Home Roses Collection of Scandinavian myths and legends. Nine myths (Scandinavian myths). Sleipnir and company

Roses

Collection of Scandinavian myths and legends. Nine myths (Scandinavian myths). Sleipnir and company

We have already met the titan Prometheus, the benefactor of mankind, in Hesiod's poem Theogony. There he is a clever sly who arranges the division of sacrificial bovine meat between people and gods so that the best part goes to people for food. And then, when an angry Zeus does not want people to be able to cook and fry the meat they got, and refuses to give them fire, Prometheus steals this fire secretly and brings it to people in a hollow reed. For this, Zeus chains Prometheus to a pillar in the east of the earth and sends an eagle to peck out his liver. Only after many centuries will the hero Hercules kill this eagle and free Prometheus.

Then this myth began to be told differently. Prometheus became dignified and lofty: he is not a cunning and a thief, but a wise seer. (The very name "Prometheus" means "Provider".) At the beginning of the world, when the older gods, the Titans, fought with the younger gods, the Olympians, he knew that the Olympians could not be taken by force, and offered to help the Titans by cunning; but they, arrogantly relying on their strength, refused, and then Prometheus, seeing their doom, went over to the side of the Olympians and helped them to win. Therefore, Zeus's reprisal against his former friend and ally began to seem even more cruel.

Not only that, Prometheus is also open about what will happen at the end of the world. The Olympians are afraid that just as they overthrew the Titan fathers in their time, they will someday be overthrown by new gods, their descendants. They do not know how to prevent this. Knows Prometheus; then Zeus torments Prometheus in order to find out this secret from him. But Prometheus is proudly silent. Only when Zeus's son Hercules is not yet a god, but only a working hero - in gratitude for all the good that Prometheus has done to people, kills the tormenting eagle and relieves Prometheus' torments, then Prometheus reveals in gratitude the secret of how to save the power of Zeus and all the Olympians. There is a sea goddess, the beauty Thetis, and Zeus is seeking her love. Let him not do this: fate has appointed that Thetis will have a son stronger than his father. If this is the son of Zeus, then he will become stronger than Zeus and overthrow him: the power of the Olympians will come to an end. And Zeus abandons the thought of Thetis, and in gratitude he frees Prometheus from execution and takes him to Olympus. Thetis was married to a mortal man, and from this marriage the hero Achilles was born to her, who was really stronger not only his father, but all people in the world.

It is on this story that the poet Aeschylus made his tragedy about Prometheus.

The action takes place on the edge of the earth, in distant Scythia, among the wild mountains - maybe this is the Caucasus. Two demons, Power and Violence, bring Prometheus onto the stage; the god of fire Hephaestus must chain him to a mountain rock. Hephaestus is sorry for his comrade, but he must obey the fate and will of Zeus: "You were sympathetic to people beyond measure." Hands, shoulders, legs of Prometheus are bound with shackles, an iron wedge is driven into the chest. Prometheus is silent. The deed is done, the executioners leave, Power casts contemptuously: "You are the Provider, here are the providences, how to save yourself!"

Only left alone, Prometheus begins to speak. He addresses the sky and the sun, the earth and the sea: "Look what I endure, God, at God's hands!" And all this because he stole fire for people, opened the way for them to a life worthy of a human being.

There is a choir of nymphs - Oceanid. These are the daughters of Ocean, another titan, they heard the roar and clang of the Promethean shackles in their sea distances. “Oh, it would be better for me to languish in Tartarus than to writhe here in full view! - exclaims Prometheus. - But this is not forever: Zeus will not achieve anything from me by force and will come to ask me about his secret humbly and affectionately. - "Why will he execute you?" - "For mercy to people, for he himself is unmerciful." Behind the Oceanids comes their father Ocean: he once fought against the Olympians along with the rest of the Titans, but resigned himself, submitted, forgiven and peacefully splashes around all the ends of the world. Let Prometheus humble himself, otherwise he will not escape an even worse punishment: Zeus is vindictive! Prometheus contemptuously rejects his advice: "Don't worry about me, take care of yourself: lest Zeus punish you yourself for sympathizing with the criminal!" The ocean leaves, the Oceanids sing a compassionate song, remembering in it and Prometheus' brother Atlas, who is tormented in the same way at the western end of the world, supporting the copper firmament with his shoulders.

Prometheus tells the chorus how much good he has done for people. They were as foolish as children - he gave them mind and speech. They languished with worries - he inspired them with hope. They lived in caves, afraid of every night and every winter - he made them build houses from the cold, explained the movement of heavenly bodies in the change of seasons, taught writing and counting in order to transfer knowledge to descendants. It was he who indicated for them the ores underground, harnessed the bulls to the plow, made carts for earthly roads and ships for sea routes. They were dying of disease - he discovered healing herbs for them. They did not understand the prophetic signs of the gods and nature - he taught them to guess by the cries of birds, and by the sacrificial fire, and by the insides of sacrificial animals. “Truly you were a savior for people,” says the chorus, “why didn't you save yourself?” “Fate is stronger than me,” replies Prometheus. "And stronger than Zeus?" - "And stronger than Zeus." - "What fate is destined for Zeus?" - "Don't ask: this is my great secret." The choir sings a mournful song.

The future bursts into these memories of the past. Zeus's beloved princess Io, turned into a cow, runs onto the stage. (At the theater, it was an actor in a horned mask.) Zeus turned her into a cow to hide from the jealousy of his wife, the goddess Hera. Hera guessed about this and demanded a cow for herself as a gift, and then sent a terrible gadfly to her, which drove the unfortunate woman around the world. So she got to the Promethean mountains, exhausted by pain to madness. Titan, "the protector and intercessor of man," pity her;

he tells her what further wanderings lie ahead of her in Europe and Asia, through heat and cold, among savages and monsters, until she reaches Egypt. And in Egypt she will give birth to a son from Zeus, and the descendant of this son in the twelfth generation will be Hercules, an archer who will come here to save Prometheus - at least against the will of Zeus. "And if Zeus won't allow?" - "Then Zeus will die." - "Who will destroy him?" - "Himself, having conceived an unreasonable marriage." - "Which?" - "I will not say a word more." Here the conversation ends: Io again feels the sting of the gadfly, again falls into madness and rushes away in despair. The Oceanid Chorus sings: "May the lust of the gods blow away us: their love is terrible and dangerous."

It is said about the past, it is said about the future; now the terrible present is next. Here comes the servant and messenger of Zeus - the god Hermes. Prometheus despises him as a henchman of the owners of the Olympians. “What did you say about the fate of Zeus, about an unreasonable marriage, about impending doom? Admit it, or you will suffer bitterly! " - “It is better to suffer than to serve like you; and I am immortal, I saw the fall of Uranus, the fall of Cronus, I will also see the fall of Zeus. " - "Beware: you will be in the underground Tartarus, where the Titans are tormented, and then you will stand here with a wound in your side, and the eagle will peck at your liver." - “I knew all this in advance; let the gods rage, I hate them! " Hermes disappears - and indeed Prometheus exclaims: "So the earth really trembled around, / And lightning curls, and thunders thunder ... / Oh Heaven, oh holy mother, Earth, / Look: I suffer innocently!" This is the end of the tragedy.

Retold

Prometheus- an ancient Greek character in myths and subsequent fairy tales. It is believed that Prometheus was a titan and part-time protector of people. He was in a tough confrontation with Zeus, the supreme god.

About Prometheus:

Son of Iapetus and Clement;
Zeus's cousin;
Titanium;
Possibly the illegitimate son of Gaea (according to Aeschylus);
“Prometheus” in translation “previously thinking”;
Prometheus had a brother - Epimetheus ("thinking after"), a husband;
He brought people the fire of the gods;

The myth of Prometheus

There was a time when oppressed and poor people lived on Earth, hiding in caves and chewing sprouts and roots, while the gods drank nectar from ambrosia and enjoyed the dancing of beautiful grace. At the dawn of mankind, people were equated with wild animals that shook with fear at every appearance of lightning and thunder, died like flies from diseases, probably caused by dampness and unsanitary conditions. There was only torment and hardship on Earth.

Prometheus, an intelligent titan, a companion of the gods, who helped in the ascent of Zeus, felt sorry for the poor people. He began to ponder how he could help them. The instructions of the titan who came did not help people in any way, because “having eyes, they could not figure out what and where; they listened, but did not understand anything; acted by touch, then they could not hew a stone or build a dwelling. " With the help of fire, they managed to learn how to burn clay and build a house, cook food, distinguish the seasons and protect themselves from seasonal changes in the weather.

How did Prometheus steal the fire?

Love for people prompted Prometheus to commit theft. On the island of Lemnos, in the middle of the ocean, there was Mount Mosichl - the place where the forge of the god of fire, Hephaestus, was located. Zeus, hating all earthly offspring, forbade the gods and titans to give gifts to people, including presenting fire, which was used only for the needs of the Olympians. Prometheus, having made his way to the island of Hephaestus, secretly carried out a flaming reed, ignited by the spark of the forge.

Returning to the caves to the people, he showed how to light a fire, how to build houses and prepare food. For the first time in their lives, previously blind and frightened people saw each other - since then the sunrise and sunset have appeared, and the divine spark smoldering in the forges of people began to be passed from hand to hand, communicating and bringing the settlers closer.

Punishment of Prometheus

Learning about the "betrayal" of Prometheus, Zeus became very angry and punished, first of all, people, sending them hard work in order to get funds for food. Prometheus did not abandon his charges even now: having returned to the people, he taught them crafts, which soon grew into wonderful arts.

Then Zeus ordered Hephaestus to forge chains that even a titan could not break. Having chained Prometheus to a rock (Caucasus Mountains according to Pseudo-Apolodorod), he sent a giant eagle to peck at the titan's liver. Since Prometheus was immortal and capable of recovery, he received a kind of eternal torment - he regenerated in the evening, and in the morning a bird flew in again and pecked at his entrails.

Subsequent fate

According to the myths of Ancient Greece, in one of his 12 travels, he met Prometheus, who helped the hero, showing the way to the Hesperides, and in gratitude he cut the fetters and killed the eagle from the bow, freeing the martyr.

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Titan Prometheus: the myth of the creation of man. - The division of Prometheus. - Fire of Prometheus. - The myth of Pandora - the first woman. - Pandora's Box. - Chained Prometheus: punishment and release of the Titan Prometheus.

Titan Prometheus: the myth of the creation of man

Titan Iapetus personifies in mythology the progenitor of the entire human race. Perhaps, in the Titan Iapetus of Greek myths, the biblical Japheth, the son of Noah, the progenitor of the whole human race, should be recognized. Titan Iapetus has no specific mission or role in ancient mythology. The ancient Greeks revered Iapetus as the oldest representative of the Titans. Iapetus is a contemporary of the god Kronos (). From Asia, the daughter of Ocean, the Titan Iapetus has several children, including Prometheus, Epimetheus, Atlas and others.

Titan Prometheus personifies the thinking power of the human mind, cunning and intelligence. The very name of Prometheus, translated from the ancient Greek language, means "knowing in advance", "seer". Although the Titan Iapetus in the myths of ancient Greece is considered the ancestor of mankind, nevertheless, according to ancient legends, people owe their appearance to Titan Prometheus, which distinguishes them from animals.

“Prometheus,” says the Roman poet Ovid, “having soaked the earth with water, molded a man out of it in the image of the gods, and - while all animals have a head always bowed to the earth - a man can freely raise his head to the firmament and look at the stars.”

The art of antiquity depicted very often the myth of the creation of man by Titan Prometheus, it is most often found on carved stones and bas-reliefs. One cameo depicts the Titan Prometheus as a sculptor assembling a human skeleton. On another antique cameo, the Titan Prometheus gathers human limbs into one whole, which he sculpted each separately.

In all ancient images, Titan Prometheus is an artisan who forms only the material shell of a person, and not a god who spiritualizes him. This role, according to ancient mythology, belongs to (Minerva), the goddess of wisdom. On many monuments of ancient art, the roles that fell to the lot of each of these mythological characters in the creation of mankind are clearly expressed.

The beautifully preserved bas-relief depicts the Titan Prometheus sitting on a rock under the shade of a tree. In front of Prometheus, there is a small man on the table, rather a child, whom Prometheus has just fashioned, but has not yet completely finished. Three children, completely ready, stand next to the goddess Athena (Minerva). Athena puts a butterfly on the head of one of them, among the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Thus, the Titan Prometheus is not the creator of one person, but an artisan who manufactures people in large numbers.

The division of Prometheus

The myth of the Titan Prometheus is the myth of the eternal protector of humanity. Distinctive character traits of Prometheus - proud conceit and non-recognition of the power of the gods.

After the victory over the Titans (titanomachy), a dispute arose between the gods and the human race about what exactly people should sacrifice to the gods, and the Titan Prometheus was the guardian of the interests of mankind.

ZAUMNIK.RU, Egor A. Polikarpov - scientific editing, scientific proofreading, design, selection of illustrations, additions, explanations, translations from Latin and Ancient Greek; all rights reserved.

The most popular of Greek folklore is the myth about which we will convey in our article. This story has a lot of interpretations. Various sources attribute various deeds to the hero - from the creation of mankind to the construction of civilization. 3-4 candidates (according to various sources) claim the role of father, and the same number are called possible mothers. Even the fact of stealing the fire is described in different ways.

Primary Source - Ancient Greek Classics

The most popular source is considered "Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece" by N. A. Kun. In this book, the myth of Prometheus, a summary of which is studied by everyone in school, occupies one of the central places. The myth itself formed the basis of Aeschylus's tragedy "Chained Prometheus". From the work of the great ancient Greek tragedian, only the second part has survived. The first and third were lost. In all sources about the wise and mighty titan, despite some discrepancies, the main points of life and work are the same - he stole it from people, for this he was chained to a rock, and the eagle every day (according to some versions, every three days ) pecked at his liver. Actually, this is the essence of the work "The Myth of Prometheus", a summary of which is known to most people around the world. And why he stole, how he did it, was there still a reason for Zeus's hatred of him - this should be discussed in more or less detail.

Absolutely positive hero

It should be noted right away that Prometheus is an unambiguously positive image. He did not kill anyone by accident or in anger, like Hercules, he did not quarrel with anyone over trophies, like Achilles, and did not spend his life in feasts, intrigues and revelry, like the dissolute Zeus and the rest of the gods. In general, reading "Myths and Legends", you often catch yourself thinking that the actions of both gods and heroes are mostly devoid of logic and consistency. Prometheus is an integral, heroic, sublime and tragic nature. His image is considered "eternal" in world art and literature. The Greek myth of Prometheus combines in this image the features inherent in God the Father and Jesus Christ - a titan and the creator of mankind, who fashioned the first people from clay, and a hero who went to unprecedented torments in the name of people's happiness.

True God is kind and fair

According to one version, in those immemorial times, when there was still no Ancient Greece, among the people who inhabited these lands, it was Prometheus who was the supreme deity. In Hellenic mythology, the role of the creator of humanity was left to him. The myth of Prometheus, the summary of which does not imply a detailed description of the process of creating the first people, tells why, according to this version, the distant ancestors were so weak and defenseless. The legend also tells about what the name of the hero means - it translates as "seer", because he alone knew the future, or as "thinking before." That is, simply a clever girl or a genius. The brother who took part in the sculpting was called Epimetheus, or "thinking after."

Family ties

The second brother of Prometheus, Atlas, holds and holds the sky. Foolish Epimetheus did a lot of trouble. The wise titan wanted to create a person perfect, equal to the gods. For some reason, a strictly limited number of skills and abilities were released for this, which Epimetheus, weak in the brain, spent on animals. And according to another version, in general, he exhausted all the clay on them. As a result, Prometheus created people by pinching off a piece of clay from each of the animals. It is very similar to the truth - a person has neither strength, nor grip, nor cunning, nor the instinct of an animal in full measure, but the weak features of each beast are present in human nature. Epimetheus also invited Pandora, who brought strife, war and disease into the world of people.

The gods are very fond of sacrifices

Were weak and defenseless. Nevertheless, somehow they figured out that bones could be sacrificed to the gods by burning them on altars, and they kept the best pieces for themselves.

The gods were angry. The ancient myth of Prometheus tells that the wise titan, in order to protect his clay creations, into which he breathed life, deceived the vindictive and vengeful Zeus, forcing him to choose bones from two parts of a chopped animal. The "aegis" remembered and began to take revenge on people purposefully. Hating his cousin, according to one version, brother and adviser, "the god of gods and people" decided to destroy humanity and create a new one. Once the titans rebelled against Zeus, and he defeated them only thanks to the help of Prometheus, who went over to his side and his mother Gaia.

The cause of contention is love for people

Prometheus alone was not afraid of the wrath of Zeus. He not only defended humanity, but also gave him the fire stolen from heaven. And here the authors do not agree. One ancient Greek myth about Prometheus claims that the fire was stolen from the forge of a friend of Hephaestus and carried out in a reed, another - that the flame was delivered using a flaming torch lit directly on Olympus (there are versions that it is precisely the symbol of the Olympic Games). Of course, this was a courageous act of a theomachist, who hated tyranny of tyrant and revelers. But the point is, in fact, not in the fight against Zeus, it is in sincere love for humanity. Prometheus, having descended into the caves, taught people everything. He endowed beings with a soul, breathed mind and the ability to think into them. Explained the basics of all sciences and crafts. People began to write, read, understand the stars, know everything about the bowels of the earth, extract minerals and process them. Humanity received information about medicine and cooking, learned to cultivate the land and grow bread. Even Prometheus explained to people the essence of lightning as a carrier of a spark, thus providing mankind with fire forever. After all, Zeus is nowhere without lightning, and, therefore, there is where to get fire.

The true background

The sage even taught people to build ships - this is how the myth of Prometheus testifies. It is difficult to tell everything briefly. The process of the transformation of humanity turned out to be so fascinating that some gods, tired of the constant consumption of nectar, began to willingly help Prometheus. The supreme deity's patience ran out, or he just waited for the right moment. The fact is that only Prometheus knew the future, including what awaits Zeus himself, who was dying of fear - which of the hundreds of his sons would overthrow him, as he once did Father Krona. It should be mentioned that the main Olympian god had other names - Cronid or Cronion, in honor of his father, and Dius. So, Cronidus needed to know which of the women should not be approached, because the case was put on stream, and death was inevitable - a hero capable of overthrowing him was obliged to be born. And only the Seer knew the coveted name and did not divulge the secret, despite all the tricks. Under the pretext of stealing the fire, the hero was chained to a rock - he did not say peacefully, he would say under torture.

A hero for all time

The most widespread myth of ancient Greece about Prometheus indicates that the titan was chained to the rocks of the Caucasian ridge. Zeus was often angry, and in anger he was mad, this was expressed in the fact that he threw lightning every minute and where he hit. One of them landed in a cornice. The titan was chained to him, and subtly - his chest was pierced with a metal point forged by his friend Hephaestus. He, sighing and lamenting, and drove a wedge. Then, groaning, he retired in the company of the soulless Force and Power, carrying out the action. No matter how you look at it, Prometheus is the only hero of all "Myths and Legends" that corresponds to this concept in the universal human sense of the word. He has one truth, and he follows it without hesitation to the end. Moreover, he does not have "the" truth that "everyone has their own." This is the highest understanding of good and evil. And it is very good that the true cause of Zeus's atrocities fades into the background, and the myth of Prometheus remains, which briefly looks like this - the hero gave people fire, literally and figuratively, and went to death for it.

A torture stretching out for millennia

No one ever, in any country in the world, can compare with the sacrificial and great image of Prometheus. Therefore, he lives in our days, and everyone knows him, and songs about him win in modern competitions ("... give fire, like Prometheus ..."). Although Zeus, threatening him with punishment, promised complete oblivion of his name by an ungrateful humanity. And it's just strange why this god, with such a one-sided glory, who made extremely contradictory decisions in matters of peace and war, was worshiped by the Greeks for so long as the supreme deity. Prometheus, chained to the rock, languished for centuries. From time to time Zeus sent him either his son Hermes, or the titan Oceanus or other messengers who submitted to the despot, with the only requirement, as in that film - "Name, brother." But the great martyr did not give up.

Prophets are always doomed

Each time the punishment increased - either Cronion would cast him down into the gloomy Tartarus together with the rock, then he would take out and set the eagle. This is the story of the myth of Prometheus, the content of which for the most part is devoted precisely to the moment of Prometheus bearing his punishment. Even just by hearsay, everyone knows that an eagle regularly flew to the chained hero to peck the liver growing back during his absence. For centuries, Prometheus was crucified on a rock without the arrival of a bird. And then the eagle appeared for a very long time, according to some sources - the unthinkable torture continued for 30 thousand years. And Zeus, shocked by the hero's steadfastness, allegedly surrendered. From that moment on, Prometheus is also read.

He knew everything in advance

The Seer predicted his release thousands of years before the birth of his beloved son of the Great Power. Poor cow Io, tormented by a gadfly, in a fit of madness, swept past the crucified titan, who predicted to her that it would be a long time before, but the curse of jealous Hera would lose its power, and that one of her husband's former girlfriends would become the founder of a family in which a mighty hero would eventually appear. invincible Hercules. And that's what happened. Hercules killed the bloodthirsty eagle and cut the shackles of the martyr. In gratitude, Prometheus warned Zeus that he should not approach Thetis, and in general it is better to marry her to a mortal, because an invincible hero will be born to her from God. So they did, Peleus was appointed as husbands, in marriage with whom Achilles was born. In order to remain at the height of the situation anyway, Zeus forced the blacksmith of Hephaestus from the link of the chain of Prometheus to forge a ring and insert into it in the form of a stone a part of the rock on which the hero hung. And Prometheus had to wear the ring forever without removing it.

To write his work, Aeschylus took as a basis the myth of the titan Prometheus, who entered into a rivalry with the god Zeus. Prometheus fought against the titans on the side of Zeus, but God decided to exterminate humanity. Prometheus decided to steal fire for people and by his act brought trouble upon himself.

By order of Zeus, the god Hephaestus chains Prometheus to a rock. Every morning an eagle would sit on his chest and peck at the liver, and during the night it grew back. Chained Prometheus is in dialogue with the wind. He reflects on the fact that humanity was not aware of what he saw and heard before. Fire and the arts that he taught people they needed. The Oceanids and the Ocean sympathize with the hero, but the titan refuses the request to make peace with Zeus.

In the course of the work, it turns out that it was the titan who taught people to drive a horse and built ships for them. Beloved Io in the form of a cow, in the image of which Hera imprisoned her, comes to the rock. She cannot stay next to her beloved, as the gadfly constantly stings her. Prometheus tells her that Hercules will save him, who will be her descendant. The Titan had the gift of foresight.

Later, Prometheus is asked to make peace with Zeus again, but he rejects the offer. In his speech, which he gave, we see an honest and brave man. Zeus cannot kill a titan, so he continues to endure punishment from his opponent.

Divine fire was not supposed to reach people. Prometheus in the work is a fighter for a bright life. He acts as a positive hero who wants to strengthen the progress of the human race by his action. The antagonist is the god Zeus, who is against the development of new technologies by people. The Thunderer is shown as a tyrant and despot. In the tragedy, we see the struggle of the new with the old, the departure of people from beliefs in gods and the creation of new conditions for life. The zealots and guardians of antiquity do not want changes in the face of Zeus and Hera, who are losing power over people. With the help of repression, the supreme god can retain power on Olympus, but loses it over humanity, which becomes free.

Prometheus is not considered a thief for posterity, he became a symbol of progress and a fighter for freedom. The memory of his feat has remained imprinted for centuries.