Constellations of the Zodiac

Transcription

1 Constellations of the Zodiac Aquarius Ganymede, the simple shepherd, was the most handsome mortal the gods had ever seen. He was also very gentle and kind. One day while Ganymede was tending his sheep, a great eagle swooped down from the sky and startled the gentle Ganymede. Don t be afraid, said the bird. I m Zeus eagle. My master has sent me to carry you to Mount Olympus. So Ganymede gracefully climbed onto the sleek back of the eagle and was carried up to his new home and immortal life among the gods. On Olympus, he served the gods by bringing them water when they needed it. To honor Ganymede s immortality, the gods placed his form in a constellation of stars called Aquarius, which mean water carrier. You can still see the form of Ganymede in the stars today.

2 Aries One day Zeus looked down from his throne on Mount Olympus. What he saw on Earth made him very angry. A cruel king and queen were about to burn a little boy and girl to try and win Zeus favor. Zeus voice rang out through the heavens as he called for his beautiful pet ram. You must save these young and innocent children from these wicked plans, he thundered. Just as the cruel king was about to light the fire under the children, there was a flash of lightning above his head. From the center of the flash, the ram appeared. He gently picked up the children, nestled them between his horns, and soared high up into the sky. He set them down in a faraway part of the world, safe forever from the wicked king and queen. Before he left them, the ram whispered softly to the children, If you ever need help in finding your way, just look up at the sky, and I will always be there. To this day, the ram has kept his word his outline appears in the sky as a constellation to safely guide the steps of young children who need his help.

3 Taurus Oknos was a juggler and acrobat. He sailed around the waters of Greece with his dancing pig and trained monkey. He d bring his wonderful show to each of the many islands that surround Greece. Oknos would tell the people tales of wonderful adventures that happened away from this tiny island. One day some young girls were waiting on the shore for Oknos. When he got to their island, he spent the day with them. The girls watched his magic tricks and played with the monkey and dancing pig. They all had a wonderful time. All too soon, it was time for Oknos to leave. Where are you going now? asked a fun-loving girl named Europa. Over the horizon, was his answer. Europa would have given anything to go with him. Oh Zeus, she prayed, let me sail over the horizon someday like Oknos! Then she sadly went looking for her friends. At the edge of the beach, she found a snow-white bull. He was very gentle and even allowed her to climb on his back. Then all of a sudden, he took off over the beach and into the sea. Faster! cried Europa. Take me as far as you can over the horizon! So the bull swam faster and faster until he reached the end of the world. He got down on his knees so that Europa could climb down. Europa looked up and there, standing before her, was Zeus himself. Welcome, he said, your prayer has been answered. You have traveled to the place that lay over the horizon. Your adventure is about to begin. Europa was so grateful to the bull that she begged Zeus to place the form of the bull among the stars, to remind children everywhere that the world is full of adventures.

4 Gemini Zeus had twin sons called Castor and Pollux. They were wonderful athletes who spent their days playing all kinds of sports. One day while they were boxing, a terrible storm was raging on Earth. A tiny boat was being tossed on the waves like a toy. Its frightened sailor was a boy named Iphus. He was all by himself on the dangerous seas. The sky was so dark, he couldn t tell where to look for safety. Help me, Zeus, he prayed. Please send me some light. At once, two rays of light sparkled in the night sky. The lights moved across the sky in a flash. They gave just enough light to show Iphus a safe place to hide between some rocks until the storm had ended. Zeus had answered the sailor s prayers. He sent his twin sons to guide Iphus in the form of constellations. If you look carefully, you can still see them in the sky today, guiding other lost sailors through the night with their twinkling lights.

5 Cancer Hera, the wife of Zeus, was a very jealous goddess. She was especially jealous of Hercules, Zeus mortal son, because Zeus was so fond of him. To prove to Zeus that Hercules was unworthy of Zeus love, she decided to give Hercules twelve labors to test his strength and courage. One of his twelve labors was to kill the deadly monster, the Hydra. The Hydra had the body of a dragon and nine snakelike heads. No one could kill it. If one of the Hydra s heads was cut off, another would grow in its place! To make sure that the Hydra would defeat Hercules, Hera found a huge crab with razor-sharp claws. Hera told the crab to sneak up behind Hercules, grab him, and hold him so the Hydra could kill him. On the day of the fight Hercules brought along his nephew Iolaus. One by one, Hercules cut off the Hydra s heads while Iolaus seared each neck with a torch, so that no new heads could grow back. Just as they were about to finish off the Hydra, the crab sneaked up behind Hercules and grabbed his foot. Hercules stamped his other foot down on the crab s shell and smashed it to bits. The crab was crushed to death. Then Hercules quickly turned back to the Hydra and cut off its final head. Zeus, who had been watching the whole time, took the body of the crab back to Olympus. He turned it into a constellation to remind Hera forever of her horrible failure.

6 Leo A powerful lion once lived on the moon. Unfortunately, there was very little food on the moon. So the hungry lion waited for Apollo, the moon god, to ride by in his chariot. The lion thought that one of Apollo s horses would make a tasty snack. As he tried to grab a horse, however, Apollo hit the lion sharply with his whip. The surprised lion slipped from the moon and fell through the sky. He landed on his four huge paws in a little town called Nemea. The hungry lion was much happier on Earth. In fact, he got quite fat on all the human beings he was able to catch for food. Many brave fighters lost their lives trying to kill this great lion from the moon. The lion s skin was so tough that no arrows or spear could harm him. Hera, the jealous wife of Zeus, gave Hercules the task of slaying this ferocious lion, as the first of his famous twelve labors. Hercules bravely charged into the lion s cave and strangled him with his bare hands. When Hercules came out of the lion s cave, he was wearing the lion s skin as a coat. The people of Nemea were saved at last. Zeus called down to his son on Earth, Well done, Hercules. Now that you have destroyed the body of this terrible lion, I will place his form among the stars so that people will always remember your brave deed.

7 Virgo Persephone was the daughter of Demeter, the goddess of agriculture. When Persephone was kidnapped by Hades, god of the underworld, Demeter stopped caring for the Earth. She missed her daughter so much that she let the plants die and the grass turn brown. People began to starve. Zeus knew he had to do something quickly. He ordered Hades to send the lovely Persephone back to her mother. Before Hades allowed Persephone to leave, he made her eat four magic pomegranate seeds. This means that Persephone would have to go back to the underworld for four months of every year one month for each seed she had eaten. Those four months, when Demeter loses all interest in caring for the Earth, are the winter months. When Persephone returns, the Earth blooms once more. This was the best Zeus could do. To remind the people to get ready for winter by collecting food and firewood, he placed a constellation in the summer sky called, Virgo the maiden.

8 Libra As Aphrodite was walking through the forest one day, to her surprise she found a beautiful baby hidden among the bushes. She pressed her lips to the ground and called, Persephone, come quickly! The ground split apart and Persephone appeared. Look what I found, said Aphrodite. Persephone and Aphrodite were charmed by the baby boy. They decided to adopt him. The called him Adonis, which means prince. Persephone took care of Adonis for the months she was in the underworld. Aphrodite took care of him for the rest of the year. This plan worked out well for many years until Adonis became a handsome young man. The goddesses then began to fight over him. The lovely peacefulness of Olympus was broken, so Zeus sent the two mothers to visit Themis, the goddess of common sense. She settled the argument in this way: Adonis would spend four months with one mother and four months with his other mother. The four months that were left would be his to spend as he wished. Everyone was happy with this plan. Themis could always understand both sides of any problem. She would carefully weigh each side of an argument then come up with an answer to satisfy both sides. In honor the Themis, Zeus placed a constellation in the sky that looked like a balance or scale, which the Romans call Libra, to remind us to use fairness and common sense.

9 Scorpio Zeus, Hermes, and Poseidon decided to leave Olympus for the day. They dressed themselves as humans and went for a walk on Earth. After a while, they wanted to rest, so they knocked on the door of a poor farmer name Hyrieus. Hyrieus invited them to supper. To feed his visitors, he killed his only ox who also happened to be his beloved pet. Zeus was pleased with Hyrieus unselfishness. He told Hyrieus that they were gods. The he said, Hyrieus, you may have any wish you desire. Hyrieus always wanted to have a son. Zeus told him to bury the skin of his ox. In nine months, it would turn into a handsome son, and so it did! Hyrieus named his son Orion. Orion became a skillful hunter. One day, while he was hunting in the woods, he met Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. They spend many days hunting together. One day Orion went hunting alone. To show Artemis what a fine hunter he was, he killed all the animals in the forest. Orion did not know that Artemis was also the protector of animals and birds. Artemis looked at the pile of dead animals and became very angry with Orion. She stamped her foot on the ground and a huge scorpion appeared. Kill Orion! she said. Before Orion could lift his bow, the scorpion stung him. To kill for food is allowed. To kill for sport is not, scolded Artemis. Orion died from the scorpion sting. Then Artemis lifted the scorpion into the sky to form a constellation. These stars will remind men to respect the lives of all living creatures other than themselves, she said.

10 Sagittarius Centaurs were strange-looking beasts horses from the waist down and men from the waist up. Chiron was king of the centaurs. He was a good and kind ruler. He was also very good at healing. Many animals and men who had been hurt would come to him to cure their wounds. Not all centaurs were gentle, though. Some were wild and loved to fight. One day Chiron heard the loud noise of stamping hooves. He galloped toward the noise. There, in a field, a group of wild centaurs were attacking Hercules and Pholus, who was another centaur. Hercules had brought his bow and poison arrows with him, and he was shooting arrows at all the attacking centaurs. When Chiron saw what was going on, he bravely rode into the middle of the battle. Hercules didn t realize that Chiron was there, and he shot him by mistake. When the other centaurs saw Chiron fall to the ground in pain, they ran off. What medicine can I get to help you? asked Pholus worriedly. There is none, moaned poor Chiron. The poison on Hercules arrows comes from the blood of the Hydra. For that, there is no cure. Will you die then? cried Pholos. No, answer the king. Long ago the gods made me immortal, but I shall have to live in pain forever. Zeus, however, took pity on the good king Chiron. To end Chiron s pain, Zeus allowed him to die and turned him into a constellation of stars called Sagittarius which means archer. Capricorn

11 Zeus father, Kronus, was afraid that one of his sons would grow up to be stronger than he was. So whenever a new baby boy was born, he had it killed. When Zeus was born, his mother gave him to two young nymphs. The nymphs promised to take Zeus far and away and keep him safe from Kronus. They took baby Zeus to their tiny village where they cared for him for several years, and fed him milk from a special she-goat named Amalthea. One day, while Zeus and Amalthea were playing, one of Amalthea s horns broke off in Zeus hand. Zeus realized this was a sign for him to break with this safe, loving place that had been his home. So he brought the horn to the nymphs and solemnly told them, This is a magic horn of plenty. It will provide you with all the food and drink you need forever, as you and Amalthea have always provided for me. Then Zeus left to fight his cruel father, and he won (just as Kronus had feared.) One of Zeus' first acts as king of the gods was to call Amalthea up to the stars to take her place in the heavens. You can see her there today as the constellation that forms the outline of a goat. Pisces

12 One day Eros (Cupid in Rome) was playing with his arrows in the woods. All of a sudden, he heard a terrible roar. Frightened, he ran back to his mother and clung to her side. There is a monster in the woods, he cried. Oh my, cried Aphrodite, as she listened to the roars. It s Typhon, the enemy of the gods. We must get away as fast as we can, my son. So Aphrodite and Eros ran for their lives through the forest. As they ran, they could hear the branches of trees crashing around them. The terrible dragon, Typhon, was following fast behind them. Finally Aphrodite and Eros had run so quickly and traveled so far that they reached the seashore, and there was no place left to run. In despair, Aphrodite called out, Oh great god of the sea, save us from Typhon, our mortal enemy. Just as Typhon was almost upon them, a pair of dolphins swam past the shore. Poseidon, the sea god, rose up from the water. Get on the backs of the dolphins! he ordered. The dolphins will save you. That is exactly what they did. To reward the dolphins, the gods brought them up to the heavens. They became a new constellation known as Pisces meaning fish.