To be a lover or a poet
In Greek mythology, it is told that Orpheus, a very famous lyre musician, was celebrating a wedding with a beautiful woman named Eurydice. In the middle of the wedding, the wife was running and accidentally stepped on a poisonous snake, which then killed Eurydice. Orpheus went to the “underworld” to pick up his wife while singing and playing the lyre.
He hummed a prayer, “O gods of the underworld, lords of mankind, I have come here to pick up my wife. A venomous snake that she stepped on has poisoned and taken her young life. I beg you, unravel the threads of early death that has entangled Eurydice. Everything will be yours. We will all end up here. This is our final abode. You rulers over mankind, after living an adequate life for a few years, she will become yours. If fate refuses to return my wife, I vow not to leave from here. You can take my life as well.”
All the gods who were there were stunned and moved by Orpheus’s orison. They could not refuse Orpheus’ prayer. Eurydice was returned to Orpheus on the condition that Orpheus must walk first and not look back until he has passed the gate between the underworld and the world. If Orpheus turns around, Eurydice would not be able to walk away from her death. Eurydice limped behind her husband, because of the traces of the snake’s venom that had poisoned her feet. In silence, the two of them walked successively down a sloping, dark, and steep path, covered in thick mist.
Barely approaching the doorway, because perhaps afraid of losing Eurydice who was walking behind him, Orpheus — who probably couldn’t wait to look at his wife’s face — turned around, and at that moment Eurydice was pulled back. She tried to grab her husband’s hand and hoped to hold it, but unfortunately, she could only reach the wind. Dying a second time, Eurydice did not complain. Orpheus’ only fault was loving his wife, wasn’t it?.
Our question: Why did Orpheus turn his head? Shouldn’t his wife be able to return to life and the two of them could build a household, Orpheus shouldn’t have looked back? Orpheus’ fear of losing his wife walking behind him seemed irrational. However, Orpheus really loved his wife so much that he couldn’t help but turn his head.
Or, perhaps this is where Orpheus makes a choice. He chose to photograph or capture his wife’s last face. In other words, Orpheus chose to have one last memory of his wife. That’s why he turned to see Eurydice’s face. Thus, here Orpheus does not choose the path of a lover, but chooses the path of a poet. It, nevertheless, is possible that Eurydice, who was walking behind Orpheus, whispered “turn around, babe!” That is, it was Eurydice who decided to take the path of a poet.[]