Im absoulutly amazed by this culture. With their 12 major gods and 12 minor gods. And all the stories and legends that go into. And how their no heaven. Just mount olyumpus. And everybody goes to the underworld. What are your thoughts on this culture?
The underwordl? First, there's a waiting room. Once the big guy Hades calls you in, you ferry over the Styx... and after a nice exam, you must either take door to your right which leads you to hell (can't remember the name unfortunately) or the door to your left which leads you to the Elysian Fields.
That's basically the idea. What was even more fun was that the gates to the underworld were on earth, as well - three of them, actually. So if you ever feel like visiting your dead father for a good ol' revelation, you can!
More serious though. I do find the whole of Greek mythology extremely fascinating. I actually have the translated Illiad & Odyssey on my bookshelf, but I haven't finished it yet sadly. Then again, it is a monster of a book - enough to knock someone off his feet if you hit him with it.
You should give to Charon an obol, which the family of the dead place in his mouth when he died, so he would with his boat bring you to the other side of the river Styx.
I do find the whole of Greek mythology extremely fascinating. I actually have the translated Illiad & Odyssey on my bookshelf, but I haven't finished it yet sadly.
They are books which everyone should read, sadly even in Greece many havn't readed even a paragraph.
I've read both the Iliad and the Odyssey. I would recommend, for those who are interested in this subject or like graphic novels, to pick up the Age of Bronze series. Amazing art and story.
Although, if I must be honest, I do prefer the Chinese epics better, like Journey to the West or Water Margin.
I remember hearing about a field that the dead wander through until they reach the gates of the Elysian Field and... The place in place of Hell. I know that in the Underworld there's the pit of Tartarus, where the titan king was cut up by his children(the gods) and locked up. I think he ate some of his children.
I've read parts of both the Illiad and Odyssey, I plan to read them both sometime this summer. It sounds like some of you are quoting right off of God Of War, but after a little research, I've come to find out that the game was surprisingly accurate. I love Greek and Norse mythology. Actually, taking on my family's trademark of weird names or spellings, I'm wanting to name my first daughter Calliope.
You have to read it it's the masterpiece of Greek epic literature.
Exactly. And more than that. The odyssey and Illiad are the most popular,by a logical reason: they teach you a lot of life. Not for being about greek ancient Gods, I'd tell everyone here to read it.
About the greek gods...It's awesome. The history about how universe was made, sky, earth... I love it. And it's really rational and logical, teaching you human being as God's being.
I'm sad christians won them, same goes for Mitra. We've lost too many years for that.
The Christians made horrible crimes to turn the ancient Greeks to Christians. They killed and torture many. They destroyed temples and statues.many statues haven't heads and hands because of them. The reason why the great majority of Greek buildings have not survived: they were either pillaged in war, looted for building materials or destroyed in Greece's many earthquakes. Much was systematically destroyed in the fourth and fifth centuries by fanatical Christians who resented the pagan associations of many buildings and shrines. Only a handful of temples, such as the Parthenon and the Temple of Hephaestus in Athens, have been spared.
Yes, I know. All this is said by Juliano the Apostate (I recommend you to read the book )
Juliano an emperor of Rome, who used philosophy, and great as Julius Cesar. He sent to hell her believes he had for christianity, when at 16 years old he started to read ilegal philosophy, and the true about christian culture.
Jesus christ was a jew revolutionary who took the most important temple of Greek culture, exactly, the old Delfos temple,probably because jew revenge. He was 2 days with more people inside it; worst penalty, worst punish, crucifiction(holiest place).
Maybe you don't believe this, but Juliano wrote it, and I trust him, because he died same way by a fanatical christian while he was fighting in Asia.
It's a nice book and it explains all you said.
Christians destroyed all of greek culture, mitra culture, and more. Did you know greeks had already technology and culture which we achieved around 1600 after christ? That's retard.
Well I'm glad you're in the same point of view as me. I agree you 100% ^^.
Did you know that Constantine has been made a Saint by Christianity? A man who didn't care for religion or nothing else than power and money, only because he saw that the Christians have started having huge political power and influence. So he reversed the persecutions of his predecessor, Diocletian, and issued (with his co-emperor Licinius) the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious toleration throughout the empire.
Constantine was just an assassin. He assassinated his two brother's. One was Constante (the other Constancio if I remember well, it's been 2 years since I readed it), father of Galo (Juliano's brother) which died in the same hands as the one who murdered his father. Of the entire family of Constantine, the only who beat him was Juliano
Well, for a few years that wasn't like that. Christianity was fought by philosophy and freedom by Juliano. But when Juliano died, all went back again, and more like Constantine appeared.
It's sad to know all this history and just be here talking about it. I can't even imagine how many suffering inteligent people had, neither another people who weren't christians. I'm proud that more 51% population in world are atheist or agnostics (I'm last one).
And, by the way, it's really sad to know they won the most important battle just by a christian flag with the face of their god. Lol, greeks started to ran away when they saw it!
Christianity did huge damage to the Greek culture if we think that the books and the works of that time was the inspiration of many artists and scientists of Renaissance and of modern times were inspired by them. Now in modern times many Greeks think that the first Byzantine were Greeks, they weren't they were Romans.
Well, Christianity did that in a high percent. We can watch that comparing it to egypcian mythology and believings in sun. And christianity copied jews, even Mitra.
There is always plagiarism in cultures, just a little part of it is original.
Yes when the roans took over Greece they just adopted the Greek culture and changed it slightly.
The truth is that they could not do something else they were a fighting people the only thing they knew was fighting, so when they decided to be more civilized and evolve they started coping the Greek culture.
