How other fascinating "fairy tales for adults" from Ancient Greece were fooled by the gods of people

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Greek mythology is full of fascinating stories related to the transformation into other creatures and not only: from Zeus, who took the form of a golden rain to seduce Danae, to Circe, who turned Odysseus's companions into pigs. And this is only a small part of what the characters of Greek mythology had to face, constantly balancing on the edge between people, gods and nature.

The master of reincarnation in Greek mythology is Proteus, the sea god who constantly changes form and always avoids answering questions. However, transformation is the main theme of many stories in the classical canon. From Homer's Odyssey to Ovid's Metamorphoses, there are many stories in which a hero or god is transformed into something else. In fact, it seems that it was common in Greek and Roman myths for gods to change shape in order to seduce mortals … The gods also had the power to transform other people into other beings in order to punish or reward.

These transformations often played an important role in the cult of certain deities. The attempt to relive, reproduce, or perpetuate the transformation that took place in an imaginary space that was represented by Greek mythology was often central to mystical rituals and folk festivals.

But most of all, these makeover stories show the fascination with living experiences. They also point to an early attempt to understand the natural world by exploring its limits.

Finally, it is worth noting that these mythological transformations were not only part of the animistic worldview that spirits inhabit everything from trees to rivers to statues. They were also part of a rich folk tradition that has parallels in almost every other culture in the world.

1. The myth of Dionysus

In one myth, Dionysus, the god of wine, took the form of a youth and began to wander the earth. Near the sea, several Tyrrhenian pirates saw and kidnapped the god, unaware of his true identity. While the pirates were tying Dionysus, intending to sell him into slavery, the ship's pilot named Aket (Akoit) realized that something was wrong with the kidnapped character. Believing that a god was hiding behind the young man, Aket tried in vain to stop his comrades.

The pirates did not listen to the pilot, and finally, Dionysus revealed his true nature, filling the ship with vines and beasts. Terrified, the pirates abandoned the ship and dived into the sea. Jumping, they turned into dolphins. The only one who passed the evil fate was Aket.

2. History of Ganymede

Ganymede's story usually comes up in every conversation about pedophilia in ancient Greece. According to the myth, Ganymede was born in Troy. As a young man of exceptional beauty, he attracted the attention of the gods, or rather, Zeus. Then the latter turned into an eagle and kidnapped Ganymede, bringing him to Olympus. There the young man served as the cupbearer of the gods. Zeus made sure that Ganymede remained immortal and forever young.

In Virgil, Hera, Zeus' wife, viewed Ganymede as an adversary who has an erotic relationship with Zeus. This story has become one of the most favorite topics not only among artists, but also poets, who at any opportunity mentioned it.

3. The story of Leda and Swan

Leda was the daughter of the Aetolian king Testius (Festius). The day she married her husband Tyndareus was also the day she attracted the interest of Zeus.

Then the father of the gods took the form of a swan and seduced Leda. After that, Leda spent the night with Tyndareus. The result of this story was even stranger. The beautiful Leda gave birth to two eggs, from which came Elena Troyanskaya, Clytemnestra, Castor and Pollux. Ancient sources disagree about who was the son and daughter of Zeus, and who was the children - Tyndareus.

4. Abduction of Europa

The story of Europa's abduction is another story of Zeus turning into an animal to seduce a mortal woman. In this case, the god took the form of a bull. Europa was a descendant of the nymph Io of Phenicia. Zeus turned into a white bull and mixed with other animals at the court of her father, Agenor, king of Tyr. At some point, Europe stroked the bull and climbed onto its back. Zeus did not miss the opportunity and kidnapped the woman to the island of Crete, where Europe became queen and gave her name to the entire continent now known as Europe.

5. Danae's story

The story of Danae is connected with the most famous character in Greek mythology - one of the most powerful Olympian gods, Zeus. Zeus often appeared in the guise of an eagle, swan or bull. However, out of love for the beautiful Danae, the mother of Perseus, Zeus went much further, in order to take possession of the girl, he turned into a golden rain.

The story is as follows. Danae was the daughter of Acrisius, king of Argos. Acrisius received a prophecy that said that his daughter's son would kill him. To make sure that the prophecy would not come true, Acrisius imprisoned Danae in a bronze chamber specially made for her under the royal palace. And this plan would have worked if not for the game of the gods. In short, Zeus took the form of a rain of gold and crept through the roof of Danae's room. In the end, Danae gave birth to Perseus, and Acrisius realized that resisting fate was useless.

6. Pygmalion and Galatea

Pygmalion was a sculptor who was disappointed by the immorality of some women. Deciding to abstain from female companionship, he made every effort to create the perfect sculpture of a woman. Pygmalion eventually created the most beautiful female image. She was so perfect that he became obsessed with her. Before Pygmalion had time to come to his senses, he fell in love with the statue and began to call her his wife.

At the feast of Aphrodite, the goddess of love, Pygmalion pleaded with the goddess to give him a wife like his statue, and the goddess listened. When the sculptor returned home, he found that his sculpture became more and more alive the more he touched it. In the end, Pygmalion's desire was fulfilled, Aphrodite, moved by such an obsession, revived the statue, giving Pygmalion the desired beloved.

7. Apollo and Daphne

Once Apollo, the god of music, insulted Eros, the god of love. Then Eros came up with the perfect revenge. Using his powers, he made Apollo feel a strong attraction to the river nymph Daphne. However, he also made sure Daphne fought back against Apollo.

God could not control his emotions and hunted down Daphne, who also vowed to remain a virgin for life. Apollo was hunting Daphne and at the last moment, when he grabbed her, she screamed, calling for help from her father, the river god Peneus. Peney then turned Daphne into a laurel tree (literally "Daphne's tree" in Greek). Apollo never forgot about his love for Daphne and took care of the tree and that its leaves always remain green.

8. Narcissus

Narcissus was an extremely handsome young man whose beauty attracted the attention of a nymph named Echo. When she confessed her love to him, Narcissus rejected her and asked to leave him alone. Heartbroken, Echo left and began to wander alone. Her grief was so great that her body disappeared into thin air. The only thing that remains is her voice, which is still heard in the forests and mountains.

Echo's sad ending enraged the goddess of revenge, Nemesis, who decided to punish Narcissus. One day, Nemesis lured a young man to drink water from a lake with calm, mirror-like water. Narcissus saw his reflection in the water and fell in love with him.

Narcissus's tragic end came shortly thereafter. As soon as he realized that his idol was out of his reach, the guy felt an unspeakable pain. Having given up life, he lay down on the ground and turned into a flower with white petals and a yellow "heart".

9. The myth of Circe

In Homer's epic poem The Odyssey, Odysseus and his companion try to return to Ithaca after the Trojan War. On the way back, they are washed to the shore of the island, where a powerful witch lives - one of the most interesting characters in Greek mythology named Circe.

Circe invites Odysseus's companions to a feast and uses her powers to turn them into pigs. Only one person manages to escape, and he runs back to Odysseus and his other companions to inform them of what happened.

With the help of Hermes, Odysseus will be able to convince Circe to break the spell and make his companions human again. The strangest thing in this story is not that Circe turned Odysseus's people into pigs, but that he lived with her for one year, and they had two sons.

10. The myth of Medusa

Few other Greek myths have received as much attention as the Gorgon Medusa myth. Everyone more or less knows what Medusa is capable of. Instead of hair, she has a snake, and her gaze turns all those who look at her into stone.

But how did Medusa get like this? It all started when Poseidon, the god of the ocean, raped Medusa in the temple of Athena. The goddess, unable to take revenge on one of her equals, the immortal Olympian god, directed her anger for the sacrilege of her sacred space to innocent Medusa.

Athena turned the girl into a hideous creature, so terrible that she turned everyone who looked at her to stone. More disturbing than this injustice was what Athena did next.

Feeling contempt for Medusa's punishment, she decided to help the hero Perseus in his quest to kill a terrible creature. In the end, Perseus decapitated Medusa, and Athena took the head of the unfortunate woman and hung it on her aegis, where she remained hanging like a kind of trophy.

11. The myth of Cadmus

When Zeus kidnapped Europa, Cadmus, Europa's brother, began wandering around Greece in search of his sister. When he reached Delphi, he consulted with the oracle, who told him to stop looking for Europa. Instead, he was told to follow the cow and build a city where she lay.

Cadmus acted accordingly. In the place where the cow lay, he decided to sow the teeth of the dragon he killed in one of his adventures. Teeth have become a group of powerful warriors. With their help, Cadmus founded Thebes.

12. Deucalion

Deucalion is one of the most interesting characters in Greek mythology. He was considered the ancestor of the Greeks, just as in many stories of Greek mythology, Perseus was considered the ancestor of the Persians.

In Greek mythology, Deucalion is a character with a story that apparently parallels Noah's story in the Old Testament. More specifically, Deucalion appears as the man who made the ark to save himself and his wife Pyrrha from the flood sent by Zeus to destroy humanity.

Deucalion and his wife roamed the flooded land until they finally found salvation at the top of Mount Parnassus. After sacrificing to the gods, the couple asked how humanity could be revived. Hermes, the messenger of God, told them to throw stones behind them as they walk. Deucalion and Pyrrha acted accordingly. The stones thrown by Deucalion turned into men, and the stones of Pyrrha into women. Thus, humanity was born again.

One can talk about Greece indefinitely, admiring its rich nature and no less rich culture, as well as a history full of breathtaking events. The Delphic Oracle was no exception., which to this day is revered by many Greeks, because in ancient times it was very important to them.