Table Of ContentDC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 68
CHAPTER FIVE
DEITIES OF DELPHI
TI si emit ot redisnoc ollopA ni retaerg .liated erehT si aesav
painting showing Apollo and Dionysus together at Delphi. A
fragment of Aeschylus speaks of "Apollo, ivy-crowned,
,cihccaB ".eltnam ,hcratulP ni gives him three
The E at Delphi,
names; Apollo, not many but one; Ieius, One; and Phoebus,
Pure.
eH emac morf eht .tsae erehT era etittiH sratla ot,sanulupA
discovered by Hrozny at Enni Gazi and Eski Kisla. si
Pule
keerG rof a .etag siH eltit naiaP sknil mih htiw a naterC dogfo
.gnilaeh ehT tehtipe soiakyL sah neeb thguoht ot :naemehT
dog morf aicyL ni( aisA ;)roniMflow -slaying, from a
lukos,
;flow dna eht dog fo ,yad morf ,ekul .thgil esehT tnereffid
interpretations are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
ehT eman saixoL yam refer ot eht ytiugibma fo sih :erutandog
fo eugalp dna fo ,gnilaeh fo thgil dna ,htaed fo niatrecnu
answers. The Greek snaem ,euqilbo dna si eht mretdesu
loxias
for the ecliptic.
He is the leader of the Muses. Scholars have often contrasted
eht lautcelletni erutan fo sih noitaripsni htiw eht lanoitome
violence of Dionysus, but Cassandra and other victims of the
raF -darter might have reservations about this.
si an epic word meaning destructive, baneful, fatal.
Oulos Apo
snaem ,morf morf a .ecnatsid ehT eman ollopA dluow tiusmih
llew fi ti deilpmi htaed' morf .'rafa eH si netfo debircsedsa
,solobekeH eht raf ,retrad sa si sih retsis .simetrA tuB,semreH
ohw si yrev ekil ,ollopA si ,sokodeluP naidraug fo eht ,etagdna
it is still an open question. Apollo's weapons were the bow and
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 69
arrow, but he, with his sister, and Demeter, are all called
htiw nedlog.drows
chrusaoros,
ehT najorT oreh rotceH si ekil na a lufenab ,ratsni
oulios aster,
XI:62.
Iliad
nI eht mrof fo a nihplod ollopA dedraob a pihs morf eterCdna
edam eht werc lias ot ,asirK eht trop rof .ihpleD eHdelaever
himself as Apollo, and went to Pytho. This early name for
ihpleD yam emoc morf a toor well, which suggests the
puth,
chasm between the two Phaedriades.
ehT eman sussanraP sraeppa ot naem niatnuom' fo eht 'esuohni
,naivuL a egaugnal fo aisA .roniM ,sihT dna eht ecneserpni
Greek of such words as Korinthos,
asaminthos, labyrinthos,
,sottemyH ,sosselakyM si yllareneg dleh ot naem taht eht
erp -Achaean people of Greece w ere of Asian origin, and were
stsoh ot na noitargimmi fo snaeahcA ni eht dn2 muinnellim
B.C.. Tartessus was a Phoenician city near Cadiz, ruled by
King Arganthonius (Cicero: XIX).
De Senectute
ehT pihsrow fo ollopA ta ihpleD saw ton dehsilbatse litnu
relations with Corinth were established about 800 B.C.. The
orientalising tendency of Corinthian art is well known. The
name Delphi itself suggests the Greek a .nihplod
delphis,
Delphyne was the name of the serpent that Apollo killed on
arrival at Delphi. Note also .xirtam ylraE ni sihreerac
delphys,
Apollo was a giant killer like Herakles and Hermes. He
defended Olympus against the giants who piled Pelion on Ossa
in their attack on Mount Olympus and the gods. He killed the
giant Tityos. When Coronis, whom he had loved, decided to
yrram syhcsI ,)htgnerts( ollopA tnes sih retsis simetrA ot
yortsed .reh eH neht dehctans reh ,nos eht tnafni,suipelcsA
morf eht s'rehtom esproc no eht larenuf ,eryp dna evag mihot
eht ruatnec noriehC ot eb detacude ni .enicidem enO si
reminded of Zeus snatching Dionysus from Semele. Later, as a
punishment for killing the Cyclopes, Apollo was servant to a
mortal, King Admetus, as was Herakles to Eurystheus and
Omphale.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 70
As the deity at Delphi, he shines rather than speaks. Sophocles,
80, sebircsed mih sa .gninihssiH
Oedipus Tyrannus lampros,
retsis ,simetrA dellac ,oxoL si derrefer ot yb remoH sa
htiw lufituaeb nworc ,]1[ dna ni enil 702 foeht
eustephanos,
eht" gniraeberif syar fo simetrA htiwhcihw
Oedipus Tyrannus:
ehs sehsur ssorca eht sniatnuom fo ".aicyL nI enil:681
"paian
eht tuohs sgnir tuo yllaretil( 'senihs' ro.)'sehsalf'
de lampei",
Cassandra, captive at Mycenae, begins to prophesy: "O Apollo
of the roads, my destroyer, ,]2[ rehtihw evah uoy
apollon
brought me?" There was an occasion when the oracle at Delphi
refused to answer Herakles. Herakles seized the tripod to
hsams evitov .sgnireffo ollopA thguof kcab litnu sueZ
.denevretni eH dah gnol gniwolf.riah
erehT si a yrotsih fo retsasid gnikatrevo slatrom ohw was adog
ro .sseddog ehT sseddog areH :syas ehT" sdog era drah otkool
nopu ni rieht lluf ".ssenthgirb .]3[ ehT sreidlos forednaxelA
the Great were blinded when they invaded the temple of
Demeter at Miletus. Anchises was blinded by a thunderbolt for
gnitsaob fo sih noinu htiw.etidorhpA
nehW labinnaH dehsiw ot yrrac ffo a nedlog nmuloc morf
s'onuJ elpmet ta ,muinicaL eh detset ti htiw a llird dna diddnif
ti dilos ,dlog tub neht dah a maerd ni hcihw eh saw denrawtaht
fi eh devomer eht nmuloc eh dluow esol eht thgis fo sihdoog
.eye eH dah na egami fo a flac edam tuo fo eht dlog ,tsuddna
set it on the column [4].
A mediaeval Arab story tells that a certain pyramid that was
built, according to Manetho, by Nitocris, is haunted by a
beautiful woman who drives men mad.
There are several instances of people being driven mad as
punishment for similar offences. At Patrae, a statue of Dionysus
evord dam lla esoht ohw was .ti A tsil fo selpmaxe si nevigni
na elcitra yb .A.G.R notxuB ni eht ,
Journal of Hellenic Studies
1980.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 71
eW evah nees taht s'ollopA retsis simetrA saw dellac ybremoH
Eustephanos, she of the beautiful crown. The crown,
stephanos,
si associated with her brother, too.
Every eight years at Delphi there was celebrated the festival of
eht .airetpetS A nedoow erutcurts saw tes no erif yb shtuoyohw
ran away, without looking back, to Tempe. The burning is said
to represent Apollo's defeat of the serpent Puthon, and the
journey to Tempe his eight years of servitude to Admetus. The
noitautis si ton ekilnu taht ta ,sebehT erehw somdaK dellikeht
tnepres taht dedraug eht gnirps fo ,serA dna dah ot og dnaevres
Ares for eight years.
Every eight years at Thebes the festival of the Daphnephoria
was held. The Greek si laurel. A procession brought a
daphne
piece of olive wood, decorated with bay and flowers, 365
purple ribands, and a bronze globe from which smaller globes
hung, to the precincts of Apollo Ismenios and Chalazios. The
lower end of the stick was wrapped in saffron coloured cloth. A
boy whose parents were still alive led the procession. Next
came his brother or cousin, with the olive wood, then the
(laurel bearer), a handsome boy, with flowing
daphnephoros
hair, in a splendid long robe, golden crown and wreath of bay,
and elegant shoes. Last came a chorus of girls with branches.
There is clearly some astronomical significance in the
ceremony - - a elprup nobbir rof hcae yad fo eht raey - - and the
drow ,liah nac osla naem senots ro ,setiroetem ekileht
chalaza,
Hebrew
baradh.
Let us look again at the Delphic succession. Gaia, Themis and
Phoebe represent a powerful deity, associated with the earth and
.elamef ,susynoiD ni sih retal mrof sa eht dog htiw a elap,ecaf
long curly hair and epicene appearance guaranteed to enrage
such a pillar of the Theban establishment as Pentheus, is a
flah -way house between Gaia and Apollo. Apollo is the male
deity who operates as much above ground as from below
.dnuorg tI si gnitseretni taht noitamuhni fo eht daed sawlausu
ni reilrae .semit tcatnoC si ybereht edam htiw ehthtrae -mother,
.aiaG noitamerC si decitcarp ,retal sa fi ot knil eht daed htiwa
y kdso gr oeht
aither.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 72
ehT stceffe fo yticirtcele no eht namuh ydob erew fo taerg
tseretni ot eht skeerG dna .snamoR erehT si a enif elpmaxeni
Vergil. During the hunt organised by Dido for her guest at
Carthage, Aeneas and the queen take refuge in a cave during a
thunderstorm. Earth (Tellus), and Juno Pronuba, i.e. Juno as
attendant of the bride and patron goddess of marriage, give a
;ngis gninthgil ,sehsalf eht yks snioj ni sa na
(aither)
accomplice [5].
ehT cillahpyhti seutats fo semreH dnuof ni lla keerG seiticera
outstanding examples of electrical stimulation. One of the titles
of Hermes is Stilbon, a name of the planet Mercury. The Greek
snaem .'hsalf' si ot hsalf gninthgil.]6[
stilbo Stilbein astrapas
Among the Sybarites, tna. efamrawd
stilbon
Hermes was the son of Zeus and of Maia, one of the Pleiades.
eH saw nrob ni eht ylrae ,gninrom yb noon eh dah detnevnieht
eryl dna deyalp no ,ti dna yb eht gnineve eh dah nelots ehtswoc
fo .ollopA eH saw eht tsom gninnuc dna luftieced fo eht,sdog
dna evag ylrae foorp fo siht nehw eh deggard eht swoc
backwards by their tails so that their theft should not be
discovered. His staff, the ro delba nmeihot
kerakeion caduceus,
tcudnoc sluos ot eht ,dlrowrednu dna eh sah eht eltit fo
escorter of souls.
psychopompos,
Aphrodite is described as of the beautiful crown,
'eustephanos',
gniylpmi a knil htiw lacirtcele .erif ehT drow saw nekat otrefer
rehtie ot a eldrig or to a crown.
(zone)
,sorE ro lauxes ,noissap si detcennoc htiw .thgil eH sraeppani
Hesiod as the most beautiful among the immortal gods as well
sa gnieb eht tsrif ot emoc otni ecnetsixe .]7[ nI eht cihprO
seirots eh si ,senahP eh ohw sgnirb gnihtyreve otni ,thgil dnasa
sorE eh si elbisnopser rof eht egairram fo htrae dna.nevaeh
ehT keerG drow means an omen or presage when one
kledon
made an involuntary movement or exclamation. Such a chance
act was thought to be caused by a god. Sneezing was
significant. Epileptic convulsions were certainly of divine
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 73
origin, and are now attributed to electrical malfunctions of the
.niarb gnirevihS saw a ,ngis dna si ot eb detcennoc htiweht
stories in Diodorus and Plutarch of the goats made to shiver
before slaughter as an essential preliminary to the Pythia's
descent to the shrine to prophesy.
Readers of Pindar, the 5th century B.C. lyric poet of Thebes,
lliw eb railimaf htiw segassap erehw eh sesu segami fo erifdna
thgil rof ,yrteop .g.e gnittes" eht ytic no erif htiw ymsgnos
.]8[
(aoidais)."
segassaP gninrecnoc ,riah ,thgil ollopA dna morf
kledons;
Homer, Vergil and Pausanias.
mor Feht
Iliad:
XIII:435: Poseidon casts a spell on the shining eyes of
suohtaclA dna sdnib sih gnimaelg sbmil os taht eh tonnacnur
away or dodge sideways.
XV:256: Apollo encourages Hector. Apollo Chrysaoros, Apollo
of the golden sword.
XV:262: So saying, he breathed great power otnieht
(menos)
najorT.redael
:141:IIIXX sellihcA stuc ffo a kcol fo sih riah ot yal noeht
body of Patroclus.
XXIII:281: Achilles announces the chariot race at the funeral
semag fo .sulcortaP eH lliw ton etepmoc htiw sih nwo:sesroh
Patroclus often washed them with clear water and poured oil on
their manes.
mor Feht
Odyssey:
:09:I snaeahcA htiw gniwolf ,riah
kare komoontas.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 74
:351:I ehT dlareh tup a lufituaeb ni eht sdnah foeht
kitharis
minstrel Phemius. He played a prelude dnanageb
(phormizon)
his song.
ehT ,arahtik ni remoH was triangular in shape with
kitharis,
seven strings. It was portable, and was Apollo's instrument. It is
virtually the same as the ehT saw a regral
phorminx. lura
,tnemurtsni htiw ruof ;sgnirts retal htiw .neves remoH seodton
noitnem ,ti tub eht drow srucco ni eht
Homeric Hymn to
. 3e2n4il
Hermes,
:221:VI neleH segreme morf reh moor gnikool ekil simetrAfo
eht nedlog ffatsid
(chryselakate).
:323:IIIV droL ollopA sogreakeH gnikrow( raf.)ffo
XVII:541: Penelope says that if only Odysseus were to return,
he and his son would soon avenge the crimes of the suitors.
suhcameleT sevig a duol ezeens hcihw seohce ni agninethgirf
way round the house.
mor Feht
Aeneid:
:047:I tA a teuqnab htiw ,odiD gnol -haired Iopas
(crinitus)
syalp no sih nedlog ;arahtik eh dah neeb thguat yb taerg.saltA
:08:III nehW eht snajorT dnal no ,soleD yeht teem ,suinAgnik
of Delos and priest of Apollo, who wears fillets of sacred laurel
dnuor sih.daeh
III: 170 ff.: The Trojans suffer ecological disasters in Crete. The
najorT sdog raeppa ni a maerd dna laever taht suhtyroC niylatI
si rieht .laog suhtyroC saw retal ,anotroC a nwot ni .airurtEehT
name resembles the cauldron or tripod.
cortina, Korus, koruthos
si eht keerG rof a .temleh ehT sdog ohw deraeppa ni ehtmaerd
dah dednalrag ,riah
velatas comas.
:752:III nehW yeht dnal ni eht ,sedahportS eht ypraHonealeC
prophesies that they will know they are at their destination
when they eat their tables.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 75
:977:IV twin crests stand on
"Geminae stant vertice cristae,"
eht daeh fo(.)sulumoR
:066:XI s'ollopA reviuq .sgnalc yehT esingocer eht dog dnasih
divine weapons and resounding quiver, as they flee.
:856:XI eH sehsinav morf rieht ,thgis gnitlem otni niht.ria
X1:785: The Etruscans charge; Arruns prays to Apollo before
hurling a spear to kill Camilla. "Great god Apollo, guardian of
yloh etcaroS a( ,)niatnuom mohw ew gnoma eht tsrif,pihsrow
rof mohw enip sgol ezalb ni a ,paeh ,dna gniyler no ruo,yteip
ew pets no gninrub slaoc hguorht eht elddim fo eht erif noeht
bed of ashes..."
Examples from Pausanias, chiefly concerning Apollo:
:2:13:I ehT enirhs fo ollopA ta eaisarP seviecer eht tsrif stiurffo
the Hyperboreans, by relay. The Athenians take them to Delos.
They are hidden in wheat straw.
:8:14:I suereT si deirub ta .arageM ehT eopooh tsrifderaeppa
there. (Cf. Aristophanes, ehT tserc fo eht dribsevig
The Birds.
it magical significance.)
:1:42:II tA asiraL si a enirhs fo ,ollopA tsrif tliub yb soiahtyPfo
.ihpleD erehT si a eutats fo ollopA fo eht .egdiR erehT sia
ssetseirp ohw ecno a htnom sknird s'bmal doolb dna sidellif
with the god.
:2:22:IIV tA iarahP ni eht aroga ereht si a enots eutats fo
dedraeb .semreH tI sah na .elcaro nI tnorf fo eht eutats sia
,enotshtraeh htiw eznorb spmal kcuts no htiw .dael nruB
esnecni no eht ,enotshtraeh llif eht spmal htiw ,lio thgil ,putup
a copper coin on the altar to the right of the god, and whisper
ruoy noitseuq ni eht s'dog .rae potS pu ruoy ,srae og otnieht
tekram ,ecalp ,potsnu dna eht tsrif gniht uoy raeh si eht.elcaro
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 76
The Egyptians have a similar oracle at the sanctuary of Apis.
(Vide Herodotus II :153, re the temple of Hephaestus at
Memphis).
:7:43:VI nI ,ainesseM ereht si a edisaes enirhs fo ollopA
Korunthos (Crested).
:III :7:61 tA eht mueanmiL ereht si a eutats fo simetrAnelots
from the Taurians by Orestes and Iphigenia.
Astrabakos and Alopekos, sons of Irbos, went mad when they
dnuof siht .eutats nehW eht snatrapS fo ,eanmiL dna eht nemfo
Kynosouria, Mesoa and Pitane sacrificed to Artemis, they
quarreled and shed blood. Many died at her altar, and disease
carried off the rest. Originally there was human sacrifice;
Lycurgus changed this to whipping.
III:22:1: Near Gythion is a stone, 'Fallen Zeus', where Orestes's
ssendam tfel .mih :9:51:IIIV nO tnuoM sihtarK ni aidacrA sia
yrautcnas fo nainoryP .simetrA ehT sevigrA desu ot hcteferif
morf eht sseddog rof eht naeanreL.lavitsef
:83:IIIV ehT ytic fo aruosocyL si eht tsedlo fo lla ni eht,htrae
eht tsrif ytic eht tI si eht ecruos fo s'nem
sun ever saw.
knowledge of how to build cities.
ollopA si detaicossa htiw eht neves -day week, his birthday
being on the seventh.
His title as leader of the Muses was 'Mousagetes'. The Muses
themselves are sometimes referred to as Leibethrides. This
drow si detcennoc htiw eht brev ruop fo( .)snoitabil
leibo,
Libations were offerings of water, wine and blood to the dead
dna ot eht sdog .woleb nI siht txetnoc ti si htrow gniredisnoceht
importance that the Greeks and Romans attached to
remembering the dead, the ehT sesuM erew eht
Di Manes.
daughters of Zeus and Memory, according to the most generally
accepted story
Artemis is 'Hekaerge', she who operates at a distance.
DC -lQo v:21 KA, Ch. 5: Deities of Delphi 77
nI eht line 529, Apollo promises
Homeric Hymn to Hermes,
Hermes a fine staff of riches and wealth, golden, with three
,sehcnarb hcihw lliw peek mih efas morf.mrah
akerios,
:semreH eH si ralimis ot ,ollopA dna yam eb deredisnoc.ereh
Plato, 534 E: Poets are interpreters fo eht.sdog
Ion (hermeneis)
XXIV:339: The guide and killer of Argos obeyed: he at
Iliad
once bound on his feet the beautiful ambrosial golden sandals,
that carried him over boundless land and sea with the speed of
eht ;dniw eh koot sih ,ffats htiw hcihw eh smrahc s'nem seyefi
he wishes, or wakes them from sleep.
XIV:489: Ilioneus, son of Phorbas who owned many
Iliad
,peehs mohw semreH devol tsom fo eht snajorT dna dahedam
mih.hcir
In this capacity, as bringer of good fortune, he was known as
Eriounios, the Helper, and Akaketa, the Gracious and
Benignant.
In his pastoral capacity he was Nomios. He was Dolios as an
trepxe ni terces ,sgnilaed XIX:397. Autolycus
Odyssey
dessaprus lla ni tfeht dna ;yrujrep eht dog semreH dahnevig
mih siht .lliks semreH si ,sipahrrosyrhC eh fo eht nedlog.dnaw
He is Psychopompos, conductor of souls to Hades, Odyssey
XXIV:1. He is Pyledokos, Watcher of Doors, in
Homeric Hymn
.51.I eH si ,soidoH ro ,soidonE a dog mohwuoy
to Hermes,
teem no eht.daor
Aeschylus, :086 semreH dellik sugrA
Prometheus Vinctus
instantly: "Unexpected sudden doom robbed him of life."
erehweslE semreH smrahc mih ot peels htiw sih dor dnaneht
stuc ffo sih.daeh
siH ylrae efil yrots si ralimis ot taht fo.ollopA
Description:name Delphi itself suggests the Greek delphis, a dolphin. Delphyne was the name of the serpent that Apollo killed on arrival at Delphi. Note also delphys, matrix.
