When the great Zeus
overthrew his father, Cronus ---as Cronus in turn
had overthrown his father, Uranus---he turned
against mankind. He intended to destroy the human
race and start again. But he was foiled by
quick-witted Prometheus.
The name Prometheus
means "forethought," and of all the
immortal Titans, Prometheus is the most clever.
This was why he had sided with deep thinking Zeus
against brutal Cronus and the other Titans. But
Prometheus also champions mankind.
Prometheus gave
human beings the precious gift of thought and
taught people many crafts and skills, such as how
to study the stars in their orbits, and how to
use them to navigate the seas.
This championship of
mankind angered Zeus, and his anger came to a
head when Prometheus cheated the gods out of
their rightful sacrifice, giving it to mankind
instead. Prometheus had slaughtered an ox and
divided it into two portions, each wrapped in
hide. The large portion was just fat and bones;
the small portion to the gods, whereupon Zeus
complained. Prometheus smiled and said,
"Zeus, most glorious of the gods, choose
whichever you like." Of course Zeus chose
the large portions. When he saw that he had been
tricked by Prometheus he decided to withhold fire
from mankind.
"Let them eat
their meat raw," he cried. But
Prometheus outwitted him. He entered Olympus, the
home of the gods, stole fire from the chariot of
the sun, and carried it back to earth in a fennel
plant. Then he showed mankind how to use fire to
cook and keep warm. When
Zeus saw the glow of fires on earth, he
fell into a deadly fury.
Continued --- click
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![Cadmus and the Sown Men](/ma3/mythology/images/giftback.gif)
![Gift of Fire Part II](/ma3/mythology/images/giftnext.gif)