Why does hercules leave the argonauts

As a general rule we do not censor any content on the site. The only content we will consider removing is spam, slanderous attacks on other members, or extremely offensive content eg. We will not remove any content for bad language alone, or for being critical of a book. Submitted by: Ollectro 25 questions added questions answered. Welcome back. Jason understood that the journey to Colchis would be long and arduous.

He knew that he would need a strong and swift vessel to make such a long trip. Only one man in the land could build him such a craft, Argos, who was famous for his skill as a shipwright. Argos readily complied with his request and, with the help of Goddess Athena, they built the largest and sturdiest ship the ancient Greeks had ever seen, a ship that could withstand the ravages of the open sea. Built of oak and pine and over 22 meters in length, the ship had fifty oars and a low draught that allowed her to approach shallow waters without floundering.

The construction was such that the mast, the rudder, the anchor and the oars could be removed and the ship then hauled ashore on cylindrical logs. This was significant, since it would prevent the ship from being destroyed or stolen.

As a gift from Zeus, Jason received the Dodona, a piece of speaking timber from the God's enchanted forest which was affixed to the prow. The Dodona had important roles to play, as an oracle offering the seafarers guidance on the best course of action and as a compass. The Dodona was oriented north and the ship's rudder, south, to help in navigation. The imaginary line that extended from the Dodona to the rudder had coordinates aligned with the stars above, helping Jason plot the ship's course with precision.

The ship was named Argo after its builder and the crew was the Argonauts. When the ship was ready, Jason asked the strongest Greek men to accompany him in his journey and in fact the prospect of a great adventure brought many to sail with him.

Numbering fifty, the list of heroes was astounding. There were the most famous and brave men of all over Greece, all mighty fighters and some of them had also other skills. Among the Argonauts, we discern Hercules, who was renowned for his strength and agility; Castor and Polydeuces, brothers, boxers and horse tamers; Orpheus, skilled in playing excellent music with his lyre; Argos, the shipwright and lots of others legendary men.

Without much further ado the heroes cast off and set sail for the inevitable, their death or glory. The Argonauts started their trip with feelings of joy and enthusiasm.

They were only seeking for some excitement and wanted to experience new ways, to see the world around them. They thought it was just a usual journey and didn't know that this journey would change the life of most of them.

They had no idea about the adventures and horrible things to come, nor did they know that some would never return back. For a long time, the island of Lemnos had been inhabited only by women and it was there that the Argo first weighed anchor. These women had provoked the wrath of Goddess Aphrodite for not worshipping her and as a sign of vengeance she had cursed them with horrible body odor.

Unable to bear the awful stench, their husbands had deserted them to this isolate island. Humiliated and furious for their deplorable condition, the women had murdered every male on the island. There they lived with their queen Hypsipyle until the day Jason and his Argonauts arrived. The Argonauts were welcomed with open arms and made babies with these women. Jason himself fathered twin sons born of Queen Hypsipyle. A few years went by and the Argonauts realized that they had to go on with their trip.

The Argo sailed from Lemnos and crossed Hellespont landing at Propontis to replenish their supplies. This was the home of the Doliones and ruled over by King Cyzicus, a kind and noble man who greeted the Argonauts warmly.

While the Argonauts were gathering supplies they were attacked by Gegenees, earth-born monsters with six arms. King Cyzicus had forgotten to warn Jason about these monsters who now attempted to destroy the Argo and kill the handful guarding it. However, the fearless and mighty warrior Hercules was one of the men guarding the ship, repelling the monsters until Jason and the other Argonauts returned. Together they killed the monsters and took to the sea again but in the dark of the night, a twist of fate brought them back to the land of the Doliones.

King Cyzicus, unable to recognize his friends, the Argonauts, thought them to be marauders and attacked them with his men. In the confusion that ensued King Cyzicus was killed. In the dawn, both sides realized their mistake and with heavy hearts held a grand funeral for the King.

The Doliones gave the Argonauts a warm send-off and soon the heroes were sailing along the coast of Mysia. Hercules, realizing he had broken his oar, went ashore with his squire Hylas to make an oar from the woods. While Hercules was at work, Hylas went to fetch water but was bewitched by a water nymph and followed her into the water.

Hercules, heart-broken for not being able to find Hylas, refused to accompany the rest of the men on their quest. Some wanted to leave him behind but most wished to wait for him since Hercules was an invaluable asset to the team. The situation aboard the Argo soon became mutinous but Glaucus, a minor sea-god, appeared and calmed them all. He told the Argonauts that it was the will of the gods that Hercules stays there and goes on to complete other tasks.

The Argo put out to sea again leaving behind Polyphemus to assist the mighty Hercules in his mission. A few days later, the Argonauts approached the land of King Amycus, ruler of the tribe Bebryces. He had a strange quirk to challenge every stranger he met to a fistfight.

Catching sight of the Argonauts, he challenged them and Polydeuces, the skilled boxer, took it up and, after a difficult fight, managed to kill Amycus. All hell broke loose as the Bebryces attacked the Argonauts to avenge their King but that was not to be. They were comprehensively driven back and Jason and his friends once again sailed for their destination.

The Argonauts were beyond a strange sight after passing theBosporus and reaching Thrace. An old blind man who had sat down to his meal was attacked by two wingedcreatures that appeared from nowhere and started tormenting him and desecrating his food. Unable to bear this vagary of fate, Jason and his friends ran to help the man and chased away the creatures. To thank Jason, the old man told him that his name was Phineus and that he had once been a seer.

However, he had divulged too many of Zeus' secrets and the God had cursed him, taking his vision. To further torment him, Zeus had sent the Harpies, the two winged creatures that the Argonauts had earlier seen, to despoil his food every time he tried to eat.

Hearing of Jason's quest, Phineus agreed to tell the Argonauts what lie ahead but on one condition: Jason and his friends should help him to get rid of the Harpies. Zetes and Calais, who were amongst the Argonauts, were children of Boreas, the god of the north wind and they could fly. It fell upon them to rid Phineus of the Harpies. They lay in wait to kill the Harpies but Iris, sister to the two creatures, intervened, vowing that the creatures would never bother the old man again.

Phineus thanked the Argonauts for their help and told them that the next task of their voyage would be very dangerous. In order to cross the Symplegades which lay ahead, they must release a dove to see if she has safe passage between these two gigantic rocks. The Argonauts were unable to comprehend the gravity of Phineus warning. Approaching the Symplegades, they were appalled at what laid in their path.

Separated by a narrow strait, the Symplegades were two gigantic rocks which constantly clashed against each other, seldom letting anything pass between them. Heeding Phineus' words, Jason let loose a white dove. With bated breath, the Argonauts waited to see if she would have a safe passage through the rocks.

Luck favored them as the dove flew through without mishap. The Argonauts, ecstatic that they too could be allowed to pass through safely, set forth towards the clashing rocks. However, the Argo just about managed to scrape through. As the ship pulled clear, the rock started closing in on it but Goddess Athena appeared and held the cliffs apart. The Argo was now safe in the calm waters of the Axeinus Pontus.

Another misfortune came to the Argonauts since Tiphys died. The navigator, asleep at the helm, had fallen into the sea. Thereafter, the Argonauts would almost have a fight with the Amazons, but Zeus sent favorable winds which took them away from the land of the warrior women.

Most authors say that the Argonauts spent only a few days on Lemnos, but this was long enough for a new generation of Lemnians to result. After leaving Lemnos, the Argo sailed for the Hellespont [see Hellespontus on map ]. They landed on an island in the Sea of Marmara inhabited by a people called the Doliones. Their king offered to give them shelter and to restock their supplies because an oracle had told him to offer aid such travelers.

Only a few men were left to guard the ship, so when a group of giants came upon the guards, the ship would have been easily destroyed had the mighty Heracles not been one of the guards. Heracles singlehandedly shot several of the giants and chased the others away. The King of the Doliones showed Jason the route for the next leg of their journey and the Argo soon headed off, but contrary winds pushed the ship back into the harbor.

By now it was dark, however, and no one could see very well. When the Argonauts disembarked, they did not realize where they were; the Doliones believed a group of raiders had come to attack them, and so a battle ensued. Eventually the Doliones retreated, having lost a large number of their men. The next morning, the Argonauts realized their mistake when they found the body of the king.

The Argonauts and the Doliones together celebrated a magnificent funeral for all the deceased. A few days later, the Argonauts moved on. The next day they came to the coast of Mysia [ map ].

Here, Heracles broke his oar, so the group put ashore to make a new one. Heracles went into the woods to cut down the wood for a new oar while his lover, Hylas, went to a stream to get some water. He was still out searching the next day when the rest of the crew were getting ready to leave, and in their hurry, they left Heracles behind. Heracles managed to find his way home, where he continued his labors. Next, the Argonauts headed for the Bosporus [ map ] and landed in Salmydessus, the capital of Thynia.

Here they met the king, a man named Phineus, who was blind and was being hounded by the Harpies. The Harpies were women with the wings, beaks, and talons of birds. Whenever Phineus tried to eat anything the Harpies would swoop down and steal some of the food; they left droppings on the rest, so as to make it inedible.

So Phineus was slowly starving to death. Phineus was very weak by the time the Argonauts found him. He asked them for their help and they of course obliged. Two of the Argonauts. In return for their help, Phineus gave them the information they needed to get past the Symplegades otherwise known as the Clashing Rocks.

The expedition now headed for the Clashing Rocks, located at the entrance to the Bosphorus [ map ]. These were floating islands that would crash together with tremendous speed at unpredictable intervals. When they got there, the Argonauts did as Phineus had instructed and sent a dove to fly between the rocks. They watched to see what would happen to the bird, since Phineus had told them that if the bird survived, they had a chance of making it through. If the bird did not, it was useless and they would most definitely perish if they tried.

The dove successfully made it through the rocks, though it lost its tail feathers. As the rocks separated, the sailors prepared to row as hard as they possibly could because their lives depended on it.