Greek religion midterm

Asklepios

the god of medicine and healing. One might pray, sacrifice or make a dedication to Asklepios for recovery from an illness. Many of the dedications to Asklepios that have been found are figures of body parts which the dedicator wanted Asklepios to give them health with. One might also pray to Asklepios if they wanted a child and were having trouble conceiving. Many of the sanctuaries of Asklepios would have dormitories for people to sleep in overnight, as it was thought that Asklepios might heal you in your sleep or give you a remedy in your dream.

Olympus

the highest mountain in Greece, located on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia. Notable as the home of the 12 Olympian gods. Usually used to indicate the mountain, but sometimes seems to be used to refer to the sky.

cella

the inner chamber of a Greek temple. Housed the cult-statue. In some places and at some times open to people, but in other cases only open to priests, functioning as a kind of "holy of holies." Often the cella was entered from a pronaos or vestibule.

prothesis

the laying out of the body of the dead during the funeral. This would be the first step in a Greek funeral. The body would be bathed, clothed, and a penny for the ferryman Charon would often be put in the mouth of the deceased. During this time there would be ritual lamentation: women of the household would sing dirges and if you were rich you might even hire professional mourners.

Storm god

the main Indo European god, who took on many different forms with each place to which Indo European culture spread. In Greek religion, this storm god was transformed into Zeus; in Roman religion, it is Jupiter, in India, Indra, etc. The appearance of the storm god in societies where the Indo Europeans spread seems to have in many cases supplanted a mother goddess of many societies. The storm god of the Indo Europeans goes hand in hand with the patriarchal, war-like culture that they brought along.

theoros/theoroi

sacred ambassadors, messengers sent out by the state which was about to organize a Panhellenic Game or Festival. Theoroi might also act as a city-states' representatives at an Oracle, such as the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi. The oracle would make some prophecy about the state to the theoroi, who would relay it back to them.

Brauron

sacred site on the eastern coast of Attica which was home to the Brauronia festival held for the goddess Artemis. The Brauronia was a key initial ritual for girls into adulthood. Attic girls between the ages of five and ten years, dressed in crocus-coloured garments, went in solemn procession to the sanctuary, where they were consecrated to the goddess. During this act, a goat was sacrificed , and the girls-performed a propitiatory rite in which they imitated bears ('playing the bears') while wearing bearskins. There was also an aspect of the ceremony called the 'shedding of the robe' which may have included naked dancing. The girls would then dedicate all of their toys to Artemis. This ceremony may have been symbolic of the girls letting out all of their childlike 'wildness' as they prepared to be 'tamed' for marriage. The bear symbolism obviously has to do with the fact that Artemis was the goddess of wild nature. There is a question among scholars about whether all girls of Attica would engage in the Brauronia ceremony or only some of them.

bloodless sacrifice

sacrifice carried out without the slaughter of any animal, often featuring grain offerings (e.g. in the form of a grain cake) instead. These sacrifices were most often associated with household cults, however, they could be practiced for a wide variety of things to a wide variety of divinities. Vegetarian groups like the Pythagoreans only carried out bloodless sacrifices (as well as libations).

theos

"god" in Greek. Refers to both particular divinities and the divine in general. Though Greek religion was polytheistic, "the gods" and "god" could be used interchangeably, with the latter not signifying monotheism.

do ut des

"I give so that you give." Highlights the fundamental contractual aspect of Greek religion. Greek religion based more on practice than on belief. You sacrifice or dedicate to the gods because they've given you something, to appease their wrath, or because you want something from them. Basis of dedications, votive offerings.

isonomia

"equal distribution." Refers to the parallel some structuralist scholars have drawn between the supposed equal distribution of sacrificial meat to the people of Athens, and the fact that Athens was a democracy of equal participation (for citizens). Structuralists make this parallel because they would like to see the religious order as reflecting the civic order. However, this analysis seems to be overly simplistic. Surely not all people in Athens got a piece of the sacrificial meat; moreover, even if they did, this would not reflect Athenian democracy, where only an exclusive class of male citizens could vote, run for office, etc.

neokoros

the attendant of a priest, who would help them carry out their religious duties. Also responsible for the cleanliness and upkeep of a sanctuary.

athanatos

"no death" in Greek. The Greek gods are athanatoi, meaning that they are immortal. Going hand in hand with their immortality was the fact that the gods did not eat human food, instead feeding on an ether called ambrosia, and the fact that they did not bleed, instead being made up of a substance called ichor. This is significant because though the Greek gods are often thought to be highly anthropomorphic, the Greeks were always clear to stress their great dissimilarities to mortal man.

asylia

"the right not to be stolen" in Greek. This was the status of everything inside the hieron or temenos, which was the property of the gods. To take anything from inside here was to commit a religious offense; even though things inside the hieron/temenos wouldn't always be guarded, it was understood that you would be cursing yourself were you to steal. From asylia also came the right of asylum in sanctuaries: anyone who sought refuge inside a sanctuary was considered sacrosanct and could not be harmed; to harm such person would be to commit a grave offense against the gods. Such people seeking refuge might be starved out, but they could not be forced out. An example of a violation of the right of asylum in a sanctuary: Cylonian slaughter.

Nomizein theous

"to acknowledge the gods by engaging in customary practices." First of all, this saying highlights the inescapably civic aspect of Greek religion: even though there were no established churches in ancient Greece, there was no separation of church and state and civic life and religious life were deeply intertwined. Secondly, this saying highlights the fact that Greek religion was very practice-oriented: gods were primarily acknowledged through external, public action, with interior belief taking on less of a role.

The Dark Ages

(c. 1200 - 776 BC) period which witnessed the collapse of Mycenaean civilization, the end of palace culture, the loss of literacy, and a steady population decline in the Greek world. It is in this period that the Homeric epics are thought to have been composed through the tradition of oral poets; thus this culture may be remembered dimly in the Homeric poems.

Minoan Civilization

(c. 3000 - 1450 BC) - first proto-Greek civilization which flourished on Crete. Had a palace culture centered at Knossos. We don't know a lot about the religion of the Minoans. We see religious beings represented in paintings, jewelry and mosaics. It seems to have been centered around a powerful female divinity, possibly a snake goddess or a mother goddess, especially evidenced by depictions of a female figure holding snakes in her hand. Male figures are hardly represented; the religion seems to have been centered around female goddesses.

Hellenistic Period

(c. 323-31 B.C.) - period of Greek history associated with the expansion of the Greek world after the conquests of Alexander the Great.

Classical Period

(c. 480-323 B.C). - period in Greek history associated with continued conflict with Persia, the rise of the Athenian empire, Pericles and his building program, the Peloponnesian war, and the Rise of Macedon.

Archaic Period

(c. 776 - 480 BC) period in Greek history associated with the rise and fall of tyrants,the rapid development of art and architecture, development of Lyric poetry, development of first philosophers/natural scientists, and the elaboration of important festivals such as: Panathenaia at Athens, City Dionysia at Athens, and the Panhellenic festivals at Delphi. Also sees the Persian Wars at the very end.

Mycenaean Civilization

(ca. 2100-1150 B.C.) This culture may be partly remembered in later myths of the "Age of Heroes." They were the first Greek speakers, bringing to Greece an Indo-European language system. Greek speakers (Indo Europeans) bring the worship of the sky/storm god. Many Indo-European cultures worshipped this sky god (Zeus, Jupiter, etc). A lot of divinities in the historical period are mentioned in Mycenaean Linear B tablets (these are palace accounts scratched on clay tablets); indeed most gods/goddesses already there by Mycenaean times (late Bronze Age). e.g. you get Poseidon, Dionysius (this is odd, because Dionysius is always portrayed as a newcomer). Some deities depicted in Linear B tablets fade from view or become mere epithets (e.g. "Enyalios," a Mycenaean god, becomes an epithet that Ares takes on).

Hades

- lord of the underworld -term "Hades" means "unseen" -he is the lord of the world you cannot see -brother of Zeus, husband of Persephone -also the god of metals (below the earth), so giver of riches -"Plutos": giver of metals

Hermes

-Apollo's brother -invented the lyre but doesn't use it -god of communication (like Apollo) but linked with deceit and persuasion -divine trickster and thief -messenger -multiples the herds -patron of athletes -god of transitions and travelers -helps mortals cross the boundaries of life and "escorter of souls" - leads souls after death onto Charon's boat -Hermes cthonios - divinity of the earth -very useful god for cursing an enemy, appealed to on buried curse tablets -associated with herms (which have already been discussed) -herma: a heap of stones herm - column associated with Hermes which mark a boundary (he's the god of transitions) -even in Linear B, we have an early Greek word we think connected with herms Would often have the head of Hermes on it and an erect phallus. Herms were thought to be (apotropaic) which means they would turn away evil.

dedication

-anything in principle could serve as a dedication -many sanctuaries built treasuries to house people's dedications -often record the name of the giver and sometimes the circumstance -sign of private piety but also public statement: everyone can see what you are doing -dedications as a sign of gratitude for what one has been given, but also votive offerings for something one wants to get. -highlights the contractual nature of Greek religion -most Greek art we have from dedications -dedications can be made from wood, terracotta, bronze, marble,

Hera

-final wife of Zeus; stays married to her though he has many affairs -she is also Zeus' sister -queen of the gods -the goddess of fertility -associated with weddings and marriage -associated with the virginity that one should bring to marriage - part of the contractual side of marriage: you want your wife to be a virgin -associated with separation, conflict (jealousy), inversion (then restoration) of order -epithet: teleia (perfect/accomplished), because marriage is the greatest accomplishment for women -goddess of contractual, institutional side of marriage -sacred marriage (hieros gamos) = her marriage -this marriage/sexual union with Zeus brings a large force to nature, brings forth fruits of the earth -interestingly, not a very motherly goddess, not invoked as mother -all sorts of female divinities associated with marriage: Artemis, Aphrodite, Peitho, Demeter

Hephaestus

-frequently associated with Athena in myth and cult -helps bring Athena to birth in some versions of myth -also partly responsible for creation of first Athenian (the myth of Erichthonius) Athena visited the smith-god Hephaestus to request some weapons, but Hephaestus was so overcome by desire that he tried to seduce her in his workshop. Determined to maintain her virginity, Athena fled, pursued by Hephaestus. He caught Athena and tried to rape her, but she fought him off. During the struggle, his semen fell on her thigh, and Athena, in disgust, wiped it away with a scrap of wool (ἔριον, erion) and flung it to the earth (χθών, chthôn). As she fled, Erichthonius was born from the semen that fell to the earth. Athena, wishing to raise the child in secret, placed him in a small box. -the blacksmith god (like Athena, he works with technology) -creator of armor of Achilles -creator of magical automata -can be seen as a magician -can give you protection and help you bind your enemies through magical means -associated with fire (fire of the forge, also volcanic eruptions) -also a disabled god: sometimes seen with a crutch or foot in wrong direction why a disabled god? rest of the gods are like aristocrats; Hephaestus symbolizes the low status of the crafts

Poseidon

-god of the sea, lord of the deep -very ancient god (appears in Linear B) -ambivalent power: sea is crucial for Greek civilization but sea also a great threat -master and helper of fishermen -but also lord of the storm -also god of the earthquake ("earthshaker") -recipient of bull sacrifices -also lord of horses -represents elemental forces: violent sources of natural energy -violent forms of energy need to be tamed and civilized by man (bridles, ships)

Dionysus

-god of wine -associated with destruction of boundaries -comes from outside and turns things upside down -also god of enthousiasmos (enthusiasm) (enthousiasmos = "god inside you") -god of madness and ecstasy ("standing outside yourself") -always portrayed by the Greeks as a newcomer god but we know from Linear B that he is very old

Hestia

-goddess of the hearth (family, communal center) -symbolizes the community of the family -just as Hermes moves back and forth, she is stationary, immobile -every house had a hearth and every city had a sacred hearth -when babies, slaves, new wives enter into the family, they are paraded around the hearth

(Pallos) Athena

-no idea what "Pallos" means -takes her name from Athens, probably -virgin goddess -worshipped principally in Athens at the Parthenon -warrior goddess (protects the city) -attribute is the aegis (breastplate) -also a goddess of technology/handicrafts -(Ergane): weaving, carpentry -cultivated olive is sacred to her -tremendously important for Athenian economies -represents the force of civilization, compare to Poseidon, Hermes, Ares -she is goddess of wisdom and intelligence

Ares

-the god of war -murderous savage (contrast with Athena) Zeus: "I hate you most of all the Olympian gods."

Apollo

-two important attributes are the lyre and bow -Some epithets of Apollo have associations with Asia Minor, and doesn't appear in Linear B, so maybe originally a Mesopotamian god. -often called "Phoibos" (Phoebus): this could mean "the brilliant one" or "he who instills fear" - we don't know how accurate these are. -At Delphi, (the major panhellenic sire for him) he's called pythios ("Pythian"). This is because he kills the Python, the dragon, when he comes to Delphi -also called alexikakos - which means " he averts evil; called apotropaios - he turns away evil -also archegetes - the leader -leader of colony foundation Apollo and the Lyre -what does it mean that he is the holder of the lyre? -stands for harmonious communication between human and divine -this is why he's an oracular divinity (i.e. speaks through oracle at Delphi) -worshipped with a cult hymn called the "paean" -the enchanting power of music through Apollo Apollo and the bow -darker, ambivalent side to him -can send plague but also healing, these are part of the same complex -he is the god of purifications: if you're polluted, he can purify you -called the "far-shooter" because his arrows can reach everywhere -protector god: though his arrows can fall upon you, they can also be turned upon your enemies. -he can come to save you but can also destroy you

hestia koine

the central public hearth of every city

bouphania myth

Athenian myth concerning the origin of animal sacrifice among men. According to one version: Originally, it was held, men were vegetarians and did not sacrifice meat to the gods, only the first fruits of their harvest. However, one day a farmer named Sopatros lay a grain cake on the altar, and one of his oxen came by and ate it. Enfuriated at this, he slaughtered the ox, but soon after, felt such terrible remorse that he exiled himself from the city. The Athenians consulted the Oracle at Delphi for what to do, and the Oracle told them to find the man to bring him back to perform a sacrifice whereby the pieces of the dead ox would have to be re-constituted in a parallel sacrificial offering. So the Athenians stitched up the dead animal and went through the motions of the sacrifice of killing the animals. They then held a murder trial, in which all who participated in the sacrifice were required to defend themselves. As this goes on, each person in turn blames someone else, until it is determined, in a kind of "comedy of innocence," that it is the sacrificial knife that is guilty. This knife is then convicted

Pheidias

Athenian sculptor of the Classical period. Responsible for designing the Statue of Zeus at Olympia - which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world - as well as the chryselephantine statue of Athena Parthenos in the Parthenon on the Athenian acropolis. Many of Pericles' works were commissioned by Pericles during large public building project using money from the Delian League treasury. Pericles' artistic works are significant because they represent the public nature of Greek dedications to the gods: building a cult statue dedicated to a divinity not only expressed one's piety to that divinity itself, but also to surrounding Greek city-states, who would be reminded of your city's religiousness every time they passed through.

Doric Order

Doric temples have individual sculptural panels on frieze. E.g. Thermon in Aitolia Begin around 7th century BC.

Prometheus

Greek Titan known, among other things, for his role in the establishment of the practice of sacrifice by humans in Greek mythology. According to Hesiod's telling of the story, when the gods were dining one day at Mekone, Prometheus carved up an ox for them to eat. He covered the good meat and entrails under skin (making it look like the less enticing portion) and he covered the bare bones with fat (making it look like the more enticing portion). He then asked Zeus to choose which one he wanted. Hesiod holds that Zeus knew Prometheus' trick; nevertheless, he picked the portion with the bones underneath. In his anger he cursed mankind: because of this, when man sacrificed to the gods, he was to burn them the bones and fat (i.e. the less enticing portion) while eating the good portion. This myth is an aetiology for Greek sacrifice and why in particular men get the better portion. Added to this myth is the fact that the gods don't appreciate meat anyway, but instead care only for the ambrosia smoke of the sacrifice being burned, which is what they feed on.

hiereus

Greek word for priest. According to Plato, a priest: 1) gives things to the gods in a way that pleases them 2) asks by prayers for good things 3) is a figure of solemnity in the community. Both men and women could be priests and no formal training was required, instead you would learn from tradition. Priesthoods were tied to particular sanctuaries and cults; they could be annual or lifelong. There was no idea of "pastoral" care for congregation in the Greek conception of the priesthood, and religious authority is diffuse, non-centralized. Priests would get a special share of the sacrifice. Priesthoods could be hereditary, appointed by the city, or bought. There were no requirements of chastity or total residence in the sanctuary, and a priest could live another life, say as a politician, while being priest. Priests would oversee law in the sanctuary, judging minor offences, and having the power to levy fines. They received offerings and would oversee and make deposits in sanctuary treasury. Priests would supervise sacrifice, places victim on altar, and says prayers over public sanctuaries. One other duty of the priest was to care for the cult statue. Other special privileges they might have were a (small) salary of the state or special seats at the theater.

Ionic order

Ionian temples have a single continuous sculptural panel on frieze.

funeral legislation

Since it was easy to see how a funeral could turn into a conspicuous display of wealth/family pride, sumptuary laws were often passed for funerals, to maintain public order.

Chryselephantine statue of Zeus at Olympia

Statue of Zeus designed by the Athenian sculptor Pheidias, which sat in the Temple of Zeus and was one of the seven wonders of the world. Chryselephantine means gold and ivory. Olympia became a huge panhellenic sanctuary due to the fact that the Olympic Games were held there. Pheidias supposedly used as his model the depiction of Zeus in Homer. Cult statues such as this one were the main feature of Greek temples, and dedicatory offerings would often be placed around them.

metope

The rectangular recessed spaces between the triglyphs on a Doric frieze are called metopes.

hieron

a "sacred space" set aside for gods/goddesses. This space is holy (in contrast to profane space). It is usually not marked by natural features, but sometimes features things like sacred trees. People are prohibited from doing certain things inside, due to the need for ritual purity. Banned activities include: sex, birth, death (no dung; no carrying out). A hieron would often have very particular local sanctuary regulations based on the place and the divinitie(s) worshipped within, often including things like gender or ethnic restrictions. In addition to other means of purification, one would have to purify by water before entering.

naos

a Greek temple. This is the dwelling place of the god (when that god is present as a cult statue). Cult statues were ambiguous, simultaneously being depicted as both divine and representational. The temple served as protection for the cult statue. Originally, statues were made out of wood or mud brick. It was not until the end of the 7th century that stone temples started appearing.

treasury

a building housed within a sanctuary for the storage of valuable dedication offerings of people at that sanctuary. Treasuries often take form of small temples and would be overseen by priests. At panhellenic sanctuaries, different treasury buildings were often dedicated by individual poleis, which would compete with each other for the most grand treasuries. A treasury would advertise the wealth and and piety of a city to which it belonged.

amphidromia

a ceremonial feast celebrated in Athens on the fifth or seventh day after the birth of a child. At this feast the newly born child was introduced into the family, and child received its name. The child would be carried around the hearth and then lain on the ground. Interestingly, brides and slaves who entered into the family would also follow this same initiation ritual of being paraded in circles around the hearth. The child was probably only given its name on this, the 5th to 7th day, because of high infant mortality rates.

stoa

a colonnaded shelter in a sanctuary which offered people protection from the sun and would often house shopping facilities. In these stoa might be sold things such as small animals for sacrifice, dedicatory offerings, etc.. One famous stoa was the Stoa of Zeus in Athens.

peristyle

a columned porch or open colonnade in the temple surrounding a court which contains an internal garden.

ritual

a complex of actions effected by, or in the name of, an individual or community

genos

a group claiming descent from a common ancestor, in many cases in Greek society, a mythical ancestor to which a certain set of families could trace their origin. In the context of Greek religion, hereditary priesthoods were often passed down through certain genos which they had to stay within. Many hereditary priests of a genos would hold their office for life. In Athens, with the establishment of democracy, hereditary priesthoods were greatly diminished, as they were seen as a vestige of aristocracy.

Polytheism

a plurality of gods and cults worshipped at the same time, in the same place, by the same community. In Greek polytheism, divinities coexist, unless one is threatened or ignored. IIn addition to there being many gods, individual gods and worshipped under many epithets; epithets represent different aspects of the god, which all need to be considered separately. There were literally hundreds and hundreds of gods--some local, some panhellenic--in Greek religion, with everything from the 12 Olympian gods to the sprites and nymphs of the forest to the gods of particular streams being worshipped. Indeed, as Thales said, "The world is filled with gods."

opisthodomos

a porch at the rear of the Greek temple, set against the back wall of the cella. Access to this could sometimes be barred, with it serving as a kind of "holy of holies"

temenos

a sacred area, everything within which is the property of the gods. Means something "cut off" in Greek, because the temenos is cut off from its profane surroundings. A temenos could be marked by a boundary wall or boundary stones, but it need not be. All Greek temples, altars, and other religious buildings would be inside a temenos, but a temenos also need not enclose any human artifact. It could also enclose things like sacred forests or springs. A temenos could be devoted to one god or multiple divinities. Inside the temenos, one could seek asylum, meaning that one was granted sacrosanctity and it would be a religious offense to harm that person. One could not legitimately enter the temenos if one was "polluted" and people would have to be made ritually pure in various ways before they entered.

alsos

a sacred grove sometimes in or associated with the temenos.

Olympia

a sanctuary in Elis on the Peloponnese famous for being the site of the Olympic Games. As site of the Olympics, which were held in honor of Zeus, Olympia was home to both the altar of Zeus - a giant ash mound accumulated from generations of sacrifice - and the Temple of Zeus, housing the statue of Zeus of Olympia, which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Olympia is just one example of a sanctuary where many cultural and sports activities went on within sacred space, being home to things like racetracks, stadiums, and theaters. Because it was home to the Olympic Games, Olympia became one of the biggest panhellenic religious sites besides Delphi.

daimon

a term which sometimes referred to a god, sometimes just a vague superhuman force, sometimes an intermediary being between gods and men. Later on, a daimon could refer to a kind of personal protector spirit, much like a guardian angel. In stoic philosophy, daimon even came to be seen as a kind of interior principle that one must cultivate The key thing is that daimon could be both positive and negative forces which had the power to intervene in human affairs.

choai

a type of libation where one would pour the entire drink out to the god(s), either on the ground or on an altar. Unlike regular libations, choai also did not feature alcoholic beverages.

bomos/bomoi

altars for "ouranic" divinities, where sacrifices would be directed upward towards the sky. Since the ouranic deities were in the sky, for the offerings to be visible to them and for the savor of the burnt offerings to reach them their altars had to be outdoors. Altars of the ouranic deities were also oriented towards the east. Offerings to ouranic deities were made before noon, often at dawn, and as he performed his rituals the priest would be looking towards the rising sun.

triglyph

an architectural term for the vertically channeled tablets of the Doric frieze, so called because of the angular channels in them, two perfect and one divided, the two chamfered angles or hemiglyphs being reckoned as one. The rectangular recessed spaces between the triglyphs on a Doric frieze are called metopes. The raised spaces between the channels themselves (within a triglyph) are called femur in Latin or meros in Greek. The triglyph is largely thought to be a tectonic representation in stone of the wooden beam ends of the typical primitive hut, as described by Vitruvius and Renaissance writers. The wooden beams were notched in three separate places in order to cast their rough-cut ends mostly in shadow. Greek architecture (and later Roman architecture) preserved this feature, as well as many other features common in original wooden buildings, as a tribute to the origins of architecture and its role in the history and development of man.

kanephoros (basket carrier)

an honorific office given to unmarried young women in ancient Greece, which involved the privilege of leading the procession to sacrifice at festivals; the highest honour was to lead the pompe (πομπή) at the Panathenaic Festival. The role was given to a virgin selected from amongst the aristocratic or Eupatrid families of Athens whose purity and youth was thought essential to ensure a successful sacrifice. Her task was to carry a basket or kanoun(κανοῦν), which contained the offering of barley or first fruits, the sacrificial knife and fillets to decorate the bull, in procession through the city up to the altar on the acropolis.

sacrifice

an offering of something up to the gods through a ritual, usually on an altar. The primary forms of Greek sacrifice were animal slaughter and libations; however, bloodless grain offerings were also common. Sacrifice can be seen as a fundamentally human action: the gods neither ate meat or sacrificed, the animals killed and ate meat but didn't have the understanding for sacrifice, and man occupies a position somewhere in between the gods and the beasts. An animal sacrifice would always be performed at an altar, whereas a libation could be poured almost anywhere. In an animal sacrifice, the smoke from the meat (which would be cooked over the altar) was what pleased the gods and what they consumed. The humans carrying out the sacrifice would often have a feast on the remaining meat, unless carrying out a holocaust offering. Central also to animal sacrifice was bloodletting the animal on the altar. Sacrifice was essentially a sign of gratitude, appeasement, or petition of the gods.

perirrhanterion

basin of water which often stood at the entrance gate of a sanctuary, where the worshipper seeking to enter would wash himself, purifying himself from pollutions before he entered the sacred space. Sprinkling the water from the perirrhanterion on oneself would not eliminate the more serious pollutions of association with the dead and of murder, for example, but it would suffice for the accumulated "dirt" of the day.

peribolos

boundary wall of a temenos. This wall, often but not always made of stone, separated the profane from the sacred space.

aegis

breastplate that Athena carries, signifying her attribute of being a warrior and a protectress.

Dedication of Mantiklos

bronze figurine dedicated to Apollo at Thebes in Boeotia by a man named Mantiklos. Dedicated as a tithe to Apollo, in exchange for which Mantiklos expects some good favor in return. Great example of the do ut des formula.

sacrificial calendar

calendars concerning the dates of specific sacrifices to specific divinities inscribed and set up for public view in a city-state. Meant to tell everyone, both citizens and outsiders, what type of religious events are going on in society. This writing marks a public commitment of your community, which others can see, and is therefore a source of pride. Sacrificial calendars usually fixed dates and costs, and identified the recipient and nature of the offering, but were not complete guides to sacrifices (i.e. traditional usage is not recorded, left to collective memory).

Arrhephoria/arrhephoros

ceremony in Athena whereby 2 or 4 young girls would carry secret (possibly sexual?) objects to the shrine of Aphrodite. This is an initiation ritual into adulthood for girls, maybe into sexual maturity. For example, some have speculated that these secret objects might be phalluses. So i.e. this would be an initiation into sexual life.

Apatouria

ceremony in Athens by which new members were entered into a phratry. This festival was fundamentally concerned with the legitimacy of the citizen body, as one claimed one's citizenship through membership in a phratry. This festival was part of a boy's initiation into adulthood and out of childhood. At this ceremony, the other members of the phratry would swear an oath that the young man (16 years old) being entered into the phratry was a legitimate of his father, thus citizenship would be policed. As a symbol of his initial, a boy would dedicate a lock of his hair. At this ceremony, an adult phratry member who had married within the past year would also inform the group of this and make a sacrifice for it.

apothetai

chasm on Mt. Taygetus into which unwanted Spartan babies would be thrown. Archaeologists have found bones of children here. Bones of adults have also been found in the chasm, as apparently criminals could also be thrown in.

paean

cult hymn sang to Apollo. Associated with Apollo's enchanting power of music through the lyre. Expresses triumph or thanksgiving.

theodicy

divine justice. Used to refer to a theological attempt to reconcile god/the gods' existence with the problem of evil. The problem of evil, in its monotheistic form, is thus: if god is all good, all knowing, and all powerful, why is there evil? It would seem that if he...etc. However, the problem is slightly different (maybe less of a problem?) for the Greek gods, since they are often depicted as not omniscient or omnipotent. Nevertheless, there were various attempts by Greeks to deal with this problem. One solution, proposed in the Odyssey, is that it is only through human folly that evil comes into existence. However, people such as Euripedes emphasized the extent to which evil seems to happen by chance, with bad things often happening to good people, and good things to bad people.

propylon

entrance to a sanctuary defined by a monumental gateway. When these gateways were grand and impressive, they were called propylaia, such as the Propylaea on the acropolis at Athens. This gateway marks the transition between profane and sacred space.

Athena Ergane

epithet of Athena relating to her attributes of weaving and carpentry.

Anthesteria

festival for the dead which had Dionysiac elements. May have been analogous to Halloween in that the dead may have been imagined to wonder freely. So pre-cautions had to be taken against the wandering dead (e.g. doorposts were coated with pitch, buckthorn was chewed) as apotropaic actions. Grain offerings would be offered to Hermes chthonios to propitiate the dead, at the end of which, the spirits would be told to "Go away!" Significant because it represents the fact that for the Greeks, the spirits of the dead were an ambivalent force for the living that could cause great harm.

Genesia

festival which seems to have been performed by children for their parents or more distant ancestors. Consisted of mourning, libations, and holocaust offering of a piglet. Seems to have been carried out for the purpose of propitiating ancestors, to make sure they were kindly disposed to you. This festival is a way for the state to get involved with ritual surrounding death.

Myrrhine

first priestess of the cult of Athena Nike at Athens. We get this information from her epitaph. She was chosen for this priesthood by lot, but since the name "Myrrhine" means 'myrtle,' and myrtle crowns were often worn by priestesses, this was taken as a divine sign that she had been chosen by the gods to hold the priesthood.

homology

fundamental similarity between two things based on common descent. In the case of Greek religion, structuralists will often try to draw out homologies between Greek religious practice and civic practice, because they see the religious order as reflecting the social order. For example, many have tried to draw a homology between the "equal distribution" (isonomia) of sacrificial meat and the equal distribution of political power to citizens in Athens. Another homology that has attempted to be drawn is between women's place in the social order and their place in the religious order, with structuralists arguing that in both their participation was virtually nothing.

Hymen

god of the wedding ceremony and marriage festivity. Often shown holding a torch. The hymenaios was a processional hymn sung to hymen during the wedding.

Eileithyia

goddess of childbirth and labor pains. She would be called upon and worshipped during the time of pregnancy or during childbirth, to help "release" the child from the womb.

Aphrodite

goddess of sexuality and desire associated with the Semitic goddess Ishtar/Ashtarte (thus her cult probably reached Greece from the East) Greek iconography shows her clothed until mid-4th century BC associated with the sexual side of marriage (whereas Hera more concerned w/ contractual aspect) the dark side: uncontrolled sexuality threatens the marriage bond

anthropomorphism

human-like, human-depicted. The Greek gods were often depicted with human forms, and the behaviors, feelings, and desires they had were essentially human ones. This conception of the gods was largely influenced by Homer and Hesiod, whose works portrayed the drama of the lives of the gods as motivated by essentially human concerns, just with a heavenly twist (e.g. the gods speak and interact with each other as we do, they experience human passions and pain, have individual personalities, are not omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent). However, it was not always the case that gods were depicted anthropomorphically: in Greek art there were many aniconic depictions of divinities, such as on herms or masks. Moreover, it is hard to be sure the extent to which individual Greeks actually thought of the gods as literally having human forms; the extent to which they did so probably varied widely, due to the de-emphasize on particular belief in Greek religion.

Hymn of the Kouretes

hymn sung by a Cretan cult of the young Zeus, featuring a conception of the god somewhat different from the norm. The hymn contains the typical features of an invocation, narrative (with implied praise) and petition, also including a refrain. The Kouros must be be Zeus worshipped as Diktaios ('of Dikte') and the narrative alludes to the story found in the Theogony that Zeus' mother Rhea saved her youngest child from his cannibalistic father and gave him to the nymphs to be brought up in a cave in Crete. The yearly celebration alluded to here probably commemoration the birth of Zeus, who is called 'greatest' Kouros as leader of the Kouretes, the deities whom he comes leading. The word rendered as 'leap' is sometimes used of the birth of the gods; an alternative meaning, to mount or impregnate, seems perhaps less appropriate given the mythological reference. At all events the leaping indicates a blessing on the community's affairs: the presence of Zeus is invoked into agricultural, human, and political enterprises.

xoanon

image of a god, particularly a cult statue. Later gets the specialized meaning of a wooden statue. Some examples of xoanon would be the olive wood statue of Athena Polias at Athens and the wooden "statue" of Hera at Samos. Speculation over whether these were meant to be iconic vs. anthropomorphic, and whether the development of Greek cult statues from aniconic to iconic represents a "progression."

cultus

in Latin, "worship." Comes from the verb cholere which means "to look after, to make an object of devotion." It is from this that we get our modern word "cult." However, whereas we tend to associate the word "cult" with particularly strange or unordinary practices of sects, its original meaning was much more expansive. A "cult" in the original sense was any kind of system of worship, with no negative connotations.

religio

in Latin, originally means "binding/tying up." However, it comes to take on the meaning of an "obligation" with respect to the divine. This obligation can either be a prohibition, or a positive practice one carries out. Tertullian, an early Christian, said that "Christianity was the true religio," and Christian culture since then tended to follow that assessment. This implies that all other forms of religio are false, and hence a shift in the word's meaning. Of course, we get our word "religion" from religio.

exegetes/exegetai

interpreters of sacred law. These were unofficial experts in ritual who could inform one on proper conduct. There was no institution one would go to to learn sacred law; it was simply passed down through tradition.

kourotrophic/kourotrophos

literally "the child nurturer," this female figure appears frequently in cult all over Attica, usually as the recipient of a small victim such as a piglet in connection with other deities receiving more major offerings. She is sometimes, not always, identified with the Earth, but remains essentially independent of the mythological system of deities.

eschara/escharai

low-lying structure with an opening to bare earth. Libations of water, milk, honey, were poured into these. These altars were for divinites thought to dwell in or beneath the earth, and presumably, the offerings were thought to seep down into the earth to their recipients.

sponde/spondai

means "truce or peace treaty" in Greek. This is the word for libations. Libations were liquid offerings poured onto an altar or on the ground as a sacrifice to the gods. They could be poured on occasions such as the start of meals, at arrivals and departures, at the signing of a treaty or swearing of an oath. spondai libations are also contrasted to choai libations: whereas with the former, only part of the drink would be poured, with the latter, all of it would be poured.

Athena Nike Decree

motions and decree of Athenian assembly reorganizing the cult of Athena Nike. Various proposals by people are gone through. Highlights the inescapably civic nature of Greek religion: the state here is in charge of this cult. No separation of church and state. Priestess seems to be chosen by lot, receives honorific portion of sacrifice.

Epithets

names attached to a divinity's general name, representing particular aspects of that deity that must be worshipped in addition to general worship of that divinity. Epithets could be highly localized and specific, and one would pray to different epithets to obtain or seek redress from different things. If one needed a savior, one might pray to Zeus Soter; if an Athenian needed help in battle, they might sacrifice to Athena Areia. It was important to consider all of a divinity's epithets, as failing to sacrifice to one after that attribute had done something for you in the past might prove disastrous to your well-being, as the deity would get angry. So for example, in Xenophon's Anabasis, he sacrifices to Zeus Basileus but forgets to sacrifice to Zeus Soter, and this causes him harm until he makes the required sacrifice.

Linear B

non-phonetic writing system of the Mycenaean Greeks. First proto-Greek script, with Indo European roots. Seems to have been primarily used in the Mycenaean palaces by scribes, for conveying things like inventories and receipts. From the Linear B script, which was decoded in the 1950's by Michael Ventris, we see that many of the 12 Olympian gods of the historical period were already worshipped in the Bronze Age (e.g. Poseidon, Dionysus, Zeus). We also see deities in Linear B that fell out of being worshipped in the historical period or became epithets of other divinities (e.g. Enyalios). This has provided many previously unknown insights into the Greek gods: for example, though Dionysus was always presented as an outsider and the "new god," he is present in Linear B from the beginning; in contrast to Apollo, who is not present and seems to have been imported from the Near East.

ephebic oath

oath of loyalty to the state in Athens that men would swear after becoming citizens and before they started on their two year program of military training in the ephebeia. What is significant about this oath is that it entwines loyalty to the state and loyalty to democracy in particular with loyalty to the gods, so that if one offends against either of these one is offending against the gods. Now, the gods never said anything about which type of government was better or worse, but the Athenians, in this decree, are basically confirming that the gods are on the side of their democracy.

first fruits offering

offering of the bests of one's agricultural harvest or one's flock of animals to a deity, either as part of a vow or out of gratitude. Central to the first fruit offering was the idea of returning part of something which had already been gracious granted to one. Priests might also receive portions of the first fruit offering for their service. One might also dedicate one's 'first fruits' of the spoils of war to a deity. In animal sacrifice, the first fruits would often also be defined as a portion of the sacrificial animal's hair that was cut off and thrown onto the fire.

trapeza

offering table associated with bloodless offerings.

altar

orifice on which one would sacrifice to the gods in a sanctuary. The altar was the most fundamental feature of the sanctuary and of Greek religion in general. Altars could be made of anything: ash/bone, stone, brick (e.g. the Altar of Zeus at Olympia was made of ash). In the earliest sanctuaries they were often centrally located, but came over time to be moved toward the east. Altars had to be located outside: they needed open air because upon them one would burn sacrifice for the gods, and the smoke would rise to heaven. The smoke itself would be what the gods consume and what pleased them, not the meat.

oracle mongers

people who knew by heart or kept written collections of oracles and could produce a text on demand, for a city or for a private individual, to suit almost any occasion.

seer/mantis

people who would divine things by reading the entrails of sacrificial victims or interpreting the flight of birds. Their function often led itself to political exploitation for obvious reasons. The divining might often occur when an animal was sacrificed on an altar, with its liver (or other body part) being examined for the folds and what they meant.

"Orientalizing" period

period in Greek history from around 730 to 630 BC associated with increased contact with other Mediterranean and Near Eastern civilizations. This period saw the introduction of the Phoenician phonetic alphabet into Greek culture, when literacy returned from the Dark Ages. It also saw the first Greek colonization efforts, the rise of the polis, and the development of the first stone Doric and Ionic temples.

bothros/bothroi

pit dug in the ground in which libations would be poured for cthonic gods or for one's dead ancestors. Gods to whom one sacrificed in the ____ might have associations with the underworld or the earth, such as Hades or Demeter. Holocaust offerings could also be carried out in a ____. ____have led some scholars to make quite rigid classifications of "Olympian" (to which one's offering went to the sky) and "chthonic" (to which one's offering went to the earth) however, these categories seem to have been more fluid, and different divinities could be worshipped as both Olympian and chthonic based on certain epithets.

Tartaros

place where the evil are punished after death in later Greek mythology.

Theogony

poem of Hesiod which describes the origins and genealogy of the Greek gods. The theogony was the main creation narrative of the Greeks, describing how the world was born out of chaos all the way to how the rule of Zeus over the gods came to be established. I should memorize the creation story; it will probably be on either the first part or the passage analysis.

psychagogoi

professional magicians who could call up souls of the dead. These could be used 1) to protect oneself 2) to avenge one's family 3) to take vengeance on someone you don't like. Psyche = soul.

pompe

refers to the procession stage of a sacrifice, where all of the people -- the women with the lustral water, the girls with the basket of barley concealing the sacrificial knife, the priest, the sacrificer, his assistants, the citizens -- would make their way to the sacrificial altar.

Erichthonius

relate the myth. All Athenians traced their descent to him. Thought of themselves as 'born of the soil' of Attica in this way. Symbolic: Greeks very tied to place, local custom, deep roots in Attica: blood and soil patriotism; no nationalism in Greek world because no Greek nation.

Kouros/kore

respectively, large male and female nude youth bronze or stone statues offered as dedications to the gods. These were on the more high-end/expensive of dedications. We are not sure whether they were meant to depict humans or gods/goddesses. These statues were dedicated very frequently, especially in the Archaic period.

Third and Ninth Day Rites

rites during a Greek funeral consisting of meals being prepared at the tomb.

Thirtieth Day Rites

rites during a Greek funeral which conclude the deep morning (at Athens, for example). As part of these rights, the grave is also visited monthly and "sweepings" are deposited on the grave.

holocaust

sacrifice in which the victim is burnt whole and given entirely to the gods, with no portion left over for humans. This type was employed primarily for certain hero-cults, cults of the dead, or deities with an underworld association. A particular difference was that the blood was made to flow onto a low altar (eschara), or a grave, or straight onto the ground, rather than onto the altar of the bomos type.

Zeus

sky-father; storm god (Indo European) -attribute: thunderbolt -father of gods and men. -Not just powerful, but can also build coalitions, society. -the archetypal monarch -can ensure justice but can also be harsh and tyrannical (e.g. when Prometheus steals fire from him) -guarantor of justice but not omniscient or omnipresent; this is how you can trick him -another important aspect is his sexual potency. Having sex w/ goddessess, nymphs, morals. Because sexual power is the power of generation that makes the universe continue. -people always become pregnant through him -even Zeus has local variations (e.g. Cretan Zeus: Theogony says Zeus was born on Crete, where he was hidden while he grew up so he could overthrow his father. -has a very particular cult on Crete (Hymn of the Kouretes - Sourcebook 5.5.2), connection w/ Cretan initiation ritual -one of the major cults was the Statue of Zeus at Olympia -this is where the Olympic Games took place -astonishing gold and ivory statues of Zeus made by 5th century sculptor Pheidias -supposedly used the model of Homer for Zeus -one of the wonders of the ancient world

Hesiod

some details about Theogony, Works and Days, etc, His poems influence on anthropomorphic conception of gods. Hesiod's and Homer's poems NOT SCRIPTURE, they contradict and you can disagree with them. Provides us much of what we know about Greek religious practice, including prayer, dedication, sacrifice, etc.

Homer

some details about the poems, dark ages, etc. His poem's influence on anthropomorphic conception. Homeric poems are NOT SCRIPTURE, could disagree with them. Provides us much of what we know about Greek religious practice, including prayer, dedication, sacrifice, etc.

epithalamium

song sung at the door of the marriage chamber in honor of the bride and groom.

votive offering

special kind of dedication given in response to a vow. Document piety and relationship w/ the deity. Donor expects reward; fundamental contractual aspect: I give you this, you give me this. Or you could make a vow: If you do this, I will dedicate this to you. Do ut des. Communicative but also public function: you are displaying your piety publically.

thank offering

special kind of offering whereby one thanks a divinity or divinities for something they have given that person.

funeral oration

speech given at public state funerals (e.g. for soldier) by one of the leading politicians of the day. A good example of this is Pericles' funeral oration in Thucydides.

ephebeia/ephebe

state institution in Athens organized to train freeborn youths between the ages of 18 and 20 for military and administrative service. The first year of training, which was devoted to sports and the acquisition of military skills, was carried out under camp conditions; the second year was taken up by garrison and other forms of guard duty. After completing his training in the ephebeia, a youth enjoyed all the rights and privileges of citizenship.

funerary lekythos

stele placed at gravesites that were often decorated with ribbons and gifts brought in baskets.

aniconic

symbolic or suggestive rather than literally representational

curse tablets

tablets buried in graves (so that the message could be carried to the underworld) invoking cthonic powers to curse someone.

Parthenon

temple on the Athenian acropolis designed by the Athenian sculptor Pheidias in the 5th century. Dedicated to Athena Parthenos, and housing the great chryselephantine statue of Athena.

ekphora

the period of a Greek funeral where the body is transported by pall-bearers or in wagon. This wagon would be followed by a procession of mourners. Followed by a deposition of the body at the burial site.

exposure

the practice of abandoning an unwanted child upon birth. The decision to expose a child was typically the fathers, although in Sparta the decision was made by the state. Children might be abandoned if they were physically deformed or if the economic burden would be too much for the family to bear. They would usually be left outside the city in clay pots, not actually killed by the parents, thus leaving the chance that they would be rescued by someone else. Passing the father's approval after birth can thus be seen as an 'initiation' ritual in Greek life.

frieze

the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. A frieze can be found on many Greek and Roman buildings, the Parthenon Frieze being the most famous, and perhaps the most elaborate. Ionian temples have a single continuous sculptural panel on frieze, whereas those of the Doric order are segmented by metopes.

'violence and the sacred'

theory of sacrifice put forward by Rene Girard. Girard held that sacrifice violence was the foundation of all human culture. Social violence focuses on an arbitrary victim, and this produces a great deal of anxiety. The anxiety from this violence and competition is offloaded by societies onto an arbitrary scapegoat, which serves as a social safety valve so that the society can let out all its violent energy on this and restore peace to the community. The elimination of the victim reduces the appetite for violence, defusing the crisis and restoring peace; thus it becomes sacred.

Corinthian order

towards end of 5th century. Stylized leaves on column

Foundation of the Olympic Games

traditionally used to mark the end of the Greek Dark Ages and the beginning of the Archaic period. The Olympic Games came to be one of the greatest panhellenic festivals of the Greek world. It was held at Olympia honor of Zeus and was home of the famous "Altar to Zeus," which was an altar made of ash piled up from all of the sacrifices to Zeus that had been burnt on that spot over the generations. Olympia was also home to the Temple of Zeus, which held the gigantic statue of Zeus Olympios, sculpted by the Athenian sculptor Pheidias, and one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

loutrophoros

vase which carried the special fountain which the bride and groom would use to bath with on their wedding day.

pronaos

vestibule at the front of a Greek temple, enclosed by a portico and projecting sidewalls. Often the cella was entered into from this vestibule.