DAPHNE

OF APOLLO
Daphne was a beautiful
young nymph, daughter
of the river god Pinios.
She was a hunter and
had dedicated her life
to Artemis, the
goddess of hunting.
Just like the goddess,
she also refused to get
married. She was surrounded by many admirers, but she
turned them all down, even the powerful son of Zeus,
Apollo.
One time in Delphi, while Apollo
was practicing at his target with
his arrows, he offended Eros who
was also trying them out.
So Eros decided to get revenge, and
one day when Apollo visited Tempi,
he took out of his quiver two
arrows, one that awakened love and
one that denied it.
With the first one he hit
Apollo and with the second
one he hit Daphne.
Apollo fell in love with Daphne, but she denied his
proposals and he started chasing her in between
the trees.
Daphne was scared
and asked her father
for help. Her father
then told her that he
would protect her by
turning her into a
tree that would have
its roots nearby the
riverbank (our familiar laurel)
When Apollo came looking for Daphne, her father told him
that she had been turned into a tree. So Apollo cut off a
few branches and made a wreath in remembrance of her
beauty and his love for her.
Apollo made laurel his sacred
plant. He established the
award of a laurel wreath for
the champions and for those
who excel in many levels. In
the ancient Olympic Games all
winners were crowned with a
laurel wreath.