king of the city.

Kill the birds of Stymphalus

For his fifth labor, Heracles had to kill the birds of Stymphalus, these animals were birds that had beaks, wings and claws of bronze. They were found in the region around Lake Stymphalus, hiding in the nearby woods. For Euristeo these birds were a danger to the inhabitants since they had aggressive behavior and were carnivorous, feeding on both the humans in the area and their cattle.

Heracles arrived at Stymphalus and set out to shoot the birds with his arrows, knocking down many of them, however, after a long effort, he noticed that they were too many and that the number of arrows he had could not with all of them, causing his great gift of strength was useless.

Athena decided to help Heracles, appearing on his way and giving him a bronze rattle (a kind of bell) and explaining that he had to ring it on a fairly high hill. In doing so, the straws were so frightened that they flew away and were never seen near the lake again. Many of the birds made their way to the island of Ares in the Dead Sea while others took flight to Mycenae.

When Heracles arrived to give the news to Eurystheus, he noticed that he was hidden in his shelter as several birds fluttered over his palace, the hero rang the bell once more and the birds left there.

Capture the Cretan Bull

One of the best known stories in mythology tells about the Minotaur locked in the labyrinth in Crete. What many do not know is that Heracles was commissioned to capture his father, that is, the Cretan bull that Poseidon had brought out of the sea when King Minos promised him that he would offer it as a sacrifice.

King Minos, despite having accepted the deal, hid the bull when he saw its beauty, for which Poseidon punished him by making his wife fall in love with the bull and lie with him, from that union the Minotaur was born, who later had to be locked up as he was a danger to the inhabitants of Crete. Although everyone talks about Minotaur, few talk about the progenitor of this.

He was appointed by Eurystheus to capture the bull if he could and drive it away from Crete, Heracles did this and transported it to Mycenae across the Aegean Sea. The king wanted to offer it as an offering to Hera, but she refused and they left that bull in the field as a free being.

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Steal the mares of Diomedes

Many of the jobs that Eurystheus gave Heracles was either because it was ridiculous or because he was certain that he would be killed, in the case of the seventh job, this was no exception. The mares of Diomedes were in fact four carnivorous animals, although in some versions they are mentioned as being twenty animals.

These were in the care of Diomedes and he had them locked up, in addition, he fed them with the innocent guests who stayed in the town.

The job: In relation to work, Heracles left with a large group of volunteers and managed to get the mares and kidnap them, Diomedes sent his army to chase the thieves. The hero then sent his friend Abdero to take care of the mares while he and his men fought the battalion of soldiers who wanted to kill them. Unfortunately, while Abdero was trying to free the cart, the mares broke loose and devoured him.

Heracles and his men managed to defeat the enemy army, the hero killed Diomedes by throwing him to his own mares, which, being animals without compassion, ruthlessly devoured him. The few enemies that were still standing fled in terror when they saw the scene.

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For some reason, they became extremely tame after the massacre, so Heracles managed to tie them to a new chariot and take them to Mycenae, where he gave them to Eurystheus, who offered them as an offering to Hera. Various versions of this myth indicate that the mares died on Mount Olympus, falling to stronger beasts such as furies and vermin.

related adventure

Like some of the jobs, this one also had a related adventure. In honor of his friend Abdero, who was devoured by the mares while helping Heracles, he founded the city of Abdera next to his tomb, where as a last tribute he inaugurated the agonal games in his name. Within them, chariot races were prohibited, because this was related to the death of Abdero.

Steal Hippolyta's Belt

For the Greeks, fighting against the Amazons was impossible, they had great power, they were experts on the battlefield and, in addition, they carried the blessing of the goddess Artemis. Facing them was a certain deadly fate. The one in charge of suggesting this work to Eurysteo was her daughter, Admete, who explained that she had to steal the magic belt of Hippolyta, the Amazon queen.

There are two versions of this work, the first explains that Hippolyta, upon learning of the arrival of Heracles and the reasons he had, promised to give him his belt but that Hera, disguised as an Amazon, spread the rumor that he was really looking to kidnap the queen, which caused her companions to attack Heracles' ship, because he thought that Hippolyta had deceived him, he decided to attack the Amazons, kill the queen and take the belt.

On the other hand, the second version tells in fact, Heracles kidnaps Melania, one of Hippolyta's sisters and demands that she give him the belt to pay the ransom, because of this, the queen ends up giving it to him and the hero frees his sister without hurting him. On the other hand, his friend, Theseus, kidnaps Antiope, another sister of Hippolyta, and tries to flee together with Heracles.

The eternal friend of the hero, Hera, informs the Amazons about the kidnapping and they attack the group, however, they manage to escape and Theseus ends up marrying Antiope and having several children.

Stealing Geryon's Cattle

Geryon was a giant monster, born from the union of Chrysaor and Callírroe. Greek myths describe it as an anthropomorphic creature, whose organism was made up of three bodies, with their respective heads and extremities, this fact usually changes according to the versions that speak of it.

Little is known exactly how the three bodies were joined, but it is usually depicted as a linear join across the waists. In some versions, this creature is portrayed as having wings, while other versions simply omit this detail. The image of him closely resembles a human, he lived on the island of Eriteia, which is currently known as Cádiz.

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related adventure

Before starting the work, Heracles had a related adventure. While he undertook his journey to the island of Eriteia he had to cross the Libyan desert (Libya was the generic name that had been given to North Africa by the Greeks) and there he was so frustrated by the immense heat that he threatened Helios, the god of the sun, with his bow.

The god asked him to stop and in return, Heracles asked for the golden cup that the god used to cross the sea every night. The hero used the cup on his journey to Eriteia but when he almost reached his destination, he noticed that the path was closed by some rocks.

Heracles, using his great strength, moved them out of the way and opened the Strait of Gibraltar and placed the Pillars of Hercules as its limits, the first of these is located at the beginning of the rock and the second on Mount Hacho de Ceuta, at a height of 204 meters.

The job: Once he managed to reach his destination, he found that Geryon's cattle were kept in a cabin and that it was guarded by Ortro, a two-headed dog who was the brother of Cerberus (the guard dog of the underworld. In addition, he was also at the shepherd Eurytion's side.

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Heracles manages to kill these two beings and takes the cattle. On the way, while he was climbing the Aventine Hill in Rome, a giant named Caco stole some of his cattle while they were resting. The giant made the cattle walk backwards so that they would not leave any tracks, a trick he had learned from Hermes.

popular versions

There are several versions of what happens next, the most accepted being that Heracles found the stolen cattle and killed Cacus, continuing on his way to Mycenae.

Roman mythology indicates that Heracles, or for them, Hercules, founded an altar in the place where the Forum Boarium, the cattle market, would later take place. When the hero was passing Silicea, he tells Erice, the king of the island, the story that had happened.

Erice was an incredible boxer, so Heracles convinced him to accept a bet that if he lost he would give up part of his cattle but if the king lost then he would have to give up his kingdom to the hero. Erice was very confident but Heracles was the one who ended up as the winner in the match.

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Heracles left the town and indicated that he would send his descendants to rule over it later. Hera, trying to prevent the hero from completing his work, decided to annoy him by sending him a horsefly to sting the cattle, irritating them and spacing them along the field. Later, the goddess sent a flood, which managed to raise the level of the river until it overflowed, preventing her from moving the cattle from place.

After this, Echidna assaulted Heracles and stole part of his cattle, to recover it, the hero had to have sexual relations with the nymph and from this union Agathyrsus, Gelonus and Scites were born. When he arrived at Mycenae with the cattle, Eurystheus sacrificed them on behalf of Hera.

Steal the apples from the garden

For a bit of context we must clarify that the Hesperides were nymphs located in a large garden, their trees were full of golden apples. Heracles had to capture Nereus, an old man of the sea who was characterized by the ability to change forms so that he could inform him how to get to the garden.

Related adventure: It depends on the versions, Heracles meets Antaeus at the beginning or at the end of the work, this character was invincible as long as he was in contact with his mother Gea, the earth. Heracles killed him by holding him in the air and crushing him with one of his beefy arms. Herodotus states that the hero stopped in Egypt, where the soldiers of King Busiris imprison him.

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This was not a personal attack, but rather the king had promised the gods that he would sacrifice every foreigner who entered his land. Heracles was held with other unfortunates destined for death, however, unable to accept that fate, he broke the chains that held him and managed to escape, before leaving he killed Busiris, freeing all the prisoners and the inhabitants who lived under his dreadful regimen.

You can read other articles like this one about the myth of Hercules on our blog, in fact, we recommend you read Apollo myth.

Work

When Heracles arrived at the Garden of the Hesperides, he managed to trick Atlas into picking some apples, promising that he would hold the sky in place. Some versions indicate that Atlas was the father of the Hesperides, while others only say that he had a slight relationship.

When Atlas returned to the place where Heracles was, the titan decided not to carry the sky anymore, despite this, the hero tricked him into doing so, arguing that he needed to fix his cape, when Atlas took the sky, the hero grabbed the apples and left.

Capture cerberus and get him out of hell

For his last work, Eurystheus commissioned Heracles to perform what would be one of the most difficult tasks of his entire life. He had to travel to Eleusis, to be initiated into the Eleusinian mysteries, these will tell him how to enter Hades (the underworld) and how to get out of them alive, without knowing it, the mysteries also helped him alleviate the guilt he felt for having killed his wife and children.

Related adventure: As we've said before, several of your jobs created additional adventures that happened before or after you did the job. Heracles found the entrance to the underworld in Tenarus, there he was helped by Athena and Hermes to get in and out, at the insistence of Heracles himself and his own fierce aspect, Charon took him in his boat through Acheron.

While sailing, he met his friend Theseus and Pirithous who had been captured by the god of death, Hades, while he was trying to kidnap Persephone. Both prisoners were magically attached to a bench, Heracles tried to pull him but while he broke the bench, Theseus' thighs were stuck to him. He tried the same with Pirithous but when he did, he noticed that the earth was shaking so he decided to abandon him and continue on his way.

The job: As far as, we can notice that there are three different versions, the first says that in order to take Cerberus, Heracles had to ask the god Hades for permission and that explaining his situation, he gave him permission with the only condition that he did not hurt the animal. The hero obeyed and treating him kindly, managed to get him out of the underworld in a docile way, taking him to Mycenae for Eurystheus to see him, eventually, Heracles returned Cerberus to his home.

HERCULES MYTH

The second version is a little more aggressive, since it explains that Heracles shot an arrow at Hades, distracting him and leaving him out of action, in addition, they indicate that he had a very violent fight against Cerberus until he did and managed to take the beast to the cave from Acherussia and from there I take it out to the outside world.

Other Adventures

While it is true that the twelve labors is one of the many most popular stories within the myth of Hercules that exist, this does not mean that he did not have other incredible adventures. In fact, Hercules is one of the most adventurous characters that exist, his character made him get into various problems, where despite everything, he used to emerge victorious.

Next we will talk about some other important adventures within the world of Hercules.

Participation in the Gigantomachy

The Olympian gods were very powerful beings, however, they were not the only ones with such power. After the titans were condemned to Tartarus, the mother of the last, Gaia, the earth, engendered powerful giants that carried the blood of Uranus to execute revenge against those who imprisoned her children.

The oracle prophesied that those giants could not die at the hands of the gods, or at least not if they did not have a mortal fighting at their side. Zeus decides to call Heracles through Athena. The giants carry out their first attack, armed with huge rocks and tree trunks, the battle is fought in the place where they lived, Phlegra.

Heracles and the other contests

There are several important points to highlight within this fight, they are the key points that exposed the intervention of Heracles in the battle and that of other gods.

  • Heracles first attacked Alcyoneus, a giant who possessed the quality of being immortal and a great fighter. The hero pierced this giant with one of his poisoned arrows, however, every time the giant fell to the ground it came back to life. Athena recommended to Heracles that he take him out of his land so that he could die and so she did almost instantly.
  • Porphyry attacked Heracles and tried to rape his eternal nemesis Hera. Zeus prevented this by striking down with lightning and the hero finished him off with his prized arrows.
  • Ephialtes died because two arrows were buried in his eyes, one of them was from Apollo and the other was from Heracles.
  • When Enceladus was forced to give up the battle, Athena charged at him and crushed him using the island of Sicily. The giant was locked up, his breath of fire emerges from Etna.
  • Hephaestus buried Mimas in a mass of molten metal, several versions indicate that he is still there, condemned to spend the rest of his eternity locked up.
  • Polybotes was buried by Poseidon, who threw him a piece of the island of Cos, this land later became the Island of Nisyros.
  • Hippolytus was defeated by Hermes, while the god wore a helmet that made him invisible.
  • Gatrion was killed by the arrows of Artemis.
  • Dionysus knocked out Eurytion with his thyrsus.
  • Hecate burned Clytio using her precious infernal torches
  • The moiras, armed with bronze maces, managed to kill Agrio and Toante.
  • Hera defeated the giant Foitos and also managed to convince Ctonio to fight to find Dionysus, however he died because of Demeter.
  • Ares killed Peleorus.

And so, each giant fell after an arduous fight, those who were not entombed received arrows from Heracles' poisoned arrows. In this way, they ensured that everyone was dead. The myth of Hercules does not end with this fight, since many historians say that Hercules managed to carry out many additional activities for a long time.

If you are interested in reading other articles like this one about the myth of Hercules, you can review the different categories of our blog, additionally we recommend you read Cassandra.

Heracles in Troy

Hera, Poseidon and Apollo created a conspiracy against Zeus, after this rebellion, Zeus decided to punish Poseidon and Apollo, putting them at the service of Laomedonte, the king of Troy. This made the gods build a long wall throughout the city, helped by Aeacus, they managed to finish, however, Laomedonte refused to pay any compensation for the work since they had done it by order of Zeus.

Poseidon was outraged and sent the king a sea monster to devour all the people who left the city. The king had to consult the oracle who instructed him in a sacrifice, his daughter Hesione, had to die to calm the beast. The young woman was tied to some rocks on the coast, waiting for the creature and her cruel fate.

Heracles, Telamón and Oicles, were walking near the place, when they heard the story of the monster and the human offering that was being made, to this hero, all the offerings that end human life were abominable, so he decided to help the young princess, for this, he agreed to kill the monster as long as the king granted him the horses that he had received from Zeus.

Laomedonte accepted but at the end of his promise and with the body of the creature already dead, he refused to pay the hero and he had to leave empty-handed. Heracles threatened the Trojan king, explaining that he should expect a war.

Back in Greece, Heracles assembled a small expedition and, with him in command, attacked Troy. In the fight, Laomedon killed Oicles, but soon realized that he must turn back and take refuge within the walls of Troy. Heracles followed him and ended up killing him and his children, with the exception of one, Podarces, who had been rescued by his sister Hesione.

Hercules and the Olympic Games

Many believe that Heracles was the one who inaugurated the Olympic Games, but the truth is that there are three versions that speak about the possible inauguration and how this rumor began.

Version 1 of the Hercules myth states that he established the games to celebrate his victory over Augeas, however, this version confuses the Isthmian Games with the Olympic Games. On the other hand, the second version says that he did establish the Olympic Games and that he did so in honor of Zeus, while the third version speaks of a character named after Heracles but who is not the hero.

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This character, nicknamed Ideo, ran to Olympia with his four brothers to train a newborn Zeus. Upon winning, he donned the crown and olive tree and thus established a sporting event in honor of the god every four years.

The death of Hercules

Despite his immense power, the hero was not immortal, after performing his twelve labors, he dedicated himself to performing various feats, which to this day, are very famous and involve all the mysticism of the myth of Hercules. Legend has it that he remarried Dejanire (Deyanira in Spanish) and that he became friends with her rival Antee, the son of Poseidon.

Furthermore, it is said that the centaur Nessos tried to rape Dejanire and that to prevent it, Hercules pierced him with one of his poisoned arrows. Unfortunately, the centaur convinced the woman to drink her blood, making sure that it was a love potion when in fact it was poison. Dejanire, thinking that Hercules had fallen in love with Princess Lole, made Hercules wear her robe, which had previously been dipped in that blood.

As soon as he put it on, he began to feel the burning of the poison, it was so strong that he tried to eliminate it. Finally Hercules couldn't take the pain and he ended up throwing himself into the flames of a funeral pyre. The gods of Olympus observed his death and decided to give him as a wife Hebe, the goddess of youth.

Facts related to the death of the myth

In Greek mythology, Hebe was the goddess of eternal youth and there were various versions explaining her birth. One of these versions indicated that she was the legitimate daughter of Zeus, the god of thunder and king of the gods, and his wife Hera. On the other hand, this same theory explains that her conception was very simple, since it happened while Hera was eating some lettuce leaves at a dinner that she shared with her friend Apollo, a fellow god of Olympus.

As she grew up, Hebe was conferred in the "Copera of the gods" this meant that she was responsible for serving the gods and goddesses of Olympus all their drinks, especially in the beloved nectar that they consumed so much, in addition, she helped Hera in various daily tasks. Hercules, being one of the most famous heroes in all of Greece, Zeus offered him Hebe's hand, since she was the perfect wife to spend the rest of eternity with.

The inhabitants of ancient Greece loved and revered Hercules, both as a god and as a mortal hero. Usually they used to portray the image of him as a strong and brave man wearing the skin of a lion and carrying a club. Although much is said about his lack of intelligence, the truth is that this hero had quite a great ingenuity, since he used to get out of conflicts with great skill.

As for the Romans, they saw Hercules as one of the greatest heroes, dedicating a statue to him so that all the inhabitants would worship him as they did with other gods, this statue was next to Hera and Zeus, however, it did not exist a specific cult towards Hercules or at least, none that has been recorded.

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Characters of the myth of Hercules

If there's one thing the myth of Hercules teaches us, it's that plans work better if you have help. Although we see this hero as an incredible being, the reality is that in most of his adventures he was accompanied, whether it was of his own free will or not, we cannot deny that the exploits of this hero also include various characters from mythology.

Companions of adventures

Among the great companions that Hercules had throughout his life, there are several that stand out for their help and intelligence, some of these are:

Lint

While Heracles was walking through the wilderness (after the fit of madness that caused him to kill his wife and children) he was attacked by the dryopes, killing King Tiodamas, the army quickly surrendered and offered the young prince Hylas as tribute. The hero, who hated all human sacrifices, decided to make the prince a squire.

Years later, Heracles and Hylas joined the crew of the Argo. As Argonauts they only participated in a small part of the trip, which by orders of Hera, the nemesis of Heracles, Hylas was kidnapped in Mysia by some nymphs from the source of Pangea. The Argonaut Polyphemus heard the boy's cry and warned Heracles.

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Both men quickly searched for the prince but time was not enough and the ship left without them. Finally, Heracles could not find Hylas anymore, since the young man had fallen in love with one of her nymphs and decided to stay with her forever.

Yolao

Within the myth of Hercules, another of the good companions was his nephew, Yolao. Son of his twin brother Iphicles, this young man became one of the main adventure companions of the hero, some authors theorize that Yolao was a possible lover of Heracles, since they had a very close relationship.

Although he accompanied him in all of his twelve labors, Iolaus only attended personally in the second, his intervention made the work invalid, since Eurystheus argued that it was Iolaus who cauterized the hydra's head and that without it, Heracles would not have been able to do so. to earn. The myth of Hercules indicates that he also accompanied him to Argo.

In some versions, Megara does not die after Heracles' attack of madness but he does kill his children, so he gives his wife to Yolao so that he can marry her, between them they had a daughter whom they called Leipefilena. On the other hand, Yolao was very skilled in horse racing and won the first edition of the Olympic games.

In addition to this, he had several independent adventures, where he proved to be a brave, strong, intelligent and very resourceful young man. Although he was away, Yolao grew up again a little before the death of his uncle, in fact, it was he who lit the pyre where the hero was burned to death. Following his descent, Iolaus took it upon himself to spread the worship of his uncle as a demi-god throughout Greece and nearby places.

You can read other articles like this one about the myth of Hercules on our blog, we invite you to explore this article Pegaso in the category of myths and legends.

Offspring

Within the myth of Hercules it was declared that all his offspring would be called Heraclidae, even though this terminology was also used to refer to the descendants of his son Hilo. Regarding the direct descent of the hero, it is theorized that he had about 69 children, where 49 of them are totally unknown since it is about several unions that he had with the fifty daughters of King Thespius.

On the other hand, his other children are:

  • Therimachus (son of Megara).
  • Creontiades (son of Megara).
  • Deicoon (son of Megara).
  • Everes (son of Parthenope).
  • Testalus (son of Epicaste).
  • Tlepolemus (son of Astíoque).
  • Thessalus (son of Astioque)
  • Telephone (son of Auge).
  • Agelaoo Lamo (son of Omphale).
  • Tyrsenus (son of Omphale).
  • Macaria (daughter of Deyanira).
  • Hilo (son of Deyanira).
  • Gleno (son of Deianira).
  • Onites (son of Deianira).
  • Ctesippus (son of Astidamia).
  • Palemón (son of Autonoe).
  • Alexiares (son of Hebe)
  • Aniceto (son of Hebe).
  • Antiochus (son of Meda).
  • Hispalo (father of Hispan who is credited with the foundation of Hispalis).

You can read other articles like this one about the Hercules myth on our blog. In fact, we recommend you read Echo and Narcissus.

The teachings of the myth of Hercules

The myth of Hercules is extremely recognizable, even if you never studied about Greek or Roman mythology, this hero has been so represented that by general culture it is impossible not to know about him. There are many stories about him, but although I am very different from each other, there is something that stands out a lot and that is that Hercules was a born leader.

A leader is defined by his ability to carry out any task regardless of the resources, circumstances or obstacles in his way, in addition, a true leader manages to inspire people and make them braver, stronger and more work as a team. The myth of Hercules teaches us several things that we can use in our daily lives and here we leave you five of them.

  • A leader always prepares his companions.

A good leader will always help his colleagues so that they can carry out the task, knowing his entire team and knowing their advantages and disadvantages is necessary when facing a situation. If you want to be a leader, you must learn about the people who are in your charge and about yourself, so they can face any adventure or situation.

  • Train to win.

Teamwork will always bear more fruit than individual work, that happens because several people can work more effectively than one. In order to perform efficiently, you need training and discipline, and you need to trust the person working next to you.

  • There are more important things than money.

While it is true that we live in an extremely consumerist society, it is good to appreciate that there are much more important things in life than money. Hercules teaches us that there are things in life that money cannot buy.

  • The correct reason.

When facing a situation, it is very important that you do it for the right reason. When one has a true purpose, you will see that you will find people who will applaud you for your choices and help you along the way. Be honest.

  • You are the master of your own destiny.

There is only one thing that is certain in life and that is our death, otherwise, all the actions you take, your behaviors, thoughts, decisions and others are yours. There is nothing written, the future is so uncertain that only you are the one who can shape it and even so, you may not get to enjoy it.

Give up the belief that there is a message from the afterlife or a guaranteed life, enjoy, make mistakes, learn and above all, do not let anyone influence your own decisions.

Hercules, the perfect hero

There are many heroes, demigods, gods, and mortals who bravely faced various trials during their lives. Despite this, the Greeks considered that Hercules was the perfect god, long before he was born, he was already destined to overcome the tests that would be carried out on his path. The myth of Hercules is extremely appreciated for the ancient culture.

When Zeus lay with Alcmene, he managed to engender who, without knowing it, would be the most famous Greco-Roman hero in history. Hercules or Heracles, was referred to in the ancient oral accounts of ancient Greece, and was later literarily represented in various Greek epics such as Hesiod's Shield of Heracles (XNUMXth century BC) and Homer's Iliad (XNUMXth century BC).

Although Hera tried to make him fail several times since his birth, the young hero managed to emerge victorious from home one of their encounters until his death. Hercules was not a common enemy that you will have to face, not only could he be kind and kind, but he was also spiteful and violent, this double nature made him, as a hero, be adored even more by mortals.

mind dominance

The myth of Hercules emphasizes that it was he who exercised a role of protector and advisor to humanity. for Roman and Greek traditions. He was not a god, but he was not a man either, he had less power and glory than his father although he had more virtues than mortals.

He had abysmal physical strength but lacked knowledge and wisdom, he was resourceful, large-bodied and athletic, different from common men and different from the gods.

Historical sources reveal that Hercules' behavior was very similar to a properly human behavior, which caused the people to fall in love with him because of his form so similar to theirs.

He was worshiped for being a protector, his deeds and his bravery made people give him veneration, putting himself on a par with a god without being one of them. In fact, although no type of cult was recorded that referred solely to Hercules, it has been believed that our ancestors worshiped Hercules as a demi-god and that they paid respects in different statues that they had created all over Greece and later Rome.

HERCULES MYTH

If you are interested in reading more articles like this one about the myth of Hercules, we recommend you read myth of icarus in the category of myths and legends.

Special Forces

The challenges that Hercules had to face in his myth not only needed his great strength against fantastic creatures, but among his last missions, he had to develop ingenuity to be able to deceive his adversaries, in this way he managed to complete certain jobs faster. One of the most ingenious jobs he did was to clean the stables of King Augeas, which although he used force to move the rocks, he also used his ingenuity, since he had discovered that by creating a flow for the river, the water would take everything dirt and he wouldn't have to overexert himself.

When Eurystheus entrusted the 12 labors to him, he hoped that he would die in one of them, these challenges were set so that Hercules would be humiliated, ridiculed and eventually killed. Despite this, the hero did the opposite and managed to defeat each of his opponents, making the stories of his adventures an important part of different cultures.

The Hercules Complex

The stories and myths have left us with various lessons, many of which are still applicable in the modern society in which we live. Despite this, the myth of Hercules not only teaches bravery, but has been used on a psychological level to give a name to a mental illness that can even kill a human being.

The vigorexia or the Hercules complex is a mental illness that is characterized by the erroneous perception of the body, in an individual that possesses this condition they will always see their body as imperfect and will take measures to repair it, these measures can range from very simple gestures, such as training to lose weight to extreme gestures such as self-mutilation, the reason why it is given that name is because people tend to fix an image similar to the one reflected in the myth of Hercules, a man of great muscles and strength amazing.

It must be understood that within this complex the stereotype of thinness is not always sought, but rather, it tries to find a perfection that is impossible to achieve, human beings are imperfect beings and trying to modify our body can be very dangerous.

More about vigorexia

Muscle dysmorphia or vigorexia is an eating disorder that generates an obsessive concern for the physical state of an individual, also distorting the view of the body scheme. This disorder can be called many things, in fact, you may recognize it from having been referred to as Anorexia Nervosa Reverse or Adonis Complex.

Interestingly, vigorexia is not a disease that is well recognized within the international medical community, but this does not mean that it does not exist and that it does not negatively affect patients who suffer from it, it is a real disorder or emotional disorder, where the physical characteristics are perceived in a distorted way, which can happen with anorexia but vice versa.

A person who always finds himself with a lack of tonicity and musculature may feel an obsessive need to perform some physical exercise that can lead to a better body appearance. In general, this behavior does not sound so bad, however, people with vigorexia make this exercise cycle excessive. For what it generates that the bodies are disproportionate and suffer physical consequences for that.

Why is it compared to the myth of Hercules?

For some people, there is no relationship between this disease and the myth of Hercules, but the reality is that it is quite easy to see the similarities. If we know anything about Greek mythology, the myths of Hercules describe him as a man with a perfect body, large muscles, immense strength and very attractive.

These characteristics are what a person with this complex looks for. Hercules was the stereotypical strong but goofy, handsome, big-muscled hero. Many people aspire to achieve some resemblance to him, obviously it is not a very rational thought, since first, Hercules is a fictional character created millions of years ago and second, although mortal, he was not completely human, he was a demigod, so his standards should not be used on ordinary humans.

The obsession with looking a certain way could end the lives of some people. It is then that we must remind all our readers that mental illness should also be treated as if it were a physical illness. The myth of Hercules teaches us several important lessons, but we must never forget that he is a fictional character and that his behavior should not be imitated.

The increase in body mass

Vigorexia presents itself in several ways, however, the best known is when the patient has an obsession to increase their muscle mass, the number one priority of patients with this complex is to gain weight, but not gaining weight but raising the level of your muscle mass with exercise.

They are at risk of developing obsessive behaviors that would lead them to exercise compulsively, having serious consequences on their physique and sometimes even killing the patient. Other afflictions that are attributed to this disease are: low self-esteem, seizures, headache, dizziness and tachycardia. Many experts believe that vigorexia can be more deadly than anorexia and bulimia itself.

Studies have shown that the human body can only withstand 6 months of this behavior. After that, the body will begin to fail enough to cause death.

You can read more articles like this one about the myth of Hercules on our blog, in fact, we recommend you read myths of the amazons in the category of myths and legends.

The myth of Hercules is reflected more in men

While women often suffer from diseases such as anorexia and bulimia, which distort their body image and increase the desire to look thin, men can suffer from vigorexia. It is believed that this mental illness may have a cause in sociocultural factors (cult of the body) but it has also been indicated that it may be an imbalance in brain neurotransmitters that are related to this type of pathology.

The treatment for this disease (if it has not yet wreaked havoc on the body) must be psychological, changing the behavior of the individual and generating that he can raise his self-esteem and learn to face failure. In a natural way, physical activity generates bodily alterations, that is, hormones such as endorphins are secreted, which, being so pleasant, produce an adherence to the practice of physical activity, this makes the human perform the same behavior repeatedly , if controlled can become beneficial.

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