A few days ago we experienced an eclipse of the Sun — total in some parts of the United States, supposedly about 83% totality here. It was supposed to be the event of the century and all sorts of weird things were supposed to happen… birds would stop flying, animals would act strange, the temperature would drop, and on and on.
We’ll, for me the great eclipse of 2017 was a bust. I admit I didn’t have the approved viewing glasses and I wasn’t as brave as the President to look at the Sun with no eye protection, but to me it was a non-event. The birds didn’t stop flying, the animals seemed as bored with the whole thing as I was, the temperature didn’t drop and at the peak of the eclipse we had more sun here that we do on a cloudy day. So if you saw it and were impressed, I’m happy for you… it just didn’t happen for me.
I suspect if I had been someplace where the eclipse was total, I’d have been impressed, but with all the media hype about everything that happens, it’s hard for any event to live up to expectations.
Apparently before everything was discussed on the news and the Internet, an event like this caused fear and panic. Before these things were explained by science, people just didn’t know what was happening. People attempted to explain eclipses the best way they could. Many people believed that gods and demons were involved and some blamed dragons. The Shan people (in what we now know as Vietnam) thought it was an evil spirit that took the form of a toad. But it seems like all the cultures shared the sentiment that somehow, there was a conflict between the celestial bodies.
Most of the stories about eclipses are folklore, but probably some are at least close to the truth and people really did act out of fear and lack of knowledge…
Chippewa people shot flaming arrows into the sky to try to rekindle the Sun. People in Peru did the same thing, but they were attempting to scare off a beast that wa attacking the Sun. In Transylvanian folklore, an eclipse stems from the angry Sun turning away and covering herself with darkness in response to men’s bad behavior.
In German mythology, the hot female Sun and the cold male Moon were married. The Sun ruled the day and the Moon ruled the night. Seeking companionship, the Moon was drawn to his bride and they came together — thus, a solar eclipse.
Solar eclipses seem to cause fear associated with pregnancy… many ancient people worried that an eclipse caused pregnancy issues such as blindness, cleft lips and birthmarks. Even today, many superstitions remain — pregnant women are sometimes warned to stay inside and not eat or carry sharp objects during the eclipse. Modern baby blogs ask if pregnant women should wear some sort of metal, such as a safety pin, to protect the baby. Baby superstitions may have originated with the Aztecs, who believed that a celestial beast was biting the Sun — and the same thing would happen to a baby if the pregnant mother watched.
The day of the eclipse I heard this on the radio: Thirty-eight years ago we had Steve Jobs, Bob Hope and the Sun. Today, we have no jobs, no hope and no sun. I actually know a couple of people than think like that. But ny favorite eclipse joke is about a boy that asked his dad if could tell him what an eclipse was. The dad’s response was, “No Sun.”
Another total solar eclipse will take place in the United States on April 8, 2024 and one of the places that will experience totality is Cleveland. Since I was so disappointed with 83% totality, I’m anxious to see if 100% will impress me. We’ve already got reservations.
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