Tapping other powers. Magic in Greek and Roman Life.

roteus is not someone who was easy to deal with, as Greek heroes from Menelaus to Aristaios had to learn. He possessed immense knowledge, but he had to be forced to share this knowledge with others, and this was not easy: like the seals whose shepherd he was, he was slippery, and he was a shape shifter. "Suddenly, he turns into a wild boar, a frightful tiger, a scaly snake or a shaggy lion, or he shoots up in hissing flames or flows away in a pool of water", as someone narrates who knows him well. "You have to catch him by deception and ruse and then steadfast you have to hold on and with mighty force, whatever happens."