Little series on Myths associated with constellations (Astral Mythology)

What a wonderful series to launch, and thank you for taking the time to translate Giulio Guidorizzi's *I miti delle stelle* for the rest of us. A university-borrowed Italian academic book on constellation myths, plus your invitation for members to add the spiritual reading on top of the translations, is exactly the kind of thread that ages well on this forum.

The half of the project you are inviting members into, the "spiritual meanings," is in fact the deeper one. The High Priest has spoken plainly about this on the forum in his thread on why Plato did not really reject myths: myths are not meant to be read "grossly" or literally, since most are allegories meant to be analyzed spiritually, and the trouble begins when people skip that step and treat the stories as tabloid. His follow-up post makes the same point with concrete examples, with Bastet not being a literal cat and Sobek not an actual crocodile, where the figure is meant to point somewhere, not to be the destination itself. Reading Guidorizzi's stories through that lens, with members pouring in their own edifying insights the way you are inviting, is what turns a popular astronomy book into something the soul can chew on.

One concrete pointer for when the Gemini installment arrives: the Temple of Zeus already has a full page on the DioskouroiExternal ↗. It treats Kastor and Polydeukes as Gods in their own right, with Vedic parallels in the Ashvins and Baltic parallels in the Ashvieniai, traces their cult from Sparta to Rome, and explicitly engages the catasterism question, noting that the twins "were not just embodiments of a constellation but figures who regularly walked the hallowed ground of Olympus." So when the twins come up, you will have real depth to draw on rather than just the textbook line.

Two more anchor points held in reserve so I don't spoil your pacing. When the series reaches Orion, the Temple corpus, in its Osiris power ritualExternal ↗, identifies that constellation as Sah, the stellar body of Lord OsirisExternal ↗, with the star Sopdet (Sirius) belonging to Isis. When the series reaches the Pleiades, the High Priest has noted elsewhere that "Pleiades, unlike Sirius and Orion, always received mixed commentary. Even in Ancient Greece, they were not looked upon as a very good constellation," which is a useful Temple-side counterpart to whatever more ambivalent Greek reception Guidorizzi turns up.

A real-life parallel that lands for me: look at the DioskouroiExternal ↗ themselves. The textbook reads "Castor and Pollux, the Gemini twins," and most of us stop there. But the Vedic Ashvins, the Baltic Ashvieniai, the Roman Castores, and a full living ritual tradition are all sitting underneath that first line. The constellation is the door; the rest of the body is what the door was made for. That is the kind of unfolding your series can offer, installment by installment.

Looking forward to the first translation. Hail the Gods who lit the sky before any of us drew a line between two stars.

Ursa Major

What is it?

The Ancients would call the Stars of the Ursa Major "Bears" or "Wains". For the Latin peoples, they were "the seven oxen" that would slowly drag their clogs around the pole (septem triones, from which the italian word "settentrione", word for North comes from).

The stars indicate the North, since when Odysseus would journey alone towards Ithaca on a raft he himself made with his own hands while he sojourned on Calypso's island. On his head, the constellations would guide him on his journey: the Pleiades, Boote and the She-Bear that they would also call the Chariot, the one that would rotate around herself, and it's the only constellation that "never get wet by entering the waters of the Ocean".

[Here the author quotes Odyssey V, 272-275: "[I]Odysseus spread his sail to the wind with joy, and steered the raft cleverly with the oar as he sat there. At night he never closed his eyes in sleep, but watched the Pleiades, late-setting Bootes, and the Great Bear that men call the Wain, that circles in place opposite Orion, and never bathes in the sea.[/I]" Link: at the bottom].

The Greeks have searched for the North using Ursa Major to orient themselves while the Phoenicians would orient themselves using the Polar Star/North Star.

Myths associated with the Ursa Major

1) The Myth of the Birth Of Zeus

The two Bears began to shin among the stars right at the time of the beginning, when Zeus took over the Universe in His Power.

Before Him, His Father Krónos would reign along with the Titans: a terrible Father. To Him an Oracle was addressed, predicting that one of His Sons would take the Power away from Him; for that reason, as Rhea would give birth to many children from Her Bosom, so He would devour Them whole. No child would ever grow, Time would have been stuck to the old generation, had He kept on devouring His own Children.

When Rhea was pregnant of Her last Child, Zeus, She came up with a trick: as soon as the Child was born, She took a big oval-shaped stone and gave it to His cannibal Father.

Krónos would eat it without seeing through the trickery. After that, Rhea saved Her Newborn and took Him overseas, to Crete, where She hid Him in a cave, then returned to Her Spouse so as not to look suspicious.

She placed two Bears to keep an eye on the Newborn, a big one and a smaller one: Elice [from the Greek Ἑλίκη, "the one who turns")] and Cinosura [(from the Greek Κυνόσουρα, "dog tail")];

As to avoid His cries would reach the ears of His Father, She would place a group of armed dancers, the Curetes [in Ancient Greek Κουρητες, Kourêtes, ovvero "giovani"), who would dance in a trance at the entrance of the cave, clashing their swords against bronze shields and with such rumblings would They cover up the cries of young Zeus, avoiding they would ever reach Krónos' ears.

A swarm of sacred bees would nourish Him with honey while the Goat Amalthea, would offer to Him milk.

When Zeus grew up, He dethroned His cruel Father: facing Him, He forced Him to vomit out His Siblings, who would become the Olympians; He first threw out the stone, which fell from the sky and landed at Delphi, the center of the world for the Greeks. The stone landed on the ground and the inhabitants of the place venerated it, decorating it with wool and making offerings to it: they would call it omphalós, the navel of the world.

When Zeus defeated Kronos and started exercising dominion over the world, He didn't forget His Guardians: as a thanksgiving, He took the two Bears to the highest spots in the Sky. He also took the Goat Amalthea to the Sky.

[COLOR=hsl(240, 100%, 80%)]I will post the other Myth later, I'm going to rest for now, besides, I don't want to make each section too long.

Text within [] are my own notes. Translation is mine, not using AI except for little grammar revision from Grammarly. I hope this is enjoyable. Thanks for reading.

Bibliography:

GUIDORIZZI G. "I miti delle stelle" (2023), pp. 2-4.

https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Greek/Odyssey5.phpExternal ↗

Thank you very much for the article. Whenever I return to my village, I love looking up at the night sky and searching for the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper. I always try to look for constellations, but they aren't that visible. As for the goat Amalthea, I know that Zeus accidentally broke off one of her horns and blessed it, transforming it into the Horn of Plenty, a symbol of prosperity.

2.1) Callisto, the follower of Artemis and Her lovely Son

(actually, this one is a digression about the father and a Mystery Temple, I still post it because it's interesting)

But there was another beautiful story told about the Big Dipper. Then, one must go backwards...to the most ancient times and venturing into one of the most isolated regions of Greece, Arcadia.

In that region Lycaon reigned, fathering also fifty sons by various women. His sons were as cruel and savage as he was, resembling a pack of wolves [Notice that the word Lycaon has the same root of words like, lycanthropy, also associated to wolves].
The Arcadians would claim that Lycaon himself had founded the first city ever built on earth, Licosura (meaning “wolf’s tail”): a place reached by patiently making one’s way along the winding roads of Arcadia, which is surrounded by mountains.

That little village was once important: even today, one can still see the ruins of a temple dedicated to a goddess named Déspoina (“the Lady”), who was worshipped there alongside her mother, Demeter. The tale was arcane: they said that Poseidon had fallen in love with his sister Demeter and that the goddess, as to escape him, had transformed herself into a mare [female horse]; but Poseidon, in turn, took the form of a stallion and took her. From this animalistic union were born their daughter Despoina and a divine horse, Arion, the fastest of all horses. [Note: Horses are sacred to Poseidon, such a connection is found in the Orphic Hymn about Him. The translations vary from site to site, from "equestrian" to "master of horses"].

The Goddess Despoina had a Secret Name, one that could not be spoken and was revealed only to the Initiated into Her Mysteries. For the fact, secret rites were celebrated near the Temple of Despoina; attached to the outer wall was a mirror that would not reflect the image of the one looking at it, signaling the entrance into a hidden dimension, instead.

The traveler Pausanias (in the 2nd century A.D.) saw it still intact and also described the sculptures of the artist Demophon who originally decorated it: a colossal group of five figures were carved from a single block of marble, of which only a few heads remain in the Athens Museum, including that of a beautiful representation of Demeter and the powerful, tragic figure of the Titan Anito, who was said to have raised Despoina; of Anito, only the exquisite veil that framed his face remains, so thin and light that it doesn't even seem to be made of marble.

[Now the narration shifts back to Lycaon, Callisto's father]

Rising above Licosura, one could see Mount Lyceus, “the mountain of wolves,” where the Sanctuary of Zeus Lyceus once stood.

It was a sacred space outdoors: a good example of uplands worship.

In that place struck by the wind, it was said that King Lycaon had built the oldest altar to Zeus. Entrance was forbidden, and anyone who dared to set foot there would die within a year.

It was also said that on that site, neither humans nor animals would cast shadows, and when a hunted animal took refuge within the Sanctuary of Zeus Lyceus, it became inviolable, and the hunter was obliged to spare it.

In one of such isolated places, Zeus once descended upon the Earth, becoming the host of Lycaon: He had taken the form of an old beggar, dressed in rags, in order to test the character of men, and in such guise he went to knock on the King’s palace door. Lycaon pretended to welcome him warmly and invited him to a banquet.

Sadly, though, he was a wicked man: he had ordered his servants to kill a child and cook it. Perhaps he had recognized Zeus and wanted to defy Him.

As soon as Zeus sat down at the table, He realized what was being served to him; so He cast off his beggar’s garments and, disgusted, overturned the table and struck Lycaon dead with a thunderbolt, then proceeded to turn his sons into a pack of wolves. [Another Myth of hybris punished, like many]

Bibliography:

GUIDORIZZI G. "I miti delle stelle" (2023), pp. 4-6.

I love your enthusiasm; I can't wait for the myth about the Big Dipper and Artemis. I was familiar with the Myth Artemis and Orion's transformation into a constellation.

I tried following the stars to look for the North Star, but I couldn't see it.

Congratulations on this endeavor Mysteries of the Gods. This will definitely be very important and interesting knowledge since not much is known on the symbolism and mythology of most constelations. I am definitely looking forwards to reading your posts on this.

[Disclaimer: for copyright issues, I cannot translate the whole book for you (I should have made this clearer, beforehand) but only either extracts (as I did so far) or can post either a summary or retelling with citation (inspired by ecc...) according to academic integrity rules so you can consult the book by yourself (if you speak italian). Henceforth, I will post not a complete direct translation, but a summary/retalling with citation (told in a narrative style). This was put in my heart to ponder, and this is extremely important to specify. Of course, the Myth telling will be accurate in content, just not a direct translation. For the previous posts, I humbly ask to modify them so I can put the citations.]

Okay, now, let's begin with the tale where we left off, shall we?

As Lycaon was a brute and wicked man, however, he had a daughter who was different from him: Callisto [the author mentions her name meaning, "the beautiful one"].

As she was accustomed to the rugged mountains and the savage woods, she became skilled with the use of the bow with its arrows. When she became old enough, she became a very skilled hunter and joined the huntresses in the art of Hunting in Arcadia, followers of Artemis, who could not be approached by men. Now, the Goddess loved her particularly, but Their sacred relationship soon knew a dark turn, for the King of the Oympians saw Callisto sleeping naked on field of meadows and immediately fell for her astounding beauty.

Zeus knew that He could not simply approach the independent and shy huntress as He was, so He resorted to trickery, taking the form of the Goddess Artemis to get close to her.

And so it happened, as He approached Callisto disguised, she fell for the trick and got close. As soon as that happened, though, He revealed His True Self and took her.

After the incident, Callisto was full of shame and stayed silent about what had happened to her fellow huntresses and to Artemis Herself, but she could not keep being silent for long, as she was bearing a child from Zeus and her bosom was growing larger and larger.

One day, as she was bathing by the lake, Artemis understood she was pregnant and for that fault, despite the woman trying so hard to make justifications for that act, She turned her into a bear. According to different versions of the Myth she delivered the newborn before or after the metamorphosis; his name was Arcade.

According to Ovid, though, Hera turned her into a bear out of jealousy. There are different versions.

And so, Callisto would wonder as a giant bear, in full regret and pain, longing for her past with no avail, when she was a beautiful huntress. She still did desire to see her child, at least once.

When her son grew, he also became a hunter.

One day, many years later, the man came to hunt on Mount Lyceus and he stumbled upon a bear, which turned surprised upon seeing him. She recognized him and started staring at him, with eyes filled with grief and painful sorrow.

The young man, on the other hand was unaware and soon proceeded to kill the bear, but alas, he missed the target. In that moment, out of compassion, Zeus caught the bear by a whirlwind, making her fly up to the sky. As that took place, she again changed shape, this time, becoming a cluster of stars, becoming the Big Dipper that shines in the North.

Her son also became a cluster of stars, a wain that helps her rotate around the Pole or a herdsman, looking after her.

This is one version of the Myth.

[Personal retelling nspired by: "I miti delle Stelle" by Giulio Guidorizzi (2023)]

2.2) Another version of the Myth of Callisto

[As it's common with many Myths in World Mythology (including Ancient Greece's), there can be (as we already saw, by the way) different versions of the same Myth.]

Rumors had it that Callisto would wander through the woods along with her child, but this time, the Archadians would try to kill the bear to give it to King Lycaon, her father;

The bear Callisto would then attempt to enter the Sanctuary of Zeus Lyceus, where it was forbidden to kill the animals therein. Her son also entered the Sanctuary, along with his own mother;

Nevertheless, the Archadians still attempted to kill them, chasing her throughout and into the Sanctuary. It was then that Zeus, again, moved by compassion, decided to protect them both and save them from death, taking them to the sky [as He also did in the other version of the Myth to Callisto and her son].

But this is where the story changes, do you remember that the Big Dipper never "sinks" into the Ocean?

This version tells us why, mythically.

Hera was jealous of Callisto, because Zeus took her; then, the Goddess prayed the Nymph and Titan Tethys (the Spouse of Oceanus, the one who raised Hera Herself) to repel the adulterous woman and so she did. Henceforth, the Bear never sank into the Ocean.

Her son here would be in the Constellation of Boote as the brightest star therein (the fourth brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere, too, 113 times brighter than our own Sun, 37 light year far away from us) with the name of "Artophylaceous" or "Arthur", the "Guardian of the Bear". The star has a peculiar red light, so it's easy to spot. The Ancients used to believe that its rising was nefas/infelix (a bad omen).

Bibliography (personal retelling inspired by): G. GUIDORIZZI "I miti delle Stelle" (2023) p. 7

Ptolemy wrote a book, in a chapter he elencates all the 48 constellations, of each one he describes the energies.

About the Eagle constellation, he said that those stars are like Jupiter and Mars together.

About Leo, he said that the stars located in the head of the lion are like Saturn and Mars, those of the tail like Venus and Saturn if I remember well.

Something like this for all 48.

We also know that alphabets, the kabalistic systems like the Elder Futhark (24 Runes), or Ancient Greek Letters as well, are based on the stars.

We know things can have 2 aspects, something Heavenly (Ouranios), or something Underworldy (Chthonios).

So 48=24x2, this is an idea if you know what I mean.

We also have knowledge from Temple of Zeus, in magick section, about fixed stars, and colors of the stars.

Constellations themselves are like symbols related to a section, or more sections of mythology, so the constellations have these kabalistic codes behind (their origin story), and therefore a use in system.

It would be interesting to give them a cronological order based on the timeline of their origin story, or something like that, to give them order.

Very interesting initiative, I am very passionate about the stars and the universe, I loved this. Keep up the good work 🙏🏻

Draco

(Source: DracoCC - Draco (constellation) - WikipediaExternal ↗)

The Constellation of Draco is found between the two stellar Bears of the North with two stars on its head (the eyes of the Dragon), one for its chin, ten for its body, adding up to 15 stars.

Draco extends itself towards the North Pole in a spiral, with a side of its body approaching Ursa Minor and reaching the head of Ursa Major with its curved tail.

So, behold! The pinnacle of the sky is occupied by two Bears and a Dragon;

Giordano Bruno didn't like those starry animals in the sky, though; For the fact, in his philosophical work "Spaccio della bestia trionfante", he puts the following words in Jupiter's mouth: "Let's make the sky clean of this disorder. [...] I will have Circe or Medea put the Dragon to sleep, so that it would not drive the stars away with its tail, then I will bring him asleep at the feet of its tree. Replacing such a brute animal, I will place Prudence among the Stars".

Nevertheless, the Dragon is still there with its curvy body stretching in the North Sky, not going anywhere.

The Myth of Ladon and Heracles (part 1)

So the story goes, a Dragon used to be the guardian of the golden apples in the Garden of the Hesperides [Their name derives from the ancient Greek word [/B]hesperos, meaning "evening," "sunset," or "western". They are the daughters of Hesperus, the personification of the "Evening Star" (the planet Venus].

So, let's go back to the day Zeus married Hera. The Universe was feasting and the Gods did offer to Them wonderful Gifts. They said, Gaia, the Earth, gave Them the most beautiful gift: an apple tree that would put forth golden apples. Hera was absolutely mesmerized by such prodigious tree and She desired for it to be taken in a Garden in the West, straight to the Edges of the Earth (some others located the wonderful Garden elsewhere, including the African continent or even in the Hyperboreans, the Extreme North) where Atlas, a Titan who was serving its eternal sentence, bore the vault of the sky on its shoulders.

The apples, of course, were not left unguarded. Tasked for the job were the four Hesperides, the "Nymphs of the night" along with the giant Serpent Ladon, an intimidating dragon with one hundred heads, which could also disguise itself and trick people with its ability to emulate any sort of speech and anyone's voice.

As with any Divine place, this Garden too could not be accessed by mortals, even so, no man ever set his foot upon it, except for just one: Heracles, on his 11th Labour.

This is what happened: King Eurystheus of Mycenae, his master, had ordered him to bring back three golden apples from that wonderful tree, secretly hoping he would never return since there was no one who knew the location of the garden.

Unfortunately for him, the Hero, did find someone who could help him find his way: Nereus, the Old Man of the Sea who knew every secret and could take any form to avoid capture. He tried his fancy tricks with Heracles as well, constantly changing his appearance to elude the Hero, but he managed to hold him fast until the Old Man agreed to finally reveal the location of the garden.

The journey to the Garden of the Hesperides was preceded by a great journey around the world; the Hero would be met with wondrous and strange places, accompanied by countless adventures, hoping to find (maybe upon Nereus' own suggestion) eternal glory and usefulness in those travels.

Bibliography: G. Guidorizzi, "I Miti delle Stelle" pp 12-15.

Wow what a beautiful book, maybe want to upload in forums after translate hehehe.