Buzz
Humans are hardwired to seek patterns. When faced with chaos, our minds instinctively try to bring order and find recognizable shapes. This is why people have been captivated by the stars throughout history, creating stories about the patterns they see in the sky. The brightest stars were grouped into constellations, many of which come with intriguing origin tales.
Below are ten myths surrounding the constellations.
10. Coma Berenices
While most constellations trace their roots back to ancient, mysterious times, one stands out as being named after a well-known historical figure: Coma Berenices. The name translates to Berenice’s Hair, a story that originates from both a sacred sacrifice and a daring theft.
Queen Berenice II of Egypt, wife of King Ptolemy III in the 3rd century BC, made a vow before her husband left for war in Syria. She promised to sacrifice her hair to the goddess Aphrodite for his safe return. After shaving her head, she placed the hair on the altar, but to her shock, the hair vanished the very next day.
Upon his return, King Ptolemy III was outraged to discover his wife’s hair had been stolen from the temple. To calm the king’s anger, the royal astronomer Conon offered an explanation: the goddess, pleased with the offering, had taken the hair and placed it in the sky, forming the constellation known as Coma Berenices. This story became a celebrated tale of royal devotion, with poems praising the queen’s act and depictions of her bald head.
9. Canis Major
The Greek gods had their fair share of dislikes, one of which was logical contradictions. This particular annoyance led to the immortalization of a loyal dog in the stars.
In one version of the Canis Major myth, or ‘Greater Dog,’ the trouble began with a clever fox. The Teumessian Fox was terrorizing farmers near Thebes, and no one could catch it because fate had decreed it would never be captured. To solve this, a hunter brought his dog, Laelaps, who was destined to always catch its prey. But fate had other plans for this pairing.
This chase led to a paradox: if the fox were caught, fate would be undone, yet if it escaped, fate would still be proven wrong. To preserve the integrity of fate, the gods placed Laelaps and the fox among the stars, ensuring they would forever race across the heavens, neither catching nor escaping each other. In this way, fate endured.
8. Orion and the Scorpion
Orion is perhaps the most well-known constellation, shining brightly and standing out for its vast size. His belt is especially easy to identify. What is less commonly known, however, is that Orion is eternally entangled in a fierce battle with the constellation of Scorpius.
According to Greek mythology, Orion was the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, and a renowned hunter. His skill was so unmatched that he arrogantly boasted he could hunt every animal on Earth. This boast angered Gaia, the goddess of Earth and protector of all life. Fearing for her creatures, Gaia created a giant scorpion to slay Orion. The scorpion successfully struck Orion in the heel with its sting, killing him.
The gods placed Orion and Scorpius on opposite ends of the sky. As Orion rises, Scorpius sets, and vice versa. The location where the scorpion's sting struck Orion is marked by the bright star Rigel, which remains as a reminder of the tragic encounter.
7. The Pleiades
The Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters, is a star cluster with some of the most ancient myths surrounding it. These stories have been passed down through numerous cultures across the world. In Greek mythology, the tale of their origin involves an attempted seduction, as is common with many of their myths.
Originally, the Pleiades were the daughters of the Titan Atlas, and their beauty was so captivating that nearly every significant Greek deity had a romantic affair with them. One such suitor was the hunter Orion, who desired them but was unable to approach due to the protective presence of Atlas. When Atlas was burdened with the task of holding up the heavens, no one remained to guard the Pleiades, so Orion set out to claim them.
The Pleiades fled in fear, and the gods, moved by compassion, transformed the sisters into doves, allowing them to escape the hunter's grasp. Eventually, they were placed in the sky as a constellation. Orion, too, was immortalized among the stars, but his position ensures he will always chase the Pleiades, never to catch them.
6. Cancer
'When you aim at the king, you better not miss' is the lesson derived from the story of the constellation Cancer. This tale features a crab and the Greek hero Heracles.
Heracles was condemned to complete twelve nearly impossible labors after a fit of madness, caused by the wrath of the goddess Hera, led him to kill his wife and children. These tasks often involved slaying fierce beasts like the Nemean Lion and capturing the Erymanthian Boar. One could say that Heracles became an expert at defeating even the most formidable creatures.
While Heracles was battling the Lernaean Hydra, a multi-headed serpent that grew two new heads for each one that was severed, Hera decided to exact her revenge. She sent a crab to distract Heracles, hoping it would weaken him enough for the Hydra to strike. The plan, however, quickly failed. In one version, Heracles kicked the crab so hard it flew into the sky, where it became the constellation Cancer. In another version, he simply crushed it, and Hera, honoring her fallen champion, placed it among the stars.
5. Cassiopeia, Cetus, Perseus, and Andromeda
In Greek mythology, one of the gravest offenses is hubris—unbridled arrogance. Anyone who dares to claim superiority over the gods is bound to face a dreadful fate. This is the lesson that Cassiopeia, the queen of Aethiopia, learned when she boasted that she was more beautiful than the sea nymphs, the Nereids. Poseidon, the god of the sea, would not let her vanity go unpunished, so he commanded the fearsome Cetus to terrorize the shores of Aethiopia.
In their desperate attempt to halt the relentless attacks, the king and queen consulted an oracle, who revealed that the only way to end the turmoil was through a sacrifice—Andromeda, their cherished daughter, must be offered to Cetus. As she awaited her grim fate, shackled by the shore, the brave Perseus arrived on his winged steed, Pegasus, and rescued her, some even claiming he turned the fearsome creature to stone using the severed head of Medusa.
Eventually, Perseus, Andromeda, Cetus, and Cassiopeia found their place among the stars, becoming immortalized as constellations. To emphasize the arrogance of Cassiopeia, the queen’s constellation is seen hanging upside down for half the year, symbolizing her vanity.
4. Pisces
The constellation Pisces depicts two fish that managed to make their way into the zodiac. The tale of their celestial journey is one rooted in Roman-era accounts, drawing from earlier Greek legends of the two fish.
Typhon, one of the most fearsome creatures in Greek mythology, is often described as a gigantic beast whose head brushes the stars, adorned with writhing snakes. The battle between Typhon and the gods was so violent that the earth shook, and the seas swelled, flooding the land. Only Zeus emerged victorious over the monstrous threat. During this turmoil, Aphrodite, who was in Syria at the time, found herself pursued by Typhon. In her desperation, Aphrodite, with her son Eros, decided their only chance for survival was to flee.
In their bid to flee from Typhon, they leapt into the Euphrates River, where a pair of fish emerged from the waters and swiftly carried them to safety. To honor their brave rescue, these fish were immortalized as constellations in the sky.
3. Ophiuchus
According to myth, Asclepius, the god of healing, was born under dramatic circumstances. Apollo discovered that his lover Coronis had been unfaithful, and in his fury, he shot her with arrows. As Coronis lay dying, she revealed that she was carrying Apollo’s child, and he immediately cut the baby from her and named him Asclepius.
Asclepius was famed for his healing abilities, with many stories of him discovering the life-restoring herb through the help of a serpent or receiving secret knowledge whispered to him by one. This connection to serpents is why Asclepius is depicted with a staff entwined by a serpent. He became so skilled in the art of healing that he even raised the dead. Hades, noticing a decrease in the souls entering the underworld, brought the matter to Zeus’s attention. If Asclepius’s powers went unchecked, all humans could soon become immortal.
Zeus, who could solve nearly any issue with his lightning bolts, responded by striking Asclepius down with one of his bolts. Apollo, understandably furious at the death of his son, had Asclepius elevated to the status of a god. He was then placed in the sky as the constellation Ophiuchus, the 'serpent-bearer.'
2. Cygnus
Cygnus, also known as the swan, is easily recognizable in the night sky thanks to its distinctive cross-shaped pattern. The constellation's origin story, however, is a bit elusive, with no singular myth explaining its creation.
One of the most notable swan figures in Greek mythology comes from a tale involving Zeus. To pursue Leda, the queen of Sparta, Zeus transformed into a swan. Although the reasons behind this transformation remain unclear, the union resulted in the birth of an egg, from which Helen of Troy emerged. Perhaps Cygnus represents Zeus in his swan form.
In another version of the myth, the swan's connection is tied to the tragic love story of Phaethon, the son of Apollo, and Cycnus of Liguria. After Phaethon failed to control Apollo's sun chariot, nearly destroying the earth in the process, he was struck down. In his sorrow, Cycnus discovered Phaethon's lifeless body and, mourning deeply, was transformed into a swan and immortalized in the heavens.
1. Ursa Major
Zeus, despite his many roles, was not a devoted husband. Numerous Greek myths revolve around his affairs, seductions, and even rapes, involving both mortals and divine beings. Hera, his long-suffering wife, was far from passive in these matters. For every instance of Zeus's infidelity, there is a corresponding story of Hera exacting her vengeance on the unfortunate individuals involved.
Callisto was a nymph who served under the virgin goddess Artemis. She was deceived by Zeus, who took on Artemis's form to get close to her. When Callisto became pregnant, Artemis discovered the truth. As a result, the nymph was cast out, and she gave birth to a son named Arcas.
One day, while Zeus was walking with Callisto in the forest, he noticed Hera approaching. To protect Callisto from Hera’s wrath, Zeus transformed her into a bear. However, Hera quickly grew suspicious upon seeing Zeus with the bear and demanded that he return home with her, leaving Callisto trapped in her new form. Later, Arcas, a skilled hunter, unknowingly shot the bear dead with an arrow, unaware that he had just killed his own mother. In his grief, Zeus immortalized Callisto as the Great Bear and Arcas as the Little Bear, placing them among the stars.
