Venus
I
Once the stately Juno looked down from high-peaked Olympus and saw
Jupiter walking in a meadow with a maiden so exquisitely fair that
the flowers at her feet looked dull and faded beside her dazzling
whiteness. This was Callisto, so famous for her beauty that suitors
came from distant lands to woo her; but she cared nothing for their
rich gifts, nor would she listen to any vows of love. Then Jupiter
sought her as she wandered alone in the meadow; and the maiden gladly
yielded to the great ruler of the gods the love that no mortal man
had been able to win. When white-armed Juno learned how many hours
Jupiter spent by the side of Callisto, she determined to punish the
helpless maiden, and accordingly turned her into a bear. For a long
time Jupiter sought her in the familiar meadow, but she never came
again to meet him. Then one day he found her in the forest with her
little son Arcas--both turned into bears by the jealous hate of Juno.
Grieved as he was at this misfortune, the ruler of Olympus could not
restore them to their human form; but he took them to the heavens, that
they might suffer no further harm, and placed them in the sky as the
constellations of the Great and Little Bear.
Jupiter often assumed the form of a bird or animal so as to escape
Juno's watchful eyes. As a swan he won the love of Leda, and their
child was the fair-haired Helen whose beauty cost the men of Troy
so dear. As a white bull he wooed the gentle maid Europa, who was
frightened at his sudden appearance in the meadow where she was
playing; but as soon as she saw how tame the beautiful animal was and
how anxious to be petted, she lost all her fear. She made a wreath
of flowers to hang about his neck, and grew so accustomed to her new
playmate that she got upon his back as he bent his lordly head to
receive her garlands. The bull then galloped away toward the sea, and
before the terrified girl could realize what had happened he plunged
with her into the waves. As soon as they were far from the land, the
white bull spoke gently to Europa and told her who he really was and
how, for love of her, he had assumed this strange disguise. So the
maiden was no longer afraid, but allowed herself to be carried to an
unknown land that was afterward called Europe in her honor.
It was no wonder that Juno kept watch over the earth as no other
goddess needed to do, for she knew that the loveliness that belonged to
the daughters of men could easily lure great Jupiter from his golden
throne. She was therefore very reasonably angry when she looked one
day through the white clouds around Olympus and saw--not on the earth,
but in the lap of the ever-tossing sea--the most beautiful being that
could exist outside of a dream. So wonderfully fair was this maiden
upon whom Juno fixed her resentful gaze, that she seemed too perfect
to be made of flesh and blood, and the jealous watcher was almost
persuaded that it was no real living thing which rested softly on the
crest of the waves, but some creature made from the rainbow colors and
white mist of the sea. The ocean rocked her lightly on its breast, and
Zephyrus, the west wind, bore her gently toward the shore. The sunlight
shone on her rosy flesh, and her long hair lay out upon the waves,
glistening like spun gold. The sky above her was not more soft or deep
than the blueness of her eyes, and the smile upon her perfect lips was
of a subtle sweetness more alluring than the breath of spring. As she
lay pillowed in the arms of the slow-swinging sea, the west wind bore
her to the island of Cyprus; and when her foot touched the warm sand,
the goddess rose from the waves, which were so loth to yield her to
the waiting earth, and stepped lightly upon the shore. She flung the
wet ringlets from her forehead, shook the foam from her breast and
shoulders--white as the purest marble--and stood upright in the warm
sunshine--the most perfect thing that the wondering old earth had ever
looked upon. This was Venus,[21] goddess of love and beauty, born of
the foam of the sea, and destined to be the most far-famed of all the
dwellers in Olympus.
It was not long before others than the watchful Juno had seen this
vision of loveliness, and she was eagerly welcomed by the gods as soon
as she appeared among them. The beauty and grace of the new goddess
so charmed them that all were eager to yield her homage, and she was
immediately sought in marriage--even Jupiter himself becoming an
enamored suitor. But "laughter-loving" Venus refused to be wed, and
would not listen to any wooing. Then the ruler of the gods, finding his
proffered love scorned by the proud goddess, determined to punish her
by compelling her to marry Vulcan, the ugliest and most ill-favored of
deities; and as Jupiter's word was law in all the universe, Venus was
obliged to obey. But though married, she was by no means a devoted or
faithful wife, and she caused poor Vulcan many unhappy moments; for he
saw how his misshapen form repelled her, and he knew that she would
soon seek for happiness elsewhere.
The first to win the love of "golden" Venus was Mars, the handsome god
of war, who, though delighted at being honored as the chosen one of
beauty, was careful that the goddess's preference should not be known.
When he and Venus met in some lover's bower, they placed Alectryon--the
attendant of Mars--on guard, so that no one, not even prying Juno,
would come upon them unawares. Things went on happily for some time;
but one day Alectryon fell asleep at his post, and slept so soundly
that he did not see Apollo, in his golden chariot, driving close to
the trysting place of the lovers. When the sun-god realized what was
happening, he went straightway to Vulcan and told him how much his wife
was enjoying the society of Mars.
Vulcan, angry and ashamed, set to work to forge a net of linked steel;
and when it was finished, he hurried with it to the spot where Venus
and the god of war were still conversing together. Stepping up softly
behind them, Vulcan drew the net over their heads, and thus held them
fast. Then he hastened back to Olympus, where he told his story and
bade all the gods go look upon the ridiculous and humiliating plight of
the imprisoned lovers. When the captured pair were at last set free,
Mars rushed off to find Alectryon and to learn why they had not been
warned of Apollo's approach. Finding his sentinel peacefully sleeping,
unmindful of the disaster that had occurred through his neglect of
duty, Mars was so enraged that he changed Alectryon into a cock, and
commanded him to rise early every morning and crow to announce the
coming of the sun.
II
The next fancy of Venus was for Adonis,[22] a handsome young hunter,
who was so fearless in his pursuit of game that the goddess often felt
anxious for his safety. She urged him to give up the chase and spend
all his day with her; but however much Adonis enjoyed the society of
Venus, he also loved to roam the forests, and no entreaties could
induce him to give up his favorite sport. One day Adonis was following
a wild boar, and believing that the creature was wounded, he boldly
drew near, when the boar turned suddenly upon him and drove his long
tusks into the youth's side. As he lay dying in the forest, Venus heard
of the tragic ending of the day's hunt and hurried to save him. So
careless was she of her own hurt that she rushed heedlessly through the
rough briers, which tore her soft skin and scattered drops of blood on
the white wood flowers. When she reached Adonis, he was already past
her help and could not respond to her caresses. Holding his lifeless
body in her arms, Venus wept and mourned for her beloved; and her
tears, as they fell upon the sympathizing earth, were changed into
anemones. Then to hide from her eyes the painful sight of the young
hunter's mangled body, the kindly earth again took pity on her grief
and turned the drops of blood that came from Adonis's side into red
roses. Still the goddess would not be comforted, but sat mourning alone
with her dead.
Then Mercury came to lead the soul of Adonis to gloomy Hades; and
when the messenger of the gods had departed with his slight burden,
Venus went back to Olympus, and throwing herself on the ground before
Jupiter's throne, she besought him to give Adonis back to her, or else
to allow her to stay with him in Hades. Since the world could not well
spare the goddess of beauty, Jupiter refused to let her go to the
sunless realm of Pluto; but neither would that dread ruler consent
to give up Adonis to her longing arms. Then the gods, touched by the
depth of Venus's grief, interceded in her behalf, and reluctantly Pluto
agreed to allow Adonis to spend six months with the goddess in the
warmth and joy of the sunlight if for the rest of the year he would be
content to dwell in Hades.
III
Another of the fortunate ones who gained the love of Venus was
Anchises, prince of Troy; but though the goddess lavished much
affection upon him, she was rather ashamed of her attachment, for
Anchises was of only mortal birth. She therefore bade him to keep the
matter secret, and for a time Anchises obeyed; but being proud of his
relation to the goddess he forgot her instructions, and boasted of his
good fortune. This so angered the willful Venus that she never bestowed
her favors on him again; but transferred all her affection to her son
Æneas, who fared better at her hands than his father Anchises. In
the many adventures that befell this famous hero, Venus was always a
ready protectress, and whenever Æneas was involved in some apparently
hopeless situation, his goddess mother would immediately hide him in a
thick mist which was sure to baffle his enemies. Sometimes, as in the
Trojan war, she wrapped him in her shining robe and bore him from the
battle-field; and if the hero _was_ constantly in tears, as the poet
Virgil says, it was certainly not the fault of Venus.
As to the ultimate fate of Anchises, some authorities say that the
offended goddess borrowed one of Jupiter's thunderbolts and disposed
of her talkative lover in this fashion; but the most probable story
is that he lived to see Æneas become a famous prince of Troy, and was
himself carried from the ruins of that burning city on the shoulders of
his devoted son.