Zeus the Thunderer, having kidnapped the beautiful daughter of the river god Asopus, took her to the island of Oinopia, which has since been called after the daughter of Asopus - Aegina. The son of Aegina and Zeus, Aeacus, was born on this island. When Aeacus grew up, matured and became king of the island of Aegina, no one could compare with him throughout Greece, either in love for truth or in justice. The great Olympians themselves revered Aeacus and often chose him as a judge in their disputes. After his death, Aeacus, like Minos and Rhadamanthus, became, by the will of the gods, a judge in the underworld.
Only the great goddess Hera hated Aeacus. Hera sent a great disaster to the kingdom of Aeacus. The island of Aegina was shrouded in thick fog, and this fog lasted for four months. Finally the south wind dispersed it. But it was not liberation from disaster, but death that the wind brought with its breath. From the noxious fog, an innumerable number of poisonous snakes filled the ponds, springs and streams of Aegina, they poisoned everyone with their poison. A terrible pestilence began on Aegina. Every living thing on it died out. Only Eak and his sons remained unharmed. In despair, Eak raised his hands to the sky and exclaimed:
“Oh, great, aegis-powerful Zeus, if you really were the husband of Aegina, if you really are my father and are not ashamed of your offspring, then return my people to me or hide me in the darkness of the grave!”
Zeus gave a sign to Aeacus that he had heeded his prayer.
Lightning flashed and thunder rolled across the cloudless sky. Eak realized that his prayer had been heard. Where Aeacus prayed to Father Zeus, there stood a mighty oak tree dedicated to the Thunderer, and at its roots there was an anthill. Eak's gaze accidentally fell on an anthill full of thousands of hardworking ants. Eak watched for a long time as the ants fussed about and built their ant city, and said:
- Oh, dear Father Zeus, give me as many hardworking citizens as there are ants in this anthill.
As soon as Aeacus said this, the oak, in complete calm, rustled its mighty branches. Zeus sent another sign to Aeacus.
Night has come. Eak saw a wonderful dream. He saw the sacred oak of Zeus, its branches were covered with many ants. The branches of the oak tree began to sway, and ants began to rain down from them. Having fallen to the ground, the ants became larger and larger, then they rose to their feet, straightened up, their dark color and thinness disappeared, they gradually turned into people. Eak woke up, he does not believe the prophetic dream, he even complains to the gods that they do not send him help. Suddenly there was a loud noise. Eak hears footsteps, human voices that he has not heard for a long time. “Isn’t this a dream,” he thinks. Suddenly his son Telamon runs in, rushes to his father and, joyful, says:
- Come out quickly, father! You will see a great miracle that you did not expect.
Eak came out of the rest and saw alive those people whom he had seen in his dream. The people who were previously ants proclaimed Aeacus king, and he called them Myrmidons. Thus Aegina was repopulated.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru