Helios

The story

In Greek mythology, Helios is the god who carries the sun across the sky each day in his golden chariot drawn by four fiery horses. He rises from the eastern Ocean in the morning and sets in the West; at night he crosses Ocean in a golden cup and returns to the East. His most famous tale is Phaeton: his mortal son begs to drive the chariot for a single day, the horses run wild, the sky catches fire — Zeus strikes Phaeton down with a thunderbolt. Helios is also the all-seeing god: he's the one who tells Demeter her daughter Persephone has been abducted. In Rome he becomes "Sol" and is later synthesized with Apollo; but Apollo isn't the sun god — Helios is. This mythological distinction matters in classical texts.

Why this planet

The Sun really is the sky's "driver"; rising and setting daily — directly mirrors the Helios myth. Being life's "source" (heat, light, sight) connects to the "all-seeing" quality. The Phaeton myth warns of excess and pride.

Themes

• driver of the sky
• all-seeing god
• golden chariot
• the day