Euhemerism
Euhemerism(/juːˈhiːmərɪzəm,-hɛm-/) is an approach to theinterpretationofmythologyin which mythological accounts are presumed to have originated from real historical events or personages. Euhemerism supposes that historical accounts become myths as they are exaggerated in the retelling, accumulating elaborations and alterations that reflect culturalmores.It was named after the Greek mythographerEuhemerus,who lived in the late 4th century BC. In the more recent literature of myth, such asBulfinch's Mythology,euhemerism is termed the "historical theory" of mythology.[1]
Euhemerus was not the first to attempt to rationalize mythology in historical terms: euhemeristic views are found in earlier writings including those ofSanchuniathon,Xenophanes,Herodotus,Hecataeus of AbderaandEphorus.[2][3]However, the enduring influence of Euhemerus upon later thinkers such as the classical poetEnnius(b. 239 BC) and modern authorAntoine Banier(b. 1673 AD) identified him as the traditional founder of this school of thought.[4]
Early history
[edit]In a scene described in Plato'sPhaedrus,Socratesoffers a euhemeristic interpretation of a myth concerningBoreasandOrithyia:
Phaedrus:Tell me, Socrates, isn't it from somewhere near this stretch of the Ilisus that people say Boreas carried Orithyia away?
Socrates:So they say.
Phaedrus:Couldn't this be the very spot? The stream is lovely, pure and clear: just right for girls to be playing nearby.
Socrates:No, it is two or three hundred yards farther downstream, where one crosses to get to the district of Agrai. I think there is even an altar to Boreas there.
Phaedrus:I hadn't noticed it. But tell me, Socrates, in the name of Zeus, do you really believe that legend is true?
Socrates:Actually, it would not be out of place for me to reject it, as our intellectuals do. I could then tell a clever story: I could claim that a gust of the North Wind blew her over the rocks where she was playing with Pharmaceia; and once she was killed that way people said she had been carried off by Boreas...[5]
Socrates illustrates a euhemeristic approach to the myth ofBoreasabductingOrithyia.He shows how the story of Boreas, the northern wind, can be rationalised: Orithyia is pushed off the rock cliffs through the equation of Boreas with a natural gust of wind, which accepts Orithyia as a historical personage. But here he also implies that this is equivalent to rejecting the myth. Socrates, despite holding some euhemeristic views, mocked the concept that all myths could be rationalized, noting that the mythical creatures of "absurd forms" such asCentaursand theChimeracould not easily be explained.[6]
In the ancientskepticphilosophical tradition ofTheodorus of Cyreneand theCyrenaics,Euhemerus forged a new method of interpretation for the contemporary religious beliefs. Though his work is lost, the reputation of Euhemerus was that he believed that much ofGreek mythologycould be interpreted as natural or historical events subsequently given supernatural characteristics through retelling. Subsequently, Euhemerus was considered to be anatheistby his opponents, most notablyCallimachus.[7]
Deification
[edit]Euhemerus' views were rooted in the deification of men, usually kings, into gods throughapotheosis.In numerous cultures, kings were exalted or venerated into the status of divine beings and worshipped after their death, or sometimes even while they ruled.Dion,the tyrant ruler ofSyracuse,was deified while he was alive and modern scholars consider his apotheosis to have influenced Euhemerus' views on the origin of all gods.[8]Euhemerus was also living during the contemporaneous deification of theSeleucidsand "pharaoization"of thePtolemiesin a fusion of Hellenic and Egyptian traditions.
Tomb of Zeus
[edit]Euhemerus argued thatZeuswas a mortal king who died onCrete,and that his tomb could still be found there with the inscription bearing his name.[9]This claim however did not originate with Euhemerus, as the general sentiment of Crete during the time ofEpimenidesofKnossos(c. 600 BC) was that Zeus was buried somewhere in Crete. For this reason, the Cretans were often consideredatheists,and Epimenides called them all liars (seeEpimenides paradox).Callimachus,an opponent of Euhemerus' views onmythology,argued that Zeus' Cretan tomb was fabricated, and that he was eternal:
Cretans always lie.For the Cretans even built a tomb,
Lord, for you. But you did not die, for you are eternal.[10]
A later Latinscholiumon theHymnsof Callimachus attempted to account for the tomb of Zeus. According to the scholium, the original tomb inscription read: "The tomb ofMinos,the son ofJupiter"but over time the words" Minos, the son "wore away leaving only" the tomb of Jupiter ". This had misled the Cretans into thinking that Zeus had died and was buried there.[11]
Influenced by Euhemerus,Porphyryin the 3rd century AD claimed thatPythagorashad discovered the tomb of Zeus on Crete and written on the tomb's surface an inscription reading: "Here died and was buried Zan, whom they call Zeus".[12]Varroalso wrote about the tomb of Zeus.
Christians
[edit]Hostile to paganism, the early Christians, such as theChurch Fathers,embraced euhemerism in attempt to undermine the validity of pagan gods.[13]The usefulness of euhemerist views to early Christian apologists may be summed up inClement of Alexandria's triumphant cry inCohortatio ad gentes:"Those to whom you bow were once men like yourselves."[14]
The Book of Wisdom
[edit]TheWisdom of Solomon,adeuterocanonical book,has a passage,Wisdom 14:12–21,giving a euhemerist explanation of the origin of idols.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/38px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png)
Early Christian apologists
[edit]Theearly Christianapologistsdeployed the euhemerist argument to support their position that pagan mythology was merely an aggregate offablesof human invention.Cyprian,a North African convert to Christianity, wrote a short essayDe idolorum vanitate( "On the Vanity of Idols" ) in 247 AD that assumes the euhemeristic rationale as though it needed no demonstration. Cyprian begins:
That those are no gods whom the common people worship, is known from this: they were formerly kings, who on account of their royal memory subsequently began to be adored by their people even in death. Thence temples were founded to them; thence images were sculptured to retain the countenances of the deceased by the likeness; and men sacrificed victims, and celebrated festal days, by way of giving them honour. Thence to posterity those rites became sacred, which at first had been adopted as a consolation.
Cyprian proceeds directly to examples, theapotheosisofMelicertesandLeucothea;"The Castors [i.e.Castor and Pollux] die by turns, that they may live ", a reference to the daily sharing back and forth of their immortality by the Heavenly Twins." The cave of Jupiter is to be seen in Crete, and his sepulchre is shown ", Cyprian says, confounding Zeus andDionysusbut showing that theMinoancave cult was still alive in Crete in the third century AD. In his exposition, it is to Cyprian's argument to marginalize thesyncretismof pagan belief, in order to emphasize the individual variety of local deities:
From this the religion of the gods is variously changed among individual nations and provinces, inasmuch as no one god is worshipped by all, but by each one the worship of its own ancestors is kept peculiar.
Eusebius in hisChronicleemployed euhemerism to argue the Babylonian GodBaʿalwas a deified ruler and that the godBeluswas the first Assyrian king.[15]
Euhemeristic views are found expressed also inTertullian(De idololatria), theOctaviusofMarcus Minucius Felixand inOrigen.[16]Arnobius' dismissal of paganism in the fifth century, on rationalizing grounds, may have depended on a reading of Cyprian, with the details enormously expanded.Isidore of Seville,compiler of the most influential early medieval encyclopedia, devoted a chapterDe diis gentium[17]to elucidating, with numerous examples and elaborated genealogies of gods, the principle drawn fromLactantius,Quos pagani deos asserunt, homines olim fuisse produntur( "Those whom pagans claim to be gods were once mere men" ). Elaborating logically, he attempted to place these deified men in the six great periods of history as he divided it, and created mythological dynasties. Isidore's euhemeristic bent was codified in a rigid parallel with sacred history inPetrus Comestor's appendix to his much translatedHistoria scholastica(written c. 1160), further condensing Isidore to provide strict parallels of figures from the paganlegend,as it was now viewed in historicised narrative, and the mighty human spirits of the patriarchs of theOld Testament.[18]Martin of Braga,in hisDe correctione rusticorum,wrote that idolatry stemmed from post-deluge survivors of Noah's family, who began to worship thesunand stars instead ofGod.In his view, the Greek gods were deified descendants ofNoahwho were once real personages.[19]
Middle Ages
[edit]Christian writers during theMiddle Agescontinued to embrace euhemerism, such asVincent of Beauvais,Petrus Comestor,Roger BaconandGodfrey of Viterbo.[20][21] "After all, it was during this time that Christian apologists had adopted the views of the rationalist Greek philosophers. And had captured the purpose for Euhemerism, which was to explain the mundane origins of the Hellenistic divinities. Euhemerism explained simply in two ways: first in the strictest sense as a movement which reflected the known views of Euhemerus' Hiera Anagraphe regarding Panchaia and the historicity of the family of Saturn and Uranus. The principal sources of these views are the handed-down accounts of Lactantius and Diodorus; or second, in the widest sense, as a rationalist movement which sought to explain the mundane origins of all the Hellenistic gods and heroes as mortals." Other modern theorists labeled Euhemerism as a "subject of classical paganism that was fostered in the minds of the people of the Middle Ages through the realization that while in most respects the ancient Greeks and Roman had been superior to themselves, they had been in error regarding their religious beliefs. An examination of the principal writings in Middle English with considerable reading of literature other than English, discloses the fact that the people of the Middle Ages rarely regarded the so-called gods as mere figments of the imagination but rather believed that they were or had been real beings, sometimes possessing actual power" (John Daniel Cook).
Snorri Sturluson's "euhemerism"
[edit]In theProse Edda,composed around 1220, the Christian Icelandic bard and historianSnorri Sturlusonproposes that the Norse gods were originally historical leaders and kings.Odin,the father of the gods, is introduced as a historical person originally fromAsia Minor,tracing his ancestry back toPriam,the king ofTroyduring theTrojan War.[22][23]
As Odin travels north to settle in theNordic countries,he establishes the royal families ruling inDenmark,SwedenandNorwayat the time:
And whatever countries they passed through, great glory was spoken of them, so that they seemed more like gods than men.[24]
Snorri's euhemerism follows the early Christian tradition.[citation needed]
In the modern world
[edit]Euhemeristic interpretations of mythology continued throughout theearly modern periodfrom the 16th century,[25]to modern times. In 1711, the French historianAntoine Banierin hisMythologie et la fable expliqués par l'histoire( "The Mythology and Fables of the Ancients, Explained" ) presented strong arguments for a euhemerist interpretation of Greek mythology.[26]Jacob Bryant'sA New System or Analysis of Ancient Mythology(1744) was also another key work on euhemerism of the period, but argued so from a Biblical basis. Of the early 19th century,George Stanley Faberwas another Biblical euhemerist. His workThe Origin of Pagan Idolatry(1816) proposed that all the pagan nations worshipped the same gods, who were all deified men. Outside of Biblical influenced literature, some archaeologists embraced euhemerist views since they discovered myths could verify archaeological findings.Heinrich Schliemannwas a prominent archaeologist of the 19th century who argued myths had historical truths embedded in them. Schliemann was an advocate of the historical reality of places and characters mentioned in the works ofHomer.He excavatedTroyand claimed to have discovered artifacts associated with various figures from Greek mythology, including theMask of AgamemnonandPriam's Treasure.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/Sleeping_Lady_Hypogeum_Hal_Saflieni.jpg/220px-Sleeping_Lady_Hypogeum_Hal_Saflieni.jpg)
Herbert Spencerembraced some euhemeristic arguments in attempt to explain theanthropocentricorigin of religion, throughancestor worship.Rationalizing methods of interpretation that treat some myths as traditional accounts based upon historical events are a continuous feature of some modern readings of mythology.
The twentieth century poet and mythographerRobert Gravesoffered many such "euhemerist" interpretations in his telling ofThe White Goddess(1948) andThe Greek Myths(1955). His suggestions that such myths record and justify the political and religious overthrow of earlier cult systems have been widely criticized and are rejected by most scholars.[27][excessive citations]
Euhemerization
[edit]AuthorRichard Carrierdefines "euhemerization" as "the taking of a cosmic god and placing him at a definite point in history as an actual person who was later deified".
Euhemerus... depicted an imaginary scholar discovering that Zeus and Uranus were once actual kings. In the process Euhemerus invents a history for these 'god kings', even though we know there is no plausible case to be made that either Zeus or Uranus was ever a real person.[28]
In this framing, rather than beingpresumedto have originated from real historical events or personages, the mythological accounts areclaimedto have had such origins, and historical accounts invented accordingly – such that, counter to the usual sense of "Euhemerism", in "euhemerization" a mythological figure is in fact transformed into a (pseudo)historical one.
See also
[edit]- Demythologization
- Geomythology
- Shaggy God story– Sub-genre in science fiction
References
[edit]- ^Bulfinch, Thomas.Bulfinch's Mythology.Whitefish: Kessinger, 2004, p. 194.
- ^S. Spyridakis: "Zeus Is Dead: Euhemerus and Crete" The Classical Journal 63.8 (May 1968, pp. 337–340) p.338.
- ^Herodotuspresented rationalized accounts of the myth ofIo(HistoriesI.1ff) and events of the Trojan War (Histories2.118ff).
- ^An introduction to mythology,Lewis Spence,1921, p. 42.
- ^Plato, Phaedr. 229b–d, translation taken from: Plato(1997). Cooper, John Madison; Hutchinson, D.S. (eds.).Complete works.Hackett Publishing. pp.509–510.ISBN978-0-87220-349-5.Retrieved2011-09-20.
- ^Phaedrus,229d
- ^S. Spyridakis, 1968, pp. 338–339.
- ^Franco De Angelis and Benjamin Garstad, "Euhemerus in Context",Classical Antiquity,Vol. 25, No. 2, October 2006, pp. 211–242.
- ^Zeus Is Dead: Euhemerus and Crete,S. Spyridakis, The Classical Journal, Vol. 63, No. 8, May, 1968, pp. 337–340.
- ^Callimachus,Hymn to Zeus
- ^The hymns of Callimachus, tr. into Engl. verse, with notes. To which are added, Select epigrams, and theComa Berenicesof the same author, six hymns of Orpheus, and theEncomium of Ptolemyby Theocritus, by W. Dodd, 1755, p. 3, footnote.
- ^Epilegomena to the Study of Greek Religions and Themis a Study of the Social Origins of Greek Religion, Jane Ellen Harrison, Kessinger Publishing, 2003, p. 57.
- ^"Euhemerism: A Mediaeval Interpretation of Classical Paganism", John Daniel Cooke,Speculum,Vol. 2, No. 4, October 1927, p. 397.
- ^Quoted in Seznec (1995),The Survival of the Pagan Gods,Princeton University Press, p. 12, who observes (p. 13) of the numerous Christian examples he mentions, "Thus Euhemerism became a favorite weapon of the Christian polemicists, a weapon they made use of at every turn".
- ^Chronicon, Pat. Graeca XIX, cols. 132, 133, i. 3.
- ^Euhemerism and Christology in Origen: "Contra Celsum" III 22–43, Harry Y. Gamble,Vigiliae Christianae,Vol. 33, No. 1, March 1979, pp. 12–29.
- ^Isidore,Etymologiae,book viii, ch. 12.
- ^Seznec 1995:16.
- ^"Chapter 4: Pagan Survivals in Galicia in the Sixth Century".
- ^John Daniel Cooke, "Euhemerism: A Mediaeval Interpretation of Classical Paganism",Speculum,Vol. 2, No. 4, October 1927, pp. 396–410.
- ^The Franciscan friarRoger Baconin the 13th century argued that ancient Gods such asMinerva,Prometheus,Atlas,Apollo,IoandMercurywere all deified humans.Opus Maius,ed. J. H. Bridges, Oxford, 1897, pp. 46–47.
- ^Brouwers, Josho (2021-05-20)."Did Odin come from Troy? - The Anatolian origins of the Norse pantheon".Ancient World Magazine.Retrieved2023-07-19.
- ^Rix, Robert (2010)."Oriental Odin: Tracing the east in northern culture and literature".History of European Ideas.36(1): 47–60.doi:10.1016/j.histeuroideas.2009.10.006.
- ^Snorri Sturluson, trans. Anthony Faulkes,Edda.Everyman. 1987. (Prologue, p. 4)
- ^For example, in the preface toArthur Golding's 1567 translation ofOvid'sMetamorphosesinto English, Golding offers a rationale for contemporary Christian readers to interpret Ovid's pagan stories. He argues: "The true and everliving God thePaynimsdid not know: Which caused them the name of Gods on creatures to bestow ".
- ^The Rise of Modern Mythology, 1680–1860,Burton Feldman, Robert D. Richardson, Indiana University Press, 2000, p. 86.
- ^
- Wood, Juliette (1999)."Chapter 1: The Concept of the Goddess".In Sandra Billington, Miranda Green (ed.).The Concept of the Goddess.Routledge. p. 12.ISBN9780415197892.Retrieved2008-12-23.
- Hutton, Ronald (1993).The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy.John Wiley & Sons.p. 320.ISBN9780631189466.
- The Paganism Reader.p. 128.
- Hutton, Ronald (1993).The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy.John Wiley & Sons. p. 145.ISBN9780631189466.
- Lewis, James R.Magical Religion and Modern Witchcraft.p. 172.
- G. S. Kirk,Myth: Its Meaning and Functions in Ancient and Other Cultures,Cambridge University Press, 1970, p. 5.ISBN0-520-02389-7
- Richard G. A. Buxton,Imaginary Greece: The Contexts of Mythology,Cambridge University Press, 1994, p. 5.ISBN0-521-33865-4
- Mary Lefkowitz,Greek Gods, Human Lives
- Kevin Herbert, "Review ofThe Greek Myths",The Classical Journal,Vol. 51, No. 4. (January 1956), pp. 191–192.
- ^Carrier, Richard (2014).On the Historicity of Jesus.Sheffield Phoenix Press. p. 222.ISBN9781909697355.