According to a myth of Ovid, he was raised by nymphs in a cave on Mount Ida. At the age of fifteen, he traveled to the cities of Lydia and Caria in Asia Minor. It was there that he came upon a pool of fresh water. He undressed and bathed in the pool. Meanwhile, the nymph of the pool Salmacis, fell in love with him. She jumped into the pool and embraced him, not letting go, he struggled to get away from her. Salmacis prayed to the gods that they should never separate and the gods hearing her prayer, merged their bodies together, transforming Hermaphroditus into an androgynous being. Hermaphroditus, in anger of his transformation, cursed the pool so that anyone who bathed in it would suffer the same fate.