The Legend of Cupid

陳娟

Cupid is the most famous of Valentine symbols. He is known as a naughty， winged child armed with bow and arrows. The arrows signify[1] desires and emotions of love， and Cupid shoots those arrows at Gods and Humans， causing them to fall deeply in love. Cupid has always played a role in the celebrations of love and lovers. In ancient Greece he was known as Eros， the young son of Aphrodite， the goddess of love and beauty. To the Romans he was Cupid， and his mother was Venus.

在眾多情人節的象征中，丘比特最為有名。相傳他是一個淘氣的長著一對翅膀的小孩，手里拿著一把弓和一些箭。那些箭象征著欲望和愛意，丘比特把這些箭射向眾神和人類，使他們深深地墜入愛河。在情人們互相慶祝愛的時刻，絕不會少了丘比特的身影。在古希臘神話中，他被稱作厄洛斯（愛神），是愛和美之女神阿佛洛狄忒的小兒子。而在羅馬神話中，他被稱作丘比特，他的母親是維納斯。

There is a very interesting story about Cupid and Psyche in Roman fairy tales. Venus was jealous[2] of the beauty of Psyche， and ordered Cupid to punish the girl. But instead， Cupid fell deeply in love with her. He took her as his wife， but as a human being she was not allowed to look at him.

在羅馬神話中，有一則關于丘比特和普塞克的有趣故事。維納斯因為嫉妒普塞克的美貌，便派丘比特去懲罰他。但是，丘比特反而深深地愛上了普塞克，并娶她為妻。但由于普塞克是個凡人，丘比特不允許她看到他的面容。

Psyche was happy until her sisters asked her to look at Cupid. As soon as Psyche looked at Cupid， Cupid punished her by leaving her. Their lovely castle and gardens disappeared too. Psyche found herself alone in an open field with no signs of other beings or Cupid. As she walked around trying to find her love， she came upon the temple of Venus. Wishing to destroy her， the goddess of love gave Psyche a series of tasks， each one being harder and more dangerous than the last.

本來普塞克一直過著幸福快樂的生活，但在兩個姐姐的唆使下，她偷看了丘比特的臉龐。當丘比特發現后，便離她而去，作為對她的懲罰。他們曾經美麗的城堡和花園也隨之消失不見。普塞克發現自己孤身一人置于一片荒地中，周圍沒有人煙，也沒有丘比特的身影。她四處尋找丘比特，卻無意間闖入了維納斯的宮殿。為了毀掉普塞克，這位愛之女神派給她一系列的任務，并且一項比一項困難和危險。

For her last task Psyche was given a little box and told to take it to the underworld. She was told to get some of the beauty of Proserpine， the wife of Pluto， and put it in the box. During her trip she was given tips on avoiding the dangers of the underworld. She was also warned not to open the box. But curiosity[3] overcame Psyche and she opened the box. Instead of finding beauty， she found deadly slumber.

普塞克的最后一項任務便是把一個小盒子帶到冥界。她必須從冥王普羅多的妻子普羅賽賓那里帶回一些美貌，并把它們裝到那個盒子里。在途中，有一個聲音一直給她提示，教她如何擺脫地獄的各種危險，并警告她不準打開那個盒子。但是普塞克的好奇心又一次驅使她打開了盒子。里面裝的并不是美貌，而是一個睡鬼。

Later Cupid found her lifeless on the ground. He gathered the deadly sleep from her body and put it back in the box. Cupid forgave her， so did Venus. The gods， moved by Psyches love for Cupid， made her a goddess.

后來丘比特發現普塞克昏睡在地上，沒了生命跡象。他從普塞克身上抓走了睡鬼，并把它重新裝到盒子里。丘比特最終原諒了普塞克，維納斯也原諒了她。眾神都被普塞克對丘比特執著的愛所感動，便封她為女神。

Today， Cupid and his arrows have become the most popular of love signs， and love is most frequently depicted[4] by two hearts pierced by an arrow， Cupids arrow.

如今，丘比特和他的愛之箭成為了最流行的愛情象征，人們也常常用“一箭穿心”（丘比特神箭穿過兩顆相連的心）這個符號來象征愛情。

[1] signify v. 表示；意味著

[2] jealous adj. 妒忌的

[3] curiosity n. 好奇心

[4] depict v. 描述；描畫