Long ago, a grand wedding took place in the heavens. The bridegroom was a mortal called Peleus, and the bride was an attractive goddess Theseus. Suddenly, Eris, the goddess of Strife, entered the hall. She had not been invited for the wedding, and she wanted to take revenge. She silently threw a golden apple in the midst of the crowd. On it was inscribed – ‘for the fairest’. The goddesses Athene, Hera, and Aphrodite, who were present, reached for the apple. The wedding hall went berserk.
The goddesses now approached Zeus, the king of gods. They asked him to say which of them deserved the golden apple. Zeus, however, sent them to the handsome young Paris, a cowherd living on Mount Ida, who was considered an impartial judge.
But alas! Paris did not prove to be so. He called each goddess to him privately and asked what she would give him if he were to declare her the fairest. He then handed the golden apple to Aphrodite, who promised to get him married to the most beautiful woman in the world. She said she would help him win the love of the stunning beauty, Queen Helen, the wife of Menelaus, the ruler of the Greek state of Sparta.
*
Could a mere cowherd aspire to marry a queen? But Paris was no ordinary cowherd. He was the son of King Priam of Troy. Before his birth, it had been predicted that Paris would bring about the destruction of Troy. Priam was advised to kill the newborn, and he entrusted the task to his chief cowherd Agelaus. But he did not have the heart to slay the baby. So he left him on the mountaintop. When he returned after a few days, he found the baby alive. He understood that the baby was destined to live.
*
As a young man, Paris participated in the annual games held in Troy. He won in several events and earned many crowns. It was then that King Priam came to know that Paris was none other than his son. He was only too happy to receive his long lost son, whom he had taken to be dead. Paris quickly adapted himself to the royal life. He soon set to work on a plan to go to Sparta and win Helen’s heart. With the help of Aphrodite, he went to Greece as a guest of Menelaus. When Menelaus was away on an urgent mission, Paris grabbed the opportunity: he abducted Helen.
When the news reached Menelaus, he was furious. He quickly called all the Greek princes to support him. After all, they were oath-bound to help Helen…..
*
….Years ago, when the beautiful Helen was yet unmarried, accounts of her beauty had turned every Greek prince crazy. Many of them sought her hand. Helen’s father, King Tyndareus of Sparta, was in a fix. After all, Helen could marry only one of them. But if that happened, the rest of her suitors would resent the decision. They might even hate him and plot to harm his kingdom, Sparta, or Helen and her prospective husband.
It was then that the intelligent and resourceful Odysseus, the King of Ithaca, came up with an idea. Every Greek prince, who vied for her hand, promised to protect Helen and her future husband from enemy hands. The gorgeous Helen had then chosen to marry Menelaus, the brother of King Agamemnon. After Tyndareus’ death, Menelaus became the King of Sparta.
*
Now Helen had been carried away, and Menelaus needed help. Menelaus decided to fall back on the oath that called upon all these kings and princes to come to his aid. Surely there would be a war and to go to war against the mighty Troy was no laughing matter. He would need all the support that he could muster.
Odysseus, one of the princes, did not want to join the war. An oracle had warned him that if he took part in the war, he would return home only ten years after the war was over. So, he acted as if he were mad when Menelaus and Palamedes came to meet him. But the trick was found out, and he was compelled to join the war. Thousands of Greek ships set sail for Troy.
A great, bloody war followed.
The Greeks laid siege for nine long years and still could not get anywhere near Helen. They were dejected as one great warrior after another fell wounded or still worse, lay dead.
It was Odysseus who thought of a plan to breach the walls of Troy. He suggested that they build a huge wooden horse and hide inside it and take the enemy by surprise. The Greeks built a huge wooden horse and the bravest of them hid inside it. The others pretended to leave the shores of Troy.
The plan worked well. The beguiled Trojans assumed that the Greeks had sailed away leaving behind the horse. They dragged the horse inside their fortified city. At night, the Greeks hiding inside the horse came out. The city gates were opened and the rest of the Greek army poured in. The Trojans who were caught unawares fought valiantly but lost. Odysseus was thus instrumental in steering the Greeks to victory. Helen was rescued and the weary warriors sailed back home to Greece with her.
Odysseus and his fleet sailed close to the other ships.
(To be continued)
