Helios,[a] also spelled Helius, is the Greek personification and god of the sun, believed to ride his chariot across the sky each day. He was the patron deity of Rhodes, and there stood a large statue of him, the Colossus of Rhodes, until it fell during an earthquake in 226 BC. His worship was also popular in Corinth.
In Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus and his men are stranded on the island of Thrinacia, where Helios has herds of cattle. The cattle were attended to by Phaethusa and Lampetia, daughters of Helios and Naeara. Odysseus's men disobey Odysseus and kill Helios's cattle, and they receive divine punishment.[1]
According to Hesiod's Theogony, Helios is the son of Hyperion and Theia, and he is the brother of Selene (the moon) and Eos (the dawn).[2] Both the Odyssey and Theogony mention that, with the Oceanid Perseis, he fathered Circe and Aeetes.[3][4]
Pindar records in his seventh Olympian Ode a myth of how Helios became the patron of Rhodes. When the gods cast lots to divide the land amongst themselves, Helios was absent and received no share. Zeus offered to recast the lots, but Helios refused, saying he foresaw a fertile island rising out of the sea. He had Zeus swear to let him have that island for his share should his prediction come to pass, and Rhodes indeed rose from the sea as Helios had foretold.[5]
The philosopher Anaxagoras famously denied that the sun was a god and said it was in fact a fiery stone.
In the context of Persona 2: Eternal Punishment, Helios for Katsuya Suou pairs with his brother Tatsuya's Apollo, as both gods were associated with the sun and even were sometimes identified with each other in late antiquity.[6]
Design
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Helios is designed as a cat-like humanoid due to Katsuya Suou's love of cats.[7]
↑"g_spotp: @kazumaKaneko666 そういや克哉兄さんのペルソナのヘリオス、猫モチーフなのは本人の猫好きからでしょうが、ポットメーカーのヘリオスも関係あるのでしょうか？" g_spotp, [1]. Published August 2, 2026. Retrieved August 4, 2026. X."kazumaKaneko666: ヘリオスは克哉の猫好きからあのデザインにしました。そしてこのメーカーさんのことは全く知らなかったので驚きです。これこそ超自然的な繋がりか集合無意識の成せる技ですね。教えてくださり有難うございます！" Kazuma Kaneko, [2]. Published August 2, 2026. Retrieved August 4, 2026. X.
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Artwork from Persona 2: Eternal Punishment
Sprite from Persona 2: Eternal Punishment
Card graphic from Persona 2: Eternal Punishment