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Cupid and Psyche (English Version)

There was was a king who had three beautiful daughters. The youngest, Psyche, was significantly more attractive than her two sisters and appeared to be a goddess in the midst of regular people. Men kept visiting her palace to adore and worship her because of how well-known for its beauty the entire country was.

People used to remark about Psyche that not even Aphrodite herself could compete with her. Less people would remember the goddess of love and beauty as more people got to know Psyche. Aphrodite's temples were deserted, her altars were covered in icy ashes, and the artists stopped creating statues of her. At that point, a simple, mortal girl was given credit for all the honours that were due to her.

The goddess needed Eros' son's (Eros is also know as the Cupid) assistance because she could not accept the predicament. In anguish, he pleaded with him, "Use your ability to cause this tiny shameless girl to fall in love with the most hideous and repugnant creature that has ever walked the Earth." Eros consented to do it, but the instant he laid eyes on her, he felt one of his own arrows slice his own heart. He made the decision to keep his mother in the dark because he was unable to make that lovely maiden fall in love with a terrible beast.

Psyche, on the other hand, was unhappy since, in addition to being unable to fall in love, nobody appeared to genuinely love her. Men were content to only admire her. Then they moved on and wed another girl. Even though they were undoubtedly less alluring, her two sisters had each had a magnificent wedding with a king. The most gorgeous girl on Earth, Psyche was lonely and depressed. She was always admired but never truly loved. Her parents were quite worried and distressed since it appeared that no man would desire her as his wife.

At that point, her father travelled to Delphi to consult the oracle there to seek Apollo's guidance on how to proceed with finding Psyche a husband. The god's forecast was horrible. Apollo commanded that Psyche, clad in a black dress, be taken to the top of a mountain and left there by herself. The man who was supposed to be her husband would appear and claim her as his wife. He was a frightening, god-like winged serpent.

Nobody can fathom Psyche's friends and family's anguish. They led the young lady to the hill while she was dressed for death and sobbing more loudly as if they were taking her to the grave. They fled in haste, leaving Psyche alone and defenseless, and they barricaded themselves in the castle to grieve for her for the rest of their lives.

Psyche sat and waited on the hill, in the darkness. She was trembling and sobbing in the silent night when a gentle breeze touched her. It was the Zephyr breeze, which is the gentlest of all the winds. He thought she was being brought up. She was being carried through the air and over the precipitous hill to a shady meadow dotted with flowers. Cupid made an effort to distract her from her suffering and put her to sleep.

When she opened her eyes, she saw an impressive and majestic castle. She was immediately roused by the sound of a clean stream. With gold columns, silver walls, and floors covered in expensive stone inlays, it appeared predestined for a god. There was complete quiet. It appeared to be uninhabited, so Psyche slowly approached to take in its beauty. At the threshold, where she could hear a sound but not see anyone, she remained wary. She could, however, clearly hear them: "The house is for you." Do not be frightened to enter. After you take a bath, we'll treat you to a wonderful dinner right away.

She had never experienced such a revitalizing bath or enjoyed such delectable food. While she was eating, she was surrounded by soft music that sounded like a harp accompanying a large choir. She could hear it but not see it. She was all by herself the entire day, with just the sounds for company. Yet she had some inkling that her spouse would visit at night. So it turned out. Her worries vanished as soon as she felt his proximity to her and heard his soft voice murmuring in her ear. She was positive, even before she had saw him, that he was not a monster but rather the devoted husband she had always wanted.

The days that followed were filled with happiness, and Psyche was unable to recall a happier period in her life. She was, however, depressed that she couldn't see her spouse every day. She was also alone the entire day, which made her incredibly bored. She suddenly began to miss her family. She must have been alive and joyful while they were in sorrow for her. She felt that this was unfair and that her family shouldn't suffer.

She requested a favor from her enigmatic husband that evening. She requested that her two sisters visit the palace and check on her. That would give her elderly parents some comfort. At first, her husband was hesitant, but after seeing how dejected Psyche had become, he agreed. OK, I'll let your sisters come up here, but I'm cautioning you not to let them sway you. If they do, you will suffer greatly and our relationship will be destroyed.

The following day, her two sisters approached Psyche while being carried by the wind. They all shed tears of joy at seeing one another. However, the two older sisters were astounded by all those amazing riches when they first visited the palace. They enjoyed the finest wines and excellent music while they dined. They were filled with jealousy and an overwhelming desire to learn more about the husband of Psyche, the possessor of such splendor. The poor girl was repeatedly quizzed about her husband's appearance and line of work. He is a young hunter, as Psyche just mentioned.

Of course, they didn't take her word for it. Could a no-frills hunter be that wealthy? They reasoned that he must be a prince or possibly a deity. The two sisters devised a scheme to harm Psyche because they were so bitterly jealous of her success and pleasure in comparison to their own. As they parted ways, the two wicked ladies informed Psyche that her spouse must be the terrible snake that the oracle of Delphi had predicted. That is the reason he won't let you see him. Because he is aware that you will be repulsed by him and leave him forever if you see him. Oh, poor Psyche, how could you possibly sleep with such a dreadful being?

Psyche was unable to think of anything else after that day except these words. Surely her sisters are correct. Why won't he visit me during the day? Why will he not let me see him? What's his trade-secret? Why hasn't he ever shared his life story with me? Psyche struggled with these ideas for several days. He must be concealing something dreadful if he does not want to be observed in broad daylight. I must learn more. I'll light a candle to watch him tonight as he drifts off to sleep. I'll kill him if he's a snake. If not, I'll blow out the candle and sleep soundly. He had accepted her choice, disregarding everything else.

In fact, she had the bravery to light the candle after her husband fell asleep comfortably that night. She approached the bed while standing on her toes and exhaled a sigh of relief. The most attractive of guys was revealed by the light, not a monster. Psyche knelt down and thanked the gods for her happiness, embarrassed by her insanity and lack of self-confidence. However, a drop of oil dripped from the candle on the back of that dashing young man as he was leaning on him. He felt discomfort as he awoke and saw the light. Faced with Psyche's mistrust, he gave her a direct glance before silently leaving their bedroom.

Psyche took off for her husband right away. She could not see him because it was dark, but she could hear his anguished voice saying, "Love cannot survive without faith." He said those last things before taking off into the night. She pondered the god of love. Even though he was my spouse, I didn't trust him. She cried nonstop for days before deciding she would do anything to get him back. She would go out of her way to find him and show him how much she loved him.

She visited the Aphrodite shrine and offered prayers to the goddess because she was at a loss for what to do. She enlisted Aphrodite's help in convincing her son to bring Psyche home by speaking to him. Of course, Aphrodite still had resentment for Psyche and desired her vengeance. She explained to the little girl that she had to be certain that Psyche was the right wife for her son. Psyche must therefore complete three challenges to demonstrate her abilities. Eros would be permanently lost if she failed to complete even one of these duties.

Aphrodite escorted Psyche to a hill after she had consented. The goddess took her to a dune full of many little seeds, including millets, poppies, and wheat. By this afternoon, I want these seeds separated. Aphrodite said, "If you don't, I won't ever let you see Eros again." How is that possible, see? How did the eye distinguish all of these tiny seeds? She cried since this was such a painful task. A swarm of ants was moving by at the time and noticed her helpless state. They murmured to each other, "Come, have mercy on this unfortunate child, and let us assist her." They all complied with this request and laboured assiduously to separate the seeds, which they were all skilled at doing. These smaller dunes saw Aphrodite and became angry.

Your job is not yet complete. As she reclined back on her plush bed, she remarked and told Psyche to go to sleep on the ground without any food. She reasoned that Psyche's beauty would not resist if she could make her labour hard for a very long period. While all was going on, Aphrodite forbade her son from leaving his room, where he had been spending the entire time lamenting Psyche's betrayal.

The following morning, Aphrodite received a fresh assignment from Psyche that was extremely risky. Can you make out the dark waves coming down from the hill? That is the River Estige, terrible and disgusting. The goddess said, "Fill this bottle with its water." When Psyche arrived at the waterfall, she discovered that the nearby rocks were treacherous and steep. Only a creature with wings could approach the waters as they surged past such abrupt rocks.

Indeed, an eagle came to her aid. It observed Psyche while soaring over the river on its enormous wings and felt sorry for her. With its beak, it grabbed the bottle out of her hands, filled it with some dark water, and then handed it back to Psyche. Venus gave her a cool look of acceptance. She said harshly that if not for someone's assistance, you would not have been able to complete this assignment on your own. You now have another opportunity to demonstrate that you are as resolute as you claim to be.

She gave Psyche a box. She was forced to bring it to the Underworld and beg Persephone, the ruler of the Dead, to pour some of her beauty into the box. As usual, Psyche followed orders and followed the route to Hades. She paid Charonte the boatman a lot of money to guide her in the dark to the palace of Persephone when she entered the gates and took the boat to the other bank, where the dead people used to leave.

She was assisted by the boatman, and after some time, she was standing in front of Persephone. Persephone was happy to assist Aphrodite when she requested that she place a drop of her beauty in the box. Psyche took the box and cheerfully made her way back to Earth. The goddess was very angry when she presented the package to Aphrodite. She raged at the poor girl, telling her she would always be her servant and that she would never let her leave.

The Gods, who had been observing this transgression all along, made the decision to intervene at this important time. They dispatched the messenger God Hermes to inform Eros of all the tragedies his wife was experiencing. The act of touching Eros helped to heal his betrayal wound. When he emerged from his room, Psyche was slumped over in his mother's garden.

From that point forward, Eros (Cupid) and Psyche cohabitated blissfully in their gorgeous castle, which was perpetually adorned with roses and other blooms. Eros was convinced by Psyche to pardon his mother for the suffering she had endured. Zeus gave Psyche immortality and access to ambrosia, the divine beverage, as a wedding present. Even Aphrodite was delighted since men on earth had completely forgotten about her and were once more adoring the real goddess of beauty now that Psyche was living in the sky with her husband.

Other Mythology you might want to read:

Ang Minotaur Bull Head Man (Buod)

Hercules at ang Erymanthian Boar (Buod)

Ang labindalawang gawain ni Hercules (Buod)

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