Editing Cyclopes (section)

===Hesiod===
According to the ''[[Theogony]]'' of [[Hesiod]], [[Uranus (god)|Uranus]] (Sky) mated with [[Gaia (mythology)|Gaia]] (Earth) and produced eighteen children.<ref>Hard, [https://books.google.com/books?id=r1Y3xZWVlnIC&pg=PA65 pp. 65&ndash;66]; Gantz, p. 10; [[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.13.xml 126&ndash;153]. Compare with [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg001.perseus-eng1:1.1 1.1.1&ndash;3]</ref> First came the twelve [[Titans (mythology)|Titans]], next came the three one-eyed Cyclopes:

{{Blockquote|Then [Gaia] bore the Cyclopes, who have very violent hearts, Brontes (Thunder) and Steropes (Lightning) and strong-spirited Arges (Bright), those who gave thunder to Zeus and fashioned the thunderbolt. These were like the gods in other regards, but only one eye was set in the middle of their foreheads;<ref>According to west 1966 on line 142 '''φεοῖς ἐναλίγκιοι''': "Hesiod does not mean that they are not themselves gods, only that in most respects their physique is like that of an ordinary god".</ref> and they were called Cyclopes (Circle-eyed) by name, since a single circle-shaped eye was set in their foreheads. Strength and force and contrivances were in their works.<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.15.xml 139&ndash;146].</ref>}}

Following the Cyclopes, Gaia next gave birth to three more monstrous brothers, the [[Hecatoncheires]], or Hundred-Handed Giants. Uranus hated his monstrous children,<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.15.xml 154&ndash;155]. Hesiod's text is not entirely clear about whether Uranus hated only his monstrous offspring, or all of them, including the comely Titans. Hard,
[https://books.google.com/books?id=r1Y3xZWVlnIC&pg=PA67 p. 67], West 1988, p. 7, and Caldwell, [https://books.google.com/books?id=GyIKBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 p. 37 on lines 154–160], make it all eighteen, while Gantz, p. 10, says "likely all eighteen", and Most 2018a, [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.15.xml p. 15 n. 8], says "apparently only the ... Cyclopes and Hundred-Handers are meant", and not the twelve Titans. See also West 1966, p. 206 on lines 139&ndash;53, p. 213 line 154 '''γὰρ'''.  Why Uranus hated his children is also not clear. Gantz, p. 10 says: "The reason for [Uranus'] hatred may be [his children's] horrible appearance, though Hesiod does not quite say this"; while Hard, [https://books.google.com/books?id=r1Y3xZWVlnIC&pg=PA67 p. 67] says: "Although Hesiod is vague about the cause of his hatred, it would seem that he took a dislike to them because they were terrible to behold". However, West 1966, p. 213 on line 155, says that Uranus hated his children because of their "fearsome nature".</ref> and as soon as each was born, he imprisoned them underground, somewhere deep inside Gaia.<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.15.xml 156&ndash;158]. Aside from their being hated by Uranus, Hesiod does not say ''why'' the Cyclopes were imprisoned by Uranus, but the reason may have been the same as the reason Hesiod gives for the Hundred-Handers' imprisonment, Uranus being afraid of their power, see Fowler 2013, [https://books.google.com/books?id=scd8AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA53 p. 53].  The hiding place inside Gaia is presumably her womb, see West 1966, p. 214 on line 158; Caldwell, [https://books.google.com/books?id=GyIKBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 p. 37 on lines 154–160]; Gantz, p. 10. This place seems also to be the same place as [[Tartarus]], see West 1966, p. 338 on line 618, and Caldwell, [https://books.google.com/books?id=GyIKBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 p. 37 on lines 154–160].</ref> Eventually Uranus' son, the Titan [[Cronus]], castrated Uranus, becoming the new ruler of the cosmos, but he did not release his brothers, the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires, from their imprisonment in [[Tartarus]].<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.17.xml 173&ndash;182]. Although the castration of Uranus results in the release of the Titans, it did not, apparently, also result in the release of the Cyclopes or the Hundred-Handers, see Fowler 2013, [https://books.google.com/books?id=scd8AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA26 p. 26]; Hard, pp. [https://books.google.com/books?id=r1Y3xZWVlnIC&pg=PA67 67], [https://books.google.com/books?id=r1Y3xZWVlnIC&pg=PA68 68]; West 1966, p. 206 on lines on lines 139&ndash;53.</ref>

For this failing, Gaia foretold that Cronus would eventually be overthrown by one of his children, as he had overthrown his own father.  To prevent this, as each of his children were born, Cronus swallowed them whole; as gods they were not killed, but imprisoned within his belly.  His wife, Rhea, sought her mother's advice to avoid losing all of her children in this way, and Gaia advised her to give Cronus a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes.  In this way, Zeus was spared the fate of his elder siblings, and was hidden away by his mother.  When he was grown, Zeus forced his father to vomit up his siblings, who rebelled against the Titans.  Zeus released the Cyclopes and Hecatoncheires, who became his allies.  While the Hundred-Handed Giants fought alongside Zeus and his siblings, the Cyclopes gave Zeus his great weapon, the thunderbolt, with the aid of which he was eventually able to overthrow the Titans, establishing himself as the ruler of the cosmos.<ref>Gantz, p. 44; [[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.43.xml 501&ndash;506].</ref>