Why are there myths?
Ancient people found ways to describe the figures in the sky and made myths of them, if you want to read some here are a few. These ones are about the Greek Orion and the Roman Aquila.
The ancient Greeks saw the figure of the Greek myth Orion in the nighttime sky. There are several different stories about the birth of Orion. According to one version of the myth, Orion was the son of a poor shepherd called Hyrieus. Once, Zeus , Hermes, and Poseidon stopped by Hyrieus' house. Hyrieus was so generous with his guests that he killed the only animal he had-an ox.
Hyrieus was not aware that his guests were gods. The gods wanted to reward Hyrieus' generosity by granting him a wish. Hyrieus' biggest desire was to have a child. The gods told him to bury the hide of the bull he had sacrificed to them and to pee on it. After nine months, a boy was born in that place. The child became a very handsome and strong man.
He was such a good hunter that he was hired by the king Oenopion to kill the ferocious beasts that were terrifying the habitants of the island Chios. Happy for his success, Orion said he would kill all the wild animals on the earth. But. the earth goddess Gaia, who was the mother of all animals, was not pleased with Orion's intention.
Then, Gaia set an enormous scorpion on Orion. Orion soon realized that his strength and sword were useless against that mighty beast. He tried to escape, but the scorpion stung him to death. As a reward, Gaia placed the scorpion in the sky as a constellation which appears to be constantly chasing after Orion whose figure was also placed among the stars.
Hyrieus was not aware that his guests were gods. The gods wanted to reward Hyrieus' generosity by granting him a wish. Hyrieus' biggest desire was to have a child. The gods told him to bury the hide of the bull he had sacrificed to them and to pee on it. After nine months, a boy was born in that place. The child became a very handsome and strong man.
He was such a good hunter that he was hired by the king Oenopion to kill the ferocious beasts that were terrifying the habitants of the island Chios. Happy for his success, Orion said he would kill all the wild animals on the earth. But. the earth goddess Gaia, who was the mother of all animals, was not pleased with Orion's intention.
Then, Gaia set an enormous scorpion on Orion. Orion soon realized that his strength and sword were useless against that mighty beast. He tried to escape, but the scorpion stung him to death. As a reward, Gaia placed the scorpion in the sky as a constellation which appears to be constantly chasing after Orion whose figure was also placed among the stars.
Aquila means "eagle," and the pattern of stars in this constellation can be easily imagined as a soaring eagle with outstretched wings. It is visible from both the Northern and the Southern hemispheres.
Some of the legend surrounding Aquila involbes its neighboring constellations. In modern sky tales, most of which date to the Romans, Aquila is said to represent the mythological eagle that carried Ganymede to the heavens to become the cupbearer to the gods. It is seen as swooping down toward the constellation Aquarius, which represents Ganymede, or flying through the Milky Way to attend Jove. In the legend, Jupiter needed to replace his cupbearer, Hebe, either because she stumbled while serving at a banquet or because she married Hercules (the constellation Hercules forms the northwestern border of Aquila). Ganymede, a young Trojan prince noted for his beauty and purity, was selected to replace Hebe, and an eagle -- Aquila -- was sent to bring him to Mount Olympus. The constellation Sagitta (the Arrow), above the wing of Aquila, is said to represent the arrow of Eros -- perhaps the arrow that led Hebe to Hercules.
Some of the legend surrounding Aquila involbes its neighboring constellations. In modern sky tales, most of which date to the Romans, Aquila is said to represent the mythological eagle that carried Ganymede to the heavens to become the cupbearer to the gods. It is seen as swooping down toward the constellation Aquarius, which represents Ganymede, or flying through the Milky Way to attend Jove. In the legend, Jupiter needed to replace his cupbearer, Hebe, either because she stumbled while serving at a banquet or because she married Hercules (the constellation Hercules forms the northwestern border of Aquila). Ganymede, a young Trojan prince noted for his beauty and purity, was selected to replace Hebe, and an eagle -- Aquila -- was sent to bring him to Mount Olympus. The constellation Sagitta (the Arrow), above the wing of Aquila, is said to represent the arrow of Eros -- perhaps the arrow that led Hebe to Hercules.