~I wrote this poem inspired by Aquileana’s wonderful post Greek Mythology: “Metamorphoses” by Ovid / “Flowers and Plants in some Greek Myths II and the White Orchid or Vanilla Orchid in my dining room.
~
Orchid – Rondel Prime
You are a flower of rare beauty and perfection
The embodiment of male and female charm
Born through magic orchestration
A gift of the Gods willing to disarm
Woe, young Orchis, in a state of inebriation
Bacchantes he accosted, causing great alarm
You are a flower of rare beauty and perfection
The embodiment of male and female charm
Love and lust it was, he meant no harm
Yet death to Orchis was the condemnation
But You came, his resurrection and redemption
To grow happy in every house, on every farm
You are a flower of rare beauty and perfection
The embodiment of male and female charm
*
The Myth
The word Orchid comes from the Greek word ‘orchis’ which means testicle due to the shape of the Orchid root. In Greek mythology, in one of the legends, Orchis, the son of a nymph and a satyr, came upon the festival of Bacchus, the God of Wine, in the woods, where he enjoyed a few too many glasses of wine and then attempted to rape Bacchantes, the favourite priestess of Dionysus. As punishment for this insult he was torn apart by the Bachanalians. His father pleaded for mercy for his son to be restored to life. The best the gods were prepared to do was to turn him into a beautiful flower.
In my poem, I’m prepared to be more forgiving of the young satyr’s drunken behaviour. I do not condone the sexual harassment, as we would call it today. But it must have been hard to show restraint when others didn’t behave much better. Besides, it is not clear that rape took place.
*
There are nearly 26,000 varieties of orchids, each with a special symbolism. Primarily, they are a symbol of love, perfection and beauty. The orchid represents both the male and female anatomy, which is obvious in the double root tubers and the shape of the blooms. So, how about an orchid tattoo? It represents sexuality and procreation.
My Vanilla Orchid, a gift from a dear friend, stands for innocence, beauty and elegance, and is now in its second bloom. Did you know Vanilla flavouring comes from the dried seedpods of this orchid? I didn’t know that. And there’s more to learn on Google! Happy Orchid surfing! 🙂
Here are a few links:
Orchids are Named after a Greek God and a Male Body Part
http://hametownshoppesgardener.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/orchids-are-named-after-greek-god-and.html
Flowers in Greek Mythology http://www.valentine.gr/mythology7_en.php
Orchid Flower Symbolism
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/orchid-flower-meaning.html
All About Orchids
http://houseplants.about.com/od/growingorchidsinside/tp/AllAboutOrchids.htm
*
And for those who like writing form poetry here’s a Rondel Prime example. Mine is a slight variation, but poets are allowed to do that! 🙂
http://bensonofjohn.co.uk/poetry/formssearch.php?searchbox=Rondel+Prime
Have a great week! ❤
© 2016 Irina Dimitric
Irina's Poetry Corner 
This is such a great poem, totally aligned with the spirit of the Greek Myth, which you have summed up so well!… I am fond of the idea of seeing the Orchid as an expression of both sexes, and not just as of the male genitalia (as most accounts of the myth do)… If you stop to think it, the concept of hermaphrodite is in fact an attribute of Flowers themselves, as each flowers have both male & female organs which work together in the reproduction (*See note below)
Thanks so much for the mention and for sharing this excellent poem, dear Irina… sending love and best wishes! Aquileana 🙂
(*) The main female reproductive parts are the carpels, which are fused together in most flowers to form a pistil, usually found in the center of the flower, and essentially a home for the ovules The male reproductive parts are the stamens, these reproductive organs are made up of two parts: anthers and filaments. The anther is the part of the organ that produces pollen, and the filaments hold up the anthers. Source: goo.gl/RShmgK
Dear Aquileana,
I am so pleased to hear you like my creation. When you mentioned in your comment you would have associated orchids more with the female genitalia, I had this idea to write a poem in which I would pay tribute to both male and female attributes. My teacher and mentor Susan Budig liked it so much she shared it on her Facebook timeline. Thank you for the inspiration, dear friend.
And thank you for the lesson in botany! I’ll have a closer look at my orchid to revive the knowledge imparted to me by my school teachers ages ago. Best wishes and hugs ❤ Irina
Loved this: poem and background presented in one post!
Was wondering about the poem’s structure–if there’s a particular name/formula behind it (of this I am woefully untutored!).
Liz, here is the link which explains the Rondel Prime. It’s the last link in my post.
http://bensonofjohn.co.uk/poetry/formssearch.php?searchbox=Rondel+Prime
My poem is slightly different as it follows a different rhyme pattern, and it has three quatrains and a couplet, instead of two quatrains and a sestet, still the same number of lines: 14. My Rondel Prime: ABab abAB baab AB; the first two lines are repeated in the second stanza and in the couplet.
Thank you very much for your nice comment. 🙂
A lovely poem, Irina, and so wonderful to see it is inspired by the writing of Aquileana! 🙂 ❤
Thank you for dropping by, Christy. I’m so glad you like the poem. I haven’t written much form poetry lately, so I felt inspired reading about the genesis of various flowers in Aquileana’s post. ❤
Lovely rondel, Irina. I like the 14 line form – it works especially well for this sentiment.
Thank you so much, John.Since you have been my teacher too, your opinion means a lot to me.
La vie est un poème vécu au jour le jour
Avec ses joies, ses échecs, ses tristesses
Ses amours et ses détresses
Il faut savoir garder l’espoir
Réussir ses combats contre la maladie ,ses désillusions ect ….
Etre solidaire entre amis (ies)
Avoir du cœur c’est comme si on avait envie de tout partager
N’oublie pas que la vie est un poème vécu au jour le jour
Alors vit ,,,,,ce poème, ce petit écris je le partage avec toi
Gros bisous
Bernard
Bonne soirée IRINAS de jolies fleurs l’orquidé
Merci Bernard pour ce très beau poème … Oui, il faut savoir garder l’espoir… et jouir de la vie autant que possible.
Belle journée à toi. Bisous d’amitié ❤ Irina
Bonsoir IRINAS merci pour tes réponses cela est agréable
J’ai vu ton passage sur mon blog
Je me permets de rentrer dans ton univers
Pour te dire merci
Merci de ta fidélité
Merci de tes commentaires
Merci du fond du coeur
Merci pour tout
je te souhaite une très bonne soirée
Une excellente semaine à venir avec une petite chute de température
Reste bien au chaud
Prends bien soin de toi
Gros bisous Bernard
Chez moi en Australie il fait deja chaud, c’est presque la fin du printemps. Merci de ton passage, Bernard. Bon weekend. Bisous Irina 🙂
What a great poem, Irina, and how wonderful that it was inspired by Aquileana’s post – which I read, too. The story of Orchis and Bacchantes is fascinating and I’ll think of Orchis from now on whenever I see orchids.
The Rondel is an interesting form. I really like the repeat of the two lines. I note in a comment above that your poem follows a different rhyming pattern than the usual Rondel, but not being familiar with the form, all I can say is that yours works perfectly for me!
Thanks for dropping by, Millie. And thanks for your interest in the Rondel form. Basically, the Rondel consists of 13 lines and the Rondel Prime has 14 lines, and the rhyme pattern can vary. Yesterday I posted “Without the Moon”, a Rondel Prime which appears in my book and follows the same structure and rhyme pattern as this one. I’m glad you like this poem. Thank you so much for commenting. 🙂
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