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Myths and Astronomy
June 2012
Lithuanian Team Presentation
Myths and Astronomy
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Everybody is familiar with the international names of stars and constellations.
However,
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Not everybody knows what some stars and constellations are called in their native
language.
Not everybody knows how stars and constellations received their names in their
culture.
Therefore,
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We tried to compare some stars and constellations, find out and share with you
how different their names are and how different their origin is in our culture.
Myths and Astronomy
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There is a lot of information on the origin of all main stars and
constellations with internationally recognized names.
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There is very little information found about the names and origin of the
names of these stars and constellations in the Lithuanian language and
culture.
However,
 there exist/existed some alternative names and stories of the origin of
some stars and constellation that we managed to track.
The Orion Constellation
The Orion Constellation in the
Greek Mythology
The Orion Constellation in the
Greek Mythology
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In one version, Artemis, the goddess of hunt and the moon fell in love
with Orion. She was so entranced by him, she forgot her divinely duty of
illuminating the night sky. Her twin brother Apollo, seeing Orion
swimming in the sea, dared his sister to strike what only appeared to be a
spot on the waves. Not knowing it was Orion, Artemis shot an arrow and
killed him. Later, when she found out what she did, she placed his body
among the stars. The grief she felt explains why the moon looks so sad at
night.
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In a different ending of this myth, Apollo's jealousy led him to summon a
giant scorpion, which not even the mighty hunter Orion could defeat, and
he was killed by its poisonous sting. In some versions he slays the
scorpion just after it stings him, and they die simultaneously. This
explains the seasonal alternation of the appearance of the constellations of
Orion (October to April) and Scorpius (April to October), which do not
appear in the sky together. Legends differ on whether this separation was
imposed by the gods so that they would never have to fight again or so
that they would be eternally chasing each other.
The Orion Constellation in the
Lithuanian Culture
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It is called Septyni Šienpjoviai (Seven Haymakers)
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In Lithuania it can be seen in the very early morning of August before the
sunrise. Then it starts to appear earlier and earlier. In December it rises in
the evening, at midnight it is located in the south and it sets at dawn in the
west. In March we can see this constellation in the evening in the south,
in the evenings of April we see them no more. According to when the
Seven Haymakers could be seen in the sky Lithuanians used to know the
time in winter and the lengthening of the day. For example, it one region
of Lithuania it was said that the length of the day from the Christams Day
to the Three Kings‘ Day became longer by one step of the cockerel, or as
much as the ram can jump up, i.e. the distance the Seven Haymakers
covered in the sky.
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The legends say that Seven Haymakers used to be seven brothers. They
were cursed by their mother who turned them into haymakers. The God
took them to the sky and turned them into stars.
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the
Greek Mythology
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Callisto the bear
Callisto was the daughter of Lykaon, king of Arcadia and follower in
hunting of goddess Artemis. Callisto, whose name means “the most
beautiful”, had sworn the goddess to remain virgin for all her life, as did
all the companions of Artemis. However, one day, Zeus saw her and after
many attempts, he seduced her. Soon, the girl realized that she was
pregnant but decided to keep it a secret from Artemis. Unfortunately, one
day, while the goddess and her companions were getting ready to take
their bath in a river, the pregnancy of Callisto was revealed. Artemis got
so angry because the girl had violated her vow that she turned her into a
bear, with the curse to live in the wild for the rest of her life and be killed
by hunters one day.
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the
Greek Mythology
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Callisto the star
A few months later, Callisto the bear delivered a son, who was named
Arcas, meaning “he who was born by a bear”. Zeus gave the baby boy to
goddess Maia to raise him up. When he became a man, Arcas became the
king of that land, who was named after his name, Arcadia. One day, while
Arcas was hunting in the forest, he met a bear. It was his mother, Callisto.
Arcas, who didn’t know the truth about his mother, was getting ready to
throw a javelin and kill this great bear. Zeus, from Mount Olympus, saw
that tragedy coming and before the javelin hit Callisto, he turned both of
them into constellations. According to the ancient Greeks, these are the
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, meaning Big and Small Bear in Latin. They
are the representations of Callisto and her son, Arcas. These stars can be
seen mostly in summer, when the sky is clear, at the north side of the
horizon.
Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the
Lithuanian Culture
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It is called Didieji ir Mažieji Grįžulo/Grigo Ratai (the Big and the
Small Grįžulas Wagon/the Big and the Small Dipper)
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One of the legends of Lowlanders of Lithuania tells us that a brave girl, a
daughter of Griužas, went to heaven in a wagon. Suddenly a hurricane
made the wagon sharply turn and the wagon crashed into the gates of the
hell. As soon as the God heard a cry for help he turned the girl and the
wagon with the wheels into a constellation called Griužo Ratai. The stars
Griužas and his brother Akšas (most probably these are the brightest stars
of Ursa Minor) stay in the same place all the time but the daughter is
allowed to ride in a circle. Therefore, Griužo or Grįžulo Ratai are not
confined to one particulat position. It is always moving in a circle.
The Milky Way
The Milky Way in the Greek
Mythology
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The Greek name for the Milky way (Γαλαξίας Galaxias) is derived from
the word for milk (γάλα, gala). One legend explains how the Milky Way
was created by Heracles when he was a baby. His father, Zeus, was fond
of his son, who was born of the mortal woman Alcmene. He decided to
let the infant Heracles suckle on his divine wife Hera's milk when she
was asleep, an act which would endow the baby with godlike qualities.
When Hera woke up and realized that she was breastfeeding an unknown
infant, she pushed him away and the spurting milk became the Milky
Way.
The Milky Way in the
Lithuanian Culture
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It is called Paukščių Takas (the Birds’ Path)
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Its name refers to the direction that birds take when travelling to the
South to warmer countries during those cooling autumn evenings when it
is best seen in Lithuania.
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It is said that the God who lived high in the sky loved birds very much
and therefore he asked his angels to lay lots of stars on the way leading to
the South for the birds to know the way to warmer countries in autumn
and back home in spring. In some parts of Lithuania it is also called the
Cranes‘ or Geese‘s Path.
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There exists yet another name for the Milky Way in Lithuania. It is also
called the Souls‘ Road. Lots of various stories, legends, and witchcraft
about the Souls‘ Road come from the ancient times. The legends show
that Lithuanians believed that the souls of the dead turned into birds and
travelled to heaven by taking the Souls‘ Road.
Other Equivalent Names
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The Polar Star – Šiaurinė žvaigždė (the North Star)
Lithuanians also called it the Sea Star or the Sailors‘ Star, because it
helped fishermen and sailors to navigate when at sea.
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The Pegasus Constellation – Bažnyčia (the Church)
The Andromeda Constellation – Takas į Bažnyčią (the Path to the
Church)
In Lithuania it is believed that...
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Once a baby is born a new star appears in the sky and twinkles all his/her
life.
Some people are born under a lucky star – such people are very
successful in their life, others are born under an unlucky star – such
people are unhappy all their life. They experience only failure and
trouble.
There are as many stars as there are people on the Earth.
When an honest and kind person dies, he/she becomes a star.
In the palace of the God Perkūnas there is a big room with lots of
candles: some of them have just been lit, some of them are half burned,
some of them are almost burned down. All these candles are the souls of
people living on the Earth. When a baby is born a candle is immediately
lit. That person has to live as long as his/her candle burns. When a person
dies, a wick of his/her candle is thrown down onto the Earth. Then people
see a falling star. The guardian of the dead person at that time has to meet
the falling soul on the eternity road and take it to the place the person
deserves according to the way he/she lived his/her life.
In Lithuania it is believed that...
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In the sky there sits a spinner and spins the thread of a person’s destiny
from the very birth of that person. Each thread has a star at its ending.
When the time to die approaches, the life thread is pulled off, the star
becomes white and falls down onto the Earth. Therefore, in the old times
people seeing a falling star thought that a person died and started to pray
for that person.
Other people believed that falling stars were flying kites that bring
wealth.
Other people thought that falling stars were stones that angels threw at
devils.
Stars helped people to foresee the weather or the harvest.
People adored stars, prayed for them, sang songs and told stories.