Scylla and Charybdis

Scylla and Charybdis, according to the Homeric legend, were two sea-monsters who dwelt on opposite sides of a narrow sea-strait. Scylla possessed twelve feet, six long necks and mouths, each with three rows of sharp teeth, and barked like a dog. Charybdis thrice every day sucked down the water of the sea, and thrice threw it up again; she dwelt under a cliff on which grew a conspicuous fig-tree. Ulysses passed between these voracious monsters, and Scylla snatched six seamen from his ship. There are other versions of the myth. In later times the names were applied to a couple of 'races' or rapids in the Strait of Messina, Scylla being the one next the Italian shore. From the supposed difficulty of navigating the strait without getting into the one or the other of these dangerous spots arose the proverbial 'To shun Charybdis and fall into Scylla.' But the dangers of these 'races' have been very greatly exaggerated.