Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 54: Proposal Regarding the Worship of Hades

Helpus stood by the bed, shaking his head slightly at Davos with a solemn expression.

Davos walked heavily to the bedside, gazing at the emaciated old man. Heracleides showed no reaction to Davos’s arrival. Davos took his right hand—only skin and bones, still stained with dust—and gripped it without hesitation, saying in a sincere, low voice: “Heracleides, thank you for your contributions to Daonia! Your name will be forever remembered by the Daonian people!…”

Davos’s words seemed to take effect. Heracleides slowly closed his eyes, and his breathing gradually faded…

Helpus hurried over, pressed his ear to Heracleides’ chest, listened carefully, then reached out to feel for breath at his nostrils. Finally, he shook his head and said softly, “He has passed…”

Soon, the courtyard, packed with people, was filled with weeping. All the architects, craftsmen, sculptors, slaves… were sunk in grief.

Davos recited in a low, mournful voice: “The Elysian Paradise welcomes your entry; Hades will grant you shelter; you shall be a guest of the Lord of the Underworld, building glorious halls for his abode. On earth and in heaven, the great name of Heracleides shall be sung…”

Little Heracleides, weeping beside him, listened to Davos’s eulogy, wiped away his tears, and thanked the magistrate.

Davos patted his shoulder warmly to comfort him, and said, “The consecration ceremony of the Temple of Hades will be held the day after tomorrow. I need you to find the best sculptor immediately and have a bust of your father made within these two days. He will be the first to enter the Hall of Worthies, for the people to pay homage and revere.”

This was a great honor! Little Heracleides immediately stopped crying, his excitement stirring. After thinking a moment, he turned and spoke a few words to another grieving man.

That man came over, saluted Davos respectfully, and said with emotion: “Lord Davos, my teacher receiving such reverence from you is his glory! And it is the glory of all us architects and craftsmen! I will find the best sculptor at once and finish the teacher’s bust within two days!”

“Piasikos, I have heard Heracleides mention you many times,” Davos said, nodding and encouraging him: “Now that Heracleides is gone, as his finest student, you must not only continue to carry forward the skills he passed down, but also delve into new building techniques and train more outstanding students! Amendolara, Nerulum, Grumentum, Crimissa, Asperustum… and many others—more cities await you to plan and rebuild them into clean, practical, and beautiful places like Thurii. I hope that when you grow old, you too can enter the Hall of Worthies, just like your teacher!…”

Davos’s words stirred a surge of emotion in Piasikos.

…

On the way back to the city, Davos called for Pleisinas and listened to him explain the sacrificial procedures and arrangements for the consecration ceremony of the Temple of Hades.

Finally, Pleisinas said: “All the celebratory activities, including Your Excellency lighting the sacred flame, have been rehearsed many times to ensure no major mistakes occur. Only one issue remains urgent: we still lack a priest to manage the temple.”

According to tradition from the aristocratic era, magistrates held the right of sacrifice and thus served as high priests. Now, given Davos’s power and prestige, not to mention his status as the God-Touched One of Hades, it was only natural for him to also serve as high priest. But the daily priest to preside over the temple was a problem the Senate found difficult to resolve.

Hades, as one of the twelve major Greek gods, was worshipped, but because of his association with death and darkness, almost no city-state had built a dedicated temple to him. Thus, he had no public priesthood. A Thurian senator once proposed inviting adherents of the Eleusinian Mysteries, once popular in Athens, but this was opposed by many. For the Eleusinian Mysteries revered Hades’ wife Persephone and the goddess of fertility Demeter, not Hades himself. Transferring priests from other deities was also inappropriate, and the Senate debated endlessly—of course, this was also because Davos never expressed his position.

At this moment, Davos seemed unaware that he himself was the root cause of this problem. Instead of directly responding to Pleisinas’s words, he studied the senator before him with interest. From their first encounter as enemies to now being a politically cooperative partner, Pleisinas’s loyalty and unique abilities impressed Davos. “Pleisinas, you did an excellent job overseeing the construction of the Temple of Hades. What do you plan to do next?”

Pleisinas felt a surge of excitement, thinking this was Davos rewarding him for his work, and immediately said: “I want to run for Chief Ephor next year!”

Davos nodded. Since he was walking, only a unit of guards followed. Seeing him, the Thurian citizens saluted respectfully, and he acknowledged them with nods. Taking the opportunity, he said: “That woman who just saluted is a Lucanian; she probably worships Acipirus. And this one is a Thracian—their most revered deities are Dionysus and Ares. And that one… you see, Daonia’s citizens come from all over the Mediterranean, worshipping hundreds or thousands of gods. As Daonia’s territory continues to expand, more races will become Daonian citizens, and the number of gods within the Daonia Alliance will increase. Although Daonia’s powerful military protects the citizens’ lives, and its advanced, refined culture strengthens their sense of belonging, here—” Davos pointed to his head, his expression solemn—“there is chaos! If Daonia ever encounters a great disaster, it will be hard for the people to unite and overcome it. Then all our efforts will be in vain!”

From ancient times, Greeks had been polytheistic, seldom caring about the beliefs of other races. Pleisinas never expected Davos to state the religious issue so gravely and wondered what he meant by saying this.

“Have you heard of the Jews?” Davos suddenly asked.

“I think… someone mentioned them… a race skilled in commerce, within Persia…” Pleisinas recalled with effort. At that time, the Jews were not like those under the peaceful rule of the Roman Empire centuries later, free to travel and settle everywhere, often clashing with Greeks. The western Mediterranean was dominated by two commercial races—the Greeks and the Carthaginians—so the Jews had no foothold there and were little known.

“The Jews are not just merchants; they are monotheists—they worship only one god.”

“Only one god?!” Pleisinas could hardly believe his ears. Among the many kingdoms, city-states, and races of the Mediterranean, there was a race that worshipped only one god.

“Yes, the Jews worship only one god!” Davos affirmed and said seriously: “The Jews are a small race. Long ago they lived in Egypt, enslaved by the Pharaoh, living hard lives, until a Jewish hero named Moses appeared. After many hardships, he led the Jews out of Egypt. After decades of wandering and bloody conflict, they finally seized the land of Canaan and established their own kingdom. But it didn’t last long. The Assyrians from Mesopotamia destroyed the Jewish kingdom and deported all Jews to Babylon as slaves, until Cyrus, king of the Persians, destroyed Assyria and freed the Jews.

They returned to their homeland, rebuilt their nation and religion. During centuries of turmoil in Asia, many neighboring races that lived alongside the Jews perished, yet the Jews endured hardships and survived tenaciously. Why?” Davos paused to let Pleisinas think, then said gravely: “Because their faith is firm. Worshipping one god kept them united, and when faced with more brilliant civilizations of other races, they did not lose themselves or forget their racial roots!”

Pleisinas pondered Davos’s words. He sensed what Davos was trying to express, and said hesitantly: “Lord, the Greeks worship many gods, and Daonia’s people worship even more. This tradition has been passed down and is rooted in our blood! If we… if we force them to worship one god, I fear… I fear it would cause great trouble!”

Seeing Pleisinas’s worried expression, Davos smiled: “Of course I wouldn’t make such a foolish proposal. But we can actively guide the people to worship Hades more, so that Daonia’s citizens from all places and races can draw close in spirit as much as possible. Don’t you agree?”

“Lord, even if we build the Temple of Hades, Greek habits won’t change easily. When going to sea, they pray to Poseidon; when trading, they seek Hermes; when farming, they sing hymns to Demeter… Greeks are practical—they pray to whatever god they need for their needs. They cannot pray only to Hades!” Pleisinas shook his head.

“The people may pray to many gods, but I want the Temple of Hades to become a place where their souls can find peace! That is why I built the Hall of Heroes, the Hall of Worthies, and the Prison of the Damned inside the Temple of Hades—to make it a sacred place for Daonia Alliance to promote good and punish evil, a sacred place for the people to commemorate and remember the alliance’s heroes! But that is not enough—” Davos raised his head and gazed toward the temple ahead.