The Mythos and the Logos: Greek wisdom in the Platonic myths

Knowing oneself and the world of ideas through myth, or, in other words, reaching the Logos through Mythos: this is the main idea that supports Greek wisdom, as Plato has divinely illustrated in his works. The myth of the cave, the myth of Er, that of the charioteer and of Eros show us that in what we call "reality" nothing is certain, everything is in constant motion: the truth lies outside the fire, beyond out of the cave and of the mind itself, therefore in the world of ideas, which Plato calls "hyperuranium"; that is, "beyond the sky".


Ioan P. Culianu: the Hyperborean shamanism of ancient Greece

cover: Ilyas Phaizulline, "Orpheus at the Empire of the Dead"


Introduction

curated by Marco Maculotti

When it comes to "shamanism" [I], we usually tend to think of the Siberian one [II], from which the term itself derives, or to the Himalayan one, which often synchronizes with the Buddhist and / or Hindu tradition, or to that of the native populations of North America, Mexico and the Andes, as well as that of the Australian aborigines. More rarely, the importance of shamanic practices for the Indo-European peoples is emphasized, although the classical sources are not poor in this regard.