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Libra
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LIBRA

ASTRAIA (Astraea) was the virgin-goddess of justice. During the Golden Age she dwelt upon the earth with mankind but was driven away by the increasing lawlessness of the subsequent Bronze Age. Zeus then set her amongst the stars as the constellation Virgo.

Astraia was closely identified with the goddesses Dike (Justice) and Nemesis (Rightful Indignation).

Image T32.1 (right) : A figure labelled Astrape "Lightning" stands beside the throne of Zeus. She is surely the goddess Astraia for she has all the accoutrements of a star-goddess--wings, shining aureole and a flaming torch. The star-god Eosphoros was depicted in a similar fashion. As the goddess of justice she carries the thunderbolt of Zeus--the implement of divine justice.
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ASTRAIA (Astraea) was the virgin-goddess of justice. During the Golden Age she dwelt upon the earth with mankind but was driven away by the increasing lawlessness of the subsequent Bronze Age. Zeus then set her amongst the stars as the constellation Virgo. Astraia was closely identified with the goddesses Dike (Justice) and Nemesis (Rightful Indignation). Image T32.1 (right) : A figure labelled Astrape "Lightning" stands beside the throne of Zeus. She is surely the goddess Astraia for she has all the accoutrements of a star-goddess--wings, shining aureole and a flaming torch. The star-god Eosphoros was depicted in a similar fashion. As the goddess of justice she carries the thunderbolt of Zeus--the implement of divine justice.
In mythology a Libra is related to the Greek Goddess of Justice, Themis,[1] the Greek mythology version of Atalanta (meaning balanced), and Astraea (daughter of Themis), who went up to heaven and became the constellation of Virgo, and carried the scales of justice, which is the constellation Libra. Libra is also related to the Greco-Roman goddess Aphrodite/Venus and sometimes also the goddesses Eris/Discordia & Harmonia/Concordia,Dike, Themis, Hera/Juno, Ishtar, Freyja, Frigg and Forsetti the god Xolotl.
Libra, (Latin: “Balance”) in astronomy, zodiacal constellation in the southern sky lying between Scorpius and Virgo, at about 15 hours 30 minutes right ascension and 15° south declination. Its stars are faint; the brightest star, Zubeneschamali (Arabic for “northern claw,” as it was earlier regarded as part of Scorpius; also called Beta Librae), has a magnitude of 2.6. In astrology, Libra is the seventh sign of the zodiac, considered as governing the period from about September 22 to about October 23. It is represented by a woman (sometimes identified with Astraea, the Roman goddess of justice), holding a balance scale or by the balance alone.
Represented by the scales, a symbol of justice and balance, Libra is the only sign of the zodiac not depicted by an animal or person. In Greek mythology Libra is related to the Greek Goddess of Justice, Themis, whose daughter, Astraea, went up to heaven and became the constellation of Virgo, both goddesses carried the scales of justice, which became the symbol for Libra. Libra, September 23 – October 22, is the 7th sign of the zodiac, one of the four cardinal signs (Aries – fire, Cancer – water, Libra – air, Capricorn – earth), which are signs that indicate a change of season when the sun makes its annual passage into them.
Ancient Greeks knew the part of the sky occupied by the Libra constellation as Chelae, or “claws,” and considered it part of Scorpio constellation. Chelae represented the scorpion’s claws. The association of this region of the sky with scales was established among the Romans in the first century BC. It is said that Moon was located in Libra when Rome was founded. The Romans considered Libra to be a favoured constellation, one associated with balanced seasons and equal length of night and day. The Sun was at the autumnal equinox in Libra until the year 729, when the precession of the equinoxes shifted the equinox to Virgo. The autumnal equinox will move to constellation Leo in the year 2439. The Romans were not the first to associate Libra with the idea of balance. The Babylonians called it ZIB.BA.AN.NA, which means “the balance of heaven,” about a thousand years before Christ. Once Libra became associated with balance, its association with Scorpio’s claws faded and the one with the goddess of justice, the Greek Dike or Astraeia, represented by the constellation Virgo, became stronger. As a reminder that Libra was once considered a part of Scorpio constellation, the brightest star in Libra, Beta Librae, has the name Zubeneschamali, which means “the northern claw” in Arabic, while Alpha Librae, Zubenelgenubi, is “the southern claw.”
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