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Ancient greek religion scholarly essays
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Religion in ancient Greece and ancient Rome
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“Oracles (or prophecies) themselves are messages from the gods in human language concerning the future or the unknown and are usually received in response to specific inquiries, often through the agency of inspired mediums” (Aune). For the people of Ancient Greece, Oracles were intermediaries between man and the G-ds. People would ask the Oracle questions about the future and/or ask for advice. Because the Oracles’ responses were always ambiguous, the answers could never be wrong. Regardless of the ambiguousness of the answers, the Ancient Greeks still relied heavily on the Oracles to make important life decisions.
Though Apollo and Zeus had other Oracles in Ancient Greece, Apollo’s Oracle at Delphi was the most famous and important Oracle in Ancient Greece. The Delphic oracle was located in the city of Delphi. “It was believed [that] Apollo … spoke through the mouth of an inspired woman known as the Pythia, who in turn conveyed the message to a priest, who relayed it to the person who had made the inquiry” (Rubin). People would ask this Oracle a variety of different questions; one ...
Divine intervention is often an integral part of ancient epic poetry as seen in Homer's The Odyssey. The role of the goddess Athena was an essential part of Odysseus's journey back to Ithaka. Athena also played a vital part in Telemakhos's life before the return of his father. Even Penelope is impacted by the help of the "grey-eyed" goddess, often inspiring Penelope to hold off the suitors as well as putting her to sleep when a situation became too difficult. Athena demonstrates that she is a critical component of development within the father Odysseus and his son Telemakhos as well as guiding Penelope as a beautiful mother waiting for the return of her husband.
What is a prophecy you ask? Well a prophecy is a foretelling of something that is to come. For example how your life will journey to, and how it will end. In the play of Oedipus the king, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone, Oedipus’ life is told by an old blind prophet. Oedipus goes to the prophet to find a cure for the city, since city has a plague. This old blind prophet, Tiresis, refuses to tell Oedipus about the cure. At some point I think that the prophet would tell Oedipus how to save the city, which he would. But the prophet doesn’t. The king becomes angered, causing Tiresias to state that he, Oedipus, will be the one to pollute the city and he is the murderer of Laius. Tiresias, the prophet, is accused of being in cahoots with Creon to attempt to usurp his throne. So he kills his father and married his mother. I think that Oedipus should have realized that Creon was just trying to replace him, in the end Creon gets what he deserves.
Predictions and oracles seem to be the backbone of tragedies like Macbeth and Oedipus. The predictions of the witches and the oracle from the gods are what drive the tragedy and the action of the audience along with it. Although they both have these effects, it doesn’t mean that the audience thinks without a doubt that the witches are in control of Macbeth; the same goes for Oedipus and the oracle. Just like oracles, predictions were just warnings for people to abide by societal norms.
If prophecy were to be real, one could expect what is bound to happen in the future. This is true; at least in “Oedipus the King” in which the protagonist, Oedipus calls forth his doom unwillingly. Fate is defined as something that unavoidably befalls a person. The author of “Oedipus the King,” Sophocles, writes a tragic fate that Oedipus was born to experience. Fate is what is meant to happen and cannot be avoided or unchanged. Furthermore, events that lead to other events could be the result for one to meet their fate. In “Oedipus the King,” Sophocles expresses the nature of fate to be determined upon choices made.
Socrates acts on traditional legitimation in the same manner as Oedipus. He approaches Apollo in search for answers and to gain truth. Apollo states Socrates is the wisest man (Plato, 1954, p.44). Socrates seeks to test the claim, and concludes the Delphic oracle is in fact correct; no man i...
Socrates high respect for himself also may have started with the oracle from Delphi, when Chaerephon, “…asked the oracle to tel...
oracle in Greek religion, priest or priestess who imparted the response of a god to a human questioner. The word is also used to refer to the response itself and to the shrine of a god. Every oracular shrine had a fixed method of divination. Many observed signs, such as the motion of objects dropped into a spring, the movement of birds, or the rustle of leaves. Often dreams were interpreted. A later and popular method involved the use of entranced persons whose ecstatic cries were interpreted by trained attendants. Before an oracle was questioned consultants underwent rites of purification and sacrifice. There were many established oracles in ancient Greece, the most famous being those of Zeus at Dodona and of Apollo at Delphi and at Didyma in Asia Minor. Other oracular shrines were located in Syria, Egypt, and Italy.
In Greek mythology the oracles or gods are rarely wrong in their predictions of the future. Yet the characters still try to fight the predictions. Do their personalities and traits decide their future, or does fate take its course no matter what? Oedipus was a shrewd man furnished with wit and intellect, yet his lack of insight (the ability to see and understand clearly the inner nature of himself) and his arrogance led to his demise, not fate.
Since there is a human element to prophecies, these foresights cannot be seen as coming directly from God. However, through looking at the chorus over time in Oedipus the King, we can see how Sophocles’ effectively defends the prophet. Opposed to Oedipus, whose beliefs about religion are stagnant through the play, the chorus originally believes in God. But, once Tiresias condemns Oedipus, the chorus not only abandons their respect for the divine but also tries fruitlessly to find something or someone that solidifies its belief in Oedipus’ innocence. However, when trying to convince Oedipus (and itself) that he would be acquitted of murder in the morning, the chorus calls upon the power of prophets and says that, “…if I am a true prophet / if I can grasp the truth…at the full moon of tomorrow, Mount Cithaeron / you will know how / Oedipus glories in you— / you, his birthplace, nurse, his mountain-mother!” (1195-1199). However subconsciously it makes this comment, the chorus is saying that it would only trust a prophet to tell Oedipus when he will discover the story of his birth. By saying that prophets will provide Oedipus accurate information, the chorus not only recognizes the inescapable power of the Gods but also correctly predicts that these Gods will indeed tell Oedipus’ true story—even though it is likely not what the chorus wants to hear. In other words, while trying to avoid the religion that it once so fervently proclaimed faith in, the chorus is forced to go back to using prophecies in order to gain information—information that ends up being true. The inescapable nature of religion in Oedipus the King shown through the chorus’ forced return to faith allows Sophocles to successfully defend the Gods. This defense and support for the power of the Gods is what allows the reader to realize that the
It was because of the Oracle that Socrates began to question his wisdom and the wisdom of others. He was not trying to corrupt the youth nor did he believe in false gods. Socrates was a man who believed that the Oracle’s message, “There was no one wiser than Socrates.”, was misguided and tried to prove it wrong. He went about doing that by questioning people. Socrates realized that he truly know nothing, of importance. So he tried to seek the truth. To be able to do this he ahd an open mind, and told his followers they should also have open minds. This is why Socrates was falsely accused by a culture that was both strict and hypocritical.
Alexander the Great states, “Remember upon the conduct of each depends the fate of all.” In this way, Alexander shows the belief of fate in ancient times. By looking at this mindset, the beliefs of these ancient people can be seen. These ancient people also had a strong belief in the omens and prophecies given by the gods. In both Greek and Roman times, omens and prophecies structured the lives of these ancient people through their tradition, stories, and way of living.
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.
Sophocles tried to illustrate that great men should love life, art, and philosophy of Greece. Many citizens thought that philosophers and playwrights were intelligent men that demonstrated the true nature of Greek society. Ancient Greeks looked for guidance by asking and searching for a prophet or oracle that would tell them of their fate or future treasures and failures. Civilizations in ancient Greece believed that if they worshiped or praised the great gods that lived on Mount Olympus they would prosper and live happily in their society and life. Ancient civilizations believed that the gods created their destiny based on the way they treated them. Greeks believed that their traditions and values were superior to all other religions and civilizations.
They believed, that they had a set destiny that they could not alter. In Greek myth, Fate was often very mysterious and hard to explain and quite possibly more powerful than Zeus. Early myth explains Fate as a power, much like death. Hamilton says Homer makes, “Hera ask him (Zeus) scornfully if he proposes to deliver from death a man Fate has doomed,” (Hamilton 26). Despite the Greek beliefs that they could not change their fate, they still attempted to understand it. Early Greek myth shows humans trying to understand fate through myths about Apollo’s oracle. Apollo’s oracle is able to predict the future, but its messages are often vague and puzzling. So even though people could be told their future they did not necessarily understand it. The early Greeks clearly believed that life was fixed and nothing they did could change