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Array
(
[sid] => 161038
[catid] => 1
[aid] => mick
[title] => THE ORACLE OF DELPHI
[time] => 2010-07-08 22:24:46
[hometext] => THE ORACLE OF DELPHI LIES BURIED IN PART MYTH AND PART GREEK HISTORY ! DO READ ITS WONDEROUS STORY !
[bodytext] => Friends , the Oracle at Delphi , is shrouded in part myth , part legend and part Greek History ! Kindly read its interesting story along with the Foot Notes ! THE ORACLE OF DELPHI : PART LEGEND PART HISTORY! LOCATION Nestled on the south western spur of the fissured hillside of Mount Parnassus, Overlooking the picturesque valley of Phocis; North of Gulf of Corinth in lower Central Greece; Lies Delphi, - the home of the ancient Oracle of Greece! LEGEND OF DELPHI’S ORIGIN And as an old legend goes, around 1400 BC, A goat herder had noticed that his sheep behaved rather strangely, After peering into a particular chasm in Mount Parnassus! And curiously enough when he had looked inside, He found himself ‘agitated like one frantic kind' ! The mysterious vapor emanating there was attributed to a Divine source! So a tripod* was set up and a virgin girl was chosen to sit in due course; By those ancient high priests, and to make divine forecasts, - Under influence of the mystic vapor as she went into a state of trance ! ** But one day the girl eloped with a Thessalian mate! So a priestess more than 50 years of age, was appointed from that date! PART LEGEND PART HISTORY Delphi became a major site of the classical Greek world, After Apollo slew the Python, a dragon snake who had conquered the world, - And at Delphi ruled over the ‘navel of the earth’! Delphi is the site of the Omphalos Stone - symbol of the center of the universe! # Where in the inner hearth of Apollo’s Temple an eternal flame forever burned! Legend has it that after Apollo killed the Python, He had set up the famous Oracle at Delphi as his very own! And the Pythian Games were held every four years to commemorate Apollo’s victory! This game also featured competitions for Music and Poetry! ! And later inspired the Olympic games as we read in recorded history! DIVINE FORECASTS People in those ancient times, suffered from insecurities like our modern times! Therefore, Monarchs, farmers and peasants - all alike, Went to Delphi to seek guidance and advice! They believed that Apollo had the answer to their problems and woes, And the Pythia became the sacred voice of god Apollo! *** The visitors first washed themselves in the cool waters of the Castalian springs, And on the holy altar sacrificed an animal as an offering! They also offered a ‘pelanos’ - Greek for a levy, For divine prophesy always came with a price tag, and was never free! Both questions and answers to the Pythia was transcribed by a male priest, As eye contact was forbidden with the Pythia , - Who was Apollo’s lady priest! FEW SAMPLES OF PROPHESIES The divine prophesies were at times ambiguous and cryptic, The individual had to interpret the meaning he desired to seek! In 440 BC the Oracle had pronounced that Socrates was the wisest of the Greeks; A meaning easy to understand and not difficult to seek! But in 560 BC when Croesus King of Lydia, Asked the Oracle if he should attack Persia, The Oracle said that if he did so, he would be destroying a Great Empire! So Croesus waged war and lost the battle! The empire was his own, which he failed to interpret! In 359 BC the Oracle told King Phillip II of Macedonia, That whoever tamed and rode his black colt Bucephalus, - Will one day conquer the world! His young son Alexander realizing that the horse dreaded its own shadow, Tamed and rode upon it to conquer Asia Minor and Asia, - which was centuries ago! In 303 AD Emperor Diocletian was told that the quality of the Oracle had declined at Delphi, Due to the corrupting influences of Christianity! The Emperor started his persecution of the Christians! And less said the better - since this animosity at a later date, Led to the sealing of Delphi Oracle’s fate! For in 389 AD, Theodosius-I closed all pagan temples , including Delphi! CONCLUSION Thus we see that the Oracle at Delphi, - Remains shrouded in myth, legend and history! I have not touched upon its amphitheatre, statues and other building structures, - Which form a marvelous exhibit of Doric Architecture! These historic ruins are now being protected by UNESCO’S Cultural and Heritage Program since 1987 ; One can find many beautiful artifacts preserved inside Delphi’s Museum! -Raj Nandy New Delhi FOOT NOTES: - *TRIPOD = Greek for seat. At Delphi, Pythia the priestess of Apollo, Sat on a great bronze Tripod in a spot above a crevice in the rocks from which vapors rose! ** Archeologist later discovered that the bedrock beneath the temple had petrochemicals including Ethylen, which caused an anesthetic effect! ***The mutterings of lady Priestess were relayed by a male priest in Apollo's Temple! Eye contact was not permitted with Pythia! # OMPHALOS STONE = Considered the belly-button of the Ancient World, Was located in the sanctuary of Apollo, where Pythia delivered God’s Oracles! Centuries later - when Romans conquered Greece, Emperor Nero is said to have looted 500 Statues from the shrines of Delphi! First Archeological excavations began in 1832 revealing the Oracle’s site to the world! **** ALL COPY RIGHTS RESERVED BY RAJ NANDY ** [comments] => 3 [counter] => 272 [topic] => 42 [informant] => RAJNANDY [notes] => [ihome] => 0 [alanguage] => english [acomm] => 0 [haspoll] => 0 [pollID] => 0 [score] => 0 [ratings] => 0 [editpoem] => 1 [associated] => [topicname] => mythology )
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