ZODIAC

CANCER (The Crab)

The crab in the constellation Cancancer was a friend of the sea monster Hydra. The tale of this crab appears in one of the twelve labors of Hercules, in which Hercules was to rid the world of the Hydra. As the many-headed Hydra grappled with Hercules, one after another of its fearsome heads was cut off until its situation became extremely perilous. Seeing the unconquerable Hydra in such desperate situation, the crab cried "My friend Hydra is in trouble!" and bravely waved its claws at the mighty Hercules. Before the greatest of the Greek heroes, however, the crab had no chance and was vanquished in an instant. Looking on, the gods were impressed with this display of friendship and added the crab to the constellations in the heavens.

ARIES (The Ram)

The King of Thebes had two children with his queen but his heart was captivated by the beautiful Ino, so he decreed a divorce and took Ino as his new queen. The step-mother Ino attempted to remove the prince Phrixus and the princess Helle by starting a false prophecy that they should be killed. "The poor harvest is a sign that Zeus is angry. These two must be put to the sword as a sacrifice to appease Zeus." The people were taken in by the false prophecy and tried to sacrifice the two children. Zeus took pity on the two children and saved them by sending a golden ram that had the power of flight. The golden fleece of this ram later became one of the treasures of the Kingdom of Colchis. It was this golden fleece that the Greek hero Jason sought when he set out on his epic journey, recounted in the tale of the Argo expedition.

TAURUS (The Bull)

One pleasant early afternoon, Europa the daughter of King Phoenix was plucking grass by the side of the river when a great snow-white bull appeared as if from nowhere, and approached her. Astonished by the beauty of the bull, she forgot her caution and sat on the bull's back. Immediately the bull sprang towards the sea with tremendous power and in an instant was galloping over the water as if it were land. The bull was actually Zeus, the King of the Gods, in another form. Zeus carried off Europa across the Mediterranean Sea to the Grecian island of Crete, where he married her. Ever since that time, the land to which Europa was carried by the bull has been known by the name 'Europe.'

GEMINI (The Twins)

The twins Castor and Pollux were the children of Zeus, the King of the Gods, and Leda the Queen of Sparta. The two were devoted friends, extremely brave, and together achieved great fame from their exploits on the famous Argo expedition and many other adventures. The twins were always helping each other. In one battle, Castor was mortally wounded and died. In his grief, Pollux tried to take his own life, However Pollux had inherited more of the blood of his father Zeus, and was therefore immortal. Looking on as Pollux cried "Let me go to my brother Castor," Zeus took pity and raised both twins into the sky. Ever since, they have stood as a symbol of friendship.

LEO (The Lion)

Hercules, the hero of many Greek myths, was commanded by the angry King Eurites to perform twelve perilous tasks, known as the Labors of Hercules. The lion represents the first of these dangerous feats. Hercules was ordered to get rid of the man-eating lion of the Forest of Nemea. Taking his bow and arrow and sword, he attacked the lion that appeared before him. His foe, however, was a supernatural lion with an immortal body that could not be wounded by arrows or swords. Hercules wrapped his arms around the neck of the lion and squeezed with all of his tremendous strength. The supernatural lion was no match for power of Hercules, and was slain. The constellation of the Lion was named in memory of this great feat of Hercules.

VIRGO (The Maiden)

Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, governed the fruits of the earth and had an only child, a beautiful daughter named Persephone. One day Persephone was picking flowers in the meadow, when suddenly the earth opened and Hades, the King of the Underworld appeared and carried her off in his black chariot. Demeter grieved for her beloved only daughter who had been taken away to the Underworld, and hid herself in a cave. Now that the goddess of the earth had hid herself away, no more grains and flowers could grow and the earth became barren as far as the eye could see. Zeus, the King of the Gods, saw this and commanded Hades to return Persephone to Demeter. agreed with great reluctance, but Persephone had already eaten part of a pomegranate while she was in captivity, and anyone who had tasted the food of the Underworld was doomed to live there. Forevre so it was decided that Persephone would live with her mother for half of the year, and return to the Underworld for the other half. This is how the seasons of the earth began.

LIBRA (The Scales)

The constellation Libra is said to be the scales with which Astraea, the goddess of justice, determined good and evil. Long ago, in the Golden Age of the world, the scales of the goddess Astraea always tipped in the direction of justice. Humans and animals lived happily, and there was eternal spring all of the year. Eventually the Silver Age arrived, an age in which the weak were oppressed by the strong. Gods and goddesses withdrew into heaven, their patience with humans exhausted. Astraea however remained among men, continuing to expound justice. With the coming of the copper age however, humans began to make war upon each other. The scales of Astraea continually tipped towards evil, and the goddess could no longer bear the ways of men and withdrew from the earth.

SCORPIO (The Scorpion)

Orion, the mighty hunter, was always boasting of his marksmanship. "Nothing in creation can stand up to me..." The gods and goddesses were pained by such talk, and one day Hera, the wife of the great Zeus, could no longer bear it. She released a scorpion on the forest path where Orion frequently walked as he boasted of his power. The scorpion stung Orion in the foot, and its venom spread through his body. In spite of all his strength, Orion soon breathed his last. Ever since then both Orion and the Scorpion have remained in the sky as enemies. As the Scorpion rises Orion sinks below the horizon, as if to flee in a never-ending celestial chase.

SAGITTARIUS (The Centaur)

The constellation Sagittarius has the shape of the mythical centaur, a creature in Greek mythology that had the upper body of a man and the lower body of a horse. The race of centaurs were a rough and savage lot except for one named Chiron, who was taught by Apollo and Artemis the arts of music and medicine, hunting and prophecy, and went on to tutor the young heroes of Greece in many subjects. The wise Chiron was immortal, however this proved to be ruinous. Wounded by a stray poison arrow shot by the hero Hercules, his suffering was so great that Prometheus granted release from immortality so that he could die. The great Zeus was hurt by the death of Chiron and raised him to the skies as a constellation.

CAPRICORN (The Goat)

Do you know why the goat in the constellation Capricorn has the tail of a fish? Pan, the god of the forest, resembled a goat, was very skilled at playing the reed pipes. Pan spent his days singing, dancing, and living a cheerful existence. Once the gods were feasting on the banks of the river Nile in the land of Egypt. Pan, who loved everything lively, set out joyfully playing his reed pipes merrily and loudly when suddenly in burst the monster Teuphon bellowed "What is that terrible noise?" Startled, Pan tried to quickly change himself into a fish to get away. In his haste, his body turned into a fish but his head remained that of a goat. The gods laughed uproariously, and added his form to the constellations in the sky to commemorate the event.

AQUARIUS (The Water Carrier)

This constellation is in the shape of a young man carrying jug of water. The young man is Ganymede, a handsome youth who was a favorite of Zeus. Ganymede, a prince of Troy, was known for his beauty. Looking down on the earth from heaven, Zeus saw him as he was herding sheep and was pleased. Zeus turned himself into a great black eagle, flew down from heaven in one straight swoop and grabbed Ganymede, carrying him off to the palace of the gods. The King of Troy lamented the loss of his son, but Zeus appeared to him in a dream saying "Ganymede is living happily in the palace of the gods. Stop your lament and look up into the sky." When the king looked up, he saw the form of his beloved son shining in the constellation of the water carrier.

PISCES (The Fishes)

The two fish in the constellation Pisces are actually two well-known Greek gods in another form. Aphrodite (or Venus), the goddess of love and beauty and her child Eros (or Cupid) the god of infatuation were walking happily together, mother and child, along the banks of the river Euphrates. Suddenly there appeared the monster Teuphon, a notorious villain in Greek myths. Startled, the two sprang into the river, changed into fish, and swam away as fast as they could go. The goddess Athena saw them, and placed them in the heavens in the form of two fish linked by a ribbon.