Religious Rituals In Athenian Culture

476 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Greek culture and its influence in western society

Religious practices Religious ritual ceremonies among the Athenians consisted of a sequence of words and actions or rites that were spoken or performed in religious worship. Religion and spirituality declaration was a personal issue because individuals could rely on these constructs in many areas of life. Athenians believed that the gods existed and were capable of influencing human affairs. Fundamentally, according to the Athenians culture and beliefs, gods were welcome to assist in responding to various challenges that they encountered. Athenians culture was polytheistic. Formal rituals, which libations and animal sacrifices, were conducted. Rituals encompassed worshiping of many gods, which represented abstract ideas and specific aspects of the human condition. Consequently, the Athenian society was Hellenistic. Special worship ceremonies that involved the community were carried out by the priest in temples (Liddel, 2007). Use of prayer Individuals visited the temple as they wished and would make a prayer regarding many issues that they thought would be answered by the gods. After prayers, they left offerings including food, incense, and flowers among other things hoping that their players would be solved. Other gifts were also offered in gratitude based on some past deeds that were …show more content…

According to Platonist, the meaning of life could only be attained with the highest form of knowledge. Consequently, according to Platonist life was a form of good in which all just and decent things originate or derive value and utility. According to the Aristotelians, while life was acceptable as a form of good, individuals were to study and practice to become virtuous. This postulation emphasized the belief that, to understand the meaning of life, one had to possess the highest form of knowledge. These two schools of thought among others prospered and were widely held by the Athenians (Liddel,

Show More
Related

  • Essay On Spartan Religion

    1426 Words  | 3 Pages

    Religious and Funerary Practices were thought of as extremely important by the citizens of the city-state of Sparta, in fact, their beliefs reached such an extreme that the other city-states mocked the Spartans. The three principal sub-elements that affected religious and funerary practices in Sparta are, the Gods/Goddesses worshipped, the festivals celebrated and solemnized, and the myths and legends passed through the generations.

    Read More

  • The Peplos Kore

    725 Words  | 2 Pages

    The religion of this culture group involved many gods. Unlike the present-day United States of America where the running of the country depends on the separation of church and state, religion, including the pleasing of the gods, heavily influenced the government of the ancient Greeks. Of all the gods they had, the most important gods of this religion emerged

    Read More

  • Religion In The Military Of Ancient Greece

    4067 Words  | 9 Pages

    The Ancient Greeks held their religion to be a personal experience, to be practiced by the common man on a daily basis. Thus, it comes as no surprise to read in the historical works of the period that the people also relied on religion to aid them in military matters. This paper will give historical examples of the people's reliance on

    Read More

  • Ancient Greek Theater In The Curmudgeon By Meander

    1027 Words  | 3 Pages

    One thing Ancient Greece was known for was its religion. In Greece the religion was based mostly on myths (“Religion”). There was a god or goddess that represented a different role in the everyday life of a Greek citizen (“Religion”). Each deity was believed to provide and protect for the people of Greece (“Religion”). “To receive benefits from the gods, they had to offer prayers, sacrifices, and gifts” (“Religion”). Each citizen had to respect the areas where the gods and goddesses were believed to have lived (“Religion”). “Each city had their own patron god or goddess” (“Religion”). Also, each city had temples and altars for their patron god or goddess (“Religion”). “Religious festivals were an important part of the social life of ancient Greek cities” (“Religion”). To worship their deity people held public and private ceremonies for them (“Religion”). They’re 12 major gods and goddesses: Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Athena, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Hestia (“Religion”). Even though they are the most worshipped deities, the Greeks worshipped Prometheus, the god of civilization and technology (“Technology”).

    Read More

  • How the Greek Revered Their Gods

    3757 Words  | 8 Pages

    How the Greeks revered their gods. In ancient times, the Greeks had absolute and undeniable respect for their gods. They demonstrated their admiration by putting in place many rituals and celebrations to reverence the gods that they loved and feared in order to ensure harmony with them. In particular, the focus will be on the religious beliefs of the Greeks, including prayer and sacrifice, as well as on festivals and the arts, such as the ancient Olympic games and theatre.

    Read More

  • Religion In Ancient Greek Religion

    1948 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Cambridge Illustrated History of Ancient Greece explains a variety of ways in which the Greeks were influenced by their religion. The Greeks expressed their respect for their gods through sacred acts, primarily festivals and rituals. The festivals were held to honor certain deities such as the Olympic Games, an event held for athletes meant to honor

    Read More

  • Hermes

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    The idea of gods and goddesses began as far back as the ancient Egyptians, but the ancient Greeks were the first group to form a religion based on gods and goddesses. They believed that the gods and goddesses were not different from humans. Some of the few ways humans were different from gods were that the gods were stronger and lived forever. Since the Greeks believe in many gods, they are Polytheists.

    Read More

  • Greek Gods

    530 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many people would blatantly state that the importance of the gods in Greek society derives from the fact that Gods in any society are usually used to explain phenomenon that people cannot logically comprehend, but in ancient Greece gods were actually entities that took part in the workings of society itself. Even simple aspects of day-to-day life such as sex and disputes between mortals were supposedly influenced by godly workings. Unlike modern religions such as Catholicism, Buddhism, and Hinduism, where an omnipotent force supposedly controls the workings of the world, a hierarchy of Gods characterized religion in ancient Greece. Working as one big family, which they actually were, each one of the Greek gods governed a certain aspect of the world in a way that usually reflected their own humanlike personalities. These unique personalities also contained many human flaws such as envy and greed, and were where the Greek God’s importance lay. Greek religion was more concentrated on the way an individual dealt with situations that popped up in the world around him than on understanding the world itself. In other words the Greeks were more interested in the workings of the mind than in the workings of the environment around them.

    Read More

  • Should gods be Moral?

    580 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ancient Greek religion was a polytheistic religion that believed in many gods and goddesses. To Greeks, these gods and goddesses would be able to control everything. Each god or goddess had his or her own distinct personality and territory. “Greek myths explained the origins of the gods and their individual relations with mankind” (Hemingway). Unlike current religions, like Christianity and Judaism, Greek gods were not known for being moral or being truly good or evil. Many of the Greek gods and goddesses were disorganized and self-contradicting. Although this was apparent to the Greeks, the Greeks believed that their religion was to brighten their own lives, rather than give them godlike guidance. The best example of a self-contradicting Greek god is Zeus – father of all gods and humans (Cunningham and Reich 32-33).

    Read More

  • Greek Religion Essay

    1940 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Ancient Greece, the lives of the multi-religious yet cognitive people were structured accordingly to their religious practices. Althought there was no dominant set of religious beliefs or dieties, the Greeks believed in what rather seems to be a pantheon of gods all similar in each definitive culture that seem to come together and reign supreme as the polytheistic religion of the Greek people. These beliefs came about from cultural diffusion between different religions and are reflected majorly in Roman polytheistic beliefs which transpired into the beliefs of many other cultures. It is believed that the Ancient Greek religion was comprised of ideologies from philosphers such as Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates, and that it became significant through the poetry of the epic writer Homer. The Greek beliefs influenced the cultures and minds of people in many city states throughout Ancient Greece especially Athens, Sparta, and the Minoan civilization and served as a foundation for the culture of these civilizations.

    Read More

  • Plato vs Aristotle

    1826 Words  | 4 Pages

    Plato had typical views of ethics for an ancient Greek. Aristotle shared these views he was more specific about ethics and the path to happiness. Plato and Aristotle both believed that a good person choose morally sound choices because of their reason and good character. A person who follows their good character and reason instead of trying to avoid consequences is a virtuous person. Aristotle believed “virtue is a matter of developing the unique ability to reason.”(Pacquette 268) Being virtuous to Plato and Aristotle also meant, “doing things- no matter what these things were- in a way that reflected rational thought and involved making the best of one’s skills, talents and opportunities.” (Pacquette 268) Aristotle and Plato both agreed that a person’s good moral character and reason guided their ethical choices. A good moral life to them would lead to “eudaimonia, an ancient Greek word that translates into English as happiness.” (Pacquette 268) Though Plato talked and wrote about virtue and happiness, Aristotle went into great detail about his ideas. Aristotle is known as the creator of the theory of virtue ethics. “Aristotle held that there are three forms of happiness. The first form of happiness is a life of pleasure and enjoyment. The second form of happiness is a life as a free and responsible citizen. The third form of happiness is a life as a thinker and philosopher.”(Gaarder 115) Aristotle felt that for a person to achieve eudaimonia, they must achieve all three forms of happiness otherwise they will not be truly happy and satisfied because their life would be unbalanced. Aristotle believed balance is key to happiness. “To be a good person, according to Aristotle, is to act in accordance with right reason, in other words, th...

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Ancient Rome And Ancient Greece

    459 Words  | 1 Pages

    They were focus on their religion but they had different government. Ancient Greece focus on having monarchies until they got to democracies. Greek believed that the Gods would offer protection and guide their city-states. Greek ceremonies and rituals were mainly performed at altars, many things would be left at the altar, such as food, drinks, as well as precious objects. Believed in many gods

    Read More

  • Greek Culture as Exhibited in "The Odyssey"

    580 Words  | 2 Pages

    Greek religion influenced greatly on the people’s daily lives.

    Read More

  • Aristotle: The Pursuit of Happiness

    1374 Words  | 3 Pages

    Aristotle and Plato both are both well known for their focus on defining the purpose of being human. To them, humans have a particular characteristic that no other living thing possesses. That characteristic is that humans strive to achieve a level of goodness. Although they agree with each other that there is a highest good one must achieve in order to live a fulfilling life, they have different ideas on what that good is.

    Read More

  • The Daily Life of Ancient Greeks

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Daily Life of Ancient Greeks Life in Greece in ancient times will remind you of your own life in many ways. There were school, family, athletic competitions, and social gatherings. Knowing that participants in their sporting events competed nude or that you rarely knew your husband/wife until the wedding day does however, make you grateful for the society that you live in today. Babies Life for the Greeks in Athens began in their home. Babies were delivered by the women of the family, and only in cases of serious complications was a mid-wife called.

    Read More

More about Religious Rituals In Athenian Culture

Open Document