Ameinias (mythology)


In Greek mythology, Ameinias was a young man who fell in love with the beautiful Beotian hunter Narcissus, who had already spurned his male suitors, according to the version of Narcissus's myth by Conon. Narcissus also spurned him and gave him a sword. Ameinias committed suicide at Narcissus's doorstep after being rejected by him. He had prayed to Nemesis to give Narcissus a lesson for all the pain he provoked. Narcissus walked by a pool of water and decided to drink some. He saw his reflection, became entranced by it, and killed himself because he could not have his object of desire, or gazing endlessly at the image, he slowly pined away and was transformed by the nymphs into a narcissus flower. Others say he was instead filled with remorse and killed himself beside the pool—and from his dying life's blood the flower was born.

Depictions of Ameinias

The BBC TV-series Telling Tales retales the Narcissus myth in a modern setting where Narcissus is a handsome, popular kid at his school and Ameinias is his friend.