Virgo 9

Egg of Heliopolis.

First of all Sirius, the brighest star in the sky, and the "Star in the East" in our Gospel accounts, was on the meridian line. The brightest of all the fixed stars is Sirius. Known to astronomers as Alpha Canis Major, it is the principal star of the constellation Canis Major (the Big Dog). The ancient Egyptians called it Septit, the Hebrews knew it as Sihor, to the Greeks as Sothis and also as the "the Dog Star" that followed Orion the Hunter. Sirius has a magnitude of -1.42, which makes it nine times more brilliant than a standard first magnitude star.

It can even been seen in daylight with a telescope. Sirius is 23 times as bright as our sun and has almost twice its diameter. Being only 8.7 light-years away, Sirius is the fifth nearest star to our solar system, and the nearest after Alpha Centauri among the naked eye stars. Throughout recorded history, and probably long before, Sirius was the subject of much veneration and myth making throughout the world. Even as late as the 1970s it became the subject of a very controversial theory linked to extra-terrestrials and the Dogon tribe of Mali published by the scholar and author Robert Temple.

There is much speculation on the origin of its modern name which is generally thought to be derived from the Greek word "Sirio" meaning "scorching" or "sparkling", apparently because it rose in the height of the summer heat. Some etymologists, however, have suggested a connection with the ancient Egyptian god Osiris. But of all the various names and epithets that this star was given, none can match the notoriety of its role in history as the "Star of Isis". Since earliest times the ancient Egyptian paid particular attention to Sirius, which they identified to the 'soul' of the Goddess Isis. There was a time, very long ago, that Sirius could not be seen in the sky from Egypt. This was because of a phenomenon known as the Precession of the Equinoxes. The Precession is a very slow wobble of our planet taking the polar axis of the Earth in a circular swing of 47 degrees every 26,000 years.

The general effect is that the stellar landscape appears to swing up and down like a pendulum. Before the 12th millennium BC Sirius was below the horizon line as seen from the region of Cairo/Giza. It made its first appearance in the skies at that place in c.10,500 BC. Then it had a declination of about 58 degrees 43', which meant it would have just been visible in the south about 1.5 degree above the horizon line. For early man to witnessing the 'birth' of such a bright star must have been a very impressive sight rich with meaning and messages from the gods. Also the rising of Sirius occurred when the constellation of Virgo was rising in the east, which may partly explain why the star became the symbol of a virgin-goddess. We do not know when exactly Sirius became identified to the goddess Isis, but the idea certainly goes back to the origin of Egyptian culture. It was from the 'womb' of Isis-Sirius that was born the divine child, Horus. Since earliest times the ancient Egyptian paid particular attention to Sirius, which they identified to the 'soul' of the Goddess Isis.

There was a time, very long ago, that Sirius could not be seen in the sky from Egypt. This was because of a phenomenon known as the Precession of the Equinoxes. The Precession is a very slow wobble of our planet taking the polar axis of the Earth in a circular swing of 47 degrees every 26,000 years. The general effect is that the stellar landscape appears to swing up and down like a pendulum. Before the 12th millennium BC Sirius was below the horizon line as seen from the region of Cairo/Giza. It made its first appearance in the skies at that place in c.10,500 BC. Then it had a declination of about 58 degrees 43', which meant it would have just been visible in the south about 1.5 degree above the horizon line. For early man to witnessing the 'birth' of such a bright star must have been a very impressive sight rich with meaning and messages from the gods.

Sirius and Orion. The myth of Isis and Osiris.

Also the rising of Sirius occurred when the constellation of Virgo was rising in the east. This event, the rising of Sirius at the same time that Virgo was rising in the east partly explains why the star became the symbol of a virgin-goddess. We do not know when exactly Sirius became identified to the goddess Isis, but the idea certainly goes back to the origin of Egyptian culture. It was from the 'womb' of Isis-Sirius that was born the divine child, Horus.

To understand how Virgo was connected with the "virgin birth" we need to understand the myth of Isis and Osiris. We find that Isis and Osiris were among the four children born from the womb of the sky-goddess, Nut and fathered by Ra, the sungod. The other two children were Seth and Nephtys. Osiris took Isis as his wife, and they became the first rulers of Egypt. At the age of 28 Osiris was brutally murdered by his jealous brother Seth and his body cut into fourteen pieces. Isis recovered all of the pieces of Osiris' body except the phallus, which she could not find. Isis fashioned an artificial phallus for Osiris, placed herself on it in the form of a kite, and became pregnant with his seed.

This was a type of virginal insemination by other means than natural intercourse. She then went into hiding in the marshes of the Nile, and gave birth to Horus. This as you can see begins to pattern the Jesus story of the virgin birth from being overshawed by the Holy Spirit of God and the hiding from an evil one who desired to kill the new born child. From the Pyramid Texts and various other religious writings, it is clear that this myth has its counterpart in the stars, with Isis identified to Sirius and Osiris to the constellation of Orion.

In the Pyramid Texts it is said of Osiris-Orion:

"Your sister Isis comes to you rejoicing for love of you. You have placed her on your phallus and your seed issues in her, she being ready as Sirius, and Horus Sopd (a star) has come forth from you as Horus who is in Sirius…" [Pyr. Text line 632]
Recreating the ancient skies of the early Dynastic Era (c.3300 BC) which took place just before the great Pyramid Age (c.2750 - 2100 BC) we find that the star Sirius performed a very evocative cycle in the heavens which readily explains why it was associated to a magical birth. Because the earth moves around the sun, the fixed background of the stars appears to shift throughout the year in relation to the sun. Yearly observations of Sirius, for example, would show that there is a time when the star sets in the west immediately after sunset.

After that the star is no longer visible for a period of about 70 days. It will reappear again, however, just before sunrise in the east. This reappearance is known as the heliacal rising of the star. In c. 3300 BC the heliacal rising of Sirius occurred exactly on the day of the summer solstice (21 June Gregorian).

The striking conjunction of the heliacal rising of Sirius and the summer solstice in 3300 BC was, in itself, a powerful omen; but there was something else also occurring at the same time which, quite literally, caused the whole of Egypt to be reborn. This was the annual flooding of the Nile. In ancient times the Nile would begin to swell in early June caused by the huge volume of water brought down river by the melting snows in the highlands of Central Africa.

By late June the water would begin to spill over the banks to eventually flood the whole Nile Valley by end July. We know for certain that the ancient Egyptians considered the heliacal rising of Sirius to be the magical cause of the Nile Flood. To a land that gets little if any rain the flooding of the Nile was their salvation from God above and it was connected with the rising of Sirius and Virgo in the east. The heliacal rising of Sirius became the celestial sign that marked the beginning of the New Year. There are many ancient texts which refer to the conjunction of the 'New Year', the summer solstice, the start of the Flood and the appearance of Sirius which shows that this event was of the utmost importance to the Egyptians. The oldest of these texts is carved on a small ivory tablet dated to the 1st Dynasty (c. 3100 BC) where it is said that "Sirius is the Opener of the Year's Flood". The very same notion is given in the Pyramid Texts (c. 2200 BC), where it is stated that: "It is Sirius, the beloved daughter (of Ra, the Sun-god), who prepares yearly sustenance (the flood) for you in her name of 'Year'".

In his book Echoes of Ancient Skies, the archaeo-astronomer Dr. Ed Krupp writes that, "After disappearing from the night sky (for 70 days) Sirius eventually reappears in the dawn, before the sun come up. The first time this occurs each year is called the star's heliacal rising, and on this day Sirius remains visible for only a short time before the sky gets too bright to see it. In ancient Egypt this annual reappearance of Sirius fell close to the summer solstice and coincided with the time of the Nile's inundation. Isis, as Sirius, was the 'Mistress of the Year's beginning', for the Egyptian new year was set by this event. New Year's ceremony texts at Dendera say Isis coaxes out the Nile and causes it to swell. The metaphor is astronomical, hydraulic, and sexual, and it parallels the function of Isis in the myth. Sirius revives the Nile just as Isis revives Osiris. Her time in hiding from Seth is when Sirius is gone (70 days) from the night sky.

She (Isis) gives birth to her son Horus, as Sirius gives birth to the new year, and in the texts Horus and the new year are equated. She is the vehicle for renewal of life and order. Shining for a moment, one morning in summer, she stimulates the Nile and starts the year."

So we must envision that the Virgo was rising in the East at the same time Sirus was visible in the east as well. But also Orion, called "The Three Kings" by oriental astronomers, was in proximity to these other two constellations as well. Also the line of the ecliptic, of the equator and of the horizon all met in the constellation of Virgo. This was a site to behold and captured the minds of men and yet do today at this myth lives among us today. It is interesting also to note that the brightest and largest star in the constellation Virgo is called Spica; it is to be found in the "ear of corn" (sign of fertility) which the Virgin holds.

Bethlehem means the "house of bread," and there is therefore an obvious connection between these two words. These are astronomical facts. The interpretation of the symbolism attached from ancient days to these constellations is as old as religion itself. Whence came the signs, and how the meanings and symbols associated with them came into being, is lost in the night of time. They have existed in men's minds and thoughts and writings for thousands of years, and are our joint heritage today. We find it at the very heart of Christianity.

Virgo 8

Constellation de la Vierge.

Les alignements dessinant la Vierge sont peu suggestifs, l'image d'une Vierge est difficile à visualiser.

Le dos
Dans l'axe Spica - Delebola, on voit un alignement de trois petites étoiles θ, γ (Porrima) et η (Zaniah), conduisant à la tête de la Vierge, située sous la queue du Lion (Delebola).

La tête
Dans l'axe du dos, sous Delebola, on tombe sur Heze (ζ Vir) au sud, qui forme la nuque. La forme de la tête (entre Heze et Denebola) dépend beaucoup des conditions de visibilité.

Le bras
Partant de Vindemiatrix (ε Vir) en direction du Corbeau, on rencontre au coude Auva (δ Vir) et Porrima (γ Vir) à l'épaule.

La jambe
Partant de Spica en direction d'Arcturus, on tombe (un peu à droite) sur Heze (ζ Vir), le genoux. De là, la "juppe" de la Vierge s'étend vers l'Est, sans forme très convainquante.

There are two different types of observations that we make for stars and their "risings" and "settings". One is called "inferred" and the other "perceptible".
Certain types of rising and settings of stars must be inferred instead of observed, because the star is obscured by sunlight. These are used only by astronomers:

Cosmical rising: the star and the sun rise together. The star, of course, is obscured by the sun.

Cosmical setting: the star sets as the sun rises.
True achronychal rising: the star rises as the sun sets.
True achronychal setting: the star and sun set together.

But more for our interest is the perceptible risings and settings of stars. These risings and settings can be observed directly, and it is these which have played a part in calendars:
The heliacal rising: the first visible, though brief, appearance of a star on the eastern horizon before sunrise. On the previous morning, sunlight made the star invisible. When the rising of a star is spoken of, it is usually the heliacal rising that is meant. In ancient Egypt, the helical rising of Sirius coincided with the annual rising of the Nile at Memphis.

The heliacal setting: the last visible setting of a star at the evening twilight. On the following evening, the star will pass below the horizon while there is still too much sunlight for it to be seen.

The apparent achronychal rising: the last visible rising of a star in the evening twilight. On the following evening, the star will rise while there is still too much daylight for it to be seen.
the apparent cosmical setting: the first visible setting of a star in the morning twilight. On the previous morning, the star didn't quite reach the western horizon before sunlight made it invisible.

Matthew 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Matthew 2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.

Matthew 2:9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

The Virgin birth aspect also comes from the observation that during certain ages the constellation of Virgo rose with the sun:
"At the moment of the Winter Solstice, the constellation Virgo, the Virgin, rose heliacally (with the Sun), having the Sun (Horus) in her bosom. . . . Virgo was Isis; and her representation, carrying a child (Horus) in her arms, exhibited in her temple, was accompanied by this inscription: "I AM ALL THAT IS, THAT WAS, AND THAT SHALL BE; and the fruit which I brought forth is the Sun" (Albert Pike, The Morals and Dogma of Scottish Rite Freemasonry, L.H. Jenkins, 1928, p. 455).

At the time of the birth of Christ, there were some very interesting alignments and appearances of stars that need to be noticed.
The Ancient calender also started at a different time. For those who did not begin their calendars with Capricorn, the Ancinents began their calendar in Virgo and ended in Leo, that is why the Sphynx has the head of a Virgin and the Body of a Lion. When the Sun of God was re-born at the Vernal equinox, it was for a while in the history of mankind in the Constellation of Virgo, so it was said the Sun or as the personified Son, that he was "Born of a Virgin". The Sun is the "Eye of God" or "Eye of Horus". Ra was the Sun God in Egypt. His full name was Amen Ra. That is why we say "A-men" after our prayers. The Egyptians knew this and all of the Egyptian beliefs and customs are built into our society secretly by the Freemasons.

Virgo 7

Isis, Peinture Murale.

Isis

Lieu de culte :

Philae (Haute-Egypte).

Représentation :

Femme coiffée d'un haut dossier.

Isis et Horus.

Biographie:

L’une des principales divinités. Protectrice du bien-être des naissances, des navigateurs et de l’Etat. Elle joue un rôle fondamental dans le mythe d’Osiris, son époux tué et démembré par son frère Seth, dont elle réussit à réunir les membres, lui redonnant vie et concevant avec lui leur fils Horus.
Elle est parfois représenté comme une femme portant le disque solaire entre deux cornes de bœufs (parce qu‘assimilée à Hathor) ou avec son hiéroglyphe (un siège) sur la tête et le nœud isiaque sur le vêtement. Comme épouse d’Osiris, Isis devient le symbole de la compagne et de la mère idéale. Elle est une typique figure de la déesse-mère.

Bien que jusqu’à l’arrivée des Romains Isis ne fasse pas l’objet d’un culte propre et qu’aucun temple ne lui soit dédié, elle fut vénérée jusqu’en dehors de l’Egypte même après le déclin de la civilisation égyptienne. D’autre part, il paraît clair que l’image d’Isis et d’Horus a influencé la conception chrétienne de Marie et Jésus. En effet, on trouve beaucoup de similitudes dans les représentations d’Isis allaitant le jeune Horus et dans celles de Marie avec l’enfant Jésus. L’image d’Horus, comme fils du dieu Osiris et sauveur de l’humanité en empêchant Seth de la détruire, a sans doute été à l’origine de l’image de Jésus Christ.

Virgo 6

Ishtar

Is the Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess Astarte. Anunit, Atarsamain and Esther are alternative names for Ishtar. Like Ishtar, the Greek Aphrodite and Northwestern Semitic Astarte were love goddesses who were "as cruel as they were wayward". Donald A. Mackenzie, an early popularizer of mythology, draws a parallel between the love goddess Aphrodite and her "dying god" lover Adonis on one hand, and the love goddess Ishtar and her "dying god" lover Tammuz on the other. Some scholars have suggested that a more recent popularizer of mythology, equates Ishtar, Inanna, and Aphrodite, and he draws a parallel between the violent yet loving Hindu goddess Kali, the Egyptian goddess Isis who nurses Horus, and the Babylonian goddess Ishtar who nurses the god Tammuz.

Virgo 5

Virgo is unique in that it is the only constellation containing all the Bayer stars with no additional superscript letters or numbers: just the Greek alphabet from alpha to omega.


Alpha Virginis is known as Spica: the "ear of wheat" that the goddess is carrying.
Spica is a blue-white eclipsing binary with a period of just over four days. The star is about twice the size of the Sun, but with a luminosity of about 2000 times the Sun.
Gamma Virginis carries the name of the Roman goddess of prophecy: Porrima.

Porrima is a notable binary of twin stars (see below). It's 32.9 light years distant and has the diameter of 1.5 Suns.

Double stars in Virgo:

Gamma Virginis is a splendid binary of similar 3.5 magnitude stars, with a recently revised orbit of 168.8 years. The 2000.0 values are PA 260º and separation 1.5".
Theta Virginis is a white star with two companions, both rather faint: AB: 4.4, 9.4; PA 343, separation 7.1"; AC: 4.4, 10.4; PA 298º, separation 70".

Phi Virginis is a fixed binary: 4.8, 9.3; PA 110º, separation 4.8". The primary is a delicate yellow.

Struve 1719 is a striking binary of nearly equal stars: 7.3, 7.8; PA 1º, separation 7.5".


The star is located exactly midway between zeta and gamma Virginis, north about two degrees from a line joining these two stars. Another way to find it would be to form a triangle with zeta, gamma, and delta Virginis. The star is at the centre of this triangle.
Struve 1833 is even more attractive: 7.0, 7.0; PA 172º, separation 5.7".

This system is located 2.5º SE of iota Virginis. If using Tirion's SkyAtlas, you'll find two binaries in this region. Struve 1833 is the northern one. (The other is a triple system called b939. See Burnham for its details.)
Struve 1869 is the third of our trio of Struve binaries. Another lovely sight, but a bit of a challenge: 8.0, 9.0; PA 133º, separation 26".

To find this one, move southeast of mu Virginis two degrees.

Variable stars in Virgo:

A number of stars show very little variablility, such as alpha Virginis, an "Ell." type variable: 0.95 to 1.05 ever four days and rho Virginis is a delta Scuti variable: 4.86-4.88.

R Virginis is a long-period variable with a range from 6.2 to 12.1 every 145.63 days, exceptionally short for a Mira type variable. In 2000 the maximum should occur in the first week of June.

Deep Sky Objects in Virgo:

Virgo has some exceptional deep sky objects: the Virgo Galaxy Cluster, which contains eleven Messier Objects, more than any other constellation except Sagittarius (which has 15). There are also many fine NGC objects in the same vicinity, some just as splendid as the Messiers (such as NGC 5364 and the Siamese Twins: NGC 4567 and 4568).

Then there is the quasar 3 C 273, thought to be from two to three billion light years away.

Virgo 4

Vindemiatrix

ε Virginis


Distance (Light Years) 102.2 ± 2.8

Visual Magnitude 2.85

Color (B-V) 0.94

Names For This StarOther names for this star are Vindemiator or Vendemiatrix, Provindemiator, Protrigetrix, Protrygetor. These names are from Latin with the latter names deriving from Greek. The meaning of each of these names is "The Grape-gatherer,", since the rising of this star in the morning signaled the time of the grape harvest.
Other names applied to this star are Almuredin or Alaraph derived from Arabic. See Allen. According to the The Bright Star Catalog, the name Alaraph has also been applied to Beta Virginis and to Spica.
Description of the StarVindemiatrix is a yellow G8IIIab giant star having a luminosity about 60 times that of the sun.

Virgo 3

α Virginis

Spica


Distance (Light Years) 262 ± 18
Visual Magnitude 0.98
Color (B-V) -0.23

Names For This StarSpica is Latin and means "The Ear of Wheat. This name suggests the association of Virgo with the Goddess of the Harvest, Ceres or Demeter. The Latin name Spica Virginis means nothing more than "The Virgin's Ear of Wheat."
An alternative name for the star is Azimech, which derives from the Arabic name Al Simak al A'zal, that is, "The Undefended." This refers to the separation of the star from its neighbors.
According to the The Bright Star Catalog, the name Alaraph has been applied to Spica as well as to Vindemiatrix and to Beta Virginis.
Description of the StarSpica is a double star system consisting of a blue B1III-IV subgiant or giant in association with a blue B2V main sequence star.
The two stars orbit about their common center of mass with a period of 4.0 days. According to Burnham the two stars are separated by 11 million miles center to center. The orbit is inclined at about 24° to the line of sight, so that the orbit is seen not quite edge on. Nevertheless the stars do eclipse one another, and the brightness of the system varies by about 0.07 magnitudes as one star passes in front of the other.
The giant star is about 7.4 times the diameter of the sun. The dynamics of the orbit indicates that the giant has a mass of 10.9 solar masses, while the smaller star is about 6.8 times the mass of the sun.
The combined luminosity of the two stars is about 2200 times that of the sun with about 80% of the light output coming from the giant star. The giant is a short period variable star of Beta Canis Majoris type with a 4.2 hour period.

Virgo 2

Persephone and Hades.

Named for the Greek goddess Demeter, the Earth-goddess, and is associated with the arrival of spring and bringer of the growing season. Hades, the God of the Underground, fell in love with Demeter's daughter, Persephone. He promised himself that he would marry Persephone, making her his queen. Demeter would not stand for this. One day Hades, in a black chariot drawn by four great black horses in golden harness and reins, rode up to Persephone and carried the girl off with him back to the Underworld. Demeter became worried when her daughter did not return home. She sent out to search for her daughter. Demeter searched with out food or sleep. When Zeus pleaded with her to return to Olympus and accept Persephone's marriage to Hades, she refused and continued her search. People everywhere were starving and could not understand how their Earth-goddess could be so cruel. Zeus sent Hermes, Messenger of the gods, to visit Hades and tell him that Persephone must return with him. Hades, knowing that the gods of heaven were stronger than he, agreed to let Persephone go. There was a happy reunion, but Persephone told her mother that she loved her husband Hades. Zeus solved the problem by saying that Persephone would spend half of her time in the Underworld with Hades and the other half on Olympus with her mother. In this way, winter comes when Persephone goes down to the Underworld to be with Hades. When Persephone returns to Olympus, the winter cloak of death melts and there is a rebirth of life over the land and the crops begin to grow.

Perséphone et Triptolème.

Dans la mythologie grecque, Perséphone Περσεφόνη, chez Homère Περσεφόνεια / Persephóneia, est une déesse, fille de Zeus et de Déméter. Elle est d'abord connue sous le simple nom de Coré, Κόρη « la jeune fille », ou encore « la fille », par opposition à Déméter, « la mère » ἡ Μητὴρ.

Elle est assimilée à Proserpine (en latin Proserpina) dans la mythologie romaine.

Selon la tradition principale, Triptolème est le fils aîné de Céléos, roi d'Éleusis en Attique, et de sa femme Métanire. Selon Phérécyde d'Athènes, il est le fils d'Océan et de Gaïa, la Terre — ce qui revient à faire de lui un autochtone. Pausanias affirme que « Cercyon et Triptolème étaient tous deux fils d'une fille d'Amphictyon, mais que Raros était le père de Triptolème, et Poséidon celui de Cercyon.»
Selon l’Hymne homérique à Déméter, Céléos fait bon accueil à Déméter alors que, à la recherche de sa fille Perséphone, la déesse a pris l'apparence d'une vieille femme. Il lui propose de prendre soin de l'un de ses fils, Démophon. Pour le rendre immortel, Déméter le place chaque nuit dans le feu mais elle est surprise par Métanire avant d'avoir pu achever le rituel. La déesse se fait alors reconnaître et ordonne à Céléos de lui faire bâtir un temple à Éleusis.

Virgo 1

Astraea

Zodiac date :August 22 - September 23
True Date : September 16 - October 30

Virgo is earthy and represents the sixth sign of the zodiac.feminine, and introvert negative sign.Also amutable sign. Is the second largest constellation after Hydra. She dropped a sheaf of grain, which scattered all along the path she took. This path is now known to the Chinese as the Yellow Road. Virgo is the nocturnal domicile of Mercury (Hermes) and the second of the earth elements.

The only constellation containing all the bayer stars ( greek alphabet from alpha to omega). Symbol represents arms of maiden holding a sheaf of wheat.Virgo ( Absin , Assyrian)Astraea ( daughter of Zeus and Themis)
Persephone ΠερσεφόνηIsis, Au Set She is the wife and sister of Osiris and the mother of Horus.

The Hindus saw Virgo as Kauni

Mercurius - Nebo ( Assyrian, Home of) Meaning sing :mind (crescent) poised over divine spirit (circle) and matter (cross). Symbol represents winged helmet and caduceus. Linking to बुध Budha. Chinese Element: Water.

Chinese : 水.
Yin 癸 Yang 壬Alpha
Virginis : Spica.
Gamma Virginis : Porrima.
Demeter Δημήτηρ (Proarktouria, name of a ceremony held in her honour just before the rising of the star actarus.)Ishtar ( Venus) Syrian or "Inanna".

β Beta Virginis Zavijava : زاوية العوا

γ Gamma Virginis: Porrima or Arich.

δ Virginis Delta Virginis, Auva : العوّاء

ζ Zeta Virginis, Heze known as Jiao Xiu on Chinese constellation : 角宿二

η Eta Virginis, Zaniah : الزاوية

ι Virginis, Syrma.

μ Virginis, Rigel : رجل الجبّار

ε Epsilon Virginis : Vindemiatrix


Kang : Cou 亢宿 Dragon d'azur de l'Est 東方青龍 .


( 處女座)

Bordering constellations:
Boötes, Coma, Berenices, Leo, Crater, Corvus, Hydra, Libra, Serpens, Caput.

Thoth (August 29 - September 27 , Egyptian Zodiac) ( Isis son)

Virgo , the Maiden, is associated with the arrival of spring and bringer of the growing season, usually is shown carrying two sheaves of wheat, one of which is marked by the bright star Spica. Often seen as the Scales of Justice. Demeter Δημήτηρ (Greek), Ceres ( Roman). Or Proserpina (Persephone) Demeter's daugther who was abducted by Hades ( Pluto). As Erigone, Icarius daughter, goddess of fortune.

Atargatis, Syrian goddess. ( Ishtar).Minerva ( Roman) Athena Ἀθηνᾶ (Greek).Diana ( Greek Artemis, Ἄρτεμις).Cybele ( Roman).Khosha, or "the Ear of Wheat ( Persians).Bethulah ( Hebrews)

Leo 13

Sakhmet

A fiery and destructive Egyptian goddess associated with war and divine vengeance. Her name means "the Mighty One" and she was depicted as a woman with the head of a lioness. Her main center of worship was the Old Kingdom capital of Memphis. It was there that she was worshipped as a member of a divine triad with her husband Ptah and her son Nefertem. She was also worshipped in Luxor.

According to a tale known as "The Destruction of Mankind" Sakhmet was the "Eye of Re", a vengeful aspect of the usually benevolent goddess Hathor. The sun god Re sent Sakhmet to slay mortals who were plotting against him. Sakhmet became so enthusiastic about her task that she nearly slew all of humanity. Re prevented this by tricking her into drinking vast quantities of beer which had been colored to look like blood. The intoxicated goddess had to abandon the slaughter and humanity was saved.
As goddess of war Sakhmet was often said to accompany Pharaoh into battle. The King at war was described as being like Sakhmet in her fury, and the goddess aided him by shooting arrows at his enemies. She was also the "Lady of Pestilence" who could send plague and disease. She was also revered as a healer of these ailments, a role which seems paradoxical in such a bloodthirsty deity.

Leo 12

Sekhmet (also spelled Sachmet, Sakhet, Sekmet, and Sakhmet; and given the Greek name, Sacmis), was originally the warrior goddess of Upper Egypt. She is depicted as a lioness, the fiercest hunter known to the Egyptians. It was said that her breath created the desert. She was seen as the protector of the pharaohs. Her cult was so dominant in the culture that when the first pharaoh of the twelfth dynasty moved the capital of Egypt to Memphis, the centre for her cult was moved as well. Religion, the royal lineage, and the authority to govern were intrinsically interwoven in Ancient Egypt during its ten thousand years of existence.

As Lower Egypt had been conquered by Upper Egypt, Sekhmet was seen as the more powerful of the two warrior goddesses, the other, Bast, being the similar warrior goddess of Lower Egypt.
In the myth, Sekhmet's blood-lust was not quelled at the end of battle and led to her destroying almost all of humanity, so Ra tricked her by turning the Nile red like blood (the Nile turns red every year when filled with silt during inundation) so that Sekhmet would drink it. However, the red liquid was not blood, but beer mixed with pomegranate juice so that it resembled blood, making her so drunk that she gave up slaughter and became an aspect of the gentle Hathor.

An annual festival commemorating this mythical event was held at the beginning of the year, a festival of intoxication, the Egyptians danced and played music to soothe the wildness of the goddess and drank great quantities of beer ritually to imitate the extreme drunkenness that stopped the wrath of the goddess—when she almost destroyed humankind.

According to myth, the bloodthirsty Sekhmet nearly destroyed all humans, but the sun god Re tricked her into drinking mass quantities of ochre-colored beer, thinking it was blood. Once Sekhmet passed out, she was transformed into a kinder, gentler goddess named Hathor, and humanity was saved.

Bast and Sekhmet were connected to Hathor, , Tefnut, Atum (her father) and Mut. It was only in the New Kingdom that she gained the head of a house cat and became a much more 'friendly' goddess, though though the lion-headed warrior woman image remained. As with Hathor, Bast is often seen carrying the sistrum rhythm instrument.
Even from very old times, as protector, Bast was seen as the fierce flame of the sun who burned the deceased should they fail one of the many tests in the underworld.
Some of Bast's festivals included the 'Procession of Bast',
'Bast appears to Ra', the 'Festival of Bast', 'Bast Goes Forth from Bubastis' and 'Bast guards the Two Lands'. There was even a 'Festival of Hathor and Bast', showing the connection between the two goddesses. Egypt is given credit as the breeder of the first domestic cats from Africa who likely made good companions to the large grain stores which needed to be protected from mice.
Beer, made from fermented barley bread, was the drink of choice for the festival of drunkenness as celebrated at the Temple of Mut.

Leo 11

Sekhmet (also spelled Sachmet, Sakhet, Sekmet, and Sakhmet; and given the Greek name, Sacmis), was originally the warrior goddess of Upper Egypt. She is depicted as a lioness, the fiercest hunter known to the Egyptians. It was said that her breath created the desert. She was seen as the protector of the pharaohs. Her cult was so dominant in the culture that when the first pharaoh of the twelfth dynasty moved the capital of Egypt to Memphis, the centre for her cult was moved as well. Religion, the royal lineage, and the authority to govern were intrinsically interwoven in Ancient Egypt during its ten thousand years of existence.

Responsible For: Fire, Heat, War, Vengeance, Enchantments, Mummification, Hunting and Wild Animals, Courage

Totemic Form: Lioness

Sekhmet, known as "The Powerful", was portrayed as either a lion or a woman with the head of a lion, often holding an ankh or sistrum. She was the wife of Ptah and mother of Nefertum. On the battlefield, Sekhmet embodied the strength and bravery of the lion, expressing unbounded delight in the prey that fell to her.
As the sun god Ra grew older, he became fearful of his enemies and asked Hathor to help him. She took on the job with a vengeance and turned into Sekhmet, the lioness goddess, and seemed to enjoy the killing. Ra then worried that she would wipe out the entire human race, so he had red dye mixed in ale and spread about the land. Hathor, thinking it was blood, drank it and became so intoxicated that she forgot her assignment and humankind was saved. Pacified by the beer, she resumed her persona as the beautiful Hathor and returned to Ra.

As Lower Egypt had been conquered by Upper Egypt, Sekhmet was seen as the more powerful of the two warrior goddesses, the other, Bast, being the similar warrior goddess of Lower Egypt.

In the myth, Sekhmet's blood-lust was not quelled at the end of battle and led to her destroying almost all of humanity, so Ra tricked her by turning the Nile red like blood (the Nile turns red every year when filled with silt during inundation) so that Sekhmet would drink it. However, the red liquid was not blood, but beer mixed with pomegranate juice so that it resembled blood, making her so drunk that she gave up slaughter and became an aspect of the gentle Hathor.

An annual festival commemorating this mythical event was held at the beginning of the year, a festival of intoxication, the Egyptians danced and played music to soothe the wildness of the goddess and drank great quantities of beer ritually to imitate the extreme drunkenness that stopped the wrath of the goddess—when she almost destroyed humankind.

According to myth, the bloodthirsty Sekhmet nearly destroyed all humans, but the sun god Re tricked her into drinking mass quantities of ochre-colored beer, thinking it was blood. Once Sekhmet passed out, she was transformed into a kinder, gentler goddess named Hathor, and humanity was saved.
Bast and Sekhmet were connected to Hathor, , Tefnut, Atum (her father) and Mut. It was only in the New Kingdom that she gained the head of a house cat and became a much more 'friendly' goddess, though though the lion-headed warrior woman image remained. As with Hathor, Bast is often seen carrying the sistrum rhythm instrument.
Even from very old times, as protector, Bast was seen as the fierce flame of the sun who burned the deceased should they fail one of the many tests in the underworld.
Some of Bast's festivals included the 'Procession of Bast',

'Bast appears to Ra', the 'Festival of Bast', 'Bast Goes Forth from Bubastis' and 'Bast guards the Two Lands'. There was even a 'Festival of Hathor and Bast', showing the connection between the two goddesses. Egypt is given credit as the breeder of the first domestic cats from Africa who likely made good companions to the large grain stores which needed to be protected from mice.
Beer, made from fermented barley bread, was the drink of choice for the festival of drunkenness as celebrated at the Temple of Mut.

Leo 10

According to The Message of the Sphinx by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval, the primary monuments on Egypt's Giza plateau mapped the celestial configuration of the vernal equinox sunrise in 10,500 B.C. Although this era is too early for construction at Giza, as far as Egyptologists are concerned, it positions the vernal-equinox Sun in Leo and places Orion on the meridian at sunrise. According to Hancock and Bauval, the Sphinx is Leo, the Nile is the Milky Way, and the three Giza pyramids are the Belt of Orion. If so, the Sphinx is on the wrong side of the river.

The monumental astronomy associated with the Sphinx is completely consistent with what we know about ancient Egyptian religion and Egypt's symbolism of power. Another astronomical dimension has been promoted, however, by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval. Both have written books containing free-wheeling interpretations of antiquity. Bauval is the coauthor of The Orion Mystery (1994), which matches the three main pyramids at Giza with the three stars in the Belt of Orion, the Hunter. I have already described a debilitating internal contradiction of this claim in this column (S&T: February 1997), in Skywatchers, Shamans, & Kings, in lectures, and on television. For the moment, however, we'll accept this flawed premise to examine the argument Hancock and Bauval more recently presented in The Message of the Sphinx (1996).

Hancock and Bauval insist the landscape of Giza replicates the sky. Equating the Sphinx with Leo, identifying the Nile River with the Milky Way, and committed to mapping Orion's Belt in pyramids on the ground, they claim the reflection of the Egyptian sky in terrestrial monuments doesn't make sense for 2500 B.C. Presuming the Sphinx was intended to face vernal-equinox sunrise, they argue that Leo and Orion are incorrectly placed for a recapitulation of what they believe were the celestial circumstances of the Creation time in Egyptian myth.

Because the equinox-aligned Sphinx is supposed to represent Leo, the vernal-equinox Sun should have been in the stars of Leo, but in 2500 B.C. it was in Taurus, the Bull. Also, because Orion's Belt was targeted by the south shaft from the King's Chamber in the Great Pyramid when it was due south and crossing the meridian, and because the pyramids allegedly map Orion's Belt, they say Orion should have been on the meridian when the Sphinx primordially stared at equinox sunrise. However, Orion was still east of the meridian at equinox sunrise in 2500 B.C.

Leo 10

The Sphinx Blinks

Although Leo, the Lion, is depicted on the Dendera zodiac, this Egyptian sky chart was carved around 30 B.C. and incorporates Greco-Roman astronomical traditions. Indigenous Egyptian astronomy did not include familiar zodiacal constellations such as Leo, which is visible here at the bottom of the picture. Near the upper middle of the frame, a figure that looks somewhat like a broom and is actually the leg of a bull represents the stars of the Big Dipper. Just beneath the bull's "knee" is the curved shape of a small crouching feline. This is the lion that does appear in early Egyptian images of the northern constellations near the celestial pole.

The familiar stone lion with a human head that peers out over the Nile was built in adoration of the Sun.
With a rock-steady gaze, Egypt's Great Sphinx has faced due east for 4,500 years. If the Sphinx ever blinks, it must be in March and September, when the equinox Sun rises and shines straight in its eyes. This monumental sculpture, carved from a natural bedrock limestone outcrop on the doorstep of the Giza pyramids, is a crouched lion with a human head. Our gatefold all-sky map for March displays one of the proposals once offered for its hybrid character. The composite creature was allegedly engineered through the symbolic fusion of Leo, the Lion, and Virgo, the Maiden, both now climbing out of the east on our monthly star chart.
In Star Names and Their Meanings, (1899), Richard Hinckley Allen explained that the Sphinx was constructed "with Virgo's head on Leo's body, from the fact that the sun passed through these two constellations during the inundation of the Nile." Allen acknowledged the objections of Egyptologists to this astronomically facile answer to the riddle of the Sphinx but nevertheless asserted the lion's solar significance in ancient Egypt.
Thanks to ancient Egyptian texts, we now know the Sphinx represents Horemakhet ("Horus of the Horizon") and is the divine personification of the rising disk of the Sun, fully poised on the eastern horizon. Intentionally aligned toward cardinal east, the Sphinx reflects the ritual significance of the cardinal directions in the Old Kingdom period (2686-2181 B.C.). Cardinal directions originate astronomically in the daily rotation of the sky around the north celestial pole, a location of high interest to the ancient Egyptians. The entire Giza necropolis adheres to an accurate cardinal grid.
The Sphinx is said to be the vigilant guardian of the Giza cemetery, but its name and its eastward dedication also reflect ancient Egyptian ideas about cyclical celestial renewal and its affiliation with the divine destiny of the dead pharaoh. Some evidence suggests the face on the Sphinx was a portrait of the pharaoh Khafre, the son of Khufu (or Cheops, as the Greeks called him), who built the Great Pyramid.
Giza's second-largest pyramid belongs to Khafre. The Causeway that connects Khafre's Mortuary Temple, on the east side of his pyramid, to his Valley Temple passes next to the Sphinx, and this architectural bond with the Sphinx supports Khafre's claim on it. His Valley Temple is also right next to the Sphinx Temple, just east of the paws of the beast.
The sides of the Sphinx Temple, like most of the rest of Giza, are cardinally aligned, and a pair of sanctuaries on its primary axis - one on the east and one on the west - amplify a connection with equinox sunrise and sunset. Felicitously positioned with respect to the Sphinx, the temple retains a clear line of sight due west. This axis just skirts the lion's southern flank with a clearance for the equinox sunset. On that line, the Sun touches the horizon at the southern edge of Khafre's pyramid and reinforces, with solar adhesion, Khafre's bond with the Sphinx.
Additional astronomical and calendrical connotations have been spotted in the Sphinx Temple's interior colonnade. Its 24 red granite pillars have been interpreted as a reference to the 24 hours of the day, an Egyptian convention we still observe today.
Most of the evidence attributes the construction of the Sphinx to Khafre, but Giza Egyptologist Mark Lehner believes the Sphinx was intended to portray a manifestation of Atum, the solarized aspect of the divine Creator. Certainly, by the New Kingdom (1570-1070 B.C.) Egyptian pharaohs believed the Sphinx was a solar god and gave it names that expressed that character. As a predator near the top of the food chain, the lion was already an emblem of power associated with royalty before the Giza pyramids. If the Sphinx was also Khafre, it promoted Khafre's solar deification.

Leo 9

Lion Ashurnasirpal Ishtar Nimrud

Colossal guardian lion, around 865 - 860 BC, Nimrud, temple of Ishtar Sharrat-niphiThis 15-ton lion symbolises Ishtar, Assyrian goddess of war. The inscription gives the name of the temple's builder, Ashurnasirpal II (883 - 859 BC). This lion is one of a pair excavated by Austen Henry Layard in 1850.

Head of lion Ashurnasirpal Ishtar Nimrud

Face of colossal guardian lion, around 865 - 860 BC, Nimrud, temple of Ishtar Sharrat-niphiThis is a front view of the face of the lion in the previous photo. The lions in Assyria would have been Asian lions, a few of which can be seen in the London Zoo.

Leo 8

Amphore, Terre cuite peinte, Peintre de Rycroft, Lion de Némée et Héraclès.

Nemean Lion

The first of Heracles' twelve labours, set by Eurystheus (his cousin) was to slay the Nemean lion and bring back its skin.
Heracles wandered the areas until he came upon the town of Cleonae. There, he found a poor farm boy. This farm boy would sacrifice anything to get wealth. If Hercules slayed the Nemean lion (who lived in a cave) and returned alive within 30 days of leaving, they would sacrifice a lion to Zeus, the god of all gods. If he did not return within 30 days or he died, however, the boy would sacrifice himself to Zeus.

While he was looking for the lion, he made arrows to use against it, not knowing that it was immortal. When he found the lion, he started throwing arrows at the lion, but the lion wouldn't die. After some time Hercules made the lion return to his cave. The cave had two entrances, one of which Hercules blocked; he then entered the other. He stalked the lion till he trapped him in a corner, and choked him to death.

When he returned to the King, king Eurystheus was shocked, so he gave Hercules the lion's invincible pelt to wear. However, he said "the tasks will be getting harder."This task took the course of three months when he was eighteen years old

Leo 7

Human-headed winged lion (lamassu), 883–859 B.C.; Neo-Assyrian period, reign of Ashurnasirpal IIExcavated at Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), northern MesopotamiaAlabaster (gypsum); H. 10 ft. 3 1/2 in. (313.7 cm)

From the ninth to the seventh century B.C., the kings of Assyria ruled over a vast empire centered in northern Iraq. The first great Assyrian king was Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883–859 B.C.), who undertook a vast building program at Nimrud, ancient Kalhu. Until it became the capital city under Ashurnasirpal, Nimrud had been no more than a provincial town.

The new capital occupied an area of about 900 acres, around which Ashurnasirpal constructed a mud-brick wall 120 feet thick, 42 feet high, and 5 miles long. In the southwest corner of this enclosure was the acropolis, where the temples, palaces, and administrative offices of the empire were located. In 879 B.C. Ashurnasirpal held a festival for 69,574 people to celebrate the construction of the new capital, and the event was documented by an inscription that read: "the happy people of all the lands together with the people of Kalhu—for ten days I feasted, wined, bathed, and honored them and sent them back to their home in peace and joy."

Ashurnasirpal's palace is described in the so-called Standard Inscription that ran across the surface of most of the reliefs: "I built thereon [a palace with] halls of cedar, cypress, juniper, boxwood, teak, terebinth, and tamarisk[?] as my royal dwelling and for the enduring leisure life of my lordship." The inscription continues: "Beasts of the mountains and the seas, which I had fashioned out of white limestone and alabaster, I had set up in its gates. I made it [the palace] fittingly imposing."
Such limestone beasts are the human-headed, winged bull and lion pictured here. The horned cap attests to their divinity, and the belt signifies their power. The sculptor gave these guardian figures five legs so that they appear to be standing firmly when viewed from the front but striding forward when seen from the side. These lamassi protected and supported important doorways in Assyrian palaces.

Leo 6

Leo, John Evelius, 1690.

Leo Constellation

Leo 5

Chort / Duhr in Leo - In Arabic, the star Duhr is called Thahr Asad . Thahr Asad perhaps = Taseti. The hieroglyph actually reads something like ShCh-r-te, i.e. Chort, viz. al H'aratan, which is similar to ancient Indo-European, e.g. Latvian Shchirt or Shchirtinja, (normally spelled with diacritical markings) meaning "divide, separation" - here marking the Summer Solstice, in 2430 BC, on a line passing from the North Ecliptic Pole, through the North Celestial Pole, through Mizar to the star Chort in Leo.

Le Lion, animal solaire par excellence, irradie. C’est la chaleur sur toute l’Égypte lorsque l’inondation recouvre le pays tout entier. Sekhmet, la déesse lionne est une image de cette même Inondation, dévastatrice ou bienfaisante, la redoutable et resplendissante Lointaine revenant au pays.

Leo 4

a Leonis , Alpha Leonis.
Regulus
Distance 77,5 Light Years.
Visual Magnitude 1,35
Color B-V –0,11

Names For This Star
Regulus is Latin and means "The Little King". According to Allen the name reflects a common belief that the star ruled the affairs of heaven. Rex is another Latin name for the star, meaning "The King."
A further name for the star is the Latin Cor Leonis, meaning "The Heart of the Lion." This name reflects the position of Regulus in the figure of the Lion as it is usually visualized.
Other names for the star are Al Kalb al Asad or Kabeleced. These names are derived from the Arabic name Al Kalb al Asad meaning nothing more than "The Heart of the Lion."
Description of the Star
Regulus is a hot, blue B7V main sequence star having a luminosity (The luminosity of a star represents the total output of radiant energy per second. We can grasp this quantity most easily by thinking of the luminosity of the star in comparison with that of our sun. A star 100 times as luminous as the sun, would emit 100 times as much radiant energy per second as our sun does) about 140 times that of the sun and about 3.4 times the diameter. The spectral type implies an effective temperature of 13,000 K and a diameter about 3 times that of the sun.
This star is in fact the A component of a multiple star system. The B and C components are a close binary pair revolving together with a separation of 4.2 arc sec from A. This corresponds to a separation of about 100 AU, that is, two and a half times the distance between the sun and Pluto. The period is 2000 years.
Regulus B is an orange K1V main sequence star having a Visual Magnitude of 8.13. This star has slightly more than 1/4 of the luminosity of the sun, 70% of the sun's mass, and 80% of the sun's radius. Regulus C is a 13th magnitude dwarf having a luminosity of 1/330 of that of the sun.

Denebolis

b Leonis, Beta Leonis.
Denebola : ذنب الاسد.






Distance Light Years : 36,2.
Visual Magnitude : 2,14.
Color B-V: 0,09.

Names For This Star

This star is also known as Deneb Aleet. The name of the star derives from the Arabic name Al Dhanab al Asad, "The Lion's Tail."
Description of the Star

Denebola is a white A3V main sequence star. The star is 1.5 times the diameter of the sun about 15 times as luminous. The spectral type implies an effective temperature of 9100 K. The luminosity suggests a mass about 2.3 times the mass of the sun.
Denebola is a double star. The physically related B component is of Visual Magnitude 15.7. The star is separated by 40 arc sec from the primary corresponding to a projected separation of 440 AU, that is 11 times the radius of the solar system out to Pluto.


γ1 Leo
Algieba: الجبهة

θ Leo
Chertan, Chort, Coxa : الخرت



ζ Leo
Adhafera, Aldhafera, Aldhafara: الضفيره


λ Leo
Alterf, Al Terf: الطرف


μ Leo
Rasa: رأس الأسد


ε LeoRas Elased, Ras Elased Australis, Algenubi : رأس الأسد

Leo 3

Stars

Double stars alpha Leo, beta Leo, tau Leo.
Binaries gamma Leo, omega Leo, 54 Leo, a 7704.
Optical triple star zeta Leo.
Variable star R Leo.
Galaxies M65, M66, M 95, M 96.
Meteor Showers: Leonids, Alpha Leonids, Beta Leonids, Delta Leonids, Gamma Leonids, Rho Leonids, Sigma Leonids, Leonids-Ursids.

Leo 2

Leo shown ready to pounce in the Atlas Coelestis of John Flamsteed (1729).

In his chest can be found the bright star Regulus, labelled Alpha. Leo lieson the Sun’s path around the sky, the ecliptic, here marked by a dashed line.

It is easy to make out the shape of a crouching lion in the stars of Leo, its head being outlined by a sickle-shape of stars. Marking the lion’s heart (where Ptolemy located it) is the constellation’s brightest star, Alpha Leonis, called Regulus, Latin for ‘little king’; its Greek name, Basiliscos, had the same meaning. The tail is marked by the star Beta Leonis, called Denebola from the Arabic for ‘the lion’s tail’.

Gamma Leonis is called Algieba, from the Arabic meaning ‘the forehead’; this seems puzzling, since according to Ptolemy it lies in the lion’s neck, but the Arabs saw here a very much larger lion than the one visualized by the Greeks. Gamma Leonis is a celebrated double star, consisting of a pair of yellow giant stars divisible in small telescopes. Delta Leonis is called Zosma from a Greek word meaning ‘girdle’ or ‘loin cloth’, mistakenly applied to this star in Renaissance times.

Leo 1

Le Lion, Leo, constellation traversée aujourd’hui par le soleil du 10 Août au 16 Septembre. La position relative du soleil ayant changé au cours des millénaires, ceci par la précession des Equinoxes, phénomène déjà reconnu par Hipparque et sûrement, selon les dernières recherches par des astronomes antérieurs à l’apogée de la culture égyptienne. Ce déplacement rétrograde sur le cercle écliptique est occasionné par la rotation conique de l'axe de la Terre, au cours de sa révolution annuelle, rotation qui est due principalement aux attractions combinées du Soleil et de la Lune sur le globe terrestre. Globalement on situera le Soleil 2000 ans Avant J.C. dans la constellation du soleil entre la fin du mois de Juin et Juillet. Celui-ci traversant alors la constellation de la Vierge entre Juillet et Août.

La constellation du Lion était donc il y a près de quatre mille ans, traversée par le soleil au moment du solstice d’été. Le solstice d’été correspond au début de l’été et le début de la nouvelle année dans l'Égypte antique.

Dans l’ordre des constellations zodiacales, traversant le plan de l’équateur, le lion se situe à l’est de la Vierge et à l’Ouest de la constellation du Cancer. Le Lion désigne également le signe du zodiaque correspondant au secteur de 30° de l’écliptique traversé par le soleil du 24 Juillet au 23 Août.

Around 240 B.C., Leo was robbed of his splendid tail. The astronomer-priest under Ptolemy III chopped of the tail of Leo when they invented the new constellation Coma Berenices (Berenice's Hair).

The Egyptians worshipped lion-gods which is evidence of the importance this beast held in Egyptian life. The Egyptians believed that the world was created at a time when the Sun rose in Leo near the star Denebola.

The Sumerians also saw this group of stars as a lion. The form of the Lion was probably passed along to the Babylonians, Greeks, Roman and others.

Hercules' first labor was to kill the Nemean lion, a fierce beast who descended to Earth from the Moon in the form of a meteor and ravaged the countryside of Corinth. The lion had hide so tough that neither spear nor arrow nor any other weapon could pierce it. So well known was the beast that Hercules had no trouble finding its lair, a cave with two entrances. As Hercules approached, the lion showed itself and Hercules sped an arrow toward its heart. The arrow merely bounced off and fell to the ground. Hercules now knew that arrows or spears were useless against the beast. He then sealed off one of the entrances to the cave and pursued the lion inside through the other entrance. So great was his strength that Hercules seized the lion and strangled it to death by ramming his fist down its throat. He then flung it over his shoulder and returned to show King Eurystheus that he had fulfilled his first labor. The cowardly king was terrified at the sight of the beast and fled. Hercules then skinned the lion and used its tough hide as a protective shield. So angry was Hera at Hercules' success that she raised the soul of the lion high into the sky, where today he can be seen as the constellation Leo, the Lion.

The Persians knew Leo as Ser, to the Turk, Artan, to the Syrians, Aryo, to the Jews, Arye, and to the Babylonians, Aru, all meaning "Lion."