...The constellation that I am choosing to write about is the Leo constellation, because I am a Leo! This constellation represents a powerful lion. The Leo constellation lies in the northern part of the sky, and is the 12th largest constellation. It was discovered by the Greek astronomer, Ptolemy in the 2nd century, the same time that the other zodiac constellations were discovered. The creation story of this constellation is one that I find to be very interesting. Hercules had to perform twelve labors for killing his family, and killing Leo, the Nemean lion, was one of them. This lion was terrorizing the citizens, and killing many people, children, and animals that were used for food, so Hercules was sent to kill it. While Hercules was trying to kill...
Words: 530 - Pages: 3
...Hercules is thought to be one of the world’s greatest hero. There are children’s movies about him, but they all have a happy ending. Hercules, originally born “Heracles” lived a short cruel, yet heroic life. “The 12 Herculean tasks he performed over a period of 12 years have been immortalized in everything from classical poetry to Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion.” (French 1). Hercules, in Greek mythology, was a hero known for his strength and courage and for his legendary adventures. Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek hero Heracles. He was the son of the god Zeus and a human mother Alcmene, wife of the Theban general Amphitryon. Hera, Zeus' jealous wife, was determined to kill Hercules, and after Hercules was born, she sent two great serpents to kill him. Hercules, while he was still a baby, strangled the snakes. Hercules conquered a tribe that had been demanding money from Thebes. As a reward, he was given the hand in marriage of the Theben princess Megara and they had three children. Hera, still filled hatred of Hercules, sent him into madness, which made him kill his wife and children. In horror and remorse at what he did, Hercules was about to kill himself, but he was told by the oracle at Delphi that he should purge himself by becoming the servant of his cousin Eurystheus, king of Mycenae. Eurystheus, urged by Hera, planned as a punishment the 12 impossible tasks, the "Labors of Hercules." Eurystheus first ordered Hercules to kill the Nemean lion...
Words: 1842 - Pages: 8
...The constellation that I have chosen is Cancer as known as The Crab. The reason is very simple, because Cancer is my zodiac. Cancer or The Crab the fourth astrological sign, which is associated with the constellation cancer. It spans the 90-120th degree of the zodiac, between 90 and 125.25 degree of celestial longitude. The sun transits this area on average between June 21 and July 22, and under the sidereal zodiac, the sun transits this area approximately July 16 and August 15. The symbol of this constellation is Crab. The Crab is based on Karkinos, a giant crab that bit Hercules during his fight with the Hydra. I found the 2 Mythologies about Cancer, one is from the Greek Mythology, and the other one is from Chinese Mythology. As I know...
Words: 511 - Pages: 3
...Constellation Leo also referred to as "Neman Lion" is one of the twelve zodiac signs. Its the brightest star among Algeiba, Denebola, and Regulus Mythological history refers to Leo as the Lion killed by Hercules. The myths saw it as a ferocious creature as nothing could bore into its flesh, that couldn't be reckoned with. As a result, Hercules asphyxiated Leo. People told it was a monster Typhon driven to Earth in the ten-year war between Olympia gods, and Titans. Whereas others said, it was the offspring of the two-headed dog of Orthros (Dome Of The Sky). The Astrology behind the zodiac sign Leo (July 23 - Aug22). People of the Leo sign are said to be confident, ambitious, generous, loyal, and encouraging. Whereas their weak points- domineering,...
Words: 353 - Pages: 2
...My constellation is Pegasus. Pegasus is a very well- known constellation. People often call Pegasus “The Winged Horse”. A pegasus is a mythical creature. It looks like a horse but has wings. This constellation was first introduced in Greek mythology. Perseus went on a journey to rescue Princess Andromeda from a nasty sea creature, Cetus. So, he went to kill Medusa, a snake- haired monster, who was once a beautiful women, but after a terrible spell she turned into a beast. One look in her eyes and you would turn into stone. Perseus killed and beheaded her. Her stare was still just as deadly, he went off to kill the sea monster and save the Princess. Once he turned the gnarly beast to stone, he saved Andromeda. But, a few drops of Medusa’s blood...
Words: 483 - Pages: 2
...duration of a 24-hour period. Many different stars help make up the 88-recorded constellations that can be seen around the world. Of those 88 configurations, are 12 constellations that are part of what is known as the Greek Zodiac. Each constellation in the Zodiac has a mythological story that some believe explains their existence. This paper will explain the history of the constellation Cancer,...
Words: 1879 - Pages: 8
...My favorite constellation is Sagittarius, or "The Archer" because it's my zodiac sign. Sagittarius is the largest constellation in the Southern Hemisphere, making it the fifteenth largest constellation overall. It's located at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy and its brightest stars form a teapot. This infamous constellation, often depicted as being a centaur holding a bow and arrow, was catalogued in the 2nd century by the Greek astronomer, Ptolemy. Though Sagittarius is a constellation like all the rest, it's unique shape comes with a fascinating story of how it came to be. A long time ago, there was once a centaur named Chiron. Chiron was renowned for his gentleness and archery skills. However, one day, Hercules accidentally shot and wounded Chiron with an arrow dipped in the poison of the Lernaean Hydra. Though Chiron had excellent healing skills, his pain was too great to be healed. Since he was immortal and could not die, he requested to take the place of Prometheus. Prometheus had been punished for bringing fire to Earth and would get his liver devoured day after day. After the switch had been made, Jupiter put Chiron in the stars as recognition for his righteousness. There was once a Roman god by the name of Vyaos. Vyaos was rather unpredictable. At times he...
Words: 474 - Pages: 2
...The zodiac constellation Sagittarius is my favorite due to its roots in myths, its features, and the fact that it is my very own zodiac symbol. The Sagittarius or the archer is a fire sign ruled by the planet Jupiter. The name Sagittarius is of Greek/Latin roots and is the ninth astrological sign in the zodiac. The archer is based on Chiron, the Centour. Half man hslf beast the Sagittarius relates to the deul beast in most of us. The centour Chiron is said to be a musician, archer, and tutor. He was shot with a posion arrow by Hercules by accident. Chiron was in great pain and no one could stop it. If Chiron were mortal he would have died, but he was not so he stayed alive riddled in pain. Insted of living this way Chiron decided to trade...
Words: 327 - Pages: 2
...of the animal” (Pinsent,67). Greek ceremonies were organized on local levels, priests would normally be the magistrates for a city or village and they would be the one to take care of a local festival or special functions for a certain family. Another method of practice that was picked up by the Greeks was the creation of Zodiac Signs. Every symbol has a story and this is true for the signs of the zodiac as well. The golden ram is the first of the signs, Aries, is believed to be given by Nephele to Phrixus and Helle to save them from the goddess, Hera, and it was sacrificed to Zeus who placed it in the constellation. The bull, which represents Taurus, was actually meant to be Zeus. The twins that are the symbol of Gemini are Castor and Polydeuces, even though only Polydeuces is divine;the third sign is Cancer which represents the huge crab that was sent by Hera to kill Hercules on his second labor but did not prevail, Hera still chose to recognize the crab and set him amongst the stars. Virgo, the fourth sign, is known as the sign of the virgin and originates to the Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone, who was abducted by Hades; Persephone was believed to be an innocent and virgin for her time with Hades. Libra, being the fifth sign, is connected to the Greek God Dike, who was famous for serving justice. The sixth sign, Scorpio, came from the story when Gaia sent a scorpion to kill Orion, who had become boastful and when successful she place Scorpio among the stars. A Centaur...
Words: 1757 - Pages: 8
...are nothing compared to Mt. Everest. They’re all huge when you look at them from a human or ‘earthly’ perspective. These objects however, are microscopic when compared to some of the things that exist in our universe. Let’s explore them. 10) Largest Asteroid Ceres is the largest asteroid we know of. It is almost 600 miles in diameter which makes it as large as California. It’s massive enough that its gravity forces it to have a spherical shape and also shares the title of ‘Dwarf Planet’. It’s so big, that it contains 25% of the mass of the asteroid belt. If you took all the asteroids in the asteroid belt and glued them together, that new object would only be about 2.5 times as big as Ceres. 9) Largest Planet Located in the constellation Hercules, planet TRES4 is 70% larger than Jupiter in diameter, but has only 80% of Jupiter’s mass. Because of how close it orbits to its sun, it is thought that the intense heat expands the gasses that make up this planet, resulting in an almost ‘marshmallow-like’ density. It’s holds the title of the largest planet we’ve discovered so far. Update: Science is never finished. Since this list was compiled, observations of an exoplanet called WASP-17b suggest that it is even bigger than TRES4. Despite its radius being twice that of Jupiter’s, it only has half the mass. This makes it even “fluffier” than TRES4. 8) Largest Star VY Canis Majoris is the largest star (in diameter) that we know of. It’s in a class of star known as Red Hyper Giants...
Words: 904 - Pages: 4
...MYTHOLOGY IN MODERN SOCIETY [pic] [pic] [pic] |Mythology is everywhere! Daily you run across instances of words, city names, companies, | |literary allusions - and even planets and constellations - that take their name or borrow | |their theme from myths. Because of your many requests, I've provided a couple of thousand | |excellent examples to help you get started in your research. Remember, you're surrounded | |by mythology in today's society, whether you realize it or not! | Mythological Influence on Modern... |[pic]Companies & Groups |[pic]Planets & Constellations | |[pic] Words & Expressions |[pic]Literary & Pop Culture | [pic]American Cities Named From Mythology [pic] COMPANIES & GROUPS |Mythology is everywhere! There are hundreds of companies, groups and corporations that take their name, logo or theme from ancient mythology. | |I've provided a variety of examples to help you in starting your research. Some are well-known international companies, others are of a more | |local nature. | |Aegis - Zeus and Athena's protective shield; modern group of insurance companies (The Aegis Group). | |Ajax - Greek warrior in the Trojan War, who "cleaned up" in...
Words: 5942 - Pages: 24
...What is a Myth? Before defining the term "mythology" one needs to define the meaning of the word "myth". The word itself comes from the Greek "mythos" which originally meant "speech" or "discourse" but which later came to mean "fable" or "legend". So the word "myth" is defined as a story of forgotten or vague origin, basically religious or supernatural in nature, which seeks to explain or rationalize one or more aspects of the world or a society. Furthermore, all myths are, at some stage, actually believed to be true by the peoples of the societies that used or originated the myth. The definition is thus clearly distinguished from the use of the word myth in everyday speech which basically refers to any unreal or imaginary story. A myth is also distinctly different from an allegory or parable which is a story deliberately made up to illustrate some moral point but which has never been assumed to be true by anyone. Some myths describe some actual historical event, but have been embellished and refashioned by various story tellers over time so that it is impossible to tell what really happened. In this last aspect myths have a legendary and historical nature. Definitions of Mythology The word mythology has two related meanings. Firstly it refers to a collection of myths that together form a mythological system. Thus one can speak of "Egyptian Mythology", "Indian Mythology", "Maori Mythology" or "Greek Mythology". In this sense one is describing a system of myths which were...
Words: 2019 - Pages: 9
...List of Greek Gods and Goddesses - A • Achelois - One of the moon goddesses. • Achelous - The patron god of the Achelous river. • Aeolus - (a.k.a. Aeolos, Aiolos, Aiolus, Eolus) God of air and the winds. • Aether - (a.k.a. Aither, Akmon, Ether) God of light and the atmosphere. • Alastor - God of family feuds. • Alcyone - One of the seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione. • Alectrona - Early Greek goddess of the sun. • Amphitrite - (a.k.a. Salacia) The wife of Poseidon and a Nereid. • Antheia - Goddess of gardens, flowers, swamps, and marshes. • Aphaea - (a.k.a. Aphaia) A Greek goddess who was worshipped exclusively at a single sanctuary on the island of Aegina in the Saronic Gulf. • Aphrodite - (a.k.a. Anadyomene, Turan, Venus) Goddess of love and beauty. • Apollo - (a.k.a. Apollon, Apulu, Phoebus) God of the sun, music, healing, and herding. • Ares - (a.k.a. Enyalius, Mars, Aries) God of chaotic war. • Aristaeus - (a.k.a. Aristaios) Patron god of animal husbandry, bee-keeping, and fruit trees. • Artemis - (a.k.a. Agrotora, Amarynthia, Cynthia, Kourotrophos, Locheia, Orthia, Phoebe, Potnia Theron) Goddess of the moon, hunting, and nursing. • Asclepius - (a.k.a. Aesculapius, Asklepios) God of health and medicine. • Astraea - The Star Maiden - a goddess of justice, included in Virgo and Libra mythologies. • Até - Goddess of mischief. • Athena - (a.k.a. Asana, Athene, Minerva, Menerva) Goddess of wisdom, poetry...
Words: 1637 - Pages: 7
...| Ouranos | (Father Sky) and father of the Titans. Roman name Uranus. | Thesis | Primordial God/Goddess of Creation. Thesis is sometimes thought to be a child of Chaos. Thesis is thought to have emerged with Hydros before Gaia. | Phanes | Primeval God of procreation and is referred as the primal generator of life. Phanes is Nyx's father and was the ruler of the universe before her. | The Anemois | Primeval Gods of winds. Boreas (north), Kaikias (NE), Apeliotes (E), Euros (SE), Notos (S), Lips (SW), Zephyrus (W) and Skirion (NW)p | Titans The original twelve Titans: * Koios - also spelled Coeus. God of intelligence, heavenly prophecy and the axis. * Kreios - also spelled Crius. God of leadership, domesticated animals and the constellations. * Kronos - also spelled Cronus....
Words: 1361 - Pages: 6
...For other meanings, see Perseus (disambiguation). Perseus | | Abode | Argos | Symbol | Medusa's head | Consort | Andromeda | Parents | Zeus and Danae | Children | Perses, Heleus | Mount | Pegasus | Topics in Greek mythology | Gods * Primordial gods and Titans * Zeus and the Olympians * Pan and the nymphs * Apollo and Dionysus * Sea-gods and Earth-gods | Heroes * Heracles and his Labors * Achilles and the Trojan War * Odysseus and the Odyssey * Jason and the Argonauts * Perseus and Medusa/Gorgon * Pirithous and the Centauromachy * Oedipus and Thebes * Orpheus and the Orphic Mysteries * Theseus and the Minotaur * Triptolemus and the Eleusinian Mysteries | Related * Satyrs, centaurs and dragons * Religion in Ancient Greece | Greek mythology portal | Perseus (Greek: Περσεύς), the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynastyof Danaans there, was the first of the heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths of the Twelve Olympians. Perseus was the Greek hero who killed the Gorgon Medusa, and claimed Andromeda, having rescued her from a sea monster sent by Poseidon in retribution for QueenCassiopeia declaring that her daughter, Andromeda, was more beautiful than the Nereids. Contents [hide] * 1 Etymology * 2 Origin at Argos * 3 Overcoming the Gorgon * 4 Marriage to Andromeda * 5 The oracle fulfilled * 6 King of Mycenae * 7 Descendants...
Words: 2863 - Pages: 12
