The Myth Of Atlas, The Doomed Titan

The myth of Atlas tells us about one of the 12 titans of Greek mythology. These were a race of gods who would have ruled during the initial stage of the ages of man. They reigned over an ideal world, in which human beings were totally pure and immortal.

The Titans were the predecessors of the 12 Olympian gods. The latter, led by Zeus, fought against them and overthrew them, in the war of the titans, also known as Titanomachy. Upon being defeated, most of the Titans were imprisoned in the deepest region of the underworld.

The Atlas myth tells that this titan was precisely one of the victims of that fabulous war, in which those of his line were defeated forever. This character is also known as “Atalante”, a word that seems to come from a root meaning ‘to hold’ or ‘to bear’.

The myth of Atlas

According to the Atlas myth, this titan was the son of Iapetus, also a titan, the son of Uranus (the god of thunder) and of Gaia (the earth goddess); and the nymph Climene, one of the 3,000 oceanids. His brothers were Epimetheus, Menecio and the famous Prometheus.

Atlas married Hésperis, a minor goddess who was a keeper of the time of day. It reigned from the first hour of dawn to the first hour of dusk. She and Atlas fathered the Hesperides, nymphs who were called “goddesses of the sunset. ” Later, they would be tasked with a magical mission.

The myth of Atlas indicates that during his youth, this titan reigned in the area of ​​Arcadia , a place where one of the great treasures for the Greeks was : a garden that belonged to Hera (goddess of marriage). When Hera celebrated her wedding with Zeus, the goddess Gaia gave her some precious branches with golden apples.

With those branches, the goddess Hera  planted her garden and there all the trees produced golden fruits. In addition, whoever tasted these fruits, obtained immortality. The goddess entrusted the Hesperides with the care of her garden. For this reason, it began to be called the garden of the Hesperides or the “nymphs of the evening.”

Atlas and Hercules

According to the myth of Atlas, it was precisely this titan who led the fight against the Olympian gods. When the latter defeated them, Atlas was condemned to carry the sky on his shoulders. He had to accomplish this task, right near where his kingdom used to be: in the vicinity of the Garden of the Hesperides.

It is said that he was doing his tiring job when Hercules suddenly appeared. This hero was carrying out the 12 jobs that had been imposed on him and one of them was to obtain some apples from the garden of the Hesperides. As Atlas was the father of these nymphs, Hercules asked for their help in order to complete his mission.

The hero offered to support the sky with his shoulders, while Atlas went to collect the golden fruits from the garden. Altas agreed and carried out the task, as promised. However, when he returned, the titan decided that he no longer wanted to carry such a weight. He wanted to leave Hercules doing his job.

Atlas’s misfortune

Hercules decided to trick the titan to get rid of his burden. He pretended that he accepted to take his place carrying the sky, but asked him to give him a moment before doing so to fix the cape he was wearing, since it made him uncomfortable. Atlas naively accepted the deal. When he had the sky on his shoulders again, Hercules took the opportunity to escape.

Some time later he had the visit of another of the great mythological heroes: Perseus. He arrived at the titan, requesting his hospitality and announcing that he was the son of Zeus. However, the myth of Atlas tells that he distrusted the visitor, as he recalled an old prophecy launched by the goddess Themis. This said that one of the sons of Zeus would steal everything, including the garden of the Hesperides.

Remembering the prophecy, Atlas denied Perseus his hospitality. Faced with this rejection, the latter took out Medusa’s head, which he carried in a sack, and placed it in front of the titan’s eyes. At that time, Atlas was turned into a gigantic stone, which would since be known as the Atlas Mountains.