The Big Book of World Mythology by Reeja Radhakrishnan

Author:Reeja Radhakrishnan [Radhakrishnan, Reeja]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789352140077
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2015-12-08T00:00:00+00:00

The Girl Who Became a Tree

The laurel tree was sacred to the Greek god Apollo and a wreath of its leaves adorned the heads of the winners of the Pythian Games in ancient Greece. In time, the Romans, too, used the laurel as a symbol of honour. And this is the reason why . . .

Daphne was the daughter of the river Peneus. The daughter of a river, she was a river nymph, a nimble-footed, delicate beauty. Growing up beside her father, she spent her days swimming or wandering through the forests in the company of gentle animals who were her playmates.

One day, Apollo, the handsome young Greek god of sunlight and music, chanced upon her. Seeing the young girl through the veil of the sunlit trees, Apollo’s heart skipped a beat. Now this was not a chance meeting but poor Apollo did not know that.

A long time ago, Apollo had angered Eros, the boy god of love. Eros was playing with his bow and arrows when Apollo came upon him. Proud of his own mastery over archery and his recent slaying of a serpent, he mocked Eros. ‘The bow and arrows are not toys, my boy. Leave these to warriors like me who are worthy of them,’ he had said, laughing disdainfully.

An angry Eros decided to teach him a lesson—a lesson in love. He took his quiver full of arrows up a mountain and from there, sent forth a sharp and pointed gold-tipped shaft. The gold-tipped arrow soon found its target and pierced the heart of young Apollo. Eros dipped into his quiver once again and selected another arrow—this time it was blunt and made of lead. This he sent down to the edge of the River Peneus where it found its way to fair Daphne’s heart. So it was that Apollo was filled with love and longing for the beautiful nymph while the girl’s heart became cold and unfeeling.

Back to where we left off in the forest: The lovelorn Apollo called out to the nymph, ‘Would you not stop, fair one?’

Daphne heard him but did not give him as much as a glance. This was a pity, for Apollo was most definitely a looker, what with his unruly mop of golden curls, chiselled, handsome features and killer smile.

‘Leave me alone, I don’t want to talk to you or anyone else,’ she shouted as she raced across a path between the trees without even turning back to see who he was. ‘Wait! I’m not any ordinary person. I’m a god. The god of sunlight, of music, of healing. My name is . . .’ Daphne was nowhere to be seen. She was quick, the delicate nymph.

As she raced through the forest, Daphne could hear his footsteps following her. A thought came to her head as she ran. He said he was a god. That means he will soon catch up with me. She ran and ran like her legs had wings but soon she grew tired and out of breath.

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