Vindematriax, Epsilon Virginis

Star in Virgo, Epsilon Virginis Vindematriax, possesses a cutting nature that is associated with reaping fruits, it is a part of dionysiac nature and marks the culmination and death seen within this constellation. It is ‘vine’ and ‘vintage’ marking the ‘year’. This star gives Virgo its qualities of science, healing, and the attunement of service through higher thought, innovation. This star is connected to Dionysus- intermediary states of consciousness as ordered through divine intervention and direction. It aids in forming vision and service into order. 

Myth

There are a few myths associated with this constellation such as persephone which is in correlation to the celestial shift of seasons through the goddess and the equinox point, and of course Isis and Nephthys which teaches the cosmology and metaphysical understanding of the creative cycle of microcosm to macrocosm. It is the dual nature of the feminine the All. But this is the story of Erigone, the daughter of Icarius, who was the son of Daedus, the best craftsman in all of Greece that created the labyrinth. Icarius and Erigone lived in Athens, and hosted Dionysus when he was journeying from Attica. In return for their gracious hospitality. Dionysus gave Icarius the gift of wine and taught him the art of winemaking. Icarius shared the wine with his fellow countrymen. The naive countrymen were naive to the influences of sacred wine and believed Icarius had poisoned them. In a fit of inebriated rage they killed Icarius and left his body under a tree. Unable to find her father, Erigone set out with her loyal dog Maera to find her father, Icarius. Unfortunately they found Icarius dead under a tree. Overcome with grief, Erigone hung herself from the tree and Maera, the dog, leapt into a well and drowned. These 3 have been immortalized as the following constellations, Erigone, Virgo, Bootes, Icarius, and Maera, Procyon. Because of Icarius’ murder and the loss of Erigone. The people of Athens were punished by Apollo which might have corresponded with Athena since she reigned over Athens. In Roman mythology the city was punished with a plague, in which human ‘medicine’ proved futile. They sought healing and redemption from the Gods. In Athens the maidens were poisoned with madness causing them to hang themselves as a redemption to Erigone. As told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses it was Ascelpus who intervened. 

Meaning

This myth has hidden connections woven throughout other myths that allude to the deeper metaphysical influences of these stars on life and the soul. Erigone, is a type of spider also known as the ‘money spider’ and is found in low lying ground or within fallen trees. Erigone is said to be Ariadne. The princess who married Dionysus after she was abandoned on a cliff by Thesus, the prince of Athens, whom she guided out of the Labyrinth with red thred. Ariadne also connects to Archinae or the spider. The builder of the Labyrinth, Daedalus is Erigone’s grandfather. Erigone is the ordering of a new generation, a new cycle to immortality. The voyage to unify and reorder society to higher meaning. The creation and creator become one. The tree in which her father, Icarius was killed and which she hung herself from is the connection between above and below. The link to source, and the unification of generation. The rope, the tie the connection to our source. How we use the connection, and how one is tethered to source and the original promise within the lifecycle. Esoteric spiritual texts signify the tree as the above mirroring the below. The spirit world unto earth, or what is previous feeds and creates the offspring. These references carry us deeper into Isis and Nephthys. The seat of the mother. This position also presents a challenge in ‘sacrifice’ to higher order to the commander or father within. It is the connection to the immortal within. 

There’s plenty to uncover with Erigone. The influence of Apollo is not directly referenced in the myth. This shows us the wisdom and cycles of communication and the oracle. The inner guidance is dictated here through the cycles of consciousness and also to the inner ordering of worlds and words. This myth unfolds deeper connections to society, and social ordering through the exaltation. The one that cursed the people is from a ‘higher’ plane of consciousness. Dionysus is the access to that plane. The vine the vintage, is the correlation to ancestor, higher ordering, but also the process of transformation that happens through the cycles of time and creation- ie. seasons, or dual cycles within one nature-form. Lastly, as seen with the (money) spider named after Erigone, there is a connection to wealth and weaving of infinite. Health is aspected as the plague, disobeying ordering causes unrest, and dis-ease. Ascelpius is the healer that brought the symbol of the caduceus, and was known to teach immortal life, or ressurrection from the dead. These themes are foundational within the 8th month of the Roman calendar, where opening the doors to the underworld, Mundus was celebrated and when wine was honored. We now know our connection to the other worlds and our powers to immortalize and use wine as a sacred drink that connects us to the passage of divine either in intervention or in resurrection. 

Virgo is known to be a bit neurotic, it is due to the subject/object influences within the mind. The mirror is strong in this position. It mirrors the Atman, or how the source mirrors itself to see itself. It crosses the 3 mental realms. There is a sensitivity to imagination, connection to others, and art and brilliance. Health and healing are a part of the regeneration. The mind is what is illuminated from within, the reversal, the death, the hidden to lifecycles. The cosmic waters positioned draws from the eternal, and is how we use and see the connection to exalt to guide one into the depths of regeneration (opposite from Pisces).  The Tree as the The ordering, the weaving of life and order goes through 7 cycles, in which the 8th cycle begins a new order, a transformation. In some accounts it is a Laurel Tree- the bay leaf, which brings visions (oracular sight) into awareness. It was sacred to Athens, and the priests of Apollo- communication with the Gods.