Danae's daughters. In the Greek myth, the daughters of King Danae for killing their husbands after death were condemned by the gods to forever fill a bottomless barrel with water in the underworld

Mostly based on the tragedy of Aeschylus "Praying for protection."

The son of Zeus and Io, Epaphus, had a son Bel, and he had two sons - Egypt and Danai. The whole country, which is irrigated by the blessed Nile, was owned by Egypt, from which this country received its name. Danai ruled in Libya. The gods gave Egypt fifty sons. I give fifty beautiful daughters. The Danaids captivated the sons of Egypt with their beauty, and they wanted to marry beautiful girls, but Danai and the Danaids refused them. The sons of Egypt gathered a large army, and went to war against Danae. Danaus was defeated by his nephews, and he had to lose his kingdom and flee. With the help of the goddess Pallas Athena, Danai built the first fifty-oared ship and set off on it with his daughters into the boundless, eternally noisy sea.
For a long time, the ship of Danae sailed along the sea waves and, finally, sailed to the island of Rhodes. Here Danai stopped; he went ashore with his daughters, founded a sanctuary for his patron goddess Athena and made rich sacrifices to her. Danai did not stay in Rhodes. Fearing the persecution of the sons of Egypt, he sailed with his daughters further, to the shores of Greece, to Argolis, the homeland of his ancestor Io. Zeus himself guarded the ship during a dangerous voyage across the boundless sea. After a long journey, the ship landed on the fertile shores of Argolis. Here Danai and the Danaids hoped to find protection and salvation from the hated marriage with the sons of Egypt,
Under the guise of praying for protection with olive branches in their hands, the Danaids came ashore. There was no one to be seen on the beach. Finally, a cloud of dust appeared in the distance. It was coming fast. Already in a cloud of dust you can see the sparkle of shields, helmets and spears. The sound of war chariot wheels is heard. This is the approaching army of the king of Argolis, Pelasg, the son of Palechton. Informed of the arrival of the ship, Pelasg came to the seashore with his army. He did not meet the enemy there, but the elder Danae and his fifty beautiful daughters. With branches in their hands they met him, praying for protection. Stretching out their hands to him, with eyes full of tears, they pray to his beautiful daughters Danae to help them against the proud sons of Egypt. In the name of Zeus, the mighty protector of those who pray, the Danaids of Pelasg are conjured not to betray them. After all, they are not strangers in Argolis - this is the birthplace of their progenitor Io.
Pelasg is still hesitating - he is afraid of the war with the mighty rulers of Egypt. What should he do? But he is even more afraid of the wrath of Zeus, if, having violated his laws, he repels those who pray in his name of the Thunderer for protection. Finally, Pelasg advises Danae to go to Argos himself and place olive branches on the altar of the gods as a sign of prayer for protection. He himself decides to gather the people and ask their advice. Pelasg promises the Danaids to make every effort to convince the citizens of Argos to protect them.
Exit Pelasg. With trepidation, the Danaids await the decision of the people's assembly. They know how indomitable the sons of Egypt are, how formidable they are in battle; they know what threatens them if the ships of the Egyptians land on the coast of Argolis. What should they do, defenseless virgins, if the inhabitants of Argos deprive them of shelter and help? Disaster is near. The messenger of the sons of Egypt has already come. He threatens to forcefully take the Danaids to the ship, he grabbed the hand of one of the daughters of Danae and tells his slaves to grab the others. But here again King Pelasg appears. He takes the Danaids under his protection, and he is not afraid that the herald of the sons of Egypt threatens him with war.
Death brought Pelasgus and the inhabitants of Argolis the decision to protect Danaus and his daughters. Defeated in a bloody battle, Pelasg was forced to flee to the very north of his vast possessions. True, Danae was elected king of Argos, but in order to buy peace from the sons of Egypt, he had to give them everything as a wife of his beautiful daughters.
The sons of Egypt celebrated their wedding magnificently with the Danaids. They did not know what fate this marriage would bring to them. The noisy wedding feast is over; the wedding hymns fell silent, the wedding torches went out; the darkness of night enveloped Argos. A profound silence reigned in the sleep-filled city. Suddenly, in the silence, there was a deathly heavy groan, here is another one, another and another. A terrible atrocity was committed under the cover of night by the Danaids. With daggers given to them by their father Danai, they pierced their husbands as soon as sleep closed their eyes. Thus the sons of Egypt died a terrible death. Only one of them survived, the beautiful Linkei. The young daughter of Danae, Hypermnestra, took pity on him. She was unable to pierce her husband's chest with a dagger. She woke him up and secretly led him out of the palace.
Danai came into violent anger when he learned that Hypermnestra had disobeyed his command. Danai put his daughter in heavy chains and threw her into prison. The court of the elders of Argos gathered to judge Hypermnestra for disobedience to her father. Danai wanted to put his daughter to death. But the goddess of love herself, the golden Aphrodite, appeared for judgment. She protected Hypermnestra and saved her from a cruel execution. Compassionate, loving daughter Danae became the wife of Linkey. The gods blessed this marriage with numerous offspring of great heroes. Hercules himself, the immortal hero of Greece, belonged to the lineage of Linkey.
Zeus did not want the death of other Danaids. Cleared, at the behest of Zeus, Athena and Hermes Danaid from the filth of spilled blood. King Danai arranged great games in honor of the Olympian gods. The winners in these games were given as a reward in marriage to the daughters of Danae.
But the Danaids did not escape punishment for the perfect crime. They carry it after their death in the gloomy realm of Hades. The Danaids must fill a huge vessel with no bottom with water. They always carry water, scooping it up in an underground river, and pour it into a vessel. Here, it seems, the vessel is already full, but water flows out of it, and again it is empty. The Danaids are again taken to work, they again carry water and pour it into a vessel without a bottom. And so their fruitless work continues without end.

DANAIDS

50 daughters of King Danae, who, at the behest of their father, killed their husbands on their wedding night (one Hypermnestra disobeyed, saving her husband Linkei and becoming the ancestor of the Argos kings). As a punishment, the Danaids had to fill a bottomless barrel with water forever in Hades. In a figurative sense - "barrel of Danaid", "work of Danaid" - useless and endless work. One of them is Ammon.

// Armand SULLY-PRUDHOME: Danaids // N.A. Kun: DANAIDS

Myths of Ancient Greece, dictionary-reference book. 2012

See also interpretations, synonyms, meanings of the word and what DANAIDS are in Russian in dictionaries, encyclopedias and reference books:

DANAIDS
(Danaides, ?????????). Fifty daughters of King Danae. See Danai...
DANAIDS
In Greek mythology, the 50 daughters of King Danae, who fled with their father from the persecution of their cousins Aegyptiades, who coveted the love of Danaides ...
DANAIDS in the Dictionary-Reference Who's Who in the Ancient World:
, Danai Legends about them of eastern or Egyptian origin. Danai was the son of the king of Egypt, Bel, and the father of fifty daughters. At his…
DANAIDS in the Lexicon of Sex:
in Greek mythology of the 50 daughters of King Danae, who, at the behest of their father, killed their husbands on their wedding night. Only one of…
DANAIDS in the Big Encyclopedic Dictionary:
DANAIDS in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, TSB:
in ancient Greek mythology of the 50 daughters of Danae, the son of the Egyptian king Bel. Fleeing from the persecution of 50 sons of Egypt (brother Danae), D. together ...
DANAIDS in the Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Euphron:
Dana's daughters...
DANAIDS in the Modern Encyclopedic Dictionary:
DANAIDS
in Greek mythology, 50 daughters of King Danae, who, at the behest of their father, killed their husbands on their wedding night (Hypermnestra disobeyed, who became the ancestor of the Argos ...
DANAIDS in the Encyclopedic Dictionary:
genus. pl. Danaid, unit Danaida, s, f., soul, with a capital letter In ancient Greek mythology: 50 daughters of the Argos king Danae who killed ...
DANAIDS in the Big Russian Encyclopedic Dictionary:
DANAIDS, in Greek. mythology of the 50 daughters of King Danae, who, at the behest of their father, killed their husbands on their wedding night (one Hypermnestra disobeyed, ...
DANAIDS in the Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron:
? Dana's daughters...
DANAIDS in the New Dictionary of Foreign Words:
(gr. danaldes) 1) in ancient Greek mythology - 50 daughters of the Argos king Danae, who killed their husbands and were convicted for this ...
DANAIDS in the Dictionary of Foreign Expressions:
[gr. danaldes] 1. in ancient Greek mythology - 50 daughters of the Argos king Danae, who killed their husbands and were condemned for this by the gods ...
DANAIDS in the Dictionary of the Russian Language Lopatin:
Dana`ids, -`id (mythol.; b`ochka ...
DANAIDS in the Spelling Dictionary:
dana`ids, -`id (mythol.; b`ochka ...
DANAIDS in the Modern Explanatory Dictionary, TSB:
in Greek mythology, 50 daughters of King Danae, who, at the behest of their father, killed their husbands on their wedding night (one Hypermnestra disobeyed, becoming ...
PELASGIAN
(Pelasg) - the ancestor of the Pelasgian tribe (the first inhabitants of Greece). Son of Zeus and Niobe, brother of Argos. According to other myths, he is the first person...
EGYPT in the Dictionary-Reference Myths of Ancient Greece:
(Egypt, Egypt) - the son of Bel (the son of Poseidon and Libya) and Ankhinoe, the brother of Danae, Cepheus and Phineus. Eponym of Egypt. Father 50 ...
DANAI in the Dictionary-Reference Myths of Ancient Greece:
- first the king of Libya, then from Gelanor received royal power in Argos, the forefather of the Danaans. The son of the king of Egypt Bela (son of the god ...
DANAI in the Concise Dictionary of Mythology and Antiquities:
(Danaus, ??????). The son of the Egyptian king Bela, the brother of Egypt (see Egypt). With his 50 daughters, Danai fled to Argos. By …
EGYPT in the Directory of Characters and Cult Objects of Greek Mythology:
In Greek mythology, the son of Bel, the brother of Danae and the eponym of Egypt. The father of 50 sons - Aegyptiades, who by force took to wife ...
HYPERMNESTR in the Directory of Characters and Cult Objects of Greek Mythology:
In Greek mythology, one of the Danaids (daughters of Danae). She was the only one who disobeyed her father and did not kill her husband on their wedding night ...

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And the great-grandson of Zeus - Bela, had two sons - Egypt and Danai. The whole country, which is irrigated by the blessed Nile, was owned by Egypt, from him this country received its name. Danai ruled in Libya. They adopted customs alien to the Hellenes. Danae had a harem of ten wives, and each gave birth to five daughters. Not wanting to yield to his brother in anything, Aegyptus also had ten wives, and together they bore him fifty sons.
As they grew older, their hearts burned with love for their beautiful cousins.
And then it became clear that Danai, unlike Egypt, was not an Egyptian to the end. He opposed this marriage and firmly decided: it is better to go into exile, return to an unknown homeland, than to allow his daughters to enter into a criminal incestuous marriage. The sons of Aegypt gathered a large army and went to war against Danae. Danaus was defeated by his nephews, and he had to lose his kingdom and flee.
Danai prayed to the mistress Athena, and she, skilled in all crafts, helped him build a fifty-oared ship, on which he and his family set off.

For a long time, the ship of Danae sailed along the sea waves and, finally, sailed to the island of Rhodes, beloved by Helios. Here the father and daughters, with the help of servants, erected a temple to Athena and made the first sacrifices. Fearing the persecution of the sons of Aegyptus, he sailed with his daughters further, to the shores of Greece, to Argolis, the homeland of his progenitor Io. Zeus himself guarded the ship during a dangerous voyage across the boundless sea. After a long journey, the ship landed on the fertile shores of Argolis. Here Danai and the Danaids hoped to find protection and salvation from the hated marriage with the sons of Aegyptus.
In Argolis, where Danai and his daughters arrived safely, the Pelasgians then lived, and King Gelanor ruled over them. The people, having learned that the alien is a descendant of the ancient rulers of the country, began to think who is more worthy of power - Gelanor or Danai.
It so happened that on one of these days Apollo in the form of a wolf attacked the herd of royal cows and defeated the bull, the leader of the herd. The Argives saw in this an indication of the gods, who should rule their city. Since the bull was local and the wolf came from the forest, they decided that the king should be a stranger. And the power was transferred to Danae. He did not turn out to be ungrateful and erected a temple to Apollo the Wolf. After that, the Argos began to be called Danaans.

Danai, who grew up on the banks of the Nile, could not come to terms with the lack of fresh water. He sent his daughters around the country, ordering them to find groundwater. More than others, Animone was lucky. While wandering, she saw a handsome deer. Throwing a dart at him, she hit a sleeping satyr. He woke up and rushed to the girl. Poseidon came running to her cry. Animone gave herself to him, and in gratitude, Poseidon opened the exit to an underground source, to which he gave the name of the girl. From the god Animona gave birth to a son, Nauplius, the ancestor of the famous hero of the same name.

In the meantime, the Aegyptiades, who were burning with love for their cousins, managed to get on the trail of Danae and his daughters. Arriving in Argos, they appeared in the royal palace and demanded the Danaids as their wife. Danai realized that he could not cope with five strong young men, and celebrated the wedding. But before letting the daughters go to their husbands, he gave each of them a dagger, ordering them to kill their husbands in order to prevent incest.
Obedient daughters obeyed their father, flooding their marriage beds with the blood of their brother-husbands. Only one of them survived, the beautiful Linkey. Danae's young daughter, Hypermnestra, took pity on him. She was unable to pierce her husband's chest with a dagger. She woke him up and secretly led him out of the palace.

Danai came into violent anger when he learned that Hypermnestra had disobeyed his command. Danai put his daughter in heavy chains and threw her into prison. The court of the elders of Argos gathered to judge Hypermnestra for disobedience to her father. Danai wanted to put his daughter to death. But the goddess of love herself, the golden Aphrodite, appeared for judgment. She protected Hypermnestra and saved her from a cruel execution. Compassionate, loving daughter Danae became the wife of Linkey. The gods blessed this marriage with numerous offspring of great heroes. Hercules himself, the immortal hero of Greece, belonged to the lineage of Linkey.

Zeus did not want the death of other Danaids. Cleared, at the behest of Zeus, Athena and Hermes Danaid from the filth of spilled blood. King Danai arranged great games in honor of the Olympian gods. The winners in these games were given as a reward in marriage to the daughters of Danae.

But the Danaids still did not escape punishment for the perfect crime. They carry her after their death in the dark realm of Hades. The Danaids must fill a huge vessel with no bottom with water. They always carry water, scooping it up in an underground river, and pour it into a vessel. Here, it seems, the vessel is already full, but water flows out of it, and again it is empty. The Danaids are again taken to work, they again carry water and pour it into a vessel without a bottom. And so their fruitless work continues without end.

To many in antiquity, this seemed like a severe punishment. But those who found the act of the chaste sisters pious, argued that the Danaids, the great-grandchildren of the full-flowing Nile, were given the opportunity to lead their usual way of life in Hades.

Genealogy:

Children of Zeus: part of this branch is dedicated to the origin of Danae and Aegyptus, as well as their descendants.

(Set out mainly on the tragedy of Aeschylus "Praying for protection")

The son of Zeus and Io, Epaphus, had a son Bel, and he had two sons - Egypt and Danai. The whole country, which is irrigated by the fertile Nile, was owned by Egypt, from which the country got its name. Danai ruled in Libya. The gods gave Egypt fifty sons, and Danae gave fifty beautiful daughters. The Danaids captivated the sons of Egypt with their beauty, and they wanted to marry beautiful girls, but Danai and the Danaids refused them. The sons of Egypt gathered a large army and went to war against Danae. Danaus was defeated by his nephews and fled. With the help of the goddess Pallas Athena, Danai built the first fifty-oared ship and set off on it with his daughters into the boundless, eternally noisy sea.

For a long time, the ship of Danae sailed along the sea waves and, finally, sailed to the island of Rhodes. Here Danai stopped; he went ashore with his daughters, founded a sanctuary for his patron goddess Athena and made rich sacrifices to her. Danai did not stay in Rhodes. Fearing the persecution of the sons of Egypt, he sailed with his daughters further, to the shores of Greece, to Argolis ( Region in the center of the Peloponnese) - the birthplace of Io. Zeus himself guarded the ship during a dangerous voyage across the boundless sea. After a long journey, the ship landed on the fertile shores of Argolis. Here Danai and the Danaids hoped to find protection and salvation from the hated marriage with the sons of Egypt.

The Danaids came ashore. No one was visible around. Finally, a cloud of dust appeared in the distance. It was coming fast. Already in a cloud of dust you can see the sparkle of shields, helmets and spears. The sound of war chariot wheels is heard. This is the approaching army of the king of Argolis, Pelasg, the son of Palechton. Informed of the arrival of the ship, Pelasg came to the seashore with his army. He did not meet the enemy there, but the elder Danae and his fifty beautiful daughters. With olive branches in their hands they met him, praying for protection. Stretching out their hands to him, with eyes full of tears, they pray to his beautiful daughters Danae to help them against the proud sons of Egypt. In the name of Zeus, the mighty protector of those who pray, the Danaids of Pelasg are conjured not to betray them. After all, they are not strangers in Argolis - this is the birthplace of their progenitor Io.

Pelasg still hesitates: he is afraid of the war with the mighty rulers of Egypt. What should he do? But he is even more afraid of the wrath of Zeus, if, having violated his laws, he repels those who pray for his protection. Finally, Pelasg advises Danae to go to Argos himself and place olive branches on the altars of the gods as a sign of prayer for protection. He himself decides to gather the people and ask their advice. Pelasgus promises the Danaids to make every effort to convince the citizens of Argos to protect them.

Exit Pelasg. With trepidation, the Danaids are waiting for the decision of the people's assembly. They know how indomitable the sons of Egypt are, how formidable they are in battle; they know what threatens them if the ships of the Egyptians land on the coast of Argolis. What should they do, defenseless virgins, if the inhabitants of Argos deprive them of shelter and help? But disaster is near. The messenger of the sons of Egypt has already come. He threatens to take Danaid to the ship by force. He grabbed the hand of one of the daughters of Danae and tells his servants to grab the others as well. But here again King Pelasg appears. He takes Danaid under his protection, he is not afraid of the fact that the messenger of the sons of Egypt threatens him with war.

Death brought Pelasgus and the inhabitants of Argolis the decision to protect Danaus and his daughters. Defeated in a bloody battle, Pelasg fled to the very north of his vast possessions. True, Danae was elected king of Argos, but in order to make peace with the sons of Egypt, he had to give them his beautiful daughters as wives.

The sons of Egypt celebrated their wedding magnificently with the Danaids. They did not know what fate this marriage would bring them. The noisy wedding feast is over; the wedding hymns fell silent; the marriage torches went out; the darkness of night enveloped Argos. A profound silence reigned in the sleep-filled city. Suddenly, in the silence, there was a deathly heavy groan, here is another one, another and another. A terrible atrocity was committed under the cover of night by the Danaids. With the daggers given to them by Danai, they pierced their husbands as soon as sleep closed their eyes. Thus perished the sons of Egypt. Only one of them survived, the beautiful Linkei. The young daughter of Danae, Hypermnestra, took pity on him. She was unable to pierce her husband's chest with a dagger. She woke him up and secretly led him out of the palace.

Zeus did not want the death of other Danaids. Cleaned, at the behest of Zeus, Athena and Hermes Danaid from the filth of spilled blood. King Danai arranged great games in honor of the Olympian gods. The winners in these games were given as a reward in marriage to the daughters of Danae.

But the Danaids still did not escape punishment for the perfect crime. They carry it after their death in the gloomy realm of Hades. The Danaids must fill a huge vessel with no bottom with water. They always carry water, scooping it up in an underground river, and pour it into a vessel. Here, it seems, the vessel is already full, but water flows out of it, and again it is empty. Again, the Danaides are taken to work, again they carry water and pour it into a vessel without a bottom. And so their fruitless work continues without end.