|
When Hercules was born |
|
Juno sent the serpents |
|
To destroy him in his cradle |
|
But they were not able |
|
Dangerous tasks were set before him |
|
Labors of Hercules, set to destroy him |
|
First he had to bring the skin |
|
Of the lion that had overcome all hunters |
|
Hercules killed him as he had the serpents |
|
Squeezing out life with his hands |
|
Next came the slaughter of the monster, Hydra |
|
With nine heads appearing like fangs |
|
As each head was destroyed then another one grew |
|
An immortal head in the middle lived through |
|
Finally he burnt the Hydra |
|
And then the immortal head he buried beneath a rock |
|
The stalls of three thousand oxen |
|
Filled with dirt of thirty years |
|
Hercules his task to clean them |
|
Made the use of rivers' tears |
|
Diverting all of the rivers from their heads |
|
To places so far unseen |
|
Clear rushing water swept all before them |
|
And by sun-rest all was clean |
|
Then befell him a task so fragile |
|
Fetch the waist-band for Admeta |
|
From the Queen of Amazons |
|
Juno was enraged because the Queen agreed |
|
To give Hercules the waist-band without force |
|
So Juno took the form of na Amazon |
|
Telling of the capture of their Queen |
|
Vengeful women came in great numbers |
|
Hoping to set her free |
|
Hercules left thinking he had been betrayed |
|
Killed the Queen, killed the Queen |
|
Juno had succeeded, the Queen's life was lost |
|
The Queen, the Queen |
|
Then to bring the oxen of the Geryon |
|
Dwelling on the island 'neath the rays |
|
Of the setting sun |
|
Guarded by a monster with three heads |
|
To get there he'd to cross a host of countries |
|
Raising mountains, monuments of time |
|
To reach the monster first he killed a two-headed dog |
|
This accomplished saved the oxen |
|
Turning blood to wine |
|
A most difficult task |
|
Was to seek the Golden Apples of the Hesperides |
|
As it was not known where they could be found |
|
Juno had received them at her wedding |
|
From the Goddess of the Earth |
|
Hercules went off to Atlas |
|
Who bore the weight of heavens with his frame |
|
Hercules took over from him |
|
Atlas sought his daughter's time |
|
Help him with the apples to claim |
|
Treasure retrieved, mission achieved |
|
Hercules gave thanks to his host |
|
Feeling the pain, taking the strain |
|
Atlas returned to his post |
|
On his travels he wrestled |
|
And killed the son of Terra |
|
Then he fought with the giant, Cacus |
|
Who had stolen part of the oxen of Geryon |
|
To the lower world he went |
|
To bring Cerberus was sent |
|
Who guarded gates of Hades |
|
A watchdog with three heads |
|
To carry him to upper air |
|
Permission must be read |
|
Granted with proviso |
|
"There must be no blood shed" |
|
Mercury and Minerva |
|
Journeyed with him to the realms of darkness |
|
Where they fulfilled their task |
|
Adventures were taking their toll |
|
His strenght had been pushed to the limit |
|
He killed his friend |
|
Wich broke his spirit |
|
To the very end |
|
He married Dejanira |
|
They journeyed far and wide |
|
At a river the giant centaur |
|
Transported to the other side |
|
"I will carry Dejanira" |
|
The centaur cried |
|
But he tried to steal her |
|
And the wrath of Hercules was tried |
|
To its full degree |
|
And arrow pierced the centaur's heart |
|
He offered her a potion from his blood |
|
Wich gave her magic power over love |
|
To use against Hercules |
|
Hercules had taken prisoner |
|
A woman of great beauty |
|
Incurring vengeance from his wife |
|
Washing white robe in the potion |
|
Sent the clothing to her husband |
|
Unaware that it would take a life |
|
When he wore it great pain occured |
|
As poison entered pores |
|
The messenger who brought the robe was slain |
|
In a rage, a hero's body destroyed |
|
Dejanira distraught by what she'd done |
|
Gave her life away |
|
Crime of passion, a paradise now lost |
|
Vision turned to dismay |
|
Hercules knew he was dying |
|
He ascended Mount Oeta |
|
Where he built a funeral pyre |
|
A lion's skin spread over him |
|
He laid upon the fire |
|
His deeds of strenght lay far behind |
|
His body worn and tired |
|
His life now consumed by the flames |
|
He rose with dignity |
|
Encaptured by a shroud |
|
A resting place before him |
|
Enveloped in a cloud |
|
Taken by chariot into the stars |
|
To peace at last |
|
His burden free |
|
He lives, he lives, he lives |
|
He dwells amongst the Gods a hero |
|
Hercules, Hercules, Hercules |
|
Use his strength |
|
Left in all our hands. |
