Nemean Lion

Nemean Lion




















Nemean Lion


Nemean Lion was a large lion, whose hide was impervious to weapons, which plagued the district of Nemea in the Argolis. King Eurystheus commanded Herakles to destroy the beast as the first of his twelve Labours. The hero cornered the lion in its cave and seizing it by the neck wrestled it to death. He then skinned its hide to make a lion-skin cape, one of his most distinctive attributes. Hera afterwards placed the lion amongst the stars as the constellation Leo.

Nemean Lion The mountain valley of Nemea, between Cleonae and Phlius, was inhabited by a lion, the offspring of Typhon (or Orthrus) and Echidna. (Hes. Theog. 327; Apollod. ii. 5. § 1; comp. Aelian, H. A. xii. 7, Serv. ad Aen. viii. 295.) Eurystheus ordered Heracles to bring him the skin of this monster. When Heracles arrived at Cleonae, he was hospitably received by a poor man called Molorchus. This man was on the point of offering up a sacrifice, but Heracles persuaded him to delay it for thirty days until he should return from his fight with the lion, in order that then they might together offer sacrifices to Zeus Soter; but Heracles added, that if he himself should not return, the man should offer a sacrifice to him as a hero. The thirty days passed away, and as Heracles did not return, Molorchus made preparations for the heroic sacrifice; but at that moment Heracles arrived in triumph over the monster, which was slain, and both sacrificed to Zeus Soter. Heracles, after having in vain used his club and arrows against the lion, had blocked up one of the entrances to the den, and entering by the other, he strangled the animal with his own hands. According to Theocritus (xxv. 251, &c.), the contest did not take place in the den, but in the open air, and Heracles is said to have lost a finger in the struggle. (Ptolem. Heph. 2.) He returned to Eurystheus carrying the dead lion on his shoulders; and Eurystheus, frightened at tile gigantic strength of the hero, took to flight, and ordered him in future to deliver the account of his exploits outside the gates of the town.

Hercules's 1st Labor was to kill the Nemean Lion and bring it back its pelt to the king. Arrows didn't work to kill the lion. It didn't work because the pelt was made of thick fur. Hercules threw an arrow in the lion's throat to kill it. He strangled the lion with a rope.
After Hercules killed the lion, he brought it to the king. The king gave the pelt to Hercules to use as armor so he could get through the rest of the 11 other Labors.

Nemean Lion As The Constellation Leo
Various Greek and Roman writers associate the Nemeian Lion with the constellation Leo. there are:

Pseudo-Hyginus, Astronomica 2. 24 (trans. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) :
"[Constellation] Leo. He is said to have been put among the stars because he is considered the king of beasts. Some writers add that Hercules’ first Labour was with him and that he killed him unarmed. Pisandrus and many other writers have written about this."

Seneca, Oedipus 38 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st A.D.) :
"[A land plaued with drought :] Titan [Helios the sun] augments the scorching dog-stars’s [Seirios'] fires, close-pressing upon the Nemean Lion’s [i.e. Leo, zodiac of mid-summer] back. Water has fled the streams, and from the herbage verdure."

Seneca, Hercules Furens 942 ff :
"[Herakles driven mad by Hera believes the constellations are attacking him :] Whence do so many stars fill the sky though it is day [i.e. there is a solar eclipse]? See where the [Nemean] lion, my first toil, glows in no small part of heaven [constellation Leo], is all hot with rage, and makes ready his fangs. Forthwith he will seize some star; threatening he stands with gaping jaws, and breathes forth fires, and shakes the mane upon his flaming neck; whatever stars sickly autumn and cold winter with its frozen tracts bring back, with one bound will he o’erleap, and attack and crush the neck of the vernal Bull [Taurus]."


sources:
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
http://mrdfourth90.com/all_class_sites/2010/Greek_Myths/data/labor1.htm
http://www.theoi.com/Ther/LeonNemeios.html

Typhon the Greek Legend

Typhon the Greek Legend


















Typhon the Greek Legend



Origin
Born of Mother Earth Gaia and Tartarus, he commands the fierce destructive winds of the world, which he used on land to destroy crops and in water to sink ships and drown sailors.
Description

Typhon was the largest and most grotesque of all creatures that have ever lived. He was so tall that he towered over the highest mountains, and his head often brushed the stars. He was of human form down to his thighs, but he had huge snake coils instead of legs. When the coils were drawn out, they reached all the way to his head and let out a loud hissing.

A hundred dragons’ heads sprung from his shoulders and his body was covered with feathers. His body was winged: scruffy hair streamed on the wind from his head and cheeks; and fire flashed from his eyes.

He made sounds of a bull, lion, and dog, and has even been said to have made hissing sounds like a snake.

Story
After the defeat of the Giants against the Olympian gods, Gaia brought forth Typhon, a super-Giant. He was larger and stronger that any of Earth's other children.

One time Typhon challenged the heavens and the gods were so frightened by Typhon's features that they fled to Egypt and disguised themselves among the wild. Only Athena stood her ground and accused the Great Zeus of cowardice.

Zeus had to defend Mount Olympus so he threw bolts of lightning at Typhon. Typhon fought back with force and cut off several of Zeus' muscles from his hands and feet, leaving him helpless.

Typhon had his sister, Delphyne, guard the muscles in a cave, but Hermes and Pan tricked her and the muscles were returned to Zeus. Zeus became even more distraught and threw more thunderbolts at Typhon. Typhon fled around the world and in Sicily Zeus threw Mount Etna on top of him, which crushed Typhon. It is said to this day that the flames and steam that rise from the volcano are from Typhon.

Typhon fathered a foul brood of other monsters on Echidna from pieces of his body torn by Zeus' stricking thunderbolts: the Chimaera, the Nemean Lion, Orthus (two-headed dog) and Cerberus, the Hydra of Lerne, Ladon (a sleepless dragon that guards the golden apples of the Hesperides garden), the Sphinx, Prometheus' eagle, and Phaea, the Crommyonian sow.

Typhon is the offspring of Gaia and Tartarus. His mate is Echidna and both were so fearful that when the gods saw them they changed into animals and fled in terror. Typhon's hundred, horrible heads touched the stars, venom dripped from his evil eyes, and lava and red-hot stones poured from his gaping mouths. Hissing like a hundred snakes and roaring like a hundred lions, he tore up whole mountains and threw them at the gods.

Zeus soon regained his courage and turned, and when the other gods saw him taking his stand, they came back to help him fight the monster. A terrible battle raged, and hardly a living creature was left on Earth. But Zeus was fated to win, and as Typhon tore up huge Mount Aetna to hurl at the gods, Zeus struck it with a hundred well-aimed thunderbolts and the mountain fell back, pinning Typhon underneath. There the monster lies to this very day, belching fire, lava and smoke through the top of the mountain.

Echidna, his hideous mate, escaped destruction. She cowered in a cave, protecting Typhon's offspring, and Zeus let them live as a challenge to future heroes. to raise their children, there are the Nemean Lion, Cerberus, Ladon, the Chimera, the Sphinx, and the Hydra.


Source:
http://monsters.monstrous.com/typhon.htm
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/t/typhon.html

Hydra the Legend of Dragon

Hydra the Legend of Dragon


Lernaean Hydra or Hydra (Greek: Λερναία Ὕδρα) is a myth of ancient Greece, the serpent or dragon-shaped monsters, which had nine heads of every one of his head cut off, it will grow again and form two new heads. He pulls out a deadly poison of his breath at every step.




Hydra of Lerna was killed by Hercules as a second job in one of the requirements of the "Twelve Tasks" (Twelve Olympians) who have lived for a penance. In this case, Hercules became the candidate of Zeus, and he had to compete with Eurystheus who was the candidate of Hera.




Hydra is at swamp nests lerna lake, in the Argolid, and him as a guard the entrance to the spirit world (the underworld). Hydra is the offspring of Typhon and Echidna (Theology), both loathsome offspring of the earth goddess, Gaia. It is said, after reaching the swamp near Lake Lerna, where live Hydra, Hercules cover mouth and nose with a cloth to protect themselves from toxic fumes coming out of breath Hydra. Then, he fired flaming arrows into its nest, hydra just out of a cave is very deep to terrorize neighboring villages. Then he was confronted with it, by wielding a sword, he cut the head-head. Each head is cut, grows back in two.




Hercules more confused about it, after the search, he found a weakness of the hydra. The downside of Hydra was that only one in his head that lasts. Realizing this, Hercules asked for help from his nephew Iolaus. Her nephew came to give an idea (perhaps inspired by Athena), who uses a flint to burn the stubble of Hydra's neck at any time beheaded. After that, a perennial head Hydra placed under a large rock on the sacred ritual between Lerna and Elaius, and arrows dipped in Hydra blood poisonous, and the second task of Hercules was completed.




In another story it is said, that after cutting one head immortal Hydra, he dipped his sword in the blood of Hydra and used the toxin to burn each head, so that the heads can not grow back.






Knowing Hercules assisted by his nephew, Iolaus, in the second task, Eurystheus declared, that the Herculean task unfinished because he's not alone, and consequently the task of killing nine-headed Hydra Lernaean not accounted for in the "Twelve Tasks' which is set for him.


Hydra the Legend of Dragon



In the popular culture, Hydra Lernaean too often become the protagonist in the game play, including: God of War, Age of Mythology, Magic Carpet 2, and others. He became a figure of a terrible monster with 9 head. In the films that were told Hercules, Hydra is often performed on one of the stories in it.


for more information, please visit this web:
http://mythdunia.blogspot.com/2011/05/hydra.html