The Constellation of ARIES

Updated 27 may 2007

When I was writing the Blog on Taurus, I suddenly realized that I have a book dating from 1888, which goes into detail about these old Hermetic myths (Greek mythology). 

The book is a Danish translation of old German manuscripts, but I can now give you the 'real length story' about the myths and such.



UPDATED:
The Egyptian mythology is even more advanced than the Greeks ever were, but apparently the Greeks found the basic for the ancient Egyptians way of thinking.

I have been pretty unsure as to how I would go about, telling you about ancient Egyptian mythology, much is actually known, but it is very hard to understand (merely because of our always and ongoing stupidity of war and such larger dilemmas). So I am just going to give you it straight out of the brain, and 'hope' it makes some sense -heh-
Aries is also very much known in ancient Egypt, as you have seen if you have ever been there. I think the most evident thing about astrology or even astronomy from ancient days is firstly how misunderstood these concepts are, but also how different they both saw and called such matters. 

I personally do not understand why these two subjects were divided into two 'astronomy, and astrology', I personally see it as two sides of one coin (if I should say it a little different way, than normal).

Now let us take a good look at Aries, which is personified as a Ram. Like I said before, you can see Ram's a lot of places in Egypt, but most central you will find them in the old city of Thebes (Luxor), at the entrance for the Karnak temple. 

When you hear professors and guides talk about the Ram, they will most likely be talking about the famous Khnum. But I will draw your attention away from their version, merely because of what is found. 

The Three Ram Gods

Actually there are three Ram gods so fare known in ancient Egyptian history, where rightly one is called Khnum. But I have never heard anybody speak of the two others, which I find quit odd, because I see them as I do…

Banebdjedet

The first of the two unknown Ram gods is 'Banebdjedet' which means 'the ba Lord of Djedet'. So if we read this correct, we easily see that this gods name is probably divided into two words like this: 'Baneb-Djedet'. Djedet is a word in itself in ancient Egypt, which means the back bone of Osiris, which would make this 'the god of, the soul and strength of Osiris back bone'.
Another thing worth mentioning is, the word 'ba' sounds the same as pronouncing 'ram' in ancient Egypt, and 'ba' means = Spirit or soul - so in the mind of the ancient these two words were linked.
To begin with the Ram was a representation of the 'Soul of Osiris', When the Greek came to rule, the Ram was seen as having four manifestations - the soul of Re, Osiris, Shu and Geb. He is linked to many important pharaohs, who embedded this god into their own birth-mythology-story.

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Banedbjedet was sometimes illustrated as a Ram or a Ram-headed man, or even as the head of the Ram alone, without the body. Now this blog is about astrology and astronomy, so I would like to draw some parallels here. The Zodiac circle presented in the ceiling of the Dendera temple (today it is best viewed at Louvre museum in Paris, where it is located today). This circle is another part which I bring up in my book 'the secret of Anubis', the image below is how Aries looks upon the Dendera zodiac circle. I must bring this to your attention, this circle is NOT how the ancient Egyptians saw it, this temple was made by the Greek/Macedonia Ptolemy's around 180 B.C many generations after the true rulers of the Egyptian land.

This circle represents the intepitation of what the later Greeks saw it as. The circle in itself was not a representation that came from the Egyptians, but it was the Greels presentation. The Egyptians wrote it in another way, and mostly they incorporated everything into a much deeper story (this could be the reasons for why the later Greeks would make mythological stories to their constellations).

Banedbjedet, in his four forms of Re, Osiris, Shu and Geb was in the New Kingdom Depicted with two heads pointing one way, and the two others pointing the other way. Above I stated that the name Banebdjedet was probably two words, since 'Djedet' is a word in itself. I looked through the 'E.A.Wallis Budge - An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary', but in these books you cannot find the word 'Banebdjedet'. But here he is called Ba-neb-Tet-t, which means 'The ram of Mendes, a form of Osiris'. Just below this name is found the name for this Ram god when it is illustrated in four forms Ba-Sheft-ha-t which in this case is a god that is composed by four gods; Rá, and Osiris, and Shu, and Khnemu. So we can also conclude, that sometimes it is not the same four souls represented through this character.

Heryshef

is the next ram god that is rarely mentioned, his name literally means 'he who is upon his lake'. For the ancient Greeks this character was 'Herakles'. In the ancient mythology Heryshef was associated with both Osiris and Rá, and he was seen as the 'ba' of these two great gods.
He was usually represented as a Ram-headed man, wearing a royal kilt and the Atef Crown.

There are more Ram representations in ancient Egypt, but I will leave it at this.

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We know that the ancient Babylonians, Egyptian's, Persians and the Greeks, all called this constellation for 'Aries'. The Zodiac circle starts in the sign of Aries, which is supposed to correspond to the Sun once in ancient days having entered into the sign of Aries around the spring equinox (this is not how it is today, where the Sun is in Pisces at that time).
Now to understand more about Aries and the other constellation, we must look upon some old Greek mythology.

In one Greek legend:

This is a story of love and hate, or as others would put it; a battle between Amour and Strife. Aries was chosen to carry Gemini (The twins) on its back and cheer them up, because it was believed that Aries could talk with a man's voice.

Once in ancient days Nephele (also known as Nefele and Nephelai), whom was a Nymph Goddess of the clouds, married the God called Athamus (also known as Athamas). Nephele gave birth to two children (twins), which were named Phrixaus and Helle. The family's bliss did not last long because Athamus was seduced by Ino (the daughter of Cadmus, she is a White Sea goddess), and Athamus left Nephele for Ino.

Pentheus torn apart by Agave and Ino - 450-425 BCE Louvre.
The ancient goddess called Hera (also the wife of Zeus) was an angry and responsible goddess, because Zeus was a disloyal husband -unfaithful towards her. This made Hera to a furious woman, whom saw Ino's actions as disloyal towards the Gods. Hera was one of the Olympian Gods, which made her powers greater than Ino's. Hera's powers infected Ino with craziness, where Ino suddenly began hunting Nephele's two children (the twins/Gemini). Ino even faked an oracles answer in Delphi, so the people and Athamus thought that the two children were the reason to the bad croup years. But Nephele was a goddess of the clouds, so she sent Aries, which the god Hermes had given to her.

Aries told Phrixaus and Helle to hold on tight to his golden skin, because the journey would be dangerous. Phrixaus and Helle grabbed a tight grip around Aries, and Aries leaped towards the heavens. He would ride them over Europe towards Asia to Kolkhis.
On their journey Aries started to talk to the twins, telling them that he was the son of Poseidon (brother of Zeus) and Theophane (the daughter of Bisaltes-. Theophane was a very attractive woman, so attractive that all men seem to want her. So to foul all the men around her, Zeus changed her to a ewe (Sheep, a female ram), and he changed himself into a ram.


On their way Helle couldn't hold on tight enough and so she fell into the Hellespont and died (which was named after her to honour her- Helles Oscan). Phrixaus continued on the back of Aries, until they reached Kolkhis. Aries then insist that Phrixus sacrifice him to the gods and shed his golden skin. When Phrixus had done that he was to place the skin up high in a tree, the tree was placed in the area dedicated to the warrior god Ares. Phrixus did as Aries asked, and Aries was placed among the stars for his courage. The reasons as to why the stars seems blurred from earth, is because Aries left his golden skin back on earth. The Golden skin was to be the goal of Jason and his famous ship Argo.


UPDATED 21 May

This is a picture from my book 'The secret of Anubis'
Taken in Egypt on my 27 birthday
GREEK - UPDATED:
The mighty and rich king Athamus (also known as Athamas) had with his wife Nephele a son named Phrixaus and a daughter called Helle - Twins. Nephele died at a very young age.

[NOTE: This is probably why Nephele is among the deep star heavens, and is able to become a goddess. If it was a strange cloudy weather the day she died, would probably be a reason as to why Nephele Is linked to Clouds.]

Athamus later married the neighbor kings daughter Ino. Together, Athamus and Ino had two boys called Learches and Melicertes. Ino loved her sons so much that she wanted them to inherit the throne instead of Nepheles twin children who was the thrones legal inheritors. This is when Ino began planning the death of the twins.

But Nephele came to the twin children in their dreams, where she told them about the stepmother's intentions. Nephele told them that they would never be safe in the arms of their stepmothers, because of her evil thoughts and deeds. 

She also told them that their great father the king Athamus, could not protect them from the stepmother's plans. She said; Flee Flee my children as fare away as to the land of Kolkhis, to you Uncle who is king of Kolkhis. 

Nephele also told them to go to their father's stable area, and there they would find a Ram (Aries) with a beautiful golden skin, it would also be the most beautiful animal the king had. Nephele told her children that this ram would safely take them to their uncle.

When the children woke from their dream, they were scared. They told each other about their dream, and hereby confirmed that the dream must be something more, since they both had it.

So they traveled over mountains and valleys, through deserts and river streams, until they reached the area where water divides Europe and Asia. It was over this ocean, that the twins had to hold on tight to Aries golden skin. 

Aries was able to bring Phrixaus over safely, but Helle fell of Aries into the ocean, which was named after her Helle's Ocean. 

Phrixaus would walk a long time in Asia with the faithful Ram (Aries) at his side, before he finally found Kolkhis. 

The uncle greeted them kindly when they arrived. Prixaus then gladly offered the Ram (Aries) to the gods and gave the golden skin to his uncle. 

The uncle placed the skin up high in a tree, in a holy area, which was guarded by a dragon.