ENDYMION (mortal shepherd)

Endymion led the Aeolians away from Thessaly and established the city of Elis.¹ To determine his successor, he organized a footrace at Olympia for his sons, offering the kingdom as the prize.^4,5 His son Epeius won the race and became king, and the subjects were first called Epeans in honor of his victory.⁴ Endymion was the father of Aetolus, Paeon, Epeius, and Eurycyda, though accounts differ regarding the mother of Aetolus, naming either a Naiad nymph or a woman named Iphianassa.^6,4

Zeus permitted Endymion to select his own desired fate regarding his mortality, granting him the ability to choose when to die.^1,7 He selected eternal sleep as his permanent state, remaining alive without aging or dying.¹ She watched him from the sky while he slept, and he was considered blessed because he slept without tossing or turning.^8,9

According to Licymnius, the god Somnus was in love with Endymion and put him to sleep while keeping his eyelids open so he could constantly look at his eyes.¹⁰

The Eleans claim that Endymion's tomb is located at the stadium's starting line, while people of Heracleia claim he retired to Mount Latmus.^11,12 His tomb is located in a cave near the small river by Latmus, where a memorial of Selene's couch remains beneath oaks.^13,8 Milk from cattle was poured out in the woods surrounding the cave, and men marvel at the whiteness of the milk memorial still visible there.⁸ The Moon-goddess remembered Endymion as her own love, whom death had swallowed up, even as he slept in the open in the region of Caria.^14,15