Jason and Pelias
Tyro, the daughter of Salmoneus and wife of Cretheus, fell in love with the river Enipeus, so Poseidon, who lusted after Tyro, assumed the shape of the river. In this form Poseidon caused her to conceive twin sons, Neleus and Pelias.Pelias (the half-brother of Aeson whose son was Jason) came to rule in Iolcus after its king and founder, Cretheus (son of Aeolus, son of Hellen), died. It is also said that Pelias' half-brother, Aeson, stepped down with age and offered Pelias the regency until Jason (Pelias' nephew or second-cousin) came of age.
What, then, started them on that voyage?
What bound them with nails of adamant
to undertake the risk?
The gods had ordained
that Pelias would meet his death
at the hands of the proud Aiolidai,
or through their machinations:
an oracle had come to him
at Delphi, near the omphalos of mother earth,
and his shrewd heart froze
when he heard it:
"Keep close watch
against a man wearing a single sandal
when he comes from mountain lairs
to the sunlit land of famed Iolkos,
Pindar Pythia 4 Strophe 4
The Sandal of "Sword and Sandal"
An oracle warned Pelias about the man with one shoe, so when he invited Jason to the sacrifice to Poseidon, and Jason, in his haste, lost a sandal, Pelias worried. [Apollodorus 1.9.16]
Pelias asked his nephew what he would do if he learned that one of the citizens was going to murder him. Jason said he'd send the conspirator to find the golden fleece. Pelias took his nephew's advice and turned it on him: he bade Jason bring the ram skin back from Colchis.
Among the men Jason gathered for the adventure were Pelias' son, Acastus, a son of Pelias' twin Neleus, Periclymenus, three sons of Poseidon, Euphemus, Erginus, and Ancaeus. There were also a few offspring of Zeus, Dionysus, and Hermes, as well as children of non-Olympian immortals.
Eventually, with the divine help of some of the goddesses and the magical help of the witch Medea, Jason arrived back in Colchis with the golden fleece, which he dedicated to Poseidon.
Jason was then accidentally instrumental in Pelias death.
Pindar
The story of Pelias and Jason told in Pindar's Fourth Pythian Ode.
Euripides Medea
The drama about Jason's betrayal of his wife and her revenge.Bullfinch's Mythology: The Age of Fable
Bullfinch's tale of Jason, the Argonauts, Medea and the golden fleece.The Argonauts
List of the Argonauts based on Apollodorus.Argonauts
Carlos Parada's list of Jason's crew with notes about each.
Hercules and the 5th Labor
Diverting a river to cleanse the stables of Poseidon's son Augeas was the work of a day for the hero. Unfortunately neither would Augeas make the promised payment to Hercules nor would Eurystheus accept the work-for-hire as fulfillment of his promised ten. This added an eleventh labor to Hercules' total.Hercules and the 7th Labor
Eurystheus wanted Hercules to bring to him the Cretan Bull which many believe to have been the one King Minos failed to sacrifice to Poseidon.Hercules and the 9th Labor
On his way back to Eurystheus with the belt of Hippolyte, Hercules encountered a city in distress. Laomedon of Troy, a very brave or equally foolish man, had hired Apollo and Poseidon to fortify his city for wages. Of course, Laomedon didn't know they were gods when he reneged on his obligation, but he didn't learn his lesson, either. Poseidon punished him by sending a sea serpent which would have devoured his daughter had Hercules not come along and offered his services for a price. Laomedon agreed; Hercules slew the monster; and Laomedon reneged again.Hercules and the 10th Labor
Two sons of Poseidon, Ialbeion and Derycnus tried to rob Hercules of the Cattle of Geryon, but he killed them, instead.Hercules and the 11th Labor
On his way to the Apples of the Hesperides, he ran into trouble with Antaeus and Busiris, sons of Poseidon. Busiris, king in Egypt, sacrificed passing strangers, but when Hercules came through, it was Busiris who was killed. Antaeus sought to wrestle with Hercules, but realizing Antaeus gained strength from the ground, Hercules held him aloft until he weakened and died.We don't know exactly how many of Poseidon's children Hercules killed, but in addition to the four above, he killed:
Poseidon and Sarpedon
After Poltys had entertained him, Hercules shot Poltys' brother, Sarpedon, son of Poseidon.
The Coans mistook Hercules for a pirate and pelted him with stones, so he killed their king, Poseidon's son, Eurypylus.Could a tenth generation descent from Poseidon explain why the sea god didn't confront the hero more directly?
Or could it have been sympathy with the hero's loss of birthright?
Zeus declared that the descendant of Perseus who would next be born would become King of Mycenae. He meant his son, Hercules, but childbirth goddess Hera contrived to make Eurystheus, another descendant of Perseus, come early. (From Carlos Parada's Hercules page.)The Lesser Share - Part I
