Apollo, the Bright one

Apollo, Phoebus or Phoibos

(also Smintheus or Parnopious)

Greek God of the sun and patron of truth, archery, music, medicine, prophesy, harmony, plague (as Smintheus and Parnopious after the plague he cause when he was not paid for a work done) and shepherds. Also related with poetry, he was always surrounded by the muses. God of light, Leto and Zeus' son, Artemis' twin brother, he was one of the most admired gods in Greece, where he was taken as patron of civilisation owing to his moral and his intellectuality.
Zeus' son with Leto (the Palestinian goddess Lat, a triple moon-goddess) he was born in seven months. In Rome he was worshipped as Phoebus.
He is supposed to have been the Egyptian Horus; and he defeating the Python (a great serpent), who was chasing Leto may be identified with the myth of Horus and Seth, being Leto Isis and Python Seth (see the Horus and Seth myth). For the murder of Gaia's son, he had to serve king Admetus for a year (some say nine), something that he did so humbly and well.

Fragment of the painting "Apollo and Marsias" by Ribera that shows Apollo skinning alive the satyr. Naples, St. Martin National Museum.

In his beginnings he was a brave irreverent God that never cared for the results of his expeditions against what he thought evil, but after several punishments, he finally recognised the virtues of moderation and starting using the phrases "nothing in excess" and "know yourself" as maxims.
He acquired the gift of prophesy by cheating Pan, the old discredited Arcadian god, and made the Piton and Mother-Earth's sanctuary (as a revenge perhaps for Hera's chase of Leto) his, where the priestess called Pitonise saw the future in the Oracle of Delos (widely known for its ambiguous replies).
Apollo and Artemis killed Ticious, a giant that was trying to rape their mother while she was praying. He also killed Marsias, a satyr that had the bad luck of finding a flute Athena had cursed. He had been told by the shepherds he played it better that Apollo (the flute played alone) and was challenged by the god. The muses acted as judges and said they played both equally well, so Apollo challenged him to play and sing at the same time inverting the instrument, something impossible with Marsias flute. The muses saw Apollo as winner and he skinned him alive.
He also defeated Pan in another musical competition. His job as the gods' shepherd ended when he left the task to Hermes.
He never got married but had children with many nymphs and mortals. His beloved not always corresponded him, as it happened with Daphne, who, escaping from him was taken by Mother-Earth to Crete and left a laurel in its place, a laurel with which Apollo made a crown. Others say she was turned into a laurel. Apollo was also the first god to love and be loved by mortals of his same gender. The prince Iacinthus or Narcissus was one of Apollo's greatest loves until the West Wind killed him, jealous of Apollo and in love also with the prince.
His son Esculapious or Asclepio was killed by Zeus' ray because he had resuscitated Hypolitus, a friend of his, so Apollo took revenge by killing Zeus' servants, the Cyclopes that had forged the ray. After the offense, he was thrown out of the Olympus. The divinity rambled in every earthy errand for some time after Zeus let him return home.
The Poplar was consecrated to this god. His strength was the sun's and the Prophesy. He represented light and art and his symbols or attributes were the sun and the lyre, others also say the plectrum, the bow and the arrows. He had, as his sister, three names: Phoebus, Phoibos and Apollo and the teenagers used to consecrate their hair in his temples.

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Apollo, Phoebus or Phoibos (also Smintheus or Parnopious)
Greek God of the sun and patron of truth, archery, music, medicine, prophesy, harmony, plague (as Smintheus and Parnopious after the plague he cause when he was not paid for a work done) and shepherds. Also related with poetry, he was always surrounded by the muses. God of light, Leto and Zeus' son, Artemis' twin brother, he was one of the most admired gods in Greece, where he was taken as patron of civilisation owing to his moral and his intellectuality. Zeus' son with Leto (the Palestinian goddess Lat, a triple moon-goddess) he was born in seven months. In Rome he was worshipped as Phoebus. He is supposed to have been the Egyptian Horus; and he defeating the Python (a great serpent), who was chasing Leto may be identified with the myth of Horus and Seth, being Leto Isis and Python Seth (see the Horus and Seth myth). For the murder of Gaia's son, he had to serve king Admetus for a year (some say nine), something that he did so humbly and well.
	Fragment of the painting "Apollo and Marsias" by Ribera that shows Apollo skinning alive the satyr. Naples, St. Martin National Museum.
In his beginnings he was a brave irreverent God that never cared for the results of his expeditions against what he thought evil, but after several punishments, he finally recognised the virtues of moderation and starting using the phrases "nothing in excess" and "know yourself" as maxims. He acquired the gift of prophesy by cheating Pan, the old discredited Arcadian god, and made the Piton and Mother-Earth's sanctuary (as a revenge perhaps for Hera's chase of Leto) his, where the priestess called Pitonise saw the future in the Oracle of Delos (widely known for its ambiguous replies). Apollo and Artemis killed Ticious, a giant that was trying to rape their mother while she was praying. He also killed Marsias, a satyr that had the bad luck of finding a flute Athena had cursed. He had been told by the shepherds he played it better that Apollo (the flute played alone) and was challenged by the god. The muses acted as judges and said they played both equally well, so Apollo challenged him to play and sing at the same time inverting the instrument, something impossible with Marsias flute. The muses saw Apollo as winner and he skinned him alive. He also defeated Pan in another musical competition. His job as the gods' shepherd ended when he left the task to Hermes. He never got married but had children with many nymphs and mortals. His beloved not always corresponded him, as it happened with Daphne, who, escaping from him was taken by Mother-Earth to Crete and left a laurel in its place, a laurel with which Apollo made a crown. Others say she was turned into a laurel. Apollo was also the first god to love and be loved by mortals of his same gender. The prince Iacinthus or Narcissus was one of Apollo's greatest loves until the West Wind killed him, jealous of Apollo and in love also with the prince. His son Esculapious or Asclepio was killed by Zeus' ray because he had resuscitated Hypolitus, a friend of his, so Apollo took revenge by killing Zeus' servants, the Cyclopes that had forged the ray. After the offense, he was thrown out of the Olympus. The divinity rambled in every earthy errand for some time after Zeus let him return home. The Poplar was consecrated to this god. His strength was the sun's and the Prophesy. He represented light and art and his symbols or attributes were the sun and the lyre, others also say the plectrum, the bow and the arrows. He had, as his sister, three names: Phoebus, Phoibos and Apollo and the teenagers used to consecrate their hair in his temples.