First Labour (Nemean Lion)

The first labour required Heracles to kill the Nemean Lion. The lion was invulnerable to all weapons, being an offspring of the monsters Orthus and Echidna.

Heracles stayed at Cleonai with a labourer by the name of Molorchus, before heading out to Nemea. Molorchus wished to build an altar to Heracles, and offer a sacrifice to the young hero. Heracles advised Molorchus to sacrifice to Zeus, if he completed his first mission within thirty days, otherwise Molorchus should sacrifice to him as a hero.

Heracles trapped the lion in a cave near Nemea. Since all of his weapons were ineffective against the lion, Heracles decided to tackle the beast, unarmed. After an intense struggle, Heracles strangled the lion with his bare hands. Heracles skinned the lion and used the pelt or hide as a cloak.

Molorchus was about to sacrifice to Heracles as a hero, when the hero arrived with the lion's hide. Molorchus changed his dedication, so the labourer sacrificed to Zeus.

(It was said that Eurystheus was so frightened by Heracles' appearance in his lion cloak that the cowardly king hid in a bronze jar. Eurystheus ordered Heracles to present all of his completed tasks outside the city gates in the future. However, this incident was more likely to have happened at the Fourth Labour.)