Kharybdis
In Greek mythology, Kharybdis was once a beautiful naiad and the daughter of Poseidon and Gaia. She assumes the form of a huge bladder of a creature whose face is all mouth and whose arms and legs are flippers. She swallows a huge amount of water three times a day, before belching it back out again, creating large whirlpools capable of dragging a ship underwater. Once a lovely maiden, Kharybdis was loyal to her father in his endless feud with Zeus. She rode the hungry tides after Poseidon stirred up a storm, directing them onto beaches, destroying entire villages, submerging fields and drowning forests, claiming all in her path for the sea. She claimed so much land for her father's kingdom that Zeus became enraged and changed her into a monster.
In mythology Kharybdis lies on one side of a narrow channel. Opposite her is Skylla, another sea-monster. The sides of the strait are within an arrow shot of each other, and sailors attempting to avoid one of them will come in reach of the other. 'Between Scylla and Charybdis' thus means to having to choose between two dangers, either of which brings harm.
Kharybdis has been associated with the Strait of Messina, and Skylla, mainland Italy. Odysseus tried to avoid his crew to avoid Kharybdis only to flounder on the rocks off Skylla. On his way back now all alone he got too close to Kharybdis he got sucked in close to the rocks only to escape with his raft was pushed back to sea.
In Jason and the Argonauts his crew were safely guided through the channel by Thetis
It is referenced in the following articles
The Odyssey and Sequels |
The Odyssey and the Argonauts |