The Legend of Cupid

陈娟

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.

在众多情人节的象征中，丘比特最为有名。相传他是一个淘气的长着一对翅膀的小孩，手里拿着一把弓和一些箭。那些箭象征着欲望和爱意，丘比特把这些箭射向众神和人类，使他们深深地坠入爱河。在情人们互相庆祝爱的时刻，绝不会少了丘比特的身影。在古希腊神话中，他被称作厄洛斯（爱神），是爱和美之女神阿佛洛狄忒的小儿子。而在罗马神话中，他被称作丘比特，他的母亲是维纳斯。

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.

在罗马神话中，有一则关于丘比特和普塞克的有趣故事。维纳斯因为嫉妒普塞克的美貌，便派丘比特去惩罚他。但是，丘比特反而深深地爱上了普塞克，并娶她为妻。但由于普塞克是个凡人，丘比特不允许她看到他的面容。

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.

本来普塞克一直过着幸福快乐的生活，但在两个姐姐的唆使下，她偷看了丘比特的脸庞。当丘比特发现后，便离她而去，作为对她的惩罚。他们曾经美丽的城堡和花园也随之消失不见。普塞克发现自己孤身一人置于一片荒地中，周围没有人烟，也没有丘比特的身影。她四处寻找丘比特，却无意间闯入了维纳斯的宫殿。为了毁掉普塞克，这位爱之女神派给她一系列的任务，并且一项比一项困难和危险。

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.

普塞克的最后一项任务便是把一个小盒子带到冥界。她必须从冥王普罗多的妻子普罗赛宾那里带回一些美貌，并把它们装到那个盒子里。在途中，有一个声音一直给她提示，教她如何摆脱地狱的各种危险，并警告她不准打开那个盒子。但是普塞克的好奇心又一次驱使她打开了盒子。里面装的并不是美貌，而是一个睡鬼。

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.

后来丘比特发现普塞克昏睡在地上，没了生命迹象。他从普塞克身上抓走了睡鬼，并把它重新装到盒子里。丘比特最终原谅了普塞克，维纳斯也原谅了她。众神都被普塞克对丘比特执着的爱所感动，便封她为女神。

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，丘比特和他的爱之箭成为了最流行的爱情象征，人们也常常用“一箭穿心”（丘比特神箭穿过两颗相连的心）这个符号来象征爱情。

[1] signify v. 表示；意味着

[2] jealous adj. 妒忌的

[3] curiosity n. 好奇心

[4] depict v. 描述；描画