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Myth Behind Virgo Constellation
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. Herodotus in particular, searched the various traditions presented him and found the historical or mythological roots in the confrontation between Greece and the East.
Aires
The Greek Mythology of Aires (March 21-19) lies in the story of the King of Thessaly and his children, daughter Helle and son Phrixus. Because their nasty step-mother was beating them on a regular basis..Hermes the Greek god sent a ram to carry them away.
On the trip, poor Helle lost her grip and fell to the sea. Where she landed was named Hellespont and now it's known as the Dardanelles today. Her brother made it to the shore of the Black Sea and had to kill the ram for it's fleece to appease a sleepless dragon. Jason and the Argonauts later came back for it and returned it the the King.
Amphilochus
Amphilochus, the son of Amphiaraus and Eriphyle was asked by his father to avenge his father's forthcoming death along side his brother Alcmaeon. His ridiculous mother had been talked into making her husband, Amphiaraus take part in the Seven Against Thebes raid by Polynices, who offered the silly woman the necklace of Harmonia.
During the fated battle, Amphiaraus sought to flee from Poriclymenus, the son of Poseidon, who wanted to kill him, but Zeus threw his thunder and the earth opened, enveloping Amphiaraus together with his chariot.
The sons parted ways, Alcmaeon killed his mother and went into exile. Amphilochus evolved into a talented seer, finding many oracles, in particular the oracle of Apollo at Colophon.
Ares
Ares, the Greek god of war, was never trusted by Greeks because of his outright bloodlust and violent ways. He was typically vicious and merciless.
His half sister Athena was also a war goddess, but she based her attack on strategy, not pure violence.
Ares was born among the warring Thacians and returned there after his affair with Aphrodite was exposed. It is said he fathered Eros (Cupid) in this relationship.
Eros
Eros was often the focus of artists and poets in ancient times...but he had a lot of influence on god and goddesses as well. Stories abound about his interference in their lives. He's supposedly the son of Aphrodite and Ares..his more common name is Cupid. More than bein a heart throb himself, because he was a constant companion to his mother,
Aphrodite, he became pictured as a the cute, cuddly cherub - Cupid.
He linked up with Psyche..whose name means 'soul' and this became the beginning of how love and soul became permanently united.
Gemini
Gemini-Greek Mythology: According to the Gemini myth, the stars in the constellation are that of twin brothers Castor and Pollux. Leda was their mother but Castor was the son of her mortal husband and so was also mortal and Pollux was the son of Zeus and therefore immortal.
They were also brothers to Helen of Troy. It is said they were hatched from an egg, and grew into very kind, well educated men, healers and protectors of mankind.
They sailed with Jason as two of the Argonauts, searching for the Golden Fleece. A fierce storm threatened the mission but abated as a pair of stars appeared over the heads of the twins. Since that time, seamen have called upon the brothers for protection from peril and the eerie lightning phenomenon often called Saint Elmo's Fire has long been
regarded as the spirits of the twins playing in the sails and protecting sailors.
The brothers fell in love with sisters..daughters of Leudippus. But the girls were already betrothed to other brothers Ida and Lynceus, who were actually cousins of the twins by virtue of Poseidon, who was supposed to be the suitors father. The twins battled their cousins and killed them, but Castor was mortally wounded. Pollux was overcome with
grief and would have done himself in, but being immortal..this could
not be done.
Zeus placed both their immortal souls together in the sky as symbols of brotherly love. But like all miracles..this did not come without a price. Throughout eternity they would have to spend one day on Olympus and the next in Hades.
Leo
Leo Constellation Mythology: This is the Nemean Lion that Hercules battled as the first of his Labors. No weapon could pierce its skin, but Hercules killed the lion by strangling it. After killing the lion, Hercules used its own claws to skin it. Hercules wore the skin as a cloak, and it became his trademark. Hera later placed the lion in the sky as the constellation Leo.
Libra
Mythology of Libra-The Greek myth of Tiresias, the blind prophet, also has some relation to Libra. It's a curious myth, and we'll deal here with only part of it, the part that really pertains to our curious subject.
Tiresias, because he has the favour of the goddess Hera, is given the chance to observe a miracle: two serpents coupling in the goddess' sacred grove. He asks the goddess which of them experiences the greater pleasure; and because she cannot answer, she grants him the boon of spending part of his life as a woman, so that he can experience both. At the end of this ritual of transsexual initiation, he returns to his male form and is called before Zeus and Hera and asked which experiences the greatest pleasure - male or female. At first he tries diplomacy, because whichever answer he gives he knows he is bound to offend somebody. But eventually he tells the truth - that the female experiences the greater pleasure - whereupon Zeus, furious at this insult to masculine vanity, strikes him blind.
Pisces
Pisces-Greek mythology tells of a powerful and menacing god, Typhon, who aimed to overthrow Zeus as king of the gods. Typhon managed to banish all of Zeus' community of gods to Egypt, where they lived in exile.
One day, Aphrodite and her son Eros were strolling along the riverbank when they sensed Typhon pursuing them. They quickly jumped into the Nile and transformed into fishes to escape, binding themselves together by a cord to ensure that they did not become lost. Zeus eventually overcame Typhon's threat, but Aphrodite and Eros continue to flee as
fish in the night sky.
The Greeks and their Roman predecessors also associated Pisces with Poseidon/Neptune, Tyche/Fortuna, Morpheus and Thor, and the constellation is said to have historical links to Helen of Troy and the Trojan War.
Thus every year the world retreats briefly into a cold and forbidding place, until the 21st of March, when Persephone is allowed to emerge from the Underworld, bringing Spring with her.
Sagittarius
Greek Mythology of Sagittarius - Chiron the Centaur behind the Greek myth for Sagittarius was revered by the gods for his knowledge, musicality, philosophy and healing powers. The most famous centaur in ancient mythology Chiron.
He was a sort of King of Centaurs, half man and half horse, who lived with his own tribe among the wild hills and forests of Thrace Kings would send their younge princes to him to be educated.
Being half man and half horse, he had an uncanny sense of both animal and human, a knowledge most enviable.
In an unfortunate accident, Hercules pierced Chiron with a poisoned arrow. As he was immortal, he could not die..but neither would the wound heal. Chiron was in agony.
He pleaded with the gods to let him give up his immortality and replace Prometheus, who was being punished for giving mankind the secret of fire. Prometheus had been chained to a rock and each day an eagle would painfully eat his liver out...it would regenerate every night and the whole scene took place again the next day..and so on.
Jupiter allowed the transfer, with the help of Hercules' persuasion and to mark Chiron's wisdom and kindness..Jupiter placed him as Sagittarius in the summer sky.
Taurus
Greek Myth for Taurus - In Ancient Greece, bulls were sacrosanct to Poseidon (Greek God of Sea and Storms), as well as to Dionysus (Greek God of Male Fertility and Wine) and there are a variety of myths associated with Taurus.
In one such legend, Taurus represents the white bull which sired the famous Minotaur, whose mother was the wife of King Minos of Crete. This bull was sent to Minos as a sign that he was the rightful heir to the throne. However, Minos did not sacrifice the bull to Poseidon as he had been instructed to do, so the ever-vengeful Sea God caused Pasiphaë,
Minos' queen, to fall in love with the creature.
Underworld
Greek Myth Underworld - Latin poets such as Virgil described the Underworld as a place where the wicked were punished and the good rewarded in the life after death. Virgil also assigned a geographic area to the Underworld. The path to the Underworld led to the river Acheron, as it poured into the river Cocytus.
Virgo
Myth Of Virgo The Virgin: The Goddess Astraea is the Goddess of Justice; she represents the natural order including birth, change, abundance and death. Virgo doesn't actually mean virgin..but 'self-contained'..which Astreaea was. She once lived on earth in the golden age and taught of the nature of the seasons. Astraea was the daughter of Zeus and Themis. Astraea inherited from her mother the duty of asserting justice. She was the last of the immortals to leave the earth when the Golden Age finished through a period of lawlessness and crime. She then took up her place in the Zodiac, in the constellation of Virgo.
Myth Behind Virgo Constellation
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