A Walk Through Hades

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A Walk Through Hades
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• The traveler had to discover the cavern or
  underground river and follow the winding path
  down into the earth.
• The center of the earth was believed to contain
  Hades.

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The Entrance
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Follow the winding path . . .
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until you reach
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River 1

• Acheron the river of woe, sadness or affliction
• Charon ferry operator for the underworld
• Obolus must be paid for passage

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The Obolus

• When the Greeks buried their dead, they placed a
  coin into the dead persons mouth. This coin was
  taken by Charon to pay for passage across the
  river Acheron.

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The Greek Soul

• Pale reflection or shade of its former self
• Very few retained the same personality on earth
  and in the underworld

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Section One

• Erebus the entrance way or vestibule
• ALL the dead went to Hades and passed through
  Erebus regardless of being good or bad
  therefore, it is the best place for judgment to
  be done.

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The Judges

• Aeacus (a son of Zeus) judged the Europeans
• Rhadamanthus (son of Zeus and Europa) judged the
  Asiatics
• Minos (also a son of Zeus and Europa) judged the
  difficult cases.

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Judgement

• Tartarus a place of punishment
• Elysium Fields a place of eternal happiness

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River 2

• Cocytus river of lamentation or wailing

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Residents of Hades

• Fates Three women one spins the thread of
  life, one measures the thread of life, one cuts
  the thread of life.

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Residents Cont.

• Furies had serpents in their hair and blood
  dripping from their eyes. They pursued sinners
  on earth.

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Furies
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Residents Cont.

• Nemesis the spirit of just punishment and the
  goddess of retribution. She handed out not only
  punishments but just rewards.
• Hecate Queen of the Dead and goddess of magic
  charms and enchantments witchcraft and sorcery

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River Three

• Styx had nine loops and surrounded the
  underworld. Styx was the river of irrevocable
  oaths. If a god made a promise using the river
  Styx, then the oath/promise couldnt be taken
  back. This is important to the myth of Phaethon.

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Tartarus

• Cerberus three headed watchdog of the gates.
  He would let souls in but not out. He could be
  bribed with music (remember Orpheus)

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Phlegethon

• is the river of fire that surrounds Tartarus.
• There is a triple wall inside the river.

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Tartarus surrounded by Phlegethon
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Residents of Tartarus

• Tantalus tested the gods by trying to feed them
  his son.

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Punishment

• Tantalus is forced to stand in water. He is
  thirsty, but when he reaches toward the water, it
  recedes away from him. He is also constantly
  hungry, but when he reaches for the grapes that
  are overhead, they pull away. He is constantly
  tantalized by things he wants but cannot have.

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Sisyphus

• Sisyphus escaped from Hades after death by
  trickery.

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Punishment

• He is forced to roll a boulder up an incline.
  Once he gets the rock to the top, it immediately
  rolls back down again.
• He performs this endless task for eternity.

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Ixion

• Ixion showed disrespect to the gods by
  attempting to win the love of Hera.

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Punishment

• Ixion is strapped to a burning wheel of fire that
  rolls around the perimeter of Tartarus. Ixion
  experiences the pain of burning alive for
  eternity.

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Danaids

• Danaids fifty sisters who married and then 49
  of them murdered their husbands on their wedding
  night.

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Punishment

• The Danaids are forced to try to fill a sieve-
  like pot with water. All the water they carry
  and pour into the pot pours out the holes in the
  bottom.

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The Abode of Sleep

• Thanatos/Mors death
• Hypnos/Somus sleep (brother of death)
• Morpheus god of dreams (son of sleep)

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River Four

• Lethe the river of forgetfulness. One cup of
  water and the soul forgot its past
• Once past this river the soul moved into Elysium
  Fields where soft breezes always blew, and there
  were no hideous creatures.

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This ends our journey!