Introduction: Symbolism of the Number 12
One of the simplest methods for uncovering symbolism in literature is to look for patterns among the various narratives. In the Bible, the number twelve is connected with the twelve tribes of Israel and the twelve disciples of Jesus. In esoteric literature, the human soul is believed to be separated into 12 distinct fragments, each with its own identity and consciousness. There are supposedly 12 sacred planets in the solar system (7 which were known to the ancients, the others are in the process of discovery). There are also 12 “rays” of “God: the 7 known rays, and 5 hidden rays.
According to Biblical legend, there was a large, round basin in the Temple of Solomon known as the “molten sea.” Significantly, this bath was situated on the backs of 12 oxen and used for the purpose of self-purification. Additionally, the round shape of the basin corresponds to the round table of King Arthur. King Arthur famously had 12 knights that sat around this table, and they were involved with the quest for the “holy grail” (eternal life). Putting these two ideas together, we can surmise that the quest for eternal life (the holy grail) involves a process of self-purification (symbolized by the molten sea). But what is this process of self-purification?
If we further explore the symbolism of 12, we might discover that the descriptions of the 12 tribes of Israel have been matched up with the signs of the zodiac. Assuming that the 12 oxen under the molten sea represent the 12 tribes of Israel, we realize that the signs of the zodiac might hold the key to defining the purification process. According to author Alice Bailey, the 12 labors of Hercules – which correspond to the 12 signs of the zodiac – are the key for defining the quest for the “holy grail.”
The Initiations of Hercules
The 12 labors of Hercules provide us with a very helpful description of the path to salvation, which occurs as a series of initiations over a period of many lifetimes. In mythology, these labors are not always listed in the correct order. To accurately define this spiritual path, these labors should be matched to their corresponding zodiac signs and then arranged in the correct order, starting with the first sign of the zodiac (which is Aries).
The following interpretations are a summary of information found in Alice Bailey’s book “The Labors of Hercules: An Astrological Interpretation.” Note that this path of initiations is a journey that each of us travels throughout all of our lifetimes until we are able to break free from the cycle of reincarnation.
Labor 1: Aries – Capturing the Brood Mares of Diomedes
Summary: Acquiring an initial mastery over one’s thought.
The myth:
The first labor of Hercules was to capture the evil horses of Diomedes, who were eating humans and causing destruction. Upon capturing these brood mares, Hercules gave control of them to his friend Abderis while he proudly marched in front of the procession. However, the brood mares proved to be too powerful for Abderis: they escaped from his control and trampled him to death. Hercules was then forced to recapture the animals.
Interpretation:
As the first sign of the Zodiac which commemorates springtime and new life, Aries symbolizes the “beginning” and creation. In the story, the brood mares represent thoughts, which have the power to create good or evil. Abderis represents the “lower self” of humans, which cannot control its own thoughts without the divine aspect, represented by Hercules. Therefore, Hercules initially failed the task when he handed over the mares (his thoughts) to Aberdis (his lower self). This story is a reminder that the lower self (AKA the personality) and soul combined must be used to gain mastery over one’s thoughts.
Labor 2: Taurus – Capture of the Cretan Bull
Summary: Acquiring an initial mastery of emotions/desire.
The myth:
For his 2nd labor, Hercules was given the task of capturing a sacred bull on the island of Crete. Hercules finds the bull and rides it like a horse, bringing it to the city of the Cyclops.
Interpretation:
The physical world (i.e. matter) is meant to be used for the expression of the soul. But for this to occur, a person must first be able to see through the illusions of the physical plane and recognize the desires of the ego as an endless path that leads nowhere. In its higher expression, Taurus (the bull) symbolizes the mother of illumination which gives birth to an individual’s first experience of spiritual awakening. This spiritual experience will cause an individual to reevaluate their priorities and begin to choose what is considered right rather than just selfishly pursuing what the ego wants.
The original meaning of the word sin was an action that “missies the mark.” The bull (in its lower expression) represents animal nature, which must be controlled. Riding the bull – as opposed to killing it – represents the attainment of controlling desire. The one-eyed cyclops represents the “bull’s eye” (hitting the mark), which is the opposite of sin.
Labor 3: Gemini – The Quest for the Golden Apples
Summary: Transforming Knowledge into Wisdom
The myth:
Hercules is given the task of acquiring the golden apples from the Garden of Hesperides, but is not told how to find them. As a result, Hercules is forced to search over the entire earth. During this journey, he is deceived by and puts his faith in a false teacher name Busiris. Eventually, Hercules realizes he is in a trap and escapes.
Continuing his search, Hercules eventually comes across Atlas, who is struggling to hold the weight of the world on his shoulder. Seeing Atlas’ pain, Hercules forgets about his search and goes to help Atlas. By shouldering the weight of the world himself to relieve the pressure on Atlas, the latter is able to acquire and give Hercules the golden apples he has been seeking.
Interpretation:
This 3rd labor symbolizes the journey of a person who knows that self-purification is necessary, but does not yet know how to accomplish this goal. Note that this labor continues the symbolism from the Biblical Garden of Eden, in which Eve meets Lucifer (a “son of the morning”), in contrast to the maidens of Hesperides, who are the “daughters of the evening.” Eve’s consumption of the apple represents the creation of ego consciousness which can experience good versus evil, thus acquiring the potential to gain wisdom.
Hercules continues this saga by obtaining multiple apples (to signify the synthesis of knowledge) which he uses for the actual attainment of wisdom. Note that wisdom is acquired by sharing the burdens of others. This wisdom is necessary for recognizing the dual nature of humanity (physical versus spiritual) and being able to successfully prioritize the goals of the immortal self over the desires mortal self.
Labor 4: Cancer – Capturing the Doe
Summary: Transmuting instinct into intuition.
The myth:
For this test, Hercules was tasked with capturing a doe which is claimed by both the goddesses Artemis. It would have been easy to kill the doe, but doing so would incur the wrath of Artemis. He therefore spent on entire year chasing it, until finally it was captured and brought to a holy shrine.
Interpretation:
One of the biggest differences between the animal kingdom and the human kingdom is that the animal kingdom acts mainly based on instinct (group consciousness without intelligence), while the human kingdom acts based on intellect (ego mind without awareness of group consciousness). The 4th labor signifies learning the proper use of intellect, which is blended with instinct (group consciousness) to become intuition.
In the story of the 4th labor, Artemis (goddess of hunting) thought that the doe was only instinct. Yet by bringing the doe/instinct to the temple (of the heart), it was possible to transmute intellect into intuition.
Note that cancer represents the first step in the understanding of mass/universal consciousness. Cancer is symbolized by the crab (half in water, yet with a hard shell of the physical form). The sign is comprised of two donkey tails, which represent not just the dual nature of humans, but also of human beings in relationship to others.
Labor 5: Leo – The Slaying of the Lion
Summary: Transforming selfishness into selflessness.
The myth:
Hercules 5th task was to kill a lion, which was terrorizing the people of Nemea. When Hercules first encountered the lion, he shot a full quiver of arrows at the beast, to no effect. Hercules then chased the lion into a cave and choked the lion to death with his bare hands.
Interpretation:
The lion signifies the personality which has been created via many incarnations in matter/duality. In this task, the personality, AKA “the King of Beasts” (which is running wild with selfishness) must be subdued by the person’s own strength and will. By accomplishing this, the individual will then have the power to fully overcome desire, represented by the Hydra in the 8th labor.
To conquer the lion/personality, an individual must recognize others as being as important as self. This is done with the help of intuition, which was gained during the previous labor. Note that the narrative regarding entering the cave symbolizes entry into the chamber of the pituitary gland. The pituitary, in turn, is related to gaining insight/intuition.
The 5th labor also represents the five-fold man, which consists of the four basic elements (water/emotional body, air/mental body, earth/physical body, and fire/etheric body) plus spirit. The five-fold man is one of the meanings representing by the pentagram, denoting a person who recognizes their true spiritual nature.
Labor 6: Virgo – The Girdle of Hippolyte
Summary: The union of spirit and matter to birth Christ Consciousness
The myth:
This task involved securing the girdle of Hippolyte, who was a leader of a group of women warriors. Although Hippolyte offers the girdle willingly, Hercules snatches it from her and kills her. Later, Hercules rescues the maiden Hesione from a sea beast.
Interpretation:
The girdle itself was a gift from Aphrodite (goddess of sexual love) and represented love via unity. Hippolyte, who knew Hercules was coming for the girdle, offered it to him with outstretched arms. Hercules, however, interpreted Hippolyte as “the enemy” and needlessly killed her. Although the task was technically accomplished, from a spiritual perspective it was a failure. Hercules later successfully passed this initiation by saving Hesione from an evil sea serpent.
In this story, Hercules represents the positive polarity (masculine energy), while Hippolyte and Hesione represent the negative polarity (feminine energy). On the spiritual path, it is a common mistake to pursue the spiritual/masculine aspects of life while ignoring the physical/feminine aspects, or seeing the material world as the enemy. Spirit cannot create without matter, because matter is the expression of spirit.
The initial rejection of matter by the spiritual is due to a wrong understanding of the nature of matter. Matter is not inherently evil, and seeing it such is a mistake. Unity (Christ-Consciousness) can only be achieved via conflict (duality). This task requires the individual to refrain from rejecting matter/carnality and instead to express love/spirit through matter.
Religion emphasizes that without the sun (Father principle), there is no light. But without the moon (Mother principle) there is nothing to reflect the light (i.e., there is no matter to be impregnated). If the Father or Mother is missing, there can be no creation. It is not the Mother which is evil, but the absence of either the Father or Mother that leads to “evil.”
The successful completion of this labor involves recognizing that matter/form is nurturing the latent Christ self. Virgo symbolizes a person who knows themselves to be a potential Christ (world savior). Virgo equates to Lilith, Isis, Eve, and the Virgin Mary, all of whom portray the “mother of the world.” The virgin birth is the birth of Christ Consciousness via matter.
Labor 7: Libra – Capture of the Wild Boar
Summary: Learning to walk the middle path (i.e., learning the correct balance of dualistic forces).
The myth:
Before capturing the boar, Hercules drinks wine with two centaurs, and a subsequent drunken brawl ends in the tragic death of his friend.
Initially, Hercules tries to chase after the boar but is unable to catch it. He then decides to lay a trap to capture it. Once ensnared, he grabs the boar by its hind legs and drives it down the mountain like a wheelbarrow, all the while laughing and singing. This strange sight brings laughter to the villagers.
Interpretation:
This labor is about learning to use right action and right force in each situation. Instead of chasing the boar, Hercules traps it. And instead of killing the boar, Hercules captures it. His wisdom is acquired from the tragedy of using wrong action. By using the knowledge he has gained, Hercules is thus able to determine the right actions necessary to achieve the desired outcome.
The sign Libra symbolizes balancing the pair of opposites. For example, when helping others, too much help leads to codependence, while too little help leads to discouragement and getting stuck. Since every situation is different, discernment must be learned to know how to achieve the desired results.
At a deeper level, Libra represents the balancing act that is necessary in creation. Every act of creation requires the active/male principle and the passive/female principle. While the previous labor recognized the need of both elements for creation, the labor is about the correct balance of when and how to use these dual elements.
Labor 8: Scorpio – Defeating the Hydra
Summary: The final purification of desire (i.e. the elimination of the Dweller on the Threshold)
The myth:
The 9-headed hydra (a serpent monster) lived in a stinky swamp and hid in a cave. Hercules drew it out by shooting flaming arrows into the cave. Once the monster was forced out of its hole, Hercules engaged it in battle. However, each time he cut off one of the serpent’s heads, two more grew in its place. The solution to defeating the monster was to lift the serpent off the ground, causing the monster to lose all its strength. The last head, which was immortal, was buried under a rock.
Interpretation:
This task involves the completion of the work started in Taurus, which regards the complete purification of desire. The heads of the serpent represent individual ego desires. Every time a desire is overcome, another takes its place.
As long as he fought in the slime, Hercules could not overcome the serpent. The solution was to raise it into the air. To defeat the beast, Hercules had to see it as a single monster, not as separate heads. Lifting the beast into the air signifies transmuting kundalini energy from sexual energy into creative energy by lifting it off the ground (the 1st chakra) and into the air (the 3rd eye chakra).
The nine heads represent impediments to self-mastery. The first three are: (1) the misuse of sexual energy, (2) the pursuit of material comforts (which hampers spiritual searching) and (3) the pursuit of money for its own sake. The second set are (4) fear, (5) hatred, and (6) pursuit of power. The last three are (7) pride, (8) separateness, and (9) cruelty.
Although Scorpio represents desire, its positive aspect represents spiritual alchemy (i.e. creation). Virgo represents the magician/witch/creator, Libra represents the weighing of potions (balancing body and soul), and Scorpio is the result of the magic/alchemical reaction of what happens in Libra (i.e. creation/expression of spirit)
Labor 9: Sagittarius – Elimination of a Flock of Ferocious Birds
Summary: Final Purification of Thought
The myth:
For Hercules, killing birds was an easy feat. But the number of birds in this flock made the task a question of strategy, not skill or strength. When Hercules started shooting the birds with his arrows, he quickly ran out of ammunition.
After contemplating ways to complete this task, Hercules decided to sound a pair of large cymbals. The clamor was so fierce that the birds became confused and frantic. They quickly scattered and flew away, leaving the bog in eerie silence.
Interpretation:
This labor represents the final purification of thought, and completes the work started in Aries (the initial mastery over thought). The flock on the ground represents speech, while the birds in the air represent thought forms.
Once thought produces speech, the “damage is already done.” The solution is to control thought, and thus control speech. Note that there are three birds (types of speech) which are capable of killing: cruel gossip, selfish talk, and “casting pearls before swine” (revealing spiritual truths to those who aren’t ready).
Hercules’ action of driving away the flock in the air represents the ability to drive away thought forms which are initially only in the head. By clearing these away, there is a clearness on the mental level. Instead of thinking, there is now just being.
Labor 10: Capricorn – Defeating Cerberus / Freeing Prometheus
Summary: The Commencement of World Service
The myth:
In the ancient myths, this task is usually described as capturing the three-headed dog Cerberus. In Alice Bailey’s book, the task is to free Prometheus from his chains. To do so, Hercules must first travel to underworld and subdue Cerberus. Once he gets past Cerberus (who is the guardian at the gate of the underworld), Hercules is able to rescue Prometheus.
Interpretation:
A recurring theme in mythology involves a hero who travels to the underworld. Christian mythology includes this narrative with the account of Jesus descending into hell after his death to rescue the souls of the righteous. This journey of selfless service represents a person who has started their task of “world service.”
Prometheus is known to symbolize humanity, who is crucified to the cross of matter. The original meaning of the cross (which was used as far back as ancient Egypt) was that of a soul who was trapped in the world of matter, and thus imprisoned in the cycle of reincarnation. By saving Prometheus, Hercules symbolizes his role as a savior of humanity.
This task does not suggest that every individual must eventually involve themselves in widely-known actions that will save the whole of humanity. Instead, it signifies the point on one’s spiritual journey when an individual’s actions are based on prioritizing the spiritual needs of others above all else. Note that this step is not taken until self-purification is complete.
St. Peter’s “keys to the kingdom,” which are referenced in the Bible, refer to the two “cosmic gates” of Cancer and Capricorn. Cancer represents the birth of the soul into the physical body, while Capricorn represents the birth into the spiritual body. Preceding Capricorn is Sagittarius, a stage of chrysalis when everything has been broken down and a transformation is taking place.
Labor 11: Aquarius – Cleaning the Augean Stables
Summary: Uniting Humanity
The myth:
The Augean stables hadn’t been cleaned in 30 years, and Hercules was given the near impossible task of cleaning them in a single day. To accomplish this task, he broke down the walls around the stables, made two great holes in the opposite sides. Hercules then rerouted two small rivers through the stables to cleanse them out and complete the task.
Interpretation:
Aquarius is a sign that is understood to represent unity. The task of the Aquarian age (and also of this initiation) is to break down barriers (of countries, religions, race, political views, etc.) This is represented by breaking down the walls of the stables. Unity is accomplished via the waters of life and love, which were used to clean out the impurities that resulted from disharmony. By spreading love, our hero becomes a way-shower, paving a path that others can follow.
Labor 12: Pisces – Capture of the Red Cattle
Summary: Completion of the role of world savior.
The myth:
In his final task, Hercules must capture a herd of red cattle that are guarded by a 3-headed monster and a 2-headed dog. Hercules sailed to the island in a golden chalice provided by the god of fire. After a night spent in meditation, he kills the dog and the monster, but spares the life of the shepherd.
Hercules then puts the cattle in the chalice and takes them back to the sacred city to be offered to Athena, the goddess of wisdom. Along the way, he temporarily loses a few cattle and has to search for them. He also loses his direction and multiple times has to retrace his steps. But in the end, he accomplishes the task, thus completing his 12 labors.
Interpretation:
In this task, Hercules sails around in a golden chalice, which is identical in meaning to the symbol of the holy grail: eternal life. In other words, Hercules’ kundalini energy has been permanently raised to the 3rd eye, thus signifying that enlightenment has been attained and salvation is guaranteed.
The dog that Hercules kills represents matter, and the shepherd who is spared represents the mind. The cattle represent lower desire, which is offered (relinquished) to Athena (goddess of wisdom). Via his self-sacrifice, Hercules lifts up humanity to a position whereby it is capable of saving itself. His mission accomplished, the task of world savior is now complete.
Further reading:
- The Serpent Trinity: Exploring serpent symbolism and its relationship with kundalini energy.
- “The End of Your World” by Adyashanti. This book describes the experience of transitioning from a state of temporary kundalini risings to a permanent raising of the kundalini energy. Note that the author uses the terms “non-abiding awakening” to describe a temporary kundalini rising.
The featured image is a derivative of two Creative Commons images and is subject to the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. The images are:
