Artemis and Orion: two wild souls who shared a love for the hunt and freedom, but the goddess could never fully reach him. This song tells that impossible closeness, and also Orion’s excessive pride, which ended in tragedy when he dared to claim he could hunt any beast on Earth.
There are several real astronomy clues hidden in the lyrics. Three are a trio of aligned jewels that form part of the hunter’s body. Another marks where new stars are born, right below those three jewels. There are two more, a shoulder and a foot, that burn in completely different colors. And the last one has to do with something that passes very close to this constellation every month, almost brushing against it, but never quite touching it.
Lyrics
(Running through the night!)
Three ancient gods had forged Orion tall and proud,
A restless storm escaping from the mortal crowd.
He wandered far beyond the edge of sea and stone,
Until the silver huntress made his shadow known. (Artemis!)
Bound by her sacred vows of purity and pride,
She walked the mountain peaks with no one by her side.
Yet in Orion’s pace, the moonlight turned to fire,
Two wild unbroken souls above the reach of earth’s desire! (running wild!)
Twin silver bows strung in silent harmony,
The only hand she never touched, yet longed to see!
They ruled the dark with wild laughter in their stride,
The mortal giant and the goddess side by side!
An unspoken flame burning far too deep,
A pure devotion that the heavens could not keep! (could not keep!)
Between the Moon and the Hunter’s pride,
An endless ache across the starry sky! (across the sky!)
Silver arrows in the burning space,
Two kindred souls in a forbidden chase!
Month by month she glides so near,
Longing for a touch she can only fear!
(Ooooh, shining through the dark!)
(Ooooh, so close yet torn apart!)
Blind with his swagger, drunk on strength and fearless pride,
Orion challenged heaven where the shadows hide!
“I can kill any beast upon this Earth!” he cried!
The Earth heard every boast and opened deep and wide! (from the dust!)
A creeping scorpion struck him down in mortal pain,
No arrow or divine decree could turn the strike in vain.
With broken heart, Artemis lifted up his fallen frame,
And wrote across the winter sky his everlasting name! (burn forever!)
Twin silver bows strung in silent harmony,
The only hand she never touched, yet longed to see!
They ruled the dark with wild laughter in their stride,
The mortal giant and the goddess side by side!
An unspoken flame burning far too deep,
A pure devotion that the heavens could not keep! (could not keep!)
Between the Moon and the Hunter’s pride,
An endless ache across the starry sky! (across the sky!)
Silver arrows in the burning space,
Two kindred souls in a forbidden chase!
Month by month she glides so near,
Longing for a touch she can only fear!
(Ooooh, shining through the dark!)
(Ooooh, so close yet torn apart!)
Look at his belt: three jewels set in stone!
Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka shone! (three in a line!)
Under his sword, creation starts to scream,
The great nursery of every newborn dream! (M-forty-two!)
Betelgeuse blazing red with an ancient plea,
Rigel glowing icy blue across the sea!
Every passing night, the crescent circles near,
Reaching out her frozen glow, aching in her tears!
Between the Moon and the Hunter’s pride,
An endless ache across the starry sky! (across the sky!)
Silver arrows in the burning space,
Two kindred souls in a forbidden chase!
Month by month she glides so near,
Longing for a touch she can only fear!
(Ooooh, shining through the dark!)
(Ooooh, so close yet torn apart!)
She passes by his shoulder in the frozen blue…
So close to the light, yet forever torn in two.
Never touching…
Never touching.
Arrows and stars forever.
Like every Astronomika Beats song, this one hides more than one astronomical clue. If you already caught them, tell us in the comments what you found. If not, give it another listen.