Alectryon (mythology)
Ares turned the sleeping guard into a rooster.
Alectryon was a young soldier in Greek mythology who served the war god Ares. He is notable for being transformed into a rooster after falling asleep while guarding Ares during a secret love affair with Aphrodite. The story serves as an aetiological myth explaining the origin of roosters and their habit of crowing at dawn.
Quick Facts
- Greek name
- Ἀλεκτρυών (Alektruṓn)
- Meaning
- Rooster
- Role
- Young soldier, guard for Ares
- Transformed by
- Ares
- Reason for transformation
- Falling asleep while guarding Ares' affair with Aphrodite
Facts from the source article.
Did You Know?
- Both the words Alectryon and Halcyon might have been corrupted from Halaka, an old Persian appellation of the sun.
- In the Vendidad, the sacred bird Parodars, called by men kahrkatak, raises its voice at dawn.
- In the Bundahishn, the sun is spoken of as Halaka, the cock, the enemy of darkness and evil.
Mythology
According to Lucian, Alectryon was a young man beloved by Ares, with whom he drank, partied, and shared erotic adventures. Fearing that Helios would discover his affair with Aphrodite and inform Hephaestus, Ares commanded Alectryon to stand outside his door and watch for the sun god or any other witness. Alectryon stood guard while the two made love, but one day he fell asleep during his watch. Helios discovered the lovers the next morning and told Hephaestus, who created a net to ensnare and shame them. Furious, Ares punished Alectryon by transforming him into a rooster that never forgets to announce the rising of the sun by its crowing, as his way of apologizing, though this failed to make amends. According to Pausanias, the rooster is Helios' sacred animal, always crowing when he is about to rise.
More in Metamorphoses Into Birds in Greek Mythology
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