Tales of Artemis

Artemis was the daughter of Zeus and the nymph Leto. Like her twin brother Apollo who set the daytime skies a blaze with his sun chariot, Artemis softly illuminated the evening with her delicate moon beams. She had the power to send plagues or cause sudden death among mortals as well as to heal them. She was also the goddess of wild animals, the hunt and childbirth. Being the elder of the two twins, it is said that Artemis helped her mother with the birth of Apollo. Because Leto delivered her daughter free of labor pains, Artemis was often invoked by mortal women during the delivery of their own children.

Like Athena, Artemis also chose to remain a virgin, though she was known as a fertility goddess in Ephesus. The issue of remaining chaste was taken very seriously by Artemis, and she usually dealt with those posing a threat to her virtue with extreme harshness. The stories below tell of those who came to an unfortunate end at the hands of the goddess of the hunt.

Actaeon

Actaeon was the son of Aristaeus and Autonoe. He was a great hunter, and it was this love of the woods that brought about his tragic death. One day while hunting, Actaeon accidently stumbled upon the goddess Artemis and her nymphs while they were bathing on Mount Cithaeron. Artemis took this intrusion very seriously and immediately took action against the intruder.

In order to prevent Actaeon from boasting of what he saw, she changed the poor woodsman into a stag. He was then attacked and torn apart by his own hounds who failed to recognize him as their master. When Actaeon did not return, the dogs howled and wailed so loudly that the centaur Chiron fashioned a statue in his likeness in order to console their grief.

Otus and Ephialtes

This next tale is the story of two twin brothers named Otus and Ephialtes. Iphimedeia was the daughter of King Triops of Argos. She fell in love with the god Poseidon, and after frequent visits to the shore she conceived twin sons by pouring sea water into her lap. These boys, who grew with incredible speed were named Otus and Ephialtes. By the time they were nine years old both children were already fifty feet tall. They were two unruley giants, who because of their size and strength, had no regard for the feelings of others.

They were always doing as they pleased without ever showing any remorse for their actions. One day the pair got together and decided they were going to prove they were greater than all the gods. What would be a better way of demonstrating their superiority than to capture the god of war himself?

As their first act of defiance the pair set out to capture the unsuspecting Ares. They traveled to Thrace where they found the god at home in his palace, promptly seized him and held him prisoner in a bronze jar which they hid at the home of their grandmother Eriboea. With Ares neatly out of their way, the two man army continued with their attempt to seige Mount Olympus.

In order to build a bridge that would reach to the divine palace of the gods, Mount Pelion was first placed atop of Mount Ossa. The two worked feverishy, threatening to cast mountain upon mountain into the sea until all the earth's water was replaced by land. Fearing that the situation had gone too far, Zeus drew back his thunderbolt, but just before he let it fly Poseidon appeared and begged him to spare the lives of his sons.

The sea god promised that he himself would be responsible for getting the two giants under control. Hermes then flew to the home of Eriboea, where he forced her to release the embarrassed Ares from his brazen prison. Though this put an end to the brother's attack on Olympus, it did not end thier rebellious acts. Before long the two came up with a new plan. Otus declared openly that he was in love with Artemis while Ephialtes turned his attention to Hera.

In their minds the only logical conclusion would be for each to find and carry off their perspective brides. Searching for Artemis first, the two brothers found her on the island of Naxos. The goddess ran for the sea, but because they were the sons of Poseidon the water did not hinder the giant's path and Otus and Ephialtes were able to follow the goddess without any problem.

They pursued her into the woods, but just before making their catch she quickly disappeared leaving a white doe in her place. Seeing the deer the brothers drew their spears, as they were very competitve and each wanted to prove to the other that he was the better huntsman. They took careful aim as the doe darted between them, but their weapons missed the creature.

Instead, each brother's spear pierced the heart of the other. Just as the two twins came into the world together they were destined to spend eternity together in Hades. There they were seated back to back against a pillar, tightly bound by snakes and guarded by a screech owl that was suspended high above their heads.

Orion

This tale is the sad tale of Orion. Another son of Poseidon, Orion was an excellent hunter and was said by many to be the most handsome man alive. King Oenopion of Chios was both the son of Dionysus and Ariadne and the father of a beautiful daughter named Merope. Orion fell madly in love with the princess and wanted to make her his wife. Oenopion agreed but there was a stipulation.

He declared that Orion would be able to marry his daughter only after freeing the land of Hyria of the wild beasts that were ravishing it. Orion set out to do exactly that, and each day brought the pelts to Merope as proof of his success. When the task was completed, the hunter returned to claim his bride but Oenopion refused, pretending that lions, bears and wolves were still lurking in the hills.

Disgusted, Orion took to drinking wine, and in a drunken stupor broke into Merope's bed chamber and had his way with her. Outraged by this action, Oenopion prayed to his father Dionysus, who sent a band of satyrs to fill Orion with more wine. When he was sound asleep, the vengeful Oenopion put out both of his eyes and threw his body on the seashore.

It was told to Orion through an oracle that he would regain his sight if he were to travel to the east and gaze directly upon the face of Helios as he was first rising from Ocean. In desperation, the blind Orion found himself a boat and following the sound of the Cyclops' hammers, sailed to the island of Lemnos. He borrowed an apprentice of Hephaestus named Cedalion and brought him along as a guide. When they reached their destination, Helios complied and restored Orion's eyesight just as the priestess had promised. Eos, the goddess of the dawn had made the mistake of having a romantic liaison with the god Ares.

Aphrodite, who was not used to sharing her consorts with others did not take this matter lightly. As punishment the angry goddess cursed Eos with the insatiable desire for the love of young mortals. When Eos caught a glimpse of Orion as he was visiting her brother Helios, she was at once captivated by his handsome features. Not being able to resist his charms, she invited him to spend some time with her on the island of Delos, an offer that Orion did not refuse. After a short stay Orion once again set out to avenge himself on Oenopion. Fearful of the angry hunter's return, Oenopion hid away in an underground tunnel that was made for him by Hephaestus.

Thinking that his enemy may be seeking refuge from his grandfather Minos, Orion headed for Crete. On his way he met up with Artemis who convinced him to forget about his mission of revenge and come hunting with her instead.

When Apollo heard that his sister had taken Orion as a hunting companion he became concerned for her virtue. He was fully aware of Orion's encounter with Eos and was afraid Artemis would herself fall susceptible to his charms. In order to protect his sister, Apollo visited Mother Earth and repeated to her Orion's boastful statement that he himself would rid the world of all it's beasts and monsters. In retaliation for this comment, Gaia sent a poisonous scorpion to track down and persecute Orion. Though the brave hunter tried to fight back by firing arrows, all his attempts were unsuccessful. He then pulled his sword, but the mighty scorpion was covered with a powerful armor that rendered his weapons useless.

Having no other choice, Orion jumped into the sea and swam towards Delos where he hoped Eos would come to his aid. As he swam Apollo called to Artemis and drew her attention to the black shape bobbing in the water below.

Pretending it to be the head of a villan called Candaon, Apollo challenged his unsuspecting sister to a test of skill. Each would have a turn to see who would be the first to hit the target. Accepting the dare, Artemis aimed her bow and let the arrow fly. It was a perfect shot, but when she swam out to retrieve the body she made a horrible discovery.

Artemis had not pierced Candaon with her dart but instead floating still atop the waves she found her friend Orion. Filled with tremendous grief, the goddess sought out Apollo's son Asclepius, who was famous for his healing powers. Unfortunately, Zeus had destroyed him with a thunderbolt before he had a chance to give Orion back his life. The grieving Artemis honored her friend by placing his image among the stars.

There he would forever stay, but the unfortunate hunter would not be alone, for also placed in the heavens was none other than Gaia's scorpion. The beast was destined to pursue Orion through the night sky until the end of time.

Medea's Lair Of Greek Mythology © 1999-2009.