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One can demonstrate that both art and philosophy arose from the religion of the Greeks. Women had an important influence on the religion of the Greeks because it began to be formed at a time when women deities were dominant. But the early history of the Greek religion was not written down so women involved in the early formation have not been recognized. Judy Chicago has tried to overcome this limitation by recognising such names as: Eurynome, Gaea, Hera, Aphrodite, The Furies, Hecate, Ariadne, Artemis, Athene, Britomartis, Demeter, Europa, Kore, Pasiphae, Python, Rhea, Antigone, Atalanta, Cassandra, Circe, Clytemnestra, Daphne, Hecuba, Helen of Troy, Lysistrata, Pandora, Paxagora, and Pythia.
Religion of the time depended on stories developed in an an earlier society where women acted more powerfuly and independently. Art depicted gods and godesses interacting in ways which were not likely in Greek society. The Greeks developed a sense of an ideal so the images of women depicted depended not on ordinary people, but the best available. Trade spread these images abroad where they were quite popular because of their fine quality and interest. The images thus spread, no doubt, influenced the aspirations of many people. Greek society benefited economically from the trade in art and the rest of the world benefited from a view of women which was less restricted that the Greeks themselves held.
Unfortunately mortal women do not fare so well at the hands of the gods. Each goddess attends to her realm in the manner of a mortal queen who maintains political power in her domain. Each goddess promulgates laws which apply to the enties in her domain. She holds court during which she listens to petitions (prayers). She attends banquets with the other gods. And she has servants that attend to her. Mortal women had no political power and were often the servants of men. The were separated from men and within their own domain were part of their own heiarchy so some women served other women. Though the goddesses were not immune from rape, most resisted it. Mortal women could not resist being raped by the gods. Zeus raped Europa to produce Minos and Rhadamanthus. This rape seems to serve more as a mechanism for producing offspring with the blood of Zeus. This sort of rape is a violent sexual act that is forced upon a woman against her will, but it is not an act of destruction, as rapes turn out to be in reality. They involve the fantasy that the women will submit to the power of the male, and will willingly raise up the child that is forced upon them by potent sexual intercourse with the god. For this reason these rapes are seen as symbolic of the religion of a patriachal society dominating the matriarchal religion of an older society. They may also mbe a reult of the ampthroporphic nature of theer belief. If a woman prayed for fertility it seems cosistent that fertility might enter them in the form of sexual intercouse by a deity. Though a rape of this sort might seem to be a humiliation yet such women who edured this were well-regarded by the ancient Greeks.
It is interesting to note that witchcraft is mainly a practice of women and that this practice involves many of the aspects of ancient pagan worship. It is possible that this fact demonstrates that women developed religion in prehistoric times to suit their own needs and they continued the same practices in historic times in spite of the fact that men had taken over the practice of religion.
In the Odyssey of Homer Helen is described as having such an involvement with witchcraft:
"Then Helen, daughter of Zeus, took other counsel. [220] Straightway she cast into the wine of which they were drinking a drug to quiet all pain and strife, and bring forgetfulness of every ill. Whoso should drink this down, when it is mingled in the bowl, would not in the course of that day let a tear fall down over his cheeks, [225] no, not though his mother and father should lie there dead, or though before his face men should slay with the sword his brother or dear son, and his own eyes beheld it. Such cunning drugs had the daughter of Zeus, drugs of healing, which Polydamna, the wife of Thon, had given her, a woman of Egypt, for there the earth, the giver of grain, bears greatest store [230] of drugs, many that are healing when mixed, and many that are baneful; there every man is a physician, wise above human kind; for they are of the race of Paeeon."
The words that she uses: φάρμακον (pharmacon) for drug and ἰητρὸς (ietros)for healer are neither from the Indo-European backround of Greece. 'φάρμακον' is translated both as a charm and a drug. Helen seems to connect these things to Egypt. But the concept of magic is definitely Indo-European. It is interesting to note that the word 'witch' has Indo-European roots and is related to the word 'weik-2' which is related to concepts of magic. The word 'magic' is also Indo-European and comes from the word 'magh-1', 'To be able, to have power'. What was associated with this power was not originally in the hands of a hero but more likely a priestess of Indo-European religion. The power that a priestess invokes is not a material power but a spiritual one. Our word 'spell' refers to an incantation while the Indo-European word 'spel-3' means just 'To say aloud, recite'. Of course what the priestess says aloud are petitions to a deity whose action is desired. The model for Circe may be a priestess, but in fact she is a goddess. She has no need to petition as she is a goddess and should be able to act like one.
The concept of potion is more complex. The word 'potion' is also from Indo-European 'poi-1', 'To drink' and 'ag-', 'To drive'. The word 'ag-' became the word 'action' and strictly 'potion' comes from 'poi-1' and 'action' with the 'ac' of action dropped. So a potion is a drink that does something. There is reality here because there are plenty of substances that can act by bring drunk. Poisons, drugs, and alcohol are all examples. Whether a spell or a potion is involved there are realistically expected actions and ones that are unrealistic. It is in the realm of unrealistic expectation that magic is involved. These are hoped for actions that would require divine intervention.
Religion was more integrated into the culture of Ancient Greece than it is now. There was no issue of converting people to one religion. All people of one culture had the same religion and the religion was defined, they thought, by their experience with God, or deities. We sometimes refer to the Greek religion as pagan, but this word was meaningless to them. Other religions were to them babarian. The word 'pagan' suggests ignorance, particularly of Christianity, but the Greeks would have to be invincibly ignorant because Christianity was not well formed until well into the Roman period. The value of their religion cannot be doubted but became anything but ignorant. The wonderful art of the Greeks was a tribute to their religion, and from the Greek religion speculative philosophy grew. And lastly, much of Christianity was simply the adoption of the Greek religion with the names changed. Much of the work of the old gods of the Greek pantheon was taken over by the saints and angels of the new Christianity.
Herodotus states: "50. Moreover the naming[51] of almost all the gods has come to Hellas from Egypt: for that it has come from the Barbarians I find by inquiry is true, and I am of opinion that most probably it has come from Egypt, because, except in the case of Poseidon and the Dioscuroi (in accordance with that which I have said before), and also of Hera and Hestia and Themis and the Charites and Nere‹ds, the Egyptians have had the names of all the other gods in their country for all time. What I say here is that which the Egyptians think themselves: but as for the gods whose names they profess that they do not know, these I think received their naming from the Pelasgians, except Poseidon; but about this god the Hellenes learnt from the Libyans, for no people except the Libyans have had the name of Poseidon from the first and have paid honour to this god always. Nor, it may be added, have the Egyptians any custom of worshipping heroes." ( History of Herodotus, V1)
In contrast to what Herodotus says the vast majority of Greek Dieties have names with Indo-European roots. But those that do not have not been connected to Egypt. Herodotus was not aware of the Minoan culture which was discovered on Crete by Arthur Evans. The question is how much the Minoans may have influenced the Greek Religion. But Herodotus does reference the Pelasgians. He references these as the first inhabitants and he says "The Pelasgians spoke a non-Greek language". (1.57) He also describes the gods of the Pelasgians:
"In early times the Pelasgi, as I know by information which I got at Dodona, offered sacrifices of all kinds, and prayed to the gods, but had no distinct names or appellations for them, since they had never heard of any. They called them gods (Theoi, disposers), because they disposed and arranged all things in such a beautiful order. After a long lapse of time the names of the gods came to Greece from Egypt, and the Pelasgi learnt them, only as yet they knew nothing of Bacchus, of whom they first heard at a much later date. Not long after the arrival of the names they sent to consult the oracle at Dodona about them. This is the most ancient oracle in Greece, and at that time there was no other. To their question, "Whether they should adopt the names that had been imported from the foreigners?" the oracle replied by recommending their use. Thenceforth in their sacrifices the Pelasgi made use of the names of the gods, and from them the names passed afterwards to the Greeks.
Whence the gods severally sprang, whether or no they had all existed from eternity, what forms they bore- these are questions of which the Greeks knew nothing until the other day, so to speak. For Homer and Hesiod were the first to compose Theogonies, and give the gods their epithets, to allot them their several offices and occupations, and describe their forms; and they lived but four hundred years before my time, as I believe. As for the poets who are thought by some to be earlier than these, they are, in my judgment, decidedly later writers. In these matters I have the authority of the priestesses of Dodona for the former portion of my statements; what I have said of Homer and Hesiod is my own opinion."
The idea of Herodotus that the Palasgians used no name for gods is interesting and could explain why so many of the deities have names that are Indo-European.
The practice of religion in ancient Greece involves both private and public aspects. Within the home religion focused on the hearth and the goddess Hestia. The maintaining of the home fire was an important ritual which served as a focus for worship. Other riturals involved prayers, meals, and storytelling. If one has ever dealt with a campfire one can easily realize how the lighting of the fire in the morning from the coals of the day before can assure that the whole family has a good start and a good day. One can also understand the notion of a libation which involves the pouring of liguids. Flammable liguids support the fire while inflammable ones quench it and so liguids can be used to quench it. All the liguids become vapors which involve a spiritual aspect related to the breath.
The more public aspects of religion focus on processions which are directed to hearths and altars. At the altars sacrifices are made which are roasted on the public hearths. Typically the sacrifice involves the slaying of a domestic animal as a part of a feast. The animal is then butchered and roasted, and served up as cooked to be eaten. Prayers are offered as a part of the sacrifice and sometimes statuettes are offered that are symbolic of the prayer's request. A model of an eye will be offered if one has an eye problem. Or the stature of a pregnant woman would be offered if one desires to be pregnant. If the fat and the bones are burned in the fire and the libations of oil and wine are poured on the fire then these would serve to flavor the meat being roasted. The modern equivalent of an ancient Greek religious ceremony would be an outdoor barbecue or a rib burn-off.
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Question: Does Religion need Myth
Answer: Every person has to live with their own personal experience, much of which cannot be scientifically verified. In addition, the course of events cannot be predicted with certainty, and yet decisions about the future must be made. In this muddle of reality, one person's truth is another one's myth. Religion deals with these personal experiences in a personal way that is helpful for many. But the truth of what happens is not easy to say. Nor is the view clear from any angle. But it is not correct to call the descriptions myth. Nor is it correct to say that myth is necessarily fiction. It is possible for a person to describe personal experiences; the best we can do is to take them at face value in their relvance to our own experience.
The question that you ask suggests that religion might be founded in intentional fiction. But the truth is that many believe the stories that are incorporated into religion. They need them to deal with personal experience. Myth and religion are related. When you realize how they are related, then you realize the futility of your question. Myths are religious truths that are no longer believed. But religion needs truths.
Question: what ws the main religion of the greeks?
Answer: For the ancient Greeks religion was not separate from culture or reality. They found the god and goddesses in their experience and adjusted their lives to the demands of the deities. All public and private events involved the deities because their favor was sought. The ancient Greeks felt that if they were moral and just that the deities would reward them.
Question: what role did women have in classical greek religion?
Answer: Normally female goddesses required female priestesses and because Athena was a female, women were especially important in the religious activity in Athens. The priestesses had high status and a lot of influence in their society. They also were less restricted in their activity than other women. Many women also participated in the festivities relating to Athena.
Question: monastry_adress
Answer: There were no Monasteries in ancient Greece. On the web Greece is Ellada. Go to the following site and enter monasteries as the search term: Click here
Question: Was there heaven or hell in Ancient Greece?
Answer: Most dead souls went to the same place of the dead which seemed to be underground in Hades. Heaven was where the deities dwelled and some mortals were elevated to this status due to extrordinary service to the deities. Souls could also be punished in the afterlife. Tartarus was a region below Hades where even gods could be confined and ineffective. The ancient Greeks believed that most of their rewards for good behavior would be provided by the gods while they were alive. If they were bad they were punished by the furies while they were alive. They could also receive rewards and punishment in the afterlife. But they all went to Hades when they died. Their they lived a shadowy existence unless they were revived by blood. Then they could speak and interact with the living. Achilles thought it was better to be a lowly slave than to be a Prince among the dead in Hades.
Question: what was the delphic oracle
Answer: The ancient Greeks believed that the deities knew both the past and the future. A priest or priestess of a diety could communicate with the deity and if the deity was plesed would reveal some aspect of the future. This information could then be communicated by the priest or priestess to a supplicant. The priest or priestess who did this communication was referred to as an oracle. The most famous oracle of the Greek world was a priestess, called Pythia, at the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. Only one priestess at a time assumed the role of Pythia. When the Pythia was consulted she would respond with words that seemed incomprehensible. The priests would have to interpret the meaning to the supplicant.
Question: What.were.any"firsts"in.religion.in.ancient.greece? ()
Answer: The ancient greeks were the first to worship deities in the form of human beings. It is important to consider the lengths to which they took this. In drama they went from impersonating deities with humans to protraying them in their interactions with humans. In art Dedalus was the first to split the legs of a statue representation of a deity. Later the art portarayed the deity moving in space.
Question: What were the religious obligations of a Greek man or woman?
Answer: These seemed considerable. Religion provided rituals and good modes of behavior. Religious festivals were frequent. Processions, sacrifice of animals, pouring of libations were very common. But one of the unusual characteristics of Greek religion was that religious practice was not obligatory.
Question: I'm interested in the priestess of the delphi oracle. How did they get selected to become priestess, and how was the selection Pythia decided?
Answer: "In ancient times virgins delivered the oracles because virgins, having their natural innocence intact were supposed to guard the secrecy of the oracles. But in historical times, as sexual violence was offered against a prophetess, the Delphians appointed an elderly woman to prophesy." More information about the oracle can be found at: Click here
Question: renaissance
Answer: Study of new-found Greek works during the Renaissance promoted the questioning of Catholic dogma and humanistic thinking.
Question: how did greeks worship their gods
Answer: They tried to please them so they could ask for favors.
Question: what would a ceromony to aphrodite in a temple be like?
Answer: There are several possibilities. First is an image on a ring from the Minoan culture dated to 1500 BCE. The small image in the sky may be Aphrodite coming down in response to the dancing of the priestesses: Dancing goddesses.
What follows is the description of a ceremony for Apollo from the Iliad, Book I: "They then got out upon the sea-shore and landed the hecatomb for Apollo; Chryseis also left the ship, and Ulysses led her to the altar to deliver her into the hands of her father. "Chryses," said he, "King Agamemnon has sent me to bring you back your child, and to offer sacrifice to Apollo on behalf of the Danaans, that we may propitiate the god, who has now brought sorrow upon the Argives." So saying he gave the girl over to her father, who received her gladly, and they ranged the holy hecatomb all orderly round the altar of the god. They washed their hands and took up the barley-meal to sprinkle over the victims, while Chryses lifted up his hands and prayed aloud on their behalf. "Hear me," he cried, "O god of the silver bow, that protectest Chryse and holy Cilla, and rulest Tenedos with thy might. Even as thou didst hear me aforetime when I prayed, and didst press hardly upon the Achaeans, so hear me yet again, and stay this fearful pestilence from the Danaans." Thus did he pray, and Apollo heard his prayer. When they had done praying and sprinkling the barley-meal, they drew back the heads of the victims and killed and flayed them. They cut out the thigh-bones, wrapped them round in two layers of fat, set some pieces of raw meat on the top of them, and then Chryses laid them on the wood fire and poured wine over them, while the young men stood near him with five-pronged spits in their hands. When the thigh-bones were burned and they had tasted the inward meats, they cut the rest up small, put the pieces upon the spits, roasted them till they were done, and drew them off: then, when they had finished their work and the feast was ready, they ate it, and every man had his full share, so that all were satisfied. As soon as they had had enough to eat and drink, pages filled the mixing-bowl with wine and water and handed it round, after giving every man his drink-offering. Thus all day long the young men worshipped the god with song, hymning him and chaunting the joyous paean, and the god took pleasure in their voices; but when the sun went down, and it came on dark, they laid themselves down to sleep by the stern cables of the ship, and when the child of morning, rosy-fingered Dawn, appeared they again set sail for the host of the Achaeans.'
This ceremony would work for Aphrodite too, especially the part about the presenting of the girl. But Aphrodite would not be involved with a pestilence. She would be involved with some other disaster. And the priestess of Aphrodite would be a woman. This ceremony is mainly men, while a ceremony with aphrodite would be mainly women.
In book VI of the Iliad, Homer describes a service for Athena: "When they reached the temple of Athena, lovely Theano, daughter of Cisseus and wife of Antenor, opened the doors, for the Trojans had made her priestess of Athena. The women lifted up their hands to the goddess with a loud cry, and Theano took the robe to lay it upon the knees of Athena, praying the while to the daughter of great Jove. "Holy Athena," she cried, "protectress of our city, mighty goddess, break the spear of Diomed and lay him low before the Scaean gates. Do this, and we will sacrifice twelve heifers that have never yet known the goad, in your temple, if you will have pity upon the town, with the wives and little ones If the Trojans." Thus she prayed, but Pallas Athena granted not her prayer." This servce would work for Aphrodite with little modification.
Question: what is religions role in antigone
Answer: Antigone's actions are guided by her religion.
Question: what was the religious views of the people in Antigone's time, the fact that burial was so important to the greeks for the person to have peace, would this have influenced what descion a person in that time would have made, in either burying the body or following the commands of the leader. How would this have affected the descion of a woman in the same situation as Antigone. If you could please point me to other sources where I could find this information it would be appreciated. I am trying to find info on a paper that I am writting for my english class.
Answer: First you need to realize when Antigone's time was. She lived in the period just before the Trojan War about 1250 BCE. This was not the time of Classical Greece of about 800 years later when the play was written. This was a time when superstition was quite strong and science was not yet a dream of the future. What we know is that the source of the art and literature that was produced in classical Greece were poems that were retold by the bards over this 800 year period. We have copies of some of these poems, but not nearly all of them. What we can do is look at some of the older ones of these to verify ideas of burial. Fortunately this is a subject that comes up repeatedly in the Iliad and the Odyssey so we can review the situation there.
In the Odyssey (Book X) is this tale: "Yet even thence I led not my company safe away. There was one, Elpenor, the youngest of us all, not very valiant in war neither steadfast in mind. He was lying apart from the rest of my men on the housetop of Circe's sacred dwelling, very fain of the cool air, as one heavy with wine. Now when he heard the noise of the voices and of the feet of my fellows as they moved to and fro, he leaped up of a sudden and minded him not to descend again by the way of the tall ladder, but fell right down from the roof, and his neck was broken from the bones of the spine, and his spirit went down to the house of Hades."
When Odysseus went to Hades " 'And first came the soul of Elpenor, my companion, that had not yet been buried beneath the wide-wayed earth; for we left the corpse behind us in the hall of Circe, unwept and unburied, seeing that another task was instant on us. At the sight of him I wept and had compassion on him, and uttering my voice spake to him winged words: "Elpenor, how hast thou come beneath the darkness and the shadow? Thou hast come fleeter on foot than I in my black ship."
'So spake I, and with a moan he answered me, saying: "Son of Laertes, of the seed of Zeus, Odysseus of many devices, an evil doom of some god was my bane and wine out of measure. When I laid me down on the house-top of Circe I minded me not to descend again by the way of the tall ladder, but fell right down from the roof, and my neck was broken off from the bones of the spine, and my spirit went down to the house of Hades. And now I pray thee in the name of those whom we left, who are no more with us, thy wife, and thy sire who cherished thee when as yet thou wert a little one, and Telemachus, whom thou didst leave in thy halls alone; forasmuch as I know that on thy way hence from out the dwelling of Hades, thou wilt stay thy well-wrought ship at the isle Aeaean, even then, my lord, I charge thee to think on me. Leave me not unwept and unburied as thou goest hence, nor turn thy back upon me, lest haply I bring on thee the anger of the gods. Nay, burn me there with mine armour, all that is mine, and pile me a barrow on the shore of the grey sea, the grave of a luckless man, that even men unborn may hear my story. Fulfil me this and plant upon the barrow mine oar, wherewith I rowed in the days of my life, while yet I was among my fellows."
'Even so he spake, and I answered him saying: "All this, luckless man, will I perform for thee and do."
'Even so we twain were sitting holding sad discourse, I on the one side, stretching forth my sword over the blood, while on the other side the ghost of my friend told all his tale.' (Book XI)
In those days only a crazy person would ignore such a command from the gods. It is interesting to note that in the Odyssey the body must be burned while in Antigone the body must be buried.
Question: what was the role of greek priestesses?
Answer: See the information about Theano above.
Question: what roles did women have in religion?
Answer: The goddesses had women priestesses who did everything. Some priestesses also served gods.
Question: what worship took place at the parthenon?
Answer: The worship of Athena.
Question: how has ancient greek religion influnced modorn times
Answer: Ancient religion has influenced modern times:
Question: why were gods important to the greeks?
Answer: The Greeks thought the gods caused many things to happen around them and they thought that their behavior toward the gods made their life easier and better.
Question: what where the religious obligations of ancient greek people
Answer: Participation in religious activities was very important because The Greeks beleived that for an individual to be successful, the deities must be pleased with his or her behavior. Difficulties were though to result from the displeasure of the deities. Many rituals were spelled out for religious observance, and then seers and prophets could be consulted for additional activities. Many activities during the day were ritualized in this way. But it is important to note that the activities of Greek religion were optional and not obligatory.
Question: What is the Labyrinth with that half bull-half man in the center?
Answer: The myth of Theseus and the Minotaur suggests that it is a maze with a child-devouring monster in the center. But Homer thinks it is a dance floor. The archeology of Arthur Evans suggests the Minotaur may be a bull symbol of the Minoan religion and the children leaped over the bull on the dance floor. The devouring of the children may have occurred when they were accidentaly gored during their dance.
Question: What were the most known myths?
Answer: The best known myths were the ones contained in the Iliad and the Odyssey.
Question: How were priests or priestesses chosen?
Answer: In the ancient Minoan society, priests or priestesses were chosen based on an experience that they had with a deity. This experience would be described as an epiphany. Generally sex matched the sex of the deity. Some priesthoods were often hereditary. Some cults required youths. On mainland Greece election, lottery, and appointment were largely used. On the eastern Greek islands and in Asia Minor priesthoods could be purchased.
Question: what is the religion
Answer: The Greeks had no name for their religion. This is because they did not separate religion from reality. They felt the gods and goddesses as they experienced them, were part of reality. Christians came to call the religion of the Greeks Paganism, but the religion that they so labeled was the religion of ignorant farmers who would not convert to Christianity. The religion of the Greeks was the religion of intelligent people who lived in Greece for thousands of years before the religion of Christianity.
Question: were the goddesses from ancient greece derrived from earlier religions?
Answer: Yes they were. For example Aphrodite came from Astarte of Phoenicia.
Question: What was the worship?
Answer: Worship consisted of rituals and ceremonies. Some were private and done in the home. Hestia, the goddess of the hearth was worshipped in the home with prayers and libations related to the hearth. On holidays worship ways performed in a temple dedicated to one or more gods and goddesses to whom the holiday was dedicated. A procession might be performed where an image or sculpture was carried about the town. The procession might end at the altar in the temple where a libation might be poured on the alter. Gifts might be presented to the deity, and an animal sacrifice might be performed. The blood of the animal might be used for another libation. The body of the animal would then be cut up and a feast served from the roasted meat of the animal. Another libation might involve the basting of the meat with wine and oil. Prayers and dedications might be said at various times during this service. Similar ceremonies might occur for weddings and funerals. The use of oaths, potions, charms, signs, wands, and magic in general involved observance of the religion.
Question: What were the religions in Acient Greece
Answer: There was only one religion in ancient Greece and this site is about that religion. It had no name and the ancient Greeks did not separate religion from other aspects of their lives. Some refer to the religion as paganism but this is quite incorrect. What is known as paganism was a residue of the ancient Greek religion that persisted after the majority of the Greek people had converted to Christianity.
Question: Did they have a lot of Gods in ancient Greece?
Answer: They had thousands of goddesses. There seemed to be fewer gods, but there were plenty of those too.
Question: how did religion influence greek art?
Answer: The best art was produced for religious use. Most Greek art was for religious use. The Greeks had little use for private art. Most art was conceived to be pleasing to the gods.
Question: Did people worship the Furies? And if so, how?
Answer: Pausanius, Description of Greece, 1.28.1 states: "Hard by is a sanctuary of the goddesses which the Athenians call the August, but Hesiod in the Theogony calls them Erinyes (Furies). It was Aeschylus who first represented them with snakes in their hair. But on the images neither of these nor of any of the under-world deities is there anything terrible. There are images of Pluto, Hermes, and Earth, by which sacrifice those who have received an acquittal on the Hill of Ares; sacrifices are also offered on other occasions by both citizens and aliens."
Question: Did the acient greeks base their religion around the four elements, earth air fire and water, and if so what were the symbols they used to represent these elements?
Answer: Hesiod, in the Theogony, says: "(ll. 116-138) Verily at the first Chaos came to be, but next wide-bosomed Earth, the ever-sure foundations of all (4) the deathless ones who hold the peaks of snowy Olympus, and dim Tartarus in the depth of the wide-pathed Earth, and Eros (Love), fairest among the deathless gods, who unnerves the limbs and overcomes the mind and wise counsels of all gods and all men within them. From Chaos came forth Erebus and black Night; but of Night were born Aether (5) and Day, whom she conceived and bare from union in love with Erebus. And Earth first bare starry Heaven, equal to herself, to cover her on every side, and to be an ever-sure abiding-place for the blessed gods. And she brought forth long Hills, graceful haunts of the goddess-Nymphs who dwell amongst the glens of the hills. She bare also the fruitless deep with his raging swell, Pontus, without sweet union of love. But afterwards she lay with Heaven and bare deep-swirling Oceanus, Coeus and Crius and Hyperion and Iapetus, Theia and Rhea, Themis and Mnemosyne and gold-crowned Phoebe and lovely Tethys. After them was born Cronos the wily, youngest and most terrible of her children, and he hated his lusty sire."
The concept of an element does not seem to play a part here. What are listed are immortal beings related by sex as a method of generation. Clearly the ancient Greeks viewed natural processes interms of the processes they were involved with. Immortal beings were a natural part of these processes. Later Greeks went beyond anthropomorphic mechanisms because they found other simpler processes that explained better. But it was a matter of understanding the nature of things, not a matter of belief in one religion or another.
If anything the early Greeks believed in a multiplicity of elements each relating to a separate god or goddess. Earth was Gaia, air was Zeus, fire was Hephaestus, and water was Poseidon. The other deities corresponded to other elements.
Question: do you have any info on the religious teachings and followings of ancient greece
Answer: Yes I do. The literature of ancient Greece is full of this material, for example in the Odyssey Homer, Book XVIII, says: "Man is the vainest of all creatures that have their being upon earth. As long as heaven vouchsafes him health and strength, he thinks that he shall come to no harm hereafter, and even when the blessed gods bring sorrow upon him, he bears it as he needs must, and makes the best of it; for God almighty gives men their daily minds day by day. I know all about it, for I was a rich man once, and did much wrong in the stubbornness of my pride, and in the confidence that my father and my brothers would support me; therefore let a man fear God in all things always, and take the good that heaven may see fit to send him without vain glory."
Question: Who was Pandora
Answer: The first woman according to the Greeks. Click on the menu directory and click on Pandora. Or click here
Question: why do the Greeks have gods and godesses?
Answer: They thought their stories about gods and goddesses were true and verified by what they saw around them. Many of their prayers to the deities were answered and what the soothsayers said turned out to be true..
Question: What did oracles do in Ancient Greece, and what were their lives like?
Answer: Oracles were people who communicated directly with the dieties. They were usually priests or priestesses and lived a comfortable life as an aristocrat.
Question: who did they worship in ancient greece?
Answer: The ancient Greeks worshipped a pantheon of over 3000 gods and goddesses. The main deities included Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite, Athena, Hera, Apollo, Hermes, Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, Ares, Hephaestus.
Question: What kind of regious beliefs did Anceint Greeks have?
Answer: The ancient Greeks had a religion which was polytheistic and personal. They did not have a rigid set of beliefs but rather had the idea that they needed to discover the truths about a world where the divine and the real were closely interwined. They believed a system of education was required to inform them of the truths that had been discovered in the past. They continued there education by participating in the recital of poems, dramas, reading ofi etters and books, and attending lectures, to inform them of what had been found out. They believed the deities had an ideal form and nature which they could change at will. They also believed that the deities could visit them in the form of animals or friends. Good resulted from the kindness of deities while evil was the result of angering a deity or deities arguing with each other. Some deities were imbued with human-like emotions which could trouble mortals. Deities were capable of sexual relations with humans with the result that a deity or superior human would result.
On the personal level deities could be pleased and communicated with. Libations, prayers and sacrifices were useful. Each deity was in control of a realm and it was important to attend to the deity whose realm was of interest. The major deities needed special holidays and festivals while the minor ones might receive daily attention. All deities had the capability to forsee the future, but they could only communicate what they knew in cryptic form. Special priests were required to interpret these communications which took the form of flights of birds, garbled speach, and other omens.
Question: What were the religious obligations of a Greek man and woman in 1200 BC?
Answer: The works of Homer and Hesiod only hint at the obligations of 500 years earlier. Much had happened in the intervening time. It seems likely that most if not everything at that time was a religious obligation. One of the revolutions of ancient Greece involves the removal of many rituals and taboos from daily life. By the classical period there were no religious obligations.
Question: Where woman allowed in the Acropolis? Why or Why not?
Answer: Yes. Women were needed to attend to the goddesses.
Question: About how long did the religion of the ancient Greeks last?
Answer: The religion of Classical Greece was formed about 1000 BCE and lasted until about 125 AD. It did incorporate some much older elements from perhaps as far as 25,000 BCE. Many aspects of the religion persist in the current religions of Muslim, Christian, and Jew.
Question: what were the mystery cults and did it have anything to do with the egyptians?
Answer: A mystery cult was a cult that maintained serets revealed only to initiates. Usually the mystery related to some aspect of immortality. Mystery cults involved initiation rites, purification, sacred symbols, sacred rites, and a promise of a happy afterlife. Worship of the mystery religions required the participation of the individual while the traditional Greek religion required no participation. The cult of Isis and Serapis was from Egypt and was practiced in Greece. In general mystery cults appealed to the lower classes of people and the aristocrats shunned them.
Question: What is the role of a priest in Ancient Greece?
Answer: A priest or priestess was an assistant to a divinity. The divinity regarded the priest or priestess as a friend who received favors while humans regarded the priest or priestess as a favored person who could obtain help from the divine. Often this help regarded a forcast of the future which the priest or priestess would always receive in garbled form, as an omen or an augery. The priest or priestess would have to interpret the message for the human. They would also knew procedures that were pleasing to the divine so a human could petition for a healing or other miracle. The priests and priestesses usually had a high status in the community to such an extent that they were able to override governmental edicts.
Question: what did the Greeks think of death?
Answer: You can read an entire book on the subject: Vermeule, Emily, Aspects of Death in Early Greek Art and Pottery, University of California Press, Berkeley, 1979, ISBN 0-520-04404-5. In the Odyssey souls of the dead were lead to the halls of Hades by Cellenian Hermes with his golden wand. There the souls lost many of their powers but still could communicate with one another. The dead had rights which include proper burial including cleaning them of clotted blood, laying them out, and singing them a dirge. In the heroic era the bodies were burned and the bones buried. Persephone received all the souls to Hades and there decided if they are to be punished.
Question: could you name religios obligations of Greek men and women?
Answer: They did not really have any. The fact is that they really did not have a religion. They thought the divinities were a part of reality and what they had were ways of interacting with the divinities so their reality was changed. But they were not required to perform certain rituals. They performed the rituals that were required by their circumstances. The big problem for some was that they had received certained certain favors from the divine. They felt that they were required to remember the source or they would incur the wrath of the divine.
Question: who is the god of motion
Answer: Hermes, the god of roads and boundaries, is usually given this honor.
Question: what kinds of religious ceremonies took place at the parthenon
Answer: Processions, initiations, purifications, libations, prayers, and sacrifices.
Question: In homer's Odyssey, how does Odysseus and Athena's relationhip represent greek religion?
Answer: Odysseus believes in Athena and acts accordingly. Athena responds favorably to this belief.
Question: Did Hera and Zeus know they were brother and sister.
Answer: Their mother Rhea told them.
Answer: Strictly, there is no ancient Greek religion because there was no body of required beliefs or behaviors. The Eleusinian Mysteries were an important cult for some of the people for over 1000 years.
Question: what was the religion of the hellenic age
Answer: The Hellenistic period was a time of religious and cultural mixing. Alexander the Great carried the Greek religion wherever he went, but he did not impose it on the conquered peoples. But he carried with him Greek scholars who studied the local religions as he moved. He also stimulated scholarship among the locals and many of the local religions were codified during this period.
Question: mythical stories in the context with desire
Answer: Aphrodite is the goddess of desire. The story of the judgement of Paris is all about desire.
Question: is there a saint named sophia
Answer: The ancient Greeks had no saints. They also did not have a goddess named Sophia. 'Sophia' means 'wisdom' but the goddess of wisdom was Athena. An early religion related to Christianity worshipped a female savior named Sophia. Sophia did become a saint. Gnostic Christianity and the Myth of Sophia
Question: what did the people of Antigone's time believe was the religious right. Can you expaned a little more why they thought it was so imortant to bury people.
Answer: This issue is not as simple as it might seem. The ancient Greeks were not motivated by faith in their religious beliefs. If they were the Iliad and the Odyssey would tell them to cremate the dead rather than to bury them in the ground as they did later.
In the Odyssey Homer (Book XI) gives the reason in the tongue of Elpenor, "Do not leave me unmourned and unburied; do not desert me, or I may draw God's vengeance upon you! Burn me with all my arms, and pile up a barrow on the shore of the grey sea, that in day to come men may hear the story of an unhappy man;..."
In the Odyssey Homer (Book XXIV)further states, "Our Friends do not know yet; they have not come to wash the blood from the wounds and lay out the bodies for mourning, which is an honor due unto the dead."
Clearly the burial process is spiritual which places it in the realm of the divine. This may be because the soul has been released from the body into the realm of the divine as the mother of Odysseus points out in Book XI: "...but this is what happens to mortals when one of us dies. As soon as the spirit leaves the white bones, the sinews no longer hold flesh and bones together--the blazing fire consumes them all, but the soul flits away fluttering like a dream."
Burial may be an attempt to put the soul to rest so that it no longer bothers the living. The Erinyes may exemplify the type of vengeance that burial will alleviate.
In fact burial is a public health and sanitation issue. But the ancient Greeks had no idea about germs and the way they cause disease. But it is entirely possible that cultures that buried there dead thrived. They may have looked to the causes of this fact and only found an explantion in the behavior of the deities. They took natural laws to be caused by the gods and so approached burial as a responsibility to the divine. Sophocles wrote the play Antigone, in part to educate his audience to this fact.
Question: what was the role of Greek religion in the Iliad
Answer: Religion provided an explanation of why things happened the way they did and a way to endure these things.
Question: Isis
Answer: Isis was an Egyptian goddess.
Question: Did the Ancient Greeks pray every day?
Answer: Ancient Greeks were not required to pray at all. The only ones who prayed were those with needs, and they prayed to satisfy these needs.
Question: What do they believe about life after death
Answer: Most souls proceed to Hades where they live as shades. They just flit around. Some evil souls are punished by Persephone. Favored heroes went to Elysium for a life of endless pleasure. There was some notions about happiness after death developed later.
Question: is the position of the corpse in inhumation relevant?
Answer: The position of a corpse must be carefully documented in any archeological excavation.
Question: social structure
Answer: Minoan culture was a theocracy with most events prescribed by a religious protocol. Culture was centered on palaces with most activity within the bounds of the palace. Processions and festivals were common. Each palace contained a priestess queen and her king consort. The economy was based on international trade which the Minoans controlled with their beaked ships.
Mycenaean culture was more decentralized with the King consort administering the governemnt. The economy was agricultural and not focused on the palaces. The Queen determined inheritance but her role focused away from government to weaving and breadmaking. Religion was respected but was more on an as needed basis.
Duing the Classical period women became a possession of their husbands and inheritance was determined by the man. Religious festivities provided a break in the work cycle and were not dogmatic. Preists and priestesses continued to be higlly respected. Governments were more democratic and less aristocratic.
Question: whose helmet made him invisible
Answer: Hades loaned his helmet of invisibility to Perseus to help him retrieve the head of Medusa.
Question: What role did Isis Preists have in Greece, or Rome?
Answer: Priests of Isis influenced the worship of Aphrodite. Rome is out of my area.
Question: fate
Answer: The Greek divinities were unusual in that their power was limited rather than infinite. Fate was one of the limitations. But one of the divine characteristics was knowledge of fate. Divinities knew what was fated so they could sometimes work around it even though they could not alter it.
Question: Why did man invent gods and godesses?
Answer: The Greeks did not invent gods and goddesses, nor are their writings about them works of fiction. The ancient Greeks needed the gods and goddesses because they were very interested in establishing causes and they needed the gods and goddesses as causes of many perceived events. But they were not satisfied with the deities as causes and they continued to look for causes that would improve their understanding. Aristotle was so confident of his ability to establish causes that he needed only one deity, the prime mover.
The writings of the Greeks must be considered as reports of the nature of the world as each author saw it. From our point of view it looks like some of the stories are made up because the stories are so fabulous. But the stories in our news media are fabulous in the same respect and they are believed. Often you have to look past a story to see what might have caused it to be told that way. Only then do you have some sense of the truth.
Question: My teacher is requiring that we have timeline that relates to ancient greece and when goddesses were born and the time period that they were worshipped. Do you have any timelines?
Answer: The relevant timeline is:
The gods and goddesses are eternal and were born before recorded time. What was modified through time was the way the Greeks worhipped their gods and goddesses. The Greek Pantheon as we know it was fixed about 750 BCE when the myths were written down. The Greek myths as we know them were stories of heroes from a few generations before the Trojan war or about 1250 BCE to 1050 BCE.
Although its exact origins are lost in time, Greek religion is thought to date from about the period of the Aryan invasions of the 2d millennium B.C. Those invaders encountered two other peoples who had existed in the region of Greece from Neolithic times: the Aegeans (Pelasgians) and the Minoans of Crete. The Aryans fused with the Aegean and Minoan cultures to create what is now considered Greek culture. The result, known as the Minoan-Mycenean civilization, flourished in the period from 1600 B.C. to 1400 B.C. Previous to the invasions, the Helladic communities had been widely separated geographically, but the attacking foreigners swept everything along in their path, including various beliefs that were prevalent in the outlying districts. At first the result was a confused conglomeration, but gradually a certain systematization of the gods began to take place. The marriage of Zeus, a sky god of the conquerors, and Hera, a fertility goddess of the conquered, symbolized the attempt at fusion, although the constant conflict between the divine pair, as seen in the Iliad, indicates the tensions of the match. The classical Greek pantheon was peopled with gods from all the cultures involved: Zeus the sky father, Demeter the earth mother, and Hestia, the virgin goddess of the hearth, were borrowed from the Indo-European invaders; Rhea was an indigenous Minoan goddess; Athena was Mycenean; Hera and Hermes were Aegean; Apollo was Ionian; Aphrodite came from Cyprus and Dionysus and Ares from Thrace.
Question: Ive be interested it learning about the triple goddess for sometime now, is there any information you could send me.
Answer:Which triple goddess?
A really good explanation of the tripling of goddesses is the makeup ofIndo-European society:
"The Indo-Europeans were a migrating patriarchal, pastoral culture which may be traced to the great steppe regions stretching from Poland to Central Asia. Their patrilinear society was organized around a tripartite social and theological hierarchy. This marauding three-leveled culture would prove to be exceedingly important to the development of astrological symbolism and interpretation.
The three classes of Indo-European society were: priests at the top of the social ladder, followed by warriors, with herders at the bottom. Each class had its own specific ruling sky gods, with goddesses for the most part conspicuously absent from the pantheon.
The domestication of the horse was one of the great achievements of the Indo-Europeans. This enabled them to conquer many agricultural, matriarchal, goddess-worshiping societies, including those on the Peloponnesus during the second millennium B.C.E.
The Indo-Europeans both politically dominated and became absorbed into these cultures. The defeated goddess-worshiping peoples, who were frequently darker in complexion, were forced to assimilate as the subservient fourth class in this three-leveled system. They subsequently became the subordinate peasant class, considered racially and spiritually inferior by the tall, fair-haired, blue-eyed Indo-European aristocracy. (http://www.aplaceinspace.net/Pages/SJordanRepressionofFeminine.html, "The Repression of the Feminine in Astrology", By Shelley Jordan, M.A.
Question: What was spartas and athens' belief about the afterlife?
Answer:This is a difficult question because beliefs vary from time to time and place to place. One good source is the Odyssey when Odysseus visits Hades. What he finds are shades that can only be brought to life with blood. Otherwise they sort of just float. Achilles admits that he would rather be a peasant slave than dead. But there are also stories about Persephone who give punishment to the evil and rewards to the good. Finally there is the matter of Elysium. Ellysium is the abode of the blessed. Achilles, in spite of his cruelty and because of his heroism is supposed to be there. With him is a beautiful woman, usually Helen but also possibly Polyxena, Breisis, or Iphigenia. Aristotle seems to argue for the mortality of the soul but St. Thomas Aquinus was sainted for pointing out the untruth of this and that all of Aristotle could be accepted as Christian as Aristotle was really talking about something else. If you read Aristotle you will realize what a great miracle this really was. But this was important because it validated the ancient Greeks as a source of Christian theology.
In truth the Christian notion of the afterlife is strongly based on that of the Greeks. Though it seems that Christian heaven is quite different from Greek heaven (The greek dead souls were under the ground in Hades, and the Christian souls are above the sky in heaven) there is actually a lot of similarity. Take the case of the angels. The greeks had many gods and goddesses and no angels. When the Christians took over a Greek temple they would expropriate any of the statues of goddesses and make them angels. Many of the goddesses already had wings but they could also be added. If you look at the angels in the curio shops of today you realise that often what you are looking at is a goddess with wings. The lyres, dolphins, doves, and flowers pictured with the angels are actually attributes of goddesses. The flowing robes that they wear are actually chitons and peploses that the ancient goddeses would have worn during the classical period. Many gods and goddeses became saints. In Aritotelean Astronomy the deities moved the celestial sphere. The Christians had Angels move the Celestial sphere.
Question: What were some of the signs and omens used by the Gods and Goddesses when communicating with the people of Ancient Greece?
Answer:
Question: How religious were the ancient Greeks?
I ask this question because IMO the Greek gods, unlike say, the Hebrew God or the Moslem God, are so clearly the product of the human imagination. In other words, the ancient Greeks must have known that man created the gods and not the other way around. This is obvious because unlike most divinities, the Greek gods have lots of flaws and are not the least bit omnipotent. They are vain, short tempered, spiteful, jealous, and even stupid on occasion. So my question is, did the Greeks really believe these beings existed? I think not. There must have been an oral tradition that could trace the various myths back to the original human authors. Also, Mount Olympus is not that high. Someone could have easily climbed the mountain and found it vacant at the top.
And if the Greeks really did believe in their gods, then wasnr't it blasphemy or sacrilege to depict the gods in such a poor light as in the various myths? I recall one scene from the early chapters of the Iliad in which Zeus is worried that Hera will find out about his doing something naughty and he’ll have to endure her wrath. No almighty God in a monotheistic religion would even care whether his actions upset some female. Only a human male has ever had to put up with an angry wife.
And yet you never read about any Greeks getting burned at the stake for being a witch or for writing something unflattering about their gods. In fact I get the impression the Greeks were very tolerant when it came to religion. But if the Greeks weren't all that religious, why go to the trouble to build expensive stone temples? Why fool around with oracles? Did anyone really believe the oracles?
So in short, just how religious were the Greeks?
Answer: The situation was different for the Greeks, and lucky for us this was true. The Greeks were very spiritual. But they went to the gods because they thought they had to. They thought the gods actually caused things. What they wanted was to control their environment and because they thought the gods were instrumental in that control they went to them. But their spirituality caused them to look for causes. And what they found was that the gods did not cause as much as originally thought. This ultimately lead to the Science that we know today.
One aspect of the Greek religion was their emphasis on law. This is related to the understanding of causes in that laws can describe causes. The lack of omnipotence in the deities of ancient Greece is related to the notion that even the gods are subject to law. Of course one could say that Zeus, the most powerful God, has his way in this matter, but it is Themis who personifies law, and it is Athena who personifies the knowledge of law. Much can be made of the fact that these powerful goddesses are both women. Also important is the fact that Themis is a Titan from the old divine system. Finally one can ask why Zeus has made the world this way, and of course the teleological answer is that this is done so that man can understand the world in his meagre way and so survive.
The Greeks did punish those that failed to believe, and this is what happened to Socrates. But it was not that common. Religion, for the Greeks was not a belief system as is the case with most contemporary religions. When you had a particular problem you went to the deity who controlled that problem. You did not have to bother with the other deities at that time. When you focused on that deity you became aware of the realm of that deity and what the rules were that the deity had promulgated. It is possible that in your understanding of those rules was your solution.
Similar to the emphasis on law was their emphasis on perfection. The divine world was one where laws produced a state of perfection not easily known on earth. The divinities were perfectly beautiful and perfect in their behavior. This is akin the ultimate good of Aristotle. Because of this perfection many of the deities were remote from everyday life. The myths reference the major dozen deities, for example. But the deities of everyday life were different and more accessible. Hestia was needed everyday to allow the home fire to start. And Demeter was needed for the crops. But what the emphasis on perfection did was to remove many deities from importance to everyday man. They became art objects that could be studied in the marketplace.
The Greeks believed that their deities were eternal and so they must still exist. It is actually easier to prove their existence than the Christian God. After all there is love, wisdom, etc. so Aphrodite and Athena must exist if only as a personification of these qualities. And as far a Aphrodite is concerned Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, and Lindsey Lohan are nothing but her priestesses. And her image, the Venus de Milo, is perhaps the most popular sculpture in the world today. Is it not possible to say the popular attachment to this image is nothing but worship?
Oracles are an interesting case. Laws suggest determinism. You find that determinism in the myth of Oedipus. What Oedipus does is to think he is like god and can know the future. But his belief that he knows the future leads to his downfall. The truth is that much of the world is determined by law. The truth is that we are free to choose only in some limited situations. But we must make those choices carefully. So, though the belief in oracles was strong, wise men like Euripides saw though the deception the oracle provides as far as seing the future. A better use of the oracle is not to see the future but to find out the will of the divinities and act according to their laws.
Let us now turn your question around. Just how religious are we today? Do you think the killing that is going on in Iraq suggests that either Christians or Muslims are religious? How could a just and loving God allow this and other natural disasters to happen? The ancient Greeks were very intense in their lives and accomplished a great deal and their religion supported them in this. We have much to thank the ancient Greek religion for. The Romans recognized that when the Greek worship of their deities ended so did theri great art. The religion of the ancient Greeks must have been powerful indeed.
Question: Did any of the ancient Greeks try to climb Mount Olympus to visit the gods? If not, do you know who the first person to climb the mountain was? I have not been able to find this information on the Internet.
Answer: The Minoans had peak sanctuaries but I have not heard of anything like that with the Greeks. Actually climbing mountains was something that seemed to be avoided. Of course it was dangerous and you could be struck by lightning during a storm. The ancients were very afraid of this because they thought it was the wrath of Zeus. You do not find references to mountain climbing until the Renaissance. This is something Leonard da Vinci did.
Comment: I suspect that ignorance is bliss is another reason the Greeks did not climb Mount Olympus . Anyone who did, and came back reporting they found only rocks at the top, might suffer the same fate as Socrates or that woman in Sudan who named a teddy bear Muhammad.
Answer: Not really. The Greeks were aware of the artistic nature of their deities and they reveled in it. Notice that the works of Homer and Greek Dramas are not about the gods per se. These works reference the deities but they are about human interaction. What they do is investigate moral behavior in a very intense way. Such mythical facts as the Palace of Zeus on Olympus are not really relevant. Aristotle does not seem to worry about such difficulties. For the most part he ignores myth. What he does attend to are are the moral, political, and artistic details. The force of Greek myth was found in Liberal Arts and Science. It was not found in religion. Yet the Greek religion had its effects on later religions. At first Augustine derided the triple goddess of Greek religion. But he changed his tune when the trinity was established. The Greeks had priestess for goddesses and priests for gods. When the Christians decided on their priesthood they made priests male only because the Trinity is male only. In their art Greeks showed goddesses with wings to show that they could fly. The Christians denyed goddesses and substituted angels. But when they sacked Greek temple they saved the statues of the goddesses and made them angels. Now when you buy an angel statue, even from China, they wear Greek costumes, carry lyres, and play with doves. These are all attributes of goddesses.
Today a passion for the Liberal Arts is called Secular Humanism. This is close to being Greek religion from the classical period. The Greeks were not into belief. They wanted to know the causes of things. Christians are into belief to such an extent that some ignore real causes.
RWAAG, Furies-->
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