Ahh, winter has sensationally taken its grasp on us here in the PG (technically not for another couple of dozen days) and that means one thing; or, rather, one thing means that winter is upon us. Orion, the man with the shield and the man with the belt. There are two myths, I have found, and here is the more dramatic one. The first one is simply that he was a cocky fellow who got bettered in the end by a mere scorpion. This one is a little more fantastic:
Another version of the Orion myth states that he had no mother but was a gift to a pious peasant from Jupiter, Neptune, and Mercury. "Orion supposedly was able to walk on water and had greater strength and stature than any other mortal. A skilled blacksmith, he fabricated a subterranean palace for Vulcan. He also walled in the coasts of Sicily against the encroaching sea and built a temple to the gods there" (Magee, 48). Orion fell in love with Merope, daughter of Oenopion and princess of Chios. Her father the king, however, would not consent to give Orion his daughter's hand in marriage--even after the hunter rid their island of wild beasts. In anger,
Orion attempted to gain possession of the maiden by violence. Her father, incensed at this conduct, having made Orion drunk, deprived him of his sight and cast him out on the seashore. The blinded hero followed the sound of a Cyclops' hammer till he reached Lemnos, and came to the forge of Vulcan, who, taking pity on him, gave him Kedalion, one of his men, to be his guide to the abode of the sun. Placing Kedalion on his shoulders, Orion proceeded to the east, and there meeting the sun-god, was restored to sight by his beam.
After this he dwelt as a hunter with Diana, with whom he was a favourite, and it is even said she was about to marry him. Her brother [Apollo] was highly displeased and chid her [she was, after all, a virgin huntress], but to no purpose. One day, observing Orion wading through the ocean with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit that black thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged a shaft with fatal aim. The waves rolled the body of Orion to the land, and bewailing her fatal error with many tears, Diana placed him among the stars (Bulfinch's Mythology, 191-192).
Orion attempted to gain possession of the maiden by violence. Her father, incensed at this conduct, having made Orion drunk, deprived him of his sight and cast him out on the seashore. The blinded hero followed the sound of a Cyclops' hammer till he reached Lemnos, and came to the forge of Vulcan, who, taking pity on him, gave him Kedalion, one of his men, to be his guide to the abode of the sun. Placing Kedalion on his shoulders, Orion proceeded to the east, and there meeting the sun-god, was restored to sight by his beam.
After this he dwelt as a hunter with Diana, with whom he was a favourite, and it is even said she was about to marry him. Her brother [Apollo] was highly displeased and chid her [she was, after all, a virgin huntress], but to no purpose. One day, observing Orion wading through the ocean with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit that black thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged a shaft with fatal aim. The waves rolled the body of Orion to the land, and bewailing her fatal error with many tears, Diana placed him among the stars (Bulfinch's Mythology, 191-192).
Regardless, the fact that a whole story can be sussed out of the configurations of stars as we see them here on Earth is pretty neat. Now, lets not confuse cosmic mythology with astrology....lets not go there! Let's go back to astronomy. Astronomy
So, Orion brings with it the feeling of winter, and is the harbinger of the winter constellations. Follow the belt 'up' and you will see Aldebaran (Taurus) and follow the belt 'down' and you will find Sirius (Canis Major) - the brightest star as seen from our ball of muck, rock and water.
Happy gazing. I tried last night but the temperatures made it a very short event. Cloudy too, but there were a few clear moments - enought to see what I wrote of above.
Go to a used book store, ask for Chocky by John Windham. It is worth your 1/2 day to read it.
1 comment:
Wow, very nice pictures here!
This gave me a flashback of my astronomy days. Check "The Sleepwalkers" by Arthur Koestler
Regards from across the Atlantic
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