The Curious Case of the Moon
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Photo By Eugenio Pastoral on Unsplash
Have you ever looked up at the moon and wondered at its beauty? I certainly have. I have had a fascination with the moon and the magic it seems to emanate from its place in the sky. For a millennia people have looked up at the sky and stared at the moon, drawing inspiration from it.
But while we may look up at the moon and just see a piece of floating rock, the people who lived thousands of years before us looked up and saw a goddess. Throughout time, the moon has encompassed divine energy. Though, with some digging, I discovered that this might not always be the case.
BUT I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Why don’t we start by looking at an example of a myth where the moon is identified with a female deity?
Selene
According to Greek myth, Selene was born to the Titans Hyperion and Theia. She is also sister to Helios (the sun god) and so it feels natural that Selene would be a moon goddess. Selene also has another sibling; a sister named Eos who is goddess of the dawn—I don’t know about you but I’m starting to see some thematic elements linking this family together.
It is said that Selene once loved a mortal named Endymion. Zeus put Endymion into an eternal sleep. So, every night Selene would descend from the heavens to visit him on Mount Latmus.
Something curious that I discovered was that, as time went on, Selene became associated with other deities such as Artemis and Phoebe. Even though it’s difficult to hunt down her image, Selene is often depicted with a crescent moon and driving a chariot pulled by two horses (remember this for later).
Now, let’s take a look at a story that portrays the moon as a masculine entity.
Sol and Mani
“The Wolves Pursuing Sol and Mani” by J.C. Dollman (1909)
In Norse myth, the sun and the moon, much like Selene and Helios, are siblings. The sun is called Sol, who, unlike Helios, is female. Sol’s brother is named Mani and he is a moon god.
Curious, right?
Well, the story goes that they move the sun and the moon into their positions in the sky. Both Sol and Mani are, according to one source, forced to each drive a chariot that is helmed by two horses. Did you remember that tiny detail from Selene’s story? This is because the wolves, Skoll and Hati, are in pursuit of them.
Mani has control over the moon’s phases since he is the one who moves the moon across the heavens. This has its own story attached to it as well. One story says that Mani kidnapped a human girl (Bil) and a human boy (Hiuki) who were the children of Vidfinn. Bil and Hiuki represent the Waning and Waxing moon respectively.
While I don’t approve of the kidnapping of children, it’s interesting to see how the Nordic people had stories to explain the phases of the moon.
Curious Elements
Personally, I think that it’s interesting to see how in these two different mythologies, there are some underlying elements that remain the same. The sun and the moon are thought of as siblings who, while different, are still family. It’s beautiful, in a way, don’t you think?
Maybe the next time you look up into the sky and see the moon, you will see something more than a rock in the sky.
Sarah Clarke
Sarah is a 20-something aspiring author who has a passion for writing. She is also an avid fan of movies, TV shows, video games, and of course, books. Her favourite genres include fantasy, sci-fi, historical fiction, and various others. Why have one favourite when you can have many?
