The myth

Actaeon is the hunter who was torn to pieces by his own dogs after having been turned into a stag by Artemis, whom he had seen unrobed. Artemis is the hunting goddess. That was the misfortune of Actaeon. For not knowing what he did, he came to be punished and suffered to be hunted, just as he had hunted. The story was something of a puzzle to the classical Greeks. Did Actaeon deserve such punishment? Would he have bragged of having seen a nude goddess? Artemis ruled the wilderness, the untamed frontiers of nature.

Today we might wonder: Did her realms also include inner terrains and the uncharted emotional wilderness? This independent, and yet compassionate goddess was readily available to others, but also vulnerable. And not known to have had particularly satisfying relationships with men. Now gods and mortals call her by her thrilling name, The deer-slaying-hunter, And she is pure of marriage and erotic love.

In one myth Actaeon interrupted her yearly bath in a sacred pool which renewed her virginity. Possibly a symbol for the renewal of the land in the spring of each year. As a punishment of intruding on her mystery he was transformed into a stag and torned apart by his dogs. Normally, dogs are the perfect companions for hunters. But in this case, their presence was deadly. The animals simply did not recognize Actaeon in his new stag form. So Actaeon’s hounds, blinded with lust for this tempting prey, pounced upon their master and tore him apart. Thus ending the life of the unlucky man.

And Artemis had her revenge... Artemis probably bathed after the murder, not before.