The Venus of Milo: an archeological study of the goddess of womanhoodCarus, Paul
History
The Venus of Milo: an archeological study of the goddess of womanhood
Carus, Paul
Venus (Roman deity); Venus de Milo
The differentiation of life into two sexes places a limit upon the
existence of the differentiated parts. Each individual grows to a
definite size and is limited to a definite span of duration: “The days
of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength
they be fourscore years, yet is their strength, labor and sorrow.”
The story of the garden of Eden was given a symbolical interpretation at
an early date. We read in Origen’s refutation of Celsus (Book IV,
Chapter XXXVIII):
“In the next place, as it is his object to slander our scriptures, he
[Celsus] ridicules the following statement: ‘And God caused a deep sleep
to fall upon Adam, and he slept; and he took one of his ribs, and closed
up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which he had taken from the
man, made he a woman,’ and so on; without quoting the words which would
give the hearer the impression that they are spoken with a figurative
meaning. He would not even have it appear that the words were used
allegorically, although he says afterward, that ‘the more modest among
Jews and Christians are ashamed of these things, and endeavor to give
them somehow an allegorical signification.’”
It is not an accident that the fruit of the tree of life was conceived
by Christians at an early date as an apple or pomegranate, the symbol of
Aphrodite. We must assume that the apples of the Hesperides which
Hercules was requested to obtain, and also the apples of Iduna bestowing
immortality upon the Teutonic gods, possess ultimately the same
significance as the apple of Eve.
* * * * *
We do not mean to gather here all the traditions about the origin of
woman, but we will quote two accounts from a modern book of Hindu tales,
called _A Digit of the Moon and Other Love Stories from the Hindu_, and
translated from the original manuscripts by F. W. Bain. Here we are told
of a king who falls in love with a princess when he sees her picture. He
leaves his kingdom in the hands of his ministers and travels out in
search of his love, accompanied by his faithful companion Rasakósha.[33]
The passage containing the story of the origin of woman reads thus:
“One day, as they rested at noon beneath the thick shade of a
_Kadamba_[34] tree, the King gazed for a long time at the portrait of
his mistress. And suddenly he broke silence, and said, ‘Rasakósha, this
is a woman. Now, a woman is the one thing about which I know nothing.
Tell me, what is the nature of women?’ Then Rasakósha smiled, and said:
‘King, you should certainly keep this question to ask the Princess; for
it is a hard question. A very terrible creature indeed is a woman, and
one formed of strange elements. _A propos_, I will tell you a story:
listen.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account