The 'Orphic' Gold Tablets and Greek Religion

The 'Orphic' Gold Tablets and Greek Religion PDF

Author: Radcliffe G. Edmonds

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2011-01-06

Total Pages: 397

ISBN-13: 0521518318

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Examines new methodologies used in the study of these tablets. Includes an updated edition and translation of the tablet texts.

Instructions for the Netherworld

Instructions for the Netherworld PDF

Author: Alberto Bernabé

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2008-01-30

Total Pages: 391

ISBN-13: 9047423747

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Orphic gold tables are key documents for the knowledge of rites and beliefs of Orphics, an atypical group that configured a highly original creed and that influenced powerfully over other Greek writers and thinkers. The recent discovery of some tablets has forced a noteworthy modification of some points of view and a review ofthe different hypothesis proposed about them. The book presents a complete edition of the texts, their translation and some fundamental keys for their interpretation, in an attempt at updating our current knowledge on Orphic ideas about the soul and the Afterlife stated in those texts. The work is improved with an appendix of iconographic annotations in which some plastic representations in drawings are reproduced related to the universe of tablets, selected and commented on by Ricardo Olmos.

Redefining Ancient Orphism

Redefining Ancient Orphism PDF

Author: Radcliffe G. Edmonds III

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2013-11-07

Total Pages: 465

ISBN-13: 1107038219

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In a paradigm shift, this book redefines Orphism as a polemical label for extra-ordinary religion, good or bad.

Ritual Texts for the Afterlife

Ritual Texts for the Afterlife PDF

Author: Fritz Graf

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2007-06-11

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 1134119674

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Fascinating texts written on small gold tablets that were deposited in graves provide a unique source of information about what some Greeks and Romans believed regarding the fate that awaited them after death, and how they could influence it. These texts, dating from the late fifth century BCE to the second century CE, have been part of the scholarly debate on ancient afterlife beliefs since the end of the nineteenth century. Recent finds and analysis of the texts have reshaped our understanding of their purpose and of the perceived afterlife. The tablets belonged to those who had been initiated into the mysteries of Dionysus Bacchius and relied heavily upon myths narrated in poems ascribed to the mythical singer Orpheus. After providing the Greek text and a translation of all the available tablets, the authors analyze their role in the mysteries of Dionysus, and present an outline of the myths concerning the origins of humanity and of the sacred texts that the Greeks ascribed to Orpheus. Related ancient texts are also appended in English translations. Providing the first book-length edition and discussion of these enigmatic texts in English, and their first English translation, this book is essential to the study of ancient Greek religion.

Myths of the Underworld Journey

Myths of the Underworld Journey PDF

Author: Radcliffe G. Edmonds, III

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2012-09-13

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781107407305

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Plato, Aristophanes, and the creators of the "Orphic" gold tablets employ the traditional tale of a journey to the realm of the dead to redefine, within the mythic narrative, the boundaries of their societies. Rather than being the relics of a faded ritual tradition or the products of Orphic influence, these myths can only reveal their meanings through this detailed analysis of the specific ways in which each author makes use of the tradition.

Orpheus and Greek Religion

Orpheus and Greek Religion PDF

Author: William Keith Guthrie

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 1993-10-10

Total Pages: 354

ISBN-13: 9780691024998

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The tales told of Orpheus are legion. He is said to have been an Argonaut--and to have saved Jason's life. Rivers are reported to have stopped their flow to listen to the sounds of his lyre and his voice. Plato cites his poetry and Herodotus refers to "practices that are called Orphic." Did Orpheus, in fact, exist? His influence on Greek thought is undeniable, but his disciples left little of substance behind them. Indeed, their Orphic precepts have been lost to time. W.K.C. Guthrie attempts to uncover and define Orphism by following its circuitous path through ancient history. He tackles this daunting task with the determination of a detective and the analytical rigor of a classical scholar. He ferries his readers with him on a singular voyage of discovery.

The Gold Leaves: (Being an Account and Translation from the Ancient Greek of the 'So-Called' Orphic Gold Tablets)

The Gold Leaves: (Being an Account and Translation from the Ancient Greek of the 'So-Called' Orphic Gold Tablets) PDF

Author: Edward Jenner

Publisher: Atuanui Press

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 162

ISBN-13: 9780992245375

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"The Gold Leaves is a study of ancient (c.400BC-300AD) verses, often fragmentary, incised on fragile gold leaves that have been found (and continue to be found) buried in graves and tombs in the culturally Greek parts of the Mediterranean world. These leaves have been placed carefully, perhaps on the chest, or in the mouth or in the hand, of the body. The leaves are messages designed to guide the souls of the dead on their journey to immortality and paradise. With this book Jenner aims to bring the Leaves to the attention of the reader who has no background in the Classics or ancient Greek but shares an interest in pre-Christian ideas about the soul, the Underworld and the afterlife." --Publisher's description.

Inner Purity and Pollution in Greek Religion

Inner Purity and Pollution in Greek Religion PDF

Author: Andrej Petrovic

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2016

Total Pages: 354

ISBN-13: 0198768044

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Was Ancient Greek religion really 'mere ritualism'? Early Christians denounced the pagans for the disorderly plurality of their cults, and reduced Greek religion to ritual and idolatry. This work argues that there was an important place for belief in Greek rituals, examining notions of inner purity and pollution as a manifestation of such belief.

Greek Religion and Society

Greek Religion and Society PDF

Author: P. E. Easterling

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1985-06-13

Total Pages: 270

ISBN-13: 9780521287852

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This collection of essays considers many aspects of Greek civil life and reveals how religion manifested itself in institutions, art and literature. Clarifies the more puzzling and elusive elements by tracing the attitudes that lay behind the manifold cults and customs.

Light and Darkness in Ancient Greek Myth and Religion

Light and Darkness in Ancient Greek Myth and Religion PDF

Author: Menelaos Christopoulos

Publisher: Lexington Books

Published: 2010-09-25

Total Pages: 326

ISBN-13: 0739139010

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Light and Darkness in Ancient Greek Myth and Religion is a ground-breaking volume dedicated to a thorough examination of the well known empirical categories of light and darkness as it relates to modes of thought, beliefs and social behavior in Greek culture. With a systematic and multi-disciplinary approach, the book elucidates the light/darkness dichotomy in color semantics, appearance and concealment of divinities and creatures of darkness, the eye sight and the insight vision, and the role of the mystic or cultic.