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Orifk and Roman WiLUAB SRKiiwo<,n F"X, Ph.D., Pnniei„n Univeruty. \()H ME II. Taitonic Axr.i OuiK, I'h I) , t'niversiiy uf lopfnhiwen. \oi,rME HI. Celtic, Sliiric Can. • John A. .M u ('i ii,»h, |, d . Hri,l« of Allan. Scoll.nd. jAN .Machai. I'h I) , bohrmian University. Prague. \oi.iME IV. Finno-l'grk. Siberian UNO HulMBtKG, Ph.D . l-nivtrsity u( hnl,,n,J, Hclsijurfors. VoLrnre V. Semitic R. (AMPBtLt TB.iMps„N. M.A.. K.S.A , K.R G S.,Oiford. \0LtME VI. Indian. hani,in V Hkr.,kd,le Keith H.C L . E,|inl,ur«h Inivenily. /VLBtar J I ,,i,Nuv, Ph.D , Lniversiiy ol Luuvain. VoLiME VII. Armenian, African Ma.u.h„s Akanuian. B D. Kmnciy School „t Mmions. Hart- '«>rd, C nnnecticut. CLuKct FoucAEi, Docleuris Le„r.s. French Institute of Orient.l Archeology. Cairo. Volume \III. Chinese, Japanese V HATT.IBI, Litt D . Univer-ity of Tokyo Uapant,' l:x, hangi P,„jfsw, at llana,d Unmriily. i^,s-,ui6, .Masabard A.VKSALI, Li.t IJ , University of Tokyo. Ua^«s, tiilunie P,oUs,o, al Uanard Umivfrsily, .q'j-,,,,,) Volume LX. Oceanic Roland Bokrace i)ix..n. Ph.D., Harvard University. Volume X. American {Xorlh of Mexico) Hartiev Burr Alexander. Pb D., University of Nebra.ska. Volume XI. American (Lilin) Hartley Bcrr .^exander, Ph.D , University of .Nebraska. Volume XII. Egypt, Far East VIV Max .Muller, Ph D.. University of Pennsylvania. Sir Jaues) George Scott. K.C.I E., London. Volume XIII. Index i F'LATF. I Aphroditf thk Mother On Aphrodite's left arm originally rested an infant, the finders of whose little hand may still be seen on the drapery of its mother's bosom. The goddess is look- ing straight before her, not, however, with her vision concentrated on a definite object, but rather abstract- edly, as if serenely proud of her motherhood. She seems to represent here that special development of the earth goddess who typified the kindly, fostering care of the soil, and reminds one of certain Asiatic images of the divine mother and child. From a marble statue of the fourth or third century B.C., found on the Greek mainland, and now in the Royal Ontario Museum of Archaeology, Toronto {photo- graph). See pp. i96fF. lI .t. THE MYTHOLOGY OF ALL RACES IN THIRTEEN yOLUMES LOUIS HERBERT GRAY, A.M., PH.D., Editor GEORGE FOOT MOORE, A.M., D.D., LL.D., Conjdltinc Edito« GREEK AND ROMAN BY WILLIAM SHERWOOD FOX, A.M., PH.D. ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF CLASSICS PRINCETON UNIVERSITY VOLUME I BOSTON MARSHALL TONES COMPANY M DCCCC XVI Copyright, 1916 By Marshall Jones Company Entered at Stationers' Hall, London ^U rights reserved Printed June, 1916 PRINTED IN THE -NITED STATES OF AMERICA BY THE UNIYERSITY PRESS CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS BOUND BY THE BOSTON BOOKBINDING COMPANY TO THE MEMORY OF HARRY LANGFORD WILSON SCHOLAR • TEACHER • FRIEND CONSULTING EDITOR'S PREFACE THERE are many good books on the mythology of par- ticular peoples or races, ancient and modern, and much material accessible in books of travel and works on ethnology and religion; for classical antiquity excellent dictionaries of mythology exist. There are also books of narrower or wider range on comparative mythology, besides many in which myth and custom have been pressed into the service of theories of society, civilization, and religion, or are adduced for the illustration of art and archaeology. But a comprehensive collection by competent scholars of myths from all quarters of the earth and all ages has not hitherto been attempted; for several important parts of the field, no satisfactory works exist in English, while in some there is none in any language. On the value of an undertaking like the Mythology of All Races, therefore, no words need be spent. The intrinsic interest of the subject is very great; for better than almost anything else myths reveal men's first notions about their world and the powers at work in it, and the rela- tions between men and those powers. They show what things in their surroundings early engaged men's attention; what things seemed to them to need explanation; and how they explained them. For a myth is commonly an explanation of something, in the form of a story — what happened once upon a time, or what repeats itself from day to day — and in natural myths, as distinct from the invented myths of philosophers and poets, the story is not the artificial vesture of an idea but its spon- taneous expression, not a fiction but a self-evident fact. The student of the mind of man in its uniformity and its varia- vin CONSULTING EDITOR'S PREFACE tions therefore finds in mythology a great fund of instructive material. A comprehensive collection like the present lends itself also to comparative study of single myths or systems of myth among different and widely remote peoples, and this use of the volumes will be facilitated by a suitable analytical index. It is one of the merits of this collection that it is made for its own sake, with no theory to maintain or illustrate. The contributors have been given free hand to treat their subjects by such methods as may be best adapted to the nature of the sources and the peculiarities of the mythology itself, without any attempt to impose upon either the material or the writers a schematic plan. The names of the contributors are a sufficient guarantee of the thoroughness and trustworthiness of their work, while the general editor is himself a scholar of wide attainments in this field. The volumes will be amply illustrated, not for the sake of making picture books, but for the legitimate purposes of illustration — a feature which will add much to the useful- ness as well as to the attractiveness of the series. Taken all in all, therefore, the Mythology of All Races may safely be pro- nounced one of the most important enterprises of this age of co-operative scholarship. GEORGE FOOT MOORE. Harvard I'viversity .March ;o, 1916. EDITOR'S PREFACE THE theme of mythology is of perennial interest, and, more than this, it possesses a value that is very real. It is a document and a record — existing not merely in the dim past, but in the living present — of man's thought, of his ceaseless endeavour to attain that very real happiness which, as Vergil tells us, arises from "knowledge of the causes of things." Even in his most primitive stages of development man finds himself dwelling in a world filled with phenomena that to him are strange, sometimes friendly, often hostile. Why are these things so.' Rightly mankind perceives that a phenomenon is not a Thing in Itself, an Absolute, but that it is an effect, the result of a cause. Now, the immediate cause may often be found; but then it will be seen that this cause is itself only a result of an anterior cause; and so, step by step, the search for ultimate Cause proceeds. Thus mythology is a very real phase — perhaps the most important primitive phase — of that eternal quest of Truth which ever drives us on, though we know that in its full beauty it may never be revealed to mortal eye nor heard by ear of man — that quest more precious than meat or raiment — that quest which we may not abandon if we will still be men. \Iythology is not, then, a thing of mere academic interest; its value is real — real to you and to me. It is the history of the thought of early man, and of primitive man today. In it we may find much to tell us how he lived, and how he had lived in the ages of which his myths recount. As affording us materials for a history of civilization mythology is of inestim- able value. We know now that history is something more than X EDITOR'S PREFACE a matter of dates and events. "Magna Charta was signed by- King John at Runnimede in 1215." What of it, if that be all? The exact words of the document, the particular monarch who signed it, the precise spot, the specific date are of no worth in themselves. The real historical question is — What were the causes which led the English Barons, at a certain point in, the development of the British Nation, to compel the King to sanc- tion a document abridging the Royal prerogatives; and what havf been the consequences, not merely to the subsequent evo- lution of the British Constitution, but to all States and Colonies thereby affected.' So, too, we read mythology, not only for its specific statements — its legends of gods and of heroes, its theories of the world, and its attempts to solve the mystery of the destiny of each and every individual — but also, with a wider pur^'iew, for the light which it sheds upon the infancy ind the childhood of the race to which we — you who read and I who write — belong. Science; has mythology aught to do with that.' Assuredly, yes. Mythology is science in its infancy. Does the geologist seek to determine how the earth came into being, how the mountains and the lakes were formed; does the astronomer essay to know the stars and their natures; do the zoologist and the botanist endeavour to explain why animals and trees are as they are — the maker of myth does even the same. The scientist today is the lineal descendant of the myth-maker of olden days. To say this is to honour both alike — both, with all the light at their command, have sought, and ever seek, the Truth. The hypotheses of the myths, do they differ in principle from the hypotheses of science? We think not. There is no real scientist who does not know that the hypotheses with v/hich he needs must work and which seem thus far in- fallible in providing explanations for all phenomena in his field may some day be modified or even utterly destroyed by new discoveries. The Ptolemaic Theory is gone, the Atomic Theory is questioned. But no sane man will for that reason condemn EDITOR'S PREFACE XI hypotheses in toto, neither will he despise those who, in their day, held hypotheses then deemed irrefutable. The connexion of mythology with religion is obvious, yet a word of caution is needed here. Mythology is not synony- mous with religion, but only a part of it. Religion consists of at least three parts — the attitude of soul, which is religion par excellence; the outward act of worship, which is ritual; and the scientific explanation, which — in the very highest and noblest sense of the term — is myth; and these three — which we may call the attitude of soul, body, and mind — go to- gether to make religion. Throughout our study of mytholog:' we must bear constantly in mind that we are dealing with only one feature of religion — its causal aspect. We must not take the part for the whole, else we shall be one-sided and unjust in our appreciation of religion as a whole. One attitude of mind is absolutely essential in reading my- thology — sympathy — and almost as important a requisite is that, while reading it, its premisses must be granted. If we approach mythology with the preconception that it is false or nonsensical or trivial, it will be but waste of time to read it; indeed it will be better never to have read it, for read- ing in such a spirit will only embitter. It is, perhaps, not sufficiently recognized how important a factor one's attitude of sympathy is, not merely in regard to religion or psychology or philosophy, or any other "mental and moral science," but also toward the "exact sciences." If, for example, I make up my mind that spectral analysis is utterly impossible, the dis- covery of a new element in the gaseous emanation of a distant planet by such analysis will be to me nothing but folly. If, again, I reject the mathematical concept of infinity, which I have never seen, and which cannot be weighed or measured, then I shall of course deny that parallel lines meet in infinity; you cannot give me the precise location of infinity, and, be- sides, all parallel lines that I have ever seen are equidistant at all points from each other. This is a reductio ad absurdum of Xll EDITOR'S PREFACE an attitude which is far too common in regard to mythology and religion. This does not, of course, mean that we must implicitly believe all that we read; but it docs mean that we should approach with kindly hearts. With reverence, then, and with love we take up myths. We may smile, at times, at their naivete; but we shall never sneer at them. Unblushing, sometimes, we shall find them, and cruel; but it is the un- modesty and the cruelty of the child. Myths may be moral or un-moral; they are not immoral, and only a morbid mind will see unclcanncss in them. Xo attempt has hitherto been made to collect the myths of the entire uuman race into a single scries. Yet this is not so strange as it might appear at first. Scattered in many volumes both old and new, and in periodicals of many kinds and languages, it is an impossible task for one man to know all myths, or to master mere than one or two specific mythol- ogies or a few special themes in mythology as a whole. It is quite true that countless volumes have been written on the myths of individual peoples and on special mythic themes, but their assemblage into a single unit has not thus far been accomplished. This is the purpose of the present scries of the Mythology of Jll Races, and this the reason for its being. Herein it differs from all other collections of mythologies in that the mythology of each race is not merely given a special volume or half-volume of its own; but, since the series is an organic entity — not a chance collection of monographs — the mythology of an individual race is seen to form a coherent part of mythology. Moreover, the mythology of one people will not infrequently be found to cast light upon problems con- nected with the mythic system of quite another people, whence an accurate and a thorough understanding of any individual mythology whatever demands an acquaintance with the mythic systems of mankind as a whole. On the other hand, by thus taking a broad survey, and by considering primarily the simple facts — as presented chiefly by travellers, missionaries, and EDITOR'S PREFACE Xll' anthropologists — we may hope to escape some of the pecu- liar dangers which beset the study of mythology, especially preconceived theories and prejudices, and the risk of taking for aboriginal what is really borrowed and vice versa. We shall advance no special theory of mythology which shall seek to solve each and every problem by one and the same formula; \vc shall aim to present the facts in the case — and the theories may safely be trusted to take care of themselves, being then wisely built on solid foundations. We have not attempted to make an encyclopaedia of myth- ology, nor have we planned a mere reference book, which would have been, in many ways, an easier task. We have had con- stantly in mind not only the technical student — though he, too, if the editor's own experience be any criterion, will learn much — but the more general reader who desires breadth of understanding, and who would know what the childhood of our race has thought of the mysteries of nature and of life, and how it has endeavoured to resolve them. We have sought to be scientific — in the best sense of the term — but we have also sought to present a book that shall be eminently readable, that shall set forth myths as living entities, and that — because each writer knows and loves the mythology of which he treats — will fill the reader with enthusiasm for them. Much of the material here given appears for the first time in the English language — Slavic and Finno-Ugric, Oceanic, Armenian, and African. No survey of American mythology whole has hitherto been written. Even where — as in as a Indian, Teutonic, and Semitic — English monographs exist, new points of view are presented. Taking our stand on the best modern scholarship, we venture to hope that many cur- rent misconceptions of mythology may be brought to an end. Thus, within recent years, the science of Greek mythology has been revolutionized by the discovery of the very simple fact that Homer is not its ultimate authority, that, indeed, he represents a comparatively late stage in its dcv^elopment; XIV EDITOR'S PREFACE Ro that we must give full consideration to the non-Homeric myths and sec that here, tix), there is the same underlying primitive stratum common to all the race of man. This mod- ern scientific treatment of Classical mythology has its initial English presentation in our series. Perhaps, at first blush, we shall seem to lose much both here and elsewhere; we may, perchance, be disappf)inted when we find that the vaunted wisdom of Egyptians and of Druids was not so very profound; but if we must part with some false, though pretty, ideas, we shall find ample compensation in knowing Egyptians and Druids as they were. After all, which do we prefer — a fanciful picture of our friend, or his actual portrait.' Mythology may be written in either of two ways — pres- entational or comparative. In the former the myths of each people are presented separately; in the latter some special theme — the deluge-legend, the afterworld, or the like — is considered as it appears in myth throughout the world. The utmost care has been taken in the choice of collabora- tors, and it is believed that to scholars their names will be in themselves sufficient warrant that the volumes will possess distinct scientific value. The ample bibliographies and ref- erences appended to the pertinent sections will enhance the technical worth of our series. In addition, we propose to give in our index volume not merely the names and subjects dis- cussed in the various volumes, but also a topical arrangement by which the ■. ariant myths and mythic themes of the differ- ent peoples upon ■ given subject may be found readily and accurately. The selection of illustrations will, it is hoped, meet with general favour. It would have been a very easy matter to present fancy pictures or to reproduce paintings of great modern artists. Instead of that, we have deemed it more in harmony with the purpose of the series to choose for each section pictures of the deities or of mythic incidents as delin- eated by the people who themselves believed in those deities EDITOR'S PREFACE xv or incidents. This will have the added advantage of extending some knowledge of the art of early times and the more prim- itive peoples, as well as of such highly developed arts as those of the Orient. Here the material necessarily runs unevenly. For some mythologies — as Greek, Indian, and American — there is truly an emba-ras de richesses; for others — notably Celtic, Slavic, and Armenian — where the mythic systems have vanished leaving scarcely a trace of artistry — whether because they never developed it in high measure, or because their pagan art was later destroyed — the artistic remains are lamentably meagre. In the plan and arrangement of each volume and section full latitude has been given to its author. It is obviously im- possible to build a single Procrustean bed into which any and every mythology must be forced to fit; such "consistency" would be mere pedantry, and, by its false implications, would defeat its own ends. It will perhaps be well to stress the fact that there will be nothing in our series that can be, in Roman Catholic phrase, "offensive to pious ears." In this respect, the editor is happy to say, his duties of censor have been practically a sinecure. In conclusion, a brief outline of our series may appropriately be given. The first volume is on Greek and Roman Mythology, by Pro- fessor VV. Sherwood Fox, of Princeton University, and is written from the point of view to which we have already referred. The second volume, devoted to Teutonic Mythology, is by Dr. Axel Olrik, of the University of Copenhagen, and author of Danmarks heltedigtning ("The Epic Poetry of Denmark"), Kilderne til Sakses oldhistorie ("Sources for Ancient Saxon History"), and Nordisk aansdliv i vikingetid og tidlig mid- delalder ("Norse Intellectual Life in the Viking Period and the Eariy Middle Ages"). Teutonic Mythology is almost wholly that of the Old Icelandic Sagas, and without a knowl- edge of it Wagner's N ibelungenring, for examole, is quite unin- xvi EDITOR'S PREFACE uH.K.bIc. Curiously vnaugh, there is little Teutonic mythology except for survivals in popular custom, and beliefs) outside of Iceland; but in that island a rich literature was composed, and the mythology of the ancient Teutons is one of the most fasci- natmjr that has ever been evolved. The third volume is divided between Celtic and Slavic. The first part ,s from the pen of Canon John A. MacCuIUh. 7hr ChddhooJ of f uLon, Religion of the Ancient Celts, and other standard works The vivid imagination and warm-heartedness of the modern Irish, the quid; impetuosity of the Welsh, the dour fatahsm of the Scotsman, all find expression in their anaent mythology. We think at once of King Arthur and the Kn.ghts of the Round Table when we speak of Celtic mythol- ogy, but we are only too dimly aware of the dire struggles be- tween the Fomorians and the Tuatha de Danann, and .ve are ail too prone to forget the vast mythology of the peoples who occupied Gaul when Caesar conquered it, and who still dwell .n Ireland, Wales, Brittany, and much of Scotland The Slavic section is written by Professor Jan Machal. of the Bohemian University of Prague, and author of Bohatyrsky epos slovansky (" Heroic Epic of the Slavs "). Bdjeslovi slovanske ( Slavic Mythology"), etc. No work in English exists on the mytnology of the Slavic peoples; yet in a way they are second only to the Hindus as representing the oldest mythological con- cepts of our own Indo-European race. Slavic mythology also mcludes the concepts of the Baltic nations - the Lithuanians and ancient Prussians (who, it may be remarked, were Baltcv Slavs, not Germans). Of all the European peoples, the Baltcv Slays were the last to be Christianized, and to the downfall of their paganism it retained a remarkably primitive form, beside modern ^''''' "'" '^^ '^'"'°"'' '""'"' ""'"'"'^^ distinctly The fourth volume is devoted to the FinncvUgric and Sibe- nan peoples, and its author is Dr. Uno Holmberg, of the I— I EDITOR'S PREFACE XVII I'nii'crsity of Finland, Hclsinpfors, who has already \/nttpn Permalaisten uikonlo ("Religion of the Permians"), Tshirrmis- sirn uskontn ("Religion of the Chercmiss"), and Lappah^sUn uskonto (" Religion of the Lapps"). The mention of the Y inns at once brings to mind the great world-epic of the KaUvala, but the Finns are also distantly related to the Hungarians and tlic early Turks. Muc'i has been written on the Kalfvala, but little on any other portions of Finnish mythology. The Sibe- rian portion of the volume, dealing with the very interesting and primitive theme of "shamanism," will be the first scholarly presentation of the subject in English. In the fifth volume Captain R. Campbell Thompson, the author of The Reports of the Magicians and Astrologers of Aiiifveh and Babylon, The Devils and Evil Spirits of Babylonia, Babylonian Letters, Semitic Magic, and other works of high rank, discusses Semitic Mythology. By this we shall understand the mythology of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians and the scanty traces of primitive Ara' • « cligion before the com- ing of Muhammad. While many exec :nt treatises on this sub- ject e.xist, we may point out a new feature — th*; rendering, for the first time, of practically all the Assyro-Babylonian myths into English verse. Moreover, by his repeated visits to the East, Captain Campbell Thompson has succeeded in inter- preting a number of mythological ideas by modern beliefs and phenomena. We have, after due consideration, decided to omit an account of Muhammadanism, since it has no mythology in the strict sense of the term. The sixth volume is composite, dealing with the closely kindred races of India and Persia. The Indian Mythology is written by Professor A. Berriedale Keith, of Edinburgh Uni- versity, the author of the standard Ftdic Index of Names and Subjects and editor and translator of the §ankhdyana and Ai- tareya Aranyakas and of the Taittiriya Samhitd. Here we have the earliest religious records of the Indo-European race. Pro- fessor Keith traces the development of the Indian mythology I — » XVUl EDITOR'S PREFACE from the Rigvcda (about 1500 n.c.) to tlic present day. If in the Rigvcda itself we find few nuths, they appear in rich abundance in the later periods, and they possess a luxuriance of fancy that is peculiarly Oriental. The second portion of this volume, by Professor A. J. Carnoy, of the University of Louvain, and author of Le Latin d''Espap,ne o I Crete: Lurope Myths of Minos and his Sens; Minos 61 CONTENTS xxvii PACE Androgeos 62 Glaukos 62 Katrcus 63 Dcukalion 63 The Character and Achievements of Minos ... 63 Daidalos 64 II Attike: Kekrops 66 Erichthonios 67 Boutes and Ercchtheus 67 The Sons of Pandion; The War wiili Minos ... 63 The Daujrluers of Kekrops 69 The Dauj;hters of Pandion 70 The Daughters of Erechtheus: Kreousa 71 Prokris 71 Oreithjia 73 Chapter V. Herakles 75 The Birth of Herakles 76 Childhood and Youth of Herakles 79 Early Manhood of Herakles 79 The Madness of Herakles 80 The Twelve Labours of Herakles: First Labour 80 Second Labour 81 Third Labour 81 Fourth Labour 82 Fifth Labour 82 Sixth Labour 84 Seventh Labour 84 Eighth Labour 84 Ninth Labour 85 Tenth Labour 86 Eleventh Labour 87 Twelfth Labour 88 The Later Adventures of Herakles: III Euboia 89 xxviii CONTENTS InLydia '^ At Troy 9' In the Pcloponnesos 9« In Aitolia and the Mountains 93 The Descendants of Herakles 95 Chapter VI. Thesei s ^ Birth and Childhood 97 The Labours of Theseus: First Labour 9 Second Labour 9 Third Labour 9 Fourth Labour ^ Fifth Labour 99 Sixth Labour '^ Theseus in Athens 99 lOO Theseus in Crete Theseus and the Bull of Marathon ^°^ Theseus as Kini; and Statesman '°3 The Later Adventures of Theseus: The Amazons '°3 Theseus and Hippolytos '°4 Friendship with Peirithoos '°4 Death of Theseus '°5 Chapter VIL The Voyage of the Argo «o6 The Descendants of Aiolos: Salmoneus, Pelias ''°^ Admetos and Alkestis '°7 Athamas, Phrixos, and Helle '07 The Return of lason '°^ The \oyage of the Argo '°9 The Death of Pelias • " + lason and Medeia in Corinth "5 Medeia in Athens "^ Chapter VIIL The Tale of Troy "7 The House of Dardanos ^'7 The House of Tantalos "9 CONTENTS XXIX PAGE The House of Aiakos «il Diomedcs and Odysseus '23 The A.'>7>rj(i; Traditional Causes of the War 124 The Iliad «2^' The //i7Aio;>ij,- The Death of Achilles ijo The LitlU Iliad and the Ilioupfrsis; The Fall of Troy i.?l The A^oj/oi ("Returns") «33 Menelaos and Helen '33 Agamemnon '34 The Other Heroes (except Odysseus) 13; TheOdysuy '3^ The TeUgonia '39 Chapter IX. The Afterworld '4' The Greek \icw of the Soul and of Death '4' Entrances to, and Rivers of, the Underworld 143 The Judges '43 The Punishments of Hades '44 Visits of the Living to Hades '44 Elysion, The Islands of the Blest '47 Part II. The Greek Gods '49 Chapter I. The Greater Gods — Zeus and Hera . . 151 Zeus: The Original Significance of Zeus 152 The Zeus of Homer '53 The Birth and Death of Zeus 154 The Marriages of Zeus '5^ The Offspring of Zeus '57 The Functions of Zeus; As Supreme God 157 Zeus as God of the Heavens '59 Zeus as God of Fertility '60 Zeus in his Political and Ethical Aspects 160 Zeus as Prophet, Fate, Healer, and Helper 162 Zeus as a Chthonic Divinity 163 Zeus in Art '63 Hera: The Origin and the Name of Hera 163 Hera in Homer '64 XXX CONTENTS llcra a» the Wife ci( Zeus ''^'S The Fur.ctions of Hera l^"^' llcra in Art «^** CllAPTKR II. Tin: ("iRKATER GoDS — AtHF.NF. I69 The Oriv'iii and the Name of Athene 169 Athene in lluiner '"9 The Birth of Athene 17° Tlic Functions of Athene 17' Athene in Art '73 Chapter III. The CiRF.ATtR Cous — Llto, Apoi.i.o, Ar- TtMis, Hekate '74 Leto: The Birth of Apollo and Artemis 174 Leto and Tityos; Leto and Niobc I7S Apollo: The Origin and the Name of Apollo 175 Apollo in Homer '7" Apollo in Dclphoi '77 The Functions of Apollo >78 Apollo in Art '82 Artemis: The Origin and the Name of Artemis 1 82 Artemis in Homer 1^3 The Functions of Artemis 183 Artemis in Art -^^ Hekate '86 Chapter IV. The Greater Gods — Ares 189 The Origin and the Name of Ares 189 Ares in Homer 189 Ares outside of Homer 19° Ares in Art '9© Chapter V. The Greater Gods -- Hermes 19* The Origin and the Name of Hermes 191 Hermes in Homer '91 Myths of the Birth and Boyhood of Hermes 192 Hermes Argeiphontes '93 CONTENTS XXXI The Fuiictioni of Hcrmc* 194 Ilcrmcs in Art '95 Chapter M. The Greater Gods — Aphrodite and Eros ^^ Aphrodite: The Oripin and the Name of Aphrodite l Apliroditc in Homer 197 Birth and Family Relationship 197 Aphrodite as the Goddess of Love 19** In the Plant World 198 \mc)np Men '99 Aphrodite in Art 202 Eros 203 Chapter VII. The Greater Gods — Hephaistos and HtSTIA 20s Hephaistos: The Orijiin and the Name of Hephaistos 205 Hephaistos in Homer 205 The Character and Functions of Hephaistos . . 206 Hephaistos in Art 208 Hestia: The Origin and the Name of Hestia 208 The Genealogy and F"unctions of Hestia 208 Chapter VIII. The Greater Gods — Poseidon and Ampiiitrite 210 Poseidon : The Origin and the Name of Poseidon 210 Poseidon in Homer 2J0 The Family Relationships of Poseidon 211 The Functions of Poseidon 211 Poseidon in Art 213 Amphitrite 214 Chapter IX. The Greater Gods — Dionysos 215 The Origin and the Name of Dionysos 215 Dionysos in Homer 217 The Birth of Dionysos 2»7 XXXll CONTENTS The Func^ons and the Cult of Dionysos Dionysos in Art. Myths of Alexantlf >■ the Great Chapter X. The Greater Gods — Demeter, Kore, Hades Dcmetcr and Kore (Persephone): The Oriirin and the Name of Demeter Demeter in Homer Demeter as the Goddess of the Soil Demeter and Kore ; Persephone) Demeter and Triptolemos The Nature of Persephone The M\steries of Eieusis Demeter and Kore in Art Hades: Hades in Art Chapte XI. The Lesser Gods — Of the Circle of Zeis, of Light, .\nd of Heat Of the Circle of Zeus: Eurynome Charites ("Graces") Themis Horai ("Hours") Mncmo.^yne; The Muses Ganyinedes Hebe Of the Greater Luminaries: Helios ("Sun") Phaethon Selene Of Phases of Light: Eos ffelen and the Dio.skouroi Of Single Stars and Constellations: Astraios, Phosphoros, Eosphon^ Hesperos Pleiades and Hvades PACE 218 -> -1 •» 225 226 226 227 230 230 231 234 23C' 236 236 237 237 238 240 240 241 245 244 245 246 247 247 248 CONTENTS xxxm I'ACE Orion 24(> I'rsa Major, ur Gaul Dear; BoGtcs -5' Of Midsummer Heat: Ari^iaios, Siriiis, Aktaion -j^ l.lIlnS "3- Litycrscs -53 C'liAPTrR XII. The Licsser Ckn.r - Ui W'atir, Wind, AM) Wll.D -55 Of the WalL-r: Okcanos and tlie OkcaniJc -55 Rivers 256 Sprintrs (.Nymphs) -57 The Sea 259 Triton -59 Nereus '^'° Proteus -''■ Claukos -<■>• Ino (Lcukothea) -^' Seirenes (Sirens) -^'- Skylla and Charybdis ^(>i Of Winds and Storms: Boreas, Euros, Noios, and Zephyros 265 Aiolos 266 Harpies 2r)6 Typhon and the kyklopes 267 Of the Wild: Pan, Siienoi, and Satyroi (Satyrs) 267 Maenads and Bacchantes 269 Dryads and Hamadryads 270 Kcntauroi (Centaurs) 270 Chapter XIII. The Lesser Gods — Of the Earth . . 272 I Gaia (Ge) 272 II Rhea-Kybcle (Great Mother) 273 III Lesser Divinities of the Underworld: Erinyes 270 Eumenides, Semnai Theai, Maniai 277 Miscellaneous 278 « — 3 w ffh xxxiv CONTEXTS '^-^•^'^ PAGE Chapter XIV. The Lessi.r Gods — .^^klepios, Ab- stract Divinities '79 I Askli'pios: The Oiiein and the Name of Asklcpi'SDS 218 1. Dionysos in the Ship 224 2. Kastor and Polydeukes at Home 3. Mystic Rite at Eleusis Mystic Rite at Eleusis 230 1. Helios 236 2. The Horai Ganymedes and the Eagle 242 ILLUSTR.\TIONS xxxix PLATE FACING PACE LI 1 1 The Death of Aktaion — Coloured 248 LIV Linos Slain by Hcrakles — Coloured 254 LV Odysseus and the Sirens 260 LVI Oreilhyia and Boreas — Coloured 266 LVII A Maenad — Coloured 272 LVIII Hypnos 278 LLX Nike — Coloured 2S4 LX Genius and Lares 290 LXI I. Arethousa 294 2. lanus Bifrons LXII Magna Mater 300 LXIII Romulus and Remus 306 ILLUSTR.\TIOXS IN THE TEXT FIGL'RE PAGE 1 Poseidon ^ 2 Creation of Pandora 14 3A The Erymanthian Boar at Mykenai 83 3B The Flight of Eurystheus 83 4 Theseus and the Minotaur 102 5 The Death of Penthesilea 131 6 The Death of Aias (Ajax) 146 7 Apollo and Tityos 176 8 Triptolemos 229 9 Mnemosyne and Kalliope 239 10 Satyrs at Play 269 11 Marriage of luno and Hercules 302 I Jl INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK MYTHS 'I'^O proceed immediately to the narration and discussion of M. tiio myths of Greece would be much lil IS appr.ui hinn swiJtlv fmm the U-tt aiui with t.tisol ni;ht haiui is about to hull a thmulffbolt at a nu.nst.rwith a b.ar.lnl hi.n.a-. hca.l and a wii.trr.l trunk tirmmatm;^ u) tw.. lun;: scrpcnt-likr c.ls. The creature, pr..bablv Tn phoii, l....ks at the Kint; u( th( (;..ds in ^rcat alarm and madlv lashi-s about with h.s sialv b.-dv in a vain ■.iidiavour to escape from the doom awaitiii.j: him. Krom a C'halkidian hy>Hu of about f.50 .'.A., in Mumeh | Kurtwangler-Rcichhold, (;.,v.A/.,/v l\,^i>im,il. of the late sixth century in ., in Athens ( Cataloi-uf ',/r, ;y;w. peinti ,iu mu„e naty.mihr hhhm, Suppl.ment p,!, (ir^i'ti \u',u; Plate XI). See p. 34. :| lift ill. ( ?!•.■ : ,F \$ ; INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK M\THS xliii the prophesying were facts, and none could prove that any other than Apollo was responsible for them. To believe that he actually was responsible fed the fancy, and without fancy there was no zest in life. The souls of the departed were said to be gathered together in a dark realm beneath the earth. For to what other place could they have disappeared after burial or cremation? No god or hero was represented by a myth-maker as initiating any movement simultaneous with the narration of the myth. The reason for this is now obvious; such a statement would be so open to the scrutiny of contem- poraries that criticism and the fear of criticism would destroy the illusion and the charm which the s^ory might otherwise possess. (d) The most generally recognized characteristic of myth is the ^'act that it is a product of the imagination, and so, popu- lariy though erroneously, the mythical is regarded as the exact equivalent of the imaginary. Nevertheless, since the special function of the imagination is to create, it is not to be expected that all its creations must conform to the attested experience of mankind or to what we may estimate as probable. It is for this reason that most of the details of the myths relate to the improbable, but the probable and improbable alike were held to be true by the people among whom the legends had cur- rency. We may now sum up the results of our analysis with a work- ing definition: A myth is a statement, or a virtual statement as implied tn a symbol, an attribute, or an epithet, accepted as true by its original maker and his hearers, and referring to the eternal na- ture and past acts of beings greater than man, and frequently to circumstances zi'hich are to us improbable or impossible. 2. The Origin of Myth. — It is no more possible to detail one and all the impulses, singly or in classes, which have given rise to myth than it is to discover and give the full tale of all the fountain-heads of a great rl -cr. Yet we find that we can xliv INTRODUCTIOX TO THE GREEK MYTHS account for the origin of a river in a way wliich servos all prac- tical purposes. Is it not within our power to explain the be- pinninps vf myth to the same extent, even though the ad- mission must be made that the task is infinitely more difficult, involving, as it does, all the subtleties of human nature and an almost inextrieable tangle of theories? The statement that the mainspring of all myth is personi- fication and metaphor has too much of the weakness of epi- gram: it explains only after ont' has learned why personification and myth have any powir at all. To say that every myth is an answer u> a question <.f primitive man regarding some pheiir.mcnon of a li\ niii or ivm <>f a i.i.iilar poi-m, tlio al- lu>i<>ii of a ciTi-motiial tonmila, or tlu- >ui.M.'i'sti(iii of a sacioJ sviiihol may uiw such an apparent loiifirinatioii of a myth in part or uhi'K' as to strriiL'tlu n faith in its issriitia! \irity. 4. Tlh- .\dti,n- of tlu- i',r,-,k R,'':'inn.-~'V\\v Crick nligion, so far a> wc can triithfullv' pndicau- an\ thiii,u' at all of religious oriirins, liaJ its r(X)ts in the pn-animistic stratum of thought. The primitive Greek, like tlu- early Roman, as ue shall see, worshipped natural objects and phenomena for their own sake, althou-jli lii> attitude touanl them shifted according as they furtliered or hindered his welfare. Tmceeding a little further, he sums to have become convinced of the existence within them. \et inseparable from tluin, of a sort of potency or life- pi Aver uiKtnuiK He was now in the aniniist. stage. Finally, he observed that while in the main their powers manifested tliemselves in a uniform manner, \ et they showed a remark- able teiideiK}- to vary, the only satisfactory explanation being that tluy must be due to agents as free in initiative as arc himian beings. Accepting this theory, he endowed the powers in his habits of thought with will, and, little by little, with the other attributes of personality. They had at last become gods.'- The assignment of names to them and the localization of their cults strengtliened the popular conviction in their personal nature. The history of one god in epitome may serve as an illustration. Zeus was first the sky; next the power within the sky; and, lastly, the divine person with whom the sky- power was identified.^ We can now perceive the othenvise obscure truth of the statement that "The god himself [i. e. any Greek god], when conceived, was not the reality but only a symbf-l to help toward conceiving the reality." ' It is not to be inferred, however, that the several steps from potency to deity were as clearly marked as the necessity of gaining a compact view has forced us to represent them; nor must we think that when a god rose from one stage to the next he left behind him all traces of his lower estate. As INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK M\THS xHx a matter of fact, to practically every god at the very highest point of his spiritual career clung some disfiguring stains of the earth of the pit out of which he had been digged. This w-as due to the intense spirit of freedom of each community, its desire to worship the god as it saw fit and according to its own local needs. If the community was marked by a high degree of civilization, its gods were of the nobler type; if on a low stage of development, iis gods were of a coarser grade; and further, if the community was open to influence from the outside, the traits of its gods were of a mixed character. This, together with a certain though sluggish tendency toward a change of the conceptions of the god within the independent commu- nity, will account in large part for the bewildering multiplicity of the Greek divinities and their attributes. The greatest difficulty that confronts the modern student is to determine which forms and which attributes of the developed god were the original ones; and it is almost humiliating to have to con- fess that the instances in which we can be even reasonably certain are very few. The intimate relation ot the gods to the life-interests of men gave the Greek religion its distinctive stamp; it brought the gods down to earth in the likeness and with the passions of men, so that in time of need the worshipper had but to reach out his hand to touch his divine helper. This constant sense of nearness lifted from his heart the leaden awe imposed by the worship of distant deities and filled it with a wholesome joy of life and a buoyant spirit of confidence. Yet the Greek cults were not individualistic nor marked by missionaiy zeal; the selfish interests of the clan, the tribe, and the state were alto- gether too imperious. 5. The Unique Character of Greek Myth. — It is probable that to the majority of readers the most striking feature of the Greek myths is the variety observable in all phases of their composition. The number of their themes falls little shorty of the sum total of the activities of Greek life, private and social, 1 — 4 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK MYTHS intellectual and physical, uli^rious and secular. Tlio ilitails with which they are emlHliislied .seem to represent all possible combinations of tlie circumstances of actual experience with the inventions of fancy. The technique of their presentation, like that of the ^'reatest artist-;, is nK)St sensitively adapted to the shifting subject-matter. In brief, they have in these re- spects the marks of the hi^'hest art, and this is the burden of Gruppe's prejrnant statement, "Greek deity ... is what nature lacks to become art." ^ interpreted in the liglit of the essential connexion between true myth and religion. .\nother strong feature of the Greek myths is their sin- cerity. Tliey have th" ring of genuine chronicles of fact, and we feel nr> astonishment that for ages they should have been considered to be veritable history, although it is surprising that, chaPL'cd as they were with such an auth-rJty, they never became dogmatic statements of inalterable truth. Belief in tiiem did not constitute a measure of orthodoxy and they could thus be freely employed for a variety of purposes — as vehicles of religious and moral instruction, as history, as themes for philosopiiical argument, as literature, or as a means of entertainment. The fact that they could be used to serve the purpose last mentioned without causing religious offence is remarkable testimony to the good comradeship existing be- tween the Greek beliex'er and his god. 6. Kinds 0/ Myth. — The classification of myths must of necessity be arbitrary and must vary with the mood and ob- ject of the investigator. If, for instance, he seeks to discrimi- nate between those which are the products of a sane and sober imagination and those whose elements are in the main absurd, grotesque, and monstrous, he would classify them as rational and irrational. If he were endeavouring to single out those which seem to have been invented as explanations, he would divide them into the two categories of aetiological and non- aetif. logical. The possibilities of classification are unlimited, and in every case the capti(ms would consist of a positive and a PLATK IV 1 . Fi.orroN I'loutoii (H:iiic>), with a loftv kaluthos on his head, is seated on a throne, sxraspinj; a sceptre in his left hand, and letting his right rest on line of the heads of" kerbcros. On cither side of hiin arc Kastor and Polvdciikes,each standnig beside his horse. From a convex sar- don\ X ( A. Furtwangler, Jntike Gemmen, i, Plate XLIV, Fig. 4). See pp. 142-43, ^33^- 2. Apoi.i.o and Marsvas Apollo with a pli-ktron in one hand and a lyre in the other is stand- ing at his case to the right. Seated beside him on the skin of a lion or a panther, and bound with his back to a bare tree, is Marsvas, bear- ini; all the marks of his semi-bestial nature. A flute-case hangs from a branch on the tree. Kneeling at the feet of Apollo the boy Olympos (who does not figure in the mvth as narrated in the text) seems to be pleading with the god to spare the Satyr's life. From a cut carnelian in Naples (A. Furtwangler, Antike Gfmmai, i, Plate XLII, Fig. 28). See p. 181. . 3. Head of Alkxander A diadem, knotted behind the head, can be seen binding the thick wavv hair. Just over the ear is the horn of Ammon. From a coin of Lvsiniachos, 335-280 B.C. (P. Ciardiner, I'he Types 0/ Greek CoinSy Plate XII, No. 16). See pp. 223 24. 4. Persephone The head of the goddess seems to be bound by a thin band of wheat-straw. The dolphins indicate not onlv that Syracuse is situated on the sea, but also that she is the mistress of it. From a coin of Svracuse, 385-280 B.t. (P. (lardiner. The Types of Greek Coins, Plate \1, No. 29). See pp. 227 rf". 5. Zn-^ AM) DiONE Zeus is heif depicted with the earth goddess Dione, his wife at Dodona in Fpciros, the site of his oracular oak. From a coin of Kpeiros, 280 146 B.C. (P. Ciardiner, The 'Types of Greek Cains, Plate XII, No. 44). See p. 156. 6. Pan Pan, in the t;iiise of a voung hunter, is seated on a rocky ledge of a mountain hol.ling a la!:oh'jlo'i (hunting-olub) in his right hand. At his feet lies his >\rinx, the so-called pipes of Pan. From an Arka- dian coin, 43 l -37 l k.c. ( P. (Jardiner, The Txpes of Greek Coins, Plate VIII, No. 32). See pp. 267 68. "'•^lifef/!'^. N INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK MITHS li negative term. The appended list is given merely by way of suggestion. A. According to external elements. (1) Myths of the various periods of tribal or national development. (2) Myths of racial stocks. (3) Local myths (i. e. of shrines, towns, cities, states, districts, islands, etc.). (4) Popular and official myths. (5) Poetical and prose myths. B. According to contents. (1) Myths of the gods. (2) Nature-myths. (3) Myths of origins (i. e. of the world, gods, men, arts, stars, political and social organizations, etc.). (4) Philosophical myths. (5) Allegorical myths. (6) Myths of the hereafter. 7. Ifliat 'xe may Learn from Myths. — Naturally, most of the facts registered by a body of myths concern religion. Yet one must not expect to find in them more than a partial ac- count of the particular religion to which they belong. Being concrete and pictorial in character, myths can set forth only those features which are susceptible of concrete and pictorial treatment. Sacred symbols and clear-cut attributes of the gods they can portray almost photographically; the figures of the gods they can sketch with fairly bold outlines; the histories of the gods and some of their subtle attributes they can sug- gest. On the other hand, they can tell us practically nothing about specific rituals and the exact attitude of the worshipper at the moment of worship; were they to become formal registers of such things, they would cease to be myths. One must, therefore, complement his knowledge of religion, as gleaned from myths, with the available records of cult. m Hi INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK MYTHS If it is true, and we believe it is, tiiat "religious expression moves along with the general progress of thought," •> then the myths ought to ylekl us certain facts of primitive life outside the domain of religi(Mi pmper. For example, the Greek myths confirm our suspicions that the earh Hellenes were addicted to magic. Again and again we are told of curses being invoked and of their terrible etTects upon their victims; wc need point merely to the curse of Alkmaion and the curse of Laios. The union of Demeter and lasion in the thricc-ploughcd field re- fers to a magic device to briig fertility to the soil, and the wild and noisy dance of the Kouretes undoubtedly represents a method of averting evil spirits by magic. Myths tell us, too, though by accident, the things of deepest interest to the people among wh^ni the legends circulated. The frequent men- tion of flocks and herds, tillage, forest, and grazing land would be pointless to a nation of miners or manufacturers. The social opjanization of the Olympians would hav>- no appeal were it nut a replica of the society of men. The allusion to the bronze armour of Diomedes would not be understood if bronze were an unknown metal. From the stories of the winds one can gather in part the meteorological conditions of ancient Greece. Bv making deduciiims of this kind many facts of history may be recovered; they are detached, to be sure, but nevertheless of considerable value. Incidentally, some of them are useful in the determination of dates. Just as we can calculate the period before which Milton cannot have written Paradise Lost because iA his attributirm of the invention of cannon to Satan, so we can be reasonably sure that those myths which speak of an intimacy between Athens and Troizen cannot have been given the form in which we now know them prior to a certain historical alliance between Athens and a group of Argolid cities which included Troizen. Here, as everywhere, the argument from silence is to be used with the utmost di>creti(.n. Greek myth is lacking in allusion to sidereal cults, and from this fact the inference is INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK MYTHS liii drawn that the Crooks were originally a northern people — a theory which is probably safe, since it conforms to the results of investigations am ig other peoples. In all such instances, however, one must demand an abundance of verified parallels before accepting conclusions. 8. iU ' and Ethics. — Ever since the Greek myths began to be stu ..jd critically the conduct of their personages has been a serious ethical problem. Practically every evil deed forbidden by society and religion was committed by the gods and heroes, and generally with startling impunity. The common opinion of today that the myths are unsafe reading for the young was shared by Plato,^ who, for this very reason, proposed to debar Homer as a text-book from his ideal state. In the Ilippolytos of Euripides " the amours of Zeus and Semele and of Kephalos and Eos give the nurse a precedent for the illicit satisfaction of love which she suggests to Phaidra; thus the poet practically asserts that the acts of the gods, as narrated in m>nh, had a dir ■;t influence on the behaviour of the common people. In many passages in his treatise on ethics Aristotle castigates the moral standards of the legends in reference to certain acts. Certainly, a bad case is made out against the myths, and the question is, can any defence or mitigating ex- planation be offered in their behalf? It might be well to learn, if we can, just why the myths con- tain such immoral elements. In the first place, one must re- member that they are survivals of an earlier age when men were governed by inferior ethical ideals to which the gods and heroes were bound to conform, since the myth-maker knew no higher. Even had he fashioned higher motives for them out of his own mind, every act of god and hero would have been beyond the ordinary understanding, and the myth, no matter how beauti- ful to our thinking, would, like an undiscovered flower, have wasted its fragrance on the desert air. To the contemporaries of the myth-maker the behaviour of the divinities, however wrong it may appear now, was right, and an appreciation of liv iNTRODUCTIOX TO THE CREEK MYTHS this will render the immorality of the myths innocuous to the modern reader. Another fact — doubtless startling to many — must be emphasized here: that is, there is no obligatory con- nexion between every relit'iins. To explain tlie phenomenon with our modern biologists as one of heredity, docs not strip it of its moral significance. 9. Myth and Art. — Throughout the ages there has been a close affinity between religion and art — art in the broadest sense. The poet, the sculptor, and the painter have always been among the chief interpreters of the religion of their day and generation. Who can prove that they have not been more convincing and commanding than the priest? Certainly the products of their efforts have been more enduring, for when the faiths of which they were the exponents have long since ceased to stir the hearts of men they have still about them certain elements whose appeal is everlasting. Olympianism is dead, but the Iliad and Odyssey of Homer still live on. What is this vital spirit.' It is seen in the difference between ritual and art. Ritual is religion in action, and as such it need not be reflec- tive; indeed, it generally is not. Art, on the other hand, is the sincere endeavour of a human soul, momentarily detached from the activities of life and ritual and und.r the domination of a clarifving emotion, to find for itself and to reveal to others a vision of the highest social ideals of the time. Ritual appeals to the initiate, to the sect; art with its beauty and subtlety of suggestion appeals to a universal instinct. The measure of a work of art is the strength of its claim on all mankind. By this standard we can compare the worth of Hesiod and Homer, of an archaic Apollo and the Apollo Belvedere. Respective degrees of workmanship and finish arc of value only so far INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK NHTHS Ivii as they conform, or fail to conform, to the exactions of the iJial toward which the artint strives. \Vc have dwelt thus long on the nature and function of art in order the more clearly to reveal the relation of Greek myth to Greek religion. The religious material of most of the m>ths which have come down to us was simply crass superstition, hut, taken over b) devout and inspired bards, it was passed at the white heat of emotion through the refining pot of their spirits and came «)Ut transformed as poetry. Later Homer ap- peared.* With his superior gifts he fused this poetry and a number of crude superstitions into the noble epics that arc attributed to his name. This gave the needed impulse to a long succession of lesser poets. The gods and heroes of Homer were common property and had a remoteness from the life- interests of the bards' own local communities which gave them, as it were, a licence for moulding them as they could not mould their local gods and heroes. The painter and the sculptor followed in their steps. Imitating, as they did, ideal- izing and relatively refined models, they could not themselves but represent the ideal and the refined. This is the reason why the gross elements of the myths and popular superstitions rarely thrust themselves into the higher sculpture, and with but little more frequency into vase-painting, the least noble of the Greek arts. lo. Methods of Interpreting Myth. — A citation of the most important methods of interpreting myths, with brief comment, is sufficient for the purposes of this volume. 1. The natural method. Followers of this system would trace practically every legend back to a primitive account of some natural phenomenon or group of phenomena. According to them myths arc solar, lunar, or astral; or are to be referred to light, the winds, clouds, rain, vegetation, and so forth. 2. The philological method. The leading exponent of this school of interpretation was F. Ma.\ Miiller. Its practice is to account for myths as the sequelae of "disease of language"; Ut' Ivili INTRODUCTIOX TO THE GREEK MYTHS in other words, as confusions resulting from a misunderstand- ing of terms that have persisted in speech after tlieir .original meaning has been lost. The weakness of this method, now abandoned in its extreme form, is that it docs not square with our present knowledge of the primitive mind; further, the etymologies on which it bases its conclusions are generally- uncertain and often false. V The rationalizing (euhemeristic) method. The first to applv this method systematically was Euhcmeros, a Greek of the third century b.c. The deification of the victorious Alex- ander forced many to the omclusion that the great gods of tradition were human beings who had been exalted to the sky for their benefactions to humanity. Euhemeros took over the idea and used it in his historical romance of Alexander. This school, therefore, regards myths as nothing more than perverted histi iry. 4. The allegorical method. With the inability to accept the old legends attempts were made even long before our era to read higher meanings into them, and from them was evolved a science of allegory. Needless to say, the good doctrinal matter thus elicited from the myths was only in the rarest in- stances intended by their autliors. Moreover, this method is too mechanical and leaves no room for the play of fancy. 5. The poetical method. A few scholars follow 0\ id in candidly proclaiming their belief that myths are purely the figments of poetical imagination. "I prate of ancient poet;' monstrous lies Nc"cr i-e-cn or now or then by human eyes," sings Ovid. '" His only faith in the legends was that which he had in anv otlier work of art. 6. The ritual method. Many nnths (but assuredly not all) can be classitied as explanations of rituals whose original sig- nificance has been lost in the past. To this class belong the majority of the aetiological tales. INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK NHTHS lix 7. The anthropological or comparitive method. This method is based on the hypothesis that pies at the same levels of primitive developmc-nt invent the ■ l- kind of stories. It leads the investigator, "when an apparc .■ irrational and anomalous custom is found in any country to look for a country where a similar practice is found, and where the practice is no longer irrational and anomalous, but in harmony with the manners and ideas of the people among whom it prevails." " The re- sults of this theory arc often invalidated by the tacit assump- tion that its basic hypothesis is a fact. To be of service the method must be historical. //. The Object and the Method of the Present Treatise.— The author's purpose in writing this volume is to present the myths of Greece and Rome as vehicles of religious thought. He for- bears to call them records (though after a manner they are such), lest any reader be misled into believing that they bear the stamp of the deliberation and the finality which are gen- erally ascribed to records. That they enable us to view only a part of the faiths of the Greeks and Romans, as from a single angle, is not merely admitted but insisted upon as fundamental to their interpretation. Inasmuch as art is psychologically posterior to religion, just as, economically, luxur>' is to wealth, the artistic worth and influence of the myths are here to be regarded as of secondary interest. The system of interpretation to be followed is at base the comparative method. The entire stress, however, \\\\\ not be laid upon the similarities of parallel instances; much emphasis will be placed upon differences. Moreover, the method will not be applied except to verify traces in the myths of their origin and meaning, or when all efforts to discover such signs have failed. In handling the legends singly the following fea- tures will be noted: the peculiar cast of the conception, the names and epithets of the gods and heroes and the several forms of their symbols, the variant versions of the myth, and the traditional interpretation of antiquity; but the utmost m Ix INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK M^THS caution will be taken to avoid basing a conclusion on any one of these features in isolation from the others. Finally, it will constantly be borne in mind that a myth is, after all, a process and not a finished product. 12. The Sources nf Mxth. - It is to be regretted that there is no single work cfmtaining without comment a detailed com- pilation of the literary sources from which we draw our knowl- edge of (;reek and Roman myths. The value of such a work to a student of religi-^i and of literature and the advantage of being able to refer to it on the present occasion are obvious. So widelv scattered, both amts Catullus, Propertius, :,nd Tibull is; \ergil; Ovid; Horace: \ aUrius Flaccus; Seneca; Sfatiu-; Ausonius; and Claudian. /V-, ,; Herodoto>; fragment^ of the jogographers and his- 1 rian- Plato; Apollod.m.s and the other mythographers; ]'.,. mias; Lucian; the Christian apologists; the scholia (in- terpretative marginal notes) of Homer and the dramatists; the lexicographers. The Latin works attributed, probably wrongly, IC PLATK VI SiLENOl AND MaRNADS Two nude and bearded Silenoi with horses' tails are each carrying a Maenad on their shoulders. One Maenad holds in her lap the fawn which is to be torn asunder in the ritual, while the other is beating a pair of rattles. The heads of both women are bound with garlands of ivy-leaves, which, together with the long sinuous stem dividing the two groups of figures, are among the emblems of Dionysos. From a black- tigured amphora of about 475 B.C., found at Gela {Monumenti Jntuhi, xvii, Plate XXXVII). See pp. 267-70. INTRODUCTION TO THE GREEK M\THS Ixi to Hyginus, may be included here, as well as the mythological treatises of Fulgcntius and of the Vatican Mythographcr. SOURCES FOR THE ROMAN MITHS The existing sources of the Roman myths are of the same meagre proportions as the bulk of the legends themselves. The most important arc Vergil; Livy; Dionysios of Halikar- nassos in his History cf Early Rome; Ovid; Varro;the antiqua- rian Verrius Flaccus; and Saint Augustine. In the field of art outside of literature we can sometimes find new versions of mythic tales and can very often see the old forms from fresh points of view. It is the vase-paintings and sculpture which yield the most substantial results. The arti- sans who executed the former belonged to the ranks of the common people; consequently we may infer that those mytho- logical themes which they pictured represent versions cur- rent in their own stratum of society and perhaps detached from literary traditions. For about two centuries, beginning approximately 700 B.C., it was the common practice to use such themes and to identify the personages portrayed by means of symbols or inscribed names. Through the combined effect of a number of hampering conditions — the limited space avail- able for the picture on the vases, the artist's undeveloped skill, and the religious conceptions of his times and of his social class — it was impossible for the painter to impart to his figures the finer lineaments of individuality and character. Sculptures in relief, especially those belonging to temple friezes, are more useful to us as sources of the details of myth than as interpretations, for a tendency to allegorize their themes obscures their primary, and even their contemporary, significance. It is to sculpture in the round that we must turn for the noblest and strongest interpretations of the god of myth and worship. The temple statue tells no story; that is not its function. On the contrar>-, it stands as a summary, Ixii INTRODLCTION TO THE GREF.K MYTHS su blimatcd to an ideal bv the alchemy of the artist's penius, of all tht •ib i accorded the pod in the thouglit of the majority of his worshippers. The trained and discerning eye can read the individual attributes in the summary. As com- pared with the temple image, the decorative statue does tell a stor\-. The very purpose for which it is designed gives the artist an opportunity of choosing a situation, to use a term of dramatic criticism, in which to set his god; and situation im- plies narrative. Moreover, the sculptor has much more free- dom in making his selection of attributes. The other forms of art to which the student of myth may refer are the wall-paint- ings of Pompeii, coins, metal-work, and cut gems. The wall- paintings generally deal with myths which arc already known through literature; they are useful mainly as illustrations and verifications. Coin types not infrequently portray the leading cult statues of the state issuing the coin; like their models, then, they tell no story. The mythological scenes represented in relief or by means of incised lines on mirrors, bowls, and other objects of domestic use rank as sources in substantially the same class as the earlier vase-paintings. From cut gems we learn relatively little. GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY PART I MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING, THE HEROES, AND THE AFTERWORLD iTirav he ih-u hast foll.'wM Throuph the i^lan.U some divuic bard, Uy a^-c tauL'lil many thliiK'S A-c and the NUi^t"*; Aiul hi-ard him dcliuhtim,' The chiefs mid [^voylc In the banquet, and Icarn'd h.s s.mil'S, Of (iods and Hcn.cs, Of war and arts, And pcoj^Ud cities, Inland, or built Bvthcfrrcy sca.-If so, thenhail. 1 honour and \\clo itic thee. MA-rrHEvv Akn....... Th, Strayed RnrlUr. MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART ANSI i.i.rt 60 TfST CHART No 2 1.0 f^ I.I ii^ill 12.5 liM [1 2.2 2.0 1.8 '•25 111 1.4 i 1.6 ^ APPLIED IK/MGE Inc PLATE VII Hera The regal decoration of the diadem, the fine and noble features, and the matronly bearing of the head, are convincing proofs that this is a portrait of the queen of Olympos and the divine patroness of wed- lock. There does not exist in sculpture or in painting a revelation of her character superior to this. From an original marble, probably of the late fifth century B.C., in the Uffizi, Florence (Brunn-Bruckmann, DenkmaUr grieihischer und romischer Sculptur, No. 547). See pp. 7ff., i63ff. " :?i GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY CHAPTER I MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING THE early Greek looked out upon the world of men and things and asked himself the far from simple question, How and by whom was this great complex created? In an- swering the question he was bound, of course, to remain within the limits of his own personal experience — to explain the unknown in terms of the known or of what seemed to be known. Lacking the classified data of our modern sciences of geology, astronomy, and biology, he was as incapable of form- ing even a vague idea of the structure of the universe as he was of measuring the distance between the sun and the moon. Yet he possessed certain fundamental facts, and these com- posed his meagre body of science. Moreover, observation had taught him that the world was the theatre of the ceaseless operation of unseen po^vers that were certainly superior to man. Following his instincts, he personified these powers, called them gods, and did them worship; this constituted his religion. Since among most primitive peoples science and re- ligion tend to be inextricably interwoven with each other, it was inevitable that the Greek should draw on these two sources of his funded experience in answering his question as to the beginning of things. Broadly speaking, the fundamental facts known to the Greek arc as follows. In all departments of her activity Nature steadily proceeds from disorder toward order. The great move- ments generally take place in regular cycles, such as days, > — s 4 GREEK AND ROMAN' MYTHOLOGY months, seasons, and years; while the unforeseen and calami- tous phenomena, like volcanic eruptions, whirlwind, and flood, are really less frequent and less potent than the normal oper- ations. Like tends to beget like; life arises only from life. The great tree comes from a small seed, the bird from a fragile egg, and man grows to maturity from a helpless infant. What could be more natural for the Greek than to conclude, as he did, that the world and the races of men and of gods came into being in the same way? Once he could account for their crea- tion, he could easily explain their subsequent growth and de- velopment through the ordinary visible processes of nature. For the supremacy of gods and men with their ideas of order and justice he could find an obvious reason in the superiority of the great regular forces over the irregular. In this method of thought he was unwittingly paying a great tribute to himself. The lower savage accredits some animal with the creation of the world; the more advanced savage might go as high in the scale as man himself in his search for the first maker; but to be able to point with conviction to personal creative forces immeasurably beyond man demands an extraordinary degree of intellectual advancement. The Creation of the World. — Among the Greeks there was no single generally accepted account of the Creation, for the people were divided as to which of the several records was the most ancient and therefore likely to be the most authoritative. The view that prevailed in Athens during the fifth and fourth cen curies B.C. was that the oldest was contained in a poem which passed as the composition of the inspired Orpheus. The many other so-called Orphic poems current at the time were frankly counted as forgeries, but, nevertheless, were believed to contain the same tradition of the Beginning as that found in the Iliad. , ^^ According to the Orphic story, uncreated Nyx ("Night ) existed first, and was regarded as a great black-winged bird hovering over a vast darkness "without form and void." MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING 5 Though unmated, she laid an egg whence golden-winged Eros ("Love") flew forth, while from the two parts of the shell Oura- nos and Gaia ("Heaven" and "Earth") were created. They became the first pair of parents and brought into the world Okeanos ("Ocean") and Tethys(" Nurse"). These in their turn became a parental pair, begetting Kronos, Rhea, Phorkys, and the other Titans; and, similarly, Kronos and Rhea were united and begat Zeus and Hera. Now Kronos was warned that his reign would cease when Hera should bear a son to Zeus. To forestall such an evil he sought to kill her, but she was saved by her mother, who secretly brought her to the realm of Okeanos and Tethys, where, unknown to her father, she was wedded to Zeus. The Moirai ("Fates") led the bride to her husband, and Eros drew the bridal car, while in honour of the nuptials Gaia gave Okeanos permission to fashion the beau- tiful gardens of the Hesperides. The Orphic poet held this union of Zeus and Hera before the Greeks as the model of con- jugal relations. The Hesiodic story is diflFerent in many points and is much less satisfactory as a philosophical explanation of beginnings. First there was Chaos, "... the vast immeasurable abyss, Outrageous as a sea, dark, wasteful, wild." * Then came Gaia, gloomy Tartaros (the dark "Underworld"), and Eros as the moving force within and about all things. Chaos brought into being Erebos ("Lower Darkness") and Nyx, and these in their turn begat Aither ("Heavenly Light") and Hemera ("Earthly Light," i. e. "Day"). Mother Earth bore Ouranos (star-sown "Heaven") to be a helpmeet to herself and at the same time a secure dwelling-place for the blessed gods. Now appeared the rugged mountains and the wild stretches of the sea. In their relation of husband and wife Ouranos and Gaia became the founders of what one might call the first royal house of the gods. 6 GREEK AND RO\L\N M^THOLOCn' Thf Regime of Ouranos. - The children of Ouranos and Gaia were many. First, there were born the Titans,' such as Okeanos, Krios, Hyperion, lapetos, Themis ("Justice"), Mnemosyne ("Memory"), and, last of all, Kronos. Besides these there were the Kyklopes, "the powers of the ^ir"-Brontes ("Thun- der-Roar"), Steropes ("Lightning"), Arges ("Thunderbolt ) -each of ^•hom had one huge eye in the middle of his forehead. In addition to these monsters were the giants Kottos, Briareos, and Gyes, each with fifty heads and a hun- dred hands springing from his shoulders. So terrible were they that Ouranos, their father, was afraid of them and thrust them back into the bosom whence they had come. At this Gaia was sorely ofTended, and calling her children together she laid before them a plan of putting an end to the violence of their sire Only Kronos was fearless enough to carry it out. W ith a si'ckle given him by Gaia he attacked his father and terribly mutilated him, but Gaia caught the blood from the wound, and from it in the process of time were born the Erinyes ("Furies"), the armed Giants, and the Melian Nymphs, while the contact of the severed flesh with the sea produced Aphro- dite, the goddess of love. With this attack the rule of Ouranos came to an end. .u „„J The Regime of Kronos. -By virtue of his strength and boldness Kronos assumed the kingship over the gods, whose number was now large, for during the rule of Ouranos, Nyx, Pontos (barren "Sea"), and the elder Titans had begotten many children, among these being Thanatos ("Death ), his brother Hypnos ("Sleep"), "the whole tribe of dreams. Nemesis, Friendship, Old Age, and Strife, who herself had brought forth "wars and rumours of war." Following the ex- ample of Gaia in wedding Ouranos, Rhea became the sister- spouse of Kronos, and the fruits of their wedlock were Hera A-ides ("Hades"), Poseidon, and Zeus, ^'the sire of gods and men " Kronos, remembering how he had displaced his father, became fearful that one of his children might overthrow him, MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING 7 and, accordingly, as soon as they were born he swallowed them as the easiest way of getting rid of them. Only Zeus escaped, and that because Rhea contrived and executed a plan that he should be born in Crete and hidden in a cave on Mount Fig. I. Poseidon Poseidon holding a dolphin in his right hand to indicate that the »ea is his abode, and in his left hand a trident (originally a lightningbolt, but here a fish-spear) as a svmbol of his sovereignty over the deep. From a red-figured Ukytkos of the fifth century B.C., found at Gela, Sicily {Monumenti Jnticht, xvu, Plate XV). Aigaion. Instead of a child she gave Kronos a stone which he swallowed in ignorance of the deception, whereupon Gaia caused him to disgorge what he had eaten and, naturally, the stone came first and the children last. On reaching manhood Zeus emerged from his hiding-place and after putting an end 8 GREF.K AND ROMAN MVTHOIXK.V to the unjust rule cf his father he vvedJed Hera and hhnsclf tor.k the throne. Afterward lie deposited the stone in Delphoi. Centuries later a certain meteor worshipped in Roman Africa was identified by mythologists as this same stone.' r.stablishmnit nf thr Rri^ime of Zeus; llu Titans. — M:iny children were born to Zeus and Hera, and they were the first to be prr.perly called gods. They established themselves on Mount Olvmpos, which stood directly opposite Mount Othr>'s, the seat of the Titans, who, being the older race (with the exception of Mnemosyne, Themis, and Prometheus), quite naturallv regarded Zeus and his family as upstarts and usurp- ers. Bitter rivalry and strife arose between the two settle- ments, and for ten years ihey fought with no decisive results. A peace-parley held at the end of this period seemed only to add heat to the conflict, so that at length Zeus freed the three hundred-handed Giants whom Kronos had left bound deep down within the earth, and enlisted them in his ranks, deciding now to reveal his full strength and to bring the tedious strife to a sudden end. With their many hands the Giants hurled huge rocks at the foe until the sky was darkened, while Zeus cast thunderbolt after thunderbolt with their long tongues of flame: "... dire was the noise Of conflict; overhead the dismal hiss Of fiery darts in flaming volleys flew, And, flying, vaulted either host with fire."' By this deadly assault the Titans were overwhelmed and driven into the depths of the earth. Down, down they went, a journey of nine days and nine nights, until they were as far from the plains of earth as the plains of earth are beneath the heaven. There a brazen wall with brazen gates was built about them, and the three Giants were placed on guard to prevent them from escaping. Typhon {or Typhoeus); the Giants. — The sway of Zeus was not yet secure, for Gaia had borne to Tartaros a monstrous son PLATK VI II CJolJS AND ClIANTS 1 . Ge ri»M from the earth as if to implore Poteidon to stay his. hand as he thrusts hit trident into the breast of her son, Poiybotes. 2. In the centre of the picture Apollo, grasping hi* unstrung bow in his left hand, with his right hand drives his sword at Ephialtcs, who defends himself with a spear. At the left, the armed Ares is pressing a spcar-hcad into the breast of the falling Mimon, while at the right Hera endeavours to transfix Phoitos, who, though iottering backward, boldly continues fighting. 3. In the outer group at the right Athene is de- picted trying to turn Enkelados to stone by holding be- fore him the gorgoneion of her aegis, while at the same time she aims a lance at his breast. In the opposite group, Artemis appears in the act of burning Ciaion with blaz-ing torches, and in the centre, Zeus, marked bv his sceptre, and Porphyrion arc engaged in mutual combat, the one hurling a thunderbolt and the other a stone. From a red-figured kylix of the early fifth century B.C., in the Museum of Fine Arts, Hoston i Furtwangler-Reichhold, Grtahische VastnmaUrti^ No. I/7). See pp. 8-9. ^Il i ! -i**. 1 a MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING named Typhon, the daemon of the whirlwind. Upon his shoul- ders h" carried a hundred serpent-heads; his voice was like those of all formidable beasts in one; from his eyes there flashed out fire. In his might he assailed Zeus, and would have wrested the sovereignty from him had not the lord of the gods leaped down from on high and felled the monster with a thunderbolt. Upon Typhon Mount Aetna was set, and from its peak the smoke and fire of his laboured breathing rise to this very day. Even yet the lordship of Zeus was challenged, this time by the Giants who had been born of Gaia by the blood of Ouranos, and whom some believed to be the forefathers of the human race. Among these mighty beings were Enkelados, Hyperbios, Ephialtes, and Polybotes. They were a haughty and warlike folk, and under their king, Eurymedon, they lived, some said, in the island of Kerkyra (Corfu), or as others preferred, in Spain or even in Chalkidike. For their insolence and hostility the gods, led by Zeus and Athene, overthrew them; in punish- ment volcanoes were piled on their prostrate bodies, and their groans and convulsions of pain can be perceived even today. This myth is a restatement or a poetic imitation of the battle of the Titans, but it contains several features just as old as the body of the other story. It was a very popular theme in poetry and art throughout the Hellenic world. We find it employed in a vase-painting which dates at least as early as the sixth century B.C., in the eastern metopes of the Parthenon, and in the frieze of the great altar of Zeus at Pergamon. Although the elements of these stories of the beginnings of things are varied and confused, their central meaning is clear. They reveal the belief of the early Greeks that their established social order never could have existed had not the cosmic forces previously been reduced to order by some power or powers. Moreover, they may be regarded as a gauge of the growing Hellenic faculty which apprehended these potencies at first as few and mutually overlapping in function, and later as many and distinct from one another. In the ascendancy of ' '.iltr* ,o GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY Kronos over Ouranos and of Zeus over Kronos we see an in- creasing appreciation of the worth of intellect over mere brute strength and cunning. In short, the whole fabric of the stones sets forth in pattern the conviction that the world moves steadily toward better things. , „ . The Creation of Man. -The Greeks, unlike the Hebrews and their religious successors, had no one orthodox account of the creation of man. On the contrary, there ^vere a most as manv traditions as there were city-states, and the multiphcity of b^th was due to the same cause, the isolating character o the Greek highlands. What more natural for the Greek local patriot than to believe that the first man was created in his own community? When one understands the spirit of the divisions in Greece, he cannot wonder that the attempts of Hesiod and the earlier logographers to construct a harmony of the conflicting local myths never proved to be eminently successful. In the legends that we are about to examine each act of the creation of man follows one of three processes : the man simply originates out of the elemental powers or objects of the earth; or he is begotten by one of the Olympians; or he is moulded out of lifeless matter by the hand of some divine or semi-divine artisan. The first process is not as strange as it appears to be at first glance, for it is very easy to infer that that power which can produce the crops of the field and the mysterious second-growth of timber on the burnt lands, and can make sudden revelations of life in the wilderness, can also produce man. The Athenians believed that the first man was Kckrops, who sprang to life from the soil of Athens. Those Boiotians who lived near Lake Kopais held that the first man, Alalkomeneus, was born o the waters of the lake after the manner of fish. To the people of Arkadia the first man was their own earth-sprung Pelasgos In Thcban story men germinated from the dragons teeth sown broadcast on the earth. Aiakos, the king of Aigina had a country without a people until, at the command of Zeus, MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING II the ants on the island assumed human shape and became his subjects. Among those Hellenic stocks which inhabited dis- tricts of hill and forest the prevailing myths derived men from rocks and trees. , , , r Zeus was accredited with being the great forefather of more families and stocks than was any other Olympian, and his title, "Father of gods and men," was therefore no idle appellation. He begat Hellen through his union with Pyrrha ("Ruddy Earth"), who was thus made the foremother of the HelL-nes; by Dia ("Divine Earth"), he became the father of Peirithobs; Aiakos was his son by Aigina, the nymph of the island of the same name; Lakedaimon, the ancestor of the Lakedaimonians, was borne to him by Taygete, the nymph of the mountain of that region; Perseus was the issue of his approach to Danae in the form of a shower of gold; and nearly all kings proudly traced their descent to Zeus. Yet the other gods were not wholly without such honours. Poseidon was represented as the great ancestor of the Aiolic stock, and Kronos became the father of Cheiron through his amour with Philyra ("Linden-Tree ). One meets but rarely with myths which attribute the origin of a race to the union of a goddess with a mortal man. It is rather surprising that in most of their cosmogonic myths the Greeks succeeded merely in setting forth a plausible se- quence of events, but failed to make really serious attempts at a real solution of the causes. The stories which we have just noted were not such as to satisfy a truly inquisitive mind. The Greeks themselves early came to a realization of this, and the simple conception rapidly gained ground that the first human being must have been, so to speak, a manufactured product. The maker (or makers, according to the variations of the story) was a god who formed man by a definite act of will, by means of a well-known process, and out of some tangible material. The method which is generally detailed is the very old and simple one of moulding the figure out of the dust of the earth, a concept which appeals to the imagination of the 12 GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY modern as well as of the ancient. In the myths of Prometheus and of Pandora we shall see it most attractively brought out. Prometheus. — "Prometheus is . . . the type of the highest perfection of moral and intellectual nature, impelled by the purest and the truest motives, to the best and noblest ends." These words of the poet Shelley ^ give us a clear view of Prometheus in his relation to the thought and religion of the Greeks. He was a paradoxical character. In his one person he was both less than god and "more than god, being wise and kind."« His figure was clear where it represented the moral aspirations of the Hellenes, obscure where it touched their formal religion; it had just those lines which their imagmation could not resist and which made it an inexhaustible literary theme. u u Prometheus ("Forethinker") was generally held to be the son of the Titan lapetos and Gaia (or Themis), and was the brother of Atlas and Epimetheus ("Afterthinker"). The legends are by no means in agreement as to the name of his wife, who is variously called Kelaino, Pandora, Pyrrha, Asia, and Hesione. all of which, it is worth noting, are epithets of the Farth Goddess. His marriage was fruitful, and among his children were sometimes counted Deukalion, Chimaireus, Ait- naios, lo, and Thcbe. In many of the myths Prometheus and Hcph'aistos are curiously allied in their relations to human culture. Although a Titan, Prometheus had espoused the cause ot Zeus, thus manifesting his native sympathy for law and order; but as he was essentially a nobler type than Zeus himself, he could not long maintain the allegiance. When the chief Olvmpian found mankind hopelessly faulty and planned to create a new race in its place, Prometheus broke with him and defiantly became sponsor of the human cause. This generous devotion is the source of his power in myth. In Hesiod's Theogony the story runs that a conference of gods and men was held at Sikyon to determine the homage MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING I3 owed by men to the gods. Acting as priest, Prometheus sacri- ficed an ox and divided it into two parts, one of which con- sisted of flesh and other edible portions enveloped in the skin of the animal, while the second was composed of bones and r.trails alluringly garnished with stnps of nch fat It was tt.e .ope of Prometheus that Zeus would be misled by ap- pearances and choose the poorer part, but to the Olympian the deceit was too plain, and, in order that he might have an excuse for punishing men, he deliberately took the bones and entrails, and withheld the gift of fire from men. ^ -ed with pity, Prometheus stole some embers and brought them to mankind hidden in a hollow stalk.' In some myths it is said that he took the fire from the very hearth of Zeus; in others, from the workshop of Hephaistos and Athene on Lemnos; m smothers, from the fiery chariot of the sun. Through this sublime theft men were enabled to lift the ban of Zeus, to begin life anew, and little by little to evolve the arts and crafts. But Prometheus paid the penalty for his trespass on the divine rights of Zeus to the exclusive control of fire. Zeus had him chained to a crag (or pillar) in the range of Caucasus and appointed an eagle to gnaw at his vitals, consuming each day what had been restored during the night just past. Despite his many sufTerings the spirit of Prometheus was unquenched, for he was comforted with the foreknowledge that some day he would be released and that Zeus would be overthrown even as Ouranos and Kronos had fallen. In due dme his shackles were broken by Herakles and he was brought back to Olympos to serve his fellow-gods with his gift of prophecy In one odd version of the story the rocks sank with Prometheus into the gloomy depths of Tartaros. . The notion that man was shaped from clay was relatively late. By the fifth century b.c. the belief in this process was general, and by the fourth it was the rule to identify Prometheus as the artist. From clay he fashioned both men and beasts and into them passed emanations of the divine fire which ,4 GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY became their souls. The human-like boulders at Panopeus in Phokis were pointed out as material left over by him m the process of making men. The myth of Prometheus teaches that the Greeks regarded all natural fire as originally divine, that it was at once the strongest and the subtlest of the forces of nature and the most potent factor in the advance of humanity. In the legend can be detected a plea for the dignity of perseverance and toil and Fig. 2. Creation of Pandora Tn the centre of the upper band the newly-created Pandora stands stiffly like a figure of wc^d or cbv To'h^^r right appear in order Athene (who holds a wreath toward ; riWotzeus, and Iris, ihile to her left are ^''-n;^';;"-^^^-,; ""^d and Hera. The lower band represents V°"'-%^f "" f f;,% xi pC XI) hater found at .Mtemira and now in the British Museum (y//S xi, Plate XI). the promise that they will bring their own reward in the form of increased efficiency. The picture of the noble sufTermg of Prometheus is testimony that very eariy the Greeks had a clear idea of self-sacrifice. Pandora. — By accepting the stolen fire men were legally party to the cflFnce, and to punish them Zeus condemned them to earn their daily bread by the sweat of their brow, besides doing them irreparable harm by bringing evil into their lives. At his bidding Hephaistos shaped an image of clay and endowed it with human faculties. In appearance the figure was like one of the Olympian goddesses - a beautiful maiden to whom all the Olympians contributed of their several qualities. PLATE IX Athene Farthenos This statue of Athene, the maiden protectress of Athens, is one of a number of copies of the famous chryselephantine image made by Pheidias for the Parthenon, and many of its peculiar features betray its metallic original. In her right hand the goddess holds erect z long lance and allows her left hand to rest on a shield standing on edge at her side. On her head is a helmet on the top of which sits a sphinx, and over her shoulders and breast hangs the aegis. Her face is strong, dignified, just, and unemotional — in short, suggests all those ideal traits of character which the noblest myths have attributed to her. From a marble of the age of Hadrian, in the Prado, Madrid (Brunn-Bruckmann, Denkmaler griechischer und romischer Sculptur, No. 511). Sec pp. 169 ff. ' na^. ^> MM^A ■Y^^^^&tt^ Ti T '-s"^:m#] y^. ^'<^ • *^^ ' m^m. ^ ■«»fc^" nii M\THS OF THE BEGINNING 15 The Graces and the Hours decked her out in charming apparel and bright flowers so that desire awoke in the hearts of men, and as the gift of all the gods to the human race she was named Pandora/ Hermes brought her to Epimethcus, who re- ceived her in spite of Prometheus's warning to accept notlung from the gods, for, unhappily, it was the nature of Epimethcus to sec no evil until it had come upon him. Pandora, curious to know what was stored in a large jar standing near her (fancy is free to conjecture the origin of the vessel), lifted the lid, and before she could replace it all sorts of evils and diseases flew out and covered land and sea. Only Hope was left, not buoy- ant, reassuring hope, but that kind which is "... to much mortal woe So sweet that none may turn from it nor go." » Such, in the main, is the story of Hesiod. In the late poets the jar is said to have contained every good as well as every evd; the former flew away and were lost, while the latter were scat- tered among men. The substance of this tale and that of the phrase cherchet lajemme are the same — through woman came and still comes evil into the world. While the advent of the first man was ex- plained in many ways, the first woman was always believed to be the handiwork of the gods. Origins of Certain Animals and Plants. — We can here men- tion only a few of the many passages in the myths which de- scribe the metamorphoses of human beings into animals and plants. When Keyx, a son of Hesperos, perished by shipwreck, his broken-hearted wife, Alkyone, threw herself into the sea and was drowned. The gods changed them both into kingfishers, which were said by the ancients to make their nests on the sur- face of the sea in winter during a short period of calm which sailors called the alcyon (or halcyon) days. Asteria, the Titan's daughter who spurned an amour with Zeus, was transformed by him into a quail; at the death of Meleagros his lamenting i m i ,6 GREEK AND ROMAN M\THOLOGY sUuTH were changed into shrill-voiced guinea-fowl; in the Attic groiir of "^yth" Tercus became the hoopoe, Philomele the night- in^-ale, and Pn.kne the swallow, while Nisos of Megara was iransfornud into the sea-eagle. Some instances are recorded in which human beings took the forms of quadrupeds. The impious Lykaon became a prowling wolf, Kallisto i bear, and Psamathe, a wife of A.akos, ^ The origins of certain trees were sometimes traced back to a human or a divine personage. For instance, when Ph.lyra first saw her monstrous son, the Centaur Cheiron, she was so filled with horror that she begged to be given a new form, and Zeus bestowed upon her that of the linden-tree. In pity for the innocently incestuous Smyrna, Aphrodite allowed her to be- come the myrrh-tree with it. swee' aroma. The gricv.ng s.,ters of Phaethon were turned into tremulous poplars, and Daphne, as we shall see later, became the laurel. , ^ ^ , Beginnings of Civilization. - By means of myth the Greeks endeavoured to explain the origins of the various featuresof civilization as they did other beginnings equally obscure. The Argives alleged that their Phoroneus was the first to teach men to abandon a solitary manner of life and to gather together mto communities. It was he, and not Prometheus, accordmg to their patriotic claim, who was the discoverer of fire. Among the Arkadians Pelasgos was believed to have been the first to contrive huts, to fashion garments from the skms of beasts, and to instruct men to cease eating leaves and grass like the brutes of the field and to adopt a more distinctively human diet From Arkas, the Arkadians' eponymous ancestor, men learned how to make bread, spin thread, and weave garments. To the people of Eleusis Triptolemos was the pioneer in the cultivation of the staple grains, while the reading of the will of the gods in the flight of birds was first practised by Parnassos and Deukalion was credited with having been the founder of religion. MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING »7 The Ages of the World. - The Greeks and Rom .ns, like most other peoples, believed that the world had pas ,cd through a scries of ages, althougli the several theories as to the nature of these aeons are in many respects discrepant. The cyclic theory, the theories of both earlier and l.-ter mystics, and the theories of the Stoics and Cynics, while owing much of their fabric to mythology, belong more properly to philosophy, and hence, even though a great part of their teaching is presented m the form of myth, they can justly be ignored in this account. Hcsiod relates that in the beginning the Olympians under Kronos created the race of the Men of Gold. In those days men lived like gods in unalloyed happiness. They did not toil with their hands, for earth brought forth her fruits without their aid They did not know the sorrows of old age, and death was to them like passing away in a calm sleep. After they had gone hence, their spirits were appointed to dwell above the earth, guarding and helping the living. The gods next created t' ^ ^:n of Silver, but they could not be compared in virtue and appiness with the men of "the elder age of golden peace." For many y-ars they remained mere children, and as soon as they came to the full strength and stature of manhood they refused to do homage to the gods and fell to slaying one another. After death they became the good spirits who live within the earth. The Men of Bronze followed, springing from ash-trees and having hearts which were hard and jealous, so that with them "lust and strife began to gnaw the world." All the works of their hands were wrought in bronze. Through their own in- ventions they fell from their high estate and from the light they passed away to the dark realm of King Hades unhonoured and unrcmcmbered. Zeus then placed upon earth the race of the Heroes who fought -it Thebes and Troy, and when they came to the end of life the Olympian sent them to happy abodes at the very limits of the earth. ■i ill -iB.;i i8 GREEK AND ROMAN M\THOLOGY After the Heroes came the Men of Iron - "the race of these uild latter days." Our lot is labour and vexation o^ spirit .^y dav and bv night, nor will this cease until the race ends which ^vill be wlien the order of nature has been reversed and human affection turned to hatred. It is onlv too plain that this version is marked by an incon- sistent development, and the insertion of the Age of Heroes between the Age of Bronze and the Age of Iron is exceedingly clums^- Ovid shows much more skill in the joinery of his materi.1. In his narrative the four ages of the metals pass with- out interruption, and for their wickedness the men of the Iron Aee arc destroyed, the only survivors, Deukahon and Pyrrha, becoming the parents of a new race -the race to which we ^""The'basic idea of these two forms of the myth is that man was created pure and faultless and fell by degrees to his pres- ent unworthy condition, this being borne out by the descent of the metals. The legend points, perhaps accidentally, to an advance in human responsibility through the series of ages, although its transition from age to age is far from clear. Frori. the point of view of modern ethics the story contradicts itself but this must not be emphasized too strongly, since the onginal motif. -.s apparently not ethical. The countless descriptions of Che Golden Age in the literatures of Greece and Rome had a powerful influence over the early Christian delineations of ThTcreat Flood. -Th^ Greeks shared with almost all other peoples the belief in a great flood, but the event - if it actually occurred- was so enshrouded in the haze of a remote past that all the accounts of it which have come down to us are plainly the products of the fertile imagination of the Greeks. They even attempted to fix dates for it. The flood of Deukalion and Pyrrha was sv-nchronized by some with tlie reigns of Kranaos of Athens and o'l Nyktimos of Arkadia. This particular deluge is the one of which the best myths treat, and in describing it we shall MYTHS OF THE BEGINNING 19 give in substance the account of ApoUodoros, as being simpler and better proportioned than that of Ovid. When Zeus would destroy the men of the Race of Bronze for their sin, Deukalion fashioned a great chest at the biddmg of hi^ father Prometheus. Into this he put all manner of food and drink, and himself entered it with his wife Pyrrha (daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora). Zeus then opened the sluices of heaven and caused a great rain to fall upon the earth, a ram which flooded well-nigh all Hellas and spared only a mere hand- ful of men who had fled to the neighbouring hills. Deukalion and Pyrrha were borne in the chest across the waters for nine days and nine nights until they touched Mount Parnassos, on which, when at length the rain had ceased, Deukalion dis- embarked and offered sacrifice to Zeus Phyxios. Through Hermes Zeus bade him choose whatsoever he wished, and he chose that there be a human race. Picking up some stones from the ground at the command of Zeus, he threw them over his head and they became men, while the stones which Pyrrha cast in like manner became women. Hence from Xaa-;, "a stone," men were called \aol, "people." 1° In his version Nonnos localizes the flood in Thessaly. Besides the foregoing, there are other flood-myths. Megaros, the founder of Megara, was said to have been rescued from a deluge by following the guiding cry of a flock of cranes; Dar- danos escaped from a Samothracian flood by drifting to the Asiatic shore on a boat of skins; and the separation of Europe and Asia, it was related, was due to an unprecedented flow of water. Most scholars of comparative mythology now agree that the flood stories of the various peoples are germinally of local origin, and in most instances consist of genuine tradition of a wide-reaching inundation mingled with pure myth. 1 — 6 CHAPTER II MYTHS OF THE PELOPONNESOS I. ARKADIA P EL JSGOS. — The first man in Arkadia was Pelasgos, after whom the land was named Pclasgia, and a fragment of Asios says that "the black earth bore godlike Pelasgos on the wooded hi"s that there might be r. race of men." Elsewhere he is called the son of Zeus and the Argive Xiobe, and if Niobe was really an earth goddess, as we have reason to suspect, these two genealogies are in fact but one. Besides being the founder of human civilization, he was the first Arkadian king and temple builder. He was wedded to the sea-nymph Meliboia (or Kyllene, or Deianeira), by whom he begat a son Lykaon. Lykaon. — Lykaon, too, was a founder who built the city of Lykosoura, established the worship of Zeus on Mount Lykaios, and erected the temple of Hermes of Kyllene. He married many wives, who bore him fifty sons, but they and their father manifested such impiety and arrogance before both gods and men that they became an oflFence in the eyes of Zeus. In order to make trial of them Zeus came to Lykaon's palace in the dis- guising garb of a poor day-labourer. The king received him kindly, but on the advice of one of his sens mingled the vitals of a boy with the meat of the sacrifices and set them on the table before the god. With divine intuition Zeus detected the trick. R^-mg in anger he overturned the table, destroyed the house of Lykaon with a thunderbolt, changed the king into a wolf, and proceeded to slay hir, sons. When one only, Nyktimos, was left, Ge (i. e. Gaia) stayed the hand of Zeus. This son sue- ir ji PLATE X I Helen and Paris Aphrodite rests her right hand and arm across the shoulders of Helen, a young won.an of attractive but irresolute manner, and looks earnestly into her face as if she were entreating an answer to a question. Opposite to them stands Eros, v ho seems to be endeavouring to persuade Alexandros (Paris) to come to a decision in a matter which greatly perplexes him. From a marble relief in Naples (Brunn-Bruckmann, DenkmaUr grtechhcher und romischer Scu/ptur, No. 439)- See p. 125. ASKLEPIOS Since the myths failed to endow Asklepios with distinctive physical traits, artists, impressed by the nobility of his character and activities, habitually likened him to the sublime figure of Zeus, and cer- tainly this representation of him cannot but remind one of the statuette of Zeus reproduced on Plate XXXVn. His face and outstretched left hand promise a gracious welcome to those who seek his aid. From a marble relief, pcrhs,,s copied from the temple-statue by Thrasymedes (fourth century b.c), discovered at Epidauros and now in Athens (Brunn- Bruckmann, Denimdler gritchischer und romischer Sculp- tur. No. 3). See pp. 279 ff. ffk M\THS OF THE PELOPONNESOS 21 ceeded his father on the throne and during his reign came the great flood which Zeus sent to destroy mankind. In tliis story Lykaon may represent an old Pelasgic god or king whom immigrating Greeks found established in the land. The resemblance between the Greek word Xw/co?, "wolf," and the initial syllable of the name Lykaon may perhaps in part have given rise to the myth of Lykaon's change into a wolf, while in the impious offering to Zeu- one can see a record of human sacrifice' in an ancient Zeus-ritual. Kallisto. — In addition to his fifty wicked sons Lykaon had another child, a daughter named Kallisto ("Fairest"), who was sometimes spoken of simply as a nymph, a circumstance which probably points to her original independence of Lykaon. She was a companion of Artemis, the "huntress-goddess chaste and fair," who exacted of her followers a purity equal to her own. But Zeus deceived Kallisto and took advantage of her. When she was about to bear a child to him, Hera discovered her con- dition, and, turning her into a bear, persuaded Artemis to kill her with an arrow as she would any other beast of the wood- land. At the behest of Zeus, Hermes took her imborn child to his mother Maia on Mount Kyllene, where he was reared under the name of Arkas, but the slain Kallisto Zeus placed among the constellations as the Bear, which, never setting, ceaselessly revolves about the pole-star, tor Tethys, obeying the command of Hera, will not allow the evil thing to bathe in the pure waters of Okeanos. This myth, too, can be traced to a religious origin. In Ar- kadia the bear was an animal sacred to Artemis, one of whose cult-ritles was Kalliste, a name which could readily be worked over into Kallisto. Kallisto, then, both maiden and bea', was none other than Artemis herself. Moreover, the similarity in sound between Arkas and "A/jacto? ("bear") was a great aid to the development of the story without being its cause. Arkas, Aleos, A uge. — Arkas, though generally considered to be the son of Kallioto and Zeus, was sometimes designated : ■ -s ■ ■■ % 22 GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY as the twin brother of Pan, the native god of Arkadia. One ale even makes him the child whose flesh Lykaon se.ved to Zeus but in this instance Zeus put the severed members to- .ethir and breathed into them once more the breath of Ufe. Th child was then reared to manhood in Aitoha and later followed his uncle Nyktimos as king, the country bemg named A kadia after him. Arkas wedded the nymph Erato, by whom he became the father of three sons who had many descendants, and even in our era his grave was pointed out to travellers near ^^Thetrie sons of Arkas divided the rule among themselves, and one of his grandsons, Aleos, founded the c.t>- of Tegea where he eBtablished the cult of Athene Alea. His daughter Auge ("Sunlight") had an intrigue with Herakles vvhen he visfted her city, and after^-ard secretly bore a son whom she concealed in the sacred precincts of Athene About th:s t.mc a dreadful plague came upon the land, and on consultmg the oracle as to the cause of it, Aleos was warned that the house of the goddess was harbouring an impure thing. After a search he found the child and learned of his daughter's sm. Enclosmg mother and son together in a chest, he cast them adnft upon the sea, and by the waves they were borne at length to the sho of Mysia, whence they were led to the court of Kmg Teutl as who made Auge his queen and accepted her son, now culkd Telephos, as his own. In a variation of the tale we reaa that Aleos exposed Telephos on the mouutain-side where he was suckled by a doe and after^vard found by hunters or by herds- men Auge was given to Nauplios to be killed, but her hfe was spared, and she and her son ultimately found the.r way to Mysia. We shall meet with Telephos later on m the story of the Trojan war. . , j. -i The Plague at Teuthis. -T\^^ pcoMe of the Arkad.an vil- lage of Teuthis told an interesting myth which purported to account for a visitation of sterility on their soil. The villagers had sent a certain Teuthis (or Ornytos) to command a con- MYTHS OF THE PELOPONNESOS 23 tingent of Arkadians in the war against Troy, but when the Greeks were held back at Aulis by head winds, Teuthis quar- relled with Agamemnon and threatened to lead his men back home. In the guise of a man Athere appeared to him and tried to dissuade him from his purpose, but in a fit of rage he pierced her in the thigh with his spear and withdrew to Greece. At Teuthis the goddess came before him with a wound in her thigh and a wasting disease fell upon him, while his country was stricken with a failure of the crops. The oracle of Zeus at Dodona instructed the people that if they desired to ap- pease the goddess they must, among other things, make a statue of her with a wound in its thigh, and Pausanias* naively adds, " I saw this image myself, with a purple bandage wrapt round its thigh." II. LAKONIA AND MESSENE Ldex and his Descendants.— The first man and first king of Lakonia was Lelex, who, like Pelasgos, was autochthonous, i. e. the offspring of the soil. From him the country derived its name of Lelegia, and he had two sons, one of whom, Myles, succeeded him in the sovereignty, while the other, Polykaon, became the ruler of the kingdom of Messenia. At his death Myles' dominion passed into the hands of Eurotas, the largest river of the land, whose daughter, Sparta, became the bride of Lakedaimon; Amyklas,ont of the issue of this union, begetting a famous son, Hyakinthos. Ilyakinthos. — This Hyakinthos was one of the chief per- sonages in Lakonian worship and myth. A model of youthful beauty, he was much loved by Apollo, and Zephyros, the mild West Wind, also loved him, but since his devotion was unre- quited, in an outburst of jealousy he permitted ? discus thrown by Apollo in a friendly contest to swerve aside ana kill Hyakm- thos. From the youth's blood caught by the earth sprang up the deep-red hyacinth flower,' whose foliage is marked with ^ W I ^-k 24 (]RKEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY tlK' letters AI, which signified to the Greeks "lamentation." Lonp did Apollo grieve for his friend unhappily slain by his hand. The body was buried at Amyklai where in the temple of Apollo his grave was for long years visible to passers-by, and from the mourning of Apollo was developed the great I.akonian festival, the Hyakinthia, the first days of which were devoted to a demonstration of grief, while the last day was one long outburst of joy. These two kinds of celebration marked respectivelv the alternating dying and revival of vege- tati..n as typified maii.ly by the hyacinth. The festival was probablv pre-Dorian in origin. Thr Fcmilx "/ P'rifrcs. — According to one of the genealogies, Amvklas had a grandson Perieres (or Pieres) who held the throne of Messene. By his queen Gorgophone, the daughter of Perseus, he begat four sons, Tyndareos, Aphareus, Ikarios, and Leukippos, all of whom hold prominent places in myth through the fame of their children. Ikarios became the father of Penelope, the faithful wife of Odysseus; Aphareus, of Idas and Lvnkeus; Tvndareos, of Helen, Klytaimestra (old spelling Klytemnestra), Kastor, Polydeukes, and others; and Leukip- pos, of Hilacira and Phoebe. Tymianos, Helen, Kastor and Polydeukes. -Tyndareos was cxpe'lled from Sparta by his brothers, and, until restored to his kingdom by Heraklcs, he took refuge with Thestios, kmg of the Aitolians, whose daughter, Leda, he married. Tlie story of the birth of his daughter, Helen, is variously told The version most widely known is that which depicts Leda as a human being approached by Zeus in the guise of a swan, Helen, the ofTspring of this union, being therefore Leda s own child. A late version, on the other hand, represents her as the daughter of Nemesis. It seems that Nemesis, after taking various other forms in order to elude the amorous pur- suit of Zeus, finally assumed that of a swan, but by appearing in the same shape Zeus deceived her. After the manner of birds she laid an egg which was found by a peasant (or by - l :■ ; m ■ PLATF. XI The CoNlEST Ft)R Marpissa On the rijiht the tall, athletic man drawing his how !> Idas, and before him stands Marpessa, a tigurc re- plete with feminine graces, who casts a look of ijuict submission upon her lover. Halancmg Idas in the composition is Apollo, a lithe and relatively immature voung man, m-king ready to place an arrow on the string; and beside him is his huntress-sister, Artemis, carrdng a quiver and wearing a fawn-skin on her >houlders. The man striding between the two groups as if to part them, must be Kvcnos, Marpessa's father, and nt)t Zeus. From a red-tigured vase, apparently of the school of Douris (about 500 B.C.), found at Giriienti, and now in Munich (Furtwangler-Rcich- huld, Gritchiiihf raunmaUrfi, No. if)). Sec pp. 27- 28. n 11 I ^'i MYTHS OF THE PELOPOXXESOS Tyndareos) and taken to Lcda. In due time Helen emerged from the ceg and was cherished by Leda as of her own flesh and blood. When she was nearing womanhood her parents sent her to Dolpliol to inquire of the oracle concerning her mar- riage. One day, wliile the response was being awaited, she hap- pened to be dancini -n the temple of Artemis at Sparta, when Theseus of Atf m- Tid I^i^ friend Peirithoos suddenly appeared and seized her. The two drew lots for her possession, and she was given to "i f , us, who c: .rricd her oflF to Attike and left her in charge or iiis mother Aithra in the mountain village of Aphidnai. Helen's brothers, Kastor and Polydeukes, thinking that she was at Athens, went thither and demanded her re- lease, only to met t with refusal. Xot long afterward, however, when Theseus departed for a distant country, the brothers learned of the place of Helen's concealment and by a sudden attack succeeded in carrying her home along with her custo- dian Aithra. The citizens of Athens, alarmed at the military demonstration of Kastor and Polydeukes, admitted them into their city and thereafter accorded them divine honours. This mj^h we can probably put down as a fiction to account both for an early clash between Athens and Sparta and for the in- troduction of the worship of Kastor and Polydeukes into the city first named. On returning to her home after this, the earliest of her many adventures with men, Helen and her parents (particularly the latter, as we may readily surmise) were much perplexed by the importunity of a multitude of suitors for her hand. It was decided that the matter be settled by lot, but before the lots were cast Tyndareos, fearing trouble from those of the suitors who would be doomed to disappointment, shrewdly persuaded them to consent to swear that they would one and all defend Helen and the successful suitor in the event of her being wronged in the future. They took their oaths over the severed pieces of a horse, and the oaths were "bound," as magic terms it, by the burial of the pieces. By the lots Helen became the Mil i 26 GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY wife of Menclaoi: of Arg-s. Her later adventures belong to the story of the great Trojan War. Helen's twin brothers, Kastor and Poiydeukes, were known jointly as the Dioskouroi, "sons of Zeus," although it was popularly believed that only Poiydeukes was ii. fact the son of the god, Tyndareos being the father of the other. These brothers were conspicuous figures in Spartan cult and myth, and were regarded by the ancient Greeks in general as the outstanding exponents of heroic virtue and valour. So faithful and deep was their affection for one another that their two per- sonalities were blended as into one, and thus they stood as the divine guardians of friendship. They excelled in athletic sports and feats of arms, Kastor being the type of expert horseman and Poiydeukes that of the skilful boxer, while to the accom- paniment of Athene's flute they are said to have invented the Spartan military dance. Their altar stood at the entrance to the hippodrome at Olympia, and they appeared frequently on the heroic stage. They participated in the voyage of the Ar- gonauts and in the great hunt at Kalydon, and at Sparta they fought against Enarsphoros, the son of Hippokoon, but their chief military exploit was their sanguinary encounter with their cousins Idas and Lynk