From: João S. Lopes Filho
Message: 9560
Date: 2001-09-18
----- Original Message -----
From: <cas111jd@...>
To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2001 1:03 PM
Subject: Apollo (was Re: [tied] Nostradamus and Dumezil)
> Apollo is a very complex god with a complex origin, IMO. Comparisons
> may be made in all sorts of directions with varying degrees of merit.
> IMO his origin is traceable to Thrace and the Celts. Basically he is
> a second generation god of higher culture. I see resemlances with the
> Irish god Lugh and the Norse's Vali and Frey. Near Eastern parallels
> are also intriguing. I also see some overlap with Mithra, though he
> seems to have developed in the classical era before morphing further
> into the Roman cult of Mithras. However, as I stated, his slaying of
> the Python and his own being depicted as a serpent on his temple on
> Delos, plus his attribute of the caduseus reminds me of the symbolism
> of Ahriman the black snake, Ormazd as the white snake, and Zurvan as
> the primordial seed god associated with the 'world egg' and 'world
> tree'.
>
> --- In cybalist@..., jdcroft@... wrote:
> > MrCaws@... wrote:
> >
> > > I used to wonder how Apollo was depicted as a serpent on
> > > > Delos, or even how he slew the Python at Delphi considering he
> > was
> > > in
> > > > no way a thunder-god. Now I know. Delphi was the center of the
> > > world
> > > > in Greek tradition. Ormazd defeated Ahriman in the center of
> the
> > > > world before casting him into the abyss. Apollo continued this
> > same
> > > > myth in Greece. Even his birthplace on Delos makes sense: the
> > > > heavenly paradise located in the center of the world, where is
> > > > located in Persian myth the 'world mountain' as is found on
> > Delos.
> > >
> > > I would argue that Apollo took on the role of serpent slayer
> > because
> > > he played the role of cultural hero. The thunder deity(Thor,
> Perun
> > > etc) often plays this role, but others do as well. Hercules for
> > > example. Since Apollo was a big cheese cultural hero, esp. in the
> > > Aegean and W. Anatolia, this slaying makes sense. There is also a
> > > freudian hero element to the story, as one version of the story
> has
> > a
> > > serpent molesting Leto, and Apollo then taking his vengeance.
> This,
> > > though, seems to be connected to a Canaanite story about Laton
> > (Leto),
> > > and Yamm as the serpent, interestingly enough.
> > >
> > > In addition, this story bolsters Apollo's claim to deity of
> > prophecy
> > > by defeating a demonized version of a predecessor.
> >
> > I find it ironic considering Apollo's origins as the Hurrian-Hattic
> > god Aplu - the mouse god of the plague. It is interesting that
> > Apollo, as a god of illness needed to be apeased in the diseases he
> > caused. This promoted him to being God of Medicine. Travelling
> > Westwards to the Aegean, it seems he there became associated with
> the
> > Mycenaeans God "Paean" - a God of song and music, with whom he
> fused
> > to become the God of Delos. It would appear that it was in this
> > guise he first came to Delphi, not as slayer of the serpents, but
> as
> > a snake charmer! Eventually, through association with lunar
> Artemis
> > as his twin sister, with Lat/Leto recognised as his mother, Apollo
> > became recognised as Phoebus Apollo - sun god who substituted or
> > absorbed the earlier sun-god Helios. As Helios he could not just
> > charm the serpents of Gaia, he was now forced to slay them. Here
> we
> > see the historic transformation of a God of Rodents, becoming a
> > Killer of Serpents. The first case of a mouse killing a snake that
> I
> > have heard!
> >
> > Regards
> >
> > John
>
>
>
>
>
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