The sight of the huge and monstrous Cerebus was the first to confront the souls of the dead when they alighted from the ferryman's boat following their journey across the River Styx. Cerberus permitted all shades to enter, but none to return. Hades the Underworld was guarded by Cerberus the monstrous three-headed dog whose howls could be heard across the dark domain. If these conditions had not been fulfilled, the souls were left behind to wander up and down the banks of the River Styx for 100 years as restless spirits. The coin to pay Charon for passage was also called 'naulum' from the Greek word meaning "boat fare". A single coin buried with the dead and made of silver or gold was referred to as a danake or as Charon's obol.
An obolus was a small silver coin of Athens. The funeral rites of the Ancient Greeks therefore included placing a small coin or obolus under the tongue of a dead person for this purpose. Charon the ferryman also demanded to be paid. The boatman would only take a soul if their bodies had received funereal rites on earth. The River Styx had to be crossed to reach life after death and the only way to cross the River Styx was in a ferryboat rowed by a terrible old boatman named Charon. The River Styx & Charon in Greek Mythology Map of Hades, the Underworld and the tributaries of the River Styx The following picture of the imaginary Map of the Underworld provides an overview of the realm of the dead, and the location of River Styx and the and the other rivers of Hades.
The name 'Styx' comes from a Greek word that denotes both hatred and extreme cold and it expresses loathing of death. Map of the Underworld showing the location of River Styx Picture of Charon the Ferryman and the River Styx The River Styx was connected all of the places via four tributaries. Those evil mortals that had led sinful lives were confined in the dark depths of Tartarus, in the bowels of the earth where the souls of the wicked suffered endless torture. The souls of mortals who had led both good and evil lives on earth were sent to endless toil in the Asphodel Meadows. The souls of mortals who had led good lives were sent to Elysium and the Elysian Fields (paradise). Hades the Underworld consisted of different areas where the souls of dead mortals resided. The word 'stygian' came to refer to anything dark, dismal, and murky. The River Styx formed the boundary between Earth and the Underworld. According to Greek mythology the River Styx was a great black river that completely encircled the Underworld. The place called Hades, the Underworld was the domain of the god Hades and other gods and goddesses associated with the inexplicable, such as death, sleep, witchcraft, ghosts, dreams and enchantments.
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