Daphne would never have children to test that theory. Daphne was beloved by Apollo, like many other nymphs in mythology. As usual when the gods are in love there was trouble crazy Trouble!!!. Due to some insulting remarks Apollo had made about Eros, the God of Love had shot Apollo with a golden arrow that caused him to fall in love with Daphne. However, Eros shot Daphne with an arrow made of lead so she could never fall in love anyone. Apollo also had a rival for Daphne by the name of Leucippus.
Apollo, being the god of prophecy, discovered a secret about Leucippus. In order to be near Daphne, he had disguised himself as a girl and joined her troop of nymphs. Apollo cleverly revealed Leucippus' secret by suggesting to the nymphs that they bathe naked. When the nymphs discovered that Leucippus was a man they tore him to pieces. The nymphs in mythology are often short tempered.
One day Apollo spoke to her directly about his love but before he could finish Daphne ran away. The sight of her fleeing through the woods was so charming the god could no longer resist and began to chase her.Apollo could chase Daphne to the ends of the nine realms, Daphne would never return his love. Seeing that the god would eventually catch her, Daphne prayed to Mother Earth who snatched her away in the nick of time. To fool Apollo Mother Earth left in her place a laurel tree. Thinking that Daphne had been transformed into the tree Apollo took the tree as his own symbol. He made a crown of laurel leaves for himself, which was used as the crown of victory up till Roman times.
Daphne, meanwhile, was taken to Crete were she became known as Pasiphae. There she married King Minos and gave birth to the minotaur. Well it seems to me that the Gods need to learn the word NO!
Echo is probably the most famous of all the nymphs of her time in Ancient Greece. Her name and her
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| Echo the Mountain Nymph |
voice live on to this day. This is how the story goes; Echo who was an Oreade Nymph which really means a
mountain nymph. Echo got her name by the fact that she loved listening to her own voice, consorting with other beautiful mountain nymphs and visited them on Earth quite often. How Echo got her name was: She
would distract and amuse Zeus' wife, Hera with long and entertaining stories while Zeus took advantage of the moment to ravish the other Mountains Nymphs in their very own private bedroom. Sadly when Hera
discovers the trickery of Zeus, she was so annoyed she punishes the talkative Echo Nymph by taking away
her voice, except in foolish repetition of another shouted words. Thus, all that Echo could do was
repeat the voice of another - not her own voice as punishment for being part of Zeus infidelity with the
mountain nymphs. But there is more to the story! Echo falls in love with a vain youth by the name of
Narcissus, who was the son of the Nymph Liriope of Thespiae, the River God Cephissus. This is the very
same River God that had once encircled Liriope with the windings of his streams which had trapped her,
which in turn seducing the nymph Liriope. Having a son with the River God Cephissus, the nymph Liriope
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| Hera Goddess |
was concerned about her infant's son future so she consulted the seer Teiresias. So Liriope asked the seer
Teiresias if her son would live to see the old age of senescence, to which the seer replied
"If he does not know himself''. So one day when Narcissus was out hunting stags, Echo stealthily followed
the very handsome youth through the thick woods longing to address him but unable to speak... remember
what Hera had cursed onto her... Sadly the beauty Mountain nymph could only repeat anything someone
would say, so she was unable to speak first on her feelings for the handsome Narcissus the Greek God, son of a god and a Nymph. So when Narcissus finally heard footsteps he shouted out! "Who's there?"
But as Echo could not respond with an answer, the God
Narcissus looked about and seeing no one
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Echo Nymph listening
for Zeus and her friend nymphs |
asked, "Why do you run from me?" Of course all Echo can do is just turn and repeat what the young
Narcissus says. Finally Narcissus speaks out to the woman's voice, "Lets us meet together." Then of course Echo, never being as eager as ever to reply to anyone in her life as this handsome God Narcissus, repeats again what he says, "Lets meet." Then to emphasize her words, Echo exits the woods in order to wrap her
hands around the God Narcissus in longing. Sadly Narcissus runs away from Echo's embrace and says
to the Mountain Nymph while still running away, 'May I die before what's mine is yours.' Of course again
the beautiful nymph Echo because of the curse from Hera can only repeat words of others not of her own,
say to her love of her life, " what's mine is yours.' So the poor Echo is then heartbroken by Narcissus and
she spends the rest of her life which is in ancient times eternally in lonely glens pining away for the love she
never knew, she then wet to her father Hermes. It is said that Echo's ending days on earth were lonely and
she was very sad disappointed and felt scorned about love. Yet there are many different version of the
Nymph Echo days ends. Some say Echos cried until only her voice and her bones remain, then turned to stone / others say Echo roamed forever to haunt the earth.
I did find that the most popular version of Echo the Mountain Nymph and the God Narcissus is when
the story depicts that Narcissus later came to a still pool and caught sight of his own reflection. Narcissus
became so enamoured with his own beauty and didn't realized that he was looking at himself.
Any words of love he would mutter to his reflection Echo world repeat around him. From then he either
withered until he became a narcissus, still bending over to look at himself or he realised that he loved his
very own image which resulted in Narcissus killing himself out of despair with his own hunting knife.
Now Echo was a beautiful Mountain nymph who loved music and could sing and play many instruments
too. She lived in the woods and forests and denied the love of any man or god. Yet it seems that Pan,
a Lecherous God had fell in love with Echo for she ran away from them all. Pan became so angry when she
refused him he created such a 'panic' causing a group of shepherds to kill Echo. Echo was torn to pieces
and spread all over the Earth. The goddess of the Earth Gaea received the pieces of Echo whose voice
remains repeating the last words of others.... In some versions Echo and Pan had two children Iamb and Lynx. Its just what you what to believe...
Scylla-
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| Scylla the sea Nymph |
The beautiful sea nymph Scylla was a nymph, daughter of Phorcys. The fisherman-turned-sea-god Glaucus fell madly in love with the beautiful sea nymph Scylla, but she fled from him onto the land where
he could not follow. Despair filled his heart. He went to the sorceress Circe to ask for a love potion to melt the beautiful Sea Nymph Scylla's heart. When the fisherman-turned-sea-God Glaucus told his tale of
love to the Sorceress Circe, she herself fell in love with the Sea God Glaucus. The Sorceress Circe wooed the Sea God Glaucus with
her sweetest words and looks, but the sea-god Glaucus would have none of the Sorceress [Sounds like another sad story I just told between an sea nymph and the Cyclops the giant Eh!] Back to the tale. Of course the Sorceress Circe was furiously angry, but with the beautiful Sea Nymph Scylla and not with the Sea-God Glaucus. You see in those twisted greek times they seem to always blame the innocent of the problems, and with the Sorceress Circe, felt that the beauty Scylla was the one to blame for the Sea-God not loving her! Crazy but true. So the Sorceress Circe, prepared a vial of an very powerful poison and poured it into the pool where
Scylla bathed. As soon as the Sea nymph entered the water she was
transformed into a frightful monster with twelve feet and six heads,
each with three rows of teeth. Below the waist her body was made up of
hideous monsters, like dogs, who barked unceasingly. She stood there in
utter misery, unable to move, loathing and destroying everything that
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| Turned into the Monster |
came into her reach.Even when the sailors who passed near her, she would uncontrolably seize each one of
their head and eat them whole.
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The Beautiful Sea Nymph Scylla
and the Sea-God Glaucus |
The poor Sea Nymph Scylla was in despair at her new form and what she was doing. And the Sea-God Glaucus, who she had rejected, was in his own despair decieded to consult the enchantress Circe once again. Not knowning what she had done to his beloved Sea Nymph Scylla. So when the Enchantress Circe replied to the Sea-God Glaucus I would image he was quite suprised, ' if she scorns you scorn her: meet one who is ready to meet you half way, and thus make a due return to both at once.'
To these words the Sea-God Glaucus replied, to the Enchantress Circe '
Soon ready to meet you half way,
and thus make a due return to both at once.' Er shall trees grow at the bottom of the ocean, and sea-weed on the top of mountain than I will cease to love sclla and her alone.' Well you can only guess what the
enchantress Circe said from that. She was very indignant, but she could not punish her beloved Glaucus, neither did she wish to do so, for she liked or loved him so much; So the I mush say at this point the evil
Enchantress Circe turned all her wrath againist her rival the poor Sea Nymph Scylla. At this point Circe took all the plants of poisonous powers and mixed them together, with incarnations and charms. After she did this, she passed them through the crowd of gambolling beasts, the victims of Circe art and proceeded to the coast of Sicily where Scylla the now monster sea nymph lived. Well it gets really bad now! There was a little bay on that shore to which the Sea Nymph Scylla used to resort in the heat of the day, to breathe the air of the sea, and to bathe in its waters. Here the evil enchantress Circe poured her poisonous mixture once again and muttered over it with incantations of mighty powers. Out Scylla came as usual and plunged into the water up to her waist. What was her horror to perceive was a brood of serpents and barking monsters surrounding her! she tried to run form them once again. Diving them away, but as she ran she carried them with her and whend she tried to touch her limbs she found her hands touch only the yawning jaws of monsters.
Poor Scylla remained rooted to the spot that once was her most favorite place in the world the coast line of
Sicily, a most beautiful place. Now the sea nymph Scylla temper grew as ugly as her form since she could not move and she wasn't the beauty she was anymore. After a while she took pleasure in devouring helpess
sea mariners who came within her reach. Finally she was turned into a rock and as such still continues to her
terror to any mariners of folks that go near that part of the Sicily coastline. One day The Sea-God Glaucus
was in his form as a fisherman just finishing a long day at the shore of Sicily shoreline. He place all his fish on
the grass in a meadow when the stangest thing began to happen, all the fish began jumping and moving
toward the sea. Glaucus was amazed so he picked up grass from the meadow and ate it. the grass made him
want to go into the sea. He dove in and was greeted kindly by the sea creatures. Glaucus was turned into
a God with green hair and a mermaid body. One day in his travels throughthe sea, Glaucus saw a beautiful maiden, Scylla on the shore and fell in love with her. He approached her trying to profess his love, but
Scylla chrieked at the sight of him. Glaucus heart was broken, but he did not lose hope. Again once more
the man went to Circe for help, but Circe fell in love with him. She agreed to help him. but she was lying.
Whe she went to Scylla instead of making her fall in love with Glaucus, Circe turned into a beast.. and other version...
GALATEIA-
Galateia was another of the Nereid's, the fifty goddess-nymphs of the sea. Galateia name means 'the
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Galateia Sea Nymph
And Cyclops |
Goddess of Calm Seas'. Galateia tale starts with the beautiful Nereides sea nymph visiting the coastline of
Sicily quite frequently. During these many visits is when she attracted the attention of the Cyclops Polyphemos. The giant Cyclops Polyphemos would woo the Sea Nymph Galateia with his tunes from his
rustic pipes and offerings of cheese, milk and wild fruits. However the beautiful Galateia had her eyes on
another. And disregarded the Cyclops Polyphemos advances with his music and gifts and consorted instead with the handsome Sicillian young youth Akis. When Cyclops - Polyphemos had learned of this love affair,
he fell into a jealous rage and crushed the poor boy beneath a rock. Galateia was grief-stricken by the this
act of vile act and transformed her once lover into a stream. There are many different version of the tale' of
Galateia the Sea nymph and the Cyclops Polyphemus so I thought I would try to add a few of them for you
my dear friends and followers.. In this tale it starts with the Cyclops as the giant with the one eye in the middle of his forehead. He is said to have a very rough personality, dirt, messy hair and a very bad disposition too. And he wasn't the most handsome of giants of the time of the Titian's either. On the island that the Cyclops lived he had kept many sheep and he ate the
sheep and the herd men who tend the sheep or anyone who happen to land on his island. Until on day when
he spotted the lovely Galateia Sea nymph come to call. With her he fell deeply in love with her which is a big
thing for a giant. And Galateia happened to be one of the most beautiful of all in Mythology too.
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Cyclopy trying to woo the beauty
Galatea Sea Nymph |
It seems that after seeing this beauty the cyclops had changed his ways or he at least tried for a period of time until Galateia had eyes for another man... But until that time the Titan Giant Cyclops actually cleaned up his act. Well as best as a human eating giant can do. And this was huge for the blood-thirsty giant that he was before. How he seemed more helpful at times and even gracious too. But sadly this would be all for nothing on the part of the poor Giant. Because what ever he did to woo the beauty Galateia it didn't work. This is because she was in love with Acis, a Naiad. So one day while Galatea and Acis were together they heard
the Giant Cyclops Polyphemus singing. He was over a mile away from them but Galatea could hear him plainly as if he was just two feet away. Cyclops was singing about his love for her, how beautiful she was and how cruel she was to reject him. He spent some time singing about what he would do to Acis if he
ever caught the two and how Galatea would then fall in love with him afterwards. In this dejected moon,
Cyclops wandered around his island until by luck he happended to see Galatea and Acis together..
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Cyclops finding the two
lovers Galatea and Acis |
Frightend Galatea jumps into the sea where its was safe, but Acis could not enter the salt water and began to
run. Polyphemus Cyclops chased him and did finally grabbed up the top of a mountain and threw it at him. For the most part he missed, but enough of the mountain he had grab still landed on Acis and crushed him to death. Of course Galatea saw the whole thing for the ocean below and could help Acis. Nymphs in
Mythology wre minor Gods, and Galatea used her magic to call on Acis' Grandfather - the River God to send Acis his powers. Soon the Blood that came from under the mound of dirt changed from red to clear. It began to gushe and became a river and a new Acis rose from it . True to his heritage, he was now a River God and the river still bears his name to this day in the area. As for the Romance between Galatea and Acis that was the end of that , because Acis was a fresh water river and she was a sea nymph. All the Nereids were salt-water in the Greek mythology. The Naiads were fresh water, usually associated with ponds, rivers lakes and fountains. And Acis was a Naiads..
