Whenever I offer star talks, either under the synthetic sky of a planetarium or from a dark, rural location where the actual nighttime heavens can be seen in all of its glory, I recite to my audience words that were penned by the 19th-century American theorist and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson: “If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how would guys love and think; and protect for many generations the remembrance of the city of God which had been shown!”In other words, if the stars were to appear for just a single night in a millennium, how most likely would extensive preparations be made for viewing such an amazing sight– and what stories would later be informed of this stunning view?Alas, for numerous who live in large, cosmopolitan locations, surrounded by smoke and haze and bright lights, it is easy to forget the charm of the night sky. Our distant forefathers, nevertheless, werent so blinded by the lights of civilization; they might see the sky on any clear night from any place they were and they informed stories filled with creativity, using the patterns of stars for illustration.Related: Best night sky events (stargazing maps)A sky filled with parablesThese patterns– the constellations– are the legacy of those imaginations. The star lore collected by those early stargazers assisted to bring the stars to life. The evident senseless assortment of brilliant stars soon ended up being a photo book in which to read the stories of lots of centuries ago.Much of the understanding and idea of early astronomers was informed not in the knowledge of science but of mythology.
Whenever I provide star talks, either under the artificial sky of a planetarium or from a dark, rural area where the actual nighttime firmament can be seen in all of its magnificence, I recite to my audience words that were penned by the 19th-century American thinker and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson: “If the stars need to appear one night in a thousand years, how would males adore and think; and protect for lots of generations the remembrance of the city of God which had actually been shown!”In other words, if the stars were to appear for just a single night in a millennium, how most likely would extensive preparations be made for viewing such a remarkable sight– and what stories would later be informed of this magnificent view?Alas, for lots of who live in big, cities, surrounded by smoke and haze and bright lights, it is easy to forget the beauty of the night sky. For many of us, it is uncommon to take a trip out into the country, far from artificial lights, to enjoy its magnificence. Our remote forefathers, however, werent so blinded by the lights of civilization; they might see the sky on any clear night from anywhere they were and they informed stories filled with creativity, utilizing the patterns of stars for illustration.Related: Best night sky events (stargazing maps)A sky filled with parablesThese patterns– the constellations– are the tradition of those creativities. The constellations that we understand today have boiled down to us from their origins in the eastern Mediterranean and in the Middle East. The star lore collected by those early stargazers assisted to bring the stars to life. It made the constellations into genuine figures, and the stars into patterns loaded with significance. The obvious ridiculous jumble of intense stars soon became a picture book in which to check out the stories of lots of centuries ago.Much of the understanding and thought of early astronomers was informed not in the understanding of science however of mythology. Lots of fables telling of the stars that appear to us nothing more than dream might have been a method to attempt and discuss the ideas, myths and faiths of ancient people. However the beauty of the stories depends on the stories themselves, and while apparently odd to us, they were extremely real to our predecessors and were often apt, well-thought-out and imaginative. Astronomy of the Eastern worldWhile most stories about the night sky had their origins from the Roman, Egyptian and greek cultures, we should not neglect China, Korea and Japan– cultures that had observers who assiduously saw the heavens and kept mindful records of what they saw. For example, stars that “flew” or “fell like the weaving,” were descriptions of meteor showers, and “broom” or “sweeping stars” were identified as comets. Chinese characters– called ideograms– were later on embraced by the Japanese when they established a composed language throughout the very first couple of centuries A.D., in spite of the total distinction in between the two languages. Ideograms for the sun and moon showed how the Chinese adopted a building-block concept to convey abstract ideas. The sign for “bright” for example, was to place both the sun and moon symbols together, side by side. Various cultures from Eastern nations have their own myths and stories of the night sky.The princess and the cow herderAltair, Vega and Deneb are the three stars that make up an asterism, or star pattern, called the “Summer Triangle.” (Image credit: SkySafari app)July is associated with among the leading Far East legends about the stars.It includes 2 of the brightest stars of the summer sky, Vega and Altair. They represent 2 star-crossed enthusiasts who are separated by the Heavenly River– what we call the Milky Way. In the ancient Chinese story, Vega is Princess Tchi-Niu, daughter of the sun god and an extremely skilled weaver and developer of lovely garments. Altair is Kien-Niou, the royal cow herder who monitors the royal animals. From her side of the river, the princess appreciated the rancher with increasing pangs of passion, so lastly her father organized for a meeting. One thing, naturally, led to another, and the princess and the cow herder were wed.. But there was a severe disadvantage to this union, as Tchi-Niu and Kien-Niou spent all their waking hours with each other and neglected their duties. The weaving that many depended on the princess for never ever got done, and the royal livestock were disregarded and began to spread. The sun god cautioned both his daughter and son-in-law more than as soon as that they needed to address their responsibilities, however finally, when all else failed he separated the pair by returning his child to the other side of the river. The princess pled her dad for another possibility, and after many tearful pleas he finally broke down and offered a concession. The couple, said the sun god, could be reunited, however only for a single night each year– on the seventh day of the seventh month (July 7). And there was a catch: This annual rendezvous could just happen if the weather was clear.Same time next year In Japan, this cast of characters has various names. The sun god is Tentei, the princess is understood as Orihime, the cow herder is called either Kengyu or Hikoboshi, and the Heavenly River is Amanogawa. July 7 ultimately evolved into a special kidss vacation called Tanabata, or Seventh Evening, in which children use prayers for clear weather so that the couple can get together. Some versions of this story have a flock of magpies forming a bridge across the river to assist in the reunion. For centuries there was a tradition that kids who spotted a solitary magpie on the important day would toss stones at it in the belief that the bird wasnt satisfying its responsibility. It is said that if it rains on Tanabata, the rain is called “The tears of Orihime and Hikoboshi,” and the magpies cant come since of the increase of the river, requiring the lovers to wait up until next year to satisfy. Better luck nest time!Joe Rao serves as a trainer and guest lecturer at New Yorks Hayden Planetarium. He composes about astronomy for Natural History magazine, the Farmers Almanac and other publications. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
