Artemis was the Goddess of the Hunt and Nature. She was the twin sister of Apollo, and daughter of Zeus and Leto. She ruled over the forests of the world, and all beasts lying therein. Her symbol of authority was her silver bow, with was forged for her by the Cyclopses as a birthday gift from her father. With that she had a quiver of silver arrows that would never empty. With this weapon, she could smite down any foe standing before her. One arrow being shot from her bow could strike a path through the victim, turn around, and come back again. Among other gifts received from her father were a silver chariot that was drawn by two full grown stags, 50 attending wood nymphs, and the largest hounds in the world, bred by Pan, a god of nature.
Artemis was one of the three virgin goddesses, vowing always to remain chaste. With this promise to herself, she became a goddess of childbirth. She would help to alleviate the pain of childbirth that the women would have to endure, often blaming this pain on the men that got the women pregnant in the first place. She despised men, mortal or immortal, and would never have anything to do with them. She contented herself by wandering the forest with her hounds and nymphs, hunting down any animal that stood in her way.
As she was chaste, so too did she expect all of the nymphs in her company to remain so as well. One nymph broke this vow, with none other than Artemis’ own father. Her name was Callisto, and Zeus seduced her in the forest where Artemis was sure to find them, and she did. Artemis was furious! She immediately changed Callisto into a she-bear, and set her hounds on it to tear it apart. Zeus mourned the loss of Callisto, and out of respect, put her image up in the stars in the constellation of Ursa Major.
She was incredibly adamant in keeping both herself, and all of her nymphs out of the company of men. Every evening, she and her nymphs would bathe in a pool that they would return to at the end of every day. One night as they were there, a lone hunter named Acteon stumbled upon them. He was in awe of the sight of the naked goddess in the pool; she was more beautiful than anything that he had ever seen, or ever would see again. Artemis sensed his presence, and spun around to see him there crouched in the bushes. She flung a hand-full of water at him, and it hit him square in the face. As the silver light of the moon shone down on the rivulets of water streaming down his face, antlers began to grow out of the front of his forehead. Thick grey fur began to cover his body, and his hands and feet dwindled down to the form of hooves. Artemis had turned Acteon into a stag, and his own hunting dogs leaped upon him, and tore him apart; death was the penalty of any man setting his eyes upon Artemis.
Artemis’ fierce hatred towards men wavered for a brief time when she met the hunter Orion. Orion was a son of Poseidon and a mortal princess. His father had given him the ability to walk over water as if were solid ground. Artemis spied him hunting in her forest, and she immediately felt something that she had never felt before, the feeling of love. She made herself known to him, and they spent the days hunting together throughout the lands, enjoying each other’s company. She was still determined to remain a virgin however, but she did love Orion more than anything. He was her equal when it came to hunting, which is something that she admired even more than his beauty. Apollo saw how much time his sister was spending with this mortal, and didn’t like it at all. He sat in his palace, watching the two of them frolic through the woods, while thinking of a way to get rid of Orion, without letting Artemis know that that was his intention. Apollo arranged to meet Artemis by the seaside one afternoon, near to where Orion lived. The two of them met, and as they were sitting on the water’s edge, Apollo spotted a small object on the water off in the distance. He drew his golden bow, and challenged Artemis to an archery contest; the first one to hit the object would be the winner. She agreed, and drew her silver bow, taking the first shot. Her aim was true, and her arrow sunk deep into the object. She sped out onto the water to claim her prize, and screamed out in horror, as she saw the shaft of her arrow embedded in Orion’s head. She mourned for his loss, and Apollo did all he could to console her, never letting her know that this is exactly what he had planned to do all along. Artemis took Orion’s image, and placed it in the heavens in the constellation of the same name. He stands over the earth with his club held high, and the lion held firmly in his hand, ready to deal the killing blow.
