The fabulous story of the appearance of the constellation Ursa Major drawing. The tale of Ursa Minor and the polar star. Myths about the constellation Ursa Major

Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, as one of the most prominent constellations in the northern sky, have many different names in legends different nations. The Big Dipper is often called the chariot, the cart, or simply the seven bulls. Constellation Ursa Major with the brightest star named Dubhe (Arabic Thar Dubb al Akbar - “backside of the Great Bear”) is associated with the following legend. The beautiful Callisto, daughter of King Lycaon, was in the retinue of the hunter goddess Artemis. Under the guise of this goddess, Zeus approached the maiden, and she became the mother of Arcas; jealous Hera immediately turned Callisto into a bear. One day Arkas, who had become a beautiful young man, while hunting in the forests, fell on the trail of a bear. He had already pulled his bow to hit his prey with a deadly arrow, but Zeus did not allow the crime: having turned his son into a bear, he carried both of them to heaven. They began to circle around the pole in a rhythmic dance, but Hera, becoming enraged, begged her brother Poseidon not to let the hated couple into her kingdom; therefore, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor are non-setting constellations in the middle and northern latitudes of our hemisphere. Francesco Petrarch described the Big Dipper in his 33rd sonnet as follows:

The east was already reddened by dawn.
And the light of the star that displeased Juno,
Still shining on the pale horizon
Above the pole, beautiful and distant.

An ancient legend says that once upon a time, far, far away in the north, there lived the Little Bear. She was very young and received her nickname for her short stature. She frolicked merrily in her snowy kingdom, played with diamond pieces of ice and dreamed... She really wanted to fly upward, to where the stars live, to meet the North Star, the most beautiful star, about which she often heard stories from her mother, Ursa Major.
The long-awaited birthday of the Little Bear has arrived. She woke up early in the morning expecting a holiday and something impossible, fabulous! The blizzard sang a wonderful song to her and the snow wolves echoed her howling. They all congratulated the birthday girl on her holiday!
Looking around, the Little Bear did not see her mother nearby and became sad, thinking that on such a wonderful day she really wanted to be next to the Big Bear. And at that time her mother went to the good sorceress, Aurora, to ask her for a wish to come true for her daughter in honor of her birthday!
“Well,” said Aurora, “let this be my gift for your baby. I wish you happiness, joy and may her deepest wish come true!”
Returning home, Big Dipper she called her daughter over and asked: “Is there something that you really want, something that will make you happy?” And Ursa Minor answered: “I really, really want to fly up into the dark northern sky, to the North Star!.. Yes, is this really possible?” “Perhaps,” said Ursa Major. – Today is a special day! This morning I went to visit the sorceress Aurora and she gave you an unusual gift! But, before I tell you about him, tell me again, what do you want more than anything in the world?”
The Little Bear smiled and replied that her greatest wish would be to go with her mother to the North Star.
“Let it be as you wished! Aurora gives you the fulfillment of your cherished dream! So, together we will go up, to where the stars are!” - and with these words, the Big Dipper hugged her daughter and together they, spinning, like huge flakes of snow began to rise higher and higher. The wind carried them further and further from the ground, small pieces of ice swirled with them, the stars winked at them welcomingly!
And so they found themselves together right in front of a crystal star, it was the most beautiful star - the North Star! She was very happy about Ursa Minor! Long hours, and maybe they spent days together talking to each other, rejoicing, laughing and having fun! But the time had come to part, and Ursa Minor, and with her the Polar Star, became sad... They didn’t want to say goodbye at all. Then Ursa Minor said to her mother: “I would like to stay here to always be close to you and the North Star! What a pity that this is impossible...”
Suddenly there was thunder, a bright flash flashed and the sorceress Aurora appeared in front of them. “I have been watching you for so long, it was so nice to see your joy, Ursa Minor, that I am fulfilling this wish of yours too! Let it be as you want!”
Since then, Ursa Minor and Ursa Major have become constellations, and the North Star has settled on the tail of Ursa Minor so as to never be separated!

We wrote this fairy tale together with my daughter, Anya!