How the wise Centaur educated the heroes. 

In Thessaly there is a very green and beautiful mountain, which is called Pelio. 

Under this mountain and near the sea there was, these old years, a big city, which was called Iolkos. 

In Iolkos was reigning at that time Pelias. He stole the throne from his brother Aeson, and in order not to suffer the same from his relatives, others he killed and others he locked in the prison. 

Aeson managed to escape at night with his son. He advanced through the olive trees and the vineyards and arrived at the root of the mountain. 

There they sat for a while, father and son, to rest and at dawn they set out to climb the mountain. 

In quite some time they arrived at a huge plane tree, where at its root water was flowing cold like ice. 

They sat there, they ate some bread, and then they took the trail and climped to the top of a formidable cliff. 

Aeson then stopped and said to his son, while indicating to the right: -«Do you see, my child, these trees? There is the cave where lives the wise Centaur». 

In a while they approached and they looked with admiration. From the cliffs to the right and left and over the opening of the cave, there were hanging vines loaded with grapes. 

A little further ahead a fountain was pouring its fresh waters in a deep valley. From time to time in the clamor of the water it was heard the sound of the lyre and sweet song. 

Aeson then said to his son: -«Go, my child, into the cave. There you will meet a strange man, but you shouldn't be scared. 

Go near him, put your hands on his knees and tell him: On the name of the great Zeus, I devote to you my self». 

The little one listened to the words of his father, and with courage he entered in the cave. There he saw the wise Centaur lying on branches of laurel and of myrtle. 

He was truly a strange creature, the Centaur. From the head to the waist he was human, and from the waist down he was powerful horse. 

The white hair of his head was falling like foaming waves on his back, and the snow white beard of his was covering his broad chest. His eyes were full of kindness and proud was his forehead. 

Lying down over his green mattress he was playing his golden lyre and he was singing sweetly. 

The kid, as he saw Centaur and listened to the melodic song of his, he forgot all about what his father said and was looking perplexed. 

Centaur called the child to go near him. 

But when he wanted to put his hands on his knees and talk to him, as he had been advised by his father, he said to him: 

-«Go tell your father to come himself too here; I know well both your father and you». 

The kid ran and called his father; and when they came at the cave, Centaur said to Aeson: -«Why didn't you come as well together, but you just sent your son?». 

-«I wanted to test him», responded Aeson, «to see if he is fearless, as they should be the children of the heroes». 

«But in the name of Zeus, accept my child to educate him together with the other little heroes; and when he grows, let him go to Iolkos to look for his right». 

He extended kindly Centaur his hand to the blonde head of the little one and said to him: -«Did you hear what your father says? Do you want to stay with me? Aren't you afraid of me?». 

-«No», responded the little one. «The will of my father is mine too. Ahh, how would I also like to be Centaur and to have the same sweet voice!». 

Centaur smiled and said: -«Come then, sit near me. When the sun sets, they will return here also the other children and you will get to know them». 

Then, turning to the father of the child he said: 

-«You, Aeson, you can go with my best wishes and be patient, until they pass the difficult years. I hope, that your son will honor his generation». 

With tears in his eyes Aeson kissed his son, bid farewell to Centaur and left. 

It was about time for the sun to set, when were heard from the outside voices and footsteps. They were the young heroes, who returned from the hunt. 

«Come out to see our prey!». they were shouting to Centaur Pileas and Hercules, who had run ahead from the others. 

Centaur hastened to the entrance of the cave with the new student of his. 

-«I killed with my arc these two deers», Hercules was saying. -«And I killed the two roe deers», said Pileas. 

-«I cought alive these two wildcats that you see tied in the bushes!». Agkaios added. 

Orpheus had brought alive a wild goat; 

Caeneus two small bears; they were growling and were trying to bite his hands; he nevertheless was laughing, because he knew that neither human nor beast could hurt him. 

Centaur caressed and praised each of them for their strength and for their braveness. 

At that moment there appeared from a path another disciple. 

He was walking slowly with his head bent, as if he was thinking something important, and he was carrying in his hands various herbs. 

He went near Centaur and he said to him, showing a herb: -«It cures the bite of the snake. 

I saw a goat that was bitten by a poisonous snake; she run in a deep ravine, she ate from this herb and she was saved». 

«This other herb cures the diseases of the humans. A pastor who was very ill, I cured him with this!». 

When he heard the words of his disciple the wise Centaur said: 

-«Apollo and Athena are handing out to each one the charismas. To you, Asclepius, they gave the greatest». 

«The others are training in the art of war and they are learning how one can kill the others. You are looking for the medicines, in order to rescue all human beings from the death». 

Then the little heroes took the axes and began to shred woods in order to ignite fire. After they had lit the fire, they put to roast the deers which they killed in the hunt. 

Meanwhile, they went and washed at the spring, and then they sat and they dined with much appetite. 

When they finished supper, they talked with their wise teacher, and then they played the lyre and they sang. 

Centaur then rose from the table and he climbed on the top of a high rock. From there it seemed like silver the sea, as the moon illuminated it. 

He stood on the top, with his head raised towards the sky, and he began to play his lyre and to sing to the night with its shining stars and the silver moon. 

The children remained silent and listened to him. When he stepped down from the top, they run and they kissed his hands. Then each one went to sleep. 

After the children slept, Centaur remained alone out of the cave. 

He was staring the way of the moon and the position that each star had, and he was drawing it on a big shell. 

When finally the midnight arrived, he entered as well inside the cave, and he laid down on his mattress, that was prepared with myrtles and with woolly skins of bears. 

Next to Centaur there was sleeping the child of Aeson. A ray of the moon, that was entering into the cave, was illuminating the smiling face of the child; it seemed that he was seeing sweet dreams. 

At the sweet dawn Centaur woke up. He exited slowly from the cave and he went down to the fountain. 

He washed well, he made his prayer to the Gods, and he went up again to his cave. 

He took his trumpet, that was made from the horn of a bull and he blew three times. Immediately they jumped from their beds the kids and they ran to the fountain to wash themselves. 

Then, they raised their hands to the sky and they said: «Help us, oh gods, to become equal and better from our ancestors». 

When they returned to the cave, Centaur took them and they went to the forest. 

Ahead went the master and behind followed the children, and listened with attention to the wise words that he was telling them. 

The son of Aeson, as younger that he was, could not follow them to the long walk. The gentle Centauro lifted him then to ride over his shoulders. 

Thus they walked inside the forest, until the sun rose high up and started to gild the tops of the mountains. 

Then they returned to the cave, they ate bread, honey, and fresh butter, and they drank milk. 

After they ate, they took each one his lyre and they trained to the learning of music. 

Centaur was inspecting them all, he was correcting their mistakes and he was teaching them how to play the strings in order to make sounds more sweet. 

Afterwards they sat on thrones of stone that were dispersed under the shadow of the trees, and they were listening carefully to Centaur who was teaching. 

«The King», was saying the wise Centaur, «must sacrifice himself and all his possessions for his homeland. 

A single concern only must have the good king; how to make happy his people, and his kingdom strong and famed». 

In the evening they went to a totally green plain due to the vegetation; they took off their clothes and they trained in running, in wrestling, in jumping and in stone throwing. 

Vividly and happily the little heroes were training, and from their voices and their laughters they were echoing around the mountains and the gorges. 

When they finished the training, they lined up all together held by their arms and they started a dance. 

Centaur was playing his lyre and the children twisted, jumped, and moved sometimes forward and sometimes backward, according to the tune of the lyre. 

Thus they were dancing until the sun set, and while they were completely nude, they seemed like alive statues in the light of the night. 

Together with the others he was dancing cheerful also the child of Aeson; he was not thinking any more neither of Iolkos, nor of his friends, nor of his father. 

It didn't pass a long time and he became a handsome and strong young man. 

Centaur taught him everything that he thought he would need in order to become one day an invincible warrior and a famous one, and since often he let him ride on his back, he also made him a good rider. 

Along with these he also taught him many secrets of the medical science, and for that reason he called him Jason (the one who cures). 

The time was passing and each one of the little heroes was finishing his studies and was departing. 

Asclepius went to Peloponnese and was curing the sick people. 

Hercules was preparing to do his great achievements and Peleas was going to Fthia, in order to take as his wife Thetis, the water nymph and give birth to Achilles. 

There passed quite a few more years. One day Jason climped to the highest summit of the mountain and he sat there for a long time pensive. 

Turning around here and there his eyes, he saw toward the east the endless blue sea; 

a little closer, almost under his feet, he saw the juicy fields of his homeland, and then he saw Iolkos. 

His heart began to beat strongly, and a deep sigh escaped from his chest. 

At that moment Centauro appeared, and as he saw him pensive and heard his sighs he asked him: 

-«What happens to you, my son?». -«I would like to know», said Jason, «if it's true that I am the heir of the country that extends under this mountain». 

-«It's true», said Centaur. «But your unjust uncle will not want to grant you your rights». 

«He will command you to do many dangerous feats, and only the gods know, whether you shall manage to reign some day in Iolkos. 

You must not nevertheless forget that the gods always help the brave ones». 

-«There is nothing that scares me!». replied Jason. Then the wise Centaur said to him: -«Then go with my blessing. But you should never forget what I am going to tell you». 

«Whoever you encounter on the path of your life, man or woman, treat them politely. 

You should never give your word before you think well over it; but once you give it, you should keep it till you die». 

Thus they separated, and Jason descended to Iolkos. 

When Jason arrived to his homeland, Pelias got scared, and in order to ward him off from his side, he ordered him to go and fetch the Golden Fleece. 

Jason invited as partners many of the kids that he met in the cave of Centaur. Most of them were already famous heroes. 

Following the advice of the goddess Athena he built a ship and he named it Argo. 

He entered in the ship with his companions, he lifted the sails and he started his journey to Colchis. 

It had already started to dawn, when Argo was sailing under mountain Pelio. 

At that moment the Argonauts woke, and as they saw the mountain, they remembered their school years. 

«Why don't we go out», says Peleas, «to see our master and also receive his blessing? Who knows if we will ever see him again! 

Also up there lives my precious son Achilles, whom so much my soul is looking for». 

Willingly they all accepted these words of his and they went out to the mountain. 

When they arrived to the cave, they found Centaur lying down and next to him they saw little Achilles playing the lyre. 

When Centaur saw them he got up all happy, he embraced them one by one, he kissed them and he begged them to stay a little with him. 

Achilles run in the arms of his father and after he kissed him, he begun to play with his rich armor. 

-«He can't wait», said Centaur; and caressed Achilles, who was trying to pull from it's scabbard the sword of his father. 

Meanwhile Centaur prepared the table with tender meats from deers and small wild boars, and he had filled up the flasks with old wine. 

The argonauts sat and ate with much appetite; when they emptied the flasks, they begged Orpheus to play his lyre and to sing. 

Orpheus out of respect for the master didn't want to start, and for this reason Centaur sung first. 

After he sung as always sweetly, he turned to Orpheus and said to him, passing him his lyre: 

-«I, my son, have grown old now and my voice has weakened. Take my lyre and sing for our sake the song of the sea». 

Orpheus stood up from the table and climped on a high rock. 

From there he begun to sing about the sea the blue, that takes the ships and drives them to distant lands. 

While Orpheus was singing, his voice was raising above the cliffs and was pouring soft and sweet all around. 

The trees were bowing their tops in order to receive the music, and were resounding it downward the slopes and the gorges. 

They stopped all startled the wild beasts and begun to crawl tamed towards the place from where it was coming the magic song. 

And the birds held their flight and stood above the cave, in order to listen to the melody. 

When he finished the song, Centaur hugged Orpheus, he kissed him and told him: 

-«You have enchanted me, my boy. Apollo and your mother, Kalliopi, they offered you the most precious gifts. I wish that Zeus will give to you every kind of happiness». 

-«Thank you», responded Orpheus; «but since I lost my beloved Eurydice, no happiness exist for me». 

-«The greatest happiness», said the wise Centaur, «is for someone to be able to make the others happy». 

The time arrived for them to leave and Centaur accompanied them till the shore. When Argo reached the open sea, the Argonauts turned their eyes towards Pelio. 

There they saw at the top Centaur, with raised hands towards the sky, in order to make his prayer. 

He was praying to the gods to assist the heroes in the big and dangerous voyage of them to Colchis. 

END.