Episode 22 - Prometheus

You were all curious. Waiting and watching to see the Titan work.

You weren’t sure what the Titan was working on, only that he did the work at Zeus’ request.

Zeus was with you all, standing on the slopes of Mount Olympus. Solemn and quiet. The moment felt important, whatever it was, so you watched, and you waited.

Slowly, Prometheus made his way to the bottom of the mountain, one of the only Titans not trapped deep in Tartarus. He carried with him two jars. One, he filled with dirt and mud. The other, he filled with water from the river. He brought the jars to the foot of the mountain, and he began to work.

You watch as the Titan begins to mix the gathered components. He forms them into a large sphere first, and then he begins to shape the mud.

At first, it wasn’t clear what Prometheus was making, the shape was strange. Then, as time went on and he continued to work, well into the night, the object became clear.

He was making a person. Something like the gods. Something less than you and your fellow gods, and yet amazing. When Prometheus is done he whispers something in the person’s ear. What was once dirt and water and mud was suddenly more. The person began to move. Began to live.

The myth of Prometheus is an interesting tale. It tells the story of the birth of human kind, for one. And of one of the Titans, most of whom were locked away in Tartarus by Zeus.

But perhaps most importantly, it tells the story of how humankind was given the power of fire, a power stolen from the gods of Mount Olympus. Zeus was afraid that if humanity received fire, they could rival the gods.

Prometheus, for his part, was always treated poorly by the gods. They distrusted and disliked him, while humanity treated him with kindness. Thus, Prometheus decided he would help humanity by stealing fire for them. This decision would lead to a series of events, consequences that rippled through many more Greek myths.

Prometheus, a Titan who refused to fight for either side in the gods’ war against the Titans, lived among the gods. He was given a mission to create humankind from water and earth.

Zeus wanted humans to worship and serve the gods. To be entities with no special power. But Prometheus found himself fond of humanity as he worked, and did not care for the gods and their order. He decided to give them a greater power. A power held by the gods, one which Zeus believed incredibly dangerous - the power of fire.

I am Andrew Eagle, and I invite you to come Through the Veil onto the slopes of Mount Olympus.

Join me in exploring the story of Prometheus, the creation of humankind and the important gift of fire.

You were walking on the slopes of Mount Olympus, enjoying a beautiful day, walking to one of the beautiful courtyards that dotted the slope. You see a small group of your fellow gods and goddesses there, looking at the verdant garden that lined the edges of the courtyard.

It is another calm day, and far in the distance, the small settlement that humans have built since their creation by Prometheus. The Titan had been spending most of his time among his creation, and you hadn’t seen him on the mountain recently. But there he was too, near the courtyard, but not with the crowd. He was standing beneath a large tree dotted with golden fruit, looking up at the branches with a curious express on his face.

You return your focus to the garden and its new blooms. You did not even have the slightest idea of what would happen next. Suddenly, in the center of the bunch of goddesses in the courtyard, an apple landed, with a note. You were not close enough to read the note, but whatever was on it riled up the goddesses who read it, and quickly they were shouting.

The fight seemed to be escalating, and a small crowd of the other gods and goddesses gathered to watch the argument, and who were you to avoid such a spectacle. You joined the growing throng.

The story goes that after Prometheus built humankind, he decided to steal one of the most important powers kept by the gods, the power of fire.

Fire was kept in the workshop of Hephaestus, god of fire, metalworking and craftsmanship.

Prometheus was clever, he knew he would never be able to reach fire and take some without a distraction. So he devised a plan.

He waited until a small group of goddesses were wandering a particular courtyard of Mount Olympus, and he tossed them a fruit with a message that said “For the most beautiful goddess of all.”

The goddesses began to fight over the fruit, debating who it was meant for. Their argument drew the attention of the other gods.

As soon as the gods were distracted, Prometheus made his way into Hephaestus’ workshop and stole some of the fire, storing it in a hollowed pumpkin.

He carried the stolen flame off the slopes of Mount Olympus and gave it to humans.

You would find out later, about what had happened. You would learn of the stolen fire.

You would peer off the slopes of the Mountain and see flickering lights dotting the communities which the humans had been building.

Zeus was furious. It didn’t take long for his rage to settle on the guilty party. Prometheus had always been tricky and clever, and Zeus decided that enough was enough. He decided on a punishment, although he did not speak it.

He went to Hephaestus, and gave him a task. You did not know what the work was, but immediately the forge was lit and the bellows pumped. Hephaestus began to make something. You watched him work, and it became clear what he was forming quickly. A heavy chain, strong enough to hold a god - or a Titan.

For Zeus’s part, he was patient throughout the process of making the chain, and when it was done, he sent several gods and goddesses to bring Prometheus to the mountain.

When Prometheus arrived, Zeus had him bound in the chain, and then he took the Titan away to Mount Caucasus. When Zeus returned, he did so alone, and did not speak of the Titan’s fate.

The myth says that Zeus was angry with Prometheus, angry at yet another betrayal by the Titan. And he decided to punish Prometheus for the theft.

He made Hephaestus forge powerful chains, strong enough to hold the Titan, and summoned Prometheus to the slopes of Mount Olympus.

When the Titan arrived, Zeus made Hephaestus chain him to the slopes of Mount Caucasus, one of the pillars of the world. And there on the slopes, Zeus condemned him to an eternal punishment.

Each day, an eagle would fly to where Prometheus was chained. The eagle would eat his liver throughout the day, and fly away at dusk. Over night, the Titan’s liver would regrow, and the cycle would continue.

Prometheus remained on the slopes of Mount Caucasus for a very long time. The time-line of interwoven myths is not clear, but Zeus did offer Prometheus his freedom once in exchange for revealing a prophecy that predicted the dethroning of Zeus. Prometheus would not reveal the prophecy and so he remained there, each day his liver eaten while he could do nothing to stop it.

This continued until Heracles, Zeus’ son, happened upon Prometheus during his Twelve Trials.

The demi-god killed the eagle and freed the Titan.

Although this angered Zeus, he eventually agreed to allow Prometheus to keep his freedom, on one condition.

Zeus made Prometheus forge a steel ring from the chains that had bound him, and he was required to wear that ring at all times, as a reminder of his crime.

Although the ring was meant to be a punishment, and perhaps it was for Prometheus, humanity owed the Titan a great debt. He had given us fire, and fire gave us everything.

Thus, when Prometheus appeared wearing his new ring, humanity began to forge rings of their own. So it was that humanity honors Prometheus by forging and wearing rings of all metals. It is to celebrate and commemorate the assistance of the Titan, to remind him that his help was not forgotten nor was it in vain.

Prometheus is an odd figure in mythology. He was a Titan, not a god, and yet, in the mythology of ancient Greece, it could be reasonably argued that humanity owes him more than many of the other gods. Certainly, they all offered certain boons and inspired great heroes throughout myth, but it was Prometheus that gave us fire. Prometheus who gave us the chance to be more than we were made to be.

His is a story of a clever rebel, who held no allegiance to the gods that ruled on the slopes of Mount Olympus, instead holding allegiance to those he felt responsible for.

To this day, if the story is to be believed, we honor Prometheus by wearing rings. And that is only right. After all, fire is what lets us rival the gods.            

Thank you for joining me for this episode of Through the Veil. I hope you enjoyed. I encourage you to subscribe to receive new episodes weekly wherever you listen as we continue our exploration of folklore, myth, and magic.

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As always, thank you, for listening.