The Singing Scoutmaster: Heracles Captures the Cretan Bull

When Heracles completed his sixth labor, he thought for a moment that perhaps King Eurystheus was running out of ideas. But the next command came swiftly: 'Go to the island of Crete and bring back the great bull that roams there.'

Now this was no ordinary beast. The Cretan Bull was said to have been sent by Poseidon himself to the island as a gift to King Minos. Gleaming like burnished bronze and bellowing like thunder, the bull was meant to be sacrificed in honor of the sea god. But Minos had grown attached to the magnificent creature and instead kept it alive, angering Poseidon, who cursed the bull with madness. It rampaged across the island, trampling fields, smashing fences, and terrifying the people.

Heracles set sail across the wine-dark sea and arrived on Crete, where he sought an audience with King Minos. The king was all too happy to let Heracles take the beast, especially if it meant peace for his island and fewer broken fences.

For days, Heracles tracked the bull across rocky hills and sunbaked fields. The creature was fast and powerful, but Heracles was patient. One early morning, as the mist still clung to the olive groves, Heracles spotted the bull grazing near a cliff overlooking the sea.

Without a word, Heracles crept forward, his lion-skin cloak rustling softly in the breeze. The bull raised its head, snorted, and charged.

The ground shook as the creature barreled toward him, but Heracles stood firm. At the last possible moment, he sidestepped, grabbing one of the bull's horns with his left hand and wrapping his arm around its neck. The bull bucked and roared, flinging its hooves and thrashing its head. Heracles dug in his heels, his muscles straining as he wrestled the creature to the ground.

It was no easy task. The bull fought like a storm, but Heracles, with the strength of ten men, held fast. At last, the beast collapsed, exhausted, and Heracles bound its legs with rope.

He didn't slay the bull, for this labor demanded capture, not death. So he fashioned a strong yoke and led the beast back down to the sea. The islanders watched in awe as Heracles, sunlit and sweat-drenched, marched to his ship with the mighty bull in tow.

Upon returning to Tiryns, King Eurystheus took one look at the beast, then dove into his hiding jar again. He didn't want the bull kept near his palace, so he ordered Heracles to release it.

And so, the Cretan Bull was set free. Some say it roamed north, crossing the lands until it eventually reached Marathon, where it would later become known as the Marathonian Bull—a beast of legend in yet another tale.

As for Heracles, he dried the sea salt from his beard, flexed his tired arms, and waited for the next labor. There were five more to come, and who knew what monstrous challenge awaited him next?