Editing Labours of Hercules (section)

===Third: Ceryneian Hind===
[[File:Lucas Cranach d.Ä. - Herkules und die Hirschkuh der Diana (Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum).jpg|thumb|Heracles capturing the Ceryneian Hind|left]]
[[File:Mosaico Trabajos Hércules (M.A.N. Madrid) 03.jpg|thumb|Heracles capturing the Ceryneian Hind]]
Angered by Heracles' success against the [[Nemean lion|Nemean Lion]] and the [[Lernaean Hydra]], Eurystheus (advised by Hera) devised an altogether different task for the hero, commanding Heracles to capture the [[Ceryneian Hind]], a beast so fast it could outpace an arrow.

After a long search, Heracles awoke one night and laid eyes on the elusive hind, which was only visible due to the glint of moonlight on its antlers. He then chased the hind on foot for a full year through [[Greece]], [[Thrace]], [[Istria]], and the land of the [[Hyperboreans]]. How Heracles caught the hind differs depending on the telling; in most versions, he captured the hind while it slept, rendering it lame with a trapping net.

Eurystheus commanded Heracles to catch the hind in the hope that it would enrage [[Artemis]] and lead her to punish the hero for his desecration of the sacred animal. As he was returning with the hind to present it to Eurystheus, Heracles encountered Artemis and her brother [[Apollo (god)|Apollo]]. He begged the goddess for forgiveness, explaining that he had snared the hind as part of his penance, but promised to return it to the wild soon thereafter. Convinced by Heracles' earnestness, Artemis forgave him, foiling Eurystheus' plan.

After bringing the hind to Eurystheus, Heracles was informed that it was to become part of the King's [[menagerie]]. Knowing that he must return the hind to the wild as he had promised Artemis, Heracles agreed to hand it over only on the condition that Eurystheus himself come out and take it from him. The King came forth, but the moment that Heracles let the hind go, it sprinted back to its mistress with unparalleled swiftness. Before taking his leave, Heracles commented that Eurystheus had not been quick enough, outraging the King.