The Caretaker

GRECO-ROMAN MAGIC - NOV/9/2022

Added 2022-11-09 18:22:39 +0000 UTC

PYTHAGORAS, THE FIRST MAGICIAN?

The ancient greeks loved triangles, couldn’t get enough of the things. In terms of human beings most associated with triangles, Pythagoras is right there at the top. He was also a magical practitioner who ran what could be called a “math cult.”

Pythagoras was a pre-socratic, meaning he existed before Socrates. This is important, because pre-socratic philosophy was notably weirder than its descendants. Philosophy and mysticism have a complicated relationship, but for many of the pre-socratics, magic and mysticism go hand in hand.

Pythagoras lived around the 5th-6th centuries BCE, and never wrote anything down. Because of this, much of the information about him comes from “The Life of Pythagoras” by Diogenes Laertius, and its descriptions of Pythagoras are steeped in legend and mysticism. I will maintain that the best magicians have an air of legend around their lives, and the process of combing the man from the legend is always an exciting process for the modern occultist. It is an opportunity to attempt to find out how a magical idea related with reality, to see how The Magician is constructed as a cultural and historical figure.

Very little is known about Pythagoras’s early life. Some accounts [which ones?] say he traveled to Egypt to learn their secret wisdom (read: largely geometry). This is an early example of a pattern we will see repeated going forward. “The wizard traveled to a mystical land and returned with occult knowledge.” Though, in this case, it is entirely possible. The Mediterranean was a busy place. Travel between Egypt and Greece was not uncommon, and one could in fact learn geometry in Egypt.

When Pythagoras was around 40 he moved to Kroton, in what is now Italy, and started his cult. Here, he became famous as a wonder-worker and sage, not a mathematician. Stories abound of his legendary magical feats like teleporting, appearing in both Croton and Olympia at the same time, and being possessed of golden thighs, a mark of divinity.

Pythagoras taught that the soul is distinct from the body, and survives after death. This was very unusual for the Hellenic world at the time, as the soul was considered something closer to a footprint one left on the world, and that remained after death. This is also an idea that may have been inspired by Egyptian conceptions of the soul. Crucially, he taught that when the body dies, the soul is reborn into a new body. Diogenes Laertius says: “Once they said he was passing by when a puppy was being whipped, and he took pity and said “Stop, do not beat it; for it is the soul of a friend that I recognized when I heard it screaming.”

Unfortunately, we know relatively little about his conception of reincarnation, but we do know that he was seen as an expert on the soul, and it seems clear that the soul was central to the sort of magic [endonym] he practiced. Specifically, it seems that his magic was based around manipulating his own soul. Little is known today about how exactly Pythagoras’s magic was supposed to work. However, if you were to ask Pythagoras how he was able to perform such wondrous feats, he would probably tell you it was a result of how he lived, and recommend that you follow his teachings.

Pythagoras had followers who followed a specific “Pythagorean” way of life, and this was likely how his followers were known to the wider public. We do not know many specifics, but according to Life of Pythagoras, we do know that Pythagoreanism involved:

Being vegetarian
A significant amount of ritual
Following existing greek religion, but with some additional specific rules.
You were not allowed to enter the temple barefoot
You had to pour libations from the “ear” or handle of the cup.
You couldn’t wear images of the gods on your finger
You cannot sacrifice a white cock
You cannot bury your dead in wool
Right shoe goes on first before the left shoe
No travelling on public roads
Absolutely NO beans

Life of Pythagoras describes many of these teachings being delivered in the form of little sayings or fables akin to zen koans. Phrases like “Step not over a balance, i.e. “don’t be greedy”, or ‘poke not the fire with a sword’ i.e. “don’t piss off a guy who is already mad.” There are many more of these sayings and stipulations. Modern scholars are still in the dark as to what many of them actually mean. If you are curious as to why Pythagoreans must abstain from beans, Life of Pythagoras has a few theories:

Beans are like the “privy parts.”
Beans are like the gates of Hades (“for this is the only plant that has no joints”)* [Direct quote, nobody knows what this means.]
Beans are destructive.
Beans are oligarchical.

As silly as this all may sound, it is important to note that “Pythagoreanism” was not proposed as an alternative to existing Greek religion. Pythagoreans participated in ordinary Greek religion just like their countrymen, but with some additional rules and stipulations. (i.e. it is forbidden to sacrifice a white cock) Looking back through the lens of history, they’re quite the mysterious bunch, and this mystery was likely by design. Initiates into the Pythagorean way of life were forbidden from sharing the secret teachings with outsiders. Because of this, Pythagoreanism is often referred to as a Mystery Cult. More on that later.

Earlier, I described pythagoreanism as a “Math Cult.” This was an eye-catching misrepresentation of the historical reality done for the explicit purpose of breaking down the concept and discussing its nuances, a technique that seasoned occultists like myself call “lying.”

Pythagoras is still to this day associated with mathematics. There has been a tendency among later occultists to look at some magical idea from the ancient world, see math, and immediately shout “Aha! This is Pythagorean!” Many Greek philosophers wrote on sacred mathematics, and it is important not to mistake one’s Plato for one’s Pythagoras. Unfortunately, there is very little evidence that Pythagoras himself engaged in sacred mathematics, but that doesn’t mean the ideas weren’t there.

The trouble is, and I am truly sorry to break the news to you dear reader, Pythagoras is dead. We can learn from this. If you’re the head of a magical/mystical/religious group, and you’re thinking “Man, my followers are just too ideologically united, what we need is some sort of big schism.” Try dying!

Its thought that after Pythagoras died, his followers split into two camps, the Acusmatici, who followed the rituals that outwardly characterized the movement, and the Mathematici, who focused more on the mathematical and philosophical elements of his teaching. So while Pythagoras is often associated with sacred mathematics, it was his pupils, writers like Archytas and especially Philolaus, who set the foundation. Maybe they got their stuff from a secret, esoteric teaching from Pythagoras himself, but there’s no way to know for sure.

[Maybe do a summary of Philolaus here]

There is an additional wrinkle here. Some time around the 4th century BCE, this legacy of pythagorean thinkers vanishes. Around the 1st century BCE they re-emerge as the Neo-Pythagoreans, a loose group of philosophers who hold Pythagoras as a central figure in the history of philosophy.

ON THE TERM “CULT”

MYSTERY CULTS - THE ELEUSINIAN MYSTERIES

Like magic, the term “Mystery Cult” is difficult to pin down. They existed across long periods of time, and broad geographical regions, so drawing comparing any two mystery cults can be tough. That said, if you go to a restaurant and order the house Mystery Cult, you’re going to get something with a few key ingredients:

Being structured around a central deity
Initiatory rituals, meaning rituals that were required to be completed in preparation for some more important ritual.
Ideas about radically transforming the initiates life in some important way, possibly involving benefits in this life, or the afterlife.
Many also had a sort of Ceremonial Metaphorical Death and Rebirth.

The most popular was probably the Eleusinian Mysteries, centered around Demeter and Persephone (aka Kore), so named for the city of Eleusis, where rituals were based. At the height of its popularity, hundreds, if not thousands of people would have taken part in its rituals and become “initiated into its mysteries.” The term “Initiation” here bears some exploration.

For readers who may be unfamiliar with the concept, a christian baptism is an example of an initiatory rite. There are those who are outside the community, the unbaptized, and those who are inside the community, the baptized. The rite cannot be performed by just anyone, (according to the Catholic Church, your opinions may vary) it takes some special proctor like a priest. I dislike using comparisons to Christianity, as it can be misleading as to how these rituals were understood by the people who were actually doing them. So while the baptism example is useful shorthand, understand that the Eleusinian Hierophants who oversaw the mystery rituals probably would not understand their rites as “like baptism but different.” We don’t know for sure.

We don’t know many specifics about The Eleusinian Mysteries, or mystery cults in general. This was by design! Mystery cults were, and this may come as a shock, quite secretive. Part of being an initiate was a sort of oath to never reveal the nature of the ritual to outsiders. This was taken extraordinarily seriously. There are stories of figures like Diagoras of Melos, who publicly revealed some of the secrets, only to find himself tried and exiled.

What information we have is precious. Studying the mysteries today can have an air of illicit power. Even this far in the future, I find a palpable excitement in knowing something that was carefully guarded, and not meant to be known. It is fair to say that much of the social and magical power in the Mysteries comes from the fact that knowledge of their nature was forbidden. When access to information is restricted, it places power in the hands of those who control access to that knowledge. When this occlusion is enforced by something as non-magical as a court system, it is easy to say that the magic simply arises from existing social dynamics, as if the magic is simply a mystical wrapper around the “true” power of the court system, but this would be an incomplete understanding. The relationship is reciprocal. Social power is spiritualized, ideas about magical power affect how communities organize themselves, and thus the serpent consumes its own tail.

So what do we know about the Eleusinian Mysteries? Plutarch (d. 120) (who was likely an initiate himself) has some descriptions of the Eleusinian mysteries. As does Clement of Alexandria, who was a christian, even Plato alludes to them. It is difficult to overstate how big a deal the Eleusinian mysteries must have been. There were many Mystery Cults, but not all of them received state support. Given how many people were aware of the Eleusinian Mysteries, its a bit shocking how well the secrets have been kept.

We know that the Eleusinian Mysteries were an annual event with multiple stages. It took place in late summer, around September, and it lasted around 10 days total.

The beginning of the ritual was more akin to a festival. It would begin in Athens, far away from the temple at Eleusis. Potential initiates would prepare themselves by ritually bathing in local waters, and the official start of the festivities would have been marked by a priest performing an animal sacrifice. The fun would continue for several days, but on the fourth day, the entire festival would begin the 22 kilometer walk from Athens to Eleusis on foot. On the way, they would sing songs and swing branches called bacchoi. This would have been an intense journey, especially in the summer heat. Once they arrived, they would observe various rituals like a day-long fast and an all-night vigil.

The purpose of all of this was likely intended to induce an altered state of consciousness in the candidates. The fast was broken with a drink called kykeon. Some argue that this drink had mind-altering effects, but we don’t know exactly what was in it besides barley. Mind-altering effects from kykeon may not have been necessary, given that it was consumed after 3 days of partying, followed by a 22km walk, followed by 24 hours without food or sleep, a series of events I can personally guarantee will cause all sorts of effects.

At this point, the initiates (referred to as Mustai), would enter a large hall called the Telesterion, and would emerge a few days later completely transformed by the events inside. What exactly happened inside is still largely a mystery, but we can infer that it was pretty intense. The state of the initiates is described with greek words like Mania, literally translating to “madness” or “insanity.” [Maybe add a reference to the discussion of On The Divine Disease?] The effects of the mysteries would supposedly last for the rest of the initiates lives.

Theories abound as to what actually happened within the Telesterion. We know that the ritual itself was administered by several priests, and watched by previous initiates who had undergone the mystery before. To summarize the general vibe, Yulia Ustinov says; “Mystery rites were intended to unsettle, disturb, and horrify, as only in absolutely contrast to the initial terror could the initiate arrive at profound modification of his attitude to life.” [1] As for specifics, there were three types of things that happened in the Telesterion:

Dromena, or “Things Done.” Given that this was a festival in honor of the story of Persephone and Demeter, it follows that the mysteries may have involved a sort of ritual death and rebirth that mirrors the myth, in which the initiate descends into the underworld and returns reborn, perhaps even a sort of near-death experience followed by an ecstatic “rebirth.”

Deiknumena, or “Things Shown.” These likely would have been ritual implements, objects of ceremonial importance, or that related to the myth in some way, possibly even ritual clothing akin to theater costumes.

Legomena - “Things Said.” Likely ritual chanting, possibly even music, used to induce something akin to a hypnotic state.

[1][Caves and the Ancient Greek Mind: Descending Underground in the Search for Ultimate Truth]

The result of all of this was something deeply cathartic. One striking description we have of the mysteries effects comes from Plutarch, who was himself an initiate. “At first there was wandering, and wearisome roaming, nd some fearful journeys through unending darkness, and just before the end (telos), every sort of terror, shuddering and trembling and sweat and amazement. Out of these emerges marvelous light, and pure places and meadows follow after, with voices and dances and solemnities of sacred utterances and holy visions. Among these the completely initiated (mustes), walks freely and without restraint; cowned, he takes part in rites, and joins with pure and pious people; he observes the crowd of people living at this very tiem uninitiated and unpurified, who are driven together and trample each other in deep mud and darkness, and continue in their fear of death, their evils and their disbelief in the good things in the world. Then in accordance with nature the soul stays engaged with the body in close union thereafter.”

It is important to remember that the mysteries were not a small, niche part of Hellenic religion. Notable initiates in the Eleusinian Mysteries included figures like Plato, Augustus Caesar, Hadrian, and Marcus Aurelius. This was an important and widespread element of contemporary religion whose practice only ended with the rise of Christendom.

ORPHISM

Orphism is a set of religious practices based around the mythological poet Orpheus, who descended into the Greek underworld and returned. Katabasis, or descent into the underworld (with presumably a return) is a central theme in Orphism, and thus worship is focused around deities who have undergone such an ordeal. Persephone and Dionysus play a central role. However, the Orphic take on Dionysus is notably different from Hesiod’s “standard” version of the myth. Because of this, Orphism has been described as an evolution of an earlier religious practice focused around Dionysus. [2]

[2][A. Henrichs, “‘Hieroi Logoi’ and ‘Hierai Bibloi’: The (Un) Written Margins of the Sacred in Ancient Greece,” Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 101 (2003): 213-216.]

The core of Orphism is the myth in which the titans tear apart and devour the infant Dionysus (called Zagreus at the time) like a sourdough bread bowl. In an act of revenge, Zeus incinerates the titans with a lightning bolt, turning them to ash, and it is from these ashes that humanity is born. The Orphics describe humanity with a dual nature; The Body, (or sôma) born from ash, and the Divine Spark (or psukhḗ) inherited from Dionysus’s incinerated corpse. (He’s fine, Apollo puts him back together.)

In actual practice, the Orphics saw the Titanic, material elements of humanity as a burden, or shackles to be discarded. To achieve freedom from the Titanic, one must be initiated in the dionysian mysteries and undergo teletē, a ritual purification that possibly involved a re-enactment of dionysus’s suffering and death. [3]

However, the ritual purity following initiation had to be maintained. Orphics would attempt to live an ascetic life, notably by adhering to a particular vegetarian diet that notably excluded broad beans. If this sounds like Pythagoreanism to you, you’re not the only one. The relationship between Orphism and Pythagoreanism is complicated, and the subject of debate. It is possible that they began as different traditions that became more similar over time as they exchanged ideas. It is possible that they were different traditions which were often conflated due to their similarity. It’s possible that they were actually one and the same, existing as a single Orphico-Pythagoreanism tradition.

[3][Ana Isabel Jiménez San Cristóbal, Rituales órficos (Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 2006);]

One cannot mention Orphism without mentioning the Orphic Egg, a concept that significantly influences later occult thought. Orphism conceptualizes the primordial state of the universe as an egg, from which hatches the hermaphroditic, golden-winged deity Phanes/Protogonus the god of procreation and the generation of new life, who then created the rest of the gods. The egg is often depicted with Ananke, the god of inevitability, compulsion, and necessity, coiled around it in the form of a snake. The rich symbolism around unity of opposites, self-generation, and creative force contained by fate, is akin to catnip for later occultists. We will discuss this more in roughly 2500 years.

ORPHISM AND ITS MYSTERIES

15th of january, 1962, workers in Derveni Macedonia uncovered something incredible. A tomb from the halcyon days of the 4th century BCE, when phones still had cords, and wild Platos roamed the earth hunting dinosaurs for sustenance. Within the tomb was the massive and beautiful Derveni Krater, a golden urn containing the burned bones of a man and a woman. Atop one of the crypts, within the remains of a funeral pyre, was a papyrus scroll, dried by the flames, and preserved in the macedonian heat.

The Derveni Papyrus is the only surviving text from ancient Greece, and the oldest manuscript ever discovered in Europe. It is a scroll of Orphic Poetry. Given that the text was likely ritually burned on the funeral pyre for religious reasons, little can be known for sure about the Derveni Papyrus. There is still significant scholarly debate over what order the fragments are supposed to be assembled in. That said, strap on your Helmet of Speculation.

Contained within the Derveni Papyrus is a “Holy Discourse”, a philosophical treatise / allegorical commentary on an Orphic Poem in which the author attempts to synthesize the contemporary science of their day from a mystical reading of the Orphic hymns.

PYTHAGORAS

Pythagoras was a cult leader and a wizard
Pre-socratic, explain what that means to readers
Lived around 6th-5th centuries BCE, one of the earliest we know
Often called the “First Philosopher” and so theres a ton of legendary BS about him
His followers, the Pythagoreans, were a distinct group in antiquity, who followed a specific way of life
Pythagoras never wrote anything. Most accounts of him come centuries after he died.
Its hard to tell what comes from Pythagoras, what doesnt, whats just a continuation of an early tradition etc
Acusmata - Sayings of Pythagoras
Best text we have is “The Life of Pythagoras” by Diogenes Laerius (d. 240)/Porphyry (d. 305) Remember that second name.
And “On the Pythagorean Life” By the platonist Iamblichus (Also remember that name)
These texts are deeply legendary
Born on Samos
Nothing is known about his early life
Texts say he probably travelled to egypt, to learn their Wisdoms this was a common trope
When he was 40 he moved to Kroton in what is now Italy where he began his cult
He became famous as a sort of sage, a wonder-worker, not as a mathematician.
GOLDEN THIGH THING Aristotle: “The son of Nicomachus (i.e. Aristotle) adds that Pythagoras was once seen by many people, on that same day and at the same hour, both at Metapontum and at Croton; and at Olympia during the games, he got up in the theatere and showed that one of his thighs was golden. The same writer says that while crossing the Coasas he was hailed by the river, and that many people heard him so hailed.”
(Having a golden thigh was a sign of divinity)
Supposedly killed a deadly serpent by biting and killing it himself, pretty cool.
So what did he teach?
The soul is distinct from the body, and survives after death.
This was HELLA unusual for the time. Before this, the soul was seen as more of a “Shade” as a sort of footprint one leaves on the world.
Plato picks this up
This is something he might ACTUALLY have gotten from the egyptians, who did believe in a post-mortem life for the soul
Also taught that after the body dies, the soul is reborn into another body. Reincarnation!
There’s a story in Life of Pythagoras: “Once they said he was passing by when a puppy was being whipped, and he took pity and said “Stop, do not beat it; for it is the soul of a friend that I recognized when I heard it screaming.””
We dont know much else about his actual theory of reincarnation
He was seen as an expert on the soul
It seems that his magic was based around manipulating his own soul
His first followers were likely a sort of proto-mystery school who followed a specific way of life.
This is how his followers were msot known.
SO WHAT DID HE FOLLOW
Vegetarian. Likely connected to vegetarianism
Significant amount of ritual.
Though he DID follow the existing greek religion, the pythagoreans followed their own specific rules around these rites.
Ex: You were not allowed to enter the temple barefoot
Ex: You had to pour libations from the “ear” or handle of the cup.
Ex: You couldn’t wear images of the gods on your finger
Ex: You cannot sacrifice a white cock
Theres also stranger ones:
Ex: You cannot bury your dead in wool
Ex: Right shoe goes on first before the left foot
Ex: No travelling on public roads
Ex: Absolutely NO beans
Oh wow
From the Life of Pythagoras:
“Pythagoreans enjoined abstention from beans either because they are like the privy parts, or because they are like the gates of Hades (for this is the only plant that has no joints), or because they are destructive, or because they are like the nature of the universe, or because they are oligarchical (being used in the choice of rulers by lot). Things that fall from the table when they were told not to pick up - to accustom them to eating with moderation, or because such things marked the death of someone. (...) They must not touch a white cock, because this animal is sacred to the Month and is a suppliant, and supplication is a good thing. (...) They must not break the load, nor must they divide the loaf which brings them together. Others explain the rule by reference to the judgment in Hades; others explain that it is from the loaf that the universe starts.”
We dont know what like, half of these mean.
“Step not over a balance, i.e. be not covetous;
‘poke not the fire with a sword’ i.e. do not vex with sharp words a man swollen with anger;
‘pluck not the crown’, i.e. offend not against the laws, which are the crowns of cities.
Or again, ‘eat not Heart’, i.e. vex not yourself with grief;
‘Sit not on the corn ration’ i.e. live not in idleness;
‘When on a journey, turn not back’ i.e. when you are dying, cling not to this life.”
This reminds us a lot of MYSTERY CULTS
Many have connected Pythagoras and his Buds to the ORPHICS, the ancient mystery cult centered around the ancient mythical figure of Orpheus.
They share a lot of features. It wouldn’t be a stretch to call the pythagoreans a sort of Mystery cult.
“We can safely say that the name fo Orpheus was associated, from at least the fifth century on, with the institution of various rites, which included initiation into mysteries depicting terrors of Hades, and whose object was to procure a happy state for initiates before and after death” - G.S. Kirk, J.E. Raven, & M. Schofield
You can probably say the same for Pythagoras, they were also based on secret initiations and a specific aesthetic way of life
We know very little about what pythagoras actually taught, and this is likely On Purpose. They don't call it a mystery cult for nothing.
They became famous for their practice of Silence, sources (who?) say that if one wished to become a pythagorean, they had to observe a 5-year silence.
There also seemed to be Esoteric aspects to pythagorean teachings that initiates were forbidden from disclosing to outsiders.
It seems that the group came under attack in the last few years of the 6th centuries bce, which forced Pythagoras to leave for Metapontum, where he is thought to have died around 490 bce
Okay but what about math?
Well thats tough
Oftentimes, when we see numbers and esoterica together, we point and say “Ah yeah, thats pythagorean.” But there’s actually very little evidence that Pythagoras himself engaged much in ideas about sacred mathematics. But that doesn’t mean they weren’t there.
Gotta be careful not to mistake the platonist for the pythagorean and vice-versa
Its thought that after he died, his followers were split into two camps
The Acusmatici: Those who followed the rituals that outwardly characterized the movement
The Mathematici: Those who focused more on the “Philosophical” elements, especially mathematics.
We also have self-identified Pythagoreans:
Philolaus - Who believed that reality was based more on the concepts of the Unlimited and Limit, and that understanding the relationship between the two would explain the cosmos.
Archytas - Innovations in math and geometry
So LATER pythagoreans became heavily associated with things like Esoteric Geometry, arithmetic, and music theory
These post-pythagoreans are more associated with the idea that reality itself is made of numbers
They also developed geometric theories that supposedly explained the inner-workings of the cosmos
Especially in works like Philolaus, the idea of Harmony becomes central. Mathematical and geometric ratios becomes key to their philosophy, which is often expressed in music. The pythagoreans
Pythagoreanism is also associated with a specific cosmology, involving the “Music of the Spheres”
Philolaus may have suggested that the earth was not the center of the universe, claiming that it revolved around a “great fire“ but this is speculation
Is it possible that all of this comes from Pythagoras? Maybe!
Its entirely possible that much of this comes from his “secret teachings” the Mathematici
Sometime in the 4th century, they vanish
It only in the 1st century bce that we see them re-emerge as:
NEO-PYTHAGOREANISM
This isn’t a specific school of thought either
This is a loose group of thinkers who all hold pythagoras as a central figure in the history of philosophy
This is probably where a lot of ideas that we consider to be Pythagorean come from
NP’s were heavily influenced by Platonism
The Pythagorean Theorem probably isn’t even his

THE ELEUSINIAN MYSTERIES

The ancient greek thinkers were largely not enlightened rationalists
So what was more accurate? Lets get some more Nuance.
Ideas like Esotericism or Mysticism were equally as important
Mystery Cults
The Eleusinian Mystery Cult was probably the most popular
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Mystery Cult is a very difficult thing to define, they existed across broad geographic areas and time periods, and drawing similarities between any two was pretty hard.
Generally defined by Initiatory Rituals, and often having a specific deity at its center
Participation in the rituals would supposedly radically transform the initiates life, offering benefits in this life or the next
Many also had a sort of Ceremonial Metaphorical Death and Rebirth
The most popular was probably the Eleusinian Mysteries, centered around Demeter and Persephone (Kore)
Based in the city of Eleusis
At the height of its popularity, hundreds if not thousands of people would have taken place in its rituals and become initiated in its mysteries
The idea being that you become initiated and now you’re part of the community.
We know very little about what was actually going on
This is by design!
The secrets of the eleusinian mysteries were just that, secrets.
There are stories of figures like Diagoras of Melos, who publicly revealed some of the secrets, only to be tried and exiled as a result.
So this was serious!
Plutarch (d. 120) (who was likely an initiate himself) has some descriptions of the Eleusinian mysteries. As does Clement of Alexandria, who was a christian.
Plato even eludes to the mysteries
They were a BIG thing. Theres even speculation (from whom?) that the majority of atheneans were initiates, and that the cult received state support.
So what do we actually know?
This is an Annual Event with multiple stages
Took place in Late Summer, like september, and lasted like 10 days in total
Potential initiates would prepare themselves by ritually bathing in the local waters
Animal sacrifice performed by a priest would open the festival
On the 4th day, they would all begin to walk 22km from Athens to Eleusis on foot.
On the way, they would sing songs in unison and swing branches called Bacchoi
This would be an intense journey, especially in the summer heat
Then they would fast for a day while continuing to observe various rituals, like an All-night vigil.
The purpose is to induce an intense altered state of consciousness in the initiate.
The fast was then broken with a barley drink known as Kykeon
We dont know whats in it, but some argue that it contained mind-altering substances
At this point, the initiates, referred to as Mustai, (which is where we get the word Mystic) would enter a big hall known as the Telesterion, and would come out a few days later completely transformed by whatever happened in there.
We have no clue what happened in there. The secret was kept really well.
It was probably pretty intense.
The states are referred to in greek with words like Mania or Baccahea, and would supposedly have lasting effects that would effect the initiates for the rest of their life.
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During the ritual, its thought that the initiates enact a sort of ritual death and rebirth, akin to the myth of Demeter and Persephone, in which they descend into the underworld and return reborn. Perhaps even a sort of near-death experience followed by an ecstatic rebirth.
“Mystery rites were intended to unsettle, disturb, and horrify, as only in absolutely contrast to the initial terror could the initiate arrive at profound modification of his attitude to life.” - Yulia Ustinvova
So what actually happened in the Telesterion?
There are references to a few classes of activity:
Dromena - “Things Done”
Deiknumena = “Things Shown”
Legomena - “Things Said”
What does this indicate? Well its thought that :
Dromena = A re-enactment of what happened to Persephone
Deuknumena = Something involving sacred objects connected to the myth revealed to the initiate
Legomena = explanations of the meanings of the objects
There were also likely numerous other factors like sounds, sensations, and movements
Presided over by a group of priests, both men and women
Groups of previous initiates would sit on the sidelines and watch the ritual, as if it were a performance.
Music might have been a thing
Its also possible that initiates were subjected to physical pain, being blindfolded etc
Then followed the peak, which could have been a sort of spiritual unity with the divine. Accompanied by a vision of pure light, or experience of transcendence.
Many report (who?) a feeling of complete transformation, even losing their fear of death.
“Mystery festivals should be unforgettable events, casting their shadows over the whole of ones future life, create experiences that transform existence. That participation in mysteries was a special form of experience, a pathos of the soul, or psyche, of the candidate, is clearly stated in several ancient texts.” - Walter Burkert
“At first there was wandering, and wearisome roaming, nd some fearful journeys through unending darkness, and just before the end (telos), every sort of terror, shuddering and trembling and sweat and amazement. Out of these emerges marvellous light, and pure places and emadows follow after, with voices adn dances and solemnities of sacred utterances and holy visions. Among these the completely initiated (mustes), walks freely and without restraint; cowned, he takes part in rites, and joins with pure and pious people; he observes the crowd of people living at this very tiem uninitiated and unpurified, who are driven together and trample each other in deep mud and darkness, and continue in their fear of death, their evils and their disbelief in the good things in the world. Then in accordance with nature the soul stays engaged with the body in close union thereafter.” - Plutarch
This was a major element of religion in the ancient hellenic world
Both Plato and Plutarch both referred to the Eleusinian Mystery as something that was contemporary to them.
Lasted up to Christianity
Alongside the rationalist writings of Aristotle and Plato, many people were involved in practices that would be considered today to be magical or mystical, and this was considered an equal if not more valid way to arrive at knowledge.

ORPHISM

15th of january, 1962, workers in Derveni Macedonia uncovered some 4th century tombs
The massive and beautiful Derveni Krater held the incinerated remains of a man and a woman
Atop on of the crypts was the remains of a funeral pyre, was a papyrus scroll
Totally dried by the flames, and preserved in the macedonian heat
Columns of texts were partially preserved
Its the only surviving text from ancient greece, and the oldst manuscript ever found in europe
Its a scroll of orphic poetry
Likely thought by the owner to be the key to the afterlife itself
26 columns, most are badly damaged
We don’t even really know how they’re supposed to be arranged
Basically everything we could potentially say about the DP could be argued
- Basically everything after this is speculation:
First words reference the Erenyes and funeral rites probably
Seems to be a discussion of the afterlife, and how the initiate should consider the daimones and erenyes
Heraclitus was critical of the mysteries
Orpheus is described as composing poetry in which “momentous things are hidden within the verses”
The poems are what the DP calls “holy discourse”
The following columns are a religio-philosophical discourse on an as yet unknown orphic hymn, in which the author attempts to synthesize the contemporary science of their day, with the inner mysticism of the orphic hymns
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The mysteries seem to have been introduced to greek life in the 6-7th centuries
With Orpheus acting as a sort of savior figure, ushering the dead into the next life.
This was accomplished by carefully studying the Orphic hymns as religious scripture, being properly initiated, making proper sacrifices, and living a life along the lines of ritually pure aceticism.
Deals with the Descent of Orpheus into the underworld and the resurrection of dionysus
Orphism might actually have emerged as a reform movement from the Dionysian more generally
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Orphism differs from Hesiods Theogeny, and actually more resembles Pythagoras
Its priests were known, though with soem degree of contempt by plato
And they would survive well into the christian period
THE EGG
We have about 90 hymns survived, though those are likely the later ones
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Derveni author seems to be at pains not to describe the orphic theogeny as Many Gods, but as the birth of a single god consolidated into one
Theres also a weird desire to explain away the series of incestuous rapes by zeus
In this one, Zeus castrates kronos and swallows the phallus, giving birth to the other gods
Though, this is probably the earlier version actually
The Hittite theogeny involves Humbari castrating Anu and consuming the phallus, giving birth to the others.
The author seems to be trying to interpret that theogony through the lens of Anaxagoras’s whole infinite continuum of particles metaphysics
The text argues that difference is only an illusion created by the vortex of movement created by the impulse of nous
Also seems to pull from Diogenes of Appolonia
Ontological priority of Fire and Air
Esoteric Text produced in a mystery religion, being read to express what was, at that time at least, cutting edge scientific speculation
SO WHO WROTE THIS BAD BOY
Soemone who knew both Orphic mythology and initiation, and the philosophical scientific theories of the day
This doesn’t really help us identify the author
Could be a lost work of Diagoras of Millos - Janko
Sophists of the period in the 4th century would name their books after wrestling moves
Protageras - as Kataballontes logoi (The Overthrower Arguments or, better, The Knockdown Arguments; (Like naming your text The Elbow Drop of Pure Reason)
Janko argues that the texts were composed as a “rationalizing program” where religious texts reveal truths, but only those of philosophy. He likens it to someone reading the book of Mormon to explain that it also secretly teaches Einstiens theory of relativity
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Also it seems like the Orphic priests of Plato’s time had a bit of a PR problem
Plato seemed to regard them like Fire and Brimstone preachers that mostly bothered rich people
Aristotle mentions the orphics as someone he looks forward to chatting with down in Hades, but it also seems like plato found them annoying

Janko - The Derveni Papyrus ("Diagoras of Melos, Apopyrgizontes Logoi?"): A New Translation - https://www.jstor.org/stable/1215469

Papadopoulou - An Introduction to the Derveni Papyrus - https://chs.harvard.edu/ioanna-papado...

Betegh - The Derveni Papyrus: Cosmology, Theology and Interpretation - 978-0521047395

Conference - THE FIRST COLUMNS OF THE DERVENI PAPYRUS - https://youtu.be/eKssxZcWnGU

THE PGM

A collection of magical texts
Spans 100s of years
Several cultures and religions
Several languages
Literally hundreds of spells
A cross section of the magical ideas of the ancient world, and one of the most dynamic and complex periods in western history
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Curse Tablets! Defixiones!
We got most fo them from roman baths
Incantation Bowls! Often buried beneath the lintels of homes, be they christians, mandeans, jews, etc, in the area that is now Iraq
Magical effigies called Kolossoi, occasionally and unfortunately called Voodoo Dolls, are found throughout the roman empire, and likely used for malicious magic
Theres also amulets
Inscribed gems
Anatomical models for divination
Magic thrived in the ancient world
Its a shockingly complex collection of texts, over 130 make it up
Some are small scraps, some are whole folios
Stretches over about 5 centuries
Papyrus is extremely durable
Most of the PGM was recovered from Luxor in the early 19th century in less-than-ideal conditions. We dont really know exactly where they came from.
It was then sold.
Also the local Egyptians had no say in any of this.
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Largely written in greek
Date from the 1-5th centuries CE
Sections in Coptic
Also sections in Demotic, these chunks probably represent a more authentically egyptian form of magic
The larger pens are ancient magical manuals, some of which have names
Some were apparently written by Solomon, Nephotes, Psammetichos, King Pitys, Pre-Socratic philosophers like Democritus, pythagoras, Klaudianos, The 8th Book of Moses, Zminis of Tentrya, Agathokles, and many many others.
The sheer scope of the spells is frankly enormous.
Most are erotic binding spells, aka Love Spells
Cursing Business and Legal Rivals
Cursing rival sports teams
Religious Liturgies
Theres even a “Mythras Liturgy” though we arent sure if it was ever actually used
Protective Amulets
Medical Magic
Divination
REsurrection
Spells for controlling anger and other emotions
Exorcisms
Divine Invocations
Cool magical illustrations, magical words, and magical characters
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The writers were likely educated, as they were literate. And integrated into the mercantile world of late antiquity
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They are marked by, above all else, SYNCRETISM
Though, with little in the way of systemization
Spells will freely invoke, Greek, Christian, Jewish, Egyptian, Gnostic, Iranian, Roman, and even Mesopotamian dieties all at the same time.
This syncretism continues into the modern
Many spells actually have blank spaces, or fill-in-the-blanks like “insert the usual here” which is a hint to their mercantile character
They often derive their power from divine invocation,
so -called “gods arrival” texts abound in demiotic
Many of the magical texts feature palindromes, occasionally called onamata
ABLANATHANALBA (NATHAN = hebrew for He Gives)
The most famous non-palindrome incantation, the ephesian formula?
Hey whats up with all the weird long vowel sounds?
They might have represented musical chants, but theres no notation so idk
Theres also the little ring letters, which are delightfully mysterious, and persist well into jewish and christian magic in the future, in the Sefer Raziel and Agrippa
There are also drawings throughout the PGM of various gods, spirits, etc
Taken from numerous cultural systems, though there tends to be a focus on the cthonic like Hekate or Anubis
AKETHALOS THE HEADLESS ONE
Possibly related to osiris
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So whats NOT in the PGM?
Astral magic! There are a few astrological texts, but astral magic didn’t really show up until the picatrix.
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There is also significant knowledge related to the medical, alchemical, and religious texts in the PGM, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are magical.
In fact, its an excellent example of how the term “magic” as we understand it, can be kinda artificial
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Also, chewing through this will take literal generations of scholarly work. Its exciting! And no bare summary can really do justice to just how rich and fascinating the PGM is
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Lets look at some spells
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PGM 4 - The Sword of Dardanos:
Its not uncommon to name spells after swords. The spell itself is called this because of its incredible power. Supposedly.
Its an Erotic Binding Spell
Whats cool is that it uses a magnet to attract a lover
Its a standin, a sympathea, for your lover
It also uses a magical gem
Whats fun is that it invokes jewish names for god like ADONAIE and IAO
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PGM 1 - Invisibility Spell
Takes the form of a lotion that you rub on your skin
Invisibility spells are common
Some are even made from the fat of children
Theres also LAILA which might be a corruption of the hebrew LILAM the word for night
As well as multiple permutations of the hebrew divine name placed seemingly random
Along with the vowel strings
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PGM 4 - Business Spell
Invokes Hermes
Uses a neat statuette
Usually a piece of heiratic papyrus (papyrus prepared specifically by an egyptian priest at a high level of ritual purity) thats then rolled up into clay and then formed into a statue.
It also says DONT use a red lamp (possibly bc red is associated with Set)
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PGM 7 - The Homer Oracle
Its several quotations from iliad and the odyssey aligned one after another
And there was some mechanism by which one used it for bibliomancy
By which you ask a question and then open your bible/quran to a random verse or ayet and see what that says
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PGM 7 - To keep bugs 1 out of the house
Its goat bile with water.
This one might not even be a spell.
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Its not really until the 18th century that philosophy wasnt associated with magic or religion
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PGM 7 - Magical Athletic ability
Invokes Hermes
Has a collection of interesting characters of mysterious origin
Toth appears here
Theres a link between hermes and Toth, which was already strong in this milieu
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PGM 7 - A phylactery spell
A bodyguard against daimons, against phantasms
Supposed to be written on gold or silver, but heiratic papyrus can be substituted
Hebrew names for divinity
Obscure magical characters
Kepri appears here, luck an rebirth
Ouroboros
Mercantile language, the fill in the blanks
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PGM 10
Charm to restrain anger
To be written on gold or silver and be worn as a lamella
Involves several onamata, several characters, several palindromes
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PGM 36
Figured labled at IAO, a greek name for the hebrew god
Also invokes Ptah, a god you dont usually see in magic
Akephalos is here too, hes holding what looks like a snake and an ankh
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PDM 14 - Cast a mummy at someone
Spell for fucking over your boss
Written in greek and egyptian which is interesting
Shows that the person who wrote the spell is comfortable, and also points to the spells mercantile character
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PGM 32 - Erotic binding spell between two women!
One attempts to erotically bind another woman to her
Got christian gods, greek gods, and egyptian gods
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PGM 13 contains the 8th book of moses
Contains an exorcism in which a very complex name is given to a demon and then exorcized using sulfur and asphalt being breathed in as an urgent
That burning sulphur urgent even shows up in later jewish mysticism