The Story of Cupid and How He Became Part of Valentine’s Day

13. februarja, 2024

Every year, on the 14th of February, Valentine’s Day is marked with all shades of red – flowers, chocolate, romantic movies, and wine, but also pictures of a male baby flying around, shooting people with arrows. Although it is portrayed in its child form, that baby, famously known as Cupid, begins its mythological life as a man having more power than any other god.

Slovenian Article: HERE

To begin with, it is important to note the relevance of Cupid in modern Valentine’s Day celebrations, as well as his relation with the ancient Goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite. Cupid, also known as Eros in Greek mythology, is often considered Aphrodite’s son by classicists. The young God is rarely portrayed without his bow and arrow, symbols of his glory. It is said that one of Cupid’s powers demonstrated through his bow and arrow is the ability to make someone fall in love. Cupid is often a character whose main plot is to stir the plot, yet, there is a story where our main character is swayed by the temptations of love.

The myth of Cupid and Psyche

The famous myth of Cupid and Psyche is a love story – and who wouldn’t like a good love story? People connect with tales of love lost and love returned, the longing, the adventure, the beauty and self-pity, the reunion, but also, the reconciliation. The main message in this myth is that love can overcome any obstacle. It teaches us that, although we live in a world where everything seems so uncertain, true love can still prevail, giving us hope and inspiring us to sometimes take risks in life.

Cupid/ pixabay.com

How, in fact, did we get to the name “Valentine’s Day”?

There are at least three different stories related to St. Valentine, but only two of them are prominent for connecting men with romance. The first story is about a priest called Valentine, who, upon learning that Emperor Claudius had forbidden marriage for young men, believing unmarried men make better soldiers, continued to wed couples in secret. The second story tells us of Valentine, who assisted Christians in escaping torturous Roman prisons. When imprisoned himself, Valentine fell in love with a woman who visited him, and he wrote a love letter signed: “From your Valentine”.

February – the month of fertility and romance

The pagan celebration of Lupercalia lies at the heart of many modern Valentine’s Day traditions, especially those related to romance. In the year 240 AD, Roman priests from the Luperci order, offered sacrifices to the gods of fertility and purity on the 15^th of February, coinciding with the Ides of February. Alongside these offerings, the tradition involved introducing single women to single men. As a result, most of them formed couples, often leading to marriage within a year after the Lupercalia festival.

From Lupercalia to St. Valentine

In the 5^th century AD, Pope Gelacius rejected the celebration of Lupercalia, and, instead, declared the 14^th of February as St. Valentine’s Day. What is interesting here is how the celebration of St. Valentine became associated with the celebration of love. People began associating St. Valentine with the first day of bird mating season, and this was all they needed to start connecting romance with the special day. The exchange of cards and gifts gained popularity in the 15^th century. Today, more than a billion cards are bought as a way of celebrating Valentine’s Day, 85% of them being purchased by women.

Literature:

Apuleius, L. 1950. The Golden Ass (trans. Graves, R.). Harmandsworth: Penguin (h ttps://www.john-uebersax.com/books/Uebersax-Cupid-and-Psyche-2018.pdf).
Green, William, M. 1931. The Lupercalia in the Fifth Century. Classical Philology. Str. 60–69 (h ttps://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/361308).
Kithcart, David. 2013 (h ttps://www2.cbn.com/article/valentines-day/st-valentine-real-story).
North, John. 2000. Roman Religion. The Classical Association. Str. 47–50.