The Mythology of Loss

Orpheus looks back at Eurydice

The play Eurydice is based on the Greek myth Orpheus and Eurydice. One of my jobs as dramaturg is to look at other myths that are comparative to Orpheus and Eurydice. I was able to find 12 different myths that include a trip to the underworld to retrieve a loved one. The stories came from Babylonia, Kenya, India, New Zealand, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Scandinavia and North America. People went to retrieve their spouses, lovers, a father, brother, cousin and in one case, they rescued themselves.

Ishtar rescues Tammuz from the Underworld

- Babylonia

While each story was quite different from the rest, they all held commonalities, such as a yearning for a loved one who was dead; an effort to bring the loved one back by courageously facing what is arguably the biggest fear there is: death; and whether the mission was successful or not, there was usually some wisdom won in the journey.

Pare and Hutu pulling themselves back up to the land of the living

by  grabbing onto roots and burrowing their way up

- New Zealand.

We know that Orpheus and Eurydice doesn’t end well. Orpheus, armed with his powerful love and magical music, could not save Eurydice from death. What about the other myths? Did they all end the same way? Well the final score is:

Death: 6          (where the loved one stayed dead)

Love: 4             (where love was stronger than death)

Mixed: 2          (6 months in the underworld and 6 months on earth – which explains the seasons.)

But regardless the outcome, there was usually a sense of balance and acceptance in the end. I will be posting many of these stories and they will be archived on the Dear Eurydice Stories page.

Savitri watches as Yama, Lord of the Dead,

comes  for her husband Satyavant

- India

Dealing with our own mortality and with losing someone we love are very powerful themes. They are among the most commonly addressed throughout the oral stories that have been passed down through the ages. In folktales, we find many common death motifs. There are the stories about a hero who imprisons death so he won’t have to die. After awhile, the hero usually learns that everything must die eventually, and he frees death. There are stories about a hero who learns the secret of healing, but there is a rule: if death stands at the foot of the bed, the hero may heal, but if death stands at the head of the bed, the hero must not interfere. All goes well for the hero until the day his own beloved is the one that is dying and death stands at the head. I will also sharing many of these stories on the blog. They are powerful and help us process our own sense of sorrow and loss. Here’s the first story, it’s from India and follows another common death motif:

The Mustard Seed

The Buddha Shakyamuni was known far and wide as a great teacher and healer. There were even rumors that he could bring people back from the dead. One day a woman came to him sorrowing over her child who had died. She pleaded with Buddha to restore her child to life. The Buddha listened patiently to her and was touched by her deep despair. He said, “Mother, if you bring me just one mustard seed from a household where no one has died, I can make a potion that will bring your child back to you.”

The woman was so excited. Mustard seeds grew everywhere! They were so common, that almost every yard had some. She went from door to door in her village, but could not find one family that had not been touched by death.

Undaunted she traveled to other villages, passing fields of mustard seeds; surely she could find a home that had not tasted death. After days of searching, she wearily returned to Buddha. “Master,” she said, “I have tried so hard to do what you have asked, but could not. But in the journey I have come to speak with many people who have been visited by death. I understand now that death is as pervasive as the mustard seed.” The woman returned home sorrowing, but not alone.