Ch 2 11

Zeus

King of the gods in Greek mythology.

Fertile Crescent

A crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Israel, Palestinian Territories, Syria.

Orpheus

A legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth whose music could charm all living things and even stones.

Parsis

A member of a group of followers in India of the Iranian prophet Zoroaster.

Pantheon

A pantheon is the particular set of all gods of any individual polytheistic religion, mythology, or tradition.

Mithraism

An ancient Roman mystery religion centered on the god Mithras that was practiced in the Roman Empire from about the 1st to the 4th century CE.

Oracle

An oracle is a person or agency considered to interface with the divine to provide prophecies or insights, often found in temples in ancient cultures.

Asclepius

God of medicine in ancient Greek religion and mythology.

Poseidon

Greek god of the sea, earthquakes, and horses.

Hades

Greek god of the underworld.

Dionysus

Greek god of wine, fertility, and ritual madness.

Demeter

Greek goddess of the harvest and agriculture.

Gathas

Hymns composed by Zarathustra (Zoroaster) that form part of the Zoroastrian liturgy.

Pietas

In Roman culture, pietas referred to the virtue of dutifulness or piety, embodying a respect for the natural order socially, politically, and religiously.

Numina

In Roman religion, they are the divine powers or spirits that reside in natural objects and phenomena.

Ahura Mazda

In Zoroastrianism, the supreme god and the embodiment of good oppose the evil spirit.

Fire Ritual

In various religions, including Hinduism and Zoroastrianism, a fire ritual is a ceremony involving the creation of a sacred fire with specific rituals.

Venus

Roman goddess of love and beauty.

Roman Afterlife

Similar to Greek notions, but also influenced by Etruscan and later Christian ideas of the afterlife.

Anthropomorphism

The attribution of human traits, emotions, and intentions to non-human entities, like animals or deities.

Ethical Dualism

The belief in two fundamental principles, often personified as good and evil, in conflict with one another.

Jupiter

The chief deity of Roman mythology, god of the sky and thunder.

Platonic Dualism

The philosophical concept, originating in the ideas of Plato, that reality consists of two fundamental types of substance or reality: the physical and the non-physical (or the Forms).

Avesta

The sacred scriptures of Zoroastrianism.

Mystery Religions

These were religious schools of the Greco-Roman world for which participation was reserved to initiates. The belief in a better afterlife was often a core component, promising initiates a more favorable fate in the afterlife than conventional religion.

Greek Afterlife

Varied concepts, but often included realms like Elysium for heroes and the virtuous and Hades for most souls.

Greek Festivals

Various religious and civic festival days in ancient Greece which often included athletic, dramatic, and musical competitions.

Zoroastrianism Afterlife

Envisioned as the separation of the soul from the body, where the soul goes through a judgment process.