S3E2 - Heracles Pt. 2 - The Twelve Labors of Heracles

The stories featured in Greaking Out are original adaptations of classic Greek myths.

This week's story features poisonous poop, human-eating horses, a war between lovers, lots of livestock theft, and using your brains instead of your bra.

The 12 labors of Heracles, Part 2.

Heracles, Hercules.

No matter how you say that name, you know it's the biggest one in all of mythology.

But since we're all about Greek mythology, we will use the proper original Greek pronunciation of the hero's name and call him Heracles.

Yes, and Heracles appears in so many different stories and adventures that it's actually kind of hard to find some without him.

But today, we're just going to focus on the 12 labors of Heracles.

In fact, I think that's where we left off, isn't it, Oracle?

Yes, the 10 labors of Heracles had just become 12.

Right.

So from day one, Heracles was on the naughty list of Hera, queen of the gods, and wife to the mighty Zeus.

He was Zeus's son from another woman, and well, Hera was maybe just a teeny bit jealous, so she tricked Zeus into decreeing that Heracles would have to serve his cousin, King Eurystheus, before he could become eligible for god status.

And Eurystheus, with help from Hera, came up with a whole list of practically impossible tasks for our hero to perform.

Originally, there were supposed to be 10, but the jealous Eurystheus changed the rules in the middle of the game and added two more to the list.

Which puts us at

number six.

Oh, it's a countdown now.

I like it.

Okay, labor number six, the Stymphalian birds.

A little backstory here.

Aries, the god of war, decides that he needs some special fighting birds that he can use in battle.

So he creates a flock of these amazing giant eagle beasts.

They have bronze beaks, metallic feathers that they can fling at people like arrows, and they eat human beings.

Lovely pets, right?

Also, their dung is poisonous.

Wait, what?

They are giant birds with poison poop.

Wow, that's kind of overdoing it, don't you think?

Maybe that's why Aries himself banished the creatures from Olympus.

They were hunted down by wolves, and eventually they settled in a swampy part of Arcadia called Stymphalia to escape.

But they've been terrorizing the nearby villages and farms ever since they moved in, so Heracles was sent to the rescue.

He journeyed to Stymphalia, and the nearby villagers directed him to a swamp near a large lake where he could find the nests of these evil birds and destroy them.

But the birds had chosen their hiding spot wisely.

The nests were deep in the swamp and it was impossible for Heracles to make his way through to get to them.

He spent days sloshing around the swamp, going in circles, trying to find his way.

If only there was a way to get the birds to come to him.

That night, in front of his campfire, Heracles prayed to the gods for help.

And that's when he got an idea.

Now, if you've been listening to the show, you'll know from our Arachne episode that there's one god who's usually behind genius ideas.

Athena.

She visited Heracles that night and gave him some divine inspiration.

He needed to make noise.

He needed to startle the birds and make them fly out of their nests so he could shoot them down.

And then Athena, with the help of Hephaestus, blacksmith to the gods, created a giant rattle.

So he took...

Wait a minute.

A rattle?

Like a baby's rattle?

Perhaps, Technically, a rattle is a percussion instrument that creates a sound when shaken.

This rattle is called a sistrum.

Picture, a stick with a circle on one end, with rattly bits hanging in the middle of the circle.

So we should think of it more like a maraca?

If it helps.

Okay, maracas of the gods then.

Either way, Heracles was grateful for the gift.

He shook that rattle like his life depended on it, and sure enough, the whole swamp echoed with a strange rhythmic shaking sound that disturbed the Stymphalian birds so much that they immediately took to the air.

Heracles notched arrows in his bow and let them fly.

The sun gleaming off their bronze beaks and metal feathers made the birds easy targets, and Heracles brought them down one at a time, saving the nearby townspeople and completing his sixth task.

Number seven.

So we're gonna do that every time then?

It makes us sound cool.

Okay, if you say so.

On to the seventh labor of Heracles, capturing the Cretan bull.

Really, there's not a lot to this one.

Remember the giant white bull in the story of Theseus and the Minotaur?

The one that King Minos was supposed to sacrifice to Poseidon but didn't?

Yeah, that's the one.

This giant bull running around Crete, terrorizing everybody until Heracles shows up and captures it.

Fun fact, when Heracles delivers the bull to King Eurystheus and Tyrans, the king says he doesn't want it.

He's scared of the thing.

He decides to dedicate the bull to Hera, but she doesn't want it either.

Eventually, they wind up releasing the bull in the fields of Marathon where, guess who?

Theseus has to deal with it.

Man, that guy has some bad cow karma.

Number eight.

The eighth labor of Heracles was to capture the mares of Diomedes.

And this one seemed kind of simple at first.

There were only four horses.

Heracles just had to go get them and bring them back to King Eurystheus.

But things are not always what they seem.

First of all, the horses were currently the property of a mean and devious giant named Diomedes who ruled over the kingdom of Thrace.

Second of all, these horses were not happy horses.

Though they were beautiful and fast and strong, they'd also been mistreated by their horrible owner and acted more like hungry wolves than horses.

Diomedes kept them chained up to a bronze manger most days.

So when Heracles arrived in Thrace, he heard stories of the terrible conditions the horses were kept in from the local townspeople.

There were rumors that these horses had gone mad because the giant Diomedes fed them human flesh, which is just gross.

I mean, I thought horses just ate grass and stuff.

Technically, horses are omnivorous.

This means they can eat plants and meat.

Mostly though, horses in the wild eat grass and brush.

They can stay healthy with very little food, and they aren't natural hunters.

Well, these horses were still pretty terrifying.

Oh, and they breathe fire.

Did I mention that?

Heracles had to wonder why Eurystheus even wanted these crazy mares in the first place.

Was it going to be like that time Eurystheus asked him to get the Cretan bull, but he didn't actually want the Cretan bull?

Or maybe Eurystheus was worried about the horses themselves.

It didn't matter, though.

Heracles had a job to do.

He had to do what Eurystheus said said either way, so he just tried to stay focused on the job at hand.

Late one night, Heracles snuck into the stables of Diomedes' palace and freed the horses by cutting their bronze chains.

At first, they seemed totally normal.

But as soon as they were free, they leapt at Heracles, snarling and biting like dogs.

Heracles couldn't believe what he was seeing.

He reached for his sword, but remembered that his job was to capture the horses, not kill them.

So he used his mighty club instead, swinging it around himself and keeping the horses away.

After a few moments, the mares realized he wasn't worth the fight and seized their freedom instead.

They took off, galloping away into the night.

And Heracles took off after them.

He ran, following their tracks as best he could and occasionally catching a glimpse of their fiery breath in the night.

As dawn approached, the horses began to slow their pace and decided to graze and rest on on a small peninsula by the sea, unaware that Heracles had followed.

A peninsula is a piece of land projecting out into a body of water.

It is usually surrounded by water on three sides, but still connected to the mainland, like a finger sticking out from a hand.

Heracles saw his chance.

He could trap the horses here and then figure out how to calm them for the journey home later.

Once again, he decided to dig.

Using his shield, his sword, and even his bare hands, the mighty Heracles dug a canal at the base of the peninsula, going from one side to the other.

Dirt and earth flew everywhere, and the mares of Diomedes seemed confused, like backing away from the commotion.

Before long, the trench filled with water from the sea.

Heracles had turned the peninsula into an island, and the horses were trapped.

But by now, the giant Diomedes had seen what was happening.

He noticed that his mares were gone immediately, and it was an easy task for him to follow the hoofprints and track down Heracles.

Seeing his horses trapped on an island, Diomedes roared in outrage and rushed at Heracles, swinging his axe.

But the mighty Heracles fought back.

There was a great battle, Heracles swinging his club and his sword, Diomedes chopping and heaving his great axe at the smaller foe.

This went on for a while, and eventually, both warriors began to tire.

Unfortunately for Diomedes, his axe was heavy and clumsy and hard to wield when he was exhausted.

Heracles knew this and took advantage.

He battered the giant with his club again and again, pushing Diomedes towards the sea.

The giant staggered back away from Heracles and stumbled over the canal.

His long legs wobbled, and Diomedes fell to the ground on the island with a herd of very hungry, very angry, carnivorous horses.

Omnivorous.

Horses are omnivorous.

Pigs are also omnivorous and have been known to eat people who fall down into their pens.

Okay, well, I definitely didn't need to know that.

All knowledge is valuable.

Is it?

Yes.

Okay, well, agree to disagree.

You can use your imagination to decide what happened to Diomedes.

He was eaten by the horses he abused.

Thanks, Oracle.

Yeah, okay, that's what happened.

And the evil giant Diomedes was no more.

Strangely, Heracles noticed that the horses calmed after that.

By devouring their evil master, it was as if the horses had broken a spell.

After a time, Heracles realized that he could gently lead them, even ride them.

and he brought them back to King Eurystheus victorious once again.

I think this is a good place for a commercial message, don't you?

Agreed.

Heracles' ninth labor is coming up next.

Hey there!

Do you ever wonder what would happen if Cinderella started her own rock band or if Medusa realized just how cool her hair was?

Well, there's a Webby award-winning show called Girl Tales that takes classic stories and puts a unique twist on them, giving girls the chance to save the day, use their intelligence and bravery, and show that they can be the heroes of their own stories.

If you are are ready for an adventure, find girl tales wherever you get your podcasts.

Headlines leap out at us from mobile phones, TV screens, computers, newspapers, and everywhere we turn.

But how much of it is news?

And how much of it is just noise?

Or worse, misinformation?

Get the skills you need to tell fact from fiction with Breaking the News, a new book from National Geographic.

Check out bit.ly forward slash ngbreaking to learn more.

That's bit.ly forward slash ngbr eaki n g

and now back to the 12 labors of Heracles.

Number nine

stealing the girdle from the queen of the Amazons.

Amazon, a multinational technology company based in Seattle, Washington.

Yeah, no, actually, not that Amazon Oracle.

The Amazon Rainforest is a jungle in South America that stretches Is that also not the right Amazon?

The Amazons were a tribe of mythical warrior women who were frequently enemies of the ancient Greeks.

They appeared in many myths.

That's the one.

Also, a girdle is a large belt worn around the waist.

Yes, thanks for that.

So for his next task, Heracles had to steal a large fancy belt from Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons.

King Eurystheus said he wanted to give it to his daughter Admete, but really, I think he just wanted to send Heracles into another tough fight.

Unfortunately for him, fighting didn't seem to be on the agenda.

When Heracles landed in the country of the Amazons, he didn't just start screaming and swinging his club.

He met with Queen Hippolyta and explained the situation.

To be honest, they kind of hit it off, and a romance began to form between the two.

After a short time, Hippolyta offered to just give the girdle to Heracles.

He didn't even need to draw his sword.

I mean, let's face it, they had a lot in common.

They both wear armor a lot.

They both like swords.

They're both good at fighting monsters.

Well, Hera, queen of the gods, did not like this at all.

She and King Eurystheus were counting on the Amazons to vanquish Heracles, or at least try.

And all they got was some candlelight dinners and some smooching.

So Hera descended from Olympus and started spreading rumors among the Amazon warriors that Heracles actually wanted to steal Hippolyta away from them.

And watching their queen fall in love with his handsome strangers made those rumors seem more real to the Amazons.

Eventually, this led to fighting.

Even Hippolyta herself began to question Heracles' intentions, and when she drew her sword against him, there was a terrible battle between the two.

In the end, Queen Hippolyta was killed, and Heracles was once again victorious, although he sure didn't feel that way.

He returned to King Eurystheus with the prize, another task complete, and another love lost.

Number 10.

We're in the home stretch.

The 10th labor of Heracles was to steal the cattle of the monster Garyon.

Garyon was indeed a monster.

He was a grotesque giant with three heads, three arms, and three sets of legs.

But he had really nice cows.

A whole herd of magnificent red cattle that he guarded jealously.

And he had a giant two-headed dog named Orthus to help him out.

This dog is actually the brother of Cerberus, the three-headed dog guarding the underworld.

Garyon also had a great warrior named Eurytion who stood guard over his cattle with Orthus by his side.

This wasn't going to be easy for Heracles.

But first, he had to get there.

Garyon lived on an island, which some say was near the border of Europe and Libya, so it was a long journey from Greece.

First, Heracles had to march a long way to the sea.

Then he needed to find a way to sail across the ocean to the island.

The journey was long and hard and hot.

At one point, Heracles was so hot and tired and grumpy that he shot an arrow at the sun itself and almost hit the target.

Helios, the god of the sun who drives the flaming chariot across the sky every day, was quite impressed.

It took a lot of courage and skill to shoot at the sun like that.

So he gave Heracles a gift.

It was a magic goblet that could expand into the size and shape of a boat.

And Heracles used it to sail to Garium's island.

But that part of the trip was exhausting too.

It was a long ride, especially in a glorified cup, and Heracles was running out of patience.

He was almost to his destination when the sea seemed to dead end on the shores of a mountain.

Sailing around it would take so much more time, so Heracles used his mighty strength and swung his club, splitting the mountain in two so he could continue his journey.

This passage is known today as the Strait of Gibraltar, the gateway from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

When Heracles finally landed on Garrion's island, it didn't take him long to find the herd of cattle.

I mean, they were red, kind of easy to spot.

But the two-headed dog Orthus found Heracles first.

He leaped at the hero, grabbing onto his sword hand with one hand while snapping at his throat with the other.

But Heracles was just able to reach his club.

He shook free of the dog and then sent it flying with one mighty swing of his.

The guard Eurydion was next.

He didn't stand much of a chance against the mighty Heracles, and so Heracles was able to start loading the cattle onto his ship right away.

But by now, Word had gotten to Garyon, and the giant grabbed his spears and his shields and charged at the hero.

That's when Heracles remembered the Hydra.

The monster he had defeated back in Lerna had poisoned blood and Herc had saved some of it.

He dipped his arrow tips in the poison and sent three arrows flying at the charging giant.

Each one struck home and the giant Garyon fell dead to the ground before Heracles.

The journey back to King Eurystheus and Tyrons was full of other adventures.

In a way, getting the cattle was the easy part.

Getting them home proved to be even harder, but we have other labors for our hero to get to, so we'll skip ahead and just say that Heracles eventually returned the herd of cattle to Eurystheus and checked another task off his heroic to-do list.

Number 11.

For his next labor, Heracles was instructed to steal the apples of Hesperides.

Yes, once again, he had to go someplace far away, take something that didn't belong to him, and bring it back to King Eurystheus.

By this time, both Hera and Eurystheus were getting pretty antsy.

This was almost the last labor.

Maybe they were having fun toying with Heracles at first, but now it was crunch time.

They needed to come up with a job that would really put Heracles in danger and not just physically.

And this one was a doozy.

You see, these beautiful golden apples belonged to Hera herself.

They were a wedding present from Zeus and they had one very special magical trait.

They would grant immortality to anyone who ate them.

So these apples were given to Zeus's daughter, the nymph Hesperus, to care for and protect.

She took them to a hidden island at the edge of the world, almost impossible to find, and brought along a dragon with a hundred heads to protect them.

So this means that in order to complete this labor, Heracles had to kill a dragon and then fight and maybe kill his own half-sisters just so he could steal from his father and the goddess that most wanted him dead.

Even if he wins, he loses.

That was a pretty devious plan from Hera.

Heracles wasn't sure how he was going to pull this off, but he had to try.

So he set off in the direction of the world's edge, hoping to somehow find the garden of Hesperides.

Eventually, Heracles found himself at the base of a great mountain, Mount Caucasus.

and from somewhere near the top, he could hear terrible, terrible screaming.

Without even thinking, Heracles raced up the mountain to help.

And this is where he found poor Prometheus, bloodied and chained to a giant boulder.

Prometheus is a...

You know what, Oracle?

I'm sorry, but Prometheus has a whole deal.

And we may get to him in a later episode, but in the interest of focusing on Heracles' labors, let's just say Prometheus was being punished for something he did, like those people in Tartarus we talked about before, and Heracles helped make his life a lot better.

You skipped over a whole bit.

Yeah, I know, Oracle, but we'll get back to Prometheus later.

What's important to this story is that Prometheus wanted to help Heracles in return, and while he didn't know where the Garden of Hesperides was, he knew someone who did, his brother, Atlas.

Atlas was a Titan in Greek mythology.

He was one of the leaders of the Titans in their war against Zeus, and after his defeat, was punished by being forced to carry the heavens on his shoulders for all eternity.

Before we go meet Atlas, let's take a quick break, grab some water, do some stretches, take a walk, whatever, and then we'll get back into it.

Are you ready?

We good?

All right, let's go.

Heracles immediately set off towards where the sun was dropping behind the western edge of the world, where Prometheus told him he would find the mighty Atlas with the weight of the world, or more accurately, the sky, on his shoulders.

Now, Atlas hated his job.

Most of the other Titans had been banished to a place called Tartarus for all eternity, but Zeus obviously had special plans for Atlas and his brother, and they were not happy about it.

When Heracles arrived, even he was impressed with what he saw.

The Titan Atlas was a massive giant of a man with four arms and a great broad back.

His posture bowed a bit under the weight of the sky as the heavens pressed down on him, but he was still an imposing figure.

Heracles approached the Titan and, after explaining his quest, suggested that they make a deal.

I will hold the heavens for you, he offered.

You will go to the garden of Hesperides.

This way, I don't have to steal from my stepmother or fight my sister, and you get a much-needed break.

Atlas wasn't a hundred percent sure that Heracles could handle the weight of the heavens, but he was so desperate to get out from under that job that he agreed quickly.

You have me at, I will hold the heavens for you, he replied.

We have a deal.

Unfortunately for Heracles, he never specified what would happen after Atlas brought the apples back, or how long this break was supposed to last.

The heavens were heavy.

Even a demigod like Heracles, with all of his Olympus-given strength, was no match for the power of Atlas, so holding up the sky took its toll on Heracles.

While he was straining and struggling under the weight, Atlas came strolling back with the apples, stretching all four of his tree-like arms and enjoying his freedom.

How about this?

The Titan proposed.

You keep holding the hems.

Great job, by the way.

And I will take these apples to King Eurystheus for you.

It's a long trip, and I wouldn't want you to stug your toe or pull a hamstring or anything.

Better let me handle that for you.

Heracles could see that Atlas had no intention of taking back the sky, so he thought fast.

Well, I guess that's okay, Heracles said.

But could you hand me my cloak?

I need it to make a cushion for my shoulders until you return atlas brought the cloak to heracles but of course the hero couldn't let go of the heavens to take it sorry i only have two arms he said maybe if you could just hold this again for a second i could and with that he casually slipped the weight of the sky back to atlas oh okay well i definitely did it wait hey wait a second hey come back here hey don't leave me here

Heracles dashed away.

Atlas bellowed and swung at the hero, but Heracles was quickly out of reach, and Atlas was back once again, holding the heavens on his shoulders.

Heracles made the long journey back to Tyrans and proudly presented the golden apples to the king.

But before anyone else could even touch them, a furious Hera appeared, took the apples, and returned them to Hesperus in the garden.

All of that for nothing.

Number 12.

Well, as we mentioned, Hera was not happy.

But even she had to be impressed with Heracles.

So far, he had managed every task that was thrown at him, no matter how outrageous.

He had certainly proved himself worthy of demigod status, even in Hera's eyes.

But Heracles wasn't quite done yet.

King Eurystheus had one final task for him that could prove to be the most daunting.

The 12th labor of Heracles was to travel to the underworld and bring back Cerberus, the three-headed dog who guarded the gates.

Now, as you may remember from other episodes, the underworld actually has a secret entrance for those in the know.

So while Eurystheus thought he was sending Heracles to his death, because logically you have to die to go to the underworld, Heracles had been doing these labors long enough to know there must be another way.

And he decided to ask a friend for help.

The god Hermes was known mostly as the messenger of the gods, but he also helped to guide souls to the underworld after death.

He would bring them to the banks of the river Styx, where Charon, the boatman, would ferry them across to Hades.

Heracles figured if anybody would know about a back door to the underworld, it would be him.

And of course he was right.

Hermes appeared to Heracles one night and guided him to a well-guarded cave at Tenirum.

Our listeners may remember this cave from a previous story.

This is the same entrance that Orpheus used to visit Hades and free Eurydice.

Yeah, you'd think Hades and Persephone would install a locked door or something, but no, still there.

And guided by Hermes, it was relatively easy for Heracles to make his way down to the underworld.

He crossed the river Styx and soon found himself standing before Hades, ruler of the underworld, king of the dead.

It's always easier to get into the underworld than out of it.

At first, Heracles reached for his sword.

It would be nearly impossible, but maybe he could fight his way out and then kill the giant dog and then...

Nah, that was not going to happen.

Even his mighty club was useless.

He couldn't fight his way out of this one.

And he couldn't think of any way to trick Hades into giving him Cerberus.

So he wasn't sure what to do.

And then he remembered Hippolyta.

When he first met the queen of the Amazons, he was prepared to fight her for the prize, but thankfully, they hit it off instead.

She actually just gave him her girdle simply because he asked.

So Heracles once again tried the direct approach.

He sheathed his sword, dropped his club, pulled up a chair, and told Hades and Persephone his tale.

He explained everything from the battle at Thebes to the Amazons to Atlas and his trickery, and soon he had an ally in Hades.

I am moved by your bravery, the king said.

But I cannot allow you to harm my beloved pet Cerberus.

He is a good dog, all three of him.

Who's a good three-headed?

Who's a good three-headed doggy?

Who's a good three-headed doggy?

That's right.

You and you and you.

Yeah, good doggies.

Good doggies.

Yeah, Hades was a little weird when it came to his dog, but he had a point.

Did Eurystheus actually tell you that you had to kill Cerberus?

Persephone asked.

Or did he just say you needed to bring it back?

Heracles thought about it.

His instructions were clear.

They just said to bring back the dog.

They didn't say it had to be dead, but probably everyone just assumed that it would be.

The rulers of the underworld made it clear that Heracles could borrow Cerberus, provided that he used no weapons against the beast.

So a few hours later, the mighty Heracles trudged out of the underworld with his massive arms wrapped around a giant, slobbery, three-headed dog and made his way back to the kingdom of tyrans.

This time, Heracles refused to be met by a messenger or a page.

He pushed his way into the courtyard of the king's palace and brought Cerberus before King Eurystheus face to face.

And the king was flabbergasted.

He was shocked, surprised, and terrified all at the same time.

It was incredible enough that Heracles had been to the underworld and back, but he brought a live, snarling, terrifying beast with him.

I have returned again from my quest, said Heracles.

And again, I have done what you've asked.

I hope now that our bargain is complete and that I have fulfilled my obligations to you.

Here you go, hold this leash.

As it turns out, Eurystheus was more of a cat guy.

He was absolutely terrified of Cerberus.

In fact, he begged Heracles to take the beast away.

I will be more than happy to return him, the hero said.

But I need you to swear that I am released from your debt.

I have completed your 12 labors.

My obligations to you are fulfilled.

Eurystheus was more than happy to agree, and Heracles immediately released the giant dog from his leash.

Go ahead, boy, he said.

Go on home.

And with that, the giant dog yelped happily,

leaped into the air, and vanished back to the underworld in Hades' care once again.

And with that, Heracles' labors were finally complete.

After more than ten years and twelve devious plots, the mighty Heracles was free.

As he made his way out of the castle, wondering what he should do next, Hermes appeared to him again.

He brought the hero to Mount Olympus, home of the gods, where Hera herself was forced to admit her wrongs wrongs against Heracles.

And then, Heracles was made immortal, and he finally got to join his father Zeus and the rest of the Olympians on Mount Olympus in their palace in the sky.

That's it for this week.

Be sure to tune in next week when we talk about valuable things and where to find them.

National Geographic Kids Greaking Out is written by Kenny Curtis and Jillian Hughes and hosted by Kenny Curtis with Tori Kerr Kerr as the Oracle of Wi-Fi, audio production and sound design by Scotty Beam, and our theme song was composed by Perry Gripp.

Dr.

Diane Klein is our subject matter expert, and Emily Everhart is our producer.