This little winged boy with rather hooligan tendencies occupied a special place in the pantheon of gods of ancient Rome. The Romans called him Cupid or Cupid, and their Hellenic neighbors called him Eros.
As scholars believe, it was the Greek image of the young patron of love with a quiver of wonderful arrows that became the basis for the appearance of his Roman "colleague. We are accustomed to believe that Cupid slew people with arrows of love and passion, but he had other weapons in his arsenal. What was this god like? And why was he himself a victim of love?
Who Cupid really is: facts about the god of love that we didn't know (4 photos)
The name and image of Cupid is known to almost everyone. Many people know that Cupid is the god of love, but that's often where our introduction to the angelic boy armed with a bow and arrow ends.
In fact, Cupid's story is far from simple. It is only worth mentioning that in different historical periods the god of love did not just look different, but was a completely different creature.
Cupid's metamorphosis
In the ancient Greek sources, from where we first learned of him, Cupid was called Eros or Erot (depending on the translation)
In the earliest sources (cosmogonies, the earliest philosophical texts) he is one of the primordial four gods who created the cosmos. Among them, besides Eros, are Chaos, Gaia, and Tartarus.
Later sources speak of Eros as the son of Aphrodite either from Uranus or Ares. In the Roman tradition, Cupid or Cupid passed as the son of Venus (Aphrodite) and Mars (Ares).
Eventually, in later, almost medieval poets and troubadours, Cupid is represented as a child with a bow and arrow, often blinded. In early Greek art, however, Eros was portrayed as a young man - the embodiment of passion and sexual power.
Ancient Greece and Rome
In ancient Rome, the god of love had two names, just as he does today. Both meanings of these names were directly related to love. Cupido comes from the Latin word Cupido, which means "desire." Cupid's other Latin name, Cupid, comes from the Latin word for love.
How Cupid looked to the Greeks, we described above. However, after the Hellenistic period, which ended around 31 B.C., when Rome conquered Greece, this god began to be depicted as a small, full-cheeked boy who is familiar to every modern person, especially in the run-up to Valentine's Day.
The Pink Flame of the Archangel Chamuel
The pink flame of the archangel Chamuel is similar to the purple flame of Saint Germain and the archangel Zadkiel. However, the effect of the pink flame is somewhat different. While the purple beam of energy is aimed at cleansing from evil, protecting and strengthening spirituality, the pink one promotes the unfolding of creative and other abilities that can be directed to the benefit of humanity.
Archangel Chamuel and Archaea Love
In addition, regular practices with the pink flame of Archangel Chamuel promote positive changes in a person's personality and character. They reveal the spiritual qualities that everyone needs - mercy, honesty, kindness, and the ability to forgive.
Chamuel's pink fire not only bestows love, forgiveness, and other gifts. It can be used to fight the forces of hatred and aggression in the family or workplace. Simply imagine the aggressor enveloped in pink flame and hold no grudge against him or her.
Fickleness of love
The inconstancy of love has come to be represented by the two-pointed arrow of Cupid. One end - gold, will fill the heart with sincere and passionate love, the other - copper, will cool the heart in love.
It is worth noting that the dual nature of love was also reflected in Greek mythology, where Eros had a twin brother, Anteros. Anteros was the god of mutual "reciprocal" love, he was not distinguished by passion, rather the opposite, he was cold-blooded and took revenge on those who did not respond to sincere feelings and especially on those who mocked them.
Help in worldly affairs
As love pervades all matter, so the Archangel Chamuel is omnipresent. As this deep feeling can arise not only between people, but also between a person and certain habits and events, so the messenger can help deal with various worldly matters. Although Chamuel is an angel of goodness and love, he is able to fight against cruelty, violence, and bad habits. He always protects children and helpless creatures. Chamuel is a good helper in family matters, such as quarrels between parents and children. This angel of communication and understanding. If you have a conflict situation, ask Chamuel for help to understand the person.
Middle Ages
Cupid also had bows and arrows during the Classical period, but they began to receive great attention during the early Middle Ages. It was then that Cupid began to be blinded, symbolizing the unpredictable nature of love - it is subject to all regardless of age, sex or position in society.
The blindfolded Cupid can be found in Shakespeare's plays.
After Christianity became virtually the only form of culture in Europe during the Middle Ages, the god of love was tried to be portrayed as a demon rather than an angel. He was the "demon of the extramarital affair," a seductive evil figure who led people astray. His quiver became a symbol of a depraved mind, his bow a symbol of deception, his arrows a symbol of poison, and his torch a symbol of hot, vicious passion.
Cupid and Psyche.
One of the most popular classic myths was the love story of Eros and Psyche, a mortal beautiful girl. This myth was immortalized in his novel by the Roman writer and poet Apuleius.
Psyche was so beautiful that Aphrodite herself became jealous of her beauty. The jealous goddess sent Eros to the girl to make her heart flame with passion for the ugliest creature on earth. The girl was left at the edge of the cliff, where the monster was to meet her and take her as his wife. But Eros, seeing Psyche humbly awaiting her cruel fate, took pity on the girl and carried her off the cliff.
Eros began to visit the girl, but only under cover of darkness, as he did not want her to know who he was. He made the girl promise not to try to find out who he was. Psyche's jealous sisters found out about her rescue and love for the mysterious savior and decided to trick her sister. They told Psyche that her secret lover was a creepy monster and convinced her to look at him while he slept.
Psyche lit an oil lamp and looked at Eros. He turned out to be so beautiful that the girl admired him so much that she did not notice how the oil from the lamp dripped onto the shoulder of the god of love. Eros, seeing that Psyche had betrayed him, left her and disappeared.
Psyche, distraught, rushed after her lover and wandered the world in search of him until she decided to ask Aphrodite for help.
The enraged goddess wanted to mock the girl, giving her one impossible task after another. But Psyche did not give up and overcame all her tasks not without the help of supernatural forces that took pity on her.
Eros, finding out that his beloved had searched so long, endured so much torment and suffering, and even descended into Hell, went to Zeus to ask that Psyche be given the status of an immortal. Zeus listened to him, and Psyche went to live on Olympus together with Eros. They had a daughter, Hedonia (Volupia in Roman tradition), from the word "voluptuousness."
Archangel Chamuel - names and sphere of responsibility
Archangel Chamuel is often identified with other angels and archangels. For example, in Orthodox tradition it is believed that he and the archangel Gabriel are one and the same divine person. Another person with whom this archangel is identified is Chamuel or Chaniel, who has another name, the archangel Daniel. Because of the similar pronunciation, Chamuel is sometimes called one of the hypostases of Samael. There are legends in which this archangel has another name, Selathiel or Salathiel.
Archangel Chamuel
The literal translation of the name Chamuel is "he who sees God."
Archangel Chamuel is named in Orthodoxy as one of the most powerful intercessors of mankind. Like most archangels and angels, he has a protective function. Simply put, he fights everything that is a hindrance to the course of life established by God and the existence of created by him.
Chamuel's main mission is to teach people about kindness and the ability to forgive. This archangel does not accept revenge and teaches to replace it with forgiveness and humility. He also believes that any injustice must arouse love for the divine origin, not anger and irritation. Chamuel helps each person find his own self and find a part of God in his soul. According to Scripture, Chamuel helped God in taming the pride of the inhabitants of Babylon and removing their vices through the endowment of different languages of the nations. Globally, he deals with inter-racial and inter-ethnic situations.
Chamuel is responsible for building the foundation of the material component of life. People turn to him with requests for love, friendship, worldly wisdom and career growth, as well as for the healing of broken hearts and with other issues that relate to relationships between people. This same angel also patronizes all kinds of creativity and art, as this is what heals the soul and heart, as well as helping in finding work and lost things. He is also able to help find a soul mate.
Cupid in art
Cupid has always been one of the favorite subjects of poets, painters, musicians and sculptors.
With a renewed interest in the humanism of classical art, Renaissance artists depicted Cupid as quite a realistic child. However, he grew inexorably younger and younger. In some paintings by masters of the Italian and Northern Renaissance, Cupid was depicted not just as a baby, but even as an infant.
During the development of the Italian Renaissance, many artists began to depict several Cupids in a single painting. This technique became known as amorini, or cupids. At times the cupids (also called putti - angels) even appeared in biblical images, such as Raphael's Sistine Madonna.
Openness to Divine Energy - Visualization
During meditation, you can imagine that the heart is a bright ball of emerald green light. Next you should imagine an angel standing beside you and cleansing the aura of mental impurities, preparing the heart to give and receive unconditional love with ease.
With each inhalation and exhalation, the green light of the heart grows deeper and brighter until it flies out of the chest, pouring light into the room and beyond.
Prayerful invocations to Archangel Chamuel give pleasure, a sense of lightness, euphoria, and unconditional joy. Further, one must always trust that the positive energy will guide every thought, action and experience in the right direction. The strength gained in prayer will inspire the soul and open the heart to the purity of life's happiness. It is important to say these exact words every day:
Cupid in modern culture.
With curly hair, red lips, tiny wings, and an arrow with a heart-shaped tip, Cupid is an iconic and recognizable figure in modern popular culture. Most often it can be seen on valentines, candy boxes and soft toys, but we should not forget about the deep artistic heritage of this historical symbol.
Cupid remains relevant in contemporary art as well. For example, popular pop art duo husband and wife Claes Oldenburg and Kosje van Bruggen installed a popular sculpture in San Francisco. The sculpture is called Cupid's Span, which is very symbolic because Cupid-inspired objects and works of art have been created and are still being created for thousands of years, proving that the god of love and art have always been a perfect match.
Finding Balance in Life
To bring all the components of life into a stable equilibrium is what mental stability is needed: you need to know exactly what is right and what is wrong. Archangel points to a way to balance life. Appealing to him when looking for work will give focus on the actual goals and allow you to avoid wasting energy on external distractions. Prayers to him are created for spiritual growth and emotional stability.
The helper icon will help in the best way if a person simply learns to pray for him with a good heart and a pure intention.
Cupid is an angel with a bow and arrow.
Cupid sort of came to us from ancient Greece. Does anyone know why exactly the bow and arrow were in the hands of Cupid? Not the sling, also an ancient and widespread weapon at the time, not the dart (throwing spear), but the bow with arrows?
Cupid is an angel with a bow and arrow.
"Know that this is love,
Cupid is with her,
Know it's love, don't hide your heart, Cupid won't miss."
The band Lyapis Trubetskoy. From the song.
So, your thoughts on this? And this story, why Cupid suddenly armed himself with a bow and arrow, is quite interesting.
To understand this historical mishap, let's rewind a thousand and two and a half years and look at the ancient Greek army. Why a mishap? Here's why.
Let's look at the army of that time. The largest and least protected part of the warriors were the slingers, the stone-throwers. Most of the warriors were armed with spears (mostly short throwing ones - darts, the heavy infantry - phalanx was armed with long heavy spears). There were also elite fighters armed with bent kopis swords, but archers... There were none. None at all. Neither in southern Greece nor in the Northern Black Sea colonies, from where Ancient Greece got its grain and meat, was there any suitable material for bows and arrows to pierce the armor of a heavy warrior. Even sharp bronze tips did not help.
The bow was used only by hunters. And it was the bow that was the main attribute of Artemis, the goddess of hunting in the ancient Greek pantheon. She was also the guardian of all animals. She protected them as best she could. And struck down anyone who raised his hand on defenseless animals. She used a bow, the main weapon of the hunters and fishermen of that time. But it was not proper for a lady, and even a goddess, to carry a bow and a quiver of arrows by herself. So there was a squire, a small boy, who, whether out of respect, or out of compulsion, or in case the God's punishment befell him, he dragged the bow and arrow after the beautiful goddess, without moving away, or rather without flying away from her even a step. But the mischievous boy was so bored with this monotony that sometimes, when the goddess was out of sight, he would shoot around. This was the plot often painted by ancient Greek artists.
So why do unhappy lovers now so curse these arrows of Cupid, and happy and glad that in their heart hit this ... ancient bullet. And why do so many people think that: "Cupid, a character of ancient Greek mythology (the ancient Roman name is Cupid), a mischievous winged baby, the companion of the goddess of love Venus. Fluttering on her shoulder, he strikes people's hearts with his invisible arrows from his bow, causing love to flare up in them.
So, or almost so many, many, many people think... And here is where the untruth lies.
In ancient Greek mythology Cupid was never a companion of Venus. This misconception originated in the days of ancient Rome, when Roman legions conquered the land of ancient Hellas. It was then that ancient Greek subjects became fashionable among the Roman nobility. And, apparently, Roman artists, redrawing Greek plots in a new way, mixed up the goddesses: in fact, Artemis was also beautiful, I think, no less than the goddess of love Venus. And it was then that Cupid began to be called "Cupid" and was depicted not as the armor-bearer of the goddess of hunting, but as the companion of the goddess of love, a kind of hooligan, a mischievous boy-sniper, who shoots indiscriminately and strikes people's hearts with his arrows.
And safely survived in this role to our time.
Prayers to Archangel Chamuel for all occasions
Archangel Chamuel and Love, the third ray of love.Divine femininity.
Prayer to Archangel Chamuel will help to receive spiritual gifts, namely to learn to love, to get rid of selfishness and self-satisfaction, to receive forgiveness, to learn to respect oneself:
In the name of God, I AM THAT I AM, In the name of Archangel Chamuel: Away, the forces of anti-love!
The phrase "I AM" is often used when working with rays of divine energy and their representatives. By saying it, you tune in to accept yourself, as well as the energy of the celestial entity you are addressing.
Many things fall under the definition of anti-love forces - human anger and hatred, depression, manic states, and other mental disorders, as well as other manifestations thereof. This prayer will help to mend family relationships, learn to understand people better, and restore communication with a lost friend.
The angels of love, who are subject to Chamuel and about whom you can read a little below, are able to find lost things. This also falls within the responsibility of the archangel himself. There is a special prayer for receiving such help from him:
Archangel Chamuel, help me to find what I have lost (name the object or the situation in which the thing is lost). I know if you help me, I will find that object, for the Lord is omnipresent and knows where it is. Please lead me to find what I am looking for. Thank you, Chamuel.
In a little while you will receive information about the whereabouts of the lost thing. It may come to your attention by chance, or another person may find it and give it to you - there are many options, angels never act according to patterns.
The following prayer to Chamuel should be recited to overcome disagreements, end conflict, and improve relationships:
Chamuel and the angels of love, may divine love take over now!
In addition, there is a prayer for each day that will help you get your daily routines right and improve communication with the people around you:
Archangel Chamuel, your name is "He who sees God"! I ask for help in daily affairs. Archangel Chamuel, help me to improve my communication with others. Create a smooth flow of life. Assist me in receiving the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
This prayer should be recited every day, best in the morning.
