Friday, June 22, 2012

The story of the sunflower

This story is from the Greek Mythology. This story has a very special place in my heart. The story of unconditional love that was never returned.

The story of the sunflower

Apollo was the son of Zeus, the king of all Gods and Men. Apollo was the Sun God. He had a palace in the eastern direction and would ride his chariot of Gold and Ivory everyday in the skies from East to West. In the evening, he would end his journey at the far sea on the western end and would come back home on his Golden boat.
He was admired by one and all as he was believed to spread love and life to every being. He was known for his youthful and manly beauty. He had Golden hair and was the most handsome person that anyone had come across.
He was loved by all and a water nymph called Clytie was immensely in love with Apollo. She would watch him with unblinking eyes as he moved across the sky. He looked all the more handsome to Clytie. Unfortunately, Apollo ignored Clytie and never returned her love. Apollo was in love with Daphne, the beautiful daughter of a water God. Unfortunately for Apollo, Daphne did not return his love. When Apollo tried to forcefully convince Daphne, she asked her father to help her. He in turn, turned her into a plant. Apollo was heartbroken and his sorrow knew no bounds.
Clytie continued to watch Apollo as he passed through the sky. She sat on a rock for nine days without food and water and just kept looking at Apollo as he passed in the sky. Eventually, she was turned into a flower, which came to be known as the Sunflower.
It is believed that even to this day, the Sunflower keeps looking at the sun from the moment the sun rises till he sets.

16 comments:

  1. thank you that story helped me with a problem

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  2. thank you for sharing this, this story really helped with my problem

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  3. Just a note on the story, the plant (Clytie) in not actually a sunflower but a turnsole. Perhaps a reasonable explanation as yurnsole means sunflower in french.

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    1. Thanks Logen for letting me know! I wasn't really aware

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  4. Sadness seems to have gripped my membranes already charged up and now with a double dillemma cause i really did love once and rather circumstances so bitter changed my attitude and transformed me into a Poet, a man who is a burden and unable to stand nonsense. Love is indeed a beautiful bird eager to be captured but refuses injury.

    My beautiful mind knows now how to keep me rocking but unaware of my beast of burden !

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  5. The story truly tells us about what love should be...it should be mad, passionate,deep and intense. There should not be any reasonable explanation behind the feeling of love in someone's heart..this also reminds me of a sonnet written by Elizabeth Browning where she wanted her lover to love her just for the sake of love

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  6. Apollo and Helios are the same person?
    Because i knew this story but with helios instead of Apollo.
    it would be awesome if someone can tell me :)

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    1. I also knew that It's Helios rather than Apollo

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  7. Actually this myth is about Helios who was the first sun god who then retired and Apollo took over. The myth about Apollo and Daphne is a well known one but doesn't link with Helios and Clytie. Instead Helios loved a mortal called Leucothoe who was killed by her father after Clytie told him what was going on between the sun god and his daughter

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  8. I've been going through a breakup recently :( and I've just remembered the time about three months ago, when I would see sunflowers a lot. Just now I did a bit of googling about it, and I found this. It's pretty strange that I find this, with how this story corresponds to my situation. Regardless, it's a wonderful story. Thank you for publishing it :)

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  9. I see Apollo is also called Phoebus. I looked up this story as it flashed to me when learning about myths. The Sunflower is not only beautiful but useful, with edible seeds and oil. What other flowers are like that? On another tangent, read about the Bernini statue of Apollo & Daphne

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  10. I love this Greek tale. Their love is unforgettable. I wish if I could also see Apollo...PEEK-A-BOO but I think that's not possible....anyways THANKS FOR YOUR HARDWORK.

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