Who killed the Hydra?
The Greek hero Heracles killed the Hydra as the second of his Twelve Labors.[1] With the assistance of his nephew, Iolaus, Heracles severed the Hydra’s heads and cauterized its necks to prevent them from regenerating.
What is the mythology of Hydra?
In Greek mythology, the Hydra was a serpentine monster that Heracles killed during his Twelve Labors for King Eurystheus. During the combat, the Hydra was aided by a giant crab, Carcinus. Both were ultimately slain by Heracles and honored as the constellations Hydra and Cancer by Hera.
Where does Hydra live in mythology?
The Hydra lived in Lerna, a settlement in the Peloponnese known for its large freshwater lake and marshlands.
When was Hydra created?
The legend of the Hydra was likely created before the 8th century BCE in Greek oral traditions. The Hydra was first recorded in Hesiod’s Theogony in the 8th century BCE as the child of Typhon and Echidna.[2]
Why is Hydra called Lernaean Hydra?
The Hydra is called the Lernaean Hydra because it came from the swamps of Lerna, in the Peloponnese.
How do Hydra heads work?
The Hydra’s heads would regrow if cut off or seriously damaged. Only one of the heads was considered indestructible. In the myth of Heracles’ second Labor, his nephew and companion, Iolaus, helped him cauterize the Hydra’s necks to prevent regrowth. The immortal head was hidden beneath a rock.
Table of Contents
Origins of the Hydra: Hydra’s Family and Parents
The Hydra is described as one of the monstrous offspring of Typhon and Echidna. The fearsome pair were responsible for several of ancient Greece’s most horrifying creatures besides the Hydra. A handful of its siblings were also killed during Heracles’ Labors. The Hydra itself never mated or produced offspring.
Hera’s Role
In Hesiod’s Theogony, Hera is described as having “nourished” the Hydra; however, her role in the Hydra’s myth was largely indirect. She encouraged the Hydra to pursue Heracles to stop him from completing the rest of his Twelve Labors and sent Carcinus to aid them. From Hera’s perspective, she had complete confidence in the Hydra’s lethality and considered Heracles’ triumph unforeseen.
Hydra’s Appearance, Virtues, and Powers
The Hydra was a serpent-like monstrosity that had nine heads and potent venom. Scholars from antiquity described the Hydra with as many as fifty heads, or as little as six. Nine heads was the most common depiction. Additionally, the Hydra’s venom was so concentrated that its blood and breath were also deadly.
So, the Hydra was one deadly monster, but its most famous trait was the ability to regrow two heads for every one severed. Lopping off a head wasn’t an effective strategy. It hindered more than helped. When Heracles faced off with the Hydra, all these attributes required him to develop a unique and clever plan of attack.
The Myth of the Lernaean Hydra and Heracles’ Labor
After Heracles defeated the Nemean Lion in his first Labor, he was tasked with slaying the Hydra for his second. The Hydra was known for emerging from Lerna Lake to torment the Lernaean people with its many heads and venomous breath. Alongside his nephew, Iolaus, Heracles descended into the dark marshes of Lerna to track down and kill the monster.
Everything was going well when the battle began. Heracles was able to cut off several of the Hydra’s heads—only, it soon dawned on him that for every one he removed, two more would grow.
With Iolaus’ assistance, a plan was devised to cauterize the open wounds before regeneration began. In the end, Heracles was able to get the Hydra down to a single head: its immortal one.
Once Heracles removed the final, indestructible head, he buried it beneath a massive rock as it writhed. The Hydra, then, was no more. After all was said and done, Heracles dipped some of his arrows in the Hydra’s poisonous blood, which he would use to his advantage in later trials.
Symbolism and Representation
As with most monsters of ancient cultures, the Hydra was a chaotic force and a representative of primordial chaos. Its regenerative powers further suggested that if problems were not properly dealt with, they would only get worse.
Hydra’s Depictions in Ancient Art
The Hydra appeared in various ancient artwork mediums. Its earliest appearance dates back to the eighth century BCE, on a bronze fibula. There, the Hydra has six heads.
The most popular depiction of the Hydra is during its lowest point: its death at the hands of Heracles in his second Labor.
The Hydra and its death have also been the focus of archaic mosaics and pottery.
Hydra in Modern Culture
The legendary Hydra has permeated contemporary culture through media, the arts, and politics.
Pop Culture
Hydra as a pop culture icon has influenced major media and literature for over a century. From films like Jason and the Argonauts (1963) to Disney’s Hercules (1997), the Hydra has remained a steadfast adversary to heroes—albeit, with different faces each time.[3] Regardless, it is still the big bad monster that has to be slayed.
The most recent depiction of Hydra as a hero’s adversary can be found in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Captain America, as well as other films in that universe. Within the MCU, Hydra is a neo-fascist terrorist organization that was first featured in Strange Tales #135 in 1965. Its agents are frequent comic antagonists to S.H.I.E.L.D. and several Marvel heroes. Their most recent film appearance was in 2021, in What If . . . ? on Disney+.
The Marvel Hydra’s motto is “If a head is cut off, two more shall take its place,” and underscores the organization’s mythical inspiration. It also refers to what the Hydra ends up symbolizing in politics: an outcome of poorly addressed issues causing more problems down the line.
In contemporary literature, the Hydra has come to symbolize multifaceted problems and issues, especially those in the realm of politics and internal struggles. In these iterations, Hydra’s regenerative power is the focus: if something is not properly dealt with off the bat, then it is only going to grow bigger and worse.
Political Symbolism
The Hydra has been used metaphorically in politics also to refer to problems that get worse when addressed. For example, if corruption or inequality is targeted in one sector, an issue—seemingly unrelated at first—pops up in another.
Such makes solving political problems appear impossible. Authoritarian governments and terrorist organizations have also been publicly referred to as a “Hydra.”
Scientific Connection
The Hydra, surprisingly, is real—well, somewhat. It’s just tiny! The scientific Hydra is a freshwater hydrozoan with fascinating regenerative capabilities. They’re polyps and predators, armed with tentacles that contain a neurotoxin.
The Hydra was discovered and studied by pioneering microbiologists in the 18th century. Since then, several scientists have speculated that the Hydra does not age.[4]
A separate, unrelated phenomenon known as the “Hydra effect” has been used to describe the destabilization of food chains, as well as issues of global politics, public health, and more.[5] The reference to Hydra emphasizes how attempts to fix one problem can actually cause additional problems instead.
Hydra in Literature and Myth
Various ancient sources discuss the Hydra in the context of the Twelve Labors of Heracles. This includes Pseudo-Apollodorus’ Bibliotheca, Pausnias’ Description of Greece, and Hesiod’s Theogony. In Ovid’s Metamorphoses, the Hydra’s strength is praised, though it is frequently contrasted with the might of Heracles.
Dante’s Divine Comedy doesn’t boast of the Hydra’s prowess but rather posits the Hydra as a symbol of the cycle of sin in the author’s interpretations of Hell. In more contemporary retellings, such as Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson: The Sea of Monsters, the Hydra’s presence highlights how impossibly endless some challenges can seem.
Wrapping Up the Story of Powerful Hydra
The Hydra was a mighty mythological foe but was no match for Heracles. A child of Typhon and Echidna, the Hydra had all the makings of an inimitable monster. It represented chaos, evil, and problems that seemed to spread like wildfire. To this day, the Hydra remains a symbol of problems that spiral out of control.
That is unless we’re discussing the little, immortal aquatic animals called Hydras. Those little guys are pretty neat—and far less deadly.
READ MORE: Mythical Sea Creatures: The Sirens, Cetus, Echidna, and More
References
- Schoder, Raymond V. n.d. “Hercules’ Second Labor: the Lernean Hydra.” Perseus Digital Library. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Herakles/hydra.html.
- Evelyn-White, Hugh G. 1914. “Hesiod, Theogony, line 304.” Perseus Digital Library. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0130%3Acard%3D304.
- Bièvre-Perrin, Fabien. 2018. “The different faces of the Lernaean Hydra in contemporary pop culture: from cinema to video games.” Thersites: Journal for Transcultural Presences & Diachronic Identities from Antiquity to Date, 8. https://doi.org/10.34679/thersites.vol8.108.
- Schaible, Ralf, Meir Sussman, and Boris H. Kramer. 2014. “Aging and potential for self-renewal: hydra living in the age of aging – a mini-review.” Gerontology 60(6): 548–56. 10.1159/000360397.
- Pal, Debprasad, Bapan Ghosh, and Tapan Kumar Kar. 2019. “Hydra effects in stable food chain models.” Biosystems, 185. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0303264718304362.