It was believed, in the ancient times, that when somebody dies his soul walks towards the Acheron River. This is a river of the Earth that fades into a big hole.
After getting into it, the soul wakes upon the shores of Styx River, the borderline between the world of the living and the world of the dead. After tipping the ferryman Charon, the soul embarks on the boat and Charon crosses the River. The souls then encounter Cerberus, a three-headed dog, the guard of the Hades Gates.
Cerberus never barks, only roars. Never somebody entering the underworld had a problem with Cerberus. It mangles those who try to leave the underworld, though. Entering the underworld you can stare into the North and see the red flames of Phlegethon River and into the South the dark clouds of Cocytus. Phlegethon is the River of the flames and Cocytus the River of Lamentation. They protect the world of the living from souls who try to escape the underworld. Another boundary is the River of Lethe, the River of Forgetfulness. Even if you do it across either Cocytus or Phlegethon you have to swim Lethe but if you drink even one sip of water, you forget who you are, where you go, who you were and dubious you stay there forever…
In the underworld somebody can see the Erebus, a dark and woeful place where all the souls of the sinners are driven to. Another place is the Asphodel meadows, populated by the souls of the indifferent and finally the Elysian Plains where the souls of the heroes, the brave and the thinkers are in. There is though a river crossing the Erebus land, its name is Eridanus, fading into a hole, just like Acheron, leading to Tartarus. It is said that it is the place where the souls of the tyrants and the bloodthirsty are led there. Nobody knows anything more about it, for nobody has returned to narrate.
Technorati Tags: mythology, underworld
Loading ...