Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek hero Herakles, the most popular figure from ancient Greek mythology. Hercules was the son of Zeus, king of the gods, and the mortal woman Alcmene.
His life was not easy. He endured many trials and completed many tasks, but the reward for his suffering was a promise that he would live forever among the gods at Mount Olympus.

In astronomy, Hercules is one of the largest constellations in the night sky that is visible in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. In the Northern hemisphere Hercules can be seen from April to November and In the Southern hemisphere Hercules can be viewed from June to September.

Hercules had a complicated family tree. According to legend, his father was Zeus, ruler of all the gods on Mount Olympus and all the mortals on earth, and his mother was Alcmene, the granddaughter of the hero Perseus.
Hercules had enemies even before he was born. When Zeus’ wife Hera heard that her husband’s mistress was pregnant, she flew into a jealous rage. First, she used her supernatural powers to prevent the baby Hercules from becoming the ruler of Mycenae. Then, after Hercules was born, Hera sent two snakes to kill him in his crib. The infant Hercules was unusually strong and fearless, however, and he strangled the snakes before they could strangle him. But Hera kept up her dirty tricks. When her stepson was a young adult, she cast a kind of spell on him that drove him temporarily insane and caused him to murder his beloved wife and their two children.
Guilty and heartbroken, Hercules tracked down Apollo, the god of truth and healing, and begged to be punished for what he had done.

Apollo understood that Hercules’ crime had not been his fault - Hera’s vengeful actions were no secret but still he insisted that the young man make amends.
He ordered Hercules to perform 12 “heroic labors” for the Mycenaen king Eurystheus. Once Hercules completed every one of the labors, Apollo declared, he would be absolved of his guilt and achieve immortality.
The Nemean Lion - First, Apollo sent Hercules to the hills of Nemea to kill a lion that was terrorizing the people of the region. Hercules trapped the lion in its cave and strangled it.
For the rest of his life, he wore the animal’s pelt as a cloak.