Cerberus
The three-headed dog guards the gate of Hades and has an appetite for live meat—perfect for allowing the spirits of the dead to enter while keeping people out. Hercules’ twelfth labor was to capture Cerberus alive without using any weapons.
Cerberus is pronounced with a soft C in English but the ancient Greek and Latin pronounced it with a K. His three heads represent past, present and future…or birth, youth and old age.
His parents were Echidna, a human/serpent hybrid, and Typhon, a fire-breathing giant. I don’t know why they had puppies for children, although Cerberus obviously inherited his mane of serpents from his mother.
Hercules had to learn the Eleusinian Mysteries first, in order to enter the underworld
while still alive, and adopted a fierce scowl to bully Charon into ferrying him across the River Styx. Athena and Hermes assisted Hercules both in and out of the underworld, as well. I suppose Hera couldn’t do anything about divine interference except gnash her teeth.
When Hercules found Hades, he asked permission to take Cerberus to the surface. Hades agreed and Hercules overpowered the beast, hefting Cerberus over his shoulder.
Once more, Eurystheus dove into his jar (pithos) and cowered in terror after seeing the great dog. He begged Hercules to return the beast to the underworld in exchange for releasing him from his labors.
As a reward for finishing his tasks, father Zeus gave Hercules immortality—but only after Hercules died. Hera forgave him—shouldn’t it have been the other way around?—and gifted Hercules with a bride…her daughter Hebe.
And they all lived happily ever after as a dysfunctional family.
This is the end of my series on Hercules but don’t worry, I’ll be back next Friday with a new victim!
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Don’t forget about the What’s Your Chocolate? Blog hop on September 10th.
I’m so excited for you. The one and only winner so far. Oh, I’m assuming you’ve already been by my blog. If not, never mind. Hehe.
I just went there, Ciara! I’m stunned and happy-dancing around right now! Thank you so much.
I’ll miss Hercules
But I’m sure you’ll come up with something equally fascinating. I think the lessons we’ve learned here is 1) You can’t keep a good man down 2) Stepmothers have always been evil (in literature and myth anyway) and 3) Eurystheus was a tool!
That about sums it up, Buffy! Hercules is a study in perseverance.
Past, present, and future…I wonder if Dickens borrowed on this labor for old Ebenezer’s ghosts.
Happy Weekend!
It could be, Carol. So many stories go back to the myths and rework them. Happy weekend to you as well!
This is another that I know. I love all the posts. There is always something interesting and I learn stuff all the time..
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed them, Savannah!
The constellation, Hercules, has one of the most stunning objects in the night sky. A constant companion in the summer for me. I’ll think of all his wacky trials when aiming up a M13 tonight.
It’s so nice that you can find these myths in the sky, Mary. I can only find Orion with any regularity.
Laura, I will truly miss Hercules in your Fantasy Friday series. Hearing nothing more about that sniveling coward, Eurystheus, though, will be a blessing. I read that he gave Hercules ten tasks to perform but extended that to twelve because our hero’s slaying the Hydra and cleaning the Augean stables, for technical reasons only Eurystheus would come up with, didn’t count.
Yes, it will be nice to ignore Eurystheus, Ron! That’s what makes the help by Athena and Hermes so funny in this one – he and Hera couldn’t claim foul, since it was divine help.
Hopefully I will continue to entertain you with new myths. There are so many of them!