Selene and Endymion

Author: Pseudo-Apollodorus; Sappho; Theocritus; Apollonius Rhodius

Time Period: 999 BCE–1 BCE

Country or Culture: Greek

Genre: Myth

Overview

The myth of Selene and Endymion was so well known in the ancient Greek world that there are many different primary records of the mythological characters. The unfortunate result of this ubiquity is that all of the accounts are short and fragmentary, and no sustained narrative on Selene and Endymion exists. The two are mentioned by a plethora of ancient writers, including Hesiod, Sappho, Pseudo-Apollodorus, Apollonius Rhodius, Theocritus, Strabo, Pausanias, Lucian, Virgil, Seneca, Ovid, and many others, but not all of these accounts are the same, and in fact some could not be more different. Some stories are solely concerned with the account of Endymion’s death, while others discuss his gift of immortality; some describe Endymion as a modest shepherd, while others report that he was a king.

Despite the varying accounts, the love story between the mortal Endymion and the moon goddess Selene is the best known and most enduring aspect of the myth. In most popular accounts, Endymion is a handsome young shepherd with whom Selene falls in love. One day, >Zeus offers Endymion a choice of destinies; Endymion chooses to have eternal youth and life in an unending slumber. Selene so loves how Endymion looks when he sleeps that she visits him every night in the cave where he lies sleeping. This version of the myth is often interpreted allegorically, with Endymion representing the personification of sleep and Selene as the personification of the moon.

Because Selene is one of the celestial gods, her lineage has been well documented and recorded by many ancient authors. Hesiod says that Selene was born of the Titans Hyperion and Theia and that her siblings include the sun god Helios and the dawn goddess Eos. Contrary to this account, the Homeric hymn to Hermes refers to her as “sacred Selene, daughter of Megamedes’ son lord Pallas” (Trzaskoma, Smith, and Brunet 189). According to Pausanias, Selene and Endymion have fifty daughters referred to as the Menai (goddesses of the lunar months), including Naxos, the nymph of Naxos island. Selene is also the dedicatee of a Homeric hymn, which reports that “[w]ith her once was the son of Cronus wedded in love, and she conceived and brought forth Pandia the maiden, preeminent in beauty among the immortal gods” (210). Some accounts have Selene finding Endymion so handsome that she asks Zeus to grant him eternal youth and an immortal slumber so that he will never leave her, whereas in others, Endymion makes the decision on his own. In Roman mythology, Selene is translated to Luna. Also, in some Roman translations of the myth, Selene’s character is conflated with Diana (Artemis).

Endymion was the son of Calyce and Aethlius (though some say his father was Zeus). He led Aeolians forth from Thessalia and founded Elis. A man of unrivaled beauty, he was loved by Selene. When he was given a wish of his choice by Zeus, he chose to remain immortal and unaging in eternal sleep.

Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca

Endymion’s lineage is less certain; while many regard him merely as a mythological character, others feel he may have been a historical figure. According to Hesiod, Pseudo-Apollodorus, and Pausanias, Endymion’s father is Aethlius, who was probably the king of the Thessalian Aithikes, a tribe located in the Pindar mountain range. Elsewhere, >Zeus is said to be Endymion’s father. Pausanias reports that Endymion succeeds his father to become king of Elis, and when Zeus grants him foreknowledge of his death, Endymion plans to set up a racecourse at Olympia and order his sons to compete for the throne; when he dies, he is laid to rest at Olympia, underneath the racecourse. Alternately, Pseudo-Apollodorus claims that upon Endymion’s request, Zeus grants him eternal rest and youth. Theocritus maintains that Zeus punishes Endymion with eternal sleep after he falls in love with Hera. According to Pliny the Elder, Endymion was the first astronomer to observe the patterns and movements of the moon, and his love for the science of astronomy was eventually transformed into an allegorical myth.

Those who believe that Endymion was a historical figure debate about the location of his tomb. Some, following Theocritus, assert that Endymion rests in a cave on Mount Latmus near the village of Kapikiri, among the ruins of Heracleia. Others, following Pausanias, argue that Endymion was buried on Mount Olympia and that a statue of him was erected in the treasury of the Metapontines.

Summary

Sappho’s account of Selene and Endymion in fragment 199 dates to the fifth century BCE. According to Sappho, Selene would visit the sleeping Endymion every night in his cave. Sappho was a Greek poetess living on the island of Lesbos. She is famous for her erotic poetry, which explores passionate relationships with both women and men.

Endymion is mentioned twice in the Bibliotheca (The Library), a comprehensive record of ancient Greek mythology dating to the second century CE and attributed to an unspecified Apollodorus, often referred to as Pseudo-Apollodorus to avoid confusion with the more famous Apollodorus of Athens. The first mention of Endymion relates his ancestry. Deucalion and Pyrrha give birth to Hellen; Hellen unites with a nymph named Orseis, and they have Aeolus; Aeolus has five daughters with Enarete, including Calyce; Calyce weds Aethlius, and they have Endymion.

In the Bibliotheca’s second reference to Endymion, he is said to have led the Aeolians from Thessalia and founded a new city called Elis. Endymion is a man of unmatched beauty, and the moon, Selene, loves him. One day, when Zeus offers to fulfill any wish of his choice, Endymion asks to remain young and immortal in eternal sleep. Prior to his sleep, Endymion has a tryst with a Naiad, or water nymph—or, in some versions, a woman named Iphianassa—who bears Aetolus.

Apollonius Rhodius makes indirect reference to Selene and Endymion in his Argonautica. Dating to the third century BCE, the Argonautica is an epic poem about the legendary Jason, leader of the Argonauts, and his journey for the golden fleece. During his journey, Jason falls in love with a witch from Colchis named Medea, and she with him. After Medea commits treason against her father in order to assist Jason in his quest, she wanders distraught through a field and contemplates committing suicide or fleeing Colchis, all the while thinking of Jason. Selene, who has been captured by Medea many times, looks down and laughs at Medea. She compares Medea’s lovesickness for Jason with her ever-enduring devotion to Endymion.

Theocritus, founder of ancient Greek bucolic poetry, makes reference to Selene and Endymion in his Idylls, dating to the third century BCE. In his poem, Theocritus sings of the different mortals who have been loved by goddesses. He first references Adonis, with whom Aphrodite falls in love because of his incredible beauty. Adonis dies in Aphrodite’s arms after being hit by a wild boar. Theocritus apparently prefers the fate of Endymion, who, loved by Selene, sleeps peacefully and unchanging for all eternity.

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