Orpheus never seemed to belong there. Yet most traditions made him Thracian; and not merely that, but the king's heir, anticipated as the next ruler of his country. A fragment of Pindar called him "Orpheus of the golden sword", an epithet also used of Apollo, whatever it meant. Most Thracians fought from their stirrupless horses with javelins and spears; but curved swords like scimitars were given as presents and buried with them, the hilts chased with gold and silver mined in the hills. Perhaps such a sword belonged to Orpheus; perhaps he knew how to use it. But his whole persona suggested otherwise. Music alone was his weapon and his defense. The real Orpheus, say some Bulgarian historians, was a Thracian king who tried to make his warring peoples live together in peace, and was killed when he failed.
From Orpheus: The Song of Life, by Ann Wroe
Orpheus is one of the great tragic figures of Classical mythology. He's also enough to have inspired his own religion within yet separate from Greek polytheism. And the tale of Orpheus appears with variations in myths from all over: Italy, Anatolia, Northern Africa, the British Isles.
Was he ever a real person, i.e. a mortal? It's possible. Thracians were known to elevate kings and such to the level of godhood. For that matter, they were hardly alone on that score. But of course over the millennia it's become essentially impossible to trace. The uncertainty has become part of the myth. He's certainly attained a high stature in myths of all kind, as a formative musician and poet. Both Nietzsche and Jung were fascinated with him.
2 comments:
While the story of Orpheus is one of the great Greek tragedies I read the section of the page you linked to and found the bit about Eurydice. It turned out that when he was killed by the Maenads, Orpheus was once again reunited with Eurydice.
That brings up an interesting point about Orphism, the religion inspired by him, taught that mankind as the descendants of the Titans (destroyed by Zeus for the murder of Dionysus) and the heart of Dionysus were able to eventually go to heaven after many reincarnations. This being just the essence of the belief it's all far too complicated for me. I guess that means that already being a god Orpheus, or the son of two gods, got a reprieve from the reincarnation part. It's no surprise that both Nietzsche and Jung were so taken with his story.
Most of the info comes from the wiki page about Orphism but Lev Krym clarified the tale in this post.
https://medium.com/@levthekrymean/orphism-a-journey-into-the-mystical-beliefs-of-ancient-greece-469e1385c72f
As far as whether or not Orpheus was real I'm not sure it even matters. The myths may or may not be true but are certainly genuine.
Of course. He wanted to bring her back to life on Earth but couldn't. He certainly wouldn't have chosen to be torn apart by Maenads. But in the end they were together again. Perhaps these were just necessary steps.
It's an intoeresting theory that mankind descended from the Titans, which is to say, the older generation of gods rather than the current Olympians. I suppose there are a few different inferences you could make from that. Orpheus is sometimes said to be the first religious leader to point to a way to heaven through belief and actions, in effect defining good behavior. Again, I don't know if it's literally true, but there are stages to belief.
Lev Krym explains much of this. He also includes a rather breathtaking Fuseli illustration.
The myths do carry a kind of truth, which is why they've endured. And hopefully won't be forgotten now.
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