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ssherie_

Active member
I really want to learn and understand about the Greek mythological stories and gods and goddesses... but I just realized that I have been missing the point somewhat. I think of this as literature. It wasn't to them. It was part of their every day lives and was their "religion".

I want to understand this mindset a little more because I think it will help me as I go through and lear about the stories, gods and goddesses, monsters, etc.

This, at the moment, feels overwhelming. Do you guys have any advice as to how I can approach it?
 
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amygdalE

Active member
I really want to learn and understand about the Greek mythological stories and gods and goddesses... but I just realized that I have been missing the point somewhat. I think of this as literature. It wasn't to them. It was part of their every day lives and was their "religion".

I want to understand this mindset a little more because I think it will help me as I go through and lear about the stories, gods and goddesses, monsters, etc.

This, at the moment, feels overwhelming. Do you guys have any advice as to how I can approach it?
The big and eternal question for everybody to begin with; WHAT IS RELIGION? An old view: ti's a man's active relationship to a supernatural power which, I add, was personified. etc. Some such powers are destructvive, harmful. Response: seeking to propitiate it; begging to be spared, etc. Other powers are beneficial, thanked, etc., .... just as one is before a magnanimous king. // All in all, the operating gods come first; religion afterwards. Like myths, religions are elaborated and thus have their own history.
 

amygdalE

Active member
The big and eternal question for everybody to begin with; WHAT IS RELIGION? An old view: ti's a man's active relationship to a supernatural power which, I add, was personified. etc. Some such powers are destructvive, harmful. Response: seeking to propitiate it; begging to be spared, etc. Other powers are beneficial, thanked, etc., .... just as one is before a magnanimous king. // All in all, the operating gods come first; religion afterwards. Like myths, religions are elaborated and thus have their own history.
One necessary addition: after the personification of superhumanly powerful things and events [hence the gods], the ancients saw them as immortal, whereas humans are mortal. Typically the ancient Greeks, had the feeling of this tragic disparity and sought immortality. Hence the rise of various mystery [mysticism] religions, including the Eleusinian [...Kora and Dionysus... BREAD and WINE] Rites, which persist in the Orthodox and Catholic religions in the form of the Eucharist/Mass.
 
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k_tsoukalas

Moderator
It's a good point that learning about Greek Mythology is more than just learning the stories or learning about the gods and goddesses as a separate entity. It really helps to understand the mindset of the Ancient Greeks and what they sought from their religious practice. One thing that it took me a long time to understand is that these weren't just stories to them, they were part of their lives and their ways of seeing the world. It's been really hard for me to understand their mindset but I've been trying.
 
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amygdalE

Active member
It's a good point that learning about Greek Mythology is more than just learning the stories or learning about the gods and goddesses as a separate entity. It really helps to understand the mindset of the Ancient Greeks and what they sought from their religious practice. One thing that it took me a long time to understand is that these weren't just stories to them, they were part of their lives and their ways of seeing the world. It's been really hard for me to understand their mindset but I've been trying.
I like the phrase, "... and their ways of seeing the world". Lately I have been
considering the phrasing of the nature of their gods according to their mindset/perspective/frame-of-mind, in comparison to other mindsets. Result: A Greek myth-maker typically looked at a relationship between a presumed god and a human person, whereas, e.g., a Hebrew looked at a God-tribe relationship. [As God is by nature all-good, adversities among humans are due to their faults. Hence the myth of the JUST God, whereas the Persians posited a good god, Ahura Mazda, and an evil god, Ariman. The Greek PERSONALISM , and hence personal responsibility, will be evident in the Orphics and in Socrates' inquiries, to say the least.
 
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Mentions of Food in Greek Mythology

When I was in school, I remember learning about Greek Mythology in school and reading some of the myths and legends. I actually don't remember the specifics of the stories, but I was just thinking that I DO remember the food mentions! I came across this article when I was trying to research it online. I found it interesting:


These are some of my favorite Greek foods! Maybe that's why it was memorable...

Was Santorini Really Atlantis?

I am getting a big kick studying stories from Greek Mythology. The Lost Kingdom of Atlantis has always fascinated me, mainly because some speculate that it was a real place that no longer exists. Some speculate that the portion of Santorini that collapsed into the sea after the volcano erupted thousands of years ago was actually Atlantis. It's one of the theories, anyway. I heard there's even a museum to visit on Santorini about it!

Does anyone here know about this theory and the museum? I would love to hear your input. Are there any other places in Greece that might be Atlantis?

The Muses of Greek Mythology?

I have been studying more about Greek mythology lately and I bumped into information about the Muses. It seems like there is some conflicting information, especially regarding their names and functions. It could just be that there's not a lot online.

Can anyone recommend a good source to get Information about them, or maybe even a book I can read?

Most interesting stories of Greek mythology?

I have gotten into studying Greek Mythology. So far, I have looked into the story of Icarus and the War of the Titans. Does anyone have any advice for stories I should check out? On my list also is to read the Iliad and the Odyssey. I tend to like stories of adventure - the Icarus tale I found to be sad... but I would read anything.

I remember in school I had to read a book about Greek Mythology - I forget the name of it - but it had a bunch of stories in it.

Is Persephone the Greek goddess of spring?

I have been thinking abut the seasons and I bumped into Persephone. I find her story fascinating. Is she considered the goddess of springtime? I know that when she is with Hades that is when winter is, when she comes out from Hades to be with her mother, that is when the spring is. I had assumed it was Demeter's grief/joy that dictated the seasons, so I was a little surprised to read that Persephone was the goddess of spring, but perhaps that is true from the perspective that she represents spring?

With the change of seasons, I wonder which of the gods or goddesses represented this time of year. Do you guys know of any others that represent spring?
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