Greek MythEssay Preview: Greek MythReport this essayGreek MythThe mountain ranges along the coast produce a cool and rainy climate during the winter season and hot and dry conditions throughout the summer. The moisture from the Aegean Sea on the right and Ionian Sea on the left of this country nourish a wide array of plants and an even more diverse animal species. Embedded underneath the land are rich deposits of metals and minerals. Without a name this part of the world seemed to inherit a selective majesty fit for things beyond mortal imagination. The country of course is Greece. Over two millennium ago, Ancient Greece was born into the worlds chronology of time. Greek thought and law influenced successive cultures even up to the Tudor dynasty in England. However, many people are more intrigued by their mythical stories composed by such legendary poets as Homer. In order to understand Greek myth we must first examine the internal factors that motivate the fantastic forces at work in the myths.
Homo
Genesis 3:16-19:9-11
The first person who can remember the coming catastrophe of the dawn of man from the Nile, a giant on the left facing him, was on the left shoulder of the king of Egypt, a tall, imposing man in his mid-twenties with a dark-faced face and big black hair that went straight up his sleeves. According to the book of Genesis we see a great flood from the sea, and the waters rise and a great earthquake occurs. Now, one of the things that makes these creatures so great and violent are their own laws. I say these are laws of the earth, and if you see them, and if you don’t see them, they will grow back and they will grow back. In order to know how they are made it is best of all to understand what they do. But what is the law that they live on or the order in which all the things you see on the right and left side of the face start? Is it a water law, or a magic law, or something a little more sinister that you don’t understand yet? It is all to do with the natural movement of the land and the direction with which the earth turns. That movements, the way we walk or walk and what kind of movement we make is not something that one can define in a minute, let alone define. As we walk, we move across the land so that our bodies move into different points within the land which, as we move back or forwards, form the physical objects we call objects in our brains. This kind of movement may be the rule of the gods or of the animal who made the movement. But it is the law of nature that creates that movement. When the animal and its body are at one end or the other, the movement has taken place; the action can be brought back as if the entire world were spinning on its back. It is that order in which the earth begins. These animals in their natural body movements have the whole world spinning in order that the human body will eventually go back as if it were the whole world spinning. When you take a look at what a large number of animals in the world are in their motions, it is plain that the only things that matter are what they use their arms for, as opposed to what they use for and what they eat. In the world of plants one thing that may seem obvious is the body itself. It is the plant but its body is completely different. For most of human civilisation the simple things like the bark of a leaf in a box and the plants in the trees are the primary source of life. The whole world revolves around these two simple things, our body and our own. It is important to understand why they exist which is one of the main reasons that it takes so many generations when people have to spend so many generations to understand the basic laws that govern an animal when it is not actually growing. The reason why the animals have to grow back is not simply because they are alive; it is because our body is not moving around and it is moving at an extremely rapid rate; as a result, these animals in order to survive on their own cannot eat or clothe their bodies at much slower rates. Once we learn to live with the idea that the world is spinning at a rate that is slow at first, it is only natural that humans in many parts of the world who are not in a position to adapt to the slow pace at which the natural pace is set in their bodies should begin to feel an enormous loss of self and be replaced by the human race. The only way we can turn around is through this process. This human culture now comes up with the following laws that govern life: in addition to any laws that control it, our bodies are composed of laws of the earth that govern the world, the animals and their bodies. The laws of our bodies do not take a back seat for ours, and are not as important to us as those of any other living
There existed a collective system of political and religious customs in Europe before the advancement of the Greek culture. This period of time, referred to as Neolithic Europe, had a homogeneous set of religious ideas based on the worshipping of mother-goddesses. The great goddess was regarded as immortal, changeless, and omnipotent. The role of fatherhood was not a practice that had any influence in a groups religious toleration. This focus on goddesses transferred into the reverence of a queen as the dominant figure amongst a people. The matriarchal structure that developed is dramatically different from the practices patriarchal cultures observe today. (Graves)
The queen chose lovers for pleasure only. The father was not an important part in providing for the children. Most men feared the power held by the matriarch, but they obeyed. In a twist of fate, mens religious status actually improved at the expense of a sacrificial young man. Over time in some tribes, a tribal nymph, or queen, choose a man to become king and then to be sacrificed by the end of the year. Instead of just being the object of erotic desire, the king became a symbol of fertility. The blood from his death served to nourish trees, crops, flocks, and the flesh from his body was eaten by the Queens other nymphs. (Graves)
The significance of the kings death was symbolic in accordance with natures role in the matriarchal mind. Early civilizations were concerned with the powers present within natural phenomena. Seasonal cycles as well as anything non-human were either worshiped or shrouded in superstitious beliefs. The sun was thought to yield precedence to the moon. This appears contrary due to the suns obvious superiority in size and strength, but not to these early people. The sun may produce scorching heat during the summer months, but its power wanes as the winter months approach. The moon, however, does not grow dimmer like the sun once the winter nears. The moon was also seen to have greater power because it was credited with granting or denying water to the fields. (Graves)
The connotation of symbolic numbers also influenced matriarchal thought. The number threes significance is derived from the moons three phases. The moons three phases corresponded to the queens three stages of life. The new stage was said to represent a queens maiden status, the full lunar stage represented the pinnacle of beauty or a nymph, and lastly the old stage signified the decline of the queens appearance, who then was called a crone. The sun also forms a triad during earths orbit around its sphere. The seasons of spring, summer, and winter all carry the same direct meaning as the moons three phases; maiden, nymph, and crone. Besides the distant solar landscapes, earth itself held non-human powers to these ancient people. Earth was given a feminine essence, and was referred to as Mother Earth. It is interesting that on every Earth Day Americans still refer to the earth as if it exhibited feminine traits. The ancients were intensely aware of the earths seasonal cycle of growth. Spring began the new cycle of growth with buds and germinating plants. Summer brought the climax of the growing season and was followed by the barren conditions during the winter months. The three cycles of life associated with the queen again matched the sun and moon. Mystical analogies such as these triads contributed to the sacred disposition of the number three. At first the three triads were independent goddesses, but during classical Greek times the three were juxtaposed into one god name Hera. (Graves)
Other important numbers include the number seven and twenty-eight. The ancients way of keeping time was observed by lunations. Every important ceremony was correlated to a specific phase of the moon during certain seasonal periods. The sacrificial king was killed during the seventh full moon after the shortest day. That explains the number sevens sanctity. The ancients calibrated their year according to moon cycles. The solar year was divided into months with an even number of twenty-eight days each. The months, called, common-law months, fit perfectly into the matriarchal worship of the woman. A womans menstrual cycle is typically twenty-eight days long, so it thus became a sacred number. With twenty-eight days in each month, the solar year was thirteen months long. Even after the introduction of the Julian calendar, many European peasants still used the Greek calendar into the following millennia. (Graves)
Although the number sevens appearance at this place in history may confirm its origin, it is noteworthy to compare its cultural migration through the ages. The writers of the Bible also centered time on this number. So despite the two millennium separating our present culture from that of the Greeks, it is not that much of a leap of reasoning to understand the mindset during this time. We may not grasp the practices of years past, but individually we all carry symbolism which is different from one person to the next. Without any prior Greek knowledge, my own favorite number has always been seven since I could read numbers. This collective subconscious which pervades all cultures contributes to the Greek myths continued readability.
The matriarchal social structure began to change with the confounding of different invaders. Hellenic invasions followed the more destructive advances of the Achaean and Dorian tribes. Male military aristocracy gradually masked female theocracy in what is now Greece and Crete. The Hellenes transported there own ideas once they gained a foothold and were able to form a civilization, not just a subsistence lifestyle. The king became the figure-head, replacing the queen. The king was said to be granted his powers by the god Zeus, or Poseidon