Concept

Ursa Major

Overview

Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear, is a constellation in the Northern Sky, whose associated mythology likely dates back into prehistory. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) bear", referring to and contrasting it with nearby Ursa Minor, the lesser bear. In antiquity, it was one of the original 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD, drawing on earlier works by Greek, Egyptian, Babylonian, and Assyrian astronomers. It is the third largest of the 88 modern constellations.

Ursa Major is primarily known from the asterism of its main seven stars, which has been called the "Big Dipper", "the Wagon", "Charles's Wain", or "the Plough", among other names. In particular, the Big Dipper's stellar configuration mimics the shape of the "Little Dipper". Two of its stars, named Dubhe and Merak (α Ursae Majoris and β Ursae Majoris), can be used as the navigational pointer towards the place of the northern pole star, Polaris in Ursa Minor.

Ursa Major, along with asterisms it contains or overlaps, is significant to numerous world cultures, often as a symbol of the north. Its depiction on the flag of Alaska is a modern example of such symbolism.

Ursa Major is visible throughout the year from most of the Northern Hemisphere, and appears circumpolar above the mid-northern latitudes. From southern temperate latitudes, the main asterism is invisible, but the southern parts of the constellation can still be viewed.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).

Possible passages

Found by search and not yet checked by a person; they may only mention the idea in passing.

1. Again, certain of these persons likewise allow the alternate arrangement of the signs; while there are, again, others who do not admit it; but, instead thereof, divide the whole zodiac into quadrants, and denominate those between the ascendant and the mid-heaven, and between the western angle and the lower haven, oriental and masculine; and the other two quadrants, occidental and feminine. There have also been other…

   Ptolemy, Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos

   States what Ursa Major is.

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2. Aristotle, that it is formed by the fifth body, and by the mixture of extreme heat and cold. CHAPTER XII. INTO HOW MANY CIRCLES IS THE HEAVEN DISTINGUISHED; OR, OF THE DIVISION OF HEAVEN. Thales, Pythagoras, and the followers of Pythagoras do distribute the universal globe of heaven into five circles, which they denominate zones; one of which is called the arctic circle, which is always conspicuous to us, another is…

   Plutarch, Complete Works of Plutarch — Volume 3

   States what Ursa Major is.

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3. According to him, then, there are three heavens, the aerial, the starry, and one higher than both these, of which the Apostle is understood to speak when he says of himself that he was "rapt to the third heaven." But since this space contains two elements, namely, fire and air, and in each of these there is what is called a higher and a lower region Rabanus subdivides this space into four distinct heavens. The…

   Aquinas Thomas, Summa Theologica, Part I

   States what Ursa Major is.

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Philosophers who discussed Ursa Major

• Thales of Miletus

Related ideas

• Hinduism
• Homer
• Almagest
• Japanese language
• Vishnu
• Odyssey
• Greek mythology
• Ptolemy
• Classical antiquity
• Sun
• South Korea
• Shinto
• Roman mythology
• Scientific American
• William Shakespeare
• Zeus
• Ovid
• Theosophy
• Chinese language
• Human
• Earth
• Atri
• Vasishtha
• Draco (constellation)

Place in the tradition

Part of Confucianism.

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