TITAN’S

 

The powerful Titan’s

Giants of Greek Mythology

Born of Uranus and Gaea

Rulers of the earth

Brutally overthrown

By the Olympian Gods

THE LABOURS OF HERACLES # 01: THE NEMEAN LION

 

Heracles when driven mad by the Goddess Hera

Murdered his three children and his wife Megara

The Delphic oracle punished him for the murders

By ordering him to perform the Twelve Labour's

The labour's were set by King Eurystheus his cousin

And his first task was killing the Nemean Lion

It was no ordinary lion but a supernatural monster

Its skin could not be penetrated by arrow or spear

So, he blocked the entrance to the lion's cave

And then Heracles entered fearless and brave

At close quarters he fought the creature fiercely  

And strangled it with his bare hands savagely

Ever after he wore its skin about him as a cape

And as a helmet he wore its head with jaws agape

HERO’S OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – HERACLES

 

The son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmene was Heracles

And his twin by Alcmene and Amphitryon was Iphicles

Hera, the wife of Zeus was jealous of his last mortal son

And she decided on a path to vent her hate and anger on

So while he was still an infant Hera, wanting him dead

Sent a pair of serpents to kill him as he slept in his bed

But to Hera’s disappointment things didn’t go as planned

Heracles was found with a strangled serpent in each hand

 

Heracles is known as the strongest by far of all mortals

Stronger than many of the Gods and victorious in battles 

But offsetting his strength was a lack not of intelligence

But he did lack wisdom and had very little common sense

And it was his quick temper that often left him undone

Once when he was too hot, he threaten to shoot at the sun

His pride was easily offended and held grudges at length

And his appetites for life were as great as his strength

 

If he held grudges, he would still do anything for a friend

Once his anger passed, he was his fiercest critic in the end

He was too strong for anyone to force on him at any time

Any kind of a punishment no matter how bad the crime

That he was willing to do the most severe penance shows

That he had a fundamental sense of justice that he chose

During his many punishments Heracles shows us at length

Patience, fortitude and endurance as heroic as his strength

 

Many of the great deeds of Heracles occurred more or less

While doing a penance for acts of anger or carelessness

As a man His first heroic deed was the killing of a lion

Which had been savaging the countryside from Cithaeron

And then he defeated Erginus, who was the one exacting

An unjustified annual tribute from Creon the Theban king

In gratitude Creon the Theban king offered to the victor 

Heracles the hand in marriage his young daughter Megara

 

Lycus tried to seize the throne when Creon died years later

But Heracles soon put an end to that by killing the usurper

But in the rejoicing that follows, taking a hand again is Hera

Acting with anger and hatred that had never relented in her

She struck Heracles with a fit of madness at the celebration

And in a rage, he killed both Megara and their three children

The Delphic oracle decided as punishment for these murders

Heracles is ordered to perform as penance Twelve Labors

So not for the first time that he had to atone for his crimes

Since he had come of age Heracles had proved many times

His unerring marksmanship with bow and arrow and spear

A possessor of superhuman strength and a champion wrestler

He needed all of these for the labors set by one of his family

His cousin Eurystheus, who was king of Tiryns and Mycenae

By rights, Heracles should have had the crown upon his head

But Hera had tricked Zeus into crowning Eurystheus instead

 

To begin his labors Heracles had to kill the Nemean lion firstly

This he did by strangling the beast with his bare hands only

Then His second labor was to kill the many-headed hydra

This he did with Iolaus his nephew in the swamps of Lerna

Then his task was to capture the fleet footed Cerynitian hind

It was in Arcadia he caught it after it took him a year to find

He then returned once more to Arcadia for his fourth labor

On mount Erymanthus he captured the huge Erymanthian boar

 

Next was cleaning the Augean stables a task meant to demean  

But Heracles diverted two rivers to leave the stable yards clean

Once more he had to return to the stark wilderness of Arcadia

To find flesh eating Stymphalian birds and kills their number

The seventh labor involved a huge fire-breathing creature

The Cretan bull ravaging the countryside he had to capture

The mares of Diomedes then had to be brought to Eurystheus

This was achieved with the help of his young squire Abderus

 

He went to the land of the Amazons for the ninth of the labors

To steal the belt from Hippolyte the queen of the women warriors

For labor ten he was sent outside ancient Greece by Eurystheus

He captured the cattle of Geryon and killed Geryon and Orthrus

Stealing the apples of Hesperides was to be labor number eleven

This he did killing Ladon and securing help from Atlas the Titan

The twelfth and final labor for Heracles was to capture Cerberus

He dragged the hellhound from Hades and gave it to Eurystheus

 

Penance was done upon completion of the twelfth labor 

Though could not bring back the victims of the murder

In the years after as well as in between his great Labors

Heracles had a great many other adventures and chores

He was one of the Argonaut sailing with the hero Jason

Wielding a massive club which was his favorite weapon

He wore as a cloak the skin he took from the Nemean lion

It was his usual garb and as a helmet he had its head on

 

Heracles accomplished some amazing feats for a mortal

He once forced the god Poseidon to give way in battle

In another encounter he wounded Ares the god of war

And he wrestled the great god Zeus himself to a draw

The hero could move mountains that hindered his way

He could and did toss boulders about like pebbles all day

Heracles even relieved the Titan Atlas of his eternal burden

He stood and on his back supported the weight of heaven

 

So strong he was the deciding factor in battle with the Titans

Defeating the Giants and winning victory for the Olympians

When the Titanic sons of Gaia tried to storm the godly citadel

When a hail of flaming oaks and rocks almost won the battle

The deities of Mount Olympus would never have prevailed

Without Heracles and his bowmanship which never failed

His reward in recognition of his assistance in their victory

Was to become the only mortal born hero to become a deity

 

When Heracles allowed a centaur to ferry across a river

His wife Deianara on the other side the centaur attacked her

Heracles killed him with an arrow but before the Centaur died

He told her for a love potion to keep some blood he supplied

Deianara used some on Heracles' tunic to keep him faithful

But it contained Hydra poison from the arrow and was fatal

He used Hydra venom on the arrow, which Deianara didn’t see

And was poisoned when He donned the tunic dying in agony

 

On his funeral pyre lightning consumed his mortal remains    

And he was apotheosized by Zeus and joined the Olympians

So, he was given a home on Mount Olympus for eternity

And Heracles also married the lovely goddess of youth Hebe

But there was part of him had not come from Zeus his father

And that part had come from Alcmene his mortal mother

The mortal part of his soul went to the Underworld directly   

And in Company of heroes roams the Elysian Fields eternally

CREATURES OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – SPHINX

 

There was a dreadful union between the giant immortal Typhon

And the black fearful eyed Echidne, half serpent, half woman

The Sphinx was the bizarre result of this most Unnatural union

And it had the body of a lion and the upper parts of a woman

She also had the wings of an eagle as well as the tail of a serpent

And guarding the entrance to Thebes was how Her time was spent

Any traveler who wanted to enter Thebes had to first get past her

And to do that She would ask them a riddle that they had to figure

If the travelers were able to figure out the riddle, they had to try

They would pass safely by and she would by her own hand die

But if they were unable to figure out the riddle, they were given

They would not pass safely by and she would devour them then

Then One day on the road to Thebes the Sphinx met with Oedipus

And the Sphinx duly set him her complex riddle, which went thus

'So, what creature walks on four in the morning on two by day

And on three in the evening?' you must answer to pass by this way

Oedipus thought for a while, and then said the answer was known

'It is a man. When he’s a baby, he crawls on four, When full grown

He walks on two, and when he is an old man, he leans on a staff.'

With that said she let out a terrible scream like an hysterical laugh

Then the Sphinx threw herself to her death from atop the Acropolis

And wise Oedipus was then granted entrance to Thebes forthwith

HERO’S OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY - JASON

 

Jason was born as the son of the rightful King of Iolcus

But his lawful throne was then usurped by his uncle Pelias

Pelias lived in constant fear of losing what he had taken

He kept his father imprisoned and planned to murder Jason

 

Jason's mother Polymede mourned as if her son had died

And Pelias was deceived and never knew she had lied

Jason was taken to the wilderness and raised by a centaur

Chiron the Centaur tutored him in the hunting arts and lore

 

When he came of age, he set out to claim the throne of Iolcus

Not realizing he had a powerful ally on Mount Olympus

Hera, wife of Zeus nursed a rage against Pelias the usurper

Rashly he’d honored all the Gods except heavens queen Hera

 

Hera contrived a raging torrent to test the mettle of Jason

And beside the river’s bank sat a poor withered old woman

Would Jason ignore the old woman and cross over the river

Or would he take pity and offer to pick her up and ferry her

 

Without hesitation he put her on his back and entered the water

Halfway he staggered under the unexpected weight of Hera

Losing a sandal in the fast current was part of Hera’s plan

On the other side his burden was once again an old woman

 

King Pelias had been warned many years before by an oracle

"Beware Pelias a stranger who wears but a single sandal."

Arriving in Iolcus, Jason asserted his claim to the usurper

But Pelias was not going to give it to a one-shoed stranger

 

Pelias managed to persuade Jason to undergo a form of test

Seeking out the fabled Golden Fleece was to be Jason’s quest

Word soon went out across the length and breadth of Greece

That adventurer's were needed to search for the Golden Fleece

 

Pelias thought with the dangers of dragon’s roar and serpent’s hiss

His nephew Jason would never return from the land of Colchis

Among the many heroes were Heracles and the heroine Atalanta

And an impressive crew was soon assembled for the adventure

 

Jason chose from the best that Greece had to offer in his view  

All that was needed was a magnificent vessel for them to crew

So, Jason had a ship constructed by the worthy shipwright Argus

Who called it “Argo” after himself out of vanity more or less

 

The heavenly Hera enlisted the aid of her fellow goddess Athena

This patroness of crafts provided a prow in the form of a figure

It was crafted from timber hewn from Zeus’s own sacred grove

Giving it magical property to help the seekers of the special trove

 

And so, one bright autumn morning the Argo set out to sea,

Her benches crewed by ranks of the heroic in her company

And it wasn't long before trouble found Jason and his men

Spending two weeks on an island populated only by women

 

After many weeks at sea the Argonauts again made land fall

It was at Salmydessus that they made their next port of call 

The King welcomed them but was in no mood for festivities

Because he had offended the Gods and was plagued by miseries

 

His tormentors had the heads of women with bird’s bodies

The creatures were razor-clawed scourges known as Harpies

These beasts were possessed of reprehensible table manners

Every evening they dropped down to defecate upon his dinners

 

They hung around the King's repast making such a racket

That had he been able to eat he didn’t have the stomach for it

As a result, poor King Phineus just grew thinner by the hour

And the vicious harpies would then return to their tower

 

Two Argonauts were descended from the north wind directly

And this relationship gave them the power to fly limitlessly

The pair chased the Harpies far away without hesitating

So, they would never bother him again while he was dining

 

In gratitude he informed Jason of a danger just across the seas

On route to the Fleece namely two rocks called Symplegades

These rocks had the disconcerting habit of crashing together

Upon any ship that tried to navigate through the channel there

 

Phineus warned Jason not to try and pass straight through

But suggested a method which might help Jason and his crew

Something passing between the Rocks would start them crashing

Then the Argo could follow in its wake and safely passing

 

The Gods help was needed so an offering was made to Athena

And when the Argo approached, she caused them to crash together

The Argo was able to pass between the rocks relatively safely

They negotiate through the Symplegades with minor damage only 

 

When the clashing rocks were no more than a distant memory

They reached the shores of Colchis after many days at sea

In Colchis they had to face challenges in search of the trove

Before finding where the Golden Fleece hung in the grove

 

King Aeetes of Colchis was the barbarian kingdom's ruler

And it sat on the far edge of the heroic world’s perimeter

He and his people were not at all well disposed to strangers

And because of the fleece were suspicious of newcomers

 

King Aeetes had taken a disliking to Jason on first sight

And did not intend losing what Aeetes saw as his by right

And he was telling Jason this and that he should have known

That King Aeetes considered the Golden Fleece to be his own

 

Aeetes was about to eject Jason from Colchis unceremoniously

When his daughter Medea reminded Aeetes about hospitality

Medea was motivated by love thanks to the god’s intervention

Hera persuaded Aphrodite to intervene on the behalf of Jason

 

After the Goddess of Love had struck Medea with a passion

King Aeetes then calmed down considerably in regard to Jason

The moment she first saw him Medea was completely smitten

And the king suddenly became suspiciously reasonable then

 

Of course, Jason could have the Fleece that was no trouble

Aeetes couldn't imagine why he had been so inhospitable

All he required of Jason just as a simple good faith token

Were a small number of farmyard chores to be undertaken

 

There were two bulls stood in the adjacent pasture grazing

Jason should catch them and harness them ready for plowing

Then plough the field, sow it and reap the harvest in a day

That done King Aeetes would give the Golden Fleece his way

 

The bulls were a bit unusual in that their feet were a hazard

Made of brass sharp enough to rip a man from gullet to gizzard

And then of course there was the matter of the Bulls bad breath

In point of fact, it didn’t smell they just breathed flames of death

 

Medea was a famous sorceress and famed for magic potions

She gave Jason salves that he smeared on like body lotions

This protected him against the brazen hooves and fiery death

So, he could approach the bulls with out fearing their breath 

 

Disregarding the flames that danced all about his shoulders

And avoiding the hooves he managed to harness the creatures

This done he set quickly about the task of plowing the field

Then this was followed by sowing the seeds he had to yield

 

What Jason did not know, as he was Gaily sowing the seed

Was that the crop he was sowing was very strange indeed

Aeetes had given Jason dragon's teeth to scatter all about

As soon as they were planted in soil, they began to sprout

 

Jason had sowed the field and turned to complete his test

And was shocked to discover what crop he must harvest

Each seed had produced a fearsome fully armed warrior 

Jason must now reap what he sowed to complete his chore

 

As Jason prepared to do battle his discomfort was hard to hide

The king’s daughter Medea hurried across the field to his side

This time there were no magic potion's salves or embrocations

But Medea merely gave Jason a basic psychology suggestion

 

Jason was sensible enough to recognize a good piece advice  

And used her suggestion by employing the simple device

Jason picked up a rock and threw it at the closest warrior

This warrior then turned to his left and accusing the soldier

 

Jason managed to get each seed man to turn on its brother

Until he had all the warriors in the army fighting each other 

Jason had completed the harvest by means of the slaughter

With the assistance of Medea king Aeetes young daughter

 

So, Jason with more than a little help from the forces divine

The strange harvest was brought in well before the deadline

Aeetes had to agree to let the Golden Fleece go to the Argo

But he confided in Medea he had no intention of doing so

 

And Medea, still entranced by the Goddess of Love Aphrodite

Confided in turn in Jason about her fathers intended treachery

Under cover of darkness to the temple grove she led Jason

Where the Fleece was nailed to a tree and guarded by a dragon

 

It was at midnight when they crept into Ares sacred precinct

And quickly drawing his sword was our hero’s first instinct

But Medea very wisely restrained the impetuous hero Jason

And she used her powers as a sorceress to distract the dragon

 

While Medea held the fearsome dragon completely spell bound

Jason crept to the tree and removed the fleece without a sound

Once he had the prize, they made off together with the Fleece

Eluding pursuit they set sail at once for the journey back to Greece

 

So, the hero Jason had succeeded in the great heroic quest and thus  

He returned with his golden prize to reclaim the throne of Iolcus

But although Jason had actually sworn to love and honor Medea

Our fickle hero jilted and abandoned the lovely Medea for another

GREEK MYTH’S – PHRIXUS AND THE GOLDEN RAM

 

One day in Colchis appeared a man called Phrixus

With his sister Helle he had travelled from Iolcus

This in itself was nothing unusual or worth mention 

Apart from his unorthodox mode of transportation

For he arrived on the back of a golden flying ram

Saved from sacrifice and carried off by the lamb

Helle, sister of Phrixus never completed the journey

As she had fallen from the ram's back into the sea

In a narrow passage of water, they came to call

The Hellespont in memory of her most tragic fall

But Phrixus arrived in Colchis safely from Greece

And sacrificed the ram to the gods and hung its fleece

HERO’S OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY - PERSEUS

 

King Acrisius of Argos was warned by an oracle of Apollo one-day

That he would be killed in time by a son born to his daughter Danae

Fearful He locked her up in a bronze tower and threw away the key

And thus prevented her from having children or being able to marry

 

The bronze tower had no doors but it had one very small window

Then one night Danae who was very sad saw a strange sort of glow

The god Zeus entered disguised as a golden shower bright as dawn

He joined in union with the girl and as a result Perseus was born

 

Acrisius learned of this and when entered the tower he was furious

Danae sat with a baby on her lap, smiled and said, "this is Perseus"

Acrisius put Danae and baby into a brazen chest and cast it out to sea

Perhaps the King expected it to sink like a stone but it was not to be

 

Instead of sinking the chest floated away from the shores of Argos

Eventually fetching up on a lonely beach on the island of Seriphos

Dictys the king’s brother found the chest while he was out fishing

And he took its contents under his protection without questioning   

 

One-day king Polydectes, Dictys's brother took a fancy to Danae

And he pressed his attentions upon her, which she turned him away

Perseus who had grown up to become a very strong young man

Made his own objections to Polydectes as only a young man can

 

And the king angry but outwardly amenably agreed he would desist

He would have married her by force if Perseus wasn't there to resist

So he grew more subtle in the pursuit of achieving his desire of her

And so decided on a plan to be rid of Perseus so he could not interfere

 

Polydectes pretended to be marrying Hippodameia a friend’s daughter

And everybody was required to bring a gift no matter who they were

Polydectes pretended to be furious when Perseus arrived empty-handed

“Why do you dishonor me and my bride in this way”? He demanded

 

Perseus though very strong and brave was also very poor in his defense

He explained to the king that he had no money and he meant no offence

He pledged to bring the king any gift in the world and he would cede

“Then bring me the head of the gorgon Medusa!" and Perseus agreed

 

The gorgons were horrible but Perseus set off to kill medusa as he said

Instead of hair the creatures had black serpents that writhed on their head

And they had brazen hands that could have crushed Perseus effortlessly

But worst of all if you looked a gorgon you were turned to stone instantly

 

For weeks he wandered on his perilous way in search of the gorgon’s lair

One night in an unknown country he was finally overcome by despair

Then suddenly appearing before him goddess of crafts and war Athena

She offered him help on how to find and defeat the gorgon Medusa

 

Go and seek out the kindly nymphs of the north she told him Firstly

Ask for the Cap of Darkness which renders the wearer total invisibility

Before he left Perseus was given her own mirrored shield by Athena

And the sickle of adamant and winged sandals from Hermes her brother

 

Seeking out the nymphs was not as simple as he had first thought

Perseus must first visit the Graeae sisters for the location he sought

And to find the graeae he had to go to the world’s western parameter

Find Atlas and ask him to direct him to the sister’s home in the vicinity

 

He traveled to the west and found Atlas one of the renegade Titans

Who was paying eternally for defying Zeus by holding up the heavens

Perseus politely asked atlas where he could find the three graeae sisters

This atlas duly did by nodding in the direction of the cave dwellers

 

The Graeae Sisters were strange hags with one eye between the three

Which they were constantly fighting over to have their chance to see

Perseus hid at the mouth of the cave and watched them very carefully

Then he picked his moment and snatched the eye so they couldn’t see

 

Then Perseus demanded they tell him the northern nymph’s location

If they did not then they would never get their precious eye back again

Eventually the old hags told Perseus what he need to know Reluctantly

He tossed the eye in a corner and on winged sandals flew across the sea

 

The northern nymphs were called naiads and were actually minor deities

They were mortal creatures who dwelt in pools and ponds in societies

The kindly Nymphs gave him the Cap of Darkness that he was seeking

As well as a special magic pouch to carry Medusa’s severed head in

 

They told him he must go still farther north to find the gorgons' lair

When Perseus found a large rocky island he would find medusa their

So with the cap of darkness and the magic pouch he set of north again

Where he found an island adorned with statues which used to be men

 

Before setting down on the island Perseus put on the Cap of Darkness

Then reflected in his shield he saw the gorgons asleep in the bleakness

Perseus then flew down safe in his invisibility to fine medusa prone  

And He swung the sickle and felt it tearing through sinew and bone

 

Still using the shield, he put the head in the magic bag without delay

And Before Medusa's sisters attacked him Perseus flew quickly away

On his way home first visited Atlas and because he pitied the titan

Using medusas head he turned him to stone and relieved his burden

 

As he traveled closer to Seriphos he saw a statue chained to a rock

When he flew down, he saw that it was not a statue, but a young woman

Her name was Andromeda and her mother had boasted that her beauty

Was greater than that of the Nereid’s who were the nymphs of the sea 

 

So Andromeda must be sacrificed to appease the god of the sea Poseidon

And a great sea monster would devour her from the rocks she stood upon

Even as she spoke a monster rose from the sea with the force of a cyclone

Perseus took the head from the pouch and the monster turned to stone

 

He cut her chains and took her to her father, King Cepheus of Phoenicia

Cepheus gladly agreed when Perseus asked for the hand of Andromeda

So once again for Seriphos Perseus set off and in his arms was Andromeda

There was one last stop so Perseus could compete in the games at Larisa

 

But when he threw a discus it hit an old man in the stands called Acrisius

So, the prophecy came true he was killed by his daughter’s son Perseus

And after mourning briefly Perseus and Andromeda’s last journey began

When they arrived the first person, they met was Dictys the fisherman

 

Dictys told them how the king hadn’t married and of his mothers burden

But Danae wouldn't marry him, so he forced her to be his handmaiden

Perseus was furious leaving Andromeda with Dictys he went to the palace

After alerting his friends he showed Polydectes and his court Medusa’s face

 

When Polydectes and his supporters had been turned to stone forever

As rulers Perseus and Andromeda lived happily for many years together

And their descendants became great kings down through the generations

After death Perseus and Andromeda were put in the sky as constellations

CREATURES OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – MEDUSA

 

Medusa was one of the daughters of Phorkys and Keto

Sea monsters who spawned many monsters and drakon's

Who were the children of the gods Gaia and Okeanos

And She was one of the three sisters known as the Gorgons

 

Medusa of the three was by far the most beautiful gorgon

Unlike her sisters Sthenno and Euryale she was mortal

And she loved the god Poseidon and when they met one day  

Together they desecrated the goddess Athena’s temple

 

She was punished by having her hair turned into snakes

And made so ugly that any mortal who looked at Medusa

Would be turned instantly to stone even after her death

Perseus cut off her head as she slept and gave it to Athena

HERO’S OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – MELEAGER

Meleager was the Son of King Oeneus of Calydon and Althea

Seven days after his birth the Fates appeared foretelling his future

Clotho and Lachesis predicted he would be both noble and brave

However, the prediction of the fate Atropos was a little more grave

He warned he would die as soon as a stick in the fire burned away

So, Althea pulled the stick from the fire, put it out, and hid it away

While he was still a young man, he became regarded as second only

To the mighty Heracles in his speed strength skill and overall ability

He was the youngest to sail with Jason’s Argonauts and subsequently

He went on to kill King Aeetes of Colchis the Argonauts chief enemy

He returned from his time with the Argonauts and married Cleopatra

And they lived happily in Calydon and they had a daughter Polydora

His domestic tranquillity was brought to a tragic and abrupt end

When Artemis unleashed the fearsome giant boar in his homeland

Meleager naturally took a leading role in the hunt from the start

The Calydonian Boar Hunt ended with his spear in the beast’s heart

As Atalanta had drawn first blood Meleager awarded her the hide

Awarding the prize to a woman injured the some of the party’s pride

His uncles felt that his generous action had made them look small

A quarrel broke out between them and Meleager then killed them all

Althea, on hearing of her brother’s death’s by her own son’s hands

She was so distraught at the news that some instant revenge she plans

Remembering the words of Atropos about the stick on the fates visit

Althea took the stick from its place of safety and then she burned it

As predicted Meleager died and then in remorse took her own life

This is followed by the suicide from grief of Cleopatra his wife

CREATURES OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – PEGASUS

 

Born from Medusa's neck when she was beheaded by Perseus

Pegasus the immortal winged horse that was sired by Poseidon

It was a wild shining white horse until one night it was captured

While drinking at the spring of Peirene by the hero Bellerophon

 

Pegasus was captured with the aid of a magical Golden Bridle

That would tame even the wildest horse and given him by Athena

Then prince Bellerophon rode brave Pegasus in the land of Lycia

And victorious into battle against the three headed Chimaera

Then Bellerophon, so happy with himself for killing the monster

Decided to try and ride Pegasus to the top of Mount Olympus

Zeus was so enraged he struck down and crippled Bellerophon

And as a carrier of thunderbolts Zeus used the immortal Pegasus

HEROIC BATTLES OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY – THE CALYDONIAN BOAR HUNT

 

There was a custom in Calydon as there was in many lands

That the first fruits of the harvest be sacrificed to the goddess

Unfortunately, one summer King Oeneus made the mistake

Albeit accidentally of omitting to make a sacrifice to Artemis

 

Artemis, furious at Oeneus's negligence reeked vengeance

And sent down the most enormous wild boar to Calydon

The Boar ravaged Calydon, destroying everything in its path

Oeneus called in Atalanta and the noblest men to take it on

 

The King’s own brothers and his son Meleager joined the hunt

The Boars skin was offered as trophy to the one who killed it

Many of the men were unhappy fighting alongside a woman

Atalanta was a great huntress and she fought where she saw fit

 

Despite his being married Meleager was in love with Atalanta

And he convinced his uncles and the others they should follow

Atalanta was the first to see the beast, and quickest to shoot

Amphiaraus followed suit hitting the beast’s eye with an arrow

 

Meleager, was a fearless young dare-devil and took his chance

An excellent hunter he took his spear and gorged the Boar

But the great boar was big enough that it kept charging at him

And would have killed him but for the quick action of Atalanta

 

Meleager won the Boars skin and the credit for the beasts kill

But such was his infatuation with Atalanta he gave it to her

But the other hunters didn't like the idea of a mere woman

Getting the prize instead of a man no matter how good a hunter

 

The loudest of the protesters were Meleager's own uncles

And they declared that if he didn't want the great boar skin

That was quite acceptable, but it could not go to Atalanta

And by the right of blood, it should go to one of his own kin

 

Meleager in his anger fought and killed all of his uncles

And then he presented the prized boar’s skin to Atalanta

His mother Althea unable to forgive him for his actions

Was so distraught in her grief she killed her son Meleager