Classical Mythology

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Classical Mythology

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Part One
The Myths of Creation
The Gods
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Chapter 1 Interpretation and Definition of
Classical Mythology
Interpretation and Definition of Classical
Mythology The Problem of Defining Myth The
Meaning of myth Mythos tale or
story True myth or myth proper Saga
or legend Folktale Myth, Sage or Legend,
and folktale Myth primarily concerned with the
gods and the relations with mortals Saga or
Legend containing a kernel of historical truth
and focusing upon the adventures of a
hero Folktale including elements of elements of
the fantastic and magical Myth and Truth Myth
and Religion Mircea Eliade Myth and
Etiology Aitia cause or reason for a fact,
ritual practice, institution Rationalism,
Metaphor, and Allegory Euhemerism
rationalization of myth attributed to Euhemerus
(ca. 300 B. C.) Allegory a sustained
metaphor Allegorical nature Myths explanations
of meteorological and cosmological phenomena Max
Müller
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Interpretation and Definition of Classical
Mythology
Myth and Psychology Freud Oedipus
Complex Sophocles Oedipus Tyrannos Electra
Complex Dreams and dream-work Jung Colle
ctive Unconscious Archetypes Myth
and Society Myth an d Ritual J. G. Frazer
The Golden Bough Jane
Harrison Robert Graves Myth as Social
Charters Bronislav Malinowski Anthropologist
Tobriand islanders Myths as charters of
social customs and beliefs
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Interpretation and Definition of Classical
Mythology
The Structuralists Claude Lévi-Strauss Binary
structure Negotiation and resolution
of opposites Vladamir Propp
Russian folklorist Analysis of
recurrent pattern 31 motifemes
functions or units of action Walter
Burkert Patterns of motifemes
broken down to five 1. The
girl leaves home. 2. The girl
is secluded. 3. She becomes
pregnant by god. 4. She
suffers. 5. She is rescued and
gives birth to a son. Synthesis of
structuralist and historical viewpoints
Historical dimension of myth
Four theses 1. Myth belongs
to the more general class of tradition tales.
2. The identity of a traditional
tale is to be found in a structure of sense
within the tale itself.
3. Tale structures, as a sequence of
motifemes, are founded on basic biological or
cultural progams of actions.
4. Myth is a traditional tale with
secondary, partial reference to something of
collective importance. Comparative Study
and Classical Mythology Oral and Literary
Myth Joseph Campbell
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Interpretation and Definition of Classical
Mythology
Feminism, Homosexuality, and Mythology Feminism
Women in Greek society 1.Women were
citizens of their communities, unlike
non-citizens and slaves-a very meaningful
distinction. They did not have the right to vote.
No woman anywhere won this democratic
right until 1920. 2. The role of women in
religious rituals was fundamental and they
participated in many festivals of their
own, from which men were excluded. 3.
Womens education was dependent on her future
role in society, her status or class, and
her individual needs (as was that of a
man). 4. The cloistered, illiterate, and
oppressed creatures often adduced as
representative of the status of women in
antiquity are at variance with the testimony of
all the sources, literary, artistic, and
archaeological. The Theme of
Rape Homosexuality Some Conclusions and a
Definition of Classical Myth A classic myth is a
story that, through its classical form, has
attained a kind of immortality because its
inherent archetypal beauty, profundity, and power
have inspired rewarding renewal and
transformation by successive generations.
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Chapter 2 Historical Background of Greek
Mythology
Heinrich Schliemann (1822-1890), founder of
modern archaeology Excavations at Troy, Tiryns,
and Mycenae Sir Arthur Evans Cnossus in
Crete (1899) Minoan Sketch Of Early Greece
and The Aegean Stone Age
Paleolithic Period (before 70,000 B.
C.) Neolithic Period (ca. 6000-3000 B.
C.) Early Bronze Age (3000-2000 B. C.)
Early Minoan Early Cycladic Early
Helladic Middle Bronze Age (2000-1600 B.
C.) Middle Minoan Middle Cycladic
Middle Helladic Late Bronze Age (1600-1100
B. C.) Late Minoan Late
Cycladic Late Helladic (Mycenaean) Paleoli
thic Age inhabited, but knowledge is
scanty Neolithic Age Migration for east and
north of Greece Agricultural communities
Female fetishes
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Historical Background of Greek Mythology
Minoan Civilization King Minos Zenith
during Late Bronze Age (1600-1100 B. C.)
Palace complexes Cnossus and Phaestus
Historical/mythological traditions
Minos Theseus Minotaur
Labyrinth (Labrys) Bull motif End of
Cretan dominance (1400 B. C.) Eruption of
Thera (modern Santorini) Myth of
Atlantis (Platos Critias and Timaeus) The
Mycenaean Age Invasion from north and possibly
east First Greek speakers Mycenae,
rich in gold Cyclopean walls Lion
Gate Shaft graves Tholos tombs
Carl Blegen (1887-1971) Nestors Pylos
Megaron Sky-god (Zeus) Linear B Rich horde of
tablets at Pylos Michael Ventris and John
Chadwick (1952) Linear A Paean
Potnia
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Historical Background of Greek Mythology
Troy and the Trojan War Schliemann and Wilhelm
Dörpfeld campaigns at Troy (1871-1894) Blegens
work at Troy (1932-1938) Since 1988 under
direction of Manfred Korfmann 9 Settlements on
hill of Hisarlik Troy I (ca. 2920-2450)
Troy II (ca. 2600-2450 B. C. Schliemanns
Treasure of Priam Troy VIII (ca.
700-85 B. C.) Troy IX (85-ca. A. D.
500) Troy VI and Troy VIIa Continuity of
culture Evidence of human settlements linked to
the Trojan War Different stages of
conflict Signs of devastation hasty
burials long-weapons, piles of
stones Date of destruction of VIIa
(1250-1150 B. C.) Tradition date for Trojan
War (1184 B. C.) Upper citadel and lower
Area of habitation Commercial ties between
Mycenaean Greece and Troy Troys position
on the Hellespont Economic causes of
conflict plausible Hittite texts Wilusa and
Ilios Appaliunas and Apollo Confirmation
of Homeric Geography Mycenaean cemetery on site
of original coastline
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Historical Background of Greek Mythology
End of Mycenaean Age and Homer Unsettled
Conditions in the Eastern Mediterranean Destructi
on of Mycenaean Centers The Dorians The Sea
Peoples The Dark Age Decline in
population Loss of literacy Impoverished
material culture The Emergence of the Iliad and
the Odyssey (eighth century B. C.) Oral
tradition Homer Asia Minor (or one
of the coastal islands) Epic dialect
Traces of every period from Bronze Age to eighth
century B. C. Invention of a True Alphabet
Phoenician script Writing and its
relationship to the production of Homers epics
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Chapter 3 Myths of Creation
Parallels between Greco-Roman and Near Eastern
Myths Homer Incomplete account of genesis Hesiod
(ca. 700) First literary account of genesis
among the Greeks (Theogony andWorks and
Days) Invocation to the Muses Chaos (yawning
void) Gaia/Gaea/Ge or Earth Tartarus (place
beneath the earth) Eros (the procreative urge
love) Erebus (gloom of Tartarus) Night
Aether (the upper atmosphere) Day Creation
Account in Ovids Metamorphoses Chaos as crude,
unformed mass of elements Empedocles Four
elements (earth, air, fire, and water) Hieros
Gamos (sacred marriage) Gaia and
Uranus Titans Oceanus, Coeus, Crius, Hyperion,
Iapetus, Theia, Rhea, Themis, Mnomosyne, Phoebe,
Tethys, and Cronus Cyclopes Hecatonchires
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Myths of Creation
Oceanus and the Oceanids Hyperion and Helius,
Gods of the Sun Phaëthon, son of Helius
Clymene Selene, Goddess of the Moon
Endymion Mt. Latomus in Caria The
Endymion sarcophagus Apollo, Sun-god and
Artemis, Moon-Goddess Eos (Aurora), Goddess of
the Dawn Tithonus Castration of
Uranus Birth of Aphrodite (foam or aphros)
Cytherea Cyprogenes Cyprian
Philommedes A Second Hieros Gamos Cronus and
Rhea Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades,
Poseidon, and Zeus
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Myths of Creation
The Birth of Zeus Mt. Dicte Cybele Rhea-Cybele
Curetes Amalthea Amalgamation of Mycenaean and
Minoan Elements Mythological Interpretations MaxM
üller Feminist criticism
Lévi-Strauss Freudian interpretations
Jungian archetypes Additional Reading Hesiods
Theogony 1-115
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Chapter 4 Zeus Rise to Power The Creation of
Mortals
The Titanomachy Zeus Defeats his Father,
Cronus Zeus grows to maturity Cronus
disgorges Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and
Poseidon Zeus allies his brothers and
sisters, the Hecatonchires, and the Cyclopes
Zeus opponents the Titans (especially Atlas)
with the exception of Themis and her son
Prometheus Zeus on Mt. Olympus against
Cronus on Mt. Othrys Titans imprisoned in
Tartarus and Atlas condemned to hold up the
sky. The Gigantomachy Gaia produces the
Gegeneis (earthborn) Giants imprisoned in
volcanic regions, e. g. Enceladus under Mt. Aetna
in Sicily Typhoeus (or Typhaon or Typhon) Otus
and Ephialtes pile up Oympus, Ossa, and
Pelion. Confusion of Traditions about the
Titanomachy and Gigantomachy Historical
Underpinnings of Myths Process of conquest and
amalgamation, when Greeks invade Greece (2000 B.
C.) Creation of Mortals Traditions
involving Zeus Prometheus, creator of man
Ovids account The Four or Five Ages
Gold, silver, bronze, iron Hesiods
inclusion of an Age of Heroes between bronze and
iron The characteristics of the ages
Aidos and Nemesis
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Zeuss Rise to Power
Prometheus Against Zeus Iapetus and
Clymene Epimetheus The trick of the
sacrifice The theft of fire in a hollow
fennel stalk The punishment of Prometheus
Heracles ends Prometheus suffering Creation
of Pandora Hephaestus creation
Athenas role Pandora (all gifts)
Pandoras jar Hermes role
Epimetheus Hope alone remained
within. Interpretation of the Myths of
Prometheus and Pandora Ritual of sacrifice
Origin of fire Culture god or
culture hero Divine trickster The
nature of gods and men The nature of evil
The position of woman The role of hope

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Zeus Rise to Power
Aeschylus Prometheus Bound Strength
(Kratos) and Force (Bia) Characterization
of Hephaestus Zeus as tyrant
Prometheus gifts to mankind Chorus of
Oceanids The Story of Io
Heras jealousy Argus Panoptes
(all-seeing) Hermes Argeiphontes
(slayer of Argus) Peacock
Egypt and the birth of Epaphus
The role of Io in Prometheus Bound
Promise of Heracles release Prometheus
secret about Thetis Zeus and Lycaon and the
Wickedness of Mortals The tyrant Lycaon
Transformation into a wolf The Flood
Deucalion, son of Prometheus Pyrrha,
daughter or Epimetheus The bones of the
mother Hellen, eponymous ancestor of the
Greeks
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Zeuss Rise to Power
Succession Myths and Other Motifs Near Eastern
Parallels to Hesiods Account The Succession
Myth as Archetype Enuma Elish (When on
High) Babylonian Marduk
Tiamat Kingship in Heaven
Kumarbi Anu Persistence and
Diffusion of the Flood Motif Character and
Career of Zeus Circumstances of birth
Infancy in seclusion Divine Child
Close to nature and world of animals
Obstacles and adversaries Ultimately
victorious Parallels In Myths of Greece and the
Ancient Near East Five basic myths
Creation Succession
Flood Descent to Underworld
Hero-king Gilgamesh Two periods of
contact with Greece 13th and 14th centuries 8th
and 7th centuries B. C. Sumer and Akkad Ur
Cuneiform Ziggurats
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Zeus Rise to Power
Babylon and King Hammurabi (1800 B.
C.) Establishment of the Assyrian Empire
Capital at Nineveh Hurrians Hittites
in Anatolia Capital at Hattusas
(Boghaz-Köy) Babylonian Enuma Elish Apsu
and Tiamat Anu and Ea or Enki (earth-god)
Birth of Marduk Enlil Comparison
of Typhoeus with Tiamat Babylonian Atrahasis
Atrahasis (extra wise) Tyranny of Enlil
Atrahasis survives flood Epic of Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh, ruler of Sumerian city of Uruk
(ca. 2700 B. C.) Ut-napishtim
Similarities with Odysseus, Heracles, and the
Iliad Enkidu Ishtar The Bull of
Heaven Akkadian Descent of Ishtar to the
Underworld Inanna/Ishtar Dumuzi
(Tammuz)
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Chapter 5 The Twelve Olympians Zeus, Hera, and
Their Children
Zeus Establishment As Supreme God Zeus--sky Pos
eidon--sea Hades--underworld Pantheon of Gods
Zeus (Jupiter) Hera (Juno)
Poseidon (Neptune) Hades (Pluto)
Hestia (Vesta) Hephaestus (Vulcan)
Ares (Mars) Apollo Artemis (Diana)
Demeter (Ceres) Aphrodite (Venus)
Athena (Minerva) Hermes (Mercury)
Dionysus (Bacchus) Canonical twelve (with
removal of Hades and Hestia) Hestia, Goddess of
the Hearth and Its Fire A goddess of
chastity Hearth/sacred fire Hestia
(hearth) Family?tribe ?city ?state
Transmission of fire First-born of Cronus
and Rhea
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The Twelve Olympians
Zeus Amorous nature Image of father,
husband, and lover Justice and virtue
Moral order of the universe The
cloud-gatherer Bright
Thunder/lightening Aegis/eagle/oak
Tales of Zeus subordination Zeus and Hera
Hieros Gamos Heraconsort and queen
Stern, vengeful Women/marriage/child
birth Peacock Sanctuary of Zeus at
Olympia Elis Olympic Games, 776 B.
C. Connection with Heracles Pelops
and Hippodamia Temple of Zeus
West pediment Lapiths and Centaurs
East pediment race of Pelops and Oenomaüs
Metopes Twelve Labors of Heracles
Cult Image of Zeus carved by
Pheidias Oracles at Olympia and Dodona
Whispering oaks of Dodona
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The Twelve Olympians
Children of Zeus and Hera Eileithyia,
goddess of childbirth Hebe cupbearer of
gods Ganymede Hephaestus,
divine artisan God of fire and forge
Lame Return of Hephaestus
Consort of Aphrodite
Adultery with Ares Ares, God of War
Cult partner Aphrodite Thrace
Eros Brutality of
war Other Children of Zeus The Nine Muses
Mnemosyne (memory) Patrons
of literature and the arts Pieria/Mt.
Helicon Reminders
Calliope (epic) Clio (history or lyre
playing) Euterpe (lyric or tragedy and
flute playing) Melpomene (tragedy or
lyre playing) Terpsichore (choral
dancing or flute playing) Erato (love
poetry or hymns to gods and lyre playing)
Polyhymnia (sacred music or dancing)
Urania (astronomy) Thalia (comedy)
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The Twelve Olympians
The Three Fates Zeus and Themis
Moirai (Greek) or Parcae (Latin)
Clotho (Spinner) Lachesis
(Apportioner) Atropos (Inflexible)
Luck or Fortune (Tyche)
Necessity (Ananke)
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Chapter 6 The Nature of the Gods
Anthropomorphism Human form and character
Idealization Mt. Olympus
Olympian/chthonian Ambrosia/nectar/ichor D
ivine Hierarchy Zeus Olympian gods
(and important chthonian gods) Wondrous,
terrifying beings Nymphs Demigods
Heroes Zeus and Monotheism Sovereignty
of Zeus Moral order of universe
Suppliants, hospitality, oaths
Monotheistic cast View of Zeus in
Religious poets and Philosophers
Stern Zeus of Hesiod Xenophanes
Aeschylus Agamemnon Polytheistic
cast in Judeo-Christian religion
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The Nature of the Gods
Greek Humanism Protagoras Man is the
measure of all things. Sophocles Antigone
Achilles in the Underworld (Homers
Odyssey) Idealistic optimism/realistic
pessimism Myth Religion and Philosophy
Greeks were not a people of a religious book.
Place of Homer Priests and
Priestesses Legendary History of Herodotus
History of the Persian Wars Story of
Solon, Croesus, and Cyrus Herodotus as
Mythhistorian Influence of Homer and
Tragedy Atys (Ate ruin or
destruction) links with Attis and Adonis
Adrastus (the one who cannot escape) links
with Nemesis or Adrasteia (Necessity)
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Chapter 7 Poseidon, Sea Deities, Group
Divinities, and Monsters
Pontus (Sea) Oceanus and Tethys?Oceanids Pontus
and Ge?Nereus (an old man of the sea) Nereus and
Doris (an Oceanid)?Nereids Three Important
Nereids Thetis Prophecy of
Thetis son Marriage of Peleus and
Thetis Achilles Galatea
Polyphemus (a cyclops) Acis, son
of Faunus and Symaethis Amphitrite
Consort of Poseidon Triton
Conch shell Proteus Attendent of
Poseidon (sometimes his son) Seer
Ability to change shape Old man of the
sea Appearance and character of Poseidon
Stern, rough, unkempt Trident
Earthshaker Male fertility of the earth
stallion and bull
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Poseidon
Scylla and Charybdis Scylla, daughter of
Phorcys and Hecate Relationship with
Poseidon or Glaucus Transformation at the
hands of Amphitrite or Circe Straits of
Messina Charybdis, daughter of Poseidon and
Ge Whirlpool Progeny of Pontus and Ge
Iris (rainbow) and Harpies (snatchers)
Graeae (aged ones) Gorgons (Stheno,
Euryale, and Medusa) Perseus
Pegasus and Chrysaor (he of the golden sword)
Ladon, guardian of the tree in the garden of
the Hesperides (daughters of evening)
Children of Chrysaor and Callirhoë Geryon and
Echidna, Children of Echidna and Typhon
Orthus, Cerberus, the Lernaean Hydra, and the
Chimaera Children of Echidna and
Orthus The Theban Sphinx and the Nemean Lion,
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Chapter 8 Athena
Birth of Athena Zeus and Metis (wisdom)
In full battle array Prowess in battle,
strategy and tactics of war, goddess of the
citadel, masculine virginity Sculpture of the
Parthenon Athena Parthenos (virgin)
Athenian Acropolis (447 B. C.-438 B. C.)
Victory over Persians East
pediment Birth of Athena West
pediment Contest with Poseidon over the control
of Athens Doric frieze (metopes) Lapiths
and Centaurs Sack of Troy Gigantomachy Greek
s and Amazons Ionic frieze Panathenaea
ceremonial robe (peplos) Statue of Athena
Parthenos by Pheidias Pallas Athena Tritogeneia
Tritogeneia lake Triton or Tritonis
association with Triton Pallas, daughter of
Triton Palladium Pallas (maiden)
Parthenos (virgin) Kore
(girl) Athena and Arachne Patron of
spinning and weaving
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Athena
Character and Appearance of Athena Weaving
as symbol of cunning and human resourcefulness
Fates as weavers Arete (excellence)
of a women Military, political, domestic
arts Wisdom/counsel Horses, ships,
chariots The double flute and Marsyas
In Athens worshipped with Hephaestus
Warrior, aegis, Nike (victory) Glaukopis
meaning gray-eyed, bright-eyed, or keen eyed?
Owl, snake, olive tree Unapproachable
virginity Relationships with heroes
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Chapter 9 Aphrodite and Eros
Aphrodite and castration of Uranus Aphros
(foam) Cytherea, Cypris Zeus and
Dione Aphrodite Urania (Celestial) and Aphrodite
Pandemos (Common) The Nature and Appearance of
Aphrodite Beauty, love, marriage
Importance of Praxiteles work Attendants of
Aphrodite Charites (graces) Horae
(hours or seasons) Phallic Priapus
Aphrodite and Hermes, Dionysus, Pan, or Zeus
Fertility Pygmalion Offense of Cyprian
women, who became the first prostitutes
Galatea
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Aphrodite and Eros
Aphrodite and Adonis Phoenician Astarte
Paphos, son of Pygmalion and Galatea
Cinyras and Myrrha Birth of Adonis
Death of Adonis Great Mother Death
and resurrection of male consort Variant
Persephone and the chest Cybele and Attis
Phrygian Great Mother
Bisexual Castration?almond tree
Nana?Attis Galli/Corybantes A
phrodite and Anchises Fear of
emasculation Aeneas Eros
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Aphrodite and Eros
The Symposium of Plato House of Agathon
Speeches on Eros Aristophanes comic and
profound myth Love as a search for
completeness Socrates Speech
Diotima, a woman from Mantinea Eros
as intermediary Poros
(resourcefulness) Penia
(poverty) Pursuit of the beautiful
and the good Interpretations Cupid and Psyche
Apuleius (second century A. D.)
Metamorphoses (orThe Golden Ass) Elements
of folktale, fairytale, and romance
Platonic interpretation Sapphos Aphrodite
Lesbos Devotion to Aphrodite
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Chapter 10 Artemis
Character and Appearance of Artemis
Beautiful, virginal, huntress The Birth of
Artemis and Apollo Zeus and Leto
Delos Goddess of childbirth Death of
young girls Niobe and Her Children Hybris
Transformation to stone Actaeon Callisto
an d Arcas Great Bear (Arctus, or Ursa
Major, or the Wain hamaxa) Bear Warden
(Arctophylax, or Arcturus, or Boötes)
Little Bear (Ursa Minor) Orion Merope,
daughter of Oenopion Pleiades, daughters of
Atlas and Pleione, an Oceanid Sirius (Dog
Star) Origins of Artemis Fertility
connections Diana or Artemis of Ephesus
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Artemis
Artemis, Selene, and Hecate Moon-Goddess
Chthonian characteristics Trivia,
goddess of the crossroads Nocturnal, occult
forces Artemis versus Aphrodite Euripides
Hippolytus Hippolytus, devotee of Artemis
Phaedra Phaedras nurse Theseus
Goddesses as psychological forces The
misogyny of Hippolytus Sophronein (to be
temperate) Misandry, Artemis, and the
Amazons Lesbian themes Other Dramatic Versions
Euripides two versions (Hippolytus
Stephanephoros) Senecas (d. A. D. 65)
Phaedra Jean Racines Phèdra (1677)
Eugene ONeills Desire Under the Elms (1924)
Robinson Jeffers The Cretan Women (1954)
Mary Renaults The Bull from the Sea Additional
Reading Scenes from Euripides Hippolytus
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Chapter 11 Apollo
The Birth of Apollo Zeus and Leto The Homeric
Hymn to Apollo To Delian Apollo Apollo and
Delph Pythian Apollo, god of Delphi Crisa under
Mt. Parnassus Slaying of Pytho Pytho (I
rot.) Ge-Themis Omphalos (navel) Cretan
sailors and the connection with the
dolphin Apollo Delphinius Panhellenic
Sanctuary Pythian games The Oracle and the
Pythia at Delphi The Pythia, priestess of
Apollo Tripod Oracular utterances?Epic meter
(dactylic hexameter) Castalian Spring Apollo
Loxias Socrates and the Delphic Oracle
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Apollo
The Cumaean Sibyl Sibyl and Sibylla
Aeneas in the Underworld, Vergils Aeneid, Book
6 Sibylline Books Apollo and
Cassandra Apollo and Marpessa Idas Apollo
and Cyrene Aristaeus Apollo and Daphne
Daphne (laurel) Apollo and
Hyacinthus Apollo, Coronis, and Ascelpius
God of medicine Raven, Apollos bird
Asclepius trained by Chiron Machaon and
Hygeia or Hygieia (health), children of
Asclepius Asclepius and Hippolytus
Euripides Alcestis Apollo and the
Cyclopes Servitude to Admetus, king of
Pherae Thanatos (death) Heracles
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Apollo
Apollos Musical Contest with Marsyas Apollos
Musical Contest with Pan King Midas of
Phrygia Mt. Tmolus The Nature of Apollo
Violence and restraint Good
shepherd/sun-god Apollonian/Dionysian
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Chapter 12 Hermes
The Birth and Childhood of Hermes Zeus and
Maia, one of the Pleiades Argeïphontes
(slayer of Argus) Mt. Cyllene/Arcadia
Invention of lyre Theft of cattle
Confrontation between Apollo and Hermes
Reconciliation mediated by Zeus?gift of lyre to
Apollo The Nature of Hermes and His Worship
Cleverness God of thieves, merchants,
youths Divine trickster
Pastoral/musical Divine messenger
Travelers hat (petasus) Sandals
(ttalaria) Heralds staff (caduceus)
Guide of souls (psychopompos) God of
boundaries or the transgression of boundaries
Herms boundary markers/fertility
Mutilation of the Herms (415 B. C) Hermes
Trismegistus and the Hermetica Hermaphroditus
and Salmacis
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Chapter 13 Dionysus, Pan, Echo, and Narcissus
The Birth, Childhood, and Origins of Dionysus
Dionysus (Bacchus) Semele, daughter of
Cadmus Nymphs of Nysa Ino, sister of
Semele Origins in Thrace/Phrygia The
Bacchae of Euripides God of vegetation?the
vine/grape/wine Agave, sister of Semele
Pentheus, son of Agave Cadmus,
grandfather of Pentheus and retired king
Tiresias, priest of traditional religion
Pentheus as adversary of god Pentheus as
sacrificial victim Cadmus and
Harmonia?serpents Harry Partchs Revelation
in the Courthouse Park, an American
Bacchae Other Opponents of Dionysus
Daughters of Proetus, king of Tiryns
Melampus, a famous seer Daughters of
Minyas?Bats Hippasus Lycurgus
of Thrace
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Dionysus
The Nature of Dionysus, His Retinue, and His
Religion Ecstatic spiritual release through
music and dance Entheos Possession by
god Sparagmos rending of animal
Omophagia eating of raw flesh Ritual
communion Thiasus sacred band of the
god Bacchae or Maenads Satyrs
Thyrsus wand wreathed with ivy and topped with
pine cone Sileni Papposileni (older
sileni) Silenus and King Midas Connection
with Great Mother Rhea and Cybele Union
with Ariadne Variant of Dionysus birth
Zeus and Persephone Zagreus
Role of the Titans Creation
of human beings
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Dionysus
Dionysus and Icarius and Erigone Dionysus Gift
to Midas of the Golden Touch
Pactolus Dionysus and the Pirates The
Dionysiaca of Nonnus Pan Syrinx
(panpipe) Echo Panic Son of
Hermes and Dryope Echo and Narcissus Narcissism
Freud
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Chapter 14 Demeter and the Eleusinian Mysteries
The Myth of Demeter and Persephone
Abduction by Hades Hecate and Helius
Demeters grief, anger and retaliation
Demeter comes to Eleusis and the palace of
Celeus. The Maiden Well
Queen Metaneira Iambe
Demeter breaks her fast. Demeter Nurses
Demphoön. Hades and Persephone and her
eating of the pomegranate Demeters
ecstatic reunion with Persephone Demeter
restores fertility and establishes the
Mysteries. The Interpretation of the Hymn
Death and rebirth of vegetation Spiritual
metaphor or allegory Kore (girl)
Hades (Pluto or Dis among the Romans) Triptolemu
s
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Demeter
Eleusinian Mysteries Special position of
Athens Initiates Secrecy of rites
Mystery religions Connection with
Orpheus Rituals Nine day
interval Fasting Torches
Jests Kykeon drink of barley and
water Resting at the Maiden Well
Revelation of divinity Stages of
initiaion Lesser Mysteries
preliminary to initiation Greater
Mysteries full initiation
Participation in the highest mysteries
Hierophant (one who shows the sacred thing)
Hiera (sacred things) Procession
Iacchus and Dionysus Stages of Greater
Mysteries Dramatic enactment of myth
Revelation of sacred objects
Utterance of certain words The Final
revelation the hiera The role of Dionysus
The role of Orpheus Mystery religions
and state cult Archon Basileus
Athenian religious official Triumph of Matriarchy
43
Chapter 15 Views of the Afterlife The Realm of
Hades
Homers Book of the Dead (the Odyssey, Book 11)
Tiresias Anticlea Heroes
Agamemnon Achilles
Ajax Heroines Tormented sinners
Heracles Difficulties of interpretation
Position of heroes Elpenor
Place for extraordinary sinners Platos
Myth of Er The Republic Vision of Er
Ardiaeus Cycle of one thousand years
Chain of being Necessity (Ananke)
Harmony of the spheres The Fates or
Moirai Lachesis, Clotho, and Atropos
Choice of souls River of Forgetfulness
(Lethe) Pythagorean/Orphic elements
Platos Phaedo
44
Views of the Afterlife
Vergils Book of the Dead (the Aeneid, Book 6)
Aeneas Cumaean Sibyl Golden Bough
Burial of Misenus Tree of empty
dreams Fabulous creatures Charon
Cerberus Untimely Dead Mourning
Fields Dido, queen of Carthage
Field of renowned heroes Deïphobus
Tartarus Tityus
Sisyphus Titans Otis
and Ephialtes Salmoneus
Theseus and Perithoüs Phlegyas
Ixion Elysian Fields/Elysium
Anchises Vision of illustrious
Romans Gates of Ivory and Horn
45
Views of the Afterlife
Traditional Elements of Hades Realm
Tartarus or Erebus Elysium or Elysian
Fields Islands of the Blessed
Three Judges Minos, Rhadamanthys (or
Rhadamanthus), and Aeacus Rivers Styx
(River of Hate), Acheron (River of Woe), Lethe
(River of Forgetfulness), Cocytus (River of
Wailing), Pyriphlegethon or Phlegethon (River of
Fire) Charon and his fare Hermes
Psychopompus Cerberus Hades, king of
Underworld (Pluto or Dis) Orcus (the place
that confines) Chthonian Tityus
Ixion Danaïds Sisyphus
Tantalus Hecate Furies (Erinyes)
Allecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone avengers of
blood guilt, especially within the family
Orestes The Eumenides
(kindly ones) The Universality of Greek and
Roman Concepts The Italian poet Dante
(1265-1321) The Inferno Vergil as
guide
46
Chapter 16 Orpheus and Orphism Mystery
Religions in Roman Times
Orpheus and Eurydice Variant tradition
Vergils Georgics, Book 4
Aristaeus Life of Orpheus, Religious Poet and
Musician Origins in Thrace His mother
was one of the Muses, usually Calliope. His
father is either Oeagrus, a river-god, or
Apollo. Orpheus falls in love with
Eurydice, a Dryad. Orpheus as an Argonaut
Musaeus, Orpheus son or pupil Death of
Orpheus Women of Thrace/Maenads
Survival of head and lyre in Lesbos
Apollonian and Dionysian elements Orphic
Hymns
47
Orpheus
The Orphic Bible Chronus (Time) as first
principle?Aether, Chaos, and Erebus
Adrasteia (Necessity) The Cosmic
Egg?Phanes, known by many names, including
Eros?Night Phanes and Night?Gaea (Earth)
and Uranus (Heaven)?Titans?Cronus?Zeus Zeus
swallows Phanes and all creation. Zeus
becomes the One, the beginning and end.
Zeus and Persephone?Dionysus (Zagreus)
Tenets of Belief Purity of soul
Corruption o f body Original
sin Transmigration of soul
Purification Apotheosis
Union with divine spirit Connections with
mystery religions
48
Orpheus
Mystery Religions in Roman Times Syncretism
harmonizing of different cults and myths into
some sort of unity Mysteries of Demeter at
Eleusis Mysteries of Cybele and Attis
Taurobolium shedding of the blood of the
bull Mysteries of the Cabiri of Samothrace
Theoi Megaloi (great gods)
Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux Mysteries of
Mithras (Mithra) Persian god of light
and truth Mithraea or underground
chapels Tauroctony (slaying of the
bull) Officers, soldiers, and
sailors Initiation o f men
Communal meal Mysteries of Atargatis or
Dea Syria, the Syrian Goddess Consort
Tammuz or Dushara Marriage to Hadad,
thunder-god Association with Syrian
Baal, Greek Zeus, and Roman Jupiter
Mysteries of Isis Goddess of
rertility Osiris dismembered by Seth
Horus The Sistrum or
rattle The Situla or breast-shaped
container for milk Jug of Nile water
Associated with Serapis
Apuleius Metamorphoses (or The Golden Ass)
Lucius initiated into the Mysteries
of Isis Isis connected with
Cybele, Athena, Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter,
Persephone, and Hera