The truth about Cupid

Oh, that cute and cuddly Cupid! You see him everywhere, this time of year, all pink-cheeked and chubby, wearing only a diaper (if he wears anything at all) and aiming a lethal arrow straight at your heart!

What’s the deal here? Who in their right mind would give a bow and arrow to a baby?

His parents, probably. Some think his mother was Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and her husband, Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalworking. On the other hand, Aphrodite was unfaithful, so his dad might have been Ares, the god of war. Either way, it was a dangerous combination, at least for humans.

Cupid, which means desire, was his Latin name. Sometimes he was called Amor, love. Before that, the ancient Greeks called him Eros, and he was responsible for lust, love, and sex. He was worshipped as a fertility god. His name is the root of the word erotic. Read more