Initiation into the mysteries of the ancient world / Jan N. Bremmer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bremmer, Jan N., author.

Contributor:

Sfameni Gasparro, Giulia, Contributor.

Series:

Münchner Vorlesungen zu antiken Welten ; Bd. 1.

Münchner Vorlesungen zu antiken Welten, 2198-9664 ; Band 1

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mysteries, Religious.

Civilization, Classical.

History, Ancient.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (274 pages)

Place of Publication:

Berlin ; Boston : De Gruyter, [2014]

Language Note:

English

Biography/History:

Jan N. Bremmer, University of Groningen.

Summary:

The ancient Mysteries have long attracted the interest of scholars, an interest that goes back at least to the time of the Reformation. After a period of interest around the turn of the twentieth century, recent decades have seen an important study of Walter Burkert (1987). Yet his thematic approach makes it hard to see how the actual initiation into the Mysteries took place. To do precisely that is the aim of this book. It gives a 'thick description' of the major Mysteries, not only of the famous Eleusinian Mysteries, but also those located at the interface of Greece and Anatolia: the Mysteries of Samothrace, Imbros and Lemnos as well as those of the Corybants. It then proceeds to look at the Orphic-Bacchic Mysteries, which have become increasingly better understood due to the many discoveries of new texts in the recent times. Having looked at classical Greece we move on to the Roman Empire, where we study not only the lesser Mysteries, which we know especially from Pausanias, but also the new ones of Isis and Mithras. We conclude our book with a discussion of the possible influence of the Mysteries on emerging Christianity. Its detailed references and up-to-date bibliography will make this book indispensable for any scholar interested in the Mysteries and ancient religion, but also for those scholars who work on initiation or esoteric rituals, which were often inspired by the ancient Mysteries.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Conventions and Abbreviations

I. Initiation into the Eleusinian Mysteries: A 'Thin' Description

II. Mysteries at the Interface of Greece and Anatolia: Samothracian Gods, Kabeiroi and Korybantes

III. Orpheus, Orphism and Orphic-Bacchic Mysteries

IV. Greek Mysteries in Roman Times

V. The Mysteries of Isis and Mithras

VI. Did the Mysteries Influence Early Christianity?

Appendix 1: Demeter and Eleusis in Megara / Sfameni Gasparro, Giulia

Appendix 2: The Golden Bough: Orphic, Eleusinian and Hellenistic-Jewish Sources of Virgil's Underworld in Aeneid VI

Bibliography

Index of Names, Subjects and Passages

Notes:

University lectures.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 205-242) and index.

This eBook is made available Open Access. Unless otherwise specified individually in the content, the work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0 https://www.degruyter.com/dg/page/open-access-policy

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9783110376999

3110376997

9783110299557

3110299550

OCLC:

885456293