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Finally we reach at the end of the Epidaurian Sacred Poetry project (previous hymns: to all Gods, to Pan, to Athena Pallas, to Mother of All Gods, to Hygeia). The last of the survived hymns is for Asklepios (IG IV²,1 133). Unfortunately we have quite a missing area from both columns where the hymn was scribed. As it was stated by the IG editors the is the lower symbol ╒ which denoted a reiteration of the verse (in between the lines 14 and 15).
| col I.11 [— — — — — — — — — — Ἀσκλ]απιῶι. [— — — — — — — — — — —]ν οἶμον [— — — — — — — — — — —]ου περιχευαμένα [— — — — — — — — — — — χ]θονὸς | |
| [— — — — — — — — — — — —]αντα [— — — — — — — — — — — —]ς τας {²inferior pars periit}² col II.1 τό νιν ἅζομαι θεῶν μ̣ε[γ— — — — — — — —] βροτῶν π̣άσας γενεὰς ὑπ̣[— — — — — — πολύ]- φορβον· σεῖο κεχρημένοις [— — — — — — —] ἀντολίαις ὑπὸ τέρμασι τε[— — — — — — — —] | 15 |
| νας, οἷς ἐναργὲς ἐνεῖκαι π̣αν̣[— — — — — — —] σοὶ δε Ι̣#⁷#⁷ Μοιράων σθένος θ̣[— — — — — —] χοραγέτας ἐφιμέρου καλλ[— — — — — — — —] κύριε χαῖρε γ μέγας σωτὴρ [— — — — — — —] οἰκουμένης σωτήρ γ #⁹⁰⁰ [— — — — — — — —] | 5 |
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We started to explore the meaning of sacred space and the importance to mark borders and significant geographical areas by placing small sacred peaks (read more here). A question can be rise: why not building a temple or erect an altar, instead of placing a pile of stones in a spiritually significant area. Greeks indeed erected altars in geographical spots that considered being important and divine representative. Today we will start talking on how the ancient Greeks constructed their temples and altars.
Starting up with the writing, it would be helpful to take an example as Jon Mikalson did in his latest material entitled, Ancient Greek Religion (2005), - an extensive review will be available in the forthcoming second volume of the Journal of Hellenic Religion. However, I will not follow ‘word by word’ that example and I will not use a history of known altar to presenting this Greek religious practice, as Mikalson did for the
First let us define the meaning of the sacred space. What is a sacred space and where we can find it.?
A sacred space according to Paul Wheatley (2001) on his review of the Sacred Space: Shrine, City, Land (ed. Kedar, B.Z., and Werblowsky, R.J.Z., 1998), “is perceived as such when it is linked directly to divinity, which means in effect when it is the, often awe-inspiring, locality where a deity, or something an adjuvant of a deity, is believed to reside, is reliably attested to have manifested himself or herself or is otherwise held to have intervened in terrestrial affairs.”
The above definition can introduce to us the main concept of a sacred space and also explains how a sacred area was selected. Normally, Gods and Goddesses (including heroes and minor deities) with temples and cults allocated outside of the city-state had positioned in Their sacred area. A sacred area which had records of supernatural elements close connected with a god. However, a sacred space was not only defined by terrestrial events, but also by the socio-economic element. We find always an altar and temples at the Agora (Forum) combined even within the public buildings. We can observe that every residence, regardless, of whether is new or old, had its own altar of Zeus Herkios. Polignac (1984) defines these non-rural sanctuaries as possessions of liminal / threshold Gods and Goddesses. Therefore, sacred space was also related with the ‘land’, the city and the people and not just with the ‘site’ or better articulated by Shiner’s terms “lived space” (1972).
Let us consider the case of been an ancient Greek farmer. We are leaving in a small agricultural settlement on the
To be continue…
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We are now very close to the end – which is actually the end of beginning – for our small Epidaurian Hymns or the Sacred Poetry. Sacred Poetry is a ‘storage’ of hymns based in Epidauros – and believed that was constructed the third century. You can find the previously posted hymns, with their commentary, here in Tropaion (hymn: ‘to all the Gods’, ‘to Athena Pallas’, ‘to Pan’, ‘to Hygeia’). The current hymn is of the Mother of All Gods (IG IV²,1 131). There is no commentary because the hymn is available without intermissions to its text.
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We are now very close to the end – which is actually the end of beginning – for our small Epidaurian Hymns or the Sacred Poetry. Sacred Poetry is a ‘storage’ of hymns based in Epidauros – and believed that was constructed the third century. You can find the previously posted hymns, with their commentary, here in Tropaion (hymn: ‘to all the Gods’, ‘to Athena Pallas’, ‘to Pan’, ‘to Hygeia’). The current hymn is of the Mother of All Gods (IG IV²,1 131). There is no commentary because the hymn is available without intermissions to its text.| [Ματρὶ θεῶν]. | |
| [ὦ Μναμοσύνας κ]όρ̣αι | δεῦρ’ ἔλθ̣ε̣τ̣’ [ἀ]|- π’ ὠρανῶ | καί μοι συναείσατε | τὰν Ματέρα τῶν θεῶν, | ὡς ἦλθε πλανω̣μ̣[έ]- | |
| να | κατ’ ὤρεα καὶ νάπας, | σύρουσ’ ἀβρ̣[ότ]α[ν] κόμαν, | κ̣α̣τωρημένα(!) φρένας. | ὁ Ζεὺς δ’ ἐσιδὼν ἄναξ | τὰν Ματέρα τῶν θεῶν, | κεραυνὸν ἔβαλλε #⁵⁶ καὶ | τὰ τύμπαν’ ἐλάμβανε #⁵⁶ | πέτρας διέρρησσε #⁵⁶ | 5 |
| καὶ | τὰ τύμπαν’ ἐλάμβανε #⁵⁶. | "Μάτηρ, ἄπιθ’ εἰς θεούς, | καὶ μὴ κατ’ ὄρη π̣λ̣α̣ν̣[ῶ], | μή σε(!) χαροποὶ λέον|τες ἢ πολιοὶ λύκοι" #⁵⁶ | "καὶ οὐκ ἄπειμι(!) εἰς θεούς, | ἂν μὴ τὰ μέρη λάβω, | τὸ μὲν ἥμισυ | 10 |
| οὐρανῶ, | τὸ δὲ ἥμισυ γαίας, | v πόντω τὸ τρίτον μέρος· | χοὔτως ἀπελεύσομαι." | χαῖρ’ ὦ μεγάλα | [ἄν]ασσα Μᾶτερ Ὀλύμπω. vac. | 15 |
