Greek mythology

Adventures of Theseus

According to Greek mythology, Theseus was the son of Aethra, yet his father was unknown. At the time, Aethra supposedly had two suitors; King Aegeus of Athens, and POSEIDON, God of the Sea.

King Aegeus assumed the child was his own, and in the months preceding the birth of Theseus, he gave instructions to Aethra regarding the baby. He buried his sword and his sandals beneath a large boulder, and he told Aethra to ask Theseus to lift the boulder and take his sandals and sword when he reached manhood.

Before Theseus was born, Aegues left for Athens, sentencing Theseus to an early life without a father.

Aethra raised Theseus in a small town known as Troezen, and the boy eventually grew into a sturdy, powerful young man. Aethra realized she could no longer deny Theseus his proper heritage, so she led him to the boulder concealing the belongings of Aegeus. She asked him to lift the boulder, so he bent down and hugged the giant stone, gripping it with his entire body.

He easily stood up and tossed the huge boulder aside as if it were a pebble. He then collected the old sandals and sword at the request of his mother. She told him he must go to Athens to meet Aegeus.

Once Theseus had decided to travel to Athens, he had to choose a route. Instead of the traditional sea-route, he chose the far more dangerous overland route that was inhabited by bandits and thieves of all sorts. Theseus, however, felt no fear of the brutes. He only traveled a few miles inland before he encountered the first such robber.

He was a tall, muscular man brandishing a club made of some sort of shining metal. The man introduced himself as Periphetes, the Cudgel Man. He then explained how he intended to bash Theseus over the head with the menacing club. Before Periphetes could attack, Theseus complimented the club with an impressed gaze.

Wanting to brag, Periphetes claimed the club was made entirely of brass. Sensing his opportunity to outsmart the man, Theseus instantly retorted that there was no way the club was made of pure brass. He guessed out loud that the club must have been made from wood and was merely wrapped in a sheet of brass on the outside. To prove that such a scandalous accusation wasn't true, Periphetes simply handed the club over to Theseus to inspect himself. As soon as Theseus had the club firmly in hand, he hit Periphetes on the head with the weapon. The man instantly fell to the ground, and Theseus decided to keep the club for later use.

It wasn't long before Theseus came across another man with bad intentions. This time, it was a truly giant man brandishing a fierce battle axe. He was standing along the roadside near some high cliffs, and he claimed to have dominion over the area. His name was Sciron, and he demanded a toll in order to pass, which was that Theseus had to wash his feet.

His curiosity peaked, so Theseus asked the man what the consequences were for disobeying. Sciron replied that he would use his battle axe to cut the head from his shoulders, and he even went so far as to insult the brass club that Theseus held as a trophy from his last encounter. Sensing Sciron's weakness, Theseus agreed and started washing the man's feet.

As he sat on the cliff's edge and washed the feet of the man who had only moments ago threatened to kill him, he peered over the rocky drop-off and saw a tremendous turtle waiting in the water beneath the cliff. Theseus realized that this particular giant was the infamous beast who fed wayward travelers to the turtle by hurling them over the cliff. As soon as he made the connection, he took a firm grasp on the giant's foot and threw him from the cliff.

Further along the trail, Theseus came across a man who had a striking resemblance to Sciron. As soon as the man saw Theseus, he called out to him for help with a strange task. He asked Theseus to help him bend down a pine tree and hold it to the ground. He introduced himself as Sinis, the Pine-Bender, and he easily bent down a full-grown pine tree and waited for Theseus to come help him. Once Theseus had a good grip on the tree, Sinis let go and jumped away. He obviously expected the tree to sling Theseus away like a catapult, but he was not prepared for the prodigious strength of the young man.