An ancient Greek story about desperate love

Robin Fowler

King orpheus of Thrace lost his beloved wife Eurydice, and he will do whatever it takes to get her back to him. He almost succeeded.

Orpheus was the mythical king of Thrace, the son of Apollo. As the son of the Greek god of music, his pedigree endowed him with undeniable intoxicating singing talent. He plays the lyre effortlessly, and his singing voice is so sweet that he can soothe the wild animals and even make the trees sway to him in order to listen to his melody.

Hero orpheus

Orpheus is one of the great Greek heroes. He is not a typical Greek hero, because he is not a great soldier on the battlefield, nor did he kill the mythical beast. He became a hero because of his extraordinary talent. As a member of the legendary Argo hero, orpheus used his charming voice to calm the turbulent sea and move the rugged ocean rocks that might destroy other ships. It was orpheus's voice that put the dragon guarding golden fleece into a deep sleep.

Orpheus and Eurydice

Orpheus fell in love with Eurydice, a beautiful fairy, and married her. They love each other very much and are very happy together. But as is usually the case in any true love story, all good things must end.

Aristos, the Greek god of land and agriculture, likes Eurydice very much and actively pursues her. Eurydice used to be orpheus's loyal wife, and he escaped orpheus's pursuit-really. One day, Eurydice was killed by a snake while fleeing Aristos. This, of course, made orpheus collapse.

Looking for Eurydice

Losing his beloved Eurydice, orpheus was heartbroken, and he couldn't stand living without her. Orpheus decided to get her back, even if it meant using all his strength to save her from the underworld.

Orpheus went to the underworld, where he fell asleep singing Cerberus, an evil three-headed watchdog, and was able to persuade Hades to let him bring Eurydice back to their home with his musical charm. God warned orpheus that if he wanted Eurydice to go home with him, she had to come up from the underworld behind him, and he couldn't look at her until he reached the sun.

During the trip, orpheus was so eager to make sure that his lover was really following him that he couldn't resist the urge to take a quick look back. When he did this, he watched Eurydice disappear from his sight forever and be swallowed up by black smoke.

Orpheus was more sad than ever. He isolated himself in the home of Thrace. In the end, he was torn to pieces by a group of despised local women, and he was upset because he didn't attend bacchanalia. The lovelorn orpheus's life ended in this way. Maybe he will reunite with his desperate lover Eurydice in the underworld forever.

Source of consultation:

Greek and Egyptian mythology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 199 1.

Encyclopedia of Lalous Mythology. Barnes & noble bookstore, 1994.

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