Words from Mythology pt VII: Arachnid

This blog is about the word arachnid which is any of the eight-legged creatures including spiders.

In Greek mythology there lived a human woman named Arachne who was known to be a great weaver. Just watching her weave was magical and women came from everywhere to do just that. She was so gifted at weaving that the women thought she must have been taught by Athena, the goddess of weaving.

It is here in the story that Arachne makes a huge mistake. She resented being called a student of Athena and told everyone that her weaving skills were far better than Athena’s.

Oh no she didn’t !!!

After hearing Arachne brag, Athena appeared to her as an old woman. She warned her against upsetting the gods. Arachne could care less and dared Athena to a weaving contest.

They both weaved scenes of the history of the gods. Athena’s were positive and Arachne’s were negative. Athena was so insulted she destroyed Arachne’s loom and tapestry. She turned Arachne into a spider condemning her to hang from her weaving forever.

Interestingly, spiders have been an ongoing inspiration in perfecting man’s weaving skills.

That’s it for Now

Keep the Peace

Next Blog: The Seven Chakras