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Helios
By: Michelle Thai
The Sun God
Helios is the Greek god Because he was
of the sun. He was
always in the
most popularly
sky, people
portrayed as a
thought he saw
charioteer, driving
and heard
either his flaming
everything, and
chariot or gleaming
consequently, he
horses from east to
was also
west across the sky
considered the
each day (“Helios the
guardian of
Sun God”).
oaths (Atsma).
Life
It is stated that Helios was the son of
Hyperion and Theia, but it is also
believed that he could’ve also been
the son of Hyperion and
Euryphaessa (Atsma). He had two
sisters: Selene, the goddess of the
moon; and Eos, the goddess of
dawn (“Helios the Sun God”). It is
unclear where he was born.
Hyperion- Titan of the East
Popularity
Helios is most known
from the myth in
which he let his
son, Phaethon,
drive his chariot.
Phaethon, unable
to control the wild
horses, let the
chariot run wild
until Zeus struck
him down. (“Helios
the Sun God”).
Helios was also
known to have told
Demeter that
Hades had
kidnapped her
daughter and to
have tattled to
Hephaestus that
Aphrodite was
having an affair
with Ares (Atsma).
Relation to Odysseus
When Odysseus was on his quest, he and his crewmates
landed upon an island. They were hungry and there
were herds of cows and sheep nearby. Odysseus,
remembering a caution that the animals belonged to
Helios, warned the crew to stay away from them.
When he went off to pray to the gods to help them in
their predicament, the crew snuck of and slaughtered
cows to eat and consequently, Helios was angered and
asked Zeus to punish the crew for the crime. Only
Odysseus survived when Zeus destroyed their ship at
sea (Atsma).
Works Cited
“Helios the Sun God.” Greek Myths and Greek Mythology. Greek Myths
and Greek Mythology, n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2015
Atsma, Aaron. “Helios.” Theoi Greek Mythology. The Theoi Project, n.d.
Web. 1 Dec. 2015