Helius was the god of the sun. He ruled no particular area
on the earth’s surface because he had not been present
when Zeus was busy assigning jobs to the gods. Helius’s
main job was to ride a chariot across the sky each day. This
chariot was very important because, in fact, it was the sun
itself. The sun gave light and warmth to the earth, and its
travels across the heavens caused day and night. Helius
was careful never to let anything jeopardize the daily rising
and setting of the sun.
Although he was very busy, Helius had an affair with
Clymene, a mortal woman. Clymene lived in the
geographical area that is now known as Ethiopia. The
couple had a son named Phaethon. Soon after the birth of
Phaethon, the love affair ended, and Clymene married a
prince who raised the boy as his own son. The prince and
Clymene had other children after their marriage, and they
all lived very happily for many years.
The happiness of the royal family was shattered,
however, when Clymene confided to Phaethon that her
husband, the prince, was not the boy’s real father.
Clymene told Phaethon that his father was Helius, the sun
god. Phaethon was amazed at what his mother told him. Phaethon was so obsessed with this shocking news
that he bragged about his important father to the other
boys at school. However, the other boys did not believe
him, and although they were his friends, the boys teased
Phaethon about his story. They just could not believe that
their friend was the son of a god, suspecting instead that
this story was just another one of Phaethon’s fantasies.
One of his friends challenged Phaethon and said, “If Helius
is really your father, show us some proof. Then we will
believe you.”
Determined to show his friends that he was telling the
truth, Phaethon went home and asked his mother to help
him prove that Helius was really his father. Clymene had
no physical evidence available to prove that the god was
her son’s father. However, she promised to show Phaethon
the way to Helius’s palace where he could ask the god
himself for some proof.
With his mother’s directions, Phaethon easily found
the god’s palace. He could hardly believe his eyes when he
saw it for the first time. It was the most magnificent
building the boy had ever seen. In fact, it was probably one
of the most beautiful palaces ever built. Nervously,
Phaethon approached the majestic dais where Helius was
