Here we go again -- once upon a time ....
Aristotle
wrote: "Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies."
Dr.
Seuss wrote: "We're all a little weird, and life's a little weird. And when we
find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and
fall in mutual weirdness and call it love."
I
am not certain, but I think those two are saying the same thing in their own ways.
In any event, Valentine's Day is upon us again and, with that, I bid you Happy
Valentine's Day and convey wishes your love life may be smoother than, but as thrilling as, that of
Eros and Psyche.
Eros
(Cupid / Astrilde) was the son of Aphrodite (Venus
/ Freyja) and the personification of intense love. Eros is the guy running
around shooting arrows of love into humankind causing them to fall in love, hence the image of Cupid. Psyche
was the youngest of three daughters of a king and renowned for her beauty. She
was so beautiful, in fact, that Aphrodite became jealous and ordered Eros to
make her fall in love with a monster. The dutiful son set out to do that, but
fell in love with the exquisite maiden himself when he saw her .... the story goes
on from there and is easy to find, should anyone be curious enough to pursue
it.
In
fact, C.S. Lewis, author of such classics as "The Screwtape Letters" and "The
Chronicles of Narnia," wrote a retelling of the "myth" of Cupid
and Psyche in the form of a novel and told the tale from the perspective of one of Psyche's
sisters. "Till We Have Faces" is the novel and was the last Lewis wrote. It deeply
delves into religious ideas, but in the context of a pagan setting. The book
has been described as reading for mystics of any and all religions.
I hope
a few of you will read it, whether or not if you think of yourself as a mystic ....
For more clarity, if you wish it:
Eros
or Amor is a male from the Old Greek; Cupid is a male from the Latin/Roman;
Astrilde is a female from the Old Norse and a relatively late Nordic persona
for Eros or Cupid. Essentially, they are names for the same "god" in their respective cultures.
Aphrodite
is from the Old Greek; Venus is from the Latin/Roman; Freyja is from the Old
Norse. All are female and, essentially, the same "god" in their respective cultures.
In
the spirit of Valentine's Day, here are two videos of young ladies singing
their hearts out in the name of love: Giacomo Puccini's "O
Mio Babbino Caro" from Gianni Schicchi sung by Valentina Naforniță and Элизиум с Таней Малой на подиуме.
I like both performances and I hope a few of you will, as well ....
