| THE TWELVE LABORS OF MONICA Greek Mythology: A World of Gods and Heroes |
| THE TWELVE LABORS OF MONICA Greek Mythology: A World of Gods and Heroes |
Every place in the world has its myths and legends. And yet the ones from Greece are special. In all four corners of the planet, there is no one who has not heard of Greek mythology.
Stories of the Greek gods are told in books, films (movies and television) and plays, and in comic book format like THE TWELVE LABORS OF MONICA, which you will read after this.
Although these stories sometimes contain violence, we have to remember that they are merely legends, created and narrated down through time.
It all began with the Twelve Titans, the offspring of Mother Earth. Their leader was Uranus, but his youngest brother, Cronus, killed him and took his place. Before he died, however, Uranus uttered a curse upon Cronus, saying that one of his sons would take the throne from him. Fearful of this prophecy, Cronus swallowed his first five children. But his wife, Rhea, hid herself away when she was expecting their sixth child. Thus Zeus was born. He was raised in a cave by three nymphs named Adrasteia, Io and Amaltheia.
When Zeus came of age, the curse of Uranus came true. With the help of his mother and the titan Metis, he concocted a poison and put it in Cronus' goblet.
Then Hades, Poseidon, Demeter, Hera and Hestia - the five children which the tyrant had swallowed - returned to life, took command and banished the Titans. This marked the beginning of the time of the New Gods. Zeus was crowned king and they all lived on Mount Olympus except Hades, who was in charge of the Underworld. Life on Olympus was good, with lots of banquets, parties and celebrations. Yet sometimes the gods descended to Earth to walk among the mortals.
Zeus, who always governed wisely, was married several times and had a number of children. His first wife, Metis, was followed by Temenus, Mnemosyne, Eurynome and, finally, Hera. The god also had a number of amorous 'adventures' with other beautiful goddesses and even with mere mortals.
The News Gods
Although many gods lived on Olympus, twelve were considered the most important. Let's find out a little more about them.
Zeus Hera Poseidon Demeter Hestia Hephaestus Hermes Apollo Artemis Athena Ares Aphrodite The Twelve Labors of Hercules
In one of his innumerable amorous conquests, Zeus had fathered a son with the mortal Alcmene. After the boy was born, Zeus' wife, the viciously jealous Hera, put two serpents in the child's cradle to spite her husband. But the child was uncommonly strong and killed the snakes. His name was Hercules, and when he grew up he became a great athlete.
Hercules was a true hero. He married Megara, the daughter of King Creon of Thebes, and they had many children. However, the evil Hera cast a spell on Hercules which caused him to kill his entire family, mistaking them for enemies. To make up for his terrible error and put his soul at peace, Hercules went to serve King Eurystheus of Tiryns.
The Twelve Labors of Hercules First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth Nineth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth The Gods go to Rome
PThe gods and goddesses of Greek mythology were so important that they were also "adopted" by the Romans, who gave them other names. Here are some of the most important ones.
Cronus = Saturn Hermes = Mercury Zeus = Jupiter Apollo = Apollo Hera= Juno Artemis = Diana Poseidon = Neptune Athene = Minerva Demeter = Ceres Ares= Mars Hestia = Vesta Aphrodite = Venus Hephaestus = Vulcan Hades= Pluto And even the name of the best-known Olympian hero of all was changed. Hercules is his Roman name: in Greece he was known as Heracles.
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