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I’ve been fascinated by the solar system since I was a child, and following the last two newsletters about the Moon it seems natural to continue the trend with an editorial about our solar system. I apologise in advance for the length of this editorial, but remember there are now TEN planets in our solar system, and each one is fascinating in its own way.
Mercury
Greek astronomers once believed Mercury was two separate objects, because the planet can only be seen at the beginning and at the end of the day. The sunrise planet was named Apollo – the Greek god of light and the sun - while the sunset planet was called Hermes.
Mercury is the Roman counterpart of the Greek Hermes, and he is a messenger as well as the god of trade, commerce and profit. He wears winged shoes and a winged felt-type hat called a petasos. He carries a staff featuring two entwined snakes that was a gift from Apollo. Known as the caduceus, it is today an international symbol for medicine. His companions include a cockerel (herald of the new day), a ram or goat (fertility) and a tortoise – he is credited with creating the lyre from a tortoise’s shell. He is also said to lead the souls of the dead to the afterlife.
Venus
The brightest star in the sky has an important place in culture, with references to Venus dating back to prehistoric times. Once known as “a wandering star”, the Ancient Egyptians considered Venus to be two separate objects – Tioumoutiri was the morning star and Ouaiti the evening star. Ancient Greeks named the morning planet Phosphoros (bringer of light) or Eosphoros (bringer of dawn). The evening star was called Hesperus (the star of the evening). Romans named Hesperos Vesper and Phosporus became Lucifer, in reference to the fallen angel. Eventually the planet was named Venus, for the Roman goddess of love. The Babylonians called the planet Ishtar, to honour womanhood and the goddess of love.
The aboriginal Yolngu tribe gather await the arrival of Venus after sunset. They call the planet Barnumbirr, and the belief is that as the planet approaches she draws a rope of light attached to Earth. Along the rope and using an ornate “Morning Star Pole” people may contact their dead loved ones, to show they still love and remember them.
Eastern Africa’s Masai people call Venus Kileken, and tell a story of the planet visiting Earth in the form of a small boy. He offers to take care of the cattle belonging to an elderly farmer, on condition the farmer lets the boy keep the secret of his origin. Being an inquisitive human, the farmer decided to spy on the child. After realising what he’d done, Kileken disappears and returns to the sky in a brilliant flash of light. This is why the planet is seen in the morning and the evening. If Kileken appears in the morning sky before the men return from the hunt the women will pray for their safekeeping. Leken is the name of the evening star, and its appearance heralds the rising of the moon.
Most mythology about Venus generally reflects the connection with love and feminine goddesses. Indian mythology refers to the planet as Shukra, which means “pure, clear” or “brightness, clearness”. The planet is called the “gold star” in modern Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese and Korean folkore, representing metal as one of the five elements. The Native American Lakotan people consider Venus the daybreak star, associating the planet with the final stage of life and wisdom.
Mars
No other planet in our solar system has featured so prominently in science fiction writing. Indeed, Martians of all shapes and sizes are synonymous with alien life forms. The planet’s reddish colour seems to suit the Roman god of war, for whom Mars is named. Ancient Egyptians named the planet “Horus the Red”, while the Hebrews called it Ma’adim, meaning “the one who blushes. Babylonians named the planet Nergal, in honour of Ares, their god of war, fire and destruction. The Greeks referred to Mars as Pyroeis, meaning “fiery”. Mars has two satellites named Phobos and Deimos, after the sons of the Greek god of war Ares, who accompanied their father into battle.
Mangala is the Hindu mythological name for Mars. He was born from three drops of perspiration that formed while Lord Shiva was meditating. A very beautiful, reddish-coloured infant with four arms formed from the drops. The child was raised by the earth goddess Bhumi. When he grew up Mangala performed a great penance to please Lord Shiva, who rewarded him by granting him Mangala loki, or the Abode of Mangala, and also named the planet in the solar system Mangala, or Mars.
Jupiter
The largest planet in our solar system is fittingly named for the chief Roman god Jupiter. It’s one of the brightest objects in the night sky, and was recorded by astronomers in ancient times. The Babylonians named the planet Madruk, the patron god of the city Bobylonia. During a civil war between the gods, Marduk was a young god, who offered to lead the Anunnaki gods to victory. Should he succeed he would assume the title of head god. After defeating the enemy he seized the Tablets of Destiny and became the chief of the Babylonian gods. Under his rule human were created to bear the burden of life, allowing the gods to live at leisure.
Jupiter is sometimes called Jove, and the adjectival form of this name is jovial. This is the astrological influence the planet gives a horoscope, and the word has evolved over the years to mean “happy” or “merry”.
Saturn
Famed for its spectacular ring system, Saturn is named for the Roman god Saturnus, considered the father of Jupiter. His Greek counterpart is Kronos. Saturnus was the god of agriculture and the harvest. In ancient time Saturn was considered the solar system’s most distant planet. In Hindu mythology the planet is named Shani, the judge of both the planets and human beings. Shani means “the one who moves slowly” – appropriate considering Saturn’s orbit around the sun takes nearly 30 years. When he first opened his eyes after his birth the sun went into an eclipse, and today his position on an astrological chart is very important.
Saturn is both a trouble maker and a well wisher. Lessons are learned from it, but they take time. In an obvious reference to its 29½ year orbit we supposedly experience spiritual rebirth whenever Saturn returns and our thought processes are tested. At 29 we are tested with the discipline of maturity, and at 58 we find the discipline of acceptance and wisdom. If we’re lucky enough to live to 87 years then our journey of self discovery and acceptance is complete.
Uranus
The father of Saturnus and grandfather of Jupiter, Uranus is the Roman name for the sky. The Greek god Ouranus would appear every night to be with his wife Gaia – Mother Earth. Uranus did not like their children, who included the twelve Titan gods, the one eyed Cyclops and the one hundred armed Hecantonchire giants. He buried their youngest children deep underground in Tartarus – the ancient equivalent of hell. Naturally this caused great pain to Gaia, who handed the children a scythe and asked one of them to castrate Uranus. Afterwards the sky no longer held any power for a specific deity.
Neptune
Neptune’s winds are the fastest of any planet in our solar system, reaching 2000 km/hour. For 20 years of every 248 earth years Neptune was, until recently – the furthest planet of the sun owning to its erratic orbit with is sometimes crossed by Pluto.
The Roman god of the sea and water, Neptune was actually the god of fresh water – Oceanus was the god of the seas and oceans. Neptune was usually depicted as a bearded man with long hair, holding a trident and accompanied by dolphins and fish. He was also very bad tempered, and his rage is personified by storms and earthquakes. He created islands by splitting mountains and throwing them into the sea.
When he saw the nymph Amphitrite dancing on the island of Naxos, he fell in love with her, and asked her to marry him. Terrified of his formidable temper, Amphitrite declined, and rushed to the titan Atlas for safety. Neptune was desperate, and sent one of his dolphins to find her. The dolphin spoke so well of Neptune Amphitrite changed her mind. As a reward Neptune immortalized the dolphin by placing it in the heavens as the constellation Dolphinus. Neptune and Amphitrite lived happily together, ruling the waves. The main moon of Neptune’s 13 satellites is named for his son Triton.
Pluto
Pluto was the Roman god of the underworld, known in Latin as Tertius, the contemporary of the Greek god Hades. Originally the Roman god of certain metals, the mining link gave him the title of god of the underworld. The goddess of love, Venus, persuaded Cupid to shoot an arrow into Pluto’s heart, causing him to fall in love with the first woman he saw. Her name was Proserpina, and Pluto saw her after leaving his underworld kingdom through Mount Etna in his chariot drawn by four black horses.
Proserpina’s mother was the earth goddess Ceres, who was actually Pluto’s sister. She searched the world for her daughter, but in vain. All that remained of Proserpina was a tiny belt floating on a lake of tear created by the nymphs. Furious, Ceres stopped all harvests so the plants died and the world became cold and dark. In her mournful state Ceres walked the earth weeping, creating a desert with every step.
Worried about the world, Jupiter sent Mercury to get Proserpina back. Pluto was willing, but unable to oblige, because Proserpina had eat six pomegranate seeds. Having eaten the fruit of the underworld she could not leave, but Pluto and Jupiter found an arrangement that suited them both. The six pomegranate seeds meant she had to stay in Hades for six months of the year, but could return to her mother for the remaining six months. When Proserpina returned to her mother Ceres decorated the world with spring to welcome her. In summer the crops flourish and the world is content. In autumn Ceres changed the leaves to shades of her favourite colours, brown and orange as a gift to her daughter before she returned to the underworld and Pluto.
If this story sounds familiar it is – Pluto’s Greek counterpart is Hades who took Persephone from her mother Demeter. Pluto is generally considered kinder and more genial than his Greek alter-ego.
Eris
The tenth planet from the sun is also one of the most controversial, and its name is very appropriate considering the argument’s over the planet’s status. It was first seen in 2003, but only identified in 2005, and then the astronomical world was in conflict over the registration of the planet as a “dwarf planet”.
Eris was the goddess of strife, discord and conflict. She was said to haunt battlefields, enchanted by human bloodshed. Her unpleasant character caused her to be the only one of the goddesses not invited to Peleus and Thetis’ wedding – they became the parents of the hero Achilles. Despite her lack of invitation she went to the wedding, but was denied entry. In her rage Eris threw the golden apple of discord among the goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite. Bearing the inscription “for the fairest”, the fruit caused a fight between the three, because each one believed she suited the dedication. Their rivalry brought about the events that ultimately led to the Trojan War.
Eris has one moon, and it is named for the goddess’ daughter, Dysnomia – meaning lawlessness. Eris’s Roman name is Discordia, but unlike the other planets Eris is named for Greek rather than Roman mythology.
Regrettably this is my last Fantasy newsletter. I’ve been editing these newsletters for almost two years, and have learned much about one of my favourite writing genres. The support I received during my editorial stint has helped make this writing experience thoroughly enjoyable. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading the newsletters as much as I’ve enjoyed researching and writing them. To close I’d like to share with you a line from the writer Danzae Pace. I think we can all relate to his thoughts:
If I fall asleep with a pen in my hand, don't remove it - I might be writing in my dreams.
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Raine 
Actually, the goddess of the dawn was Eos, not Eros. Eros was the son of Aphrodite and the god of erotic love, otherwise known as Cupid. I know. Typos stink, lol,
 They most certainly do! Damn the auto-correct feature on my Word 2007 programme! Thank you for pointing this out to me. You probably noticed I corrected it the day I received your letter!
Victoria
I'm another Cancer and my sign fits me perfectly though thankfully I have a fair amount of grounding. My moodiness used to make me a party pooper, but I've gotten over it (thank goodness).
I have two air signs in my horoscope, so I’m a bit of an airhead! I can empathise – I have friends born under the sign of cancer and they have told me how the changing moon seems to affect their emotions. Well done for not letting it rule your life!
Little Scribbler
Interesting newsletter. I love the Maori myth.
I have a story in the pipeline, and I have been considering some moon culture for the race in it. This may prompt me to do so. That particular race in the story rely on water for life (provides food source, travel, tides as a calendar), and out of curiosity, do you know how the moon controls the tides?
Anyway, good work!
I was pathetic at science at school, so my knowledge about tides is dangerous. I do know they are subject to the gravitation forces of the moon and, to a lesser degree, the sun. I found a couple of great websites for you, and the whole subject is discussed in a simple, easy to understand format. I hope you find them useful:
http://www.surfingsantacruz.com/facts_about_tides
http://www.moonlightsys.com/themoon/tides.html
JJ
You could also link the moon with the stars (through the night sky), or perhaps link the stars to the sun through its relationship with the moon.
The fact that moonlight is a reflection of sunlight may be incorporated, too. For example, in a short story I wrote for a contest on werewolves, I drew on a variation of the Norse mythological wolves, Fenrir, Hati and Skoll. Because Fenrir's son, Hati, chases the moon, and his other son, Skoll, chases the sun, and because Skoll is actually sometimes used to refer to Fenrir, I came up with the idea that Skoll was a wolf God, and that his curse only works when the sunlight (the source of his power) reflects off the moon (which manipulates the power of the sunlight, so to speak), thus creating the phenomenon of Fenrir, not as a living thing but the curse, itself.
And as you now know I have highlighted your story in this issue! I love the way you’ve used the myth as inspiration for creating a unique story. Isn’t mythology wonderful?
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Fantasy: September 10, 2008 Issue [#2573]
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