The Oracles Of The Ancient World
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The Oracles Of The Ancient World
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Author : Trevor Curnow
language : en
Publisher: Bristol Classical Press
Release Date : 2004-03-25
The Oracles Of The Ancient World written by Trevor Curnow and has been published by Bristol Classical Press this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2004-03-25 with History categories.
Ranging from Abai to Zeleia, from massive temples in Egypt to modest tombs in Turkey, oracles were a major feature of the religions of many ancient cultures until their demise under the Christian Roman emperors. This work is a guide to all the known oracles of the ancient world. The greater part of it is devoted to an alphabetical listing providing details of nearly 300 sites in more than 25 countries where oracles of one kind or another functioned in antiquity. The text is extensively cross-referenced and illustrated, and supplemented by indexes, a glossary, and a substantial introduction.
The Oracle Of Delphi
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Author : Charles River Charles River Editors
language : en
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Release Date : 2018-02-21
The Oracle Of Delphi written by Charles River Charles River Editors and has been published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2018-02-21 with categories.
*Includes pictures *Includes ancient descriptions of the oracle *Includes a bibliography for further reading "Not often nor regularly, but occasionally and fortuitously, the room in which they seat the god's consultants is filled with a fragrance and breeze, as if the adyton were sending forth the essences of the sweetest and most expensive perfumes from a spring." - Plutarch "[T]he seat of the oracle is a cavern hollowed down in the depths...from which arises pneuma [breath, vapor, gas] that inspires a divine state of possession." - Strabo, Geography 9.3.5 The Oracle of Delphi was one of the greatest religious institutions in Ancient Greece and one which played a significant role not only in the formation and collective decisions of Hellenic localities and city-states but also in the personal lives of Greeks known and unknown. The site was dedicated to the god Apollo, and the Greeks believed the god spoke his oracles through his prophetess known as the Pythia. The judgments and decisions rendered by the oracle were so important to the Greeks that they often put them above all other interests, even security threats posed by the likes of the Persians, and Delphi was popular even amongst outsiders. The Pythia delivered the god's oracles to such famous persons as Midas and Croesus, and it provided consultations during such important historical moments as the Persian War and the Peloponnesian War. Many authors of antiquity mention the oracle for one reason or another, and there even survive epigraphic collections that preserve the god's words on stone. The ancient Greeks called Delphi the omphalos ("navel") of the Earth, and the black rock that symbolized this imagined center stands at the site to this very day. Sitting at the foot of Mt. Parnassos, Delphi overlooks the Gulf of Corinth, and it is no wonder why the setting mesmerized contemporaries. The majestic, almost magical, aspect of the site, bordered by precipitous cliffs and craggy footpaths on a hillside that is dotted with deep, dark caves and lined by gargling streams of pure water, never fails to inspire a sense of awe and wonder in its visitors, even to this very day. Despite the oracle's fame and popularity, however, modern knowledge of Delphi remains limited in certain respects. Cultic history has become so intertwined with cultic myth that the lines separating one from another have been nearly lost. Modern scholars studying the oracle of Delphi have tried to pull the shroud of mythology away from historical facts to illuminate the realities of the Apolline cult, but the job has often proved trickier than imagined. If anything, the work of scholars has deepened the mysticism of Delphi rather than dispel it, in large measure due to documenting fascinating and mysterious stories about the oracle. Certain aspects of the Delphic cult will likely always be impossible to describe with any degree of accuracy or certainty, despite scholars' best attempts at imaginative reconstruction, because its foundation and function depended entirely upon religious belief in Apollo and his prophetic gift, which no amount of scholarship can fully explain. The Oracle of Delphi: The Ancient World's Most Famous Seer examines the history and mysteries surrounding the influential Greek oracle, including the historical buildings of the site and the cultic traditions recorded by ancient writers, in an attempt to separate truth from fiction as much as possible. Along with pictures and a bibliography, you will learn about the Delphic Oracle like never before, in no time at all.
Oracles Curses And Risk Among The Ancient Greeks
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Author : Esther Eidinow
language : en
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Release Date : 2007-10-05
Oracles Curses And Risk Among The Ancient Greeks written by Esther Eidinow and has been published by OUP Oxford this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2007-10-05 with History categories.
How did ancient Greek men and women deal with the uncertainty and risk of everyday life? What did they fear most, and how did they manage their anxieties? Esther Eidinow sets side-by-side two collections of material usually studied in isolation: binding curse tablets from across the ancient world, and the collection of published private questions from the oracle at Dodona in north-west Greece. Eidinow uses these texts to explore perceptions of risk and uncertainty in ancient society, challenging previous explanations. In these records we hear voices that are rarely, if ever, heard in literary texts and history books. The questions and curses in these tablets comprise fervent, sometimes ferocious appeals to the gods. The stories they tell offer tantalizing glimpses of everyday life, carrying the reader through the teeming ancient city - both its physical setting and its social dynamics. Among these tablets we find prostitutes and publicans, doctors and soldiers, netmakers and silver-workers, actors and seamstresses. Anxious litigants ask the gods to silence their opponents. Men inquire about the paternity of their children. Women beg the gods to help them keep their men. Business rivals try to corner the market. Slaves plead to escape their masters. This material takes us beyond the headlines of ancient history, offering new insights into institutions, activities, and relationships. Above all, individually and together, these texts help us to understand some of the ways in which ancient Greek men and women understood the world. In turn, the beliefs and activities of an ancient culture may shed light on modern attitudes to risk.
The Oracle Of Dodona
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Author : Charles River
language : en
Publisher: Independently Published
Release Date : 2022-10-28
The Oracle Of Dodona written by Charles River and has been published by Independently Published this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2022-10-28 with categories.
In ancient Greece, "no other practice was so universal than the consultation of oracles." These holy sites were found in 260 locations around the Greek-speaking world, and they were considered the "most satisfactory means of ascertaining the future." These sanctuaries were "set apart from the profane, ordinary world" and were in the beginning restricted to natural locations where the divine was thought to be "especially present." They were set aside for special spiritual functions, and a state of purity was generally required of its participants. A historical tendency toward providing haven for criminals was based on the fear of shedding blood in a holy place, and the "fear that the evil magic would emanate from his curse." Of course, the Oracle of Delphi was one of the greatest religious institutions in ancient Greece and one which played a significant role not only in the formation and collective decisions of Hellenic localities and city-states but also in the personal lives of Greeks. The site was dedicated to the god Apollo, and the Greeks believed the god spoke his oracles through his prophetess, known as the Pythia. The judgments and decisions rendered by the oracle were so important to the Greeks that they often put them above all other interests, even security threats posed by the likes of the Persians, and Delphi was popular even amongst outsiders. Aside from Delphi, the most prominent oracles were located near Colophon, Xanthus, Claros, Branchidae, Olympia, and Dodona, and all the Greek oracles have been found in places with "extraordinary natural features" connected to their powers. The Oracle of Dodona was the oldest of all, and it was one of the few dedicated to Zeus and his consort goddess Dione. The oracular utterances heard at the oracles are generally referred to as "smokiness" in Greek, but at Dodona, the answers came in natural sounds and other peripheral phenomena. Unlike Apollo, Zeus traditionally had only one oracle: the Oracle of Dodona. The Oracle of Dodona was considered to be the oldest oracle in Greece and was originally dedicated to Rhea, Zeus' mother (this was widely known in Greece), but he displaced her over time. The Oracle (always a woman) would listen to the sound of the wind in the leaves of oak trees dedicated to Zeus and interpret the sound as the god's voice. Much later, Zeus also "adopted" the Oracle at Siwa in the Libyan desert. The Siwa Oracle was one of the "Sibyls" of the ancient world, and when she was visited by Alexander the Great, she predicted his rise to power and informed him of his divine heritage as Zeus's son. Despite the interest in Greek oracles, modern knowledge remains limited in certain respects, because cult history has become so intertwined with mythology that the lines separating one from another have been nearly lost. Modern scholars studying the oracles have tried to pull the shroud of mythology away from historical facts to illuminate the realities of the Greek cults, but the job has often proved trickier than imagined. If anything, the work of scholars has deepened the mysticism of the oracles rather than dispel it, in large measure due to documenting fascinating and mysterious stories about them. For example, much has been written about natural vapors and fumes that may have caused psychoactive effects in petitioners at oracles. Modern civilizations at times employ this argument to excuse the supposed ignorance of the ancient Greeks, and in some cases, such vapors have been identified and may indeed explain the activities at certain oracles. However, archaeologist Jelle de Boer, intimately associated with some of the most iconic Greek oracles, cautioned that "something can be extra-natural without being outright supernatural." He further noted that "present-day humans are pretty arrogant when they think the ancients could not have observed things clearly."
The Influence Of Ancient Oracles In Public And Private Life
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Author : James Bowling Mozley
language : en
Publisher:
Release Date : 1835
The Influence Of Ancient Oracles In Public And Private Life written by James Bowling Mozley and has been published by this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 1835 with Oracles categories.
Wisdom In The Ancient World
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Author : Trevor Curnow
language : en
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Release Date : 2010-06-24
Wisdom In The Ancient World written by Trevor Curnow and has been published by Bloomsbury Publishing this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2010-06-24 with Philosophy categories.
'But where shall wisdom be found?' asked Job, and from across the ancient world came many different replies. Some conceived of wisdom in supernatural personified form and answered the question in appropriate terms. For others, wisdom was something far more human, manifested in a number of different possible ways. For many philosophers, on the other hand, it was simply the highest human intellectual attainment possible. However understood, wisdom was highly prized across the ancient world and throughout ancient history. To the extent to which there was a shared ancient culture, wisdom lay at the heart of it. However, the modern study of the subject has been very fragmented. Old Testament scholars, theologians, historians of philosophy, Egyptologists, Assyriologists, classicists and historians of ideas have all taken an interest, but there has been limited communication and co-operation between the disciplines. This is the first book to bring the different aspects of the study of ancient wisdom together and present it as a subject in its own right, looking at wise deities, wise figures from myth and legend, wise characters from ancient history, practices associated with wisdom (including divination and healing), and wisdom as it appears in ancient literature. Familiar figures such as Solomon and Socrates rub shoulders here with less well-known ones such as Shulgi and Stilbides. Specially drawn maps accompany the text to provide a geographical context while a timeline provides a chronological one.
Magic And Divination In The Ancient World
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Author : Leda Ciraolo
language : en
Publisher: BRILL
Release Date : 2021-10-01
Magic And Divination In The Ancient World written by Leda Ciraolo and has been published by BRILL this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2021-10-01 with Body, Mind & Spirit categories.
This collection of essays focuses on divination across the Ancient World from early Mesopotamia to late antiquity. The authors deal with the forms, theory and poetics of this important and still poorly understood ancient phenomenon.
Oracles Of The Dead
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Author : Robert Temple
language : en
Publisher: Destiny Books
Release Date : 2005-09-07
Oracles Of The Dead written by Robert Temple and has been published by Destiny Books this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2005-09-07 with Body, Mind & Spirit categories.
An examination of the shadow side of prophecy in human history and our attitudes toward fate and predicting the future • Explores the divinatory techniques and traditions of classical Greece and Rome as compared with ancient China • Contains new information concerning the location of the Greek Oracle of the Dead at Baia • Shows how the latest discoveries in science may validate the system of the I Ching • First U.S. Edition of Netherworld Many methods for predicting the future, such as tarot, runes, the I Ching, and other divinatory oracles, can be traced back to ancient cultures. In Oracles of the Dead Robert Temple examines the Greek and Roman traditions and techniques of divination and compares them to those of ancient China. He reveals the real physical location of the "hell" of the ancient Greeks--known in antiquity as the Oracle of the Dead and used for séances intended to contact the spirits of the dead--and provides photographs from his explorations there. Relating them to the ancient belief in the Oracle of the Dead, Temple examines the various mysteries associated with Delphi and the other oracles of the ancient world and explains how they were used to allow visitors to experience contact with the divine. Furthermore, his examination of the Chinese oracular system shows how the latest developments in science are validating the system of the I Ching.
Delphi
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Author : Charles River Charles River Editors
language : en
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Release Date : 2017-05-21
Delphi written by Charles River Charles River Editors and has been published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2017-05-21 with categories.
*Includes pictures *Includes ancient accounts of Delphi *Includes a bibliography and online resources for further reading "[T]he seat of the oracle is a cavern hollowed down in the depths...from which arises pneuma [breath, vapor, gas] that inspires a divine state of possession." - Strabo, Geography 9.3.5 The ancient Greeks used a number of forms of divination to determine the future and seek advice from the gods as to which actions they should take in any given situation. The most popular of these ways to consult the Gods was through a visit to an oracle-usually a person-at a fixed shrine. The oldest of these Greek sites was at Dodona in Epirus, and while it continued to be a major oracle for the Greek world through antiquity, it was quickly overtaken by the oracle at Delphi as the most consulted by kings, politicians, and ordinary Greeks alike. Whereas the oracle at Dodona was of Zeus, that at Delphi was of Apollo. Over the years, the Delphic Oracle-located, it was believed, at the omphalos, the belly button of the world-came to such a position of preeminence that almost every major decision taken by any Greek polei in the Classical period involved a consultation with the god Apollo to ascertain whether the proposed action would be sanctioned by the gods. The format of the question was normally that of seeking approval for a proposition already decided upon, rather than an attempt to illicit instruction per se. Colonization decisions, political changes, and matters of religion were all subject to final approval from Delphi, delivered by the Pythia, the oracle through which the god was thought to speak. At an individual level and for those who could afford it, decisions on such matters as marriage, children, and business ventures were made after the oracle had spoken. The oracle's influence on so many major events in the Archaic, Classical, and to a lesser extent, Hellenistic and Roman periods is without parallel in any other part of the world or time. For many years, academics struggled to identify why it was that this particular oracle-rather than the oldest or one dedicated to any of the major Olympians-came to play such a decisive role in the lives of Greeks in the ancient world. Delphi overlooks the Gulf of Corinth, and it is no wonder why the setting mesmerized contemporaries. The majestic, almost magical, aspect of the site, bordered by precipitous cliffs and craggy footpaths on a hillside that is dotted with deep, dark caves and lined by gargling streams of pure water, never fails to inspire a sense of awe and wonder in its visitors, even to this very day. Despite the oracle's fame and popularity, however, modern knowledge of Delphi remains limited in certain respects. Cultic history has become so intertwined with cultic myth that the lines separating one from another have been nearly lost. Modern scholars studying the oracle of Delphi have tried to pull the shroud of mythology away from historical facts to illuminate the realities of the Apolline cult, but the job has often proved trickier than imagined. If anything, the work of scholars has deepened the mysticism of Delphi rather than dispel it, in large measure due to documenting fascinating and mysterious stories about the oracle. Certain aspects of the Delphic cult will likely always be impossible to describe with any degree of accuracy or certainty, despite scholars' best attempts at imaginative reconstruction, because its foundation and function depended entirely upon religious belief in Apollo and his prophetic gift, which no amount of scholarship can fully explain. Delphi: The History of the Ancient Greek Sanctuary and Home to the World's Most Famous Oracle looks at the famous Greek site, and the oracle's role in history. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about Delphi like never before.
Ancient Greek Divination
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Author : Sarah Iles Johnston
language : en
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Release Date : 2009-04-22
Ancient Greek Divination written by Sarah Iles Johnston and has been published by John Wiley & Sons this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2009-04-22 with History categories.
The first English-language survey of ancient Greek divinatorymethods, Ancient Greek Divination offers a broad yetdetailed treatment of the earliest attempts by ancient Greeks toseek the counsel of the gods. Offers in-depth discussions of oracles, wandering diviners,do-it-yourself methods of foretelling the future, magicaldivinatory techniques, and much more Illustrates how the study of divination illuminates thementalities of ancient Greek religions and societies