Orion was a man of gigantic stature—a colossus whose strength and reputation as a skilled and mighty hunter stretched far and wide. He was considered by many to be the most handsome man alive.
Orion was in love with the beautiful Merope, daughter of the king of Chios. The king promised Orion that if he was able to rid the island of Chios of all its dangerous beasts, he would be allowed to marry Merope. So each day Orion set out to hunt the dreaded beasts, and each evening he laid before the king and Merope the beasts he had conquered.
It wasn’t long before Orion fulfilled his half of the bargain, but the king was reluctant to give his daughter away. He was jealous of Orion and afraid of losing his daughter’s love and affection to the mighty hunter. He delayed the marriage again and again. As Orion grew impatient and demanding, the king grew angry. He asked the god Dionysus to lull Orion into a deep sleep. While Orion slept, the king blinded him.
Orion consulted an oracle and was told that he would regain his sight if he traveled to the east and let the rays of the rising sun fall upon his face. He began a journey eastward and, as the oracle prophesied, recovered his sight. His first thought was to return to Chios and find the king, but the king had fled the land, taking Merope with him. Orion never saw them again.
Orion traveled to the Island of Crete and met Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. They both shared a love for hunting, and their friendship grew. He became Artemis’s huntsman. Some say the dawn, Aurora, fell in love with Orion’s beauty, and Artemis grew jealous of this love and killed him. Others say Artemis’s brother, the god Apollo, tricked her into killing Orion because he was jealous of their friendship.
No one is entirely sure how the great Orion met his end, but Artemis placed her friend and hunting companion in the heavens as a constellation. His image is set in the stars, showing his sword, club, lion’s skin, and belt, and he is one of the most recognizable constellations in the sky.
