Bellerophon

Bellerophon was a handsome young man who went on to become one of the best known heroes in ancient Greece. Like many of his counterparts, there seems to be a bit of confusion surrounding his family tree. He is usually said to be son of King Glaucus of Corinth and the grandson of Sisyphus , who became famous for both angering Zeus and for the serious punishment he received for his actions. Like his father, Glaucus also fell out of favor with the immortals and met his demise in a most unpleasant way. It seems that the king was an expert horseman and in order to make his equines more ferocious took to feeding them meals of human flesh.

The gods abhorred this type of behavior and to teach Glaucus a lesson caused his chariot to flip over, leaving him to be devoured by his own steeds. It was also rumored that Bellerophon was really the son of Poseidon and a mortal woman named Eurynome.

This was a popular belief because it seemed only natural that a man as handsome and as spiritually blessed as Bellerophon should carry the blood of the immortals within his veins.

There is also some mystery surrounding how Bellerophon got his name. It is said that he was originally called Hipponous, but after he brought about the death of one called Bellerus he was given the title of Bellerus-Killer or Bellerophon.

Along with this fellow Bellerus, Bellerophon was accused of causing the death of his own brother Deliades. Unfortunately none of the accounts tell us what actually happened, but whatever the circumstances, they were serious enough for Bellerophon to be banished from his home in Corinth. He set out on foot and traveled to the city of Argos, where he sought sanctuary from King Proetus.

Bellerophon was purified by the king and promptly given food, drink and a comfortable place to rest. Sadly, it was not long before trouble presented itself once again, this time in the shape of a woman. It seems that Anteia, the wife of Proetus had become enamored with Bellerophon and offered herself to him. When Bellerophon refused her advances, the scorned woman ran to her husband and told him that their house guest had tried to seduce her. Proetus was outraged, but because Bellerophon had dined at his table (it greatly displeased both Zeus and the Furies to harm anyone who came to you as a guest or suppliant) he was unable to take any action against the young man.

Instead he came up with a plan that would safely bring about the revenge he so desired. Proetus gave Bellerophon the task of delivering a letter to his father-in-law, King Iobates of Lycia.

Unbeknownst to Bellerophon the note instructed Iobates to have its messenger executed at once for the attempted assault of his daughter. The king entertained his guest for nine days before reading the letter, hence making it impossible to carry out its request without offending the gods himself.

Iobates decided to enforce the death sentence in a different way. It seems that a horrid beast called the Chimaera had been terrorizing Lycian countryside for quite some time. The daughter of Echidne and Typhaon, the Chimaera was part lion in the front, part goat in the middle and part serpent in the back. She was quick and strong and her pungent breath was that of unquenchable flames.

Before leaving on his mission, Bellerophon sought out the help of the seer Polyeidus. The old man told him that in order to slay the Chimaera, he must first capture the winged horse Pegasus.

Pegasus was a beautiful white horse that sprang forth when Perseus spilled the blood of the Gorgon Medusa. He resided on Mount Helicon where he was loved and cared for by the Muses. Pegasus was pure in nature and was content to roam about the earth and sky all the while avoiding the company of men.

After numerous unsuccessful attempts to catch him, Bellerophon was instructed by Polyeidus to spend the night in the temple of Athena. There he slept by the alter where he dreampt that the goddess appeared to him and gave him a golden bridle. To his surprise, he awoke to find draped across his lap the very bridle that appeared in his dream.

He then rose up and made his way back to Corinth, where he found Pegasus refreshing himself at the spring of Pirene. Here Bellerophon was able to calmly slip the magical bridle over his head, and together the pair sailed off into the clouds in search of the dreaded Chimaera. With the help of Pegasus, Bellerophon was able to quickly slay the beast by first flying overhead and pounding it with arrows. Then, the brave hero took a lead tipped spear and hurled it down the monster's throat. The Chimaera's firey breath caused the lead to melt and completely destroy the creature's vital organs. Though Iobates was glad to be rid of the Chimaera, he still had the problem of Bellerophon to contend with.

His next idea was to send the youth on a mission to fight a neighboring tribe called the Solymi. Once again Bellerophon was able to successfully accomplish the task by flying above the warriors before dropping boulders down upon their heads.

Upon his return, Bellerophon was sent to fight the Amazons, a group of fierce, war-like women said to be the daughters of Ares. As before, he returned to Iobates victorious. Feeling quite agitated, Iobates next sent Bellerophon to fight a band of Carian pirates.

When he learned that the youth was once again undefeated, the king sent the royal guards to ambush him as he made his way back to Lycia. Bellerophon prayed to Poseidon, who flooded the Plain of Xanthus, taling the lives of all those who were following behind.

Seeing that this young man must clearly have the favor of the gods, Iobates decided to look more closely into the matter of his daughter's assault. Realizing that Anteia had concocted the entire story out of spite, Iobates begged Bellerophon for forgiveness. To make things up to him, he gave his former enemy the hand of his daughter Philonoe in marriage and made him heir to the throne of Lycia. Bellerophon lived happily for many years before he too angered the gods. It seems that one day he decided that he too should be able to live with the immortals. He climbed upon the back of Pegasus and soared toward Mount Olympus.

Finding this behavior to be both prideful and arrogant, Zeus sent a gadfly to sting Pegasus, causing him to hurl Bellerophon to the ground. Pegasus went on to Olympus where he lives to this day among Zeus' steeds, bringing the god his thunderbolts when needed.

Because of his presumptuous behavior, Bellerophon was doomed to spend the remainder of his life wandering the earth, blind and lame, without the company of other men.

Medea's Lair Of Greek Mythology © 1999-2009.