A lot of us enjoy flowers simply for their beauty. They offer us stunning colors and sweet smells. They mean romance, friendship, and so much more. But the appreciation of flowers is nothing new. It goes back almost as far as time itself.
There are a lot of myths and legends about flowers. Sometimes the gods turned people into flowers as a reward for their loyalty and service. Other times, they did it as a form of punishment or as a warning to other humans not to make the same mistake. Let’s explore some of the most popular and beautiful myths and legends surrounding these stunning gifts of nature:
The anemone myth goes all the way back to ancient Greece to the goddess Aphrodite and her mortal lover Adonis. The handsome young man caught the goddess’s attention one day as she was hunting and the two fell immediately in love. As the story goes, they would often meet in the woods in order to stay out of the sight of Aphrodite’s jealous ex, the god of war – – Ares.
Unfortunately, Ares was quite aware of Aphrodite’s affair and vowed to end it, and Adonis. So he turned himself into a wild boar and attacked the youth as he waited for his lover to come to him. By the time the goddess arrived, Adonis was already dead, having been gored to death by Ares.
The goddess put her beloved into her chariot and drove him slowly through the forest. As they traveled, drops of his blood fell into the earth, mixing with Aphrodite’s precious tears. Wherever, both fell together, anemones sprung up. It was named anemone because it means wind flower. The wind often blows the flower apart, spreading its seeds throughout the land where they grow anew. It seems an appropriate name since the wind ends one life only to bring to life another through its actions.
The beautiful aster was supposedly created when the Greek goddess of the stars, Asterea, looked down at the earth to discover that no stars dwelled there. This brought tears to her eyes. As her tears fell from the sky, they and with the stardust, uniting and falling to the earth. Where ever this happened, it formed a dainty flower that was named aster after the goddess.
Because the aster was born from an act of holy love, the flower is considered by many cultures – – including the Greeks and Romans – – to be a symbol of love.
A similar flower, the asteraceae, is a member of the sunflower family. A Native American legend tells of a beautiful Indian maiden who fell in love with the god of the sun. She spent every waking moment of each day watching the sun as it made its journey across the earth.
Season after season, year after year, she waited for the sun to notice her, turning away every suitor who sought to win her affections. She made sacrifices to sun, danced for him, chanted and sang; all in hopes of catching his attention. However, he never once looked in her direction.
Eventually the maiden grew old, but still she watched her beloved from afar. One day as her long, gray hair blew wildly in the wind, the sun god finally noticed her. But it was too late for she died at the same moment, trying to capture one last glimpse at his shining glory.
Her people told the sun of her love for him and he was touched by her years of devotion. To honor it, he caused small bright yellow flowers to cover her grave. Each spring, the flowers continued to grow, tracking the sun as it made its way across the heavens; a fitting tribute to love.
The crocus is associated with the Greek messenger god, Hermes. Crocus was a friend of the young god and the two were inseparable. They did virtually everything together as they were growing up; including learning how to fight. However, one day, as they fought, Hermes accidentally landed a fatal blow on his friend.
Anguished about what he had done, Hermes gathered his friend in his arms and prayed to the gods for assistance. Unfortunately, Crocus had already passed over to the other side. But the gods were moved by the young god’s prayers. As three drops of his friend’s blood fell upon a flower, it formed spots on the plant, which thereafter became known as the crocus.
Another wonderful Native American myth surrounds the flower commonly called Indian blanket. It is another member of the sunflower family.
According to the Comanche myth, there was once a great weaver among their people. So skilled was he in weaving blankets that he was known not only within his own tribe, but also throughout much of the Indian nation. People came from miles around to trade for one of his beautiful creations, which always became one of their most prized possessions.
As the weaver grew older, he realized that soon he would pass over to the other side. But before that happened, he wanted to weave one last blanket. So he gathered hundreds of plants and flowers from which to make the most colorful dyes he had ever used. He carefully and skillfully prepared the wool for dying, meticulous with each and every move.
After weeks of weaving, the blanket was finally finished and it proved to be his most beautiful creation yet. But on the day he finished the blanket, the weaver died.
His people wrapped him carefully in the blanket and prepared him for burial. Then they prayed that The Great Spirit would honor the man who had so honored his people. Touched by their plea, The Great Spirit made a gift to the Comanche people. Each year, he sends the beautiful flower known as the Indian blanket – – done in the very colors of the weaver’s last creation – – to honor their beloved friend.
The iris is the sacred flower of the Greek goddess of the same name. As messenger of the gods, Iris was often called upon to travel back and forth between earth and the heavens to spy on the other gods and goddesses as well as mankind. In that role, the goddess became known as “the eye of heaven”, which is what the name Iris means.
Another duty of the goddess was to take the souls of women from the earth to the Elysian Fields upon their death. In honor of the goddess, the Greeks continued to place irises on the graves of the women they loved.
There are many more fascinating myths and legends about flowers, which I hope to share with you over the next few weeks. If you have a request or a question, please feel free to leave it in the comment section below.
