Legend Of The Christmas Star

There are many legends associated with Christmas holiday and the legend of Christmas Star is one among them. The biblical accounts in Mathew and Luke tell about astronomical events and occurrence in the night sky on the day Jesus was born in the stable amongst the cattle and horses at Bethlehem. The Roman Emperor Augustus had sent Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem. They set on a 125 Km journey by foot, on the back of a donkey. The travel was tiresome for Mary as she was in her 9th month of pregnancy and when they arrived at the destination, Bethlehem was teeming with people that they did not find room to stay at the inn. So, Mary delivered baby Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem. According to the legend, the strange star appeared before the birth of Jesus. The wise men interpreted it as a sign of a great event in the land of the Jews.

Christmas And The Star
It is believed that Jesus was born in 3 BC. A Mesopotamian prophet named Balaam foretold the coming of the Star that would announce Messiah for all the tribes of Israel. Zoroaster, a pupil of Daniel, had compiled these predictions in his bible known as the Zend Avesta. It foretold that there would be born unto the Jews a King Messiah, and that His coming would be heralded by a sign in the heavens in the constellation Virgo. So, it is said that on 14th September 3 BC and 17th February and 8th May in 2 BC, the planet Jupiter was positioned next to the brightest star in Leo -Regulus. Regulus represents Royalty. On June 17th 2 BC, the two brightest planets in the Solar System Venus and Jupiter seemed to collide. These two planets stood at 1/50th degree distance and appeared to combine into one immense ball of Light.

This was considered an unprecedented event in the history. Then on 27th August in 2 BC there took place a splendid meeting of the planets in Virgo. Mars and Jupiter were just 1/7th degree away from each other and within the spitting distance were Mercury and Venus standing together in the glare of the rising sun. This spectacular sequence of events ending in Virgo was later identified/ recognized as the Star spoken in the Zend Avesta. In the morning Jupiter moved westwards and left the other planets. The planet Jupiter was instrumental in the appearance of Christmas star. Six weeks after the spectacular sequence of events, the planet Jupiter was found on the Meridian due south of Jerusalem. So it appeared directly over Bethlehem 65 degrees above the southern horizon. At the time of final event, Jupiter had reached its furthest point westward, and it no longer shifted against the background store. The star stood over where the infant Jesus was. Astonishingly, the Sun was at its furthest point south for the year and stood still in the celestial sphere on the same day. So, as foretold in the Zend Avesta, Jupiter was in the constellation Virgo. This happened on 25th December in 2 BC. It was unprecedented sequence of events that landed the Magoi at Bethlehem.

It was called as the star of Bethlehem and as a result Pisces became the special constellation for the Hebrews. So, the appearance of strange start was believed to be miracle throughout the world. Today, Christmas holiday begin with the sighting of the first star on the eve of Christmas. In Poland, The Festival of the Star is held and on the eve of the Christmas when meals are served, the priest acts as the "Star Man" and tests the children's knowledge of religion. It has been custom in Alaska for girls and boys to carry a star shaped figure from house to house and sing carols in to get Christmas treats. While in Hungary, a star-shaped pattern is engraved in a half of an apple and hold belief that it will bring good luck. The Christmas star symbolizes hope for good fortune, high hopes high ideals and hope for reaching above oneself.