Narcissus & Echo
Narcissus & Echo
There are many different stories surrounding the myth of Narcissus (37117), but all centre around his apparent vanity. A common version involving Echo (60) was that she was a nymph who had the job of keeping Hera distracted whilst Zeus was off doing his philandering with the other nymphs. Echo loved to chatter, and she also loved the sound of her own voice. When Hera found out about Echo's betrayal, she cursed the girl by taking away her voice, except when someone would shout out, and Echo would be forced to repeat the words.
A Roman version of events says that Echo came across Narcissus when he was out walking, and she tried to follow him, yet she could only echo his words back to him. She went to throw her arms around him, and he spurned her advances. She was distraught and ran off. Because Narcissus rejected all male and female suitors, the Goddess Nemesis decided that the best punishment was for him to fall in love with his reflection. Good old Nemesis (the Goddess of retribution) lured Narcissus towards a pool, and as he caught sight of his reflection, he was struck by love. Echo could see Narcissus wasting away by the stagnant pond, and as he slowly died, she was overcome with grief and wasted away whilst still pining for the love she never had.
In Greek myth, a youth called Ameinias had Nemesis curse Narcissus. Ameinias had been spurned by him, and in his humiliation, he killed himself on Narcissus' doorstep. Whilst doing so, he called on Nemesis to avenge his death, laying the blame, quite literally, at the door of Narcissus. As in the other version, he eventually died by wasting away as he could not pull himself away from the sight of himself in a pool.
The myth makes it clear that both Narcissus and Echo were beautiful, yet the pride and arrogance of Narcissus were such that he never allowed himself to be swayed by the heart. Echo was too busy listening to her own voice to consider the feelings of betrayal that Hera had to endure. So what does this information mean for the birth chart?
Narcissus could give us the point in the chart where we can be a little bit narcissistic but also incredibly attractive to others. We may have a blind spot regarding how we affect others if it features strongly, such as conjunct the Sun, Moon or the ascendant. Narcissus was attractive on the outside, but he also had his issues. Did he think he was just too good to share himself, or was something else going on? I haven't done all that much research into narcissism, and as I've gone off to refresh my memory of the basics, I've been thrown into conflict. Some think there can be healthy amounts of narcissism, which I'm not sure about. Yes, I agree there can be varying degrees, but having a healthy sense of self-esteem does not put you into the category of being narcissistic. And who draws the line as to what is healthy and what isn't?
Back in the birth chart, I think it's far too simplistic to suggest that anyone with a strongly placed Narcissus suffers from some pathological disorder. Still, I do think it could point toward someone who finds it too easy to reject the offers that come to him/her. It is said that at the root of narcissism is a deep inferiority complex, but until I've looked at the information available, I can't comment on that. In the myth, we are told that Narcissus' mother once asked a seer of some description if her son would live to a good age, and the reply was, "If he but fail to recognize himself, a long life he may have, beneath the sun". There could be some major significance in that answer. Is Narcissus the point at which we really will be okay as long as we don't see the ‘gift’ that we actually have? Does Narcissus represent the point in the chart where ignorance can be bliss?
The individual with Narcissus needs to look at the house where it falls because this could show an area of life where it may well be better to stay slightly blind to whatever it is that you possess. Echo may be easier to understand. We have the asteroid showing us where we can feel like we don't have a voice of our own, and it may also represent a point that we are in danger of being a major distraction to the truth. I think that Echo manifesting negatively could imply that we don't pay attention to what we are saying, and as a result, we are in danger of parroting and not thinking about whether we mean what we say. Why did Echo help Zeus and not Hera? Echo could show an area of judgement that goes against the grain. It could also be something much simpler, such as we are in danger of wasting away if we don't use our voice to its full advantage.
This pair of asteroids could have some weight in synastry, but I'd want to see exact conjunctions or some other hard and strong aspect. Obviously, if someone has Echo in aspect to the other person’s Narcissus and the myth is playing out back on planet reality, I would like to hear about it.
