Cupid and Psyche

Originally this myth was placed under the Roman Deities, under the article of Cupid (Eros, Ἔρως), but I have now moved the article to this page. I have completely revised and rewritten this myth so it can be told more fully. The only source for this myth about Cupid and Psyche is Lucius Apuleius in the Golden Ass.

In an unidentified kingdom, the worship of Venus (Aphrodite) was fading away because the populace thought that the king's youngest daughter Psyche (Ψυχή) was more beautiful than the goddess of love and beauty. The populace began to worship the princess as a goddess.

Even though Psyche didn't ask for this attention from her father's subjects, the goddess became jealous over the girl usurping her divine position. She called upon her son Cupid (Eros), the god of love, to make sure no one would marry the young princess and that she would fall in love with a monster.

However, Cupid had instantly fallen in love with Psyche the moment he saw the mortal princess. Cupid wanted to marry the mortal girl, so he made arrangements that she would have him.

Cupid and Psyche
Antonio Canova

The king, Psyche's father, became concerned that many were coming to worship her daughter, but no suitors would dare ask for her hand in marriage. Her father went to an oracle in Miletus, but heard that his daughter had to be left on the mountain where an evil being (demon or monster) would take his daughter as his wife.

The king and Psyche's two sisters sorrowfully left Psyche on a high, rocky hill; she bravely waited for her demonic suitor. She met no one she could see when Zephyrus, god of the west wind, took her and spirited her off to her new husband's home.

Instead of demon's lair in a dark cave, she was surprised to see that her new home was a palace, larger and more splendid than her father's palace. Her needs were served by invisible servants. Her meals were more delicious than any she had ever tasted.

That first night, her husband came to her, but she couldn't see him in the darkness. At first, she felt fear, but his presence reassured her. Her husband (Cupid) told her that this home was hers, and that he loved her. However, he warned her that she must not look upon him in the light.

After the night of pleasure, her husband left in the morning, but each night he would visit her again, each time in bed under the cover of darkness. Psyche had never seen her invisible husband, nor did she know his name.

Psyche had fallen pregnant. Cupid informed her that if she looked upon him before their child is born then the baby would be mortal. The child would only be immortal if she didn't see his face until after birth.

On the fourth night, her husband informed her that her sisters were looking for her on the hill where they had last seen her, thinking that she was dead. Her lover told her that she could not ever see her family again. Even though Psyche enjoyed her time with her new husband and was happy, she began to pine for her home, and she missed her father and her two sisters. She complained bitterly night after night that she was lonely and that she missed her sisters.

Finally, her invisible husband relented, allowing the two sisters to visit her in the palace. The West Wind (Zephyrus) brought Psyche's sisters to her home. When her sisters arrived in the magical palace, they were enviously astonished to see the luxury their younger sister enjoyed, and were truly jealous of Psyche's good fortune.

The two sisters were astonished when they heard the reasons why Psyche had neither seen her husband nor know his name. They both secretly wished ill fortune for their youngest sister; they were jealous of her sister's wealth and secretly hatched a plot to discover his identity and end their sister's marriage. Each was motivated that this unknown god would marry her if he divorced Psyche.

On their second visit, the two sisters told Psyche that she should try to find out the identity of her husband, because it was said that he was a monster or demon. Why else would her husband not want her to see him, her jealous sisters told her. If he was a demon, then Psyche should kill the creature.

Psyche, finally having misgivings about her marriage, decided to act upon her sisters' advice. While her husband slept in their bed that night, Psyche fetched an oil lamp and a knife; she was determined to see what monstrous husband she had married and slay him in his sleep.

Trembling, she held an oil lamp in one hand and a knife ready to plunge into her husband's heart, as she approached the bed. But what she saw in the light was not a horrifying creature from the depths of hell, but a beautiful young man with golden wings. At the sight of her husband, she forgot that she was holding the oil lamp in her hand, and spilled a drop of hot oil onto his shoulder.

Her husband woke in pain, and saw that his wife had betrayed him. The love god left Psyche. Cupid returned to his mother in Olympus. Psyche was distraught that she had lost her husband who was none other than Cupid the god of love.

Upon hearing that that Psyche's husband was a god and he had deserted their sister, the two selfish sisters returned to the crag, each hoping that he would take her as his wife. Both sisters leaped off the hill, believing that Zephyrus would carry them to Cupid's palace. Instead they fell to their death.

Psyche blamed herself for not trusting her husband, because she was a naive girl. She had lost Cupid because of her curiosity and disobedience. She was determined to win her husband back. She prayed to Juno and Ceres, but they didn't answer, nor did Cupid return. She was hoping that by serving Cupid's mother as a servant or slave, Cupid would love her once more.

What Psyche didn't realise was that Venus hated her. The goddess had not forgotten that people from far away had abandoned her, and started worshipping Psyche. She was doubly upset that her son had slept with her mortal rival, begetting a child in Psyche. Now that the foolish girl had burned her son, Venus was determined to punish the girl.

Venus set Psyche a series of seemingly impossible tasks. In one task, she had to sort a roomful of different grains by nightfall. In this, a colony of ants helped Psyche sort the various grains in neat piles. Her next task involved gaining wool from a flock of deadly sheep that could kill any man or woman. The reeds advised Psyche that she could gather the wool that clung to bushes, instead of waking the sheep from their afternoon sleep.

Despite Psyche's success, Venus set her increasingly more difficult tasks. She had to fetch the deadly water from the river Styx that flowed out from the precipice of Mount Aroanius. She thought that she would die this time. This time, an eagle of Jupiter (Zeus) came to her aid. Taking the jar from Psyche, the eagle flew and filled the jar with the water from Styx.

Angry at her success, Venus demanded that Psyche fetch the make-up box from Proserpina (Persephone), the goddess of the Underworld. No mortal could hope to enter the World of the Dead and return. She wanted to end her life now, since there was no hope of her returning or winning Cupid back. She would have leaped off the high tower, but the building spoke, giving her instruction on how to succeed in this quest and return safely. The tower warned her not to open the box containing Proserpina's ointment.

Psyche entered the Underworld prepared. She crossed the Styx, paying Charon his toll of one obol (coin). She gave sweet honey cakes to the three-headed hound, Cerberus, so that she could pass through the gate of Hades. When she came to Hades' House, Psyche did as she was instructed to, refusing to sit on the chair and only accepting bread and no other food on the table.

Proserpina then filled the box with her cosmetics. She returned the same way she had come, giving more cakes to Cerberus and another coin to Charon. She soon reached the upper world, exiting the cave at Taenarum.

Once again, her curiosity brought disaster to her. She had forgotten the tower's warning about opening the box. She thought if she applied some small amount of cosmetic, she could possibly win back her husband. The moment she opened the cosmetic box, she fell into a deep slumber.

By this time, Cupid's shoulder had healed, and he forgot his anger with his wife's curiosity and disobedience. He flew off from home to find Psyche. He was still in love with her.

Cupid found her and woke her from her unnatural slumber. Psyche was happy that her husband had forgiven her. Cupid sent her off to his mother and completed her last quest, while Cupid went to Olympus and appealed to Jupiter (Zeus), to make his wife immortal. Jupiter agreed.

Cupid and Psyche lived happily ever after, and became the parents of a daughter named Volupta ("Pleasure").

As it can be seen in this tale of Cupid and Psyche, it has all the elements of a fairy tale. The magical palace with invisible servants; how creatures of all sorts helped her in her seemingly impossible quests. Talking reeds and a tower, giving sagacious advice to the naive girl. And lastly, the happy ending.

It is quite possible that this tale did influence later fairy tales.