the Moon
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| The Moon in March |
What do we know about the Moon today?
The Moon is the only natural satellite of our planet.
It is approximately not far from the Earth, only 384 400 km separate humans from it. It’s like flying from Moscow, in Russia, to Santiago, in Chile, app. 27 times at a time.
The Moon was formed not long ago after the Earth’s formation. It might be clearly observed at night and it possesses craters which you can also see on its surface.
The Moon rotates about its axis and we may see one and the same picture of it facing the Earth.
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| Full Moon |
The Moon has got no water and, as a result, there is no life. At least, no creature inhabiting our planet would ever survive there.
What did our ancestors know about it?
The lunar myths include stories about the Moon, lunar cycles and deities. Thanks to the myths we can judge how much attention has been paid to the heavenly body throughout the world. Thus, the Ancient Greek goddess Selena is the goddess of the moon who drives a moon chariot across the sky. In Ancient Roman mythology the moon goddess is believed to be Luna. Being a counterpart of Selena, Luna was a direct compliment of the Sol, the god of the Sun.
The Moon is opposed to the Sun in many other cultures, as well. For example, in Chinese philosophy the passive dark female aspect of the moon represents Yin while the active light male characteristics of the sun symbolize Yan in the conception of the interconnected oppositions of the world.
The Moon and the Sun occur to be even spouses in some Indo-European, Siberian and Indian myths. The Moon is a female character in most Slavic myths, however, a half-moon is a male individual called Myesyats. Both of them might be good or evil. They possess magic powers and may influence the passage of time.
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| Selena, the goddess of the Moon and me |
The ornament created by craters on the surface caused a lot of stories. Some Tatar tales run about a punished woman who had to live on the Moon. The woman might be depicted with a yoke for carrying buckets of water like in Scandinavian folklore. In the Asian and Aztec folklore the moon spots are taken for a lunar hare or the Moon Rabbit. It has got a mortar and a pestle. If you take a look at the Moon and turn on your imagination you will really see the Moon Rabbit yourself. Different people of South America, Australia and South Africa explain the Moon ornament as wounds, mud or paint on the face of Luna.
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| The Moon Rabbit |
The Moon is popularized nowadays in the numerous sagas and series about werewolves and other supernatural creatures depending on the Moon cycles. Who knows, may be this aspect is a part of the modern folklore which would be taken for granted in future by our offspring...
Very nice information simply described :)
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