This is my favorite story !!!
Everyone knows Cupid, the young man who walks everywhere with an arrow, causing with it a feeling that many are afraid of losing their hearts or breaking into a thousand pieces without unification.
In itself, a long time ago a king had three daughters the two oldest were outstanding but the youngest named Psyche was the most perfect intelligent girl in the kingdom to such an extent that people had begun to abandon the altars of Venus, the goddess of love and beauty to worship Psyche. However, many called her the second Venus.
This furious at the fame of Psyche ordered her son Cupid to be wounded with one of his arrows.
"Come to your mother," he shouted at her. "Make her fall in love with the vilest of men, with the most cruel and miserable beast you can find."
Cupid immediately prepared to carry out her mother's order, but when the god of love laid her eyes on the marvelous maiden she accidentally wounded her finger with one of her arrows and that was how she herself fell in love with Psyche, tormented by such absolute passion , Cupid immediately flew in search of Apollo the god of light and truth and requested her help.
Soon after, all the admirers of Psyche disappeared her father could not understand why the followers of his daughter had disappeared and fearing the fury of the gods asked the advice of Apollo.
"Perhaps it has been decreed that your daughter be the wife of a god," Apollo said. -Let her stay alone at the top of the mountain and soon you will know if a god wishes to marry her.
When the king returned to his mansion and his family related what Apollo had said, they all broke into voices of fondness because they knew that they would soon lose the beautiful Psyche. But as the orders of the gods must always be carried out, the king and queen prepared their daughter for his lonely exile.
The entire city lit torches and to the sound of a single flute the people sang a funeral hymn as the beautiful princess was escorted to the top of a steep mountain.
Once the highest carpid peak was reached, Psyche spoke to her family and friends:
-Do not fear torment us I will compensate, it is better to let me go now in search of my destiny.
After such a brave word they all said to God and while they descended from the mountain the torches moistened by their tears were also extinguished Psyche cried until she fell asleep in the one of a certain height, more behold, while she was sleeping the west wind raised and transported her towards a flowery valley. So when she woke up in the morning she found herself lying on a bed of grass in front of a great palace with an ivory roof and gold columns, a sweet choir filled the air with their music and soft voices of invisible beings that were music in. her ear:
-All this is yours.
Psyche wandered through the gleaming golden palace, bathed in the reflecting waves of the fountain and ate delicious delicacies served by invisible hands. During the night Cupid came to her
-You are my wife- he said- I love you more than anything in the world but I must tell you never try to look at my face. I will only visit you at night which will be glorious and full of happiness.
When Psyche asked why she couldn't look at him Cupid only replied:
-Respect my prayer because if you look at me we will be separated forever. In reality Cupid had to find out that he was the son of Venus and worshiped as a god instead of loving him as an equal.
Psyche reveled in Cupid's nocturnal visits but during the day she felt sad and lonely one night she asked her husband for permission to bring her two sisters.
-If they come it will be the beginning of our ruin. Cupid said.
-Oh! No, please let them come! She begged him, "If I can't look at you at least let me see them."
As these words saddened Cupid he was sent to the west wind by Psyche's older sisters.
Once they arrived at the palace, they were very happy to see Psyche who was good and healthy, but as soon as they began to look and realized the splendor in which she lived they were filled with envy; and when they returned home and thought that their husbands were not as rich as their sister's, they were eaten up by jealousy.
On their second visit to the palace they asked to see Psyche's husband.
"I'm sorry, but I won't be able to introduce you," Psyche said.
-why? It is so ugly that you are ashamed to show it.
-No, he is not allowed to show himself, not even I have seen him in the daylight.
"How?" The two sisters yelled.
-I try not to give it importance -said Psyche -He is so gentle and kind ... and also seems to love me more than his own life.
When I was a these words were filled even more I sent you thinking that all the love that your sister received as soon as they got home they pulled their hair out and lamented bitterly because their own husbands were cold and harsh.
The sisters felt such terrible jealousy growing within them towards Psyche, so they decided to spoil her happiness. For when they returned to the palace one of them said:
- After all we don't think your husband is so wonderful.
- but it is- said Psyche
- Ah but it is not - said the other - we went to consult Oracle and he says that your husband is a disgusting and horrible monster, and that's why he won't let you look at him!
-No that's not true- Psyche said.
-If it is, it is also waiting for you to have a child of his to kill you.
-Nerd! Psyche was sobbing.
However, the sisters managed to convince her that her husband was actually a horrible monster, they also convinced her to bring a lamp to see him at night and then cut off his head.
***
In the middle of the darkness all was silence except for the soft sound of Cupid's breathing as he slept so he trembled as he slid out of bed and seized the oil lamp and the knife he had hidden in advance upon returning to bed Psyche She lit the lamp and then slowly raised it above Cupid's head, when she saw the flushed and glowing face of the son of Venus she was stunned. Even the light from the lantern shone brighter and happier as it illuminated the beautiful god.
Dazzled Psyche gently caressed her golden curls, bright white wings, and quiver; when he touched one of his arrows, he wounded her and fell doubly in love with the god of love. In her rapture she was about to fall to the ground and as she straightened she dropped a drop of oil from the lamp on Cupid's shoulder.
Cupid woke up and when he saw Psyche with the knife in her hand an expression of sadness crossed his face.
- My love, were you afraid that I was a horrible monster? And before I could answer, he said:
-There can be no love if there is no trust, I will never return to you. and with those sad words she prepared to fly. Crying in pain, Psyche launched herself towards Cupid and tried to hold onto him as he soared through the air but soon overcome by exhaustion, he fell to the ground and then, in the loneliness of the cold night, he wanted to die.
Later she went down the earth in search of her lost husband without knowing that Cupid suffered as much as she and that in her mother's palace he lay on the bed wounded by love for her, desperate she asked for help from all the gods and goddesses but none wanted to win. the wrath of Venus alone Ceres the goddess of the harvest dared to give him advice.
"Look for Venus and ask her forgiveness," he advised, "at this moment your son is in the palace suffering for you and Venus is tired of taking care of him. Beg him to join him again."
However as soon as Venus saw Psyche standing humbly in front of your door she gave a wild cry. The powerful goddess ordered her servants Restlessness and Sadness to pounce on the young woman and rip her clothes and pull her hair.
Once the horrendous attack was over, Venus turned with a smile to Psyche who was lying trembling on the ground.
-You want to see my son, you don't know that the one who hates and who never wants to look at you again, you really are such a vulgar and unfortunate creature that you give me pity, maybe I should train you to become worthy of a god.
Right away Venus gave him an assignment. He led her to a warehouse full of grains of different kinds.
-You should have them classified this afternoon. He said and with this word disappeared, in how many and Psyche seb faced the piles of barley, lentils and poppy seeds hopelessly something extraordinary began to happen an army of ants were gathering and in a few minutes waves of them took over the piles of grains. Each ant carried one seed at a time until they were all grouped into three different piles, when Venus and returned at dusk erupted in tremendous anger.
"Someone has helped you," he shouted. "In the morning I'll give you another task, then I threw him a hard piece of black bread and left him sleeping on the cold floor."
When the pink dawn of the next morning was pointing, Venus brought Psyche out and said:
-Go to the pasture that is next to the stream, there live ferocious sheep with golden fleeces, collect some of their wool and perhaps then you can become a person worthy of my son's love.
Psyche remained in front of the torrent that bordered the fields where the wild rams grazed and as she watched how they attacked each other she realized that she could never approach them without being killed and in desperation she wanted to drown in the current.
More then a green reed that swayed began to whisper in a melody -do not kill yourself Psyche or approach those terrible ram when the heat of midday arrived and they are taking their nap slide to the pasture and collect the golden flakes of wool hanging from sharp brambles and thorny bushes.
At noon when the sleepy rams lay taking their feasts Psyche crossed the stream and crawled into the pasture and in no time seized all the wool that hung from brambles and thorns.
When Venus saw all that wool she smiled bitterly
"Someone must have helped you," he said and handed it over to another task this time he wanted Psyche to fill a crystal goblet with the icy mountain water, collected from the mouth of the River Styx.
Psyche took the glass and began to climb the steep rocks of the mountain but when she was reaching the top she realized that she still lacked the worst of the task because the rocks at the mouth of the river were expected steep and slippery but in the same The moment he was thinking of throwing himself off the mountain an eagle passed by.
-Wait! he shouted, "Give me the crystal cup, I'll fly to the mouth of the river and bring the water."
Psyche handed the cup to the eagle; It is with its fierce beak, he grabbed the glass and went up to the top of the mountain when he had filled it, handed the glass to Psyche who brought the dark liquid to Venus.
When he was received, he accused the young woman of being a sorceress and then entrusted her with the most cruel of all tasks, handed her a chest and ordered her to go down with it to Hell to ask Queen Proserpina to fill him with a small portion of her beauty. Psyche thought that it had come to an end because he would never have the courage to descend into such abysses, to the terrifying land of the dead. In deep despair he then climbed to the top of a steep tower from where he prepared to launch himself to his death, more behold, when he was about to launch the tower he spoke:
-What cowardice prompts you now to give up Psyche? Treat yourself better than I will tell you how to get to hell and how to succeed in your search.
As soon as Psyche promised that she would not kill herself, the tower explained to her how to travel to the land of the dead - take two coins and two pieces of barley cake - the tower said - The driver of an ass is going to ask you for help but you must To deny it you must then give one of the coins to Charon, the ferryman who will lead you through the river Styx to hell while you are crossing the river, the hand of a dying man will be thrown towards you, groping but you must turn the other way. You must also refuse to help three women who will be weaving the threads of destiny. When you get to the foot of the Cerberus the three-headed dog that guards the palace door give him one of the pieces of barley cake so that he can talk to me and when he starts the return do the same, however, there is something even more important when he comes back with the chest full of Proserpina's beauty to give it to Venus, do not open it; Whatever you do, don't open the chest of beauty!
Psyche did just as the tower had been advised to her until she had obtained from Proserpina, queen of the dead, the chest with her beauty, then when she left Hell she repeated what she had already done.
When he reached the gates of the palace, he gave Cerberus the rest of the cake, he handed a coin to Charon to lead across the River Styx, and he refused to stop to listen to the deceptive cries of those who asked for help, however when already She was arriving at the palace of Venus, a vehement curiosity seized her, she burned with the desire to open the chest and use a little of the beauty of Proserpina.
Cautiously he lifted the lid but the place of beauty found within him a mortal dream that, upon seizing it, left him dejected on the way, while Cupid had escaped from the palace through his bedroom window to go in search of Psyche, He saw her lying unconsciously on the side of the road, then he rushed towards her and quickly picking up the dream from his body, he closed him again in the chest and then he woke up Psyche with a kiss.
Before Venus could reach them Cupid raised Psyche from the ground and transported her to the highest heavens, to Mount Olympus where Jupiter god of the sky lives and he asked him to officially join him.
After Jupiter had celebrated the marriage of Cupid Psyche, all the inhabitants of Olympus entertained the couple with the exception of Venus who was furious for many days, however as time went by the goddess, already advanced in years, became the grandmother of a beautiful little girl named Dicha.