After the nymph Echo was permitted to speak only when she heard another voice and could then repeat only what she heard, (See ECHO) it was her further misfortune to fall in love with the youth, Narcissus.
This young man, according to Greek mythology, was exceptionally handsome. There are several stories that account for his ultimate fate.
In one it is said that he was wholly untouched by the feeling of love, and when Echo pined away in grief over her unrequited love she prayed that he might fall in love with himself. And this, when Narcissus chanced to see his own beautiful face reflected from a pool, is what he did.
As he was unable to approach his own image, he in turn perished with love. One account says that he melted away into the pool in which he saw his reflection.
In another tale, in which Echo plays no part, it is said that Narcissus had a twin sister as fair as himself and with identical features. His love for her was so great that, to recall her image to him after her death, he sat and gazed constantly at his own reflection in a pool until he himself died with grief.
In all the stories it is further related that after the death of Narcissus his body was changed by the gods into the flower that bears his name. The Greeks considered the narcissus to be sacred to Hades and a symbol of death.
Varieties of the plant contain properties that induce sleep; hence, narcotic and other derivatives are based upon the same term.
Related Posts
-
Who Were Narcissus and Echo In Greek Mythology and What Does the Word Narcissistic Mean?
Echo was a nymph in Greek mythology who delighted in conversation. One day, Hera suspected that Zeus had fallen in love with a nymph. She approached a group of nymphs, determined to discover…
-
What does the word “gauntlet” mean and Where does the word gauntlet come from?
During the Thirty Years' War, which lasted from 1618 to 1648, the English forces observed a form of disciplinary punishment used among their German allies. It looked highly effective, so it was not…
-
What does the word incubus (succubus) mean and Where does the word “incubus” come from?
In the Middle Ages any woman who gave birth to a witch or sorceress was supposed to have been visited, in her sleep, by a male demon or evil spirit. The name given…
-
Where does the word “Toilet” come from and What does the word Toilet mean in French?
The word "toilet" has had a rather curious development in the little more than four hundred years it has been in the language. Its origin was the French toilette, the diminutive of wile,…
-
What Does the Word Scapegoat Mean and Where Did the Word Scapegoat Come From?
A Scapegoat is a member of a group singled out for undeserved blame or negative treatment. The word "scapegoat" is a mistranslation of the word Azazel. An early Greek translation of the Old…
-
What Does the Word “Clock” Mean in French and Where Did the Word For a Large Timepiece Come From?
Like cloche in French, the word clock literally means bell. When the large mechanical clock was invented in the fourteenth century it didn't tell time with a face and hands, but rather by…
