A long long time ago there lived of
clever king named Sisyphus in a country
named Corinth. Everyone loved him and he took good care of his people. After
becoming the king of Corinth he solved
many of the problems that the country
faced. He was able to solve every issue
except one.
Corinth didn't have any source for freshwater. The people of the country had to
depend on their neighbors for freshwater. The people were struggling and the
king tried everything he could. One day
as usual, the king was strolling in the
garden trying to come up with an idea to
solve Corinth's freshwater problem. It was
then he saw Zeus fly by. He was carrying
a lovely girl in his arms.
Sisyphus quickly recognized the girl- she was the daughter of Asopus, the River
God! Soon after, Asopus flew by. "Have you seen my daughter?" he bellowed at the king.
Sisyphus was very clever and he quickly came up with an idea. “I will tell you
what I saw but only if you give my
people a source of freshwater he
shouted back. Asopus waved his hands and a clear stream of freshwater
magically appeared, flowing through the city! Sisyphus was very very happy. “Zeus
took your daughter and he went that way” the King pointed. The king knew Zeus
would be angry when he heard what the king had done. But Corinth desperately
needed a source of freshwater. And now they had one. People were overjoyed when
they saw the stream of fresh water bubbling up. Zeus was furious at the King.
He wanted revenge, so he met his brother Hades, who ruled the Underworld.
“You must take King Sisyphus to the Underworld immediately” said Zeus angrily.
When Sisyphus realized that he will be soon taken to the underworld, he came
with another plan.The King whispered to his wife “I will be taken to the
Underworld soon” His wife gasped when she heard this. “But do not worry, you must do
exactly as I say, and I will return from the underworld, alive” the King said. "When
they tell you I am dead, do not put a gold coin under my tongue" She was a good
wife, and agreed to his request. Soon the King died, and being a good wife, his wife
did exactly as he asked her. Because the king was a very important person, Hades
himself met the king at the River Styx, the entrance to the underworld. Since the
King didn’t have a gold coin under his tongue, he arrived at the River Styx as a
poor beggar."Where is your gold coin?" Hades demanded to know. "How can you pay
for a trip across the River Styx and arrive in the underworld?" The king hung
his head in shame “My wife was too cheap to pay for the
the passage.” When Hades heard this, he felt pity for the King and said “You go right
back to the living world and teach women some manners.” So the king went back
and lived a happy life with his wife in Corinth.The king and his wife laughed at
the story for a long time, but never told anyone else. After all, you never know
when the gods are listening.
