Week 2 Storytelling: How Psyche Found Her Lost Love Cupid

There once was a beautiful princess- in fact, the most radiant in all the land- named Psyche who was married to the handsome god Cupid. However, Psyche did not know who her mysterious husband was because he was sworn by his mother to keep his identity a secret and thus visited her only in the pitch black night, always gone by morning. Cupid longed for Psyche to know who he was, but he could not disobey his mother Venus's divine orders for she did not approve of his marriage to the mortal princess Psyche. Psyche also yearned to know who her husband was, so one night, while he was asleep, she snatched a candle she had hidden under her bed and lit it with a match she had found.

Unbeknownst to Psyche, Venus had placed a spell on her son Cupid so that if Psyche ever discovered his true identity, the god Zephuros would send a mighty wind to snatch Cupid up and bring him back to her divine palace. While she loved her son very much and wanted him to be happy, she did not trust her mortal daughter-in-law, so she devised this spell in case her son were ever in danger. The second the light from the candle graced her husband's face, a fierce wind threw open the balcony doors to their room, untangled the sleeping Cupid from the sheets, and swept him into the sky. Psyche could hear Cupid crying out her name as he was taken from her and she knew she must follow him.

Without hesistation, she flung herself off the balcony and caught the tail of the mighty wind that had carried Cupid. As she passed through layers of clouds and saw the brilliant beautiful stars, Psyche was gently lowered from the stream of wind to a soft cloudlike surface. She looked around in amazement to realize that she stood at the gate to a divine neighborhood, beautifully lavish and fit for the gods and demigods. She knew that Venus must live here, for she was far too social to miss out on this type of neighborhood, and rushed through the gate in hopes of finding her dear Cupid.

 

(Royal Palace inspired by The Hall of Mirrors)

The first palace she approached was ornately decorated with beautiful flowerbeds, a small stream, and gold statues of legendary feats and fights of the gods. Psyche knocked on the enormous french doors of the mansion and was greeted by a young servant. She asked to speak to the god or goddess of the palace and was brought to the beautiful goddess whom she recognized as Juno draped in the finest silks and being fed a platter of grapes. Psyche fell to her knees and pleaded for assistance in finding her husband.

"Venus is a dear friend of mine, sweet princess, and I could not betray that friendship by helping the very woman she is simply trying to protect her son from. I am sorry. I cannot help you and I must ask you to be on your way," whispered Juno as she dismissed Psyche from her presence.

Discouraged, Psyche left the palace to repeat her request to the next god or goddess she met. After knocking at the next palace and being greeted by a servant, she was led to a royal chamber where the goddess Ceres was having her luscious locks of flowing hair braided into an elegant updo. Without even looking Psyche, Ceres briskly asked what she needed and why she was bothering her.

"Listen, child, Venus and I have been friends for many years and she would be extremely angry with me if she knew I was even speaking to you. She told me all about your relationship with Cupid and I must say that I agree with her. Now leave me so I can finish readying myself for a lunch party with Venus herself this afternoon," said Ceres after hearing Psyche's story and still arrogantly staring at herself in the mirror, never even bothering to look at Psyche as she was escorted outside.

Psyche sat on the sidewalk outside of Cere's palace and sobbed in dismay that no one would help he find her one true love. Then just when she thought she would never see him again, the goddess Aphrodite paused while on a stroll and asked why she was crying. Psyche, through many tears, explained her plight and requested the goddess's assistance.

"Oh honey, Venus has been driving me absolutely crazy for the last million years and I would love nothing more than to bother her in any way possible, especially if that means reuinting you with your one true love. Come with me. I'll sneak you into Venus's house through the back entrance and help you find Cupid!" Aphrodite excitedly offered while grabbing Psyche's hand and running to the most beautiful palace in the whole neighborhood.

Aphrodite led Psyche through the back gate, inside a back door, through a closet and secret hallway, finally approaching a bedroom. Aphrodite swiftly opened the door to reveal Cupid staring longingly out the window while his mother Venus tried to convince him to forget Psyche. Upon hearing the door fling open, Cupid cried out in joy and ran to his beloved wife, smothering her in hugs and kisses. As Venus screamed to the guards to take a laughing Aphrodite away, Cupid and Psyche saw their chance to escape the divine neighborhood and return home. They lived happily ever after and even moved to a new house so that Venus could never find them and interrupt their love story again.

(Cupid and Psyche reunited. Painted by Jean-Pierre Saint-Ours)

Author's Note:
For the most part, I followed the premise of the story when Psyche is searching for her Cupid and runs into Juno and Ceres. However, I thought it would be fun to create a heavenly neighborhood and explore the relationships between the other goddesses and Venus. It was fun to imagine her running around lost through a neighborhood of beautiful mansions. I also wanted to expand on the relationships of Juno, Ceres, and Venus and even added another character, Aphrodite, who didn't side with Venus after all. I thought this was funny that she would be the only one who did not want to help her, insteading helping Psyche. The final change I made was that Cupid was unwillingly whisked away by Venus, rather than him running away from her as in the original story. I wanted them to both be yearning for each other and to be reuinted so that there was a happy ending when they did.

 Bibliography: This story is based on Cupid and Psyche by Apulieus and translated by Tony Kline