Myth of the Minotaur

Let me tell you the story of the Minotaur, a legendary creature with the body of a human and the head of a bull. It is not a story of our time, and you may well find it strange. It took place in ancient Greece, at a time when the gods ruled the Earth along with the humans.

The humans and the gods often argued and made loads of trouble for each other. And because the gods had supernatural powers and wielded magic and sorcery, many things peculiar and wondrous happened on Earth.

The gods could cause storms and strong winds, they could turn a person into stone or into a star or a tree. They could create love, but they could also create hate. They could give people power, but they could also turn them into dust. In short, the gods could do almost anything you could possibly imagine. They were often wise, but not always. In fact, they could be quite moody, short-tempered, stubborn, or selfish.

That’s how it was in the ancient Greek world. It was full of magic, transformation, and sudden twists. And it was in that world that the story of the Minotaur took place.

It all began on the island of Crete. King Minos was about to sacrifice a beautiful bull to Poseidon, the god of the sea. However, the king stopped short, taking pity on the bull and letting him live. Because of this, Poseidon became angry with the king and —as many gods had done before— decided to punish him for it. And not only the king, but also his wife, Queen Pasiphaë.

The punishment was that Pasiphaë would be made to fall in love with a sacred bull, and after some time would give birth…