MONTU was a falcon-god of war. Montu's name shown in the Egyptian hieroglyphics, is technically transcribed as "MNTW". Because of the difficulty in transcribing ancient Egyptian language, it is often regarded as Mont, Montu, or Menthu.
In ancient Egyptian art, he was pictured as a falcon-headed or bull-headed man who wore the sun-disk, with 2 plumes on his head, the falcon representing the sky, an an element of its nature, and the bull representing strength and war, as earth elements of its nature. He would hold various weaponry, including scimitars, bows and arrows, and knives in his hands.
The name itself means "Nomad,"originally a manifestation of the scorching effect of the sun, Ra, and as such often appeared under the epithet Mont-Ra. The destructiveness of this nature or characteristic of its mind led him to gain a warrior symbolism, and eventually becoming a war-god.
Because of the association of wild ranging bulls with strength and war, Montu was also said to manifest his energy and force in a white bull with a black face, which was referred to as the "Bakh"or "Buchis."
The manifestation of the his powerful force of life was deified as KA, and was worshiped in the region of Hermonth'Is, in Luxor Governorate, on the West bank of the Nile. The Bucheum, the burial place of the sacred Buchis bulls of Hermonth'Is, is on the desert edge North of the city. The earliest bull burial dates to Necta'Nebo II, and the complex remained in use until the mid 4th century AC. The burial place of the Mother of Buchis cows has also been located. Extensive cemeteries of all periods are found in the neighborhood or Hemonth'Is.
Montu had several consorts, including the goddess Tenenet, known as the "goddess of brewing", the goddess Iunit, whose name represented the region from which the god chose his sacred bulls.
A temple dedicated to him at Meda'Mud was probably began during the Old Kingdom era. Temples to Montu include one located adjacent to the Middle Kingdom fortress of Uronarti on an island on the Nile River, near the 2nd Cataract, specifically to the South of it. It stands out from the other fortresses because of its triangular-shaped geography. Important additions were made in the temple design during the 12th dynasty and during the New Kingdom. Destroyed during the Late Period, a new temple was started in the reign of Necta'Nebo II and was continued by the Ptolemis.
Cleopatra VII, under whom Hermonth'Is became capital of the 4th Upper Egyptian nome and Ptolemy XV Caesarion added a birth house with a sacred lake. The building remained visible until the 19th century, when it was recycled to built a sugar factory. Only the remains of the pylon of Thutmose III (Thoth is born), who created the largest empire Egypt had ever seen, are visible today.
Two Gates, one of them built by Antoninus Pius, the Roman Emperor from 138 to 161, and one of the 5 Good Emperors in the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii, have also been found. He acquired the name Pius after his ascension to the throne, either because he compelled the Senate to deify his adoptive father Hadrian, or because he had saved senators sentenced to death by Hadrian in his later years. He died of illness in 161 AC and was succeded by his adopted sons Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus as co-emperors.
Egypt's greatest general-kings called themselves "Mighty Bulls," the son of Montu. In the narrative of the Battle of Kadesh, Ramesses II was said to have seen the enemy and "raged at them like Montu, Lord of Thebes".
Mentu'Hotep, a name given to several pharaohs in the Middle Kingdom, means "Montu is satisfied."
Saturday, December 31, 2016
Thursday, December 22, 2016
THE GODS OF CHINA.
Human activity in China dates back 4 to 5 million years, and evidence has been found of earlier human activity living some 1 million years ago. The remains found South West of Beijing in 1927, date from around 400,000 years ago. Some 7,000 ancient sites, some as old as 9,000 BC, have been found in North China, at the Yangzi River Valley, and South East coastal areas. They include an agricultural village in Shaanxi Province dating from around 4,500 to 3,750 BC, which had a deep, wide trench dug around the town to prevent invasion. They also had evidence of wood-framed, mud and straw houses, colored pottery, slash and burn farming, and burial sites in nearby cemeteries.
As described in its mythology, Cninese civilization begins with the Creator of the Universe, Pangu, and a succession of the legendary sage-emperors, and other culture heroes who taught the people how to communicate, and, how to find livelihood, clothing, and shelter.
The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors ruled between about 2,852 and 2,070 BC, before the time of Xia Dynasty. They were legendary, morally perfect sage-kings.
The Three Sovereigns, also called the Three August Ones, were the rulers of Sky, Earth, and Humans.
The Sky Sovereign had 12 heads, and ruled for 18,000 years. He also had 12 sons who helped him rule the World. They divided humanity into different tribes, to keep them organized.
The Earth Sovereign had 11 heads, and also lived for 18,000 years. He caused the sun and moon to move in their proper orbit. He was the king of fire, and also created several famous Chinese Mountains.
The Human Sovereign had only 7 heads, but he had the longest life span of all the Three Sovereigns -45,000 years. His whole dynasty lasted that long, rather than just his own life. He drove a chariot made of clouds, and coughed the first rice from his mouth.
The Five Emperors, according to Sima Qian, the court astrologer and scribe, the Five Emperors were: the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu, Ku Emperor, Yao Emperor, and Shun.
The Yellow Emperor, also known as Huangdi, ruled for 100 years. He is considered the originator of Chinese civilization. He was a deity that was later transformed into a human ruler.
The 2nd of the Five Emperors was the Yellow Emperor's grandson, Zhuanxu, who ruled for 78 years. During that time, he changed China's matriarchal culture to patriarchy, created a calendar, composed the first piece of music, which was called "the answer to the clouds."
The 3rd, Emperor Ku, or the White Emperor, was the great-grandson of the Yellow Emperor. He ruled for 70 years. He liked to travel by dragon-back, and invented the first musical instruments.
The 4th, Emperor Yao, is viewed as the wisest sage-king and a paragon of moral perfection. He and the 5th, Shun the Great,represented the historical figures symbolizing folk memories of early and powerful warlords from the era just before the Xia Period.
The Song of Chu identifies the Five Emperors as directional gods: East, North, Center, West, South.
At the point of dead, they were succeeded by their children of their own tribe, but not as the ruler of the whole union.
As described in its mythology, Cninese civilization begins with the Creator of the Universe, Pangu, and a succession of the legendary sage-emperors, and other culture heroes who taught the people how to communicate, and, how to find livelihood, clothing, and shelter.
The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors ruled between about 2,852 and 2,070 BC, before the time of Xia Dynasty. They were legendary, morally perfect sage-kings.
The Three Sovereigns, also called the Three August Ones, were the rulers of Sky, Earth, and Humans.
The Sky Sovereign had 12 heads, and ruled for 18,000 years. He also had 12 sons who helped him rule the World. They divided humanity into different tribes, to keep them organized.
The Earth Sovereign had 11 heads, and also lived for 18,000 years. He caused the sun and moon to move in their proper orbit. He was the king of fire, and also created several famous Chinese Mountains.
The Human Sovereign had only 7 heads, but he had the longest life span of all the Three Sovereigns -45,000 years. His whole dynasty lasted that long, rather than just his own life. He drove a chariot made of clouds, and coughed the first rice from his mouth.
The Five Emperors, according to Sima Qian, the court astrologer and scribe, the Five Emperors were: the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu, Ku Emperor, Yao Emperor, and Shun.
The Yellow Emperor, also known as Huangdi, ruled for 100 years. He is considered the originator of Chinese civilization. He was a deity that was later transformed into a human ruler.
The 2nd of the Five Emperors was the Yellow Emperor's grandson, Zhuanxu, who ruled for 78 years. During that time, he changed China's matriarchal culture to patriarchy, created a calendar, composed the first piece of music, which was called "the answer to the clouds."
The 3rd, Emperor Ku, or the White Emperor, was the great-grandson of the Yellow Emperor. He ruled for 70 years. He liked to travel by dragon-back, and invented the first musical instruments.
The 4th, Emperor Yao, is viewed as the wisest sage-king and a paragon of moral perfection. He and the 5th, Shun the Great,represented the historical figures symbolizing folk memories of early and powerful warlords from the era just before the Xia Period.
The Song of Chu identifies the Five Emperors as directional gods: East, North, Center, West, South.
At the point of dead, they were succeeded by their children of their own tribe, but not as the ruler of the whole union.
Monday, September 5, 2016
THE TWO RAVENS THAT FLY OVER THE WORLD.
In Norse mythology, Hug'Inn (Thought, Mind) and Mun'Inn (Memory), are a pair of ravens that fly all over the world named Mid'Gard, and bring information to the highest god Odin.
According to its legend it is said, "Two ravens sit on Odin's shoulders, and bring to his ears all that they hear and see. Their names are Thought and Mind. At dawn he sends them out to fly over the world, and they come back at breakfast time. Thus he gets information about many things, and hence he is called the "Raven god."
Scholars have linked Odin's relation to Hug'Inn (Thought, Idea) and Mun'Inn (Memory, Mind) to shamanic practice, since Odin's ability to send his 'thought' and 'mind' was performed when he entered into the trance-state journey of the shamans, facing the shaman's danger of the possibility of loosing one of both of them. Others attested that Odin's ravens were the personification of the god's intellectual powers, assumed from the names of the ravens themselves which were Odin' companions.
The two ravens have a wider symbolism in the Germanic world, including the Raven Banner, a flag, totemic in nature. It is said that the flag was woven in a method that allowed it, when fluttering in the wind, to appear as if the raven depicted upon it was beating its wings. The raven flag was treated as a symbol of Odin, often accompanied by the 2 ravens.
It was flown by various Viking chieftains and other Scandinavian rulers during the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries. The Viking warlords were regarded in Norse tradition as the sons of the Danish Ragnar Lodbrok. The first mention of a Viking force carrying a raven banner is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle,
878. It relates: "And in the winter of this same year the brother of Ivar and Half-Dan landed in Wessex, in Devon-Shire, with 23 ships, and there was he slain, and 800 men with him, and 40 of his army. There also was taken the war-flag, which they called "Raven."
In the 10th century, the raven banner was adopted by Norse-Gaelic kings Dublin and North-Umbria.
Many of the Norse-Gaelic dynasts in Britain and Ireland were of the Ui'Imair clan, a royal Norse dynasty, who claimed descent from Ragnar Lodbrok through his son Ivar.
The flag was roughly triangular (right isosceles) standard, with 2 equilateral sides situated at the top and staff, respectively, with a rounded outside edge along the hypotenuse, on the which there hung a series of 5 tabs or tassels. It bore a resemblance to ornately carved "weather-vanes" used aboard Viking long-ships. Its intent was to invoke Odin's power over the Thought and Mind and made his enemies to strike themselves in fear.
The raven banner was also a standard used by the Norse Jarls of Orkney. According to the 'Orkneyinga Saga,' the banner was made for Sigurd the Stout by his mother, a 'volva' or shamanic seeress. She told him that the banner would bring victory to the man it's carried before, but death to the one who carries it. The saga describes the flag as "a finely made banner, very cleverly embroidered with the figure of a raven, and when the banner fluttered in the breeze, the raven seemed to be flying ahead." Sigurd's mother prediction came true when, all of the bearers of the standard met ultimately ends. The curse of the banner ultimately fell on Jarl Sigurd hijmself at the Battle of Clon-Tarf:
"Earl Sigurd had a hard battle against Kerthi'Alfad, he came on so fast that he laid low all who were in front rank, and he broke the array of Earl Sigurd right up to his banner-bearer. Then he got another man to bear the banner, and there was again a hard fight. Kerthi'Alfad smote this man too, his death blow at once, and so on one after the other all who stood near him. Then Earl Sigurd called on Thor-Stein the son of Hall of Sida, to bear the banner, and Thor-Stein was just about to lift the banner, but then As-Mund the White said, 'Don't bear the banner! For all they who bear it get their death.' H'Rafn the Red! called out Sigurd, 'bear you the banner.' 'Bear your own evil yourself,' answered H'Rafn. Then Sigurd said, 'Tis fittest that the beggar should bear the bag;' and with that he took the banner from the staff and put it under his cloak. A little after As-Mund the White was slain, and then Sigurd was pierced through with a spear.
The 12th-century 'Annals of St Neots,' a Latin chronicle written in the English county of Suf-Folk between 1120- 1140 CE, covering the history of Britain, claims that the raven banner was present with the Great Heathen Army and adds insight into its spirit, influenced creation and totemic and oracular nature: "It is said that 3 sisters of Ivar and Ubbe, the daughters of Ragnar Lodbrok, had woven that banner and gotten it ready during one single midday's time. Further it is said that if they were going to win a battle in which they followed that sign, there was to be seen, in the center of the sign, a raven, gaily flapping its wings. But if they were going to be defeated, the raven dropped motionless. And this always proved true.
Odin was also closely linked to ravens because in Norse myths he received the fallen warriors at Valhalla, and ravens, due to their predilection for carrion, were linked with death, blood. corpses, and battle. Consequently the ravens were regarded as manifestations of the Valkyries, goddesses who chose the valiant dead for military service in Valhalla. Battle and harsh justice were viewed favorable in Norse culture. A further connection between ravens and Valkyries was indicated in the shape-shifting abilities of goddesses and valkyries, who used the birds as transporters of their spirits.
Other researchers connect the two ravens to the Norse concepts of the 'Fyl'Gja -a concept with three characteristics: shape-shifting abilities, good fortune, and the guardian spirit- and Hamin'Gja - the ghostly double of a person that may appear in the form of an animal. The shaman's journey through the different parts of the cosmos is symbolized by the Hamin'Gja concept of shape-shifting soul, and in the account of Odin's ravens, Thoughts and Mind.
The word 'fyl'dja' means 'to accompany' or 'after birth of a child.' In some instances, the fyl'gja can take the form of the animal that shows itself when a baby is born or as a creature that eats the afterbirth. The fyl'gja can take the form of mice, dogs, foxes, cats, birds of prey, or carrion eaters because these were animals that would typically eat such afterbirths. Other ideas are that the animals reflect the character of the person of communities they represent. Men who were viewed as a leader would often have fyl-gja to show their true character. This means that if they had a 'tame nature,' their fylgja would typically be an ox, goat, or boar. If they had an 'untamed nature' they would have fylgja such as a fox, wolf, deer, bear, eagle, falcon, leopard, lion, or a serpent.
Some others theorizes that the two ravens, along with Odin and his wolves Geri and Freki, reflect a symbiosis, often a long-term interaction between two different biological species, observed in the natural world among ravens, wolves, and humans. One organism typically shores up some weakness or deficiency of the other(s). As in such a symbiosis, Odin the father of all humans and gods, though in human form was imperfect by himself. As a separate entity he lacked depth perception (being one-eyed) and he was apparently also uninformed and forgetful, or didn't have the organs in control of it fully developed or activated in his human form. But his weakness were compensated by his ravens, Hug'Inn (Mind) and Mun'Inn (Memory) who were part of him. They perched on his shoulders and reconnoitered to the ends of the earth each day to return in the evening and tell him the news. He also have two wolves at his side, and the man/god-raven-wolf association was like one single organism in which the ravens were the eyes, mind, and memory, and the wolves the providers of meat and nourishment, all together acting in the frequency of the human world. As god, Odin was the ethereal part -he only drank wine, as energy coming from the earth, and spoke only in poetry, as a way of communication between worlds.
Odin myth is a metaphor that playfully and poetically encapsulates ancient knowledge of our past in association with the ethereal world to produce a powerful alliance in the human world. It reflects a past that we have long forgotten and whose meaning has been obscured and badly frayed as we abandoned our heritage to become what we are now in our 'fantasy world.'
According to its legend it is said, "Two ravens sit on Odin's shoulders, and bring to his ears all that they hear and see. Their names are Thought and Mind. At dawn he sends them out to fly over the world, and they come back at breakfast time. Thus he gets information about many things, and hence he is called the "Raven god."
Scholars have linked Odin's relation to Hug'Inn (Thought, Idea) and Mun'Inn (Memory, Mind) to shamanic practice, since Odin's ability to send his 'thought' and 'mind' was performed when he entered into the trance-state journey of the shamans, facing the shaman's danger of the possibility of loosing one of both of them. Others attested that Odin's ravens were the personification of the god's intellectual powers, assumed from the names of the ravens themselves which were Odin' companions.
The two ravens have a wider symbolism in the Germanic world, including the Raven Banner, a flag, totemic in nature. It is said that the flag was woven in a method that allowed it, when fluttering in the wind, to appear as if the raven depicted upon it was beating its wings. The raven flag was treated as a symbol of Odin, often accompanied by the 2 ravens.
It was flown by various Viking chieftains and other Scandinavian rulers during the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries. The Viking warlords were regarded in Norse tradition as the sons of the Danish Ragnar Lodbrok. The first mention of a Viking force carrying a raven banner is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle,
878. It relates: "And in the winter of this same year the brother of Ivar and Half-Dan landed in Wessex, in Devon-Shire, with 23 ships, and there was he slain, and 800 men with him, and 40 of his army. There also was taken the war-flag, which they called "Raven."
In the 10th century, the raven banner was adopted by Norse-Gaelic kings Dublin and North-Umbria.
Many of the Norse-Gaelic dynasts in Britain and Ireland were of the Ui'Imair clan, a royal Norse dynasty, who claimed descent from Ragnar Lodbrok through his son Ivar.
The flag was roughly triangular (right isosceles) standard, with 2 equilateral sides situated at the top and staff, respectively, with a rounded outside edge along the hypotenuse, on the which there hung a series of 5 tabs or tassels. It bore a resemblance to ornately carved "weather-vanes" used aboard Viking long-ships. Its intent was to invoke Odin's power over the Thought and Mind and made his enemies to strike themselves in fear.
The raven banner was also a standard used by the Norse Jarls of Orkney. According to the 'Orkneyinga Saga,' the banner was made for Sigurd the Stout by his mother, a 'volva' or shamanic seeress. She told him that the banner would bring victory to the man it's carried before, but death to the one who carries it. The saga describes the flag as "a finely made banner, very cleverly embroidered with the figure of a raven, and when the banner fluttered in the breeze, the raven seemed to be flying ahead." Sigurd's mother prediction came true when, all of the bearers of the standard met ultimately ends. The curse of the banner ultimately fell on Jarl Sigurd hijmself at the Battle of Clon-Tarf:
"Earl Sigurd had a hard battle against Kerthi'Alfad, he came on so fast that he laid low all who were in front rank, and he broke the array of Earl Sigurd right up to his banner-bearer. Then he got another man to bear the banner, and there was again a hard fight. Kerthi'Alfad smote this man too, his death blow at once, and so on one after the other all who stood near him. Then Earl Sigurd called on Thor-Stein the son of Hall of Sida, to bear the banner, and Thor-Stein was just about to lift the banner, but then As-Mund the White said, 'Don't bear the banner! For all they who bear it get their death.' H'Rafn the Red! called out Sigurd, 'bear you the banner.' 'Bear your own evil yourself,' answered H'Rafn. Then Sigurd said, 'Tis fittest that the beggar should bear the bag;' and with that he took the banner from the staff and put it under his cloak. A little after As-Mund the White was slain, and then Sigurd was pierced through with a spear.
The 12th-century 'Annals of St Neots,' a Latin chronicle written in the English county of Suf-Folk between 1120- 1140 CE, covering the history of Britain, claims that the raven banner was present with the Great Heathen Army and adds insight into its spirit, influenced creation and totemic and oracular nature: "It is said that 3 sisters of Ivar and Ubbe, the daughters of Ragnar Lodbrok, had woven that banner and gotten it ready during one single midday's time. Further it is said that if they were going to win a battle in which they followed that sign, there was to be seen, in the center of the sign, a raven, gaily flapping its wings. But if they were going to be defeated, the raven dropped motionless. And this always proved true.
Odin was also closely linked to ravens because in Norse myths he received the fallen warriors at Valhalla, and ravens, due to their predilection for carrion, were linked with death, blood. corpses, and battle. Consequently the ravens were regarded as manifestations of the Valkyries, goddesses who chose the valiant dead for military service in Valhalla. Battle and harsh justice were viewed favorable in Norse culture. A further connection between ravens and Valkyries was indicated in the shape-shifting abilities of goddesses and valkyries, who used the birds as transporters of their spirits.
Other researchers connect the two ravens to the Norse concepts of the 'Fyl'Gja -a concept with three characteristics: shape-shifting abilities, good fortune, and the guardian spirit- and Hamin'Gja - the ghostly double of a person that may appear in the form of an animal. The shaman's journey through the different parts of the cosmos is symbolized by the Hamin'Gja concept of shape-shifting soul, and in the account of Odin's ravens, Thoughts and Mind.
The word 'fyl'dja' means 'to accompany' or 'after birth of a child.' In some instances, the fyl'gja can take the form of the animal that shows itself when a baby is born or as a creature that eats the afterbirth. The fyl'gja can take the form of mice, dogs, foxes, cats, birds of prey, or carrion eaters because these were animals that would typically eat such afterbirths. Other ideas are that the animals reflect the character of the person of communities they represent. Men who were viewed as a leader would often have fyl-gja to show their true character. This means that if they had a 'tame nature,' their fylgja would typically be an ox, goat, or boar. If they had an 'untamed nature' they would have fylgja such as a fox, wolf, deer, bear, eagle, falcon, leopard, lion, or a serpent.
Some others theorizes that the two ravens, along with Odin and his wolves Geri and Freki, reflect a symbiosis, often a long-term interaction between two different biological species, observed in the natural world among ravens, wolves, and humans. One organism typically shores up some weakness or deficiency of the other(s). As in such a symbiosis, Odin the father of all humans and gods, though in human form was imperfect by himself. As a separate entity he lacked depth perception (being one-eyed) and he was apparently also uninformed and forgetful, or didn't have the organs in control of it fully developed or activated in his human form. But his weakness were compensated by his ravens, Hug'Inn (Mind) and Mun'Inn (Memory) who were part of him. They perched on his shoulders and reconnoitered to the ends of the earth each day to return in the evening and tell him the news. He also have two wolves at his side, and the man/god-raven-wolf association was like one single organism in which the ravens were the eyes, mind, and memory, and the wolves the providers of meat and nourishment, all together acting in the frequency of the human world. As god, Odin was the ethereal part -he only drank wine, as energy coming from the earth, and spoke only in poetry, as a way of communication between worlds.
Odin myth is a metaphor that playfully and poetically encapsulates ancient knowledge of our past in association with the ethereal world to produce a powerful alliance in the human world. It reflects a past that we have long forgotten and whose meaning has been obscured and badly frayed as we abandoned our heritage to become what we are now in our 'fantasy world.'
Sunday, August 28, 2016
THE COMMERCE GODS OF THE PHOENIC' IANS.
The Phoenic'Ian religion was an inseparable part of everyday life and they worshiped their gods with offerings and sacrifices at purpose-built temples constructed in prominent locations in their city-states, however, they did not build idols of their gods to place inside their temples as did many other ancient cultures. They also worshiped at natural sites which were considered sacred such as certain mountains, rivers, groves of trees, and even rocks. Rivers carried the names of the gods such as the Adonis River near Byblos and the Ascle'Pius River which ran through Sidon. Here, at these natural sites, shrines were built but sometimes larger structures too, for example at Aph'Ka, a hill outside Byblos, where an entire sanctuary developed.
They had a remarkable constant way of practicing their belief, even though it was not uniform throughout the region as ancient Phoenic'Ia was very much a collection of individual city-states rather than a single homogenous state.
Due to the geography of the region the land were contained on the narrow coast of the Levant (Asia Minor and modern-day Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon) and backed by the Mountains creating a border with the A'Ram'Aean and Hebrew neighbors.
El, Baal'At, and Adon were particularly worshiped at Byblos.
El was of Semitic origin and, although equated with El'Iun in the Bible, was a separate deity. He was important but not especially active in the daily life of the citizens which led the Greeks to equate him with their Cronus.
Baal'At was a female deity associated with the earth element and fertility. She is often referred to as Baal'At Geb'Al or 'Lady Baal'At of Byblos' and frequently mentioned in inscriptions where she appealed to by kings so that their reign may be a successful one. Altars and monuments constructed from precious metals were dedicated to her. Her equivalents in other Near Eastern cultures were Isht'Ar, Inn'In, and Is'Is.
Adon was considered one of the most important Can'A'Anite (Phoenic'Ian) gods, he was the god of beauty, fertility and permanent renewal. The name itself, 'Adon,' means 'The Lord.' He represented for the Phoenic'Ians the annual cycle of nature.
In Greek mythology and the Hellenic (1st democracy in Athens 5907 BC) world generally, he was called Adonis. The myth involves his everlasting mistress Astarte, the goddess of love and beauty, in a legendary love story that combines tragedy and death on the one hand, and the joy to coming back to life on the other. The role that Cyprus played in transferring the myth of Adonis and Astarte from the Can'A'Anite regions to the Greeks and later to the Romans, is a very significant one. He shares some characteristics with deities from neighboring cultures, notably Osiris in Egypt, and Tammuz of Babylon and Assyria.
Thoe most important god at Sidon was Baal, probably equivalent in function to El of Byblos). He was the head of the pantheon but detached from everyday worship. The city did, though, have at least one temple dedicated to him.
Much more prominent was Astarte (in Semitic inscriptions Asht'Ar and in the Bible Ash'Toret) who had many temples dedicated to her and was the equivalent of Baal'At at Byblos. The kings of Sidon were referred to as the priests of Astarte, and she frequently appears in surviving Phoenic'Ians inscriptions. In art she is often depicted with a crescent on her head, a reference to her close association with the moon.
A third important god at Sidon was Esh'Mun, who does not appear before the 7th BC and was the equivalent of Adon. Temples were built in his name and he was associated with healing, hence the Greeks identified him as their Ascle'Pius.
The highest god of Tyre was Melq'Art, equivalent to Baal at Sidon and probably confused with him in several passages of the Bible. Melq'Art, in addition, assumed some of the characteristics of both Adon and Eshmun as he was the focus of a festival of resurrection each year (February-March). He was considered to represent the monarchy, the sea, hunting, and colonization. Further, he was responsible for the cities commercial success as the discoverer of the dye, the Phoenic'Ians, extracted from the murex shellfish, which they used to create their famous purple cloth.
A long-lasting temple was dedicated to Melq'Art in the city and was famously visited by Herod'Otus, who described its entrance columns of gold and emeralds, and Alexander the Great, who made a sacrifice at its altar. The god was depicted on coins from Tyre in his guise as a sea god riding a hippo-campus. Melq'Art was exported to many Phoenic'Ians colonies around the Mediterranean and was especially worshiped at Cart'Hage, which sent annual tribute to the temple of Melq'Art at Tyre for the next few centuries. The Greeks identified him with Hercules.
The other important deity at Tyre was Astarte, who also had her own temple, built by King Hi'Ram in the 10th BC.
Besides the gods already mentioned the Phoenic'Ians also worshipped Reshef, the god of fire and lightning; Dagon, the god of wheat, who was credited with inventing the plough; and Shadrapa, who was associated with snakes and healing. The god Chusor was thought to have invented iron and metalwork, and several deities were personifications of ideals, such as Sydyk and Misor, who represented Justice and Righteousness, respectively.
Ceremonies at temples and special locations involved prayers, burning incense, the pouring of libations, and making offerings to the gods through animal sacrifices, foodstuffs, and precious goods. In addition, votive columns made from wood (aserah) or stone (betyl) were placed upon sacrificial altars. These were inscribed with prayers and decorated in festivals with flowers and tree boughs. In the case of Astarte, there was a tradition of women prostituting themselves in her honor.
The temples and sacred sites were administered by a class of priests and priestesses. It seems likely that the highest class of priests was closely associated with the royal family. The presence of votive offerings in rock-cut tombs reveal that the Phoenic'Ians did believe in an after-life. Inscriptions in tombs call for the dead not to be disturbed and that there was an underworld for those who had not led a pious life.
They had a remarkable constant way of practicing their belief, even though it was not uniform throughout the region as ancient Phoenic'Ia was very much a collection of individual city-states rather than a single homogenous state.
Due to the geography of the region the land were contained on the narrow coast of the Levant (Asia Minor and modern-day Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon) and backed by the Mountains creating a border with the A'Ram'Aean and Hebrew neighbors.
El, Baal'At, and Adon were particularly worshiped at Byblos.
El was of Semitic origin and, although equated with El'Iun in the Bible, was a separate deity. He was important but not especially active in the daily life of the citizens which led the Greeks to equate him with their Cronus.
Baal'At was a female deity associated with the earth element and fertility. She is often referred to as Baal'At Geb'Al or 'Lady Baal'At of Byblos' and frequently mentioned in inscriptions where she appealed to by kings so that their reign may be a successful one. Altars and monuments constructed from precious metals were dedicated to her. Her equivalents in other Near Eastern cultures were Isht'Ar, Inn'In, and Is'Is.
Adon was considered one of the most important Can'A'Anite (Phoenic'Ian) gods, he was the god of beauty, fertility and permanent renewal. The name itself, 'Adon,' means 'The Lord.' He represented for the Phoenic'Ians the annual cycle of nature.
In Greek mythology and the Hellenic (1st democracy in Athens 5907 BC) world generally, he was called Adonis. The myth involves his everlasting mistress Astarte, the goddess of love and beauty, in a legendary love story that combines tragedy and death on the one hand, and the joy to coming back to life on the other. The role that Cyprus played in transferring the myth of Adonis and Astarte from the Can'A'Anite regions to the Greeks and later to the Romans, is a very significant one. He shares some characteristics with deities from neighboring cultures, notably Osiris in Egypt, and Tammuz of Babylon and Assyria.
Thoe most important god at Sidon was Baal, probably equivalent in function to El of Byblos). He was the head of the pantheon but detached from everyday worship. The city did, though, have at least one temple dedicated to him.
Much more prominent was Astarte (in Semitic inscriptions Asht'Ar and in the Bible Ash'Toret) who had many temples dedicated to her and was the equivalent of Baal'At at Byblos. The kings of Sidon were referred to as the priests of Astarte, and she frequently appears in surviving Phoenic'Ians inscriptions. In art she is often depicted with a crescent on her head, a reference to her close association with the moon.
A third important god at Sidon was Esh'Mun, who does not appear before the 7th BC and was the equivalent of Adon. Temples were built in his name and he was associated with healing, hence the Greeks identified him as their Ascle'Pius.
The highest god of Tyre was Melq'Art, equivalent to Baal at Sidon and probably confused with him in several passages of the Bible. Melq'Art, in addition, assumed some of the characteristics of both Adon and Eshmun as he was the focus of a festival of resurrection each year (February-March). He was considered to represent the monarchy, the sea, hunting, and colonization. Further, he was responsible for the cities commercial success as the discoverer of the dye, the Phoenic'Ians, extracted from the murex shellfish, which they used to create their famous purple cloth.
A long-lasting temple was dedicated to Melq'Art in the city and was famously visited by Herod'Otus, who described its entrance columns of gold and emeralds, and Alexander the Great, who made a sacrifice at its altar. The god was depicted on coins from Tyre in his guise as a sea god riding a hippo-campus. Melq'Art was exported to many Phoenic'Ians colonies around the Mediterranean and was especially worshiped at Cart'Hage, which sent annual tribute to the temple of Melq'Art at Tyre for the next few centuries. The Greeks identified him with Hercules.
The other important deity at Tyre was Astarte, who also had her own temple, built by King Hi'Ram in the 10th BC.
Besides the gods already mentioned the Phoenic'Ians also worshipped Reshef, the god of fire and lightning; Dagon, the god of wheat, who was credited with inventing the plough; and Shadrapa, who was associated with snakes and healing. The god Chusor was thought to have invented iron and metalwork, and several deities were personifications of ideals, such as Sydyk and Misor, who represented Justice and Righteousness, respectively.
Ceremonies at temples and special locations involved prayers, burning incense, the pouring of libations, and making offerings to the gods through animal sacrifices, foodstuffs, and precious goods. In addition, votive columns made from wood (aserah) or stone (betyl) were placed upon sacrificial altars. These were inscribed with prayers and decorated in festivals with flowers and tree boughs. In the case of Astarte, there was a tradition of women prostituting themselves in her honor.
The temples and sacred sites were administered by a class of priests and priestesses. It seems likely that the highest class of priests was closely associated with the royal family. The presence of votive offerings in rock-cut tombs reveal that the Phoenic'Ians did believe in an after-life. Inscriptions in tombs call for the dead not to be disturbed and that there was an underworld for those who had not led a pious life.
Saturday, August 27, 2016
THE NATURE OF THE GOD THOTH.
T'Hot'H's other names include: Dj'Huti, Dje'Huty, D'Houti, Dje'Huti, Te'Huty, Te'Huti, T'Hout, Ze'Huti, S'Heps, Lord of Khe'Menu.
In art, the god was usually depicted with the head of an Ib'Is, deriving from his name, and the curve of the bird's beak, which resembles the crescent moon. He was sometimes depicted with the face of a dog-headed baboon and the body of a man or, again, as a full dog-headed baboon. The dog-headed baboon was a night animal that was seen by the Egyptians as the ones who greet the sun with chattering noises each morning just as T'Hot'T, the moon god, would greet Ra, the sun god, as he rose. The baboon was considered as a symbol of the evolution of souls in time.
T'Hot'H became credited as the inventor of writing, and was also considered to have been the scribe of the Underworld, and the moon became occasionally considered a separate entity, since the god became less associated with it, and more with wisdom. Also, he became credited as the inventor of the 365-day calendar, rather that 360-day. It is being said that he won the extra 5 days by gambling with the moon.
When the En'Nead and Og'Doad systems started to merge, one result was, for a time, Hor'Us was considered a sibling of Isis, Osiris, Set, and Nephthys, and so it was said that Hathor/Nuit had been cursed against having children during the 360-day calendar, but was able to have these 5 children over the 5 extra days won by T'Hot'H.
T'Hot'H the Scribe, wrote the story of our reality then placed it into grids for us to experience and learn through the alchemy of time and consciousness.
T'Hot'H was the god who overcame the curse of Ra, allowing Nut to give birth 5 children, with his skill at games.
It was he who helped Is'Is work the ritual to bring Osiris back from the dead, and who drove the poison of Set from her son, Hor'Us, with the power of his knowledge. He was Hor'us' supporter during the young god's deadly battle with his uncle Set, helping Hor'Us with his wisdom.
It was T'Hot'H who brought Tef'Nut, who left Egypt for Nub'Ia in a sulk after an argument with her father, back to the heaven to be reunited with Ra.
Tef-Nut, the Eye of Ra, became estranged from her father and fled to Nub'Ia, taking all her precious water with her. In this land, she transformed herself into a lioness. She ragged through the countryside, emitting flames from her eyes and nostrils. Viciously, she drank the blood and fed on the flesh of both animals and humans. As time went on, Ra missed his Eye, and longed to see her again -Egypt had dried, and the land was in chaos.
Ra summoned S'Hu to him, along with T'Hot'H, who was the messenger of the gods and famous for his eloquence. Ra issued the command that S'Hu and T'Hot'H must go to Nubia and bring back his recalcitrant daughter. Before they set off on their journey they disguised themselves as baboons. The baboon is an animal sacred to T'Hot'H. Eventually, T'Hot'H and S'Hu found Tef-Nut in Be'Gum.
T'Hot'T began at once to try to persuade her to return to Egypt. Tef-Nut, however, wasn't interested. She liked hunting in the desert and was perfectly happy where she was. He would not give up though, and wove stories to depict to her how gloom had descended upon Egypt since she had left. The people of Egypt would do anything for her if she'd just return home. Ultimately, wooed by his promises, she relented and returned to Egypt accompanied by 2 baboons. All the way there, T'Hot'H kept her entertained with stories. She made a triumphant entry back into the homeland, accompanied by a host of Nubian musicians, dancers and baboons. She went form city to city, bringing back moisture and water, amid great rejoicing, until finally she was reunited with her father, and restored to her rightful position as his Eye.
When Ra retired from the earth, he appointed T'Hot'H and told him of his desire to create a Light-soul in the Du'At and in the Land of the Caves, and it was over this region that the sun god appointed him to rule, ordering him to keep a register (scribe) of those who were there. He was ascribed to be the author of the spells in the 'Book of the Dead,' he was the helper or the punisher of the deceased as they try to enter the Underworld.
T'Hot'T became the representation of Ra in the afterlife, seen at the judgment of the dead in the 'Halls of the Double Ma'At.' In this role, his wife Ma'At, the personification of 'Order,' was the one who was weighed against the heart of the dead to see if they followed Ma'At during their lifetime.
T'Hot'T, known as the wise counselor and persuader, kept a great library of scrolls, and his association with the learning and the measurement, lead him to be connected with Ses'Hat, the earlier deification of wisdom, who became to be his daughter or wife.over which one of his wives, and Ses'Hat, as goddess of writing, became known as 'Mistress of the House of the Books,' in which she took care of his library full of spells and scrolls.
T'Hot'T then was associated with literature, arts, speech, and learning. He also was a measurer and recorder of time, as was Ses'Hat. His qualities led to him being identified by the Greeks with their closest matching god, Hermes, with whom T'Hot'T was eventually combined and became Hermes Tris-Megistus, also leading to the Greeks naming T'Hot'T' s cult centre as Hermopolis, meaning 'city of Hermes.'
During the late period of Egyptian history a cult of T'Hot'T gained prominence, due to its main centre, Kh'Num (Hermopolis Magna), in Upper Egypt also becoming the capital, and millions of dead Ib'Is were mummified and buried in his honor. The rise of his cult also lead to adjust T'Hot'T a greater role, including the Og'Doad cosmogony myth, mentioning T'Hot'T as the one who gives birth to a new cycle Ra/Atum/Nefertum/Khepri, as a result of laying as an Ib'Is, an egg containing him. Later it was said that this was done in the form of a goose -literally as a goose laying a golden egg. The sound of his song was thought to have created 4 frog gods and snake goddesses of the Og'Doad, who continued his song, helping the sun journey across the sky.
T'Hot'T, became more powerful and was known as the one who made the calculations concerning the heavens, the stars and the earth. Also the reckoner of times and seasons. The one in charge of the measurements of the heavens and the planner of the earth, and the balance between them. He was known in this way as the god of equilibrium of forces and the master of balance. As lord of the corporeal body, he continued to be the scribe of the company of gods, the voice of the sun god, the author of every branch of knowledge, visible and non-visible, and the one who understand all that is hidden under the heavenly vault. In this sense he was not just a scribe and friend to the gods, but central to 'order' with his wife Ma'At, both in Egypt and in the Duat.
T'Hot'T created a grid program of experience that is electromagnetic in nature to allow for the bipolar aspects of linear time and illusion. He constructed a pyramidal shaped vehicle personifying the nature of reality. He placed half above in the non physical and half below in the physical, thus creating the sands of time -the hourglass- at the center of the planet earth where it all began and will all evolve at 0 point, a time and place of balance.
His supernatural powers were so known and so great that the Egyptians had tales related to it in a so called 'Book of T'Hot'T,' which allowed a person who read the sacred book to become the most powerful magician in the world. The Book which 'the god of wisdom wrote with his own hand' was though, a deadly book that brought nothing but pain and tragedy to those that read it.
T'Hot'T was famous as the god of balance and equilibrium and because of this he was associated with the precision of equinoxes- a time when the day and the night were balanced.
In art, the god was usually depicted with the head of an Ib'Is, deriving from his name, and the curve of the bird's beak, which resembles the crescent moon. He was sometimes depicted with the face of a dog-headed baboon and the body of a man or, again, as a full dog-headed baboon. The dog-headed baboon was a night animal that was seen by the Egyptians as the ones who greet the sun with chattering noises each morning just as T'Hot'T, the moon god, would greet Ra, the sun god, as he rose. The baboon was considered as a symbol of the evolution of souls in time.
T'Hot'H became credited as the inventor of writing, and was also considered to have been the scribe of the Underworld, and the moon became occasionally considered a separate entity, since the god became less associated with it, and more with wisdom. Also, he became credited as the inventor of the 365-day calendar, rather that 360-day. It is being said that he won the extra 5 days by gambling with the moon.
When the En'Nead and Og'Doad systems started to merge, one result was, for a time, Hor'Us was considered a sibling of Isis, Osiris, Set, and Nephthys, and so it was said that Hathor/Nuit had been cursed against having children during the 360-day calendar, but was able to have these 5 children over the 5 extra days won by T'Hot'H.
T'Hot'H the Scribe, wrote the story of our reality then placed it into grids for us to experience and learn through the alchemy of time and consciousness.
T'Hot'H was the god who overcame the curse of Ra, allowing Nut to give birth 5 children, with his skill at games.
It was he who helped Is'Is work the ritual to bring Osiris back from the dead, and who drove the poison of Set from her son, Hor'Us, with the power of his knowledge. He was Hor'us' supporter during the young god's deadly battle with his uncle Set, helping Hor'Us with his wisdom.
It was T'Hot'H who brought Tef'Nut, who left Egypt for Nub'Ia in a sulk after an argument with her father, back to the heaven to be reunited with Ra.
Tef-Nut, the Eye of Ra, became estranged from her father and fled to Nub'Ia, taking all her precious water with her. In this land, she transformed herself into a lioness. She ragged through the countryside, emitting flames from her eyes and nostrils. Viciously, she drank the blood and fed on the flesh of both animals and humans. As time went on, Ra missed his Eye, and longed to see her again -Egypt had dried, and the land was in chaos.
Ra summoned S'Hu to him, along with T'Hot'H, who was the messenger of the gods and famous for his eloquence. Ra issued the command that S'Hu and T'Hot'H must go to Nubia and bring back his recalcitrant daughter. Before they set off on their journey they disguised themselves as baboons. The baboon is an animal sacred to T'Hot'H. Eventually, T'Hot'H and S'Hu found Tef-Nut in Be'Gum.
T'Hot'T began at once to try to persuade her to return to Egypt. Tef-Nut, however, wasn't interested. She liked hunting in the desert and was perfectly happy where she was. He would not give up though, and wove stories to depict to her how gloom had descended upon Egypt since she had left. The people of Egypt would do anything for her if she'd just return home. Ultimately, wooed by his promises, she relented and returned to Egypt accompanied by 2 baboons. All the way there, T'Hot'H kept her entertained with stories. She made a triumphant entry back into the homeland, accompanied by a host of Nubian musicians, dancers and baboons. She went form city to city, bringing back moisture and water, amid great rejoicing, until finally she was reunited with her father, and restored to her rightful position as his Eye.
When Ra retired from the earth, he appointed T'Hot'H and told him of his desire to create a Light-soul in the Du'At and in the Land of the Caves, and it was over this region that the sun god appointed him to rule, ordering him to keep a register (scribe) of those who were there. He was ascribed to be the author of the spells in the 'Book of the Dead,' he was the helper or the punisher of the deceased as they try to enter the Underworld.
T'Hot'T became the representation of Ra in the afterlife, seen at the judgment of the dead in the 'Halls of the Double Ma'At.' In this role, his wife Ma'At, the personification of 'Order,' was the one who was weighed against the heart of the dead to see if they followed Ma'At during their lifetime.
T'Hot'T, known as the wise counselor and persuader, kept a great library of scrolls, and his association with the learning and the measurement, lead him to be connected with Ses'Hat, the earlier deification of wisdom, who became to be his daughter or wife.over which one of his wives, and Ses'Hat, as goddess of writing, became known as 'Mistress of the House of the Books,' in which she took care of his library full of spells and scrolls.
T'Hot'T then was associated with literature, arts, speech, and learning. He also was a measurer and recorder of time, as was Ses'Hat. His qualities led to him being identified by the Greeks with their closest matching god, Hermes, with whom T'Hot'T was eventually combined and became Hermes Tris-Megistus, also leading to the Greeks naming T'Hot'T' s cult centre as Hermopolis, meaning 'city of Hermes.'
During the late period of Egyptian history a cult of T'Hot'T gained prominence, due to its main centre, Kh'Num (Hermopolis Magna), in Upper Egypt also becoming the capital, and millions of dead Ib'Is were mummified and buried in his honor. The rise of his cult also lead to adjust T'Hot'T a greater role, including the Og'Doad cosmogony myth, mentioning T'Hot'T as the one who gives birth to a new cycle Ra/Atum/Nefertum/Khepri, as a result of laying as an Ib'Is, an egg containing him. Later it was said that this was done in the form of a goose -literally as a goose laying a golden egg. The sound of his song was thought to have created 4 frog gods and snake goddesses of the Og'Doad, who continued his song, helping the sun journey across the sky.
T'Hot'T, became more powerful and was known as the one who made the calculations concerning the heavens, the stars and the earth. Also the reckoner of times and seasons. The one in charge of the measurements of the heavens and the planner of the earth, and the balance between them. He was known in this way as the god of equilibrium of forces and the master of balance. As lord of the corporeal body, he continued to be the scribe of the company of gods, the voice of the sun god, the author of every branch of knowledge, visible and non-visible, and the one who understand all that is hidden under the heavenly vault. In this sense he was not just a scribe and friend to the gods, but central to 'order' with his wife Ma'At, both in Egypt and in the Duat.
T'Hot'T created a grid program of experience that is electromagnetic in nature to allow for the bipolar aspects of linear time and illusion. He constructed a pyramidal shaped vehicle personifying the nature of reality. He placed half above in the non physical and half below in the physical, thus creating the sands of time -the hourglass- at the center of the planet earth where it all began and will all evolve at 0 point, a time and place of balance.
His supernatural powers were so known and so great that the Egyptians had tales related to it in a so called 'Book of T'Hot'T,' which allowed a person who read the sacred book to become the most powerful magician in the world. The Book which 'the god of wisdom wrote with his own hand' was though, a deadly book that brought nothing but pain and tragedy to those that read it.
T'Hot'T was famous as the god of balance and equilibrium and because of this he was associated with the precision of equinoxes- a time when the day and the night were balanced.
Friday, August 19, 2016
THE ROOTS OF THE FOUNDATION MYTH OF ROME.
The twins, Romulus and Remus, are the main characters of Rome's foundation myth.
Their mother Rh'Ea Silvia, and also known as ILL'Ia, was daughter of Nu'Mit'Or, king of Alba Longa, and descended from A'Ene'As.
A'Ene'As was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anc'Hises and the goddess Ven'Us ((Aph'Rod'Ite).
A'Ene'As' father was a 1st cousin of king P'Riam of Troy, and both being grandsons of IL'Us, founder of Troy.
IL'Us was son and heir to Tros of Dar'Dan'Ia and brother of Ass'Ara'Cus and Gany'Mede. IL'Us won the wrestling price at games heldby the king of Ph'Ryg'Ia and received 50 youth and maidens as his reward. The king of Ph'Ryg'Ia also, on the advice of an oracle, gave him a 'cow' and asked him to found a city where 'it' should lie down.
Dar'Dan'Us was a son of Ze'Us and Elect'Ra, one of the 7 daughters of Atlas and Ple'Ione. Elect'Ra was the wife of Co'Ryth'Us, to whom she bore Ias'Ion. She was seduced by Ze'Us and from the union came Dardanus. She was the lost Ple'Iad, disappearing in grief after the destruction of Troy. She was called Atl'Ant'Is by Ovid, personifying the family of Ple'Iades. Elect'Ra means amber, shining, and bright. The founder of the city of Dardanus was her son at the foot of Mount Ida in the Troad.
Mount Ida (Mountain of the Goddess) is the name of 2 sacred mountains, one in Crete, the other in the ancient Troad region of Western Anatolia (modern Turkey). The one in Troas was also known as the Ph'Ryg'Ian Ida. Both are associated with the mother goddess in the deepest layers of pre-Greek myth.
In that mountain in Troas, sacred to Cybele, who is sometimes called Ida'Ean Mother, Rea, the Titaness daughter of the earth goddess Gaia and the sky god Uranus and sister and wife to Cronus, put the infant Zeus to nurse with A'Mal'The'Ia, the goat who suckled the infant-god in a cave in Goat Mountain. The place became sacred to Zeus, the king and father of Greek gods and goddesses.
Homer's Illiad mentions at several points the Tomb of ILL'Us son of Dardanus in the middle of the Trojan plain. Later writers explain him as the son and heir of Dardanus who died childless whence his brother E'Rich'Thoni'Us gained the kingship.
Rh'Ea' s father Nu'Mit'Or, son of Procas, descendant of Aeneas, was king of Alba Longa, a city in central Italy, in the Alban Hills, the site of a quiescent volcanic complex in Italy, 20km/12mi South East of Rome.
In 794BC Procas died and Nu'Mit'Or was meant to succeed his father. Instead he was overthrown and removed from the kingdom by his younger brother, A'Muli'Us, who had no respect for his father's will or his brother's seniority, A'Muli'Us also murdered his brother's son, in an effort to remove power from his brother for himself.
Nu'Mit'Or 's wife Rhea was made 'Vestal Virgin,' a priestess of the goddess Vesta, by A'Muli'Us. As Vestal Virgin Rhea sworn to celibacy for a period of 30 years, ensuring that the line of Nu'Mit'Or had no heirs. However she was forcible pregnant by Ze'Us (Mars), and gave birth to the twins, Nu'Mit'Or 's grandchildren Romulus and Remus. Rhea said that she was raped by an unknown entity, but soon after declared that Ze'U was the father of her illegitimate offspring, either because she really imagined it, or because it was less discreditable to have committed such an offense with a god.
When A'Muli'Us learned of the birth he imprisoned Rhea Silvia and ordered a servant to kill the twins. But the servant showed mercy and set them adrift on the River Tiber, which, overflowing, left the infants in a pool by the bank. There a she-wolf, who had just lost her own cubs, suckled them.
Subsequently Faus'Tul'Us rescued the boys, to be raised by his wife L'Arent'Ia.
The god of the Tiber River, Tiber'In'Us, rescued Rh'Ea Silvia and took her to be his bride.
Romulus and Remus went on to found Rome. The city was founded in 753BC on the banks of the Tiber about 25km/16mi from the sea at Ostia. Then they overthrew A'Muli'Us, and reinstated Nu'Mit'Or, their grand father as king of Alba Longa.
Their mother Rh'Ea Silvia, and also known as ILL'Ia, was daughter of Nu'Mit'Or, king of Alba Longa, and descended from A'Ene'As.
A'Ene'As was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anc'Hises and the goddess Ven'Us ((Aph'Rod'Ite).
A'Ene'As' father was a 1st cousin of king P'Riam of Troy, and both being grandsons of IL'Us, founder of Troy.
IL'Us was son and heir to Tros of Dar'Dan'Ia and brother of Ass'Ara'Cus and Gany'Mede. IL'Us won the wrestling price at games heldby the king of Ph'Ryg'Ia and received 50 youth and maidens as his reward. The king of Ph'Ryg'Ia also, on the advice of an oracle, gave him a 'cow' and asked him to found a city where 'it' should lie down.
Dar'Dan'Us was a son of Ze'Us and Elect'Ra, one of the 7 daughters of Atlas and Ple'Ione. Elect'Ra was the wife of Co'Ryth'Us, to whom she bore Ias'Ion. She was seduced by Ze'Us and from the union came Dardanus. She was the lost Ple'Iad, disappearing in grief after the destruction of Troy. She was called Atl'Ant'Is by Ovid, personifying the family of Ple'Iades. Elect'Ra means amber, shining, and bright. The founder of the city of Dardanus was her son at the foot of Mount Ida in the Troad.
Mount Ida (Mountain of the Goddess) is the name of 2 sacred mountains, one in Crete, the other in the ancient Troad region of Western Anatolia (modern Turkey). The one in Troas was also known as the Ph'Ryg'Ian Ida. Both are associated with the mother goddess in the deepest layers of pre-Greek myth.
In that mountain in Troas, sacred to Cybele, who is sometimes called Ida'Ean Mother, Rea, the Titaness daughter of the earth goddess Gaia and the sky god Uranus and sister and wife to Cronus, put the infant Zeus to nurse with A'Mal'The'Ia, the goat who suckled the infant-god in a cave in Goat Mountain. The place became sacred to Zeus, the king and father of Greek gods and goddesses.
Homer's Illiad mentions at several points the Tomb of ILL'Us son of Dardanus in the middle of the Trojan plain. Later writers explain him as the son and heir of Dardanus who died childless whence his brother E'Rich'Thoni'Us gained the kingship.
Rh'Ea' s father Nu'Mit'Or, son of Procas, descendant of Aeneas, was king of Alba Longa, a city in central Italy, in the Alban Hills, the site of a quiescent volcanic complex in Italy, 20km/12mi South East of Rome.
In 794BC Procas died and Nu'Mit'Or was meant to succeed his father. Instead he was overthrown and removed from the kingdom by his younger brother, A'Muli'Us, who had no respect for his father's will or his brother's seniority, A'Muli'Us also murdered his brother's son, in an effort to remove power from his brother for himself.
Nu'Mit'Or 's wife Rhea was made 'Vestal Virgin,' a priestess of the goddess Vesta, by A'Muli'Us. As Vestal Virgin Rhea sworn to celibacy for a period of 30 years, ensuring that the line of Nu'Mit'Or had no heirs. However she was forcible pregnant by Ze'Us (Mars), and gave birth to the twins, Nu'Mit'Or 's grandchildren Romulus and Remus. Rhea said that she was raped by an unknown entity, but soon after declared that Ze'U was the father of her illegitimate offspring, either because she really imagined it, or because it was less discreditable to have committed such an offense with a god.
When A'Muli'Us learned of the birth he imprisoned Rhea Silvia and ordered a servant to kill the twins. But the servant showed mercy and set them adrift on the River Tiber, which, overflowing, left the infants in a pool by the bank. There a she-wolf, who had just lost her own cubs, suckled them.
Subsequently Faus'Tul'Us rescued the boys, to be raised by his wife L'Arent'Ia.
The god of the Tiber River, Tiber'In'Us, rescued Rh'Ea Silvia and took her to be his bride.
Romulus and Remus went on to found Rome. The city was founded in 753BC on the banks of the Tiber about 25km/16mi from the sea at Ostia. Then they overthrew A'Muli'Us, and reinstated Nu'Mit'Or, their grand father as king of Alba Longa.
Monday, August 15, 2016
ANCIENT ISLAND OF SICILY.
Sicily usually has seen controlled by external powers -Roman, Vandal, Byzantine, Islamic, Norman, Hohen-Staufen, Catalan, Spaniard- but also experiencing short periods of independence, as under the Greeks and later as the Emirate then Kingdom of Sicily. Although today part of the Republic of Italy, it has its own distinct culture.
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The island has a River which was called Him-Era in the ancient time, the Grande was the name of the River flowing to the North into the Tyr-Rhenian Sea, the other name was Salso going to the South coast of the island. A strange confusion is regarded by many ancient writers to the fact that it is one and the same river, rising in the middle of the island but going in opposite directions and dividing the island in two parts as if the river give the appearance of two rivers. The Northern Himera (Grande), a much less considerable stream than the South (Salso), is described as flowing by the city to which it gave its name.
Mount Etna is an active strato volcano on the East coast of the island . It lies above the convergent plate margin between the African Plate and the Eurasian Plate. It is the tallest active volcano in Europe, currently 3,329 m/10,922ft high, and the most active in the world. Volcanic activity first took place at Etna around 500,000 years ago, with eruptions occurring beneath the sea off the ancient coastline of the island. Thousands of years ago, the Eastern flank of the mountain experienced a catatrophic collapse, generating an enormous landslide that left a large depression in the side of the volcano, known as "Valley of the Ox." This occurred around 8,000 years ago, and caused a huge tsunami, which left its mark in several places in the Eastern Mediterranean. The most recent collapse event is thought to have been occurred about 2,000 years ago, forming what is known as the Piano Caldera.
At the time of Phoenician and Greek colonization, 3 different groups of people inhabited the island:
- The El-Ym-Ians were ancient people who inhabited the Western part of Sicily. They maintained friendly relations and alliances with Carth-Age. The El-Ym-Ians were granted a privileged status under Roman rule and were exempted from taxes, in recognition of El-Ym-Ians' claim of Trojan ancestry, which was seen as making them cousins of the Romans, who also claimed to have been descended from the Trojans. E-Ryx, an ancient city in the region, has a mountain with the same name, 3 km from the sea coast. The mountain is a wholly isolated peak, rising in the midst of a low undulating tract, which causes its elevation to appear much more considerable than it really is, so it was regarded in ancient as well as modern time as the most lofty summit in the whole Sicily island next to Aetna, though its real elevation does not exceed 2,184 ft. Hence we find E-Ryx alluded by Virgil and other Roman poets as a mountain of the first order of magnitude. On its summit stood a celebrated temple of Venus (Aphrodite), founded by Aeneas.
- The Sic-Ani were the oldest inhabitants with a recorded name that dwelt in the middle, central region of the island. They migrated from the Iberian Peninsula driven by the Ligurians, a region of North-Western Italy, from the River Sicanus. Archaeological excavation has shown that they had received some Mycena-Ean influence.
- The Sicels were an Italic tribe who inhabited Easter Sicily. They gave their name to the island held since antiquity, but they rapidly fused into the culture of Magna Graecia. The earliest literary mention of Sicels is in the Odyssey. Homer also mentions Sicania, but makes no distinctions: "they were from a faraway place and a faraway people and apparently they were one and the same." There are 4 mentions of Sicels or Sicania, and that is as a source for a devoted household slave or a place to sell a slave.
The most significant ancient myth for Sicily is that of Demeter and Core (the maiden), better known as Perse-Phone. These two goddesses and their story pervaded the island's pre-Christian culture.
Dem-Eter was the ancient Greek 'earth' goddess of grain, agriculture, and fertility. Her daughter, by Zeus, was Core (Perse-Phone).
One day Had-Es, god of the Under-World, abducted Core while she was joyfully collecting flowers in a field. Against her will, he took her with him into the depths of the Earth.
When Dem-Eter couldn't find her beloved daughter, out of great distress and distraction, she allowed the earth's crop to die and the land to grow barren.
Finally after some months, Zeus intervened and ordered Had-Es to return Core to Dem-Eter; however, before she reached the Earth's surface, Had-Es fed Core with pome-granate seeds, a powerful and ancient representation of fertility.
Had-Es' cunning action condemned Core to spend part of each year in the Under-World as a psycho-pomp, graciously welcoming the dead to the afterlife.
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The island has a River which was called Him-Era in the ancient time, the Grande was the name of the River flowing to the North into the Tyr-Rhenian Sea, the other name was Salso going to the South coast of the island. A strange confusion is regarded by many ancient writers to the fact that it is one and the same river, rising in the middle of the island but going in opposite directions and dividing the island in two parts as if the river give the appearance of two rivers. The Northern Himera (Grande), a much less considerable stream than the South (Salso), is described as flowing by the city to which it gave its name.
Mount Etna is an active strato volcano on the East coast of the island . It lies above the convergent plate margin between the African Plate and the Eurasian Plate. It is the tallest active volcano in Europe, currently 3,329 m/10,922ft high, and the most active in the world. Volcanic activity first took place at Etna around 500,000 years ago, with eruptions occurring beneath the sea off the ancient coastline of the island. Thousands of years ago, the Eastern flank of the mountain experienced a catatrophic collapse, generating an enormous landslide that left a large depression in the side of the volcano, known as "Valley of the Ox." This occurred around 8,000 years ago, and caused a huge tsunami, which left its mark in several places in the Eastern Mediterranean. The most recent collapse event is thought to have been occurred about 2,000 years ago, forming what is known as the Piano Caldera.
At the time of Phoenician and Greek colonization, 3 different groups of people inhabited the island:
- The El-Ym-Ians were ancient people who inhabited the Western part of Sicily. They maintained friendly relations and alliances with Carth-Age. The El-Ym-Ians were granted a privileged status under Roman rule and were exempted from taxes, in recognition of El-Ym-Ians' claim of Trojan ancestry, which was seen as making them cousins of the Romans, who also claimed to have been descended from the Trojans. E-Ryx, an ancient city in the region, has a mountain with the same name, 3 km from the sea coast. The mountain is a wholly isolated peak, rising in the midst of a low undulating tract, which causes its elevation to appear much more considerable than it really is, so it was regarded in ancient as well as modern time as the most lofty summit in the whole Sicily island next to Aetna, though its real elevation does not exceed 2,184 ft. Hence we find E-Ryx alluded by Virgil and other Roman poets as a mountain of the first order of magnitude. On its summit stood a celebrated temple of Venus (Aphrodite), founded by Aeneas.
- The Sic-Ani were the oldest inhabitants with a recorded name that dwelt in the middle, central region of the island. They migrated from the Iberian Peninsula driven by the Ligurians, a region of North-Western Italy, from the River Sicanus. Archaeological excavation has shown that they had received some Mycena-Ean influence.
- The Sicels were an Italic tribe who inhabited Easter Sicily. They gave their name to the island held since antiquity, but they rapidly fused into the culture of Magna Graecia. The earliest literary mention of Sicels is in the Odyssey. Homer also mentions Sicania, but makes no distinctions: "they were from a faraway place and a faraway people and apparently they were one and the same." There are 4 mentions of Sicels or Sicania, and that is as a source for a devoted household slave or a place to sell a slave.
The most significant ancient myth for Sicily is that of Demeter and Core (the maiden), better known as Perse-Phone. These two goddesses and their story pervaded the island's pre-Christian culture.
Dem-Eter was the ancient Greek 'earth' goddess of grain, agriculture, and fertility. Her daughter, by Zeus, was Core (Perse-Phone).
One day Had-Es, god of the Under-World, abducted Core while she was joyfully collecting flowers in a field. Against her will, he took her with him into the depths of the Earth.
When Dem-Eter couldn't find her beloved daughter, out of great distress and distraction, she allowed the earth's crop to die and the land to grow barren.
Finally after some months, Zeus intervened and ordered Had-Es to return Core to Dem-Eter; however, before she reached the Earth's surface, Had-Es fed Core with pome-granate seeds, a powerful and ancient representation of fertility.
Had-Es' cunning action condemned Core to spend part of each year in the Under-World as a psycho-pomp, graciously welcoming the dead to the afterlife.
Friday, August 12, 2016
ANA- XAGORAS, THE GREEK PHILOSOPHER.
Ana-Xagoras [500-428 BC](Greek: Lord of the Assembly) was an important Pre-Socratic natural philosopher and scientist.
He was born in Ion-Ia in the town of Clazomenae, a lively port city on the coast of present-day Turkey.
He was one of the first philosophers to move to Athens as a base, which was then rapidly becoming the centre of Greek culture. He lived and taught there for 30 years.
Ana-Xagoras is often credited with making Athens the home of Western philosophical and physical speculation. The consistent image of Ana-Xagoras presented throughout Antiquity is that of a person entirely consumed by the pursuit of knowledge. In fact, he maintained that the opportunity to study the universe was the fundamental reason why it is better to be born than to not exist.
His philosophical beliefs and teachings were quite contrary to the standard orthodoxy of the time, particularly his view that the heavenly bodies were fiery masses of rock whirling around the earth.
He was best known for his cosmological theory of the origins and structure of the universe. He maintained that the original state of the cosmos was a thorough mixture of all its ingredients, although this mixture was not entirely uniform, and some ingredients were present in higher concentrations than others and varied from place to place. With that in mind he also speculated that in the physical world everything contains a portion of everything else. His observation of how nutrition works in animals led him to conclude that the food chain works in a way that an animal eats to turn into bone, hair, flesh, an so forth, then, it must already contain all of those constitutes within it.
His second significant theory or postulate was that at some point in time, this primordial mixture was set in motion by the action of a supreme mind, and the whirling motion that shifted and separated out the ingredients, ultimately producing the cosmos of separate material objects with differential properties that we perceive today, was the result of it.
Ana-Xagoras did not elucidate on the precise nature on the supernatural Mind, but distinguished it as finer, purer and able to act freely, and present in some way in everything. A kind of dualism.
Dualism was understood as two kinds of reality: material (physical) and immaterial (spiritual). Mind and Body was seen in some categorical way separated from each other, and that, mental phenomena were non-physical in nature.
In the physical sciences, Ana-Xagoras gained notoriety because he was the first to give the correct explanation of eclipses, and was also both famous and notorious for his scientific theories, including his claims that the sun is a mass of red-hot metal, that the moon is earthy, and that the stars are fiery stones.
He was born in Ion-Ia in the town of Clazomenae, a lively port city on the coast of present-day Turkey.
He was one of the first philosophers to move to Athens as a base, which was then rapidly becoming the centre of Greek culture. He lived and taught there for 30 years.
Ana-Xagoras is often credited with making Athens the home of Western philosophical and physical speculation. The consistent image of Ana-Xagoras presented throughout Antiquity is that of a person entirely consumed by the pursuit of knowledge. In fact, he maintained that the opportunity to study the universe was the fundamental reason why it is better to be born than to not exist.
His philosophical beliefs and teachings were quite contrary to the standard orthodoxy of the time, particularly his view that the heavenly bodies were fiery masses of rock whirling around the earth.
He was best known for his cosmological theory of the origins and structure of the universe. He maintained that the original state of the cosmos was a thorough mixture of all its ingredients, although this mixture was not entirely uniform, and some ingredients were present in higher concentrations than others and varied from place to place. With that in mind he also speculated that in the physical world everything contains a portion of everything else. His observation of how nutrition works in animals led him to conclude that the food chain works in a way that an animal eats to turn into bone, hair, flesh, an so forth, then, it must already contain all of those constitutes within it.
His second significant theory or postulate was that at some point in time, this primordial mixture was set in motion by the action of a supreme mind, and the whirling motion that shifted and separated out the ingredients, ultimately producing the cosmos of separate material objects with differential properties that we perceive today, was the result of it.
Ana-Xagoras did not elucidate on the precise nature on the supernatural Mind, but distinguished it as finer, purer and able to act freely, and present in some way in everything. A kind of dualism.
Dualism was understood as two kinds of reality: material (physical) and immaterial (spiritual). Mind and Body was seen in some categorical way separated from each other, and that, mental phenomena were non-physical in nature.
In the physical sciences, Ana-Xagoras gained notoriety because he was the first to give the correct explanation of eclipses, and was also both famous and notorious for his scientific theories, including his claims that the sun is a mass of red-hot metal, that the moon is earthy, and that the stars are fiery stones.
Thursday, August 11, 2016
THE FEMININE POWER OR ENTITY NAMED FATE.
In Greek mythology, Moir-Ai or Ai-sa, was a white-robed incarnation of the feminine power of Destiny. She was differentiated from the three goddesses we know as the Fates but little is known of this ancient goddess. It seems that Moir-Ai is related with Tekm-Or, personification of Proof, Ordinance, and with An-Anke, personification of Destiny, Necessity, who were primeval feminine entities or forces in mythical cosmogonies, in which the concept of a universal principle of natural order was unbreakable. The ancient Greek writers called this power Moir-Ai or An-Anke, and even the gods could not alter what was ordained.
The word "Moir-Ai means "a portion" or "lot of the whole," and is related to Mer-Os, personification of "Part, Lot," and Mor-Os, personification of "Fate, Doom." The word is also used for something which is "meet" and "right." It seems that originally the word "Moir-Ai did not indicate "destiny" but included "ascertainment," a non-abstract certainty.
The word "daemon," which was an agent related to unexpected events, came to be similar to the word Moir-Ai. This agent or cause against human control was also called Ty-Che, personification of "Chance, Fate." It was referred to this saying: "You mistress Moir-Ai, and Ty-Che, and my Daem-On.
There is some confusion as to the heritage of the Fates but there is no confusion as to their identities and their supernatural mission on the earth.
Their names are: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos.
Clotho spins the thread of life.
Lachesis determines the length of the thread.
Atropos cuts the thread when the proper time has come for Death.
They controlled the thread of life of every mortal from birth to death. They were independent, at the helm of necessity, directed fate, and watched that the fate assigned to every being by eternal laws might take its course without obstruction. Gods and men had to submit to them.
Hesiod's Theogony identify Chaos as the first primordial force opposed to the order of things. From this primordial force came into existence 2 different personification of forces: Erebus, the personification of Deep Darkness, the world of Shadows; Nyx, goddess and personification of Night.
From Erebus and Nyx came A-Eter, the personification of Brightness and Hem-Era, the personification of Day.
Later, on her own, Nyx produced
Mor-Os, the personification of Doom, Destiny.
Ker, the personification of Destruction.
Than-Atos, personification of Death.
Hynos, personification of Sleep.
One-Iroi, personification of Dreams.
Mom-Us, personification of Blame.
Oi-Zys, personification of Pain, Distress.
The Hesperides, personification or Daughters of evening and golden light of sunset.
The Moir-Ai, personification of Fate.
The Keres, personification of female death-spirits.
Nemesis, personification of Indignation, Retribution.
Ap-Ate, personification of Deceit.
Phi-Lotes, personification of Friendship.
G-Eras, personification of Old Age.
Er-Is, personification of Strife.
The word "Moir-Ai means "a portion" or "lot of the whole," and is related to Mer-Os, personification of "Part, Lot," and Mor-Os, personification of "Fate, Doom." The word is also used for something which is "meet" and "right." It seems that originally the word "Moir-Ai did not indicate "destiny" but included "ascertainment," a non-abstract certainty.
The word "daemon," which was an agent related to unexpected events, came to be similar to the word Moir-Ai. This agent or cause against human control was also called Ty-Che, personification of "Chance, Fate." It was referred to this saying: "You mistress Moir-Ai, and Ty-Che, and my Daem-On.
There is some confusion as to the heritage of the Fates but there is no confusion as to their identities and their supernatural mission on the earth.
Their names are: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos.
Clotho spins the thread of life.
Lachesis determines the length of the thread.
Atropos cuts the thread when the proper time has come for Death.
They controlled the thread of life of every mortal from birth to death. They were independent, at the helm of necessity, directed fate, and watched that the fate assigned to every being by eternal laws might take its course without obstruction. Gods and men had to submit to them.
Hesiod's Theogony identify Chaos as the first primordial force opposed to the order of things. From this primordial force came into existence 2 different personification of forces: Erebus, the personification of Deep Darkness, the world of Shadows; Nyx, goddess and personification of Night.
From Erebus and Nyx came A-Eter, the personification of Brightness and Hem-Era, the personification of Day.
Later, on her own, Nyx produced
Mor-Os, the personification of Doom, Destiny.
Ker, the personification of Destruction.
Than-Atos, personification of Death.
Hynos, personification of Sleep.
One-Iroi, personification of Dreams.
Mom-Us, personification of Blame.
Oi-Zys, personification of Pain, Distress.
The Hesperides, personification or Daughters of evening and golden light of sunset.
The Moir-Ai, personification of Fate.
The Keres, personification of female death-spirits.
Nemesis, personification of Indignation, Retribution.
Ap-Ate, personification of Deceit.
Phi-Lotes, personification of Friendship.
G-Eras, personification of Old Age.
Er-Is, personification of Strife.
Thursday, August 4, 2016
HESIOD THE WRITER.
Hesiod was a Greek writer, active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer.
Ancient authors credited Hesiod and Homer with establishing Greek religious customs.
Epic narrative allowed poets like Hesiod and Homer no opportunity for personal revelations.
In Hesiod's case, there are three explicit references in Works and Days, as well as some passages in his Theogony that support information about his personal life. the former poem says that his father came from Cyme in Aeolis (on the coast of Asia Minor, a little South of the Island Lebos). and crossed the sea to settle at a hamlet, near Thespiae in Boeotia, named Ascra, a cursed place, cruel in winter, hard in summer, never pleasant.
Cyme was an Aeolian city in Aeolis, close to the kingdom of Lydia. The Aeolians regarded Cyme as the largest and most important of their 12 cities, which were located North of the Hermus River on the coastline of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). Cyme prospered and developed into a regional metropolis and founded thirty towns. The Cymeans were later ridiculed as a people who had for 300 years lived on the coast and not once exacted harbor taxes on ships making port. Hesiod's father is said to have started his journey across the Aegean from Cyme. The cities of Southern Aeolis in the region surrounding Cyme occupied a good belt of land with rough mountains in the background, yet Cyme like the other cities along the coast did not trade with the Anatolians further inland, who had occupied Asia Minor for thousands of years. Cyme consequently played no significant role in the history of Western Asia Minor, prompting writers to comment repeatedly in the narratives of Greek history that while the events they wrote about were taking place, his fellow Cymeans had for centuries sat idly by and kept in that way the peace.
Unlike his father, Hesiod was adverse to sea travel, but he once crossed the narrow strait between the Greek mainland and Euboea, the 2nd largest island after Crete, to participate in funeral celebrations for one Athamas of Chalcis, and there won a tripod in a singing competition.
Ascra, the home of Hesiod, was located upon Mount Helicon, five miles West of Thespiae in Boeotia. Several traditions agree that the Boeotians were a people expelled from Thessaly some time after the Trojan War. Other traditions suggest that they were of Mycenean origin.
According to a lost poetic writings, a maiden by the name of Ascra lay with Poseidon and bore a son Oeoclus who, together with the Aloadae, sons of Iphimedia, wife of Aloeus, by Poseidon, whom she induced to make her pregnant by going to the seashore and disporting herself in the surf or scooping water into her bosom. From Aloeus they received their name, the Aloadae. They were strong and aggressive giants, growing by nine fingers every month nine fathoms tall at age nine, and only outshone in beauty by Orion.
The brothers wanted to storm Mt. Olympus and gain Artemis for Otus and Hera for Ephialtes. Their plan, or construction of a pile of mountains atop which they would control the gods is described differently according to the author, including Homer, Virgil, and Ovid. Mount Olympus is usually said to be on the bottom mountain, with Mounts Ossa, and Pelion upon Ossa as 2nd and 3rd, either respectively or vice versa. Homer says they were killed by Apollo before they had any beards, consistent with their being bound to columns in the Underworld by snakes, with the nymph of the Styx in the form of an owl over them.
In the late 7th century Hesiod describes a meeting between himself and the Muses of Mount Helicon, where he had been pasturing sheep when the goddesses presented him with a laurel staff, a symbol of poetic authority.
Mount Helicon is a mountain in the region of Thespiai in Boeotia, Greece, with an elevation of 1,749m /5,738 ft, 10 kilometers/6mi from the North Coast of the Gulf of Corinth.
In Greek mythology, two springs sacred to the Muses were located at Mount Helicon: the Aga-Nippe and the Hippo-Crene, both of which bear 'Horse' in their names. In a related myth, the Hippo-Crene Spring was created when the winged horse Pegasus aimed his hoof at a rock, striking it with such force that the Spring burst from the spot. On Mount Helicon too was the Spring where Narcissus was inspired by his own beauty.
The Hippo-Crene Spring was considered to be a source of poetic inspiration. Hesiod sang how in his youth when pasturing his sheep on the slopes of Helicon where Eros and the Muses already had sanctuaries and a dancing-ground near the summit, where their pounding feet awaken desire. There the Muses inspired him and he began to sing of the origins of the gods. Thus Helicon became an emblem of poetical inspiration.
The name Hesiod means 'He who emits the voice.' The personality behind the poems is argumentative, suspicious, ironically humorous, frugal, fond of proverbs, and wary of women. He resembles Solon, an Athenian statesman, in his preoccupation with issues of good versus evil and "how a just and all-powerful god can allow the unjust to flourish in this life."
Hesiod's patrimony, a small piece of ground at the foot of Mount Helicon, caused lawsuits with his brother Perses, who seems, at first, to have cheated him on his rightful share thanks to corrupt authorities but later became impoverish and ended up scrounging from the thrifty poet.
Ancient authors credited Hesiod and Homer with establishing Greek religious customs.
Epic narrative allowed poets like Hesiod and Homer no opportunity for personal revelations.
In Hesiod's case, there are three explicit references in Works and Days, as well as some passages in his Theogony that support information about his personal life. the former poem says that his father came from Cyme in Aeolis (on the coast of Asia Minor, a little South of the Island Lebos). and crossed the sea to settle at a hamlet, near Thespiae in Boeotia, named Ascra, a cursed place, cruel in winter, hard in summer, never pleasant.
Cyme was an Aeolian city in Aeolis, close to the kingdom of Lydia. The Aeolians regarded Cyme as the largest and most important of their 12 cities, which were located North of the Hermus River on the coastline of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). Cyme prospered and developed into a regional metropolis and founded thirty towns. The Cymeans were later ridiculed as a people who had for 300 years lived on the coast and not once exacted harbor taxes on ships making port. Hesiod's father is said to have started his journey across the Aegean from Cyme. The cities of Southern Aeolis in the region surrounding Cyme occupied a good belt of land with rough mountains in the background, yet Cyme like the other cities along the coast did not trade with the Anatolians further inland, who had occupied Asia Minor for thousands of years. Cyme consequently played no significant role in the history of Western Asia Minor, prompting writers to comment repeatedly in the narratives of Greek history that while the events they wrote about were taking place, his fellow Cymeans had for centuries sat idly by and kept in that way the peace.
Unlike his father, Hesiod was adverse to sea travel, but he once crossed the narrow strait between the Greek mainland and Euboea, the 2nd largest island after Crete, to participate in funeral celebrations for one Athamas of Chalcis, and there won a tripod in a singing competition.
Ascra, the home of Hesiod, was located upon Mount Helicon, five miles West of Thespiae in Boeotia. Several traditions agree that the Boeotians were a people expelled from Thessaly some time after the Trojan War. Other traditions suggest that they were of Mycenean origin.
According to a lost poetic writings, a maiden by the name of Ascra lay with Poseidon and bore a son Oeoclus who, together with the Aloadae, sons of Iphimedia, wife of Aloeus, by Poseidon, whom she induced to make her pregnant by going to the seashore and disporting herself in the surf or scooping water into her bosom. From Aloeus they received their name, the Aloadae. They were strong and aggressive giants, growing by nine fingers every month nine fathoms tall at age nine, and only outshone in beauty by Orion.
The brothers wanted to storm Mt. Olympus and gain Artemis for Otus and Hera for Ephialtes. Their plan, or construction of a pile of mountains atop which they would control the gods is described differently according to the author, including Homer, Virgil, and Ovid. Mount Olympus is usually said to be on the bottom mountain, with Mounts Ossa, and Pelion upon Ossa as 2nd and 3rd, either respectively or vice versa. Homer says they were killed by Apollo before they had any beards, consistent with their being bound to columns in the Underworld by snakes, with the nymph of the Styx in the form of an owl over them.
In the late 7th century Hesiod describes a meeting between himself and the Muses of Mount Helicon, where he had been pasturing sheep when the goddesses presented him with a laurel staff, a symbol of poetic authority.
Mount Helicon is a mountain in the region of Thespiai in Boeotia, Greece, with an elevation of 1,749m /5,738 ft, 10 kilometers/6mi from the North Coast of the Gulf of Corinth.
In Greek mythology, two springs sacred to the Muses were located at Mount Helicon: the Aga-Nippe and the Hippo-Crene, both of which bear 'Horse' in their names. In a related myth, the Hippo-Crene Spring was created when the winged horse Pegasus aimed his hoof at a rock, striking it with such force that the Spring burst from the spot. On Mount Helicon too was the Spring where Narcissus was inspired by his own beauty.
The Hippo-Crene Spring was considered to be a source of poetic inspiration. Hesiod sang how in his youth when pasturing his sheep on the slopes of Helicon where Eros and the Muses already had sanctuaries and a dancing-ground near the summit, where their pounding feet awaken desire. There the Muses inspired him and he began to sing of the origins of the gods. Thus Helicon became an emblem of poetical inspiration.
The name Hesiod means 'He who emits the voice.' The personality behind the poems is argumentative, suspicious, ironically humorous, frugal, fond of proverbs, and wary of women. He resembles Solon, an Athenian statesman, in his preoccupation with issues of good versus evil and "how a just and all-powerful god can allow the unjust to flourish in this life."
Hesiod's patrimony, a small piece of ground at the foot of Mount Helicon, caused lawsuits with his brother Perses, who seems, at first, to have cheated him on his rightful share thanks to corrupt authorities but later became impoverish and ended up scrounging from the thrifty poet.
Monday, February 1, 2016
WHO WAS AESOP?
Little is known about the ancient writer AESOP (620-560BC), whose stories of clever animals and foolish humans are considered Wester Civilization's first morality tales.
He was said to have been a slave who earned his freedom through his storytelling and went on to serve as advisor to a King. Both his name and the animist tone of his tales have led some to believe that he may have been Ethiopian in origin, given the fact that his name "Aesop" is a variant of "Act-Hiop," which is a reference to Ethiopia in ancient Greek.
According to myth, Aesop won such fame throughout Greece for his tales that he became the target of resentment. He was accused of stealing a gold cup from Delphi Temple to the god Apollo and was tossed from the cliffs at Delphi as punishment for the theft. His defense, it is said, was the Tale "the Eagle and the Beetle," in which a Hare, being preyed upon by an Eagle, asks the Beetle for Protection. The small insect agrees, but the Eagle fails to see it and strikes the Hare, killing it. From then on, the Beetle watched the Eagle's Nest and shook it when there were eggs inside, which then fell to the ground. Worried about her inability to reproduce, the Eagle asks a god for help, and the deity offers to store the eggs in its lap. The Beetle learns of this and puts a ball of dirt there among the eggs, and the god -in some accounts Zeus, in others Jupiter- rises, startled and the eggs fall out.
For this particular reason, it is said, Eagles never lay their eggs during the season when Beetles flourish.
"No matter how powerful one's position may be, there is nothing that can protect the Oppressor from the Vengeance of the Oppressed" is the moral associated with this particular fable.
Most of his tales told about human folly and the abuses of power. He lived during a period of Tyrannical Rule in Greece.
Also the trickster nature of some of his stories, where humans are regularly outwitted by a cleverer animal figure gives a sort of link to his African nature. Tales in which a man is portrayed coming to the aid of a Serpent acts also as mirrors that symbolizes the habitual kindness shown to Snakes by many African Tribes. Africans believed that Snakes were the repositories of the souls of their ancestors therefore they were cherished and invited to live in the houses of men.
Anthropomorphism, or animals with human capabilities, is the common denominator throughout Aesop's Fables. They often show the rich and powerful against the poor and weak. They also stress either the folly of taking on a stronger power, or the cunning which the weaker must deploy if he is to stand any chance of success; and they often warn that nature never changes.
The 1st written compilation of Aesop's Tales came from Demetrius of Phaleron around 320 BC, but it disappeared in the 9th century, 'Assemblies of Aesopic Tales.'
The 1st extant version of the fables is thought to be from Phaedrus, a former slave from Macedonia who translated the Tales into Latin in the 1st century CE., 'Romulus Collection.'
Valerius Bravius, a Greek living in Rome, translated these and other fables of the day into Greek in the 1st half of the 200s CE. 42 of those, in turn, were translated into Latin by Avianus around 400 CE.
There is also a link between Aesop and Islam. The prophet Mohamed mentioned 'Lok-Man,' said to be the wisest man in the East, in the 31st sura of the Koran. In Arab folklore, Lok-Man supposedly lived around 1100 BC and was an Ethiopian. His father, it was said, was descended from the biblical figure Job. Some of his tales may have been adapted by Aesop some 5 centuries after his death.
The Latin translation of Aesop's Tales helped them survive the ages. The moral teaching is everywhere essentially the same : that superiority is always insolent, because it is always accidental; that pride goes before a fall, .... and much more.
He was said to have been a slave who earned his freedom through his storytelling and went on to serve as advisor to a King. Both his name and the animist tone of his tales have led some to believe that he may have been Ethiopian in origin, given the fact that his name "Aesop" is a variant of "Act-Hiop," which is a reference to Ethiopia in ancient Greek.
According to myth, Aesop won such fame throughout Greece for his tales that he became the target of resentment. He was accused of stealing a gold cup from Delphi Temple to the god Apollo and was tossed from the cliffs at Delphi as punishment for the theft. His defense, it is said, was the Tale "the Eagle and the Beetle," in which a Hare, being preyed upon by an Eagle, asks the Beetle for Protection. The small insect agrees, but the Eagle fails to see it and strikes the Hare, killing it. From then on, the Beetle watched the Eagle's Nest and shook it when there were eggs inside, which then fell to the ground. Worried about her inability to reproduce, the Eagle asks a god for help, and the deity offers to store the eggs in its lap. The Beetle learns of this and puts a ball of dirt there among the eggs, and the god -in some accounts Zeus, in others Jupiter- rises, startled and the eggs fall out.
For this particular reason, it is said, Eagles never lay their eggs during the season when Beetles flourish.
"No matter how powerful one's position may be, there is nothing that can protect the Oppressor from the Vengeance of the Oppressed" is the moral associated with this particular fable.
Most of his tales told about human folly and the abuses of power. He lived during a period of Tyrannical Rule in Greece.
Also the trickster nature of some of his stories, where humans are regularly outwitted by a cleverer animal figure gives a sort of link to his African nature. Tales in which a man is portrayed coming to the aid of a Serpent acts also as mirrors that symbolizes the habitual kindness shown to Snakes by many African Tribes. Africans believed that Snakes were the repositories of the souls of their ancestors therefore they were cherished and invited to live in the houses of men.
Anthropomorphism, or animals with human capabilities, is the common denominator throughout Aesop's Fables. They often show the rich and powerful against the poor and weak. They also stress either the folly of taking on a stronger power, or the cunning which the weaker must deploy if he is to stand any chance of success; and they often warn that nature never changes.
The 1st written compilation of Aesop's Tales came from Demetrius of Phaleron around 320 BC, but it disappeared in the 9th century, 'Assemblies of Aesopic Tales.'
The 1st extant version of the fables is thought to be from Phaedrus, a former slave from Macedonia who translated the Tales into Latin in the 1st century CE., 'Romulus Collection.'
Valerius Bravius, a Greek living in Rome, translated these and other fables of the day into Greek in the 1st half of the 200s CE. 42 of those, in turn, were translated into Latin by Avianus around 400 CE.
There is also a link between Aesop and Islam. The prophet Mohamed mentioned 'Lok-Man,' said to be the wisest man in the East, in the 31st sura of the Koran. In Arab folklore, Lok-Man supposedly lived around 1100 BC and was an Ethiopian. His father, it was said, was descended from the biblical figure Job. Some of his tales may have been adapted by Aesop some 5 centuries after his death.
The Latin translation of Aesop's Tales helped them survive the ages. The moral teaching is everywhere essentially the same : that superiority is always insolent, because it is always accidental; that pride goes before a fall, .... and much more.
Sunday, January 31, 2016
PLATO AND HIS THEORY OF FORMS.
Plato is one of the most important Philosophers in history.
At the heart of his philosophy is his "Theory of Forms" or "Theory of Ideas."
Plato's theory asserts that the non-material forms (ideas), possess the highest and most fundamental kind of Reality, not the outward appearance of things in the Physical World.
Corresponding to the World of Forms is our World, that of the Shadows, an imitation of the Real One. Just as Shadows exist only because of the Light of a Fire, our World exists as, "the Offspring of the Good." Our World is modeled after the Patterns of the Forms. The function of Humans in our World is therefore to imitate the Ideal World as much as possible.
The objects seen with our physical eye therefore are not real, instead they are merely shadows that literally 'mimic' the real ones in the World of Forms. That which the observer perceives or understand when he views the physical world with the human eye is only a merely 3% of what is mimicked from the behavior of the many types of Universal Forms or Beings that exists somewhere in a different reality, and its full understanding is not easy to grasp. His views on Knowledge, Ethics, Psychology, the Political State, and Art, are all tied to this Theory.
FORMS, according to Plato, were the most Pure of All Things and at the same time the perfect Templates and the blueprint of Perfection. These templates were the Ultimate and the only True Reference Points for All the Objects observed in the Physical World. Only a deep study of these Forms provided the Observer with a genuine Knowledge.
Plato stated: "every object or quality has a Form: Human Beings, Animals, Mountains, Colors, Courage, Love, and Goodness." He also said that the objects in the Physical World were essentially Forms that transcended to our World (the World of Substances), and also they were the essential basis of our reality.
FORMS were transcendent to Space and Time. Forms did not exist within any time period, rather it provided the formal basis for time. Forms had no spacial dimensions, and thus no orientation in space, nor location. Forms were non-physical, they were extra-mental. Forms were perfect itself because they were unchanging.
Plato spoke of these Entities only through the characters (primarily Socrates) of his Dialogues. Plato often invoked, particularly in the Phaedo, Republic and Phaedrus, a language to illustrate the mode in which the FORMS are said to exist. Near the end of the Phaedo, Plato describes the World of Forms as a Pristine Region of the Physical Universe located above the Surface of the Earth. In the Phaedrus the FORMS are in a Place Beyond Heaven; and in the Republic the Sensible World is contrasted with the Intelligible Realm in the famous Allegory of the Cave.
Knowledge and Intelligence were in essence the ability to grasp the World of Forms with One's Mind.
The pre-Socratic Philosophers, starting with Thales, noted that 'Appearances' change quite a bit and began to ask What the thing 'Changing' really is. The answer was 'Substance,' which stands under the changes and is the actually 'existing thing' being seen. The status of "Appearances' now came into question. Thus the theory of Matter and Form was born. Starting with Plato, the Forms were considered as "Being In" something else, which Plato called Nature (Physis).
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