Living the 'True Life'

I like the feeling of being useful. I like having goals and meeting them, be they mental or physical. I work long hours on projects that challenge me mentally, and I have fitness goals to fuel my body. I don't have a lot of spare time to do nothing, but I've found that doing nothing is a pretty terrible thing for my mental health anyway. I feel much better after a run than a day of lying about and playing video games. It's a state of mind the ancient Hellenes valued as well: they divided their time between education, philosophy, sports, combat training and,  of course, religious pursuits.

This type of life--a life in service of providing for your family and bettering yourself was called, by Latin poet Albius Tibullus (c. 55 BC – 19 BC)  the 'True Life'. His poem, The True Life is one of my favorite ancient writings. It always puts a smile on my face and relaxes me. I'd like to share parts of it with you today. The start first, as that's the part that relaxes me so much:

Let other men gather bright gold to themselves
and own many acres of well-ploughed soil,
let endless worry trouble them, with enemies nearby,
and the peals of the war-trumpets driving away sleep:
let my moderate means lead me to a quiet life,
as long as my fireside glows with endless flame.

If only I might now be happy to live with little,
and not always be addicted to distant journeys,
but avoid the rising Dog-star’s summer heat
in the shade of a tree by a stream of running water.

Nor be ashamed to take up the hoe at times
or rebuke the lazy oxen with a goad:
or object to carrying a ewe-lamb home
or a young kid deserted by its mother.

Then another reminder, one perhaps even more important than the one above, which serves as a reminder to be humble and grateful for what one has.

Gods, be with me, and do not scorn what’s given
from a humble table in pure earthenware.
The cups were earthenware the ancients made,
at first, themselves, from ductile clay.

I don’t need the wealth of my forefathers,
that the harvest brought my distant ancestors:
a little field’s enough: enough to sleep in peace,
and rest my limbs on the accustomed bed
What joy to hear the raging winds as I lie there
holding my girl to my tender breast,
or when a wintry Southerly pours its icy showers,
sleep soundly helped by an accompanying fire!

• Monday, April 10, 2017
  ancient Hellenic culture personal poetry blogging Roman Tibullus

PAT ritual announcement: the Olympieia

On April 16  Elaion wil host a PAT ritual for the Olympieia, in honor of Olympian Zeus. Will you join us at the usual 10 a.m. EDT?

 

Most worship of Olympian Zeus took place around or during the Olympic games in Olympia. In 550 BC BC, however, the tyrant Peisistratos (Πεισίστρατος) decided to build a temple to Olympian Zeus in Athens. The temple, which became known as the Naos tou Olympiou Dios (Ναὸς τοῦ Ὀλυμπίου Διός), was demolished by his sons, Hippias (Ἱππίας) and Hipparchos (Ἵππαρχος), after Peisistratos' death, but replaced by the foundations of a grander structure. Hippias was expelled in 510 BC, and the project abandoned for three hundred years. The project--which was epic in scale--was seen as hubristic and bad form. Aristotle wrote about it in his Politics:

"Another art of the tyrant is to sow quarrels among the citizens; friends should be embroiled with friends, the people with the notables, and the rich with one another. Also he should impoverish his subjects; he thus provides against the maintenance of a guard by the citizen and the people, having to keep hard at work, are prevented from conspiring. The Pyramids of Egypt afford an example of this policy; also the offerings of the family of Cypselus, and the building of the temple of Olympian Zeus by the Peisistratidae, and the great Polycratean monuments at Samos; all these works were alike intended to occupy the people and keep them poor." (Part XI)

The temple project was revived from 174 BC to 164 BC, when King Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who presented himself as the earthly embodiment of Zeus, changed the design and put builders to work. The project halted again after his death. What followed was a period of disarray with looting, some minor attempts at restoration, and lots of neglect, until the project was finally completed in the second century AD, by Roman emperor Hadrian.

In 267, the temple was badly damaged during the Herulian sack of the city, and very few--if any--attempt was made to restore it. By 425, the worship of the Hellenic and Roman Gods was banned by Christian emperor Theodosius II, and the temple was slowly dismantled for building materials.

Even in its half finished state, Peisistratus and those who came after him, held a festival at the structure: the Olympieia, celebrated on the 19th of Mounikhion. For how long the festival was celebrated is unclear, but it died out somewhere during the reign of Hellas--most likely after the death of the Peisistratidae--before being brought back in the second century BC, as the temple was completed. The festival was a military one and featured a procession and contests by the Athenian cavalry. Also attested are large scale sacrifices of bulls to Olympian Zeus.

You will find the ritual for the event here and you can join the community page here.

• Sunday, April 9, 2017
  Elaion festivals Olympeia Olympian Zeus PAT

Archaeogenetic research on Kretan DNA may shed light on the origins of European civilization

Researchers at the University of Huddersfield have visited Rethymnon in Crete, to collect samples from the late Bronze Age Necropolis of Armenoi, one of the world's finest archaeological sites. DNA analysis of the ancient skeletal remains could provide fresh insights into the origins of European civilization. This reports the Archaeological News Network.

Dr Ceiridwen Edwards and PhD student George Foody were permitted to take bone samples and teeth from over 110 of the more than 600 skeletons discovered in the Necropolis, a rock-hewn burial site from the Late Minoan period dating to more than 4,000 years ago. During their two-week visit, the Huddersfield researchers – part of a team that included colleagues from Oxford University and the Hellenic Archaeological Research Foundation – also took DNA swabs from more than 100 contemporary Cretans. They sought people whose grandmothers were from Crete in order to analyze links to the Minoan period.

When the ancient DNA samples are compared with those of modern Cretans, there is the potential to find solutions to many issues surrounding the ancient migration of people and culture to an island where the Bronze Age Minoans and their successors the Mycenaeans laid foundations for later European civilization and culture. George Foody:

"The Minoans are one of Europe's earliest civilizations and research will affect the interpretation of a number of fields – archaeological, historical and social."

For example, fresh light could be thrown on the migration of the Mycenaeans to Crete, and on the origins of the early script known as Linear B. Also, the DNA analysis might establish family relationships between the occupants of the tombs, and it might be possible to establish the presence of a high status dynasty.

"We are trying to establish family relationships within the necropolis itself, as well as see how the site compares to other Minoan sites, and compare it to sites in mainland Greece."

His PhD supervisor, Dr. Edwards, is Senior Research Fellow in Add to dictionary at the University of Huddersfield, which is home to the University's Archaeogenetics Research Group. It has fully-equipped modern and ancient DNA lab facilities and studies the geographic distribution of human genetic variation, aiming to address questions from archaeology, anthropology and history.

The Research Group is the recipient of a £1 million award by the Leverhulme Trust, under its Doctoral Scholarships scheme, which will train 15 new evolutionary geneticists. George Foody, from Cork in Ireland, is one of the second cohort of doctoral trainees, and his visit to Crete was part-funded by the Leverhulme Award. His PhD thesis will focus on the results of this research.

During her research career, Dr Edwards has studied DNA of archaeological samples from many species, including giant Irish deer, domestic horse, wild boar, domestic pig, brown bear, and red deer, dating from 1,000 to 40,000 years ago. Her specialty has been the study of aurochs, the ancestors of domestic cattle, as well as ancient cattle breeds.

• Saturday, April 8, 2017
  archeology current affairs modern Greece

On the gatekeepers of Olympos

I have a fascination with Gods we don't know much about, with Gods whose mythology is limited to  a single snippet that sparks the imagination enough to form a complete image of the deity in question, regardless. Two of those deities for me are Aniketos (Ανικητος) and Alexiares (Αλεξιαρης).

Aniketo and Alexiares are the sons of Hebe and Hēraklēs. Together, They guard the Gates of Olympos and presided over the defense of fortified towns and citadels. Their names mean respectively 'the unconquerable one' and 'he who wards off war'.  Little else is known about them. In fact, pseudo-Apollodorus, in his 'Bibliotheca' is the only one who makes sure mention of Them as far as I am aware:

"[Herakles] achieved immortality, and when Hera's enmity changed to friendship, he married her daughter Hebe, who bore him sons Alexiares and Aniketos. [2. 158]

Modern scholars mention Aniketos and Alexiares were probably the same as two boy-God sons of Herakles worshipped in Thebes (and Rhodes). I question this. I believe there might be confusion between Alexiares and Aniketos, and the Alkaidai--the sons/children of Alkaios/Alkeides. Herakles, from 'Hera' and kleos, 'glory', was born as Alkaios (Ἀλκαῖος) or Alkeidēs (Ἀλκείδης).

Due to Hera's jealousy this young Herakles was stricken mad and killed the five sons he had by his wife Megara. When he was released from his madness by a hellebore potion--provided by Antikyreus--and realized what he had done, he cried out in anguish, and went on a long journey to cleanse himself of the miasma caused by these killings. This resulted in his Twelve Labours. It also resulted in his name change. These sons were entombed and later worshipped with sacrifices as heroes at Thebes, under the name Alkaidai.

There is a very strenuous link that encourages the idea that at least Aniketos had a child--and grandchild. Clement of Alexandria, in his 'Recognitions' writes in a list of Zeus' adulteries:

"Hippodamia, the daughter of Anicetus (Aniketos)." [Chapter XXI]

No other mention is made of this Hippodameia, or her parentage, or whether or not she bore Zeus any offspring but, if her father Aniketos is the same as the son of Herakles and Hebe, it means that Zeus consorted with his own great-granddaughter, whose grandparents Hebe and Herakles were also his children. This makes the whole family tree very complicated, indeed, but not very surprising.

Aniketo and Alexiares are perfect examples of the tapestry that makes up the Hellenic pantheon. The major displays woven into it are undoubtedly of Zeus and Hera, of Their brothers and sisters, of their parents and well-known children like Apollon and Artemis. Aniketo and Alexiares are the embodiment of my firm belief that it's impossible to practice Hellenism and only worship one or a handful of Gods. One must invest in at least the pursuit of knowledge about every single God or Goddess in our pantheon to fully grasp the parts you thought you already understood. The fringes of the tapestry are just as colorful as the main display--and without these minor mythologies, the tapestry would not only be plain, it would be threadbare.

• Friday, April 7, 2017
  Alexiares Aniketos Hellenismos 101 Mythology 101 olympus personal

PAT ritual announcement: the Mounikhia

The Mounikhia (Μουνιχιας), the festival after which the month was named, is celebrated on the sixteenth of Mounichion. On this day of the full moon, Artemis Mounikhia (Αρτεμις Μουνυχια) was honored at the hill of Munikhia, for granting the Hellenes victory in the Battle of Salamis (Ναυμαχία τῆς Σαλαμῖνος).

During the festival, young girls walked in procession to the temple on top of the hill carrying green boughs, while the rest of the celebrants followed, carrying special cakes called 'amphiphontes' ('shining all round’). These round white cakes were adorned with dadia (little torches)--lit candle--and were supposed to represent the full moon. A she-goat is also attested as a sacrifice.

During this festival, an amphiphon was sacrificed to Artemis. It was a cheese pie on which candles were lit. Most likely, the amphiphon was a type of popanon; this is a large, round, flat cake with one or more, upright, protruding, knobs made from flour and cheese. The flat version of the cake, the popanon kathemenon was offered to Artemis, amongst others, as well as one with twelve knobs. We've seen this before for the Delphinia.

If you want to learn more about the festival and its history, please read this blog post.

To honour Artemis on this day, Elaion is organizing a PAT ritual. Will you be celebrating the Mounikhia with us? There will be two times: just after your dusk on12 April, or at our regular 10 a.m. EDT on 13 April. As always, we hope you will join us at your oikos to honour Artemis, our eternal protector. You can join the community page here and find the ritual here.

• Thursday, April 6, 2017
  Artemis Artemis Mounikhia current affairs Elaion festivals mounikhia PAT

Neos Alexandra publishes anthology in honor of Hestia

Neos Alexandria, a community for Greco-Egyptians, Hellenics, Kemetics, Romans, Neopagans and others interested in learning about the Gods, their ancient and contemporary forms of worship, and the Greco-Egyptian culture, has published a new anthology. This time it is about Hestia, and yours truly was roped into contributing:

"Goddess of Little Renown, But Lasting Prominence"

by Elani Temperance (page 154)

Edited by Terence P. Ward
Price: $12.99
Publication Date: 4 April 2017
Place of Publication: Asheville, North Carolina
ISBN: 978-1544055886
Pages: 218 pp
Binding Type: US Trade Paper
Trim Size: 5″ x 8″

"She is the First, and She is the Last. Eldest and Youngest Child of heaven and Earth. The Hearth at the Center of Creation. Few myths and rites for Hestia survive from the classical world. A Goddess primarily of the domestic sphere, She was so central to ancient beliefs and practices that the Greeks actually wrote down very little about Her. She simply Was. And Is."

And so we come to the purpose of this anthology: not just to present ancient material about the Goddess, but, more importantly, to fill in the gaps in belief, practice, and understanding which were not handed down through the intervening millennia. Within these pages, Her devotees recreate Her worship, craft new devotional practices, write new hymns and songs and even myths, develop new recipes, and create new artwork in Her honor.

Hestia remains highly revered and respected, and new devotees are finding their way to Her. As in ancient days, she receives both the least and greatest of offerings. May she never be forgotten.

First and Last can be purchased in paperback format from their online store, and will be available shortly through Amazon, and through Barnes and Noble. If possible, they would ask you to purchase it through Createspace since that will give Bibliotheca Alexandrina a higher portion of the royalties without changing the price for you. Why does that matter? Because all of the proceeds from First and Last – as well as many of the other volumes in the Bibliotheca Alexandrina series – will be used to help promote the revival of the worship of the Greek and Egyptian Gods, with a portion of the proceeds given to a worthy charitable organization in their name.  So, not only will you be getting a wonderful book about the modern worship of Hestia – but your money will be going to do good work and help the revival of ancient polytheistic religions.

ATTENTION Librarians, Teachers and Retailers: First and Last is also available at reduced cost for academic institutions, lending libraries (public and private) and retailers. Check their online store, or email baeditor@gmail.com with any questions.

• Wednesday, April 5, 2017
  current affairs Hestia Neos Alexandria personal

Greece or Hellas?

A question I get quite a lot is the question why I use 'Hellas' and not 'Greece' to describe the country of origin of my Gods. Even today the country is known abroad as Greece, while the Greeks call themselves 'Ellines' and their country Ellada or Hellas in English. The official name of the country is Hellenic Republic as it is written on Greek passports, however the ethnicity on the same documents is described as 'Greek'.

Greek Reporter interviewed Katerina Zacharia, a professor of Classics and Archaeology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA to find out how the term Greece came to be the country’s international name as well as the semantics of the different names of the country throughout its long history. Watch the videos below:

Dr. Zacharia is a renowned speaker on the subject of Hellenism as well as the editor and major contributor for the book “Hellenisms: Culture, Identity and Ethnicity from Antiquity to Modernity (Ashgate Variorum 2008).” She is also the author of “Converging Truths: Euripides’ Ion and the Athenian Quest for Self-Definition (Brill 2003)” is a Professor of Classics at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles. She holds a B.A. degree in Psychology and Philosophy and minor in Pedagogy, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Classics from University College London.

For clarity: I use 'Hellas' or 'ancient Hellas' to indicate ancient Greece and everything connected to it, and 'Greece' or 'Modern Greece' for anything concerning the present. That said, 'Hellas' is the preferred term for both, and I know that. It's simply clearer to use the terms like this on this blog because it differentiates so beautifully.

• Tuesday, April 4, 2017
  ancient Hellenic culture current affairs modern Greece