The gods on Mount Olympus made heavenly and beautiful music. All who heard it were enchanted. There was one mortal who could make music as beautiful as the gods. His name was Orpheus.
Orpheus was the son of one of the Muses. She gave him the gift of music. She hoped it would keep him safe when she could not be with him.
When Orpheus played his harp and sang, there was no limit to his power. No one and nothing could resist him. If mortals argued in front of him, Orpheus would play his harp tenderly and soothingly. The fiercest fighters would grow calm and forget their anger. The power of his song was so great that he could move rocks on a hillside. He could even change the direction in which a river flowed.
One day, Orpheus met Eurydice. She was one of the loveliest maidens in the land. He fell in love with her instantly. In order to make her fall in love with him, he played his music for her. His song was so sweet that she did fall in love with him. They were married the very next day.
Right after the wedding, Eurydice and Orpheus crossed the meadow to their new home. On the way, she was bitten by a snake in the grass. Eurydice died that night.
Orpheus was overcome with sadness. He decided he could not live without his wife. So Orpheus journeyed into the underworld. He went to bring his Eurydice back.
As Orpheus went deeper and deeper into the underworld, he played his harp and sang his sweet song. His music charmed all below into stillness. Cerberus, the mean three-headed dog, whimpered like a puppy. The Furies, the bitter goddesses of the underworld, wept at the sad and sweet song. Even Hades’s heart melted at the sound of Orpheus’s voice. Each of them stood as still as a statue when they heard Orpheus’s song. They could not make a move to harm him.
Orpheus saw Eurydice walking down into the darkest depths of the underworld. He called out to her, but she could not answer. She was already half ghost and unable to speak.
Orpheus begged Hades to allow him to return above the ground with Eurydice. Hades gave in.
“I will allow her to return with you—on one condition,” Hades told him.
“Anything,” Orpheus agreed.
“She will follow you up to Earth. I promise. But you may not turn your head to look back at her until you have completely left the underworld,” Hades warned. Orpheus agreed.
So Orpheus and Eurydice passed through the great doors of Hades. They took the path that would bring them out of the underworld. They climbed up.
Orpheus knew that Eurydice had to be right behind him. He longed to glance over his shoulder just once to make sure. But he remembered Hades’s words and did not.
They were almost out of the underworld. The blackness was turning gray. They were able to see the light of the sun. Finally, they were back on Earth. Orpheus stepped out joyfully into the sunlight. Then he turned to Eurydice. But he turned too soon!
Eurydice was still in the cavern below. She had not yet stepped back onto Earth. He saw her in the dim gray light. He held out his hand to grab her. But in that instant she was gone!
Orpheus tried to rush after her back into the darkness. But this time he could not. The gods would not allow him to enter the underworld again. A mortal could only enter once while he was still alive. Orpheus had to stay on Earth alone, in despair.
The heartbroken young man spent the rest of his life playing sad songs. They broke the hearts of all who heard them. When Orpheus died, he was laid to rest at the foot of Mount Olympus. To this day, the nightingales sing the sweetest at Mount Olympus—in memory of the song of Orpheus.