Monsters were plentiful in Greek mythology. Some were spawned by other monsters, and some by unnatural unions. Some conveniently appeared when one of the gods wished to punish someone. Some were the result of punishment by the gods. They represented the uncontrollable forces of nature, the resentment of the ancient chthonic deities who had been supplanted by the Olympians, the threat of foreign civilizations, or terrifying subconscious forces.

The Amphisbaena was spawned from the blood that dripped from Medusa’s severed head when Perseus flew over the Libyan Desert. It was a snake with a head at each end. It could slither in either direction, or roll like a hoop. Like many mythological snakes, it was both venomous and healing. Wearing a dead amphisbaena or its skin could cure arthritis, chilblains, or the common cold, and ensure a safe pregnancy.

Argos Panoptes was a hundred-eyed giant. While some of his eyes slept, the others remained awake, so he was always alert. While Zeus was sporting with the nymph Io, he saw his wife Hera coming, and turned Io into a white heifer. Hera asked Zeus to give him that heifer as a gift, and put her under the care of Argos. Zeus sent Hermes to rescue Io. Hermes tried to lull Argos to sleep with his music. When that plan failed, he killed Argos. Hera put the hundred eyes of her faithful servant on the tail of her sacred bird, the peacock. As often happens, Argos was victimized by the antics of the gods.

The Calydonian boar was a chthonic (earth) figure, an expression of the resentment of the old goddesses against the ascendancy of the Olympians. When King Oeneus of Calydon forgot to include the Great Artemis in his sacrificial offerings, she turned the ferocious boar loose in his land, ravaging vinyards and crops. People took refuge inside the city walls, and began to starve. The great Caledonian Boar Hunt was organized to kill the beast, involving many of the Olympian heroes, as well as the huntress Atalanta. The kill was made, but not without cost. The host was accidentally killed during the hunt, and there was fatal dispute over the spoils afterward.

Centaurs were very ancient creatures, part man and part horse. Illustrations of them date as far back as 3000 B.C. in India. The legend may originate from the startled reaction of people encountering mounted men for the very first time. In Greece, centaurs were followers of the wine god Dionysus. Most were unruly and combative, short on impulse control, and generally drunk. They were born from a mortal king and a cloud which Zeus disguised as his wife Hera. They became enemies of mankind after a disastrous battle at wedding after the centaurs tried to violate the bride. A different race of centaurs, fathered by Chiron (son of Cronus the Titan and an ocean nymph) was sober, learned, and studious. Chiron was a famous physician, teacher, hunter, musician and prophet. He was taught by Apollo and Diana, and went on to tutor the greatest Greek warriors, including Jason, Herakles, and Achilles.

The three-headed dog Cerberus guarded the entrance of the Underworld. Herakles’ final labor was to capture Cerberus. With some help from the gods, he was able to wrestle the beast into submission. In other stories, Cerberus was lulled to sleep by music, or drugged by honey cakes. Despite his occasional defeats, he generally managed to keep the living and the dead in the realms where they belonged.

Cetus was the sea monster whom Perseus killed when he rescued Andromeda. Andromeda’s mother had bragged that her daughter was more beautiful than the Nereids. Enraged, they asked Poseidon to flood the land and set loose the monster. Andromeda was chained to a rock as a placating offering.

Skylla and Charybdis, immortalized in Homer’s Odyssey, were sea monsters on opposite sides of a narrow strait. To avoid one, sailors had to move closer to the other. To be “between Scylla and Charybdis” is to have to make a choice between two equally unpleasant alternatives.

Descriptions of the chimera vary, but all agree that is was bad luck to sight one. Shipwrecks, storms, and natural disasters would follow, particularly volcanic eruptions. The legend could be related to sulfuric gases rising from fissures in the earth. The chimera had the body of a goat, the tail of a snake and the head of the lion, although sometimes it was two-headed. It always breathed fire. Bellerophon killed it with the aid of Athena, who gave him a golden bridle to tame the winged horse Pegasus.

The Minotaur myth arose from the dangerous bull-riding cult in Crete, which attracted many young people, some of whom never returned. King Minos asked Poseidon to send him a bull as a sign of his fitness to rule. Poseidon complied by sending a bull from the sea, but ordered Minos to sacrifice it to him. The bull was so beautiful that King Minos sacrificed a different bull, hoping Poseidon would not notice. Enraged, Poseidon caused Minos’ wife, Pasiphae, to fall in love with the bull and mate with it. The result was the Minotaur, half-bull, half-man. He was kept confined in a labyrinth until he was killed by Theseus.

The Sphinx was imported into Greek mythology from the Old Kingdom of Egypt. The Greek version had the bust and head of a woman, the wings of an eagle, the body and legs of a lioness, and the tail of a snake. She was a deadly monster, matriarchal power at its worst, bringing bad luck to everyone who crossed her path. Hera sent the Sphinx to guard the pass to the city of Thebes. In order to vanquish her, someone had to solve her riddle. “What animal is that which in the morning goes on four feet, at noon on two, and in the evening upon three?” When the famous Oedipus gave her the answer, the Sphinx was so upset that she threw herself from her rock and perished.

Reflection on the meaning of these monstrous myths make it clear that the world is a dangerous place, and there is much that we cannot control. It is important for people to learn the rules and avoid offending the Powers that Be.

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