It was appointed to Hercules as his twelfth labour to bring Cerberus from the underworld – a feat which was nothing short of overcoming death itself. In order to prepare himself for this labour, and so as not to violate the sanctity of the underworld divinities, he had himself initiated into the rites of Eleusis. But Hercules had been responsible for the spilling of much blood, including the slaying of centaurs. To regain his purity, he underwent special secret rites. He persuaded Charon, ferryman of the dead, to ferry him over where Cerberus was waiting. It was his way to wag his tail to those who intended to stay but to devour those who intended to leave. The Hydra was said to be Cerberus’ sister, and since Hercules had already overcome her, when the hero approached, the guard-dog fled to the god of the underworld, Hades, and hid under his throne. Assailed by ghosts and by a vision of the Gorgon, Hercules offered the flesh of one of the underworld cattle to them to propitiate the god. Hades allowed Hercules to take Cerberus with him but only if he could catch him without weapons, armed only with a breastplate and lion-skin. Hercules crept up behind Cerberus and choked him until he gave in, and permitted himself to be led out on a chain. The snakes upon the guard-dog’s body hissed and swarmed., while his eyes sparked. One version of the story has Hercules returning the dog himself, but another tells how Cerberus broke away from him at the fountain near Mycenae and the temple of Hera which was known afterwards as ‘the water of freedom.’
Cerberus is clearly the inspiration for J.K. Rowling’s Fluffy, the giant three-headed dog which guards the attic of Hogwarts School in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
CERCROPES
In classical mythology, the Cercropes were a race of humanoids who lived in the wilderness of Asia Minor around Ephesus. They preyed upon travellers until the hero Hercules defeated them and brought them to the judgement of Zeus who transformed them into apes.
CERNUNNOS
Cernunnos is the deer-antlered god with a humanoid body in Celtic myth. There is no one particular myth concerning him, for only his image remains. The cer part of his name, relating to his antlers, means ‘horned’. He is found primarily in sculpted statues and reliefs from ancient Gaul (modern France), but the clearest image is found on the silver votive cauldron, the Gundestrup Cauldron, discovered in Denmark which shows him seated, wearing a stripy close-fitting tunic and trousers, with a royal torc or neck-ring about his neck. In one hand he holds up another torc while in the other he holds a ram-headed snake, as if to show that he combines the animal instincts of the beasts and the cultured wisdom of humans. Cernunnos is shown surrounded by many beasts, including a stag.
In Welsh myth, such a figure is shown as the guardian of animals, a threshold guardian between our world and the other. Visitors to the Otherworld have to answer his challenges before they are allowed in. Like Herne, leader of the wild hunt, Cernunnos may admonish and punish those who injure those under his protection. He is a Lord of the Animals. Julius Caesar speculated that Cernunnos was the same as the Roman Dis Pater, god of the departed spirits of the underworld. Traces of his cult remain in the legends surrounding the Breton saint, Korneli, who is a patron of horned beasts. Indo-European scholars have related him to Pasupati, the Hindu Lord of the Beasts.
CERYNEAN HIND
In Greek mythology, the Cerynean Hind was a wild female deer with golden antlers. She began life as the Titan Taygete, the companion of Artemis who was Mistress of the Animals (see Lords and Ladies of the Animals). Taygete succumbed to the attentions of Zeus and Artemis punished her friend by turning her into an antlered hind. The Cerynean Hind ranged through the countryside of Arkadia and into the mountains of Argos, laying waste to farms and fields. The quality of the hind that made it deadly was not its wildness but its effect upon potential hunters who became totally obsessed by the thought of their prey, finding it impossible to stop, even though the hind led them into unknown countries. Most hunters died of sheer exhaustion. Thus, the magical property of the Cerynean Hind is the dangerous compulsion to follow desires to their end whatever the cost.
Hercules undertook to hunt the Cerynean Hind as his third labour. He followed it for a whole year, throughout Arkadia and beyond, into Hyperborea, the land beyond the north wind, and on into the Otherworld itself. He finally came to the Garden of the Hesperides where he found the hind beneath the tree of the golden apples where the apple-guarding serpent Ladon dwelt. Accounts vary as to what happened next. In some versions, Hercules took the hind’s golden antlers, but others tell how he tied the hind’s legs together and carried her back into Arcadia where he was met by Apollo and his sister Artemis, who was exceedingly annoyed at the capture of her sacred animal. Hercules excused himself by saying that he was only carrying the hind into Mycenae alive, and Artemis forgave him.
CETUS
In Greek mythology, Cetus was a sea monster that had the head of a greyhound, the body of a whale and a two-part tail. This monster was created by Zeus solely for the purpose of destroying Andromeda, the daughter of Queen Cassiopaea. The Queen had boasted that Andromeda was more beautiful than the goddesses and sea nymphs – a statement that so offended the gods that the queen was forced to chain her daughter to a rock in the sea in order to make restitution to the gods. While Andromeda turned and pulled against her chains, Cetus made ready to devour the maiden. Fortunately, the hero Perseus arrived just in time with the freshly-severed head of the Gorgon, Medusa. The property of this head was to turn everyone who saw it into stone. As Cetus emerged from the waters, it saw Medusa and was turned to stone. Andromeda was rescued, becoming the wife of Perseus. The rock where Andromeda was chained is still visible at the port of Joppa (Jaffa), the old part of the modern city of Tel Aviv in Israel.
CHAC
Also called Tlaloc, this central American rain god lived at the top of mountains where he ruled over a realm for those warriors who died in battle and of women who died in childbirth. He was the ruler of those who drowned and the god who brought fertility to the maize fields. Chac had the head of two intertwined serpents.
CHAMELEON
The ability of the chameleon to change colour has fascinated people for centuries. Throughout Africa, myths about the wise Chameleon abound. In Zaire, people look upon Chameleon as a shapeshifting god who can appear in many forms. There are a number of stories about Chameleon, all of which are variations on the creation myth.
Since the creator was pleased with the outcome of his efforts, as an after-thought he sent Chameleon down to Earth to tell them that they were not to die for ever but would come back to life like the moon. Chameleon set out but he was very slow. Since no response had come back, the creator sent Hare with the same message. He travelled much faster on his long leaping legs, but he could not remember the words properly, telling people that they would all die for ever. By the time Chameleon arrived it was too late, since the creator’s message cannot be altered after it has been delivered. The moral of the story is that it is best to make haste slowly
The chameleon was the model for all messengers who, in the days before a postal service, had to run from place to place with important tribal messages from their chiefs. Among the Zulu, the chameleon is known as Unwabu or ‘Mr Slow’.
CHAMP
According to North American folk tradition, Champ is the monster that lives in the depths of Lake Champlain, which lies between Quebec in Canada and Vermont in the United States. The Abenaki Iroquois people call this creature Tatoskok and see it as a horned serpent. It has been sighted many