The Labyrinth was constructed by
Daedalus the most skilled and clever craftsman in all of Hellas. Daedalus made
the Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete.
So artfully and cunningly was the Labyrinth constructed, and so many and
bewildering were its strange passages, that once entered no one ever succeeded
in escaping from the Labyrinth of confusing Mazes.
There was another and even more frightening reason for why no one ever escaped
from the Labyrinth. Within its depths, lived and roamed the Minotaur, a
terrifying monster, half bull, half human, who hunted down and killed anyone
wandering in the passages of the Labyrinth.
In fact it is known that the Minotaur was a gigantic man with the head of a
Bull.
At that time Athens was under the
dominance of Crete.
One of the many obligations imposed upon the ruler of Athens and his people by
the Cretan over-lord was that every year King Aegeus of Athens must submit a
tribute of seven youths and seven maidens to King Minos of Crete.
Minos demanded this cruel tribute in order that he might place the young
Athenians, one by one, within the Labyrinth of the terrifying and fatal
Minotaur.
Theseus, son of Aegeus, king of Athens, determined to put an end to this annual
sacrifice of Athenian youths and maidens.
In order to carry out his noble plan, Theseus surreptitiously joined the group
of young people when they were being sent on their voyage to Crete for the
annual tribute to King Minos.
Placing himself at the head of the group of young Athenians when they were made
to appear before King Minos and his court, Theseus was chosen to be the first
sacrificial victim to enter the Labyrinth of the fatal Minotaur.
Right at that very moment things took an unexpected turn.
Ariadne, daughter of King Minos, upon seeing the noble and handsome Theseus for
the first time, instantly fell in love with him. She was now determined to save
Theseus from his certain death in the Labyrinth at the hands of the fatal
Minotaur.
Hiding herself near the
Labyrinth, as Theseus approached the Labyrinth of doom, the beautiful and
intelligent Ariadne, presented him with a sword and a spool of silk thread.
Ariadne directed the prince to to unwind the silk thread as he entered into the
mazes of the Labyrinth saying that she would stay at the entrance to the
Labyrinth holding the other end of the silk thread.
Theseus boldly entered the Labyrinth and after a long and complicated journey
through the mazes, encountered the Minotaur, in the depths of the Labyrinth. The
fearless Theseus vanquished the Minotaur with the sword of Ariadne. He then
found his way back out of the complicated mazes through which he had passed by
retracing the path of the silk thread.
When Theseus regained the entrance to the Labyrinth it was dawn and the full
Moon was setting in the West. In the bright light of both the Sun and the full
Moon Theseus and Ariadne embraced.
Esoteric interpretation coming
soon!
This was H.P.B's favorite Myth:
But what can the Labyrinth
possibly be in the World as it is now?
