Ancient Greek mythology for children

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Leto, mother of Apollo and Artemis - Ancient Greek myth

Leto in ancient Greek myths was the representation of motherhood. Like every mother, she suffered a lot to give birth to her children and then to protect and raise them up in the proper way. Leto suffered many misfortunes because of her relationship with Zeus, which caused Hera's jealousy and cursed Leto not to find a stable place on Earth to deliver her children. That is how Delos emerged, which was believed to be a floating island. Leto gave birth to Artemis and Apollo there and since then Delos became the sacred place of god Apollo.

Her relationship with Zeus

Leto was the daughter of Titans Croesus and Phoebe. She had some supernatural powers herself but only a few, compared to the Olympian Gods. Leto is mostly famous because of her relationship with Zeus, which resulted in giving birth to two divine children, who would later be considered amongst the twelve Olympian gods, Artemis and Apollo. Everything started when Hera found out that Leto was pregnant by her husband, Zeus. Furious and ashamed of this betrayal from Zeus, she cursed Leto not to find a solid ground or island on Earth to give birth to her children.

Giving birth to two gods

Leto found a safe refugee to give birth on Delos, which was surrounded by swans. The delivery of Artemis was painless but the birth of Apollo lasted for nine whole days and nights because Hera had kidnapped Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth, preventing Leto from having an easy and painless labor. It is said that, with the absence of Eileithyia, Artemis was the one to help her mother deliver her twin brother, Apollo. The delivery took place under a palm tree.

The goddess of motherhood

The cult of Leto was wide-spread all over Greece and Asia Minor for being the mother of two Gods. She was usually honoured and depicted in combination with her children. The origin of her name is not known. Some say that it means "unseen" and this makes a connection to her modesty, as in most Greek vases, she was depicted as a modest young woman lifting her veil to Zeus. Others suggest that her name derives from "lada", which was the Lycian word for woman. The bottom line however is that Leto was a very decent and respectful figure in Greek mythology and she was actually representing motherhood.

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Jason And The Argonauts - Ancient Greek myth

When Pelias, the half-brother of Aeson, deposed Aeson and claimed the throne of Iolcus threatening to kill anyone who disputed his claim, Jason, the heir to the throne, was smuggled away from the kingdom and put into the care of Chiron the gentle Centaur.

Jason had won the favor of the goddesses Hera and Athena. With their help Jason built the fabled ship Argo, which had 50 oars. He recruited 50 remarkable people called the Argonauts. They included one woman, Atalanta, and Hercules, the strongest man who lived ever. Orpheus, the poet from Thrace, who could sing more sweetly than the Sirens, as well as Castor and Polydeukis, the brothers of Helen of Troy, were also in the team of the Argonauts.

Jason and the Argonauts set sail for the Black Sea where the legend said the Golden Fleece was hidden. After many adventures, the Argonauts reached the kingdom ruled by Aetes. The king, whose help the Argonauts needed, imposed seemingly impossible tasks upon Jason. One was to harness the fire breathing bulls with brazen feet and plow a field. Then he was to sow the plowed field with dragons’ teeth, from which would spring fully armed warriors.

Fortunately for Jason, Medea, daughter of Aetes, had fallen in love with him. Medea used her powers as a sorceress to help him. Jason mastered the bulls, and when the armed men sprang from the dragons’ teeth, Jason did what Kadmus had done before him: He threw a stone into the midst of the warriors, who accused each other of throwing the stone. They fought amongst themselves until all were dead.

Medea then led Jason to the place where the Golden Fleece hung, guarded by a terrible dragon. Using a magic potion, Medea put the dragon to sleep, allowing Jason to secure the precious trophy. Jason and the Argonauts put to sea, accompanied by Medea, and pursued by King Aetes.

Medea slew her brother, Apsirtus, who had accompanied them. She cut his body into pieces and flung them into the sea and onto the surrounding land, knowing that Aetes would gather up the dismembered pieces of his son’s body to give them a ceremonial burial. Thus Jason and the Argonauts escaped with the Golden Fleece, and returned it to Iolcus.

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Theseus and the Minotaur - Ancient Greek myth

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a king named Minos. King Minos lived on a lovely island called Crete. King Minos had everything a king could possibly want. Now and then, King Minos sent his navy to the tiny village of Athens, across the sea.
The king of Athens did not know what to do. He was desperate. He figured if he had some time, he could build a strong navy, strong enough to send King Minos packing the next time he attacked Athens. The king of Athens offered King Minos a deal. If he would not attack Athens for 9 years, Athens would send 7 boys and 7 girls to the island of Crete to be eaten by the awful monster that King Minos kept as a pet, the dreaded minotaur.

The minotaur lived in the heart of a maze on the island of Crete. King Minos loved that old monster. King Minos only attacked Athens when he was bored. He really didn't want anything. This way, his beloved monster could look forward to a special treat every 9 years or so. King Minos took the deal.

Although Athens did build a navy, King Minos did not attack as the king of Athens had expected. In fact, King Minos kept his word. And now it was time for Athens to keep theirs. Everyone in Athens was crying.

Prince Theseus of Athens knew the importance of keeping your word. He knew that a deal was a deal. But, he was also quite sure that it was wrong to send small children to be eaten by a monster. Prince Theseus told his father (the king) that he was going to Crete as the seventh son of Athens. He was going to kill the Minotaur and end the terror.

"The Minotaur is a terrible monster! What makes you think you can kill it?" cried his father.

"I'll find a way," Theseus replied gently. "The gods will help me."

His father begged him not to go. But the prince took his place as the seventh Athenian boy. Along with six other Athenian boys and seven Athenian girls, Prince Theseus sailed towards Crete.

When the prince and the children arrived on the island of Crete, King Minos and his daughter, the Princess Ariadne, came out to greet them. The Princess Ariadne did not say anything. But her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Late that night, she wrote Prince Theseus a note and slipped it under his bedroom door.

Dear Theseus (Ariadne wrote)

I am a beautiful princess as you probably noticed the minute you saw me. I am also a very bored princess. Without my help, the Minotaur will surely gobble you up. I know a trick or two that will save your life. If I help you kill the monster, you must promise to take me away from this tiny island so that others can admire my beauty. If interested in this deal, meet me by the gate to the Labyrinth in one hour.

Yours very truly,
Princess Ariadne

Prince Theseus slipped out of the palace and waited patiently by the gate. Princess Ariadne finally showed up. In her hands, she carried a sword and a ball of string.

Ariadne gave the sword and the ball of string to Prince Theseus. "Hide these inside the entrance to the maze. Tomorrow, when you and the other children from Athens enter the Labyrinth, wait until the gate is closed, then tie the string to the door. Unroll it as you move through the maze. That way, you can find your way back again. The sword, well, you know what to do with the sword," she laughed.

Theseus thanked the princess for her kindness.

"Don't forget, now," she cautioned Theseus. "You must take me with you so that all the people can marvel at my beauty."

The next morning, the Athenian children, including Prince Theseus, were shoved into the maze. The door was locked firmly behind them. Following Ariadne's directions, Theseus tied one end of the string to the door. He told the children to stay by the door and to make sure the string stayed tied so the prince could find his way back again. The children hung on to the string tightly, as Theseus entered the maze alone.

Using the sword Ariadne had given him, Theseus killed the monstrous beast. He followed the string back and knocked on the door.

Princess Ariadne was waiting. She opened the door. Without anyone noticing, Prince Theseus and the children of Athens ran to their ship and sailed quietly away. Princess Ariadne sailed away with them.

On the way home, they stopped for supplies on the tiny island of Naxos. Princess Ariadne insisted on coming ashore. There was nothing much to do on the island. Soon, she fell asleep. All the people gathered to admire the sleeping princess. Theseus sailed quietly away with the children of Athens and left her there, sleeping.

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Adonis And Aphrodite: A Myth About Beauty And Love

The first myth of Aphrodite and Adonis involves the man’s parents and is a story about beauty, love and jealousy. Adonis’ mother was the beautiful Myrrha or Smyrna and his father, King Cinyrus of Cyprus, who was actually the father of Myrrha.

This strange parentage of Adonis came about because Goddess Aphrodite was jealous of Myrrha’s beauty and caused the girl to unite with her own father.

When Cinyrus found out that he had been tricked, he chased Myrrha with a sword, intending to kill both her and her unborn child. Aphrodite, repenting of her deed, quickly turned the girl into a myrrh tree.

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Hades and the River Styx - Ancient Greek myth

When your soul reached the River Styx, a boatman named Charon would give you a ride to the underworld. But the ride was not free. If your family had not buried you with a coin to use as payment, you were stuck. Some souls, who did not have a coin, tried to swim across the River Styx. Some made it. Most didn't.

For those souls who received a ride in Charon's boat, or managed to swim across the river, there was little to do on the other side except wait to be reborn into a new body. These souls would not remember their prior life. They would start over as an infant. So, unlike the ancient Egyptians, the ancient Greeks didn't spend a lot of time planning for their afterlife because they did not expect to be there very long.

According to Greek mythology, some people were shocked to discover that they would be stuck there for some time, in some cases, forever. Some souls were sent to the Underworld as punishment. For others, it seemed to take quite a while to find just the right body. The Underworld was not packed, but it was populated.