晨读夜诵.每天读一点经典希腊神话故事(英汉对照、附赠音频)(txt+pdf+epub+mobi电子书下载)

作者：陆小明

出版社：华东理工大学出版社有限公司

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晨读夜诵.每天读一点经典希腊神话故事(英汉对照、附赠音频)试读：

One of the difficulties in reading Greek and Roman mythology lies in the numerous exotic names of the gods and goddesses, and the frequent confusion between the Greek names and their Roman counterparts. Therefore, the following table is meant to provide you with ready and immediate assistance once you embark on a journey into the mythological world. Have fun.

希腊罗马神话之所以难懂，原因之一在于不仅神的数量众多、名字拗口，而且这些神的希腊名和罗马名时常被混用，因此，在大家踏上神话阅读之旅前，请收藏下表以备不时之需。祝阅读愉快！Part Ⅰ　Myths of Creations第一部分　创世神话CHAPTER 1　The Chaos第一章　混沌太始Word Knowledge 词汇知识Chaos（混沌）

How did the universe come into being? Legends on it vary from country to country, but they all have one thing in common：the chaos, a confused and shapeless mass.

The English word “chaos” comes from a Greek root meaning “vast chasm” or “void”, while the Chinese word “hundun” refers to the primeval state of the universe before the earth was first separated from the heavens.

In modern English, the word “chaos” is often used to mean a state of complete confusion or lack of order, and its adjective form is also frequently seen in news reports such as “Heathrow airport is absolutely chaotic.”

宇宙是如何产生的？关于这个问题，不同的国家有不同的传说故事，但它们却有一个共同点：那就是“混沌”，一种混乱、无形的状态。

英语“chaos”这个词源自希腊语的一个词根，意思是“大裂口”或“空白”，而汉语中的“混沌”则是指天地分离之前宇宙所处的原始状态。

在当代英语中，chaos一词常用来表示一片混乱或杂乱无序的状态，而其形容词也经常出现在新闻报道中，比如“希斯罗机场简直混乱不堪”。Centimani（百臂巨人）

We are now in the 21st century. How long is a century? One hundred years. What does centimeter mean? One-hundredth of a meter. The word “centigrade” actually denotes a thermometric scale on which the interval between the freezing point of water and the boiling point of water is divided into 100 degrees. Hence the prefix “centi-” represents the number of 100 in Latin. Centimani were the first three children of Uranus （Heaven） and Gaea （Earth）. They were huge, powerful monsters with fifty heads and one hundred hands. They were so ugly and troublesome that even their father did not like them. Eventually Uranus imprisoned them in a place called Tartarus, which was below the underworld.

我们如今生活在21世纪，那么一个世纪有多长呢？一百年。厘米是什么意思？百分之一米。“摄氏度”这个词是指温度计的刻度，从冰点到沸点划分为100度。因此，centi-这个词缀在拉丁语中代表了数字100。Centimani是天父乌拉诺斯和地母盖亚最早生下的三个孩子，他们体型庞大、威力无比，是有着五十个脑袋和一百只胳膊的怪物，因为相貌丑陋，且成天惹事，就连亲生父亲都嫌弃他们，最终把他们囚禁到了地狱之下一个叫作塔尔塔罗斯的地方。Cyclops（独眼巨人）

Although the word “Cyclops” may be new to you, I am sure you know the word “bicycle”. What abouttricycle, monocycle, motorcycleandcyclist? Once you are acquainted with these words, you are likely to get the hint of this Cyclops. In Greek and Roman mythology, it is one of the one-eyed giants, children of Uranus （Heaven） and Gaea （Earth）. As the huge giant had only one big eye in the middle of its forehead, it looked very much like a wheel.

Do you know what an encyclopedia is? If your answer is no or you find it difficult to remember, try to divide the word into three parts：en- + cyclop + -pedia，which, based on the etymological explanation, might be interpreted respectively as “to make”“a Giant” of “knowledge/education”. In fact, encyclopedia could also be spelt cyclopedia, a book or books dealing with every branch of knowledge. Now does the word make sense to you?

虽然你可能不知道Cyclops这个词，但是我猜你一定知道“自行车”这个词吧。那么tricycle（三轮车）、monocycle（独轮车）、motorcycle（摩托车）、cyclist（骑手）这些词呢？一旦你熟悉了这些词，你就很可能猜到Cyclops的意思。在希腊罗马神话中，它是独眼巨人之一，是天父乌拉诺斯和地母盖亚的孩子。因为独眼巨人的脑门上只有一只大眼睛，所以看上去很像一个轮子。

你知道encyclopedia是什么吗？假如你的回答是否定的，或者你觉得这个单词太难记了，不妨将它这样拆开来看：en- + cyclop + -pedia，根据词源学的解释，这三部分对应的意思分别是“使成为”“知识/教育”的“巨人”。事实上，encyclopedia也可以拼作cyclopedia，意思是“百科全书”。现在你是不是觉得这个词容易理解了呢？The Myths 神话故事

Although there were different versions about the origin of the world, the generally accepted notion was that before earth and sea and heaven were created, all things were gathered in a confused mass of shapeless elements called Chaos, in which slept the seeds of all things. Chaos then grew gradually into two widely different substances：one is light, and the other, heavy. Thus out of the heavy and solid mass came into being the first great deity Gaea, or Mother Earth, who gave birth to Uranus, Father Sky, who became her husband and protector.

In fact, Gaea and Uranus were not the only offspring of Chaos. There were two mighty powers co-existing with them. They were Erebus （Darkness） and Nyx （Night）, who formed a striking contrast to the cheerful light of heaven and the bright smiles of earth. Erebus and Nyx gave birth to many children, such as Aether （Brightness）, Hemera （Day）, Hypnos （Sleep） and Thanatos （Death）. Tartarus was described as the homes of Nyx and her children Hypnos and Thanatos. Nyx and her daughter Hemera took turns to leave Tartarus, representing the alternating of night and day.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Uranus and Gaea produced three distinctly different races of beings：Centimani, Cyclopes and Titans. The Centimani were three hundred-handed giants. Each possessed a hundred hands and fifty heads. They could shake the universe and produce earthquakes. They were hideous to look at and extremely destructive. Feared that the great power of these turbulent offspring might be hurtful to himself, Uranus hurled the Centimani into Tartarus, the deep abyss served as a dungeon.

After the Centimani, three Cyclopes were born. They were giant monsters, each of which had only one eye in the center of his forehead. One Cyclops represented thunder, another lightning, and the last the lightning bolt. They served as builders, blacksmiths, and craftsmen, but they were strong and stubborn. Again Uranus worried about their mighty power, and threw them into Tartarus as well.

The third race of beings created by Gaea and Uranus were the Titans. Huge and powerful as they were, they were not as ugly as their elder brothers. They were twelve in number：six male and six female. Their names were：Oceanus, Ceos, Crios, Hyperion, Iapetus, Cronus, Theis, Rhea, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, and Tethys. The Titans inherited from their parents both great physical power and intellectual qualifications. They set about creating things like the seas, the moon, mountains, forests, and plains. They married each other and gave birth to a great number of other beings.

Gaea felt hurt about the imprisonment and oppression of her children, the Centimani and the Cyclopes, so she fashioned a stone scythe and persuaded the Titans to rebel against their father Uranus. Only Cronus, the youngest and the bravest of the Titans, was willing to do the deed. One day, when Uranus spread himself over the earth, Cronus leapt up and cut off his “vital organ” with the scythe. The organ fell into the ocean and produced a white foam, from which emerged the goddess of love, Aphrodite.

Cronus succeeded in dethroning his father, who, enraged at his defeat, cursed his rebellious son, foretelling that one of Cronus’ children would rise up against him, just as what Cronus had done to his father. Uranus withdrew from Earth, and from that time on, the sky and the earth never touched again. Cronus made himself the supreme ruler of the universe. He married his own sister Rhea and made his brother Hyperion the sun god and his sister Phoebe the moon goddess.

关于世界的起源有着不同的说法，普遍认可的版本是在大地、海洋和天空出现之前，一切都处在一种混沌无形的状态，而这种混沌又孕育了一切。混沌逐渐演化成两种截然不同的物质：一轻，一重。从重而实的物质中诞生了第一位伟大的神：盖亚——大地之母。她生下了乌拉诺斯——天空之父，后者成了她的丈夫和保护者。

事实上，盖亚和乌拉诺斯并不是混沌的唯一后代，与他们同时存在的还有另外两个神：埃里伯斯（黑暗）和尼克斯（夜晚），他们与天空的快乐光芒和大地的明媚笑容形成了鲜明的对照。埃里伯斯和尼克斯有许多孩子，譬如以太（光明）、赫墨拉（白昼）、修普诺斯（睡眠）和塔纳托斯（死亡）。据说塔尔塔罗斯就是尼克斯和她孩子们的家，尼克斯和女儿赫墨拉轮流离开塔尔塔罗斯，便有了日夜的更替。

在希腊和罗马神话中，乌拉诺斯和盖亚生下了三个截然不同的物种：百臂巨人、独眼巨人和提坦巨人。百臂巨人是三兄弟，他们每人都有五十个脑袋和一百只胳膊，他们可以撼动宇宙、引发地震，并且奇丑无比、极具破坏力。因为害怕三兄弟有可能对自己造成伤害，乌拉诺斯便把他们锁进了塔尔塔罗斯，那个被用作地牢的万丈深渊。

百臂巨人之后，三个独眼巨人出生了。他们是巨大的怪物，每个人的脑袋中间都只有一只眼睛。三兄弟分别代表雷鸣、闪电和霹雳。作为建造者、工匠和手艺人的他们都异常强壮和倔强，这让乌拉诺斯再次感到担忧，于是，这三个独眼巨人也被关进了塔尔塔罗斯。

盖亚和乌拉诺斯诞下的第三类后代是提坦巨人。尽管他们也是力大无比的巨人，但是却没有哥哥们那般丑陋。他们一共有十二个：六男六女。他们的名字分别是：俄刻阿诺斯、西耳斯、克瑞耳斯、许珀里翁、伊阿珀托斯、克罗诺斯、忒弥斯、瑞亚、西弥斯、摩涅莫辛涅、福柏和蒂锡斯。提坦巨人不仅继承了他们父母的强壮身体，还遗传了他们的聪明智慧，他们开始着手创造海洋、月亮、山脉、森林和平原，他们彼此结合，繁衍出更多的后代。

自己的孩子百臂巨人和独眼巨人遭到囚禁和迫害，令盖亚非常难过，于是她制作了一把巨大的石镰，并劝说提坦巨人反抗他们的父亲乌拉诺斯。然而，只有最小最勇敢的克罗诺斯愿意付诸行动。这天，当天父乌拉诺斯拥抱地母之际，克罗诺斯一跃而起，挥舞石镰割掉了他的“命根子”，器官坠落大海之后，掀起无数白色的泡沫，爱神阿芙洛蒂忒从这些泡沫中诞生了。

克罗诺斯成功地推翻了父亲的王位，恼羞成怒的乌拉诺斯诅咒他的不孝子，预言克罗诺斯也将遭受和自己一样的命运：他的一个孩子将和他作对并推翻他的王位。从此以后，乌拉诺斯退出了历史舞台，大地和天空永久分离。克罗诺斯成为宇宙中至高无上的主宰，他娶了自己的妹妹瑞亚，封哥哥许珀里翁为太阳神，姐姐福柏为月亮女神。CHAPTER 2　The Clash of Gods第二章　诸神之战Word Knowledge 词汇知识Oceanus（俄刻阿诺斯）

There are various theories about Oceanus, which, in Greek mythology, means the vast expanse of ever-flowing water around the earth. One theory depicts him as the first-born child of Uranus and Gaea, for the formation of the ocean involves the rains from the sky and the streams flowing on the earth, a combined influence of Uranus and Gaea. Another theory sorts him with the Titans, the third race of beings created by Gaea and Uranus. Whichever theory it is, Oceanus married his sister Tethys, who gave birth to the three great rivers known to the Greeks, including the Nile in Egypt. They had more than three thousand other children. Their sons were called Oceanids, and their daughters were Nymphs or Oceanides. Each became the minor god or goddess of a river, stream, spring, lake, or pond.

In modern English, there are many words which could be traced back to the Greek word Oceanus：ocean, Oceania, oceanarium, oceanography，to name a few.

在希腊神话中，“俄刻阿诺斯”的意思是环绕地球流淌的大片水域，关于他的起源有不同的版本，其中之一认为他是乌拉诺斯和盖亚的第一个孩子，因为海洋的形成需要来自天空的雨滴和来自大地的流水，即乌拉诺斯和盖亚的共同影响。另一个版本则将他归入提坦巨人，即乌拉诺斯和盖亚所生的第三类物种。但不管是哪个版本，一个普遍的说法是俄刻阿诺斯娶了他的妹妹蒂锡斯，诞下了对于希腊人来说非常重要的三条河流，其中就包括埃及的尼罗河。此外，他们还有超过三千子嗣，其中的男孩被称作俄刻阿尼得，女孩则叫宁芙或俄刻阿尼得斯。他们作为小神仙、小仙女，各自掌管着世界上众多的河流、溪水、清泉、湖泊和池塘。

在现代英语词汇中，有许多单词可以追溯到俄刻阿诺斯这个希腊名字，例如：ocean（海洋）、Oceania（大洋洲）、oceanarium（大型海洋水族馆）、oceanography（海洋学）等。Atlas（阿特拉斯）

Do you know that the Atlantic Ocean in English actually means “sea of Atlas”? Atlantis, the legendary and mysterious island believed to represent lost civilization, could be interpreted as “island of Atlas”. In modern English, atlas refers to a book of maps or charts. In Greek mythology, Atlas was one of the Titans who revolted against the Olympians in the war Titanomachy. When the Titans were defeated, most of them were confined to Tartarus, but Zeus condemned Atlas to stand at the western edge of Gaea and hold up the sky on his shoulders, preventing the two from resuming their primordial embrace.

你知道吗？在英语中“大西洋（Atlantic）”的意思是“阿特拉斯海”；那个代表了失落文明的传奇神秘岛屿“亚特兰蒂斯”，则可以翻译成“阿特拉斯岛”。在当代英语中，atlas指的是地图册。在希腊神话中，阿特拉斯是提坦巨人之一。在“提坦之战”中，他们是奥林匹斯山众神的敌人，因此，当提坦巨人战败之后，大多数巨人都被关进了塔尔塔洛斯。阿特拉斯是个例外。宙斯罚他站在大地的西边，用双肩扛起天空，以阻止他与地母再次拥抱。Typhon（堤丰）

Does the word “Typhon” look familiar to you? It is very much like the English word “typhoon”, isn’t it? Yes. Typhon literally means whirlwind, which is the origin of the word typhoon, a tropical storm in the region of the Indian or western Pacific oceans. One version associates Typhon with the son of Gaea and Tartarus. Myth has it that Gaea gave birth to him in anger at the destruction of her offspring, the Giants. Typhon was an immensely powerful monster with one hundred snake heads on his shoulders to emit fire and make every kind of noise. He attempted to overthrow Zeus for the supremacy of the cosmos. The two then fought a cataclysmic battle, which Zeus finally won with the aid of his thunderbolts.

In Greek mythology, there are four monstrous creatures which were taken as offspring of Typhon：Cerberus, the three-headed watchdog of Hades, the multi-headed snake Hydra, the half-woman-half-lion monster Sphinx, and Chimaera, a fire-breathing hybrid creature which was usually depicted as a lion, with the head of a goat arising from its back, and a tail that ends with a snake’s head.

Typhon（堤丰）这个词看上去熟悉吗？它很像英语中的typhoon（台风）一词，对吗？没错。“堤丰”的本意就是旋风，是“台风”一词的出处，表示在印度洋或西太平洋地区出现的热带风暴。有关堤丰的一个版本将他看作盖亚和地狱之神塔尔塔罗斯的儿子，盖亚因为失去了那些巨人孩子而在愤怒中生下了堤丰。堤丰是个力大无比的妖怪，肩膀上长着一百颗可以喷火并发出各种噪声的蛇头，他企图和宙斯争当宇宙的主宰，双方进行了一场空前惨烈的战斗，最终宙斯凭借手中的霹雳武器打败了堤丰。

在希腊神话中，据说有四个丑陋的怪物是堤丰的孩子：三头狗刻耳柏洛斯，即冥王哈迪斯的看门狗，九头蛇海德拉，半人半狮的斯芬克司以及能够喷火的混合怪物客迈拉。通常喀迈拉的样子是一头狮子，后背上伸出一只公羊头，尾巴则是一个蛇头。The Myths 神话故事

Having dethroned his father Uranus, Cronus became invested with supreme power. He married Rhea and they had six children：three sons, Hades （Pluto）, Poseidon （Neptune）, Zeus （Jupiter）, and three daughters, Hestia （Vesta）, Demeter （Ceres）, and Hera （Juno）. However, the curse and prophesy from his father Uranus kept him uneasy all the time. He was afraid that his children might one day rise up against his authority. In order to render the prophecy impossible of fulfilment, Cronus took the excessive precaution of swallowing up all his five children, one by one, immediately after their birth. When it came to Zeus, the sixth and last child, Rhea resolved to try and save this one child at least. She wrapped a stone in baby-clothes and handed it over to the eager father. Thus Zeus was saved, and eventually, as we shall see, became the rebellious one and took the place of his father to become the great national god of the Greeks.

Rhea hid her son Zeus on the island of Crete, where a sacred goat provided the infant with milk, and the nymphs Melissae fed him with honey. Under the watchful care of the nymphs and the priests of Rhea, the child throve rapidly, developing great physical powers, combined with extraordinary wisdom and intelligence. When Rhea thought Zeus was strong enough to challenge his father, she brought Zeus back to the palace. Zeus artfully tricked his father into drinking a potion, which made him vomit immediately. One by one, Zeus’ older brothers and sisters were thrown from Cronus’ heaving mouth.

Cronus and his Titans were not ready to concede defeat. They made war on Zeus and his siblings. Cronus and his brother-Titans took possession of Mount Othrys, while Zeus, with his brothers and sisters, took his stand on Mount Olympus. Acting on the advice of his mother Rhea, Zeus released the Centimani and the Cyclopes from Tartarus. The hundred-handed ones hurled boulders a hundred at a time against the Titans. The Cyclopes made lightning bolts for Zeus to use as a weapon. They also gave Poseidon a magical trident, with which he could shake the earth and shatter any object. For Hades, the Cyclopes fashioned a helmet that made the wearer invisible. With these powerful weapons and the strength of their new allies, victory smiled on Zeus and the Olympians eventually won the ten-year war against the Titans.

This war was called the Titanomachy, which was so terrible that it nearly destroyed the world. After the war, Old Father Sky became so weak that he was in danger of collapsing into Mother Earth. So Zeus condemned the Titan Atlas to support the sky on his shoulders for eternity. Zeus cast Cronus and the rebellious Titans down into Tartarus. Then he assigned the Centimani to guard the gates of Tartarus for all time. With the entire world open to them after the war, the Olympians chose the summit of Mt. Olympus for their home. Zeus became the undisputed ruler on Olympus. He made his sister Hera his queen, his brother Hades to govern the Lower World, and his brother Poseidon to have full command over the Sea. However, the supremacy of Zeus was recognized in all three kingdoms, in heaven, on earth, and under the earth.

推翻了父亲的王位之后，克罗诺斯成为至高权利的象征，他娶了瑞亚并生下了六个孩子：三子三女。他们分别是哈迪斯（普路托）、波塞冬（尼普顿）、宙斯（朱庇特），赫斯提（维斯太）、得墨忒耳（刻瑞斯）和赫拉（朱诺）。然而，父亲乌拉诺斯留下的诅咒和预言令他始终寝食难安，他害怕自己的孩子有朝一日会奋起反抗他。为了防止预言成真，克罗诺斯采取了极端的防范手段。他在孩子们呱呱坠地之际，就将他们一个个吞进了肚子。轮到第六个，也是最后一个孩子宙斯的时候，瑞亚决心要救下这个孩子。她用婴儿服包裹好一块石头，将它递给了正在焦急等待的父亲。就这样，宙斯得救了，并且我们将会看到，他成为了那个反抗并取代他父亲的人，最终成为所有希腊人的主神。

瑞亚将儿子宙斯藏在克里特岛上，在那里一头圣羊为他提供乳汁，仙女梅丽西给他喂蜂蜜。在仙女和瑞亚的祭司们精心的呵护下，这个孩子迅速长大，拥有强壮的身体和超凡的智慧。当瑞亚觉得宙斯已经足以与他的父亲抗衡之时，便将他带回了王宫。宙斯机智地骗克罗诺斯喝下了一种药水，使得他不停地呕吐。于是一个接一个地，宙斯的哥哥姐姐们从他父亲的口中被吐了出来。

克罗诺斯和他的提坦巨人们不甘心就此失败，他们向宙斯一辈宣战。克罗诺斯一方占据了俄特里斯山，而宙斯及其兄弟姐妹则驻扎在奥林匹斯山上。在母亲瑞亚的建议下，宙斯释放了被囚禁在塔尔塔罗斯的百臂巨人和独眼巨人。百臂巨人能够同时将上百块巨石投向敌人，而独眼巨人则制造闪电给宙斯作为武器。此外，他们还为波塞冬制作了一把可以撼动地球、击碎一切的神奇三叉戟，给哈迪斯做了一顶戴上便可以隐身的头盔。有了这些强大武器和盟友的帮助，胜利的天平开始向宙斯倾斜，奥林匹斯山的众神们终于在十年之后打败了提坦巨人。

这场战争被称为“提坦之战”。由于过于惨烈，它几乎将世界摧毁。战争结束后，天空之父变得极度衰弱，就快坠入大地之母的怀抱。于是，宙斯便罚提坦巨人之一的阿特拉斯用双肩永远扛着天空。宙斯将克罗诺斯和反叛的提坦巨人们都投进了塔尔塔罗斯，随后他命百臂巨人看管塔尔塔罗斯的大门。如今，天下尽归奥林匹斯山众神所有，他们选择奥林匹斯山作为他们的家，宙斯成为无可争议的统治者。他娶了姐姐赫拉为王后，令哥哥哈迪斯掌管冥界，波塞冬统领海洋。当然，宙斯是天空、大地和地下这三界的至高主宰。CHAPTER 3　The Origin of Man第三章　人类的起源Word Knowledge 词汇知识Humanity（人类）

The word humanity may either be defined as human beings collectively or the quality of being humane. In Latin, both hom- and hum- have the meaning of man or human being. The root hum is derived from humus, meaning earth or soil, which might suggest the origin of man from the earth. Accordingly, words containing hum are often associated with lowly rank or position, such as humble, humiliate or humility. The word humid means similar to moist, which could also be connected to the soil.

单词humanity既可以作为人类的总称，也可以表示人性或博爱。在拉丁语中，hom-和hum-都可以指人，hum这个词根源自humus，意思是“土地”或“泥土”，这或许暗示了人类的起源是土地，与此相一致的，是含有hum的单词常常表示身份或地位低下，例如humble（谦卑）、humiliate（羞辱）和humility（谦逊）。humid一词和“潮湿（moist）”意思相仿，也可以和土壤相联系。Promethean（普罗米修斯式）

As the creator and benefactor of mankind, Prometheus has become a symbolic and probably one of the most recognized figures in Greek mythology. The modern word Promethean bears out its heritage. Be it a noun or an adjective, the word signifies either being daringly original or creative, in the way that Prometheus helped create civilization, or being defiant of authority or limits, like Prometheus stealing fire from the gods, or suffering on a grand scale, representing the torture inflicted on Prometheus by Zeus.

作为创造并普惠人类的英雄，普罗米修斯已经成为希腊神话中一个具有象征意义且知名度极高的人物。“普罗米修斯式”（Promethean）这个现代词语所包含的内涵都源自这个人物。无论作为名词还是形容词，它要么表示勇敢的创新，如同普罗米修斯帮助人类创造文明；要么表示反抗权威或打破束缚，如同普罗米修斯盗取火种；要么则表示巨大的苦难，如同宙斯对普罗米修斯施加的酷刑。Pandora（潘多拉）

In Greek mythology, Pandora was the first mortal woman created by Hephaestus on the command of Zeus, and then sent to the human world as a present. Her name meant “all gifts” because she had been endowed with some special gifts by the gods and goddesses, such as a smooth persuasive tongue by Hermes, a dazzling beauty by Aphrodite and a gorgeous robe by Athena, each of which could make her irresistible and harmful to man.

在希腊神话中，潘多拉是赫菲斯托斯奉宙斯的指令造出的第一个女性人类，她被作为礼物带到了人类世界。她的名字意思就是“所有的礼物”，因为诸神分别赋予了她特殊的礼物，譬如来自赫耳墨斯的巧舌如簧，来自阿芙洛蒂忒的惊人美貌以及来自雅典娜的华丽长袍。每一件礼物都使得她在男人的眼中无法抗拒又祸害无穷。The Myths 神话故事

The creation of man from clay is a miraculous birth theme that recurs throughout world religions and mythologies. Just like Nuwa who molded figures from the yellow earth in Chinese mythology, a similar work was done by Prometheus, a Titan who had stood on the side of the Olympians led by Zeus against his father Cronus, in Greek and Roman mythology. As the name of Prometheus meant “forethought”, he could see into the future and predicted the final victory of Zeus in the Titanomachy.

However, Prometheus was embittered by Zeus’ cruel treatment of banishing his Titan-brothers eternally into the chthonic depth of Tartarus. To defy the supremacy of Zeus, he formed, out of clay, the first man, into whom Athena had breathed a soul. Full of love for the beings he had called into existence, Prometheus determined to elevate their minds and improve their condition in every way. He therefore shaped men to walk on two legs so that while all the other animals turned their faces downward, humans alone would raise their heads to heaven and gaze at the stars. He taught them astronomy, mathematics, the alphabet, medication and so on.

When Prometheus set about making human beings, his brother Epimetheus, whose name means “afterthought”, was assigned the task of creating the lower creatures. Due to a lack of wisdom and common sense, Epimetheus gave each species a special gift to survive on the earth, such as strength to the wild beasts, feathers to winged animals, and hard shells to sea creatures, leaving no superior gifts for the human beings to rival other species. Although endowed with intelligence, Prometheus thought that this gift was not enough, so he contrived to steal some sparks from the heaven and gave the torch to his beloved mankind.

Furious at this second defiance, Zeus commanded that Prometheus be chained to a rock on Mount Caucasus, where a ravenous vulture ever came to tear at his liver which ever grew again. His period of ordeal was to be thirty thousand years. Prometheus faced his bitter fate firmly and never showed signs of weakness and submission to Zeus. He was eventually rescued by Heracles, who killed the eagle and set the benefactor of mankind free.

During Prometheus’ pain and suffering, men were not left unpunished. Zeus commanded Hephaestus to fashion a woman out of clay. Up to that time, mankind had consisted entirely of males, so Pandora, which means all-gifted, was the first female mortal. She was

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