Saturday, 10 January 2015

Theseus and Pirithous

In Greek mythology, Theseus and Pirithous were described as best friends. When Pirithous wife (Hippodamia) died, Pirithous came to Athens and found that Theseus' wife Phaedra was also dead. Pirithous and Theseus, who had grown older, conceived new and extraordinary ideas with regard to woman, they decided to marry daughters of Zeus.

Theseus and Pirthous kidnapping Helen

Theseus chose young girl Helen and together they kidnapped her, intending to keep her until she was old enough to marry. Pirithous chose Persephone, the queen of underworld. Pirithous and Theseus left Helen with Theseus' mother Aethra and traveled to the underworld domain of Persephone and her husband Hades. As they wandered through the outskirts of underworld, they sat down to rest on the rock. Soon they found themself unable to stand up from the rock and saw the Erinyes appear before them. Pirithous and Theseus were stretched out and tortured by Erinyes. Before Erinyes, their courage failed and were crying out for help. According to some version, Hades, the king of underworld, cheerfully welcomed Pirithous and Theseus in the underworld and asked them to take a sit. When they sat on the chair, they saw themselves grow fast to the chair of forgetfulness, being held there either because the rock grew to their flash or by coils of snakes. Pirithous and Theseus were stretched out and tortured by Erinyes. Later Hercules found them when he came to underworld to fetch Hades' three-headed hound Cerberus (Hercules twelveth labour). Hercules freed Theseus but when he tried to free Pirithous, the earth shook. As Pirithous had committed greater crime as he wanted to marry the queen of underworld. So Pirithous was stuck forever in underworld. According to other version, Pirithous was the bad company for Theseus. Pirithous persuaded Theseus to carry off young girl Helen. Having succeeded, they play dice game to see who was to marry the young girl Helen, agreeing that the winner would marry Helen, and also help other to get a wife. Theseus win the dice game and had to follow Pirithous to the underworld, because Pirithous wanted to make Persephone his wife.

Theseus and Pirithous playing dice game to marry Helen

In a rare version, Theseus and Pirithous were described as lovers. Also when Hercules attempted to free them from the rock to which they had been bound together in the underworld (for having tried to carry off Persephone), he succeeded in freeing only Theseus and left behind his buttocks, attached to the rock. So Theseus was also called Hypolispo which means "with hinder parts rubbed smooth".Index

Does anyone know how long Theseus was stuck in the underworld because I have found something that doesn't fit...It is said that Heracles boarded the Argo BEFORE his last task which was to go to the underworld and fetch Cerberus, the monstrous three-headed dog. But Medea, Jason, and the rest of the Argonauts sailed back from Colchis and settled down again just before when Jason tried to divorce Medea and she killed her and Jason's own kids then fled to become Theseus' evil stepmother but Heracles by this point had completed all his tasks so he must have been to the underworld and back before Theseus had killed the Minotaur let alone if Theseus was a fully grown adult and a king so the timing in these Ancient Greek myths couldn't have been right so how does this work?? Am I the only one who has realised this?