In which Ameinius is actually the more important figure... The Narcissus legend is most commonly known by the popular image of Narcissus fallen in love with his own image reflected in a stream. But that is only a part, indeed only the ending of the legend. In ancient times the legend was often called “The Lovelorn Ameinius.” It goes thus; —

A very honorable young Greek, himself a handsome youth, fell hopelessly in love with the semi-divine Narcissus who was the son of the blue nymph, Leiriope, and the river-god Cephisus. Many before Ameinius had also fallen tragically in love with Narcissus, such as the pretty little doomed nymph Echo. (And we know what happened to her.)

Narcissus, in his vanity and scornful pride, sent a sword to Ameinius as a brutal sign of his rejection. Ameinius, broken-hearted, killed himself on Narcissus’s doorstep, crying to the gods for revenge. Now it happened that Artemis (Diana) heard his plea and took pity on him. It was she who cast the spell that made Narcissus fall in love with his own unattainable image. To this day there is a lovely little river in Thespia (the Greek province which legend names the home of Narcissus) which is called The Ameinius, and on its banks narcissus flowers bloom in great profusion.

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THE WEDDING OF PERITHOUS or THE BATTLE OF LAPITHS AND CENTAURS

Perithous, one of the countless semi-divine sons of The Father-God, Zeus (fathered on the mortal priestess, Dia), was a chieftain-king of the semi-barbaric Megnates; a northern frontier tribe who were one of the Lapith peoples in what is now southern Albania.

Once when Perithous and the Greek hero Theseus confronted one another in a cattle-rustling battle they were so struck by one another’s beauty and nobility that the battle was cancelled and they founded an everlasting friendship with clearly erotic implications.

Sometime later, when Perithous was married to Hippodameia, a huge wedding took place in the Land of The Lapihts with Theseus as “best man.” The Olympian gods, demi-gods, nymphs kings and princes were present. However, Perithous had to invite his totally barbaric country-cousins, the Centaurs, as well. They came in great numbers. The shaggy, man-torsoed, horse-bodied creatures came from still further north out of Illyrian Arcadia (which was till recently Yugoslavia). Being barbaric and totally uncivilized, they drank too much unwatered wine, got beastly drunk and went berserk. They started seizing women and maidens, young men and boys and ruined the wedding. Before they could be subdued in the terrible melee that followed they had raped every youth and maiden they could lay their hands on. The Lapiths (mythically representing the civilized peoples of Greece) and the Centaurs (representing the barbarian peoples of the North) remained enemies for ever after.

Some major characters in this culminating battle of this legend are Perithous, defending Queen Hippodameia from the onslaught of the drunken Centaurs, Theseus, doing might battle with the chief Centaur, Eurytion, and Caeneus, a young Lapith warrior raped and finally killed by a group of lust-crazed Centaurs.

This legend is the one carved into the pediment of the great temple on the acropolis at Athens, — The Parthenon. Most of it now reposes in The British Museum and is known as “The Elgin Marbles.” This is a terrible misnomer because the only thing Lord Elgin had to do with them was to bribe the Turkish Pasha at Athens in order to steal them.

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