The myth of Scorpius made simple: Orion's killer, Antares, and the fishhook seen from Japan to Polynesia

The myth of Scorpius is the story of the scorpion that stung the Greek hunter Orion to death. In the summer sky its red heart, Antares, and its long S-shaped tail are hard to miss.

Yet the scorpion was not sent by just one deity. Some stories name the Earth goddess, others Artemis, the goddess of the hunt.

Fishermen in Japan and islanders across the Pacific, meanwhile, saw the same stars as a hook for catching fish. In China they were the heart of a dragon.

In this article you will find:

• The outline of the Scorpius myth, including a short version for children
• Who sent the scorpion, and how the ancient versions differ
• Why Orion and Scorpius are never seen together
• The story of Phaethon, and how the claws became Libra
• What Antares means, and Japanese names such as Uotsuri-boshi (魚釣り星) and Aka-boshi (赤星)
• The Chinese mansion Xin and the "Great Fire", and Maui's fishhook in Maori and Hawaiian lore

The key point is this: the myth of Scorpius makes the most sense when you read it as the other half of the Orion myth.

In short, what is the myth of Scorpius?

The myth of Scorpius tells how a single scorpion stung the boastful hunter Orion, and how the gods placed both of them in the sky.

Who sent the scorpion, and why, depends on the ancient source. Broadly, there are two families of stories.

• Sent by the Earth goddess (Gaia in Greek): Orion boasted he would hunt down every beast on earth
• Sent by Artemis: Orion laid hands on the goddess's robe

In both families the scorpion becomes a constellation, and Orion is raised to the sky as well.

In the ancient texts, the scorpion is sent by the Earth or by Artemis. Many Japanese retellings name Hera instead.

How would you tell the Scorpius myth to a child?

For children, the myth of Scorpius is "the story of a tiny scorpion that beat a giant hunter."

Long ago in Greece there lived a huge hunter called Orion. Orion boasted, "I will hunt down every animal in the world."

The Earth goddess heard him and grew angry. So she sent a single scorpion up out of the ground.

The scorpion gave Orion one little sting. Even mighty Orion was no match for its poison.

Zeus, the king of the gods, turned both the scorpion and Orion into stars.

Even today, when Scorpius rises in the east, Orion sinks in the west. People say Orion is still running away from the scorpion.

Who sent the scorpion in the Scorpius myth?

In the ancient texts, the scorpion in the Scorpius myth is sent either by the Earth goddess or by the goddess Artemis.

The Earth goddess version is one of the oldest. Orion was hunting on Crete and threatened to kill every beast on earth.

The angry Earth sent up a scorpion, which stung Orion to death. This version is attributed to Hesiod and quoted in the star book that goes under the name of Eratosthenes.

The Roman writer Hyginus, in his Astronomica, also says that the Earth sent the scorpion. Zeus then set it among the stars as a warning.

The Artemis version appears in the poem Phaenomena by Aratus. On the island of Chios, Orion seized the robe of Artemis.

The goddess roused a scorpion, and the scorpion stung Orion and killed him.

The star-lore writer Ian Ridpath sums it up neatly: Eratosthenes and Hyginus each record both stories.

Did Orion protect a goddess in Ovid's version?

In Ovid's Fasti, one version of the Scorpius myth casts Orion as the protector of a goddess.

Here too Orion boasts that there is no beast he cannot beat, and the Earth releases a scorpion.

But the scorpion's target is the goddess Leto, mother of Artemis. Orion steps into its path.

Leto then places Orion among the stars as his reward. So there is even a version of the scorpion story in which Orion is not the villain.

Did Hera send the scorpion in the Scorpius myth?

Many Japanese retellings of the Scorpius myth say that the goddess Hera sent the scorpion.

We checked Theoi Project, which collects English translations of the ancient texts. Among the sources listed for the scorpion, Hera's name does not appear.

Some Japanese observatory guides also name Hera. That version may have spread through later retellings.

How are Scorpius and Orion related, and why are they never seen together?

Scorpius and Orion lie on almost opposite sides of the sky, so as one rises, the other sets.

Seen from Japan or anywhere in the northern mid-latitudes, Orion belongs to winter nights. Scorpius belongs to summer nights.

The two constellations sit nearly half a circle apart on the great ring that runs round the sky. You will hardly ever see both of them high up at the same time.

Aratus wrote that when the Scorpion rises in the east, Orion flees to the western edge of the world. Hyginus also says the stars were placed so that Orion sets as the Scorpion rises.

The myth turns what happens in the sky into a story. Ridpath also suggests that the tale may have begun with the sky itself.

For the same story told from Orion's side, see the myth of Orion.

What other myths are told about Scorpius?

The Scorpius myth also appears in the story of Phaethon's wild ride. Another tale explains how its claws became Libra.

What is the story of Phaethon and the scorpion?

In one of the Scorpius myths, Phaethon, son of the Sun god, sees the scorpion and drops the reins.

The story comes from the Roman poet Ovid's Metamorphoses. Phaethon borrowed his father's chariot of the Sun.

High in the sky, Phaethon came upon the great scorpion, its two claws curving wide like a bow.

Terrified, Phaethon let the reins fall. The horses left their path and ran wild, and the earth below was scorched.

Was Libra once the scorpion's claws?

In the days of the Scorpius myth, the Greek scorpion was a bigger constellation than it is today. Its claws later became Libra.

According to Ridpath, the Greeks thought of the scorpion in two halves: the body and sting, and the front half they called the Claws.

In the first century BC the Romans turned the claws into a separate constellation, the Balance. Hyginus, too, says the sign is split in two because its claws spread so wide, and one part is called the Balance.

Is Sagittarius aiming at the scorpion?

The Scorpius myth is sometimes extended in Japanese retellings, which say that the archer Sagittarius, next door to the east, is aiming his bow at the scorpion.

In the older texts, however, the archer is sometimes said to be Crotus, son of the god Pan. We did not find the aiming story in the translated classics we checked.

What are Scorpius's stars called, and what does Antares mean?

Source: SIMBAD (CDS Strasbourg), V magnitude

The brightest star in Scorpius is Antares, glowing red at the scorpion's heart. Its brightness slowly changes.

The name Antares comes from Greek. It refers to the star's red colour, which resembles the planet Mars (Ares, the Greek god of war).

The name is often translated "rival of Mars". Ridpath notes, though, that the star-name scholar Paul Kunitzsch read the Greek as "like Mars".

In Arabic, Antares was called "the heart of the scorpion". Ptolemy, the astronomer of the second century, simply described it as the reddish middle star of three bright stars in the body.

Shaula, at the tip of the tail, is Arabic for "the sting". In the head, Acrab means "the scorpion" and Dschubba means "forehead".

What is Scorpius called in Japan? What are the fishing star and the red star?

The best-known Japanese name for Scorpius is Uotsuri-boshi (魚釣り星), "the fishing star". The S-shaped line of stars was seen as a fishhook.

Mitsubishi Electric's column "Hoshizora no Sanpomichi" (Walks under the stars) says Uotsuri-boshi was used for a long time, especially around the Seto Inland Sea.

The tail of the S lies right inside the Milky Way. On a dark summer night it looks as if the hook has dropped into a river of light.

Where were the fishing-star names used?

Japanese fishhook names for Scorpius are recorded not only around the Seto Inland Sea but also on the Noto Peninsula and in Okinawa.

The textbook publisher Dainippon Tosho lists the following names in its "Stars and Moon" pages.

Taitsuri-boshi ties the sight of a star to the fishing season. Japanese star names often worked as a calendar for everyday life.

For Japanese names of stars in every season, see our list of traditional Japanese star names.

What is Antares called in Japan? What do Aka-boshi, Honen-boshi and Sakeyoi-boshi mean?

In Japan, Antares was called Aka-boshi (赤星), "the red star", for its colour. The names Honen-boshi (豊年星, harvest star) and Sakeyoi-boshi (酒酔い星, tipsy star) have also come down to us.

The Mitsubishi Electric column gives these three as Japanese names for Antares. It does not say which regions used them.

Some names do come with a place. Masuda Masayuki's survey of star names in Toyama Prefecture records these two:

• Akami-no-hossama (アカミノホッサマ): Ikuji, Kurobe City, Toyama
• Honen-boshi (ホウネンボシ): Funami, Nyuzen Town, Toyama

Honen-boshi is the same name as "harvest star", which suggests the star was linked with a good harvest. Our sources do not explain why it meant a good harvest, or why it was called tipsy.

What is Scorpius called in China? What are Xin and the Great Fire?

In China the stars of Scorpius are divided among three mansions, Fang (房宿), Xin (心宿) and Wei (尾宿). Antares is Xin su er (心宿二).

Fang, Xin and Wei are three of the 28 lunar mansions, which divide the sky along the Moon's path. The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan's calendar notes place them among the seven mansions of the Azure Dragon of the east.

A guide by Kakazu Tsuguto of the Osaka Science Museum gives Antares as Xin su er, meaning the second star of Xin.

Which stars belong to Fang, Xin and Wei?

The scorpion's head is Fang, the area around its heart is Xin, and its curving tail is Wei.

The table below is based on Ridpath's notes.

The Greek scorpion's tail was a dragon's tail in China. The same curve of stars looked like a tail to both cultures.

Antares was known in early China as Huo, "fire". It was also seen as an emperor's throne, with the stars on either side as princes.

Is the "fire" in "the seventh month, the Fire flows" Antares?

Antares in Scorpius is said to be the "fire" in an old Chinese verse, "in the seventh month, the Fire flows west" (七月流火).

A Xinhua report says that in ancient China Antares was called Da Huo (大火), the Great Fire, and served as an important sign of the season.

The phrase does not describe hot weather. It means the Great Fire is sinking into the west, the heat is easing, and autumn is on its way.

Is there a Chinese story about Orion and Scorpius never meeting?

Scorpius and Orion never meet in Chinese lore either. Antares is the star of Shang (商), and the stars around Orion's belt are the star of Shen (参).

The old Chinese chronicle Zuo Zhuan tells this story.

The legendary ruler Gaoxin had two sons, Ebo and Shichen. The brothers could not get along and fought each other day after day.

So the ruler sent Ebo to Shangqiu to look after the star Chen, which became the Shang star. Shichen was sent to Daxia to look after the star Shen.

The Xinhua report notes that Antares was also called the Shang star in ancient times. It adds that Shen and Shang lie on nearly opposite sides of the sky, so when one rises, the other sets.

The Tang poet Du Fu wrote: "In this life we do not meet, like Shen and Shang" (人生不相見、動如參與商). Friends who never meet are like those two stars.

In Greece, a hunter and a scorpion; in China, two quarrelling brothers. In both, the same pair of constellations became two who can never meet.

Is Scorpius Maui's fishhook in Polynesia?

Across the Polynesian islands there are traditions that see the S of Scorpius as a fishhook. It is the hook the hero Maui used to haul up land from the sea.

The Mitsubishi Electric column also notes that seafaring peoples often see Scorpius as a fishhook, just as the Japanese fishing star does.

What is Te Matau a Maui for the Maori?

The Maori of New Zealand call Scorpius Te Matau a Maui, meaning "the fishhook of Maui".

According to Museums Wellington, Maui used this hook to fish the North Island up out of the sea.

When you sail towards land, it seems to be pulled up from behind the horizon. Museums Wellington also presents the story as a picture of that.

The same source says the name changes with the season:

• April to June: Manaia ki te Rangi
• July to September: Te Matau a Maui (the fishhook of Maui)
• October and November: part of the prow of the canoe of Tamarereti

What is Scorpius called in Hawaii?

In Hawaii, the tail and sting of Scorpius are called Ka-makau-nui-a-Maui, meaning "the great fishhook of Maui".

An article from Maunakea Observatories also gives another name, Manai-a-ka-lani. Both names refer to Maui's fishhook.

Fishermen in Japan's Seto Inland Sea, Noto and Okinawa, and islanders across the Pacific, saw the same stars as the same fishhook. To people who lived by the sea, the S may simply have looked like a hook.

Was Scorpius a scorpion even before the Greeks?

Scorpius was seen as a scorpion long before the Greeks.

According to Ridpath, the Sumerians knew this constellation more than 5,000 years ago. They called it GIR-TAB, the scorpion.

How do the names for the same stars differ by region?

As the table shows, the same S became a poisonous scorpion, a dragon and a fishhook.

"No record found" marks places where we could not confirm a source while writing this article. It does not mean that no name existed.

A scorpion's tail, a dragon's tail and a fishhook all see the curve of stars as "something that bends at the end". The pictures differ, but the eye catches the same shape.

How can you look at Scorpius while remembering the myth?

From Japan and similar latitudes, Scorpius sits low in the southern sky on summer nights. The easiest way in is to find red Antares first.

Around 9 pm in July, look low in the south for a red first-magnitude star. That is Antares.

To the upper right of Antares, a short, roughly vertical line of stars marks the scorpion's head (Fang).

From Antares, follow the stars down to the lower left. The tail bends sharply and ends in the two sting stars, Shaula and Lesath.

• The tail lies inside the Milky Way. From a dark site it looks like a hook dropped into the water
• Next door to the east is the Milk Dipper of Sagittarius (南斗六星)
• Orion: not in the summer evening sky. Look for it in the south on winter nights

Frequently asked questions about the Scorpius myth

How would you explain the Scorpius myth to a child?

A boastful hunter named Orion was stung by a tiny scorpion sent by the Earth goddess. Zeus put both in the sky, where they still chase each other.

Who sent the scorpion in the Scorpius myth?

In the ancient texts, the Earth goddess (Gaia) or the goddess Artemis. Hera appears mainly in Japanese retellings.

Which constellation never appears together with Scorpius?

Orion. The two lie on opposite sides of the sky, and the myth says Orion is fleeing from the scorpion.

What is Antares called in Japanese?

Aka-boshi, "the red star", for its colour. It was also called Honen-boshi and Sakeyoi-boshi, and in Ikuji, Kurobe (Toyama) it was Akami-no-hossama.

What is Scorpius called in Chinese?

Its stars fall into three mansions, Fang, Xin and Wei. Antares is Xin su er, and in ancient times it was also called Da Huo, the Great Fire.

When can you see Scorpius?

From Japan and similar latitudes, on summer nights, low in the southern sky. On winter nights it is too close to the Sun to see.

Sources

• Theoi Project, "Skorpios" (English translations of Hesiod (fragment), Aratus's Phaenomena, Hyginus's Astronomica 2.26 and Ovid's Fasti 5)
• Theoi Project, "Phaethon" (English translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, the scene where he drops the reins at the sight of the scorpion)
• Kamagari Astronomical Observatory, Kure City, "Introduction to Astronomy 16: The World of Constellations 3" (an example of a Japanese guide naming Hera, in Japanese)
• Ian Ridpath, "Star Tales: Scorpius" (the two versions, Libra, the name Antares, the Chinese Fang, Xin and Wei, the Sumerian GIR-TAB)
• Mitsubishi Electric DSPACE, "Walks under the Stars" vol. 67, "The fishing star shining in the southern sky" (24 June 2011, in Japanese)
• Dainippon Tosho, "Stars and Moon: Uotsuri-boshi" (in Japanese)
• Star names of Toyama (from Masuda Masayuki, Etchu no Hoshi Monogatari; a Toyama Prefecture science education resource, in Japanese)
• Kakazu Tsuguto, "Star names in Chinese constellations" (Osaka Science Museum, Gekkan Uchu, February 2021, in Japanese)
• National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Calendar Office, "Koyomi Wiki: the 28 lunar mansions" (in Japanese)
• Xinhua, reprinted by Science and Technology Daily, "Watch the Great Fire and the Moon side by side on the 21st" (19 August 2026, in Chinese)
• Zuo Zhuan, Duke Zhao, year 1 (Wikisource, original Chinese text)
• Du Fu, "To the Recluse Wei Ba" (Wikisource, original Chinese text)
• Museums Wellington, "Scorpius" (Maori names and the fishhook of Maui)
• Maunakea Observatories, "Hawaiian Skies: Hinaiaʻeleʻele 2026" (Hawaiian names)
• SIMBAD (CDS Strasbourg): star brightness (V magnitude) and proper names