With time, worship of Helios continued to grow exponentially due to the Roman conquest of Greece and the subsequent matrimony of the two mythologies. The most famous of these places was Rhodes, where he was much revered by all of its inhabitants. Helios was worshiped in countless temples due to his gracefully cosmic inclusion in the Greek pantheon of gods. Known widely as Alexander-Helios, the name was synonymous with power and absolution. Helios’ visage also came to be associated with Alexander the Great when he had conquered half of the world. In this case, Helios would be seen commanding the chariot, wearing a golden helmet representing a rather celestial sense of authority. Other symbols included a four-horse chariot driven by winged horses. This was immortalized through a golden orb with 12 rays of sunbeams radiating from its center (representing 12 months in a year). Helios was often symbolized through tokens of the sun itself. Still, they all similarly highlighted the opulent and celestial might that this mighty God resonated with. Each definition varies according to the most specific information. Riding atop his fire-darting steeds, Helios ruled the firmaments in the day and circled the globe all the way through at night to return to where he was before.īesides descriptions of Helios’ appearance in Homeric hymns, he is described in more physical and intimate details by other authors such as Mesomedes and Ovid. Generally, he is portrayed as a young man donning a shining aureole after the sun, and his fire-spun garment glows as he mounts his four-winged steeds and drives across the sky each day.Īs you might have guessed, this grand course across the heavens is based upon the sun moving through the sky each day from east to west. Regardless, Helios boasts countless props and symbols that define his personality. However, due to the Greeks’ evergreen ability to humble the wardrobe of the gods, Helios has been a prime victim of it. It would be unfair to dress the Greek sun god in ordinary mortal fabric. Hence, Helios takes on all the characteristics that compose the solar body and refracts its powers accordingly. Though his physical presence is often differentiated from the sun in specific tales, he is better attributed to being the sun itself. As a result, his visage was well respected and feared simultaneously. Helios’ rule over the sun meant that he was in control of the very source that allowed life to flourish. Hence it is safe to say that the Greek sun god has had his time in the limelight in the ancient world. This is primarily due to his inclusion in various tales and references in popular culture. Helios is more well known than any other sun god in other pantheons. Hence, Helios long precedes the age of the Olympians. His place in the Greek pantheon is further solidified by the fact that he is the son of one of the Greek Titans. Besides that, Helios symbolized aggression and wrath as the same orb that gifted the mortals with life, scorched them to death.īeing the sun himself, Helios has had his share in countless Greek myths, and rightfully so, as you will see. The ancient Greeks also characterized him as the personification of the sun itself, further adding to his fiery tally of epithets.Īs the sun always rose right when everything seemed at its lowest, he meant hope and the arrival of something new for many. In Greek mythology, Helios was simply regarded as the God of the sun. It is almost as if they were responding to the grand call of this golden orb in the sky. This absolutely badass entrance is amplified by the chirping of birds and the scurrying of life. The sun rises as the blue sky is bleached by an orange glow and as bright rays beam dazzlingly across the horizon. They say the night is always the darkest before dawn.
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