Valentines across myths and cultures
Cupid: The Romans believed in Cupid who is the God of erotic love and beauty. He has now turned into a pop cultural icon with his characteristic bow aimed at inspiring love among couples on Valentine’s Day. His usual depiction involves him carrying two sets of
arrows — one for love and the other for hatred.
Cupid is the son of Venus, who is the Goddess of Love and the messenger God Mercury. Cupid’s power is said to be even greater than his mother’s as he has control over the underworld, the ocean and Mount Olympus as well.
Kamadeva: He is referred to as the Hindu deity of Love and is the son of the goddess Sri. He is traditionally depicted as a young man with wings and is armed with a bow made of sugar cane, stringed by honeybees, while his arrows are decorated with five different fragrant flowers.
According to legend, goddess Parvati, having failed in her attempts to attract Lord Shiva sought Kamadeva’s help and he shot his love-arrow on Shiva’s heart. But Shiva who was disturbed in the midst of his trance opened his third eye and incinerated Kamadeva. Later the God of Love was granted immortality in an invisible form.
Rati: Hindus believe Rati to be the goddess of passion and lust. She is the daughter of Daksha and the consort of Kamadeva.
It was upon Rati’s request that Shiva resurrected Kamadeva from his ashes and granted him immortality. To this day, on the eve of Holi, Kamadeva is offered sandalwood paste as a medicine to soothe his searing wounds.
Eros: The Greeks believe in Eros who is said to be the first-born God of sexual love and beauty. He is also known for his powers of granting fertility. He was born from the union of Porus and Penia (plenty and poverty respectively). Eros is primarily a poster boy for male love. He is sometimes known as the liberator as well.
Aphrodite: She is another Greek goddess who is believed to be representative of love, beauty and raw sexuality. Her beauty was so great that the other Gods turned apprehensive about her disrupting the peace among them. She is often compared to Indo-European dawn goddesses like Usha and Aurora. Aphrodite’s speciality was that she could make any man fall in love with her at the very first glance.
Freyja: According to Norse mythology, Freyja is the deity of love, beauty and fertility. Freyja is said to be the ruler of the heavenly afterlife and is the recipient of half of those who have die in battle. Several plants in Scandinavian countries were named after the Goddess Freyja. But they were later replaced with the name of the Virgin Mary after Christianity spread to these parts.
— Compiled by Bijoy Bharathan
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