For many centuries flowers have already inundated the human civilization. They’ve served to be classic beauties to which legendary people like Cleopatra, Helen of Troy, and goddesses of the Aztecs, Greeks, and Romans were associated with. They’re already in the words that ancient sages spoke, in the masterpiece every artist made, and in the reverie of every two people in love.

A flower or blossom remains to be an eternal miracle that sprouts whenever and wherever man needs it. It’s a symbol of faith, of hope, and of love that never ceases to give meaning and inspiration to everyone.

We should give great gratitude for the books, scriptures, poems, and lyrics that made the essence and beauty of flowers to endure our time as we send flowers to celebrate different occasions. And for that reason, let’s hear stories about some flowers in mythology that give meaningful insights about the splendour these delicate creations possess.

Anemone

The red anemone, sometimes called the windflower, is associated with the death of Adonis, known to be the most handsome man in Greek mythology. Adonis is said to be loved by Persephone, the queen of the underworld, and Aphrodite or Venus, the goddess of love. He enjoyed hunting, and one day being alone in the forest, he wounded a wild boar, which stabbed him with its tusks. When Aphrodite heard his cries, she immediately rushed to him, but, unfortunately, only to find him bleeding to death. It was then when red anemones blossomed from the earth, which are believed to be caused by the drops of Adonis’ blood.

In the book of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Venus transformed the blood of Adonis into an Anemone. It’s suggested that the red petals which resemble Adonis’ blood are symbolic of her lost love as is also represented by the petals clinging loosely to the stem and are easily lost in a blow of the wind. While other versions say that it’s Venus’ tears which caused the transformation.

This symbolic story of red anemones however is later adopted by the Christians. For them, they represent the blood shed by Jesus Christ while He was hanging on the Cross. These flowers are also apparent in some paintings that portray the Crucifixion.

Hyacinth

Hyacinthus was a divine hero of Greek mythology. In the literature, Hyacinthus was a beautiful young man loved by Apollo, the sun god, and Zephyr, the West Wind. One day, he took turns throwing and catching the discus with Apollo. It turned out that it’s the same thing that struck and killed him while he was trying to catch it to impress the god. Other accounts tell that it’s Zephyr who blew the discus off the course to kill Hyacinthus because of the feud between the wind god and Apollo. Zephyr had already become jealous when he saw Hyacinth preferring the radiant archery of Apollo, the very reason that triggered him to kill the young man. But the sun god did not allow Hades, the god of the underworld, to claim the young man when he died; rather, Apollo chose to make a flower, the hyacinth, from the spilled blood. After that, he ordered a three-day festival called Hyacinthia in Sparta to honor Hyacinthus.

Narcissus

The Roman version of the story from the tale of Ovid tells about a nymph by the name of Echo falling in love with Narcissus, a very vain young man who disdained everyone who loved him. One day Echo followed Narcissus while he was hunting in the woods. Unable to express herself clearly, she showed herself and embraced the young man, but he only pushed the nymph away and told her to leave him alone. This left Echo inconsolable and spent the rest of her life in the lonely glens where she pined away from her unrequited love until only her voice lingered alone. But she prayed to the goddess of love Venus to avenge her for what Narcissus did. Venus granted her prayer and gave the young man his punishment. When Narcissus took a drink from a pool in the forest, he saw his reflection and immediately fell in love for the first time in his life, unknowingly it was himself. After a while, he realized that it’s his reflection and knowing he could not act upon this, he beat his body until no life force remained in him. Echo came upon him and felt sorrow and pity as he died, but he eventually plunged into darkness and the narcissus flower grew beside the pool where he died.