The ancient Hellenic religion “lived on the harmonious and reciprocal response of reality and of the divine will. The faith of the Greek man is in the cosmos, in the ordered rhythm of the stars; and the intertwining of their motions can only supervise the god ». The Hellenic conception of the Sacred is in fact based on a dense network of mythical-historical-astrological correspondences, which allows the historian of religions to consider it under various aspects linked to each other: Theogony, esoteric history of the cosmos and human lineages, eschatology of the Mysteries, Hyperborean shamanism.
Marco's Maculotti
originally published on Mediterranean, Italian Sword & Sorcery Books 2018 [ISBN: 9788894323016]
cover: giulio romano, the gods of olympus
«There has never been a divine service equal to that of Greece: in beauty, splendor, variety and unity it is unique in the world and represents one of the highest products of the universal spirit.» [1]. nell 'ancient Aegean, millennia of sacred rituals and beliefs, in an early "prehistoric" pre-Indo-European phase (or perhaps, rather, proto- Indo-European) [2] and in a second Indo-European “historical” phase [3], they have surprisingly stratified and harmonized, to the point that it is often difficult to understand exactly which of the two cultural phases they belong to. Stories of gods and heroes, scattered throughout the territory of ancient Hellas, over the centuries have shaped a corpus mythological which does not merely have the character of legend and folklore, being also strongly impregnated with esoteric and astrological correspondences.
The ancient Hellenic religion "he lived on the harmonious and reciprocal answer of reality and of the divine will. The faith of the Greek man is in the cosmos, in the ordered rhythm of the stars; and the intertwining of their motions can only supervise the god» [4]. The Hellenic conception of the Sacred, which starting from the eighth century BC would have poured into the major philosophical-esoteric currents of the time [5], far from being interpreted as a "religion" stricto sensu [6], is in fact based on a dense network of mythical-historical-astrological correspondences, which allows the historian of religions to consider it under various aspects linked to each other: Theogony, esoteric history of the cosmos and human lineages (doctrine of the Hesiodic ages [7]), eschatology of the Mysteries, Hyperborean shamanism [8].
«The Hesiodic Theogony seems to reflect the theogonic doctrine of the Delphic Apollo priests. Originally it would have been Χάος, the "primordial void" and then Γαῖα, the Earth, and Ἔρως or love, as mutual attraction and principle of union and harmony» [9]. The first phase of the Theogony sees only the existence of Chaos (Abyss) e Gaia, Mater-ia, whence everything comes into existence, first of all the numinous powers of the world of Nature. In this entropic scenario of the primordial cosmos, Eros Protogonos it acts as an attractive force, the function of which is to attract like and repel opposites. Thus the emanation of the divinities and the "subdivision of the divine functions" between them begins, and with it the "Cosmic Game» [10]. To this first theogonic phase corresponds, in the epic of humanity, the remote epoch of the Great Mother Goddesses [11], "Lord of the Animals" and moon goddesses [12], as well as the goddesses of the grain of the Eleusinian Mysteries [13].
The second phase of the Theogony develops in three cycles characterized by divine rulers: it is male and uranic-celestial deities, connected to the historical phase of the great invasions of the Indo-European peoples, which is why often the functional links with the divinities of other Indo-European cultures [14] are evident. If the previous phase presented a "horizontal" vision of the sacred [15], the latter, on the other hand, is distinguished by its "verticality": not so much the forces of Nature and the Earth, but those of the Heavens and the Cosmos are revered. The first of the three heavenly rulers was Uranus [16], primeval god who ruled when the continuum space-time did not exist and heaven and earth were still bound - their division taking place only with the emasculation by the son Kronos [17] that in this way, starting the becoming (Chronos), dethroned him. The episode represents a particularly gory version of the archaic myth of the separation of Heaven and Earth. As a third he ruled Zeus [18], who gained sovereignty by precipitating his father Kronos into Tartarus, in the company of his titanic progeny, or some other timeless region [19].
The wars of Zeus and the Olympic gods against the rebel powers take place in turn in three phases: Titanomachy, Gigantomachy and final battle with Typhoon. The descriptions of such clashes produce the impression of a regression to the pre-cosmogonic state: the definitive triumph of Zeus, despite the "machinations" of Gaia, the primordial divinity, is equivalent to the creation of a new cosmos. Numerous follow hierogamy of Zeus with various female deities [20]. As it notes Eliade [21], who are "the significance of these numerous marriages and many erotic adventures is both religious and political. With the appropriation of the pre-Hellenic local goddesses, venerated from time immemorial, Zeus replaces them and, in doing so, initiates the process of symbiosis and unification that will provide religion with its specific character.».
It should be noted here, as D'Anna well underlines [22], that "the three divine cycles have a different temporality, they express non-homogeneous cosmic qualities that make each cycle complete and closed in itself, not assimilable in any way to the others, rich in its own spiritual specificity. [...] an indistinct universe corresponds to Uranos; in Kronos a harmonious and perfect cosmos with a still time and an “ancient” sun; to Zeus a new celestial map "marked" by the 12 stations that the current sun touches in its run on the ecliptic. Three cosmic spaces and three corresponding time cycles". It is clear that we are not dealing here simply with legends or evemeristic memories concerning ancient terrestrial rulers, being such an aspect to be read together with the Greek doctrine of the ages and cosmic cycles. [23]. As Philippson writes [24], who are "three myths of deception and counter-deception are inserted in this line in three points that follow each other in a rhythmic way, and precisely always on the occasion of the threat of losing the sovereign dignity". Undoubtedly, an astrological-sacral type of wisdom has greatly influenced the genesis of these myths.
There is here to remark with Reinhardt [25] as the concept of kosmos must be understood in its archaic meaning, according to which "it does not mean neither the world nor its structure, but a certain state, a phase of the world, in comparison with other kósmoi, other previous and future phases". Each cycle is therefore, although interconnected with the preceding and subsequent ones, like pearls ringed on an invisible thread, ontologically different from the others, complete in itself. In the hiatus between one cycle and the next, a "Cosmic WarIn which the cosmos is destroyed and then recreated by the new ruler [26]. We are in the same context as the «Celestial Wars» between Deva and Asura of the Indian tradition, or fra Asi and Vani in the Nordic one.
Zeus distinguishes himself from the previous celestial sovereigns above all for his role as ordinator: far from making enemies all the gods who preceded him, he recognizes their authority of many, making propitious alliances with them. Zeus is also distinguished from his father by the possession of the I, "Infallible mind", which is opposed to the "twisted mind" of Kronos [27]. The idea of Zeus includes "the strength, the power, the deepest mind, the eternal law and solid fusion of the entire cosmos» [28]. For this, the priestesses of the oracle of Dodona sang: "Zeus was, Zeus is, Zeus will be!» [29].
Other deities we know as "Olympic"Are clearly affected by pre-Indo-European influences, often appearing to be connected to sacred concepts of an" aphroditic "or" demetric "type [30] typical of the most archaic cultural phase: eg. Poseidon (lit .: "Spouse of the Earth"), who before obtaining dominion over the seas had to be a chthonic divinity similar to Hades/Good Father [31]. Or again Hephaestus, demiurge god who at the same time presents the characteristics of the shaman [32] and the blacksmith [33]. Hermes himself, god of intellect and cunning, of roads and commerce, had to superimpose himself on a much older divinity, now of fertility [34], now of the underworld and shamanic mysteries [35]. Even Zeus and Apollo, Uranian and Indo-European deities par excellence, have apparently contradictory characteristics in myths that are affected by archaic influences [36]. The Greek gods therefore appear as 'floating' shapes, with characters not defined in a granitic way once and for all: they adapt to the different sensitivities and conceptions of the Sacred of the civilizations that followed one another in the ancient Mediterranean, so that by studying their 'evolutions' it becomes possible to get an idea of the Worldview of the various civilizing streams which marked the different eras.
And at different times the ancient Greeks also subdivided the esoteric history of the world. The doctrine of Hesiodic age, taken up by among others Ovid and Virgil, was based not on an evolutionary-ascending conception, but on involutionary-descending, of progressive departure from a primeval perfection, lost following a sudden "fallOccurred in illo tempore: here is the «cosmic dramaOf man. Thus, if originally a perfect humanity and not yet divided into the two sexes shared the bliss of the gods, with whom it used to feast, under the aegis of Saturn / Kronos [37], starting from the Silver Age, with which the dominion of Zeus is initiated, we are witnessing the creation of successive humanity, ontologically very different from the primordial one. There silver breed is probably a reminiscence of the era of the Great Goddesses Mothers, while the bronze one, characterized by a hybris and from an unparalleled ferocity that is expressed above all in the field of war, it would be roughly connected to that which, in the history of civilizations that is studied in schools, is also called "Bronze AgeAlthough some esoteric doctrines hold the bronze race a denomination for the Atlanteans.
In this framework of cosmic cycles, what is the role of the individual, especially in an era as dark as this one iron age? Culianu [38] has shown very well how behind the highest late-ancient Greek conceptions about man and his place in the cosmos can be glimpsed fragments of a Hyperborean shamanism, connected to the divine figure of Apollo, the best (Aristos) among all the gods. Thus, the mystical experiences of catabasis of the type of Orpheus and the entire doctrine of Orphic, as well as that of Pythagorici before and of Platonic e Neoplatonists then, they would be reminiscent of an extremely archaic Sacred Wisdom, now almost completely lost.
AND "reminiscentIs indeed a key term in the Hellenic conception: the central idea is that "To know" is the same as "to remember". The goddess mnemosyne [39], in the words of Colli [40], who are "it teaches us that the origin of all memories - where time has not yet begun - is precisely that which must be recovered. Such is the mystery teaching, all the time that must be crossed backwards to reach the timeless, all the generations of gods and men, all the myths narrated by Orpheus, are nothing but games of appearance.". Here lies, in a nutshell, il divine service Greek gods.
NOTE:
[1] Thus the incipit of Der Gottesdienst der Griechen (it.ed. The divine service of the Greeks. Adelphi, Milan, 2012) by F. Nietzsche.
[2] Thracians, Pelasgians, Minoans, etc.
[3] Mycenaeans, Achaeans, Dorians.
[4] D. del Corno, introduction to Plutarch, Delphic dialogues. Adelphi, Milan, 2012, p. 16.
[5] Orphism, Pythagoreanism, Platonism e neo-Platonism.
[6] That is to say in the sense of monotheisms of Middle Eastern origin.
[7] Hesiod, The Works and Days, VIII century. B.C
[8] The major philosophers of ancient Greece were all iatromancers, that is to say "emanation" shamans (or, to put it in a Hindu way, Avatara) of Apollo Hyperborean. In this regard, cf. IP Culianu, Journeys of the soul. Mondadori, Milan, 1991, cap. VIII.
[9] I. Ramelli and C. del Grande, “Teogonia” in Philosophical Encyclopedia vol. 11. Bompiani, Milan, 2006, p. 11416.
[10] Equivalent to the Hindu concept of līlā. Thus Heraclitus, custodian of very ancient primeval traditions, was able to pronounce that (fr. 52) "Aion he is a child who plays by moving the pieces on the chessboard: the sovereign power belongs to a child ».
[11] Gaea, Rea, Era.
[12] Cybele, Hecate, Artemis.
[13] Demeter e Kore/ Persephone.
[14] Such as eg. the Hindu / Vedic one, with which we will briefly highlight the correspondences from time to time. On the comparative analysis of Indo-European religions, cf. the work of G. Dumézil.
[15] Matriarchy, communion of associates and animals around a Great Mother Goddess, accompanied by a male parhedron at the same time son and husband of the Goddess. In this regard, cf. the work of M. Gimbutas.
[16] Similar to the Vedic Varuna.
[17] For his function as a civilizing and reigning hero of the age of origin (like the Roman Saturn) on the one hand, and for that of god of time (and therefore of death) on the other, Kronos presents notable points of contact with Yama.
[18] Counterpart of Indra in the tradition of the Vedas.
[19] The "Isole dei Beati" or Ogygia, "navel of the sea", where according to legend the ancient ruler of the golden age lies in a comatose state inside a golden cave. In this regard, cf. M. Maculotti, Apollo / Kronos in exile: Ogygia, the Dragon, the "fall", AXIS mundi, April 10, 2017.
[20] Metis, Mnemosine, Demeter, Latona, etc.
[21] M. Eliade, History of religious beliefs and ideas, vol. THE. Sansoni, Florence, 1979, p. 275.
[22] N. D'Anna, The cosmic game. Time and eternity in ancient Greece. Mediterranee, Rome, 2006, pp. 27 - 28.
[23] Reminiscent of the Indian one of the four Yuga. For a study on the correspondences between the various doctrines of the cycles, cf. G. Georgél, The quatre âges de l'humanité. Arché, Milan, 1975 (ed. It. The four ages of humanity. The Circle, Rimini, 1982).
[24] Fr Philippson, Untersuchungen über den griechischen Mythos. Rhein Verlag, Zürich, 1944 (ed. It. Origins and forms of the Greek myth. Boringhieri, Turin, 1983, p. 48).
[25] Cit. in Philippson, op. cit., p. 57.
[26] It deals with the theme of the "regression to Chaos" and to the pre-formal, one regression ad uterum cosmic similar to the "Night of Brahmā" following the Pralaya in Hindu doctrine (Pachakuti in the Andean one).
[27] And other titanic figures, eg. Prometheus.
[28] P. Philippson, op. cit., p. 60.
[29] To this ontological form of "Being", Parmenides contrasted that characteristic of atemporal Being (Uranus or Kronos before the "fall", that is to say Aion), of which he affirms (fr. 8,5): "It never was, nor will it be, indeed it is now together as a totality».
[30] We understand these definitions according to the example of JJ Bachofen. See Das Mutterrecht: eine Untersuchung über die Gynaikokratie der alten Welt nach ihrer Religious und Rechtlichen Natur. Krais & Hoffmann, Stuttgart, 1861 (ed. It. Mothers and Olympic virility. Secret history of the ancient Mediterranean world. Edited by J. Evola, Mediterranee, Rome, 2010).
[31] Or even, in a perhaps even more archaic phase, at theErlik Khan Mongolian-Siberian: horses are considered sacred to Erlik as to Poseidon, a psychopomp animal that in the Eurasian shamanic tradition leads the praying person into a state of trance shamanic with the "Lord of the Underworld".
[32] Cf. "mastery over fire", the "power to bind and untie" and physical mutilation.
[33] In ancient times metallurgy must have been indelibly connected to a certain type of Mysteries typical of the initiatory brotherhoods of builders, which perhaps had their center on the island of Samothrace, known for the Mysteries of the Kabiri, connected in turn to the pre- Indo-European of the Mother Goddess Cybele. On this, cf. M. Eliade, Metal arts and alchemy. Bollati Boringhieri, Turin, 1980, and K. Kerényi, Myths and Mysteries. Einaudi, Turin, 1950, cap. “The Mysteries of the Kabiri”.
[34] See the itiphallic character, which connects it to the Priapus Roman and the adoration in India of Shiva lingam.
[35] See his psychopomp function, the caduceus and the invisibility hat, typical magical objects that bring him closer to the Wotan / Odhinn of the Norse-Germanic tradition.
[36] Come on Apollo as a dark and terrifying deity, cf. M. Detienne, Apollon le couteau à la main. Gallimard, Paris, 1998 (ed. It. Apollo with the knife in his hand. Adelphi, Milan, 2002) and G. Colli, Greek wisdom I. Adelphi, Milan, 1990, introduction, pp. 26 - 27.
[37] Saturn / Kronos looks like the Basileus primeval, being Uranus a numinous power outside of time and space. Saturn is the divine King of the Golden Age. Yes, cf. the Indian denomination of Satya Yuga for the primordial and golden age, whereas the Sanskrit root *village- expresses "truth", "purity", as well as the Being in its undivided and primal aspect.
[38] IP Culianu, op. cit.
[39] The source of Mnemosine finds a counterpart in the Nordic tradition in the "source of Mímir", where Odhinn / Wotan gains knowledge by sacrificing an eye. Meaning Mímir "memory", it follows that "knowing" and "remembering" were seen as closely connected. Regarding the source of Mímir, M. Polia writes: «To draw upon the truth is not to create it, but to“ remember ”it, which has always been and forever. This memory is the "divine memory", the discovery of the reality hidden behind the sensible world [...] "(in The divine runes. The notebooks of Excalibur n. 2, supplement to n. 1/78 of Excalibur, typ. Nuova Impronta, Rome, 1978).
[40] G. Colli, op. cit., introduction, p. 41.