Styx

Myth

Styx governed a fountain of Arcadie whose course finished in the Hells (there exists really a river Styx). Hésiode made some most sizeable of Océanides. Pallas fell in love from there and it became the mother of Zélos (Zeal), of Nike (the Victoire), of Cratos (Power) and of Bia (the Force). With this list, Hygin adds the monster Scylla like one of his/her daughters. Other authors still count Perséphone among his/her children, whom it has with Zeus, not considering it as the girl of Déméter but affirming that it is since always the goddess of the Hells.

During the Titanomachie (war between the gods and the Titans), it took the advice of its father and was the first among the immortal ones to offer its assistance to Zeus. His/her children also united with them. As a reward, Zeus invited the children of Océanide to remain in the Olympe for always. Moreover, its name became crowned and the gods took their most solemn oaths by this one. When a god carried oath by Styx, Iris drew there of its water in a gold cut. Whoever made perjury drank this water, lost the voice and the breath during a Grande Year , is nine years, and was made banish council of the gods for nine others.

Zeus the Jura to grant to Sole what she wished and of yielding there, which caused the death of this one. Hélios made a promise similar to Phaéton, also causing him death. The legend also wants that very part of the body that one plunged there became invulnerable. Also, Thétis plunged it his/her son Achille in his water and there remained vulnerable only to the heel, the only part that Thétis had not submerged since it held it by the foot.

One says that the Aloades, having broken an oath made by Styx, accepted an exemplary punishment, that to remain attached back to back forever, in the wind and darkness.

Styx is a river which separated the terrestrial world from the Enfers by surrounding it nine times. Styx, the Phlégéthon, the Achéron and the Cocyte converged in the center of the underground world towards a vast marsh. The popular belief said that one could cross it on a boat leads sometimes by Charon, sometimes by Phlégyas, but the majority of the traditions affirm that the first rather made cross Achéron and the second, Phlégéthon.

In the Buddhism, the river Sanzu would be the equivalent of Styx.

Styx in Christianity

Styx, initially only present in the Greek tradition, then appeared in the Enfer of the Christianisme, particularly in the Divine comedy . Dante allotted the guard of Styx to the nocher Phlégyas. It made this river the fifth circle of the hell, where the coléreux had as a punishment to remain immersed in the mud of the river.

Sources

(I, 2,2-5; I, 3,1).
(v. 383 and suiv.).
( Foreword ).
(VIII, 18,2).

Simple: Styx

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