lesson 2- evidence/sources for the eleusinian mysteries Flashcards

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1
Q

We get our word ‘mystery’ from the Greek word ‘mysterion’ - what does ‘mysterion’ literally mean?

A

a ceremony or place of initiation

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2
Q

What did mystery religion require its devotees to do?

A

go through a rite of initiation

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3
Q

Who were the Eleusinian Mysteries devoted to the worship of?

A

demeter, her daughter persephone and an eleusinian hero named triptolemos

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4
Q

What other name is Persephone often called and what does it mean?

A

‘kore’ meaning daughter

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5
Q

How often and when were the Eleusinian mysteries celebrated?

A

twice a year and they were celebrated during march and september

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6
Q

who had to undergo initiation?

A

everyone- men, women, slaves, and non citizens

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7
Q

Who was excluded from initiation?

A

criminals and those who couldn’t speak greek

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8
Q

How far was Eleusis from Athens?

A

13 miles west of athens

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9
Q

What was special about Eleusis?

A

The township possessed rich agricultural land known as the rharian field where according to legend, grain was first sown by triptolemos after Demeter came to Eleusis to reside and taught humanity agriculture

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10
Q

At what point was Eleusis passed into Athenian state control?

A

around 600 BC

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11
Q

At what point did the sanctuary reach its height of importance?

A

4th century BC

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12
Q

During what period did it experience a revival?

A

2nd century BC

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13
Q

In total how long were the mysteries celebrated at Eleusis?

A

over a thousand years

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14
Q

What evidence do we have to suggest that the Eleusinian Mysteries presented as a serious rival to Christianity at one point?

A

Christian graffiti deface many of the monuments and because christian writers suggested the rituals connected to the sanctuary were disgusting and obscene.

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15
Q

Why have the Eleusinian Mysteries attracted so much attention in the modern age?

A

the mysteries were unlike any other greek festival

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16
Q

What made the Eleusinian Mysteries stand out from other civic festivals? (3 reasons)

A
  1. Anybody could be initiated- as long as they spoke Greek and had not been involved in serious crimes such as murder.
  2. Every participant able to pay a contribution could take part in an individual initiation after which his or her status was changed from being uninitiated to initiated. This status lasted for life
  3. Initiates were not allowed to speak about what happened, in particular the revelation of the secret. This created distinction between those who knew and those who didn’t
17
Q

We do not know the actual secret itself, but what do we know for certain about the Eleusinian Mysteries?

A

The secret was shared in ceremony at the end of the festival but never actually revealed by the uninitiated. Revealing the secret to the non-initiated , or writing about it or speaking about it was considered a capital crime

18
Q

what was considered a capital crime?

A

revealing the secret to the non initiated, writing about it or speaking about it

19
Q

who was Alcibiades?

A

The Athenian leader

20
Q

What does the treatment of Alcibiades suggest about the connection between politics and religion?

A

He was accused of mocking the mysteries in his home together with his friends and some uninitiated people- he was convicted despite the fact he didn’t show up to court. Despite the fact he was the Athenian leader he was convicted- it doesn’t matter how powerful you are or your political status,if you go against religious rules you will be punished

21
Q

what did the initiated get out of the eleusinian mysteries?

A

-happiness- those who were not initiated were said to live in suffering and torture in the underworld
-knowledge of what happens in the underworld and when you die
-good harvest and crops
-eternal life in the elysian fields (An area of the underworld where only virtuous and distinguished souls could reside in peace)
-would have an initiated status which lasted for life

22
Q

what is the issue with the sources from pausanias?

A

he is a Greek author who avoids sharing any secrets about the eleusinian mysteries

23
Q

what are the issues with the sources from plato and plutarch?

A

they talk about philosophical discussions of the divine but again refrain from revealing any secrets about the mysteries

24
Q

what are the issues with early christian sources?

A

they believed that the mysteries were demonic and trivial, and therefore give an innaccurate, biased account.

25
Q

what does the homeric hymn to demeter quote about the eleusinian mystery cult?

A

“happy is he among men upon earth who has seen these mysteries”

26
Q

what was the mythical explanation for the eleusinian mysteries?

A

They are celebrated following the kidnapping of Demeter’s daughter, persephone who was captured by Hades into the underworld. Demeter searched everywhere for her daughter, and went to eleusis to rest after searching for her for days, and mourned for her for 9 days, causing a great famine (the eleusinian mysteries are celebrated for 9 days to represent the amount of time demeter mourned for persephone). To prevent the famine, zeus took persephone out of the underworld and agreed that she would spend 6 months of winter in the underworld and 6 months in the summer on the surface. Demeter then ordered a temple to be built in her honour at eleusis and in return persephone would teach the people rites and rituals which would be performed at eleusis

27
Q

what does isocrates quote about the eleusinian mysteries?

A

“demeter came to our land… gave these two gifts, the greatest in the world- the fruits of the earth…and the holy rite”

28
Q

what does sophocles quote about the eleusinian mysteries?

A

“those among mortals who have seen these rites before going to hades; for they alone have a life there, while others have every kind of misery”

29
Q

what does the fragment from a pindaric dirge quote about the eleusinian mysteries?

A

“prosperous is he who having seen these things passes below the earth. he knows the end of life and it’s god given beginning”

30
Q

What was Triptolemus’ relation to the eleusinian mysteries?

A

When Demeter was seeking out her daughter Persephone, after she was kidnapped by Hades, Triptolemus was one of the kings that hospitably received Demeter on her journey. In return, Demeter taught humanity agriculture and Triptolemus planted grain in the nearby Rharian fields.