Misplaced Pages

#571428

90-486: Theatre festivals are amongst the earliest types of festival. Classical Greek theatre was associated with religious festivals dedicated to Dionysus , called the City Dionysia. The medieval mystery plays were presented at the major Christian feasts. Theatre as an everyday part of life is a comparatively recent phenomenon. In recent years, theatre festivals have been established to promote various types of theatre, such as

180-508: A (re)affirmation of the divine order, with Kronos as the first king. The battle is also etiological, for it explained the myths about ancient sea monsters in both Greece and Asia Minor and the Middle East . The battle is described by Celsus : 'Pherecydes told the myth that an army was lined up against army, and he mentioned Kronos as leader of one, Ophion of the other, and he related their challenges and struggles, and that they agreed that

270-412: A Byzantine encyclopedia based on classical sources, states that Dionysus was so named "from accomplishing [διανύειν] for each of those who live the wild life. Or from providing [διανοεῖν] everything for those who live the wild life." Academics in the nineteenth century, using study of philology and comparative mythology , often regarded Dionysus as a foreign deity who was only reluctantly accepted into

360-473: A contemporary of the Seven Sages of Greece , , among whose number he was occasionally included. Alternatively, Apollodorus , places his floruit several decades later, in the 59th Olympiad (544–541 BCE), a generation later. Assuming that Pherecydes was born in this later generation, younger than the philosopher Thales (624-545 BC) and thus an older contemporary of Anaximander , he would also be approximately

450-577: A cow"), in the Mysteries of Lerna . Braetes , Βραίτης ("related to beer") at Thrace . Brisaeus , Βρισαῖος , a surname of Dionysus, derived either from mount Brisa in Lesbos or from a nymph Brisa, who was said to have brought up the god. Briseus , Βρῑσεύς ("he who prevails") in Smyrna . Bromios Βρόμιος ("roaring", as of the wind, primarily relating to the central death/resurrection element of

540-461: A divine primordial condition and the creation is ex nihilo (out of nothing). The titles Penta -/ Heptamychos and Theokrasia of the work indicate that niches ( mychoi ) and mixing are an important part of the creation story. Pherecydes first identified five niches ( mychoi ). If there were five niches in the story, they correspond to the five parts ( moirai ) of the cosmos: the sea, underworld and heaven (the homeric three-part division), plus

630-550: A forged letter attributed to Thales, Pherecydes never traveled but according to other sources he traveled throughout the Greek cultural area, to Delphi , the Peloponnese , Ephesus and Samos . According to Josephus and Byzantine writers, Pherecydes also made a journey to Egypt . Such a journey, however, is a common tale that is also part of other biographies of philosophers. A sun-dial ( heliotropion ), supposedly made by Pherecydes,

720-408: A great sin. This suggests that impure deeds in a next life or after death must be expiated. Pherecydes may have regarded the soul as at least an immortal part of the sky or aether . That he was the first to teach such a thing is doubtful, but Schibli concludes that Pherecydes like "included in his book ["Pentemychos"] at least a rudimentary treatment of the immortality of the soul, its wanderings in

810-454: Is a god of epiphany , sometimes called "the god who comes". Wine was a religious focus in the cult of Dionysus and was his earthly incarnation. Wine could ease suffering, bring joy, and inspire divine madness. Festivals of Dionysus included the performance of sacred dramas enacting his myths, the initial driving force behind the development of theatre in Western culture . The cult of Dionysus

900-472: Is a vessel from which the gods drink soma (god drink) and is important in the reincarnation theory as guardian of heaven. Pherecydes wrote a cosmogony (explanatory model for the origin of the universe) that contained a theogony, an explanatory model for the gods and their properties. This work broke with the mythological and theological tradition and shows Eastern influences. Pherecydes, along with Anaximander and Anaximenes , has long been regarded as one of

990-515: Is also a "cult of the souls"; his maenads feed the dead through blood-offerings, and he acts as a divine communicant between the living and the dead. He is sometimes categorised as a dying-and-rising god . Romans identified Bacchus with their own Liber Pater , the "Free Father" of the Liberalia festival, patron of viniculture, wine and male fertility, and guardian of the traditions, rituals and freedoms attached to coming of age and citizenship, but

SECTION 10

#1732851334572

1080-633: Is found in other names, such as that of the Dioscures , and may derive from Dios , the genitive of the name of Zeus . Nonnus, in his Dionysiaca , writes that the name Dionysus means "Zeus-limp" and that Hermes named the new born Dionysus this, "because Zeus while he carried his burden lifted one foot with a limp from the weight of his thigh, and nysos in Syracusan language means limping". In his note to these lines, W. H. D. Rouse writes "It need hardly be said that these etymologies are wrong". The Suda ,

1170-522: Is found on a dinos by the Attic potter Sophilos around 570 BC and is located in the British Museum . By the seventh century, iconography found on pottery shows that Dionysus was already worshiped as more than just a god associated with wine. He was associated with weddings, death, sacrifice, and sexuality, and his retinue of satyrs and dancers was already established. A common theme in these early depictions

1260-510: Is the tear of Kronos'. The mythical images of the tree as an earthly structure and a robe as a gift at marriage have Greek cultic counterparts. In Plataeae , for example, the Daedala festival was celebrated, in which an oak was cut down to make a statue of a girl dressed as a bride. Zeus gave Persephone Sicily or Thebes , while Cadmus gave a robe to Harmonia . Still, the images may be oriental in origin. There are Mesopotamian parallels of

1350-704: The Bibliotheca of pseudo-Apollodorus, who drew on several previous theogonies, such as those of Hesiod and the Orphic religion. The story was also a source for the Argonautica by Apollonius of Rhodes , in which Orpheus sings about Ophion and Eurynome who were overthrown by Kronos and Rhea. The association of Kronos with Chronos by the Greeks can probably also be traced back to Pherecydes. There are also many significant parallels between Pherecydes's cosmogony, Orphic theogonies, and

1440-606: The Palace of Nestor in Pylos , dated to around 1300 BC. The details of any religion surrounding Dionysus in this period are scant, and most evidence comes in the form only of his name, written as di-wo-nu-su-jo ("Dionysoio" = 'of Dionysus') in Linear B , preserved on fragments of clay tablets that indicate a connection to offerings or payments of wine, which was described as being "of Dionysus". References have also been uncovered to "women of Oinoa",

1530-402: The cosmos was characteristic of Pre-Socratic thinkers. The sequence of Pherecydes' creation myth is as follows. First, there are the eternal gods Zas (Zeus), Chthoniê (Gaia) and Chronos (Kronos). Then Chronos creates elements in niches in the earth with his seed, from which other gods arise. This is followed by the three-day wedding of Zas and Chthonie. On the third day Zas makes the robe of

1620-527: The "Pentemychos" or "Heptamychos" . He was considered the first writer to communicate philosophical ideas in prose as opposed to verse. However, other than a few short fragments preserved in quotations from other ancient philosophers and a long fragment discovered on an Egyptian papyrus, his work is lost. However, it survived into the Hellenistic period and a significant amount of its content can be conjectured indirectly through ancient testimonies. His cosmogony

1710-583: The "place of wine", who may correspond to the Dionysian women of later periods. Other Mycenaean records from Pylos record the worship of a god named Eleuther, who was the son of Zeus, and to whom oxen were sacrificed. The link to both Zeus and oxen, as well as etymological links between the name Eleuther or Eleutheros with the Latin name Liber Pater , indicates that this may have been another name for Dionysus. According to Károly Kerényi , these clues suggest that even in

1800-651: The "son of Zeus". Jane Ellen Harrison believed that the name Dionysus means "young Zeus". Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin of the name, since all attempts to find an Indo-European etymology are doubtful. Later variants include Dionūsos and Diōnūsos in Boeotia ; Dien(n)ūsos in Thessaly ; Deonūsos and Deunūsos in Ionia ; and Dinnūsos in Aeolia , besides other variants. A Dio- prefix

1890-415: The 6th century BC. already traditional. In addition, the names are not a Greek dialect. The reason for deviant forms is to make them resemble other words and to construct an original form. The sequence of Pherecydes' cosmogony begins with the eternal gods Zas (Zeus), Chthoniê (Gê) and Chronos (Kronos), who "always existed." The first creation is an act of ordering in the cosmos through niches and division of

SECTION 20

#1732851334572

1980-575: The 6th century, Pythagoras may have learned of Pherecydes' work and adopted the idea of reincarnation. In Pythagoras' youth, when he still lived on Samos , he is said to have visited Pherecydes on Delos and later buried him. An early variant of this story places this event later in Pythagoras' life when he lived in Croton . His visit to the sick Pherecydes was used to explain his absence during Cylon's rebellion in that city. These stories may have evolved from

2070-600: The Darkness has an offspring that is cast into the recesses of Tartaros. No surviving fragment makes the connection, but it is possible that the prison-house in Tartaros and the pentemychos are ways of referring to the essentially same thing. According to Celsus , Pherecydes said that: "Below that portion is the portion of Tartaros; the daughters of Boreas (the north wind), the Harpies and Thuella (Storm), guard it; there Zeus banished any of

2160-622: The Indians. Isodaetes , Ισοδαίτης , meaning "he who distributes equal portions", cult epithet also shared with Helios. Kemilius , Κεμήλιος ( kemas : "young deer, pricket"). Liknites ("he of the winnowing fan"), as a fertility god connected with mystery religions . A winnowing fan was used to separate the chaff from the grain. Lenaius , Ληναῖος ("god of the wine-press") Lyaeus , or Lyaios (Λυαῖος, "deliverer", literally "loosener"), one who releases from care and anxiety. Lysius , Λύσιος ("delivering, releasing"). At Thebes there

2250-814: The Roman state treated independent, popular festivals of Bacchus ( Bacchanalia ) as subversive, partly because their free mixing of classes and genders transgressed traditional social and moral constraints. Celebration of the Bacchanalia was made a capital offence, except in the toned-down forms and greatly diminished congregations approved and supervised by the State. Festivals of Bacchus were merged with those of Liber and Dionysus. The dio- prefix in Ancient Greek Διόνυσος ( Diónūsos ; [di.ó.nyː.sos] ) has been associated since antiquity with Zeus ( genitive Dios ), and

2340-453: The afterlife. The Middle Platonist Numenius , like Apponius, referred to the idea that the soul enters the body through the seed, and mentions a river in Pherecydes' representation of the underworld. The Neoplatonist Porphyry added 'corners, pits, caves, doors and gates' through which souls travel. Finally, the orator Themistius reported that Pherecydes, like Pythagoras, considered killing

2430-426: The background is due to his great magnificence. The argument for this is that Aristotle conceives Pherecydes as a semi-philosopher in that he connects the philosophical Good and Beautiful with the first, prevailing principle ( arche ) of the theologians, and eternity, according to Aristotle, is connected with the good. The three primordial gods are eternal, equal and wholly responsible for the world order. Pherecydes

2520-507: The battle is cosmic supremacy and is reminiscent of the Titanomachy and Gigantomachy of traditional theogony, in which the successive conflicts between gods are described with the current world order as a result. In Pherecydes' cosmogony, however, no initial chaos or tyranny is overcome, followed by the establishment of a new order. The creative gods are eternal and co-equal. Their order is temporarily threatened by Ophion, but that threat becomes

2610-682: The correct age for the Pythagorean tradition in which he is regarded as a teacher of Pythagoras. Most of the other biographical information is probably fiction, and the ambiguity and contradictions in the surviving testimonies suggest that any reliable biographical data that may have existed was no longer available in the Hellenistic period. The identity of Pherecydes was also unclear in ancient times because there were two authors of that name who both wrote about mythology: Pherecydes of Syros and Pherecydes of Athens (fl. 5th century BC ). According to

2700-531: The cry "euae" in lyric passages, and in Euripides ' play, The Bacchae . Iacchus , Ἴακχος a possible epithet of Dionysus, associated with the Eleusinian Mysteries . In Eleusis , he is known as a son of Zeus and Demeter . The name "Iacchus" may come from the Ιακχος ( Iakchos ), a hymn sung in honor of Dionysus. Indoletes , Ἰνδολέτης , meaning slayer/killer of Indians. Due to his campaign against

2790-615: The death of Pherecydes. According to one story, Pherecydes was killed and skinned as a sacrifice by the Spartans, and their king kept the skin out of respect for Pherecydes' wisdom. However, the same story was also told about Epimenides. Other accounts have the philosopher perishing in a battle between the Ephesians and Magnesians , or throwing himself from Mount Corycus in Delphi, or succumbing to typhoid fever . According to Aelianus typhoid fever

List of theatre festivals - Misplaced Pages Continue

2880-518: The development of Pythagoreanism or Orphism . Although it is relatively certain the Pherecydes was a native of the island of Syros , and that he lived in the 6th century BCE, almost nothing else is known about his life. There is even some discrepancy in the ancient sources of his life as to when exactly he lived within the 6th century. The Suda places his date of birth during the reign of King Alyattes in Lydia (c. 605-560 BCE), which would place him as

2970-609: The dominant element in each mixture and possibly associate them with the five regions. The elements may also be a later, stoic reinterpretation of the text, as the elements, especially air/pneuma, appear anachronistic and fit within Aristotelian and Stoic physiology . That means Chronos' seed will go straight into the niches. This representation is possible, because in a scholium at the Iliad , for example, it says that Chronos smeared two eggs with his seed and gave it to Hera. She had to keep

3060-520: The earliest times between Kronos and Ophion , and this motif occurs in the Middle East . His father was named Babys, a name that presumably originated from southern Anatolia , based on linguistic evidence. Eternal time as god is also Middle Eastern. In addition, Pherecydes has been associated with Zoroastrianism . Isidore the Gnostic claimed that Pherecydes based his allegorical work on a 'prophecy of Ham'. Ham, as referred to here, may be Zoroaster , who

3150-473: The earth ("gê"), so that gê is therefore considered a separate region that could be seen. Fire, air and water are placed in the niches by Chronos and mixed ( krasis ). Mixing elements in five niches only makes sense if those mixtures are in different proportions. Contrary to later philosophy of Anaxagoras , the world is not created from the mixtures, but a second generation of gods ( theokrasia) , including Ophion. The formed gods derive their characteristics from

3240-530: The earth and Mount Olympus . Therefore Damascius calls the five niches 'five worlds' and the Suda mentions the alternative title Pentamychos . Once Chronos fills them to create the worlds, they turn into the five cosmic regions ("moirai") Uranus ("heaven"), Tartarus, Chaos, Ether /Aer (“sky”) and Nyx (“night”). According to Porphyry, there were all kinds of caves and gates in the world. In classical antiquity caves were associated with sexuality and birth. However,

3330-426: The earth's mass, thus taking as its domain the varied surface of the earth and the encircling ocean. Marriage is also etiological , because it explains the origin of the ritual unveiling of the bride ( anakalypteria ). The cloth makes Chthoniê vivid and alive. She is the base matter, but Gê is the form of it. The robe hangs on a winged oak. This passage is unique and has several interpretations. The robust oak

3420-523: The earth's surface is thus both smooth and varied in shape. The robe as a mythical image for the earth's surface also appears in some Orphic texts. In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter , Persephone is weaving a rich robe representing the cosmos when she is carried off by Hades to the underworld.Finally, the proverb 'The face of the earth is the garment of Persephone' is in the style of early Pythagoreans, who had sayings like 'tears of Zeus' for rain and 'The sea

3510-480: The eggs underground ( kata gês ) so that Typhon was born, the enemy of Zeus. Typhon is a parallel of Pherecydes' serpent god Ophion. It is quite possible that in the course of the theogony the primeval trio changed into the traditional Zeus, Kronos and Hera. Such changes have Orphic parallels: Rhea is Demeter after she becomes Zeus' mother, and Phanes simultaneously becomes Zeus and Eros . In Pherecydes, Chthoniê becomes Gê through marriage, after which she becomes

3600-419: The embryo developed. The first three concepts are traditional and appear in the Pherecydes fragments (eg fragment DK 7 B4 below). Poets like Probus and Hermias, equated Pherecydes' Zas with Aether because since Zeus is the Greek sky god , he would have had Aether as his domain. The title Heptamychos in the Suda is explained by including Gê and Ogenos (hepta = seven). Pherecydes writes that Tartarus lies below

3690-466: The first Greek writers to compose his work in prose rather than hexameter verse. Martin Litchfield West notes that the subject matter that all of three of these authors wrote on, the nature of the universe and how it came to be, had been written in verse prior to these authors. West speculates based on the word choice that early logographers used ("words I have heard" instead of "I have read") that

List of theatre festivals - Misplaced Pages Continue

3780-750: The first to do this. There is no creation out of nothing ( creatio ex nihilo ). The cosmogony is justified through etymology, a new understanding of the deity Kronos as Chronos and the insertion of a creator god ( demiurge ). Also, Pherecydes combined Greek mythology with non-Greek myths and religions. According to Aristotle, he was innovative in his approach, because he broke with the theological tradition and combined mythology with philosophy. Pherecydes' creation story therefore had to be more rational and concrete than Hesiod's Theogony . He wrote that first Chaos came to be ( genetos ) without explanation, while Zas, Chronos and Chthoniê existed eternally ( êsan aeí ). The adoption of an eternal principle ( arche ) for

3870-483: The god taking both an active male and a passive female role. It is subversive for Dionysus to receive anal sex; a high status male was expected to penetrate his youthful lovers. Anthroporraistes , Ἀνθρωπορραίστης ("man-destroyer"), a title of Dionysus at Tenedos. Bassareus , Βασσαρεύς a Thracian name for Dionysus, which derives from bassaris or "fox-skin", which item was worn by his cultists in their mysteries. Bougenes , Βουγενής or Βοηγενής ("borne by

3960-424: The god. Dimetor Διμήτωρ ("twice-born") Refers to Dionysus's two births. Dendrites Δενδρίτης ("of the trees"), as a fertility god. Dithyrambos , Διθύραμβος used at his festivals, referring to his premature birth. Eleutherios Ἐλευθέριος ("the liberator"), an epithet shared with Eros . Endendros ("he in the tree"). Enorches ("with balls"), with reference to his fertility, or "in

4050-477: The gods whenever one behaves with insolence." Thus the identity between Zeus' prison-house and the pentemychos seems likely. Judging from some ancient fragments Ophion is thrown into Oceanus , not into Tartaros. Exactly what entities or forces that were locked away in Pherecydes’ story cannot be known for sure. There may have been five principal figures. Ophion and Typhon are one and the same, and Eurynome fought on

4140-401: The hands of Dionysus' followers in later myths, but as an epithet of Dionysus himself, whose mythology describes a god who must endure suffering before triumphing over it. According to Kerényi, the title of "man who suffers" likely originally referred to the god himself, only being applied to distinct characters as the myth developed. The oldest known image of Dionysus, accompanied by his name,

4230-507: The head of one side and Ophion as the leader of the other. Ophion then attacks Kronos, who defeats him and throws him in Ogenos. Sometime after his battle with Ophion, Kronos is succeeded by Zas. This is implied by the fact that Zas/Zeus is ultimately the one who assigns the gods their domain in the world. For example, the Harpies are assigned to guard Tartarus The fact that Kronos disappears into

4320-500: The head, panther or tiger skins, serpents, phallic symbolism (Shiva lingam), association as a wanderer and outcaste and association with ritual ecstasy. Shiva is understood to be one of a triple godhead that includes Vishnu and Brahma. Dionysus is noted in several references with an association with the east and India. A Mycenaean variant of Bacchus was thought to have been "a divine child" abandoned by his mother and eventually raised by " nymphs , goddesses , or even animals." Dionysus

4410-461: The inscription on item KH Gq 5 is thought to confirm Dionysus's early worship. In Mycenaean Greek the form of Zeus is di-wo . The second element -nūsos is of unknown origin. It is perhaps associated with Mount Nysa , the birthplace of the god in Greek mythology, where he was nursed by nymphs (the Nysiads ), although Pherecydes of Syros had postulated nũsa as an archaic word for "tree" by

4500-430: The island of Syros . Little is known about his life and death. Some ancient testimonies counted Pherecydes among the Seven Sages of Greece , although he is generally believed to have lived in the generation after them. Others claim he may have been a teacher of Pythagoras , a student of Pittacus , or a well-traveled autodidact who had studied secret Phoenician books . Pherecydes wrote a book on cosmogony , known as

4590-451: The main contenders. Pherycydes is seen as a transitional figure between the mythological cosmogonies of Hesiod and the first pre-Socratic philosophers. Aristotle wrote in his Metaphysics that Pherecydes was partially a mythological writer and Plutarch, in his Parallel Lives , instead wrote of him being a theologian. Pherecydes contributed to pre-Socratic philosophy of nature by denying that nothing comes from nothing and describing

SECTION 50

#1732851334572

4680-460: The medium of mythic representations. Although it is lost, it was extant in the Hellenistic period , and the fragments and testimony that survive from works that describe it are enough to reconstruct a basic outline. The opening sentence is given by Diogenes Laertius, and two fragments in the middle of the text have also been preserved in fragments from a 3rd century Egyptian papyrus discovered by Bernard Pyne Grenfell and Arthur Surridge Hunt , which

4770-486: The mixture of three elements. Mixture ( krasis ) plays a role in later cosmologies, such as that of Anaxagoras , Plato ( Timaeus ) and in the Orphic poem Krater attributed to the Pythagorean philosopher Zopyrus of Tarentum. Out of all of the philosophers who were historical predecessors of Pythagoras, Pherycydes was the philosopher most often linked with him as one of his teachers. Not many prose treatises existed in

4860-535: The myth, but also the god's transformations into lion and bull, and the boisterousness of those who drink alcohol. Also cognate with the "roar of thunder", which refers to Dionysus' father, Zeus "the thunderer". ) Choiropsalas χοιροψάλας ("pig-plucker": Greek χοῖρος = "pig", also used as a slang term for the female genitalia). A reference to Dionysus's role as a fertility deity. Chthonios Χθόνιος ("the subterranean") Cistophorus Κιστοφόρος ("basket-bearer, ivy-bearer"), Alludes To baskets being sacred to

4950-494: The niches here are not stone caves in mountains, because the world has yet to be shaped. They are cavities in the still primitive, undifferentiated mass of the Earth. At an early stage, Chronos creates with his seed the three elements fire, air ( pneuma ) and water. The Earth element already existed with Chthoniê. Warmth, humidity and 'airiness' were according to Ancient Greek medicine three properties of seed, and through those principles

5040-446: The one who fell into Ogenos was the loser, while those who cast them out and conquered should possess the sky'. Chronos has become Kronos here. Presumably, as a prominent second creator, Zas also participates in the battle, after which he becomes Zeus. Ophion did not exist from the beginning but was born and had progeny of his own ( Ophionidai ). He is serpentine, because his name is derived from ophis 'snake'. Traditionally, Gaia (Gê)

5130-432: The ordered world and locked away in Tartaros in a kind of "appointment of the spheres", in which the victor (Zeus-Cronus) takes possession of the sky and of space and time. Cronus (or Zeus in the more popularly known version) orders the offspring out from the cosmos to Tartaros. There they are kept behind locked gates, fashioned in iron and bronze. We are told about chaotic beings put into the pentemychos, and we are told that

5220-477: The original intent of a book written in prose was essentially a "write-up" of a lecture that a person interest in topics such as cosmology gave as a speech or public discourse. The book was known variously under the titles such as Seven niches ( Heptamychos , Ἑπτάμυχος), "Five niches" (Pentemychos, Πεντέμυχος), and Mixing of the Gods ( Theokrasia , Θεοκρασία). In this work, Pherecydes taught his philosophy through

5310-465: The palace with a complex of spaces reserved for the bride and groom is built. There are also myths such as the one in which Anu takes heaven as his portion, whereupon Enlil takes the earth and gives it as a dowry to Ereshkigal , 'mistress of the great deep' ( chthoniê ). Pherecydes described a battle between Kronos and Ophion similar to that of Zeus and Typhon in Hesiod's older "Theogony". The stake of

5400-405: The poem of Ion of Chios . Aristotle nevertheless stated in the 4th century BC that both were friends, and the story already about their friendship certainly dates back to the 5th century BC . It is believed that both philosophers once met. Pherecydes' book was thought to have contained a mystical esoteric teaching, treated allegorically. A comparatively large number of sources say Pherecydes

5490-496: The preserved accounts of Zoroastrian, Phoenician and Vedic cosmogonies. According to West, these myths have a common source that originates in the Levant . The basic form is as follows. In the beginning there is no heaven and no earth, but a limitless abyss of water, shrouded in deep darkness. This condition has existed for centuries. Then the hermaphrodite and eternal Time makes love to itself. Thus he produces an egg. From that egg appears

SECTION 60

#1732851334572

5580-423: The protector of the marriage, and that was traditionally the domain of Hera. Hera is also associated with the earth in some sources. The marriage of the gods is a union ( hieros gamos ) where Zas makes a robe ( pharos ) depicting Gaia and Ogenos. This is an allegory for the acts of creation ( mellonta dêmiourgein ). Zas is a demiurge and creates by turning into Eros. The robe is a covering, namely of Chthoniê,

5670-476: The side of Ophion against Cronus. Chthonie is a principal "thing" of the underworld, but whether she is to be counted as one of the five or the five "sum-total" is an open question. Apart from these it is known that Ophion-Typhon mated with Echidna , and that Echidna herself was somehow mysteriously "produced" by Callirhoe . If Pherecydes counted five principal entities in association the pentemychos doctrine, then Ophion, Eurynome, Echidna, Calirrhoe and Chthonie are

5760-450: The sixth century BC. On a vase of Sophilos the Nysiads are named νύσαι ( nusae ). Kretschmer asserted that νύση ( nusē ) is a Thracian word that has the same meaning as νύμφη ( nýmphē ), a word similar with νυός ( nuos ) (daughter in law, or bride, I-E *snusós, Sanskr. snusā ). He suggested that the male form is νῦσος ( nūsos ) and this would make Dionysus

5850-445: The standard Greek pantheon at a relatively late date, based on his myths which often involve this theme—a god who spends much of his time on earth abroad, and struggles for acceptance when he returns to Greece. However, more recent evidence has shown that Dionysus was in fact one of the earliest gods attested in mainland Greek culture. The earliest written records of Dionysus worship come from Mycenaean Greece , specifically in and around

5940-440: The story that Pythagoras was a student of Pherecydes. According to Apollonius, Pythagoras imitated Pherecydes in his 'miracles'. The historicity of the connection between the two has been debated, however, because their philosophies are otherwise unrelated, and because Pythagoras has been attributed all kinds of teachers over time. The confusion among later authors about the attribution of the miracles can perhaps be traced back to

6030-524: The testicles" in reference to Zeus' sewing the baby Dionysus "into his thigh", understood to mean his testicles). Used at Samos according to Hesyichius , or Lesbos according to the scholiast on Lycophron's Alexandra . Eridromos ("good-running"), in Nonnus' Dionysiaca. Erikryptos Ἐρίκρυπτος ("completely hidden"), in Macedonia. Euaster (Εὐαστήρ), from the cry "euae". Euius ( Euios ), from

6120-464: The thirteenth century BC, the core religion of Dionysus was in place, as were his important myths. At Knossos in Minoan Crete , men were often given the name "Pentheus", who is a figure in later Dionysian myth and which also means "suffering". Kerényi argued that to give such a name to one's child implies a strong religious connection, potentially not the separate character of Pentheus who suffers at

6210-475: The title of theologus , as opposed to the later physiologoi of the Ionian school . Later hellenistic doxographers also considered him as one of the first thinkers to introduce a doctrine of the transmigration of souls to the Ancient Greek religion , which influenced the metempsychosis of Pythagoreanism , and the theogonies of Orphism . Various legends and miracles were ascribed to him, many of which tie him to

6300-643: The underworld, and the reasons for the soul’s incarnations". The theogony of Pherecydes also shows similarities with Orphic theogonies such as the Orphic Hymns . Both feature primordial serpents, the weaving of a cosmic robe and eternal Time as god who creates with his own seed by masturbation. Such Orphic aspects also appear in Epimenides' Theogony . Pherecydes probably influenced the early Orphics, or possibly an earlier sect of Orphic practitioners influenced him. The battle between Kronos and Ophion also influenced

6390-577: The variants of the name seem to point to an original *Dios-nysos . The earliest attestation is the Mycenaean Greek dative form 𐀇𐀺𐀝𐀰 (di-wo-nu-so) , featured on two tablets that had been found at Mycenaean Pylos and dated to the twelfth or thirteenth century BC. At that time, there could be no certainty on whether this was indeed a theonym , but the 1989–90 Greek-Swedish Excavations at Kastelli Hill , Chania, unearthed, inter alia , four artefacts bearing Linear B inscriptions; among them,

6480-464: The works of William Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw . Many festivals, such as those in the fringe theatre movement, promote the work of beginning playwrights (called "new writing") and performers. This is a list of theatre festivals around the world: SCENE Festival 2023 Cameroon Dionysus His origins are uncertain, and his cults took many forms; some are described by ancient sources as Thracian , others as Greek. In Orphism , he

6570-429: The world as creator, and Zas succeeds him as ruler and assigns all beings their place. Pherecydes' cosmogony forms a bridge between the mythological thought of Hesiod and pre-Socratic Greek philosophy ; Aristotle considered him one of the earliest thinkers to abandon traditional mythology in order to arrive at a systematic explanation of the world, although Plutarch , as well as many other writers, still gave him

6660-420: The world, which he hangs from a winged oak and then presents as a wedding gift to Chthonie, and wraps around her. The "winged oak" in this cosmology has no precedent in Greek tradition. The stories are different but not mutually exclusive, because much is lacking in the fragments, but it seems clear that creation is hindered by chaotic forces. Before the world is ordered, a cosmic battle takes place, with Cronus as

6750-413: The world. That creation coincides with the dichotomy of eternity-temporality and being-becoming. Chronos must step out of eternity to create, and creation means becoming. Later on Plato also used the distinction between eternal being and temporal genesis. This is opposed to the older cosmogony of Hesiod (8th–7th century BCE) where the initial state of the universe is Chaos, a dark void considered as

6840-561: Was a punishment for his wickedness . The latter story was already known to Aristotle and may have arisen from the idea that wise men did not care about physical care. Other stories connect Pherecydes' death to Pythagoras. However, the historicity of all this is debatable. Pherecydes was designated as 'wise' ( sophos ), but only Servius calls him a philosopher ( philosophus ). Aristotle places him between theologians and philosophers, because he no longer expressed himself completely mythical in his research. No consistent teacher of Pherecydes

6930-548: Was a temple of Dionysus Lysius. Melanaigis Μελάναιγις ("of the black goatskin") at the Apaturia festival. Morychus Μόρυχος ("smeared"); in Sicily, because his icon was smeared with wine lees at the vintage. Pherecydes of Syros Pherecydes of Syros ( / f ə ˈ r ɛ s ɪ ˌ d iː z / ; Ancient Greek : Φερεκύδης ὁ Σύριος ; fl. 6th century BCE) was an Ancient Greek mythographer and proto- philosopher from

7020-521: Was derived from three divine principles: Zas ( Life ), Cthonie ( Earth ), and Chronos ( Time ). In the narrative, Chronos creates the Classical elements and other gods in cavities within the earth. Later, Zas defeats the dragon Ophion in a battle for supremacy and throws him in Oceanus . Zas marries Chthoniê, who then becomes the recognizable Earth ( Gê ) with forests and mountains. Chronos retires from

7110-409: Was identified thanks to a comment by Clement of Alexandria about the contents of Pherecydes' book: 'Pherecydes of Syros says: "Zas made a great and beautiful robe, and made the earth and Ogenus on it, and the palace of Ogenus".' Pherecydes developed a unique, syncretistic theogony with a new beginning stage, in which Zas, Chronos, and Chthoniê were the first gods to exist all along. He was probably

7200-499: Was interested in etymology and word associations. Like Thales, he associated chaos with the primordial elemental water , presumably because he associates the word 'chaos' with the verb 'cheesthai', 'to flow out', and because chaos is an undefined, disorderly state. By that approach he adapted god names , although Pherecydes probably saw his gods as traditional deities. He mentioned Rhea for example Rhê, presumably by association with rhein '(out)streams'. The common names were in

7290-554: Was known by name in late antiquity ; according to the doxographer Diogenes Laërtius Pherecydes was taught by Pittacus, but according to the Suda he taught himself after he got his hands on 'the secret books of the Phoenicians '. Although this latter claim is almost certainly fictitious, it may be based on the similarity between Pherecydes' ideas and Eastern religious motifs. For example, in his book he describes an important battle in

7380-511: Was quite well known in the Greek world of late antiquity. Isidore may have concluded this because the Zoroastrian literature available to him was influenced by Hellenization , or because Pherecydes' work influenced it. There is also a short fragment in which Pherecydes talks about ambrosia of the moon, the potion of the gods. This representation has parallels in the Samaveda , where there the moon

7470-543: Was regarded as the mother of Typhon, and Chthoniê/Gê may be the mother of Ophion here. Ophion may also have been produced on her own in Tartarus, the cave under the earth. Typhon also originated in a cave. Otherwise the father may be Chronos, because his seed is the niches of the earth. Ophion and its brood are often depicted as ruling the birthing cosmos for some time before falling from power. The chaotic forces are eternal and cannot be destroyed; instead they are thrown out from

7560-441: Was said by Diogenes Laërtius to be "preserved on the island of Syros." Several miraculous deeds were also attributed to Pherecydes; such as that he accurately predicted an earthquake on Syros after drinking from a well, or that he predicted the sinking of a ship that he saw along the coast of Syros, which then proceeded to sink. In Messene he allegedly warned his friend Perilaus that the city would be conquered. Finally, Hercules

7650-454: Was said to have visited him in a dream and told him to tell the Spartans not to value silver or gold, and that same night Heracles is said to have told the king of Sparta in his sleep to listen to Pherecydes. Many of those miracles however, were also attributed to other legendary philosophers such as Pythagoras or Epimenides . There are many conflicting legends that purport to be an account of

7740-399: Was the first to teach the Pythagorean doctrine of metempsychosis , the transmigration of human souls. Both Cicero and Augustine thought of him having given the first teaching of the "immortality of the soul". The Christian Apponius mentioned Pherecydes' belief in metempsychosis in his argument against murder and executions because a good life is rewarded and a bad life is punished in

7830-530: Was the metamorphosis, at the hand of the god, of his followers into hybrid creatures, usually represented by both tame and wild satyrs , representing the transition from civilized life back to nature as a means of escape. While scholarly references are scarce, there exists a notable overlap between the Greco-Roman Dionysus and the Hindu god Shiva. Shared iconography and background include a crescent or horns on

7920-416: Was traditionally dedicated to Zeus and presumably indicates the solid structure and foundation of the earth. The roots and branches support the earth's surface. Below is Tartarus, and above it, according to Hesiod, grow "the roots of the earth and the barren sea". Pherecydes followed this archaic representation. The wings refer to the broad spreading branches of the oak. Over this hangs the cloth, which as

8010-715: Was variably known with the following epithets : Acratophorus , Ἀκρατοφόρος ("giver of unmixed wine"), at Phigaleia in Arcadia . Acroreites at Sicyon . Adoneus , a rare archaism in Roman literature, a Latinised form of Adonis , used as epithet for Bacchus. Aegobolus Αἰγοβόλος ("goat-shooter") at Potniae , in Boeotia . Aesymnetes Αἰσυμνήτης ("ruler" or "lord") at Aroë and Patrae in Achaea . Agrios Ἄγριος ("wild"), in Macedonia . Androgynos Ἀνδρόγυνος ( androgynous , specifically in intercourse) referring to

8100-537: Was variously a son of Zeus and Persephone ; a chthonic or underworld aspect of Zeus; or the twice-born son of Zeus and the mortal Semele . The Eleusinian Mysteries identify him with Iacchus , the son or husband of Demeter . Most accounts say he was born in Thrace, traveled abroad, and arrived in Greece as a foreigner. His attribute of "foreignness" as an arriving outsider-god may be inherent and essential to his cults, as he

#571428