Classical Studies 2200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Cronus, Sounion, Eusebeia

• School: Western University
• Department: Classical Studies
• Course: Classical Studies 2200
• Professor: Christopher Brown

Document Summary

Viewed from within, religion is a state of mind, a complex of beliefs and feelings about the forces which govern man"s life and situate it in the world. (e. r. dodds) No distinction between matter and spirit, all matter is in some sense alive. Thales" remark: all things are lled with gods . The world is informed by powerful supernatural forces. Nature/the world is not merely a re ection of a single transcendent deity, but is informed by numerous discrete deities. The deities are portrayed as human (i. e. , anthropomorphic) gures: the spell of homer" (burkert) This is the religious background to the olympian gods. The distinctive personality of a god is constituted and mediated by at least four di erent factors: 1. Established local cult (with its ritual programme and unique atmosphere: 2. Divine name, could not be understood in greek, per say: 3. Names and myths can be spread abroad more easily than ritual.