The day to celebrate love and lovers, Valentine’s Day, is once again upon us. Bringing with it the many symbols we have become familiar with: hearts, roses, cards, candy, and…

Cupid.

That nude, winged little fellow, armed with his bow and love arrows, shooting unsuspecting humans, who then end up falling in love with the first person they see. Or at least that’s how the story goes.

Cupid is the god of love in Roman mythology. (in Greek mythology, he is called Eros). His mother was Venus, the goddess of love, and his father, Mars, the god of war. I wonder if that’s where the inspiration for that book title is from?

Anyway, according to the legend, Cupid was a mischievous god. He enjoyed using his powers to match unlikely couples just to see how they would work out. But he eventually fell under one of his own spells with an unlikely human being.

Venus became jealous of the beautiful princess Psyche (whose name means “soul”) . She ordered Cupid to shoot Psyche with one of his arrows, so that Psyche would fall in love with the ugliest man. But instead, while trying to do as he was told, Cupid accidentally scratched himself with one of his own arrows and fell deeply in love with Psyche. After that, he visited her, and spoke to her, every night while she slept. But he ordered her to not attempt to look at him. She was so curious, though, that she couldn’t help herself, and tried to see him anyway. This angered Cupid, and he deserted her. Psyche looked all over the world to find him, until finally, the king of the gods, Jupiter, gave her the gift of immortality. And finally, Cupid and Psyche were together.

Cupid has been the subject of many movies and television programs for as long as the big and small screens have existed. Not to mention all of the songs that have been written about him, like Sam Cooke’s 1961 hit titled “Cupid”, or even the more recent “Cupid Shuffle” by the artist cleverly named Cupid.  He has also figured prominently in many books and poetry, often depicted as mischievous, playful and enigmatic.

Nowadays, Cupid represents erotic love and matchmaking. Many people believe that online dating services like eHarmony or Match.com are modern day Cupids, bringing people together who probably wouldn’t meet under normal circumstances. There’s even a dating website called “Cupid.com”.

And finally, and probably most importantly, he represents Valentine’s Day. The day for lovers. This time of year you can find him everywhere, with his arrow shot through many hearts.

I wonder who will fall under his spell this year?  Will it be you?