At one time, the most beautiful of all women on earth, Europe, the daughter of Agenera, the ruler of the Phoenician city of Sidon. She loved to walk on the seashore, where she had fun with her peers. Girls gathered flowers and danced. Once they saw a good white bull in a meadow. He had a shiny coat, wide-set horns, and a very smart look. He walked among the flowers, plucking the fragrant grass, but walked so carefully that he did not break a stalk. The girls surrounded him, gave him succulent herbs, and he ate and licked their white palms with a wide tongue. Finally, they decorated him with wreaths, and Princess Europe sat on his back. Then the bull suddenly broke and ran, and then jumped into the sea and swam.
It was Zeus himself, who fell in love with a beautiful girl. Poseidon smoothed the surface of the sea before him, it became like a table. Nereids swam on dolphins and clapped for joy. Aphrodite stood in a large shell, which was dragged by the restless newts, showering Europe with flowers. So they sailed to Crete. Here Zeus prepared his beloved in the shadow of a branching maple a wonderful grotto.
And at this time in Sidon, old Agenor, having lost his daughter, fell into despair. He called on his son Cadmus and ordered him to look for a sister, forbidding him to return home without Europe. Cadmus set off in search, but after long fruitless wanderings, he lost all hope and, fearing his father of anger, decided to stay in a foreign land. First of all, he asked the oracle where to settle. The oracle said that Cadmus would follow the cow he would meet in the open field, and stay where she stopped. And so it happened. The cow led him through meadows, forests, and mountains, and finally stopped, looked around and lay on the grass. The place was really wonderful to establish a city there. Cadmus wanted to immediately thank the gods and sent his companions for the water that was needed to make a sacrifice. However, several hours passed, and none of them returned, and then he went to look for them. In the forest, at the source, he saw a dragon who was sipping hot blood from his slain courtiers. Golden spikes bristled on the dragon’s back, rows of predatory teeth glistened in the mouth, and the whole body was foaming with poison. Seeing Cadmus, he began to wriggle in thousands of rings, circling around him. The hero grabbed the spear and threw it so neatly that he killed the monster on the spot. Then he took all his teeth from his mouth and buried them in the ground. A few days later a group of armed men grew out of dragon's teeth, who began a bloody battle between themselves. Only five of them survived, they became loyal comrades of Cadmus, who with their help founded the city of Thebes. Cadmus ruled wisely and fairly, and the gods, seeing that he was a good king, were willing to be in his house and gave him a harmony - the daughter of Ares and Aphrodite.
However, Cadmus did not receive family happiness. His grandson Acteon died a shameful death - his own dogs tore him apart; daughter Semela burned out among thunder and lightning; the second daughter, Agave, killed her son Pentheus; the third daughter, Ino, distraught, threw herself into the sea. The sinister Theban land became so nasty to Cadmus that he moved with his wife to distant Illyria in old age. The gods turned both of them into snakes.
After Cadmus, things in Thebes went worse. One of his successors, Lick, which simply means “wolf,” was married to the unworthy woman of Dirk. In the royal palace, their relative Antiope lived with her sons Amphion and Zeta. Dirka ordered the children to be expelled, and the princes were brought up by one shepherd of oxen. But when they grew up, they did not want to endure humiliation anymore. They gathered a bunch of healthy guys, captured the royal palace, killed Lika, and Dirk was tied to the horns of a bull, who dragged her along the ground until she died.
In later Thebes, Dirka’s grave was kept secret. Only the head of the cavalry (Hipparchus) knew about her, who, leaving his post, showed her to the newly elected successor. They came to the grave at night, made a sacrifice without lighting a fire, then erased all traces and dispersed in opposite directions.