The myths of Ancient Greece had a huge impact on the formation of European literature, and for scientists these works of collective folk art to this day are a source of knowledge of the evolution of human psychology. In addition, they are an inexhaustible source of inspiration for artists, poets and musicians. In particular, many Renaissance painters painted canvases on the theme of the myth in which Perseus kills the Gorgon Medusa.
Myths: the beginning of the beginning
According to the myths of Ancient Greece, at first only Skotos existed in the Universe, who personified the Mist. Then Chaos emerged from it. Having united, they gave birth to Night, Gloom and Love (Nikta, Erebus and Eros).
These main gods became the parents of the Earth and Sky (Gaia and Uranus), as well as deities personifying the elements, hekatoncheire, titans and titanides. The latter included Rhea and Kronos, from whom the Olympian gods originated. The latter became the main charactersancient Greek myths and gave rise to extensive offspring, including demigods and demigoddesses, in which the divine nature was combined with the human.
Olympus
The ancient Greeks believed that their main deities live on the highest mountain of the country, the top of which is always shrouded in clouds. The real Olympus is located in the north-east of modern Greece, and in ancient times the border with Macedonia passed along the ridge of this mountain range. Dwelled there:
- the supreme god Zeus - the lord of the sky, lightning and thunder - and his wife Hera, patronizing marriage and family love;
- ruler of the realm of the dead Hades;
- Goddess of agriculture and fertility Demeter;
- Lord of the Sea Poseidon;
- hearth goddess Hestia.
Then the father-god Zeus gave birth to 4 sons and 3 daughters, who joined the host of the Olympic gods. They were Athena, Ares, Persephone, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, Apollo, Artemis and Dionysus.
Demigods
Olympians, and extremely rarely Olympians, did not hesitate to enter into a love affair with mortals. It was from this love that the demigods Achilles, Hercules, Jason, Hector, Pelops, Theseus, Orpheus, Bellerophon, Odysseus, Phoroneus, Aeneas and Perseus originated. The latter became the one who killed the Gorgon Medusa and freed the beautiful Andromeda. All the demigods were heroes with supernatural abilities, which they often used to help other people. At the same time, unlike their fathers, they were mortal.
From whom did Perseus come - the hero who killed Medusa-gorgon
Remember how, in the tale of Tsar S altan, the queen with the baby is put in a tarred barrel and thrown into the abyss of water? So Pushkin borrowed this story from the myth of the hero Perseus. It was believed that the father of the young man was Zeus himself, who entered the tower to the daughter of the king of Argos Acrisius Danae in the form of golden rain. Perseus' grandfather was once predicted to die at the hands of his grandson, so he, without hesitation, got rid of the princess and her newborn son, placing them in a box and throwing them into the sea at the mercy of Poseidon.
Gorgon Medusa
This monster maiden, who turns everything living into stone with her gaze, was one of the three gorgons - the daughters of the sea deities Forkya and Keto. She was distinguished by her extraordinary beauty, so Poseidon fell in love with her. He chose the temple of Athena for comfort, thereby defiling the sanctuary. The wrath of the vengeful goddess knew no bounds, and she turned Medusa into a monster. The unfortunate maiden hated the whole world and moved to a lonely island, where she waited for travelers, whom she turned into stone statues. Her sisters followed her and turned into terrible monsters themselves. However, they did not possess her terrible power.
Fight with the Gorgon
According to the myth, Perseus was brought up in the house of Dictis. His brother fell in love with the hero's mother, Danae, and decided to get rid of her son. He sent the young man after the head of Medusa the Gorgon, but Athena began to patronize Perseus, and Hermes and Hades gave him winged sandals, a sickle and an invisibility helmet.
On the advice of the celestials, the young man first visited the three Gray sisters, who had one for threeeye. Perseus stole it and returned it only after they showed him the way to the island of the Gorgon. Arriving at the dwelling of Medusa, the young man entered into a fight, during which he looked not at her, but at the reflection in the mirror shield. He managed to cut off the head of the monster with an adamant sickle, and on the advice of Athena, he hid it in a bag. The sisters of Medusa wanted to take revenge on the hero, but he used an invisibility cap, thanks to which he was able to escape from the island unnoticed.
After that, everyone in Hellas found out who killed the Gorgon Medusa. Perseus became famous as a hero, and Athena finally quenched her revenge. She informed the demigod that he had a powerful weapon in his hands, since a severed head could come to life and petrify everything that she looked at. However, the goddess warned that it would be possible to use the power of Medusa only once, since then she would turn to stone.
Andromeda
In those days, in the city of Yoppa (Ethiopia), King Kefei and his wife, Queen Cassiopeia, ruled. They had a daughter, Andromeda, who overshadowed the beauty of the sea maidens of the Nerids. Driven by envy, they turned to Poseidon for help, and he sent a cruel monster to the city, and also ordered the oracle to announce that Joppa would be saved only if Andromeda was sacrificed to the sea monster. The god of the seas could not assume that the one who killed the Gorgon Medusa would come to the aid of the unfortunate maiden. However, things did not turn out the way the nerids had planned.
Whom Perseus killed with the head of Medusa the Gorgon
On the way to the islandSerif the hero ended up in the vicinity of Joppa. Passing along the coast, he saw the beautiful Andromeda tied to a cliff. The girl ended up there, as the townspeople forced the king to give his child to the monster. They hoped that, having torn to pieces Andromeda, the monster would return to the depths of the sea and would no longer disturb the inhabitants of Joppa. They did not suspect that the one who killed the Gorgon Medusa would be nearby.
Perseus fell in love with Andromeda at first sight and promised to save her if she marries him. The girl promised, and the hero slew the monster with the gaze of Medusa. Thus, Perseus lost the ability to rule the whole world, keeping mortals in fear of the power of the gorgon. But he won the love of Andromeda.
Further destiny
The one who got the head of the Gorgon Medusa and killed the sea monster was a demigod, and therefore mortal. Having accomplished his feat, he went to Serif and learned that his mother had been persecuted. This aroused his anger, and he de alt with King Polydectes and his entourage. Then the hero built the city of Mycenae, where he reigned together with Andromeda, who bore him a daughter and six sons.
One day Perseus decided to visit his grandfather together with Danae. Acrisius remembered the prediction and refused to accept his daughter and grandson. A few more years passed, and one day the hero was invited to throw a discus. He did not refuse, but the unforeseen happened and the projectile killed one of the assembled spectators. As it turned out, it was Acrisius, who could not deceive fate.
At the end of his life, Perseus fought for a long time with the king of Argos Proetus andkilled him in a fierce fight. When the son of the murdered ruler Megapenth grew up, he persuaded the hero to exchange kingdoms with him, and then killed him during a duel. So ended his life Perseus - the son of Zeus, whom the Hellenes glorified as the founder of one of the most powerful and rich policies of the Ancient World.
Now you know which hero killed the Gorgon Medusa, and you are also familiar with the main characters of ancient Greek myths.
