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The Hydra was a many-headed monster in Greek mythology, defeated by Hercules by cauterizing the necks. It guarded the entrance to the underworld and had poisonous breath and blood. Hercules completed this task as part of his 12 Labors, with the help of Iolaus. The Hydra has become a symbol of a challenge that keeps growing, and its visual representations vary.
The Hydra or Hydra of Lerna was a many-headed monster in Greek mythology that terrorized visitors near Lake Lerna in Greece. Killing the Hydra proved quite a challenge, as two heads grew back every time one was cut off. Hercules seized upon the idea of cauterizing the neck before the new heads had a chance to grow, ultimately defeating the monster as part of a series of tasks he completed which are collectively known as the 12 Labors of Hercules. The Hydra is such an enduring mythological figure that the term “hydra” is sometimes used to describe a challenge that seems to keep getting bigger and harder to handle no matter how much someone tries to metaphorically decapitate it.
In most stories, the Hydra is the daughter of Typhon and Echidna, and the monster was put in place to guard the entrance to the underworld. The monster has been described as having from five to “a multitude” of heads, although in many stories nine heads is the accepted number. In addition to having multiple heads, the Hydra also had poisonous breath and blood, making it an undoubtedly formidable opponent. The many-headed serpent was related to other unsavory characters in Greek mythology, including the Chimera and Cerberus, the many-headed dog.
According to legend, Hercules defeated Hydra with the help of his relative Iolaus. He approached the Hydra with a cloth over his nose to protect himself from the monster’s breath, and as he chopped off the Hydra’s heads, Iolaos burned the stumps of their necks with a flaming torch. After the two managed to kill the Hydra, Hercules dipped his arrows in poisonous blood and then buried the monster, placing a large rock upon it in case he had any ideas about returning from the dead.
Visual representations of the Hydra vary immensely, though most give the monster the body of a serpent with heads like snakes, lizards, or dragons. These heads often have fierce teeth and horns to further convey the danger of tangling with the Hydra.
According to some accounts, this feat of Hercules was not formally recognized, because he needed assistance to complete it. Hercules completed a number of other daring tasks, including the capture of Cerberus and the capture of the Cretan bull. The 12 Labors of Hercules were undertaken as a form of penance and have become a popular theme in tales of heroism and atonement from other regions of the world.
