DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.13851#0367
OK THE RELIGION OF GREECE.
346
they were very cautious what persons they admitted to it; therefore such
as were convicted of witchcraft, or any other heinous crime, or had com-
mitted murder, though against their wills, were debarred from these mys-
teries ; and though in later ages, all persons, barbarians excepted, were
admitted to them, yet in the primitive times, the Athenians excluded all
strangers, that is, all that were not members of their own commonwealth,
Hence, when Hercules, Castor, and Pollux, desired to be initiated, they
were first made citizens of Athens, as we learn from Plutarch (1). Nor
were they admitted to the Mo?ygix fttyaKa. or greater mysteries, but only
to the or less, which were sacred to Proserpina, and first instituted
on this account: on a time when the Athenians were celebrating the ac-
customed solemnity, Hercules happening to go that way, desired he might
be initiated ; but it being unlawful for any stranger to enjoy that privilege,
and yet Hercules being a person who, by reason of his great power, and
the extraordinary services he had done for them, could not be denied,
Eumolpus thought of an expedient, whereby to satisfy the hero's request,
without violating the laws ; which he did by instituting another solemnity,
which was called Mixga, i^vs-^ia, or the lesser mysteries, which were after-
wards solemnly observed in the month Anthesterion, at Agrse, a place
near the river Ilissus ; whereas the greater vvere celebrated in the month
Boedromion. at Eleusis, an Attic borough, from which Ceres was called
Eleusinia. In latter times, the lesser festival was used as a preparative
to the greater ; for no persons were initiated in the greater, unless they
had been purified at the lesser ; the manner of which purification.was
thus : having kept themselves chaste and unpolluted nine days, they came
and offered sacrifices and prayers, wearing crowns and garlands of flow-
ers, which were called lcfptga, or l^sga ; they had also under their feet
Aio£ xaSiot, i. e. Jupiter's skin; which was the skin of a victim offered to
that god. The person that assisted them herein was called 'T^avog, from
'Yfug, i. e water, which was used at most purifications : themselves were
named MoV*i, i. e. persons initiated.
About a year after, having sacrificed a sow to Ceres, they were admit-
ted to the greater mysteries, the secret rites of which (some few except-
ed, to which none but priests were conscious) were frankly revealed
to them ; whence they were called e^o^oi, and iiroTrrcti, i. e. inspectors.
The manner of initiation was thus : the candidates being crowned with
myrtle, had admittance by night into a place called Mv&xbs tfyxbs, i. e. the
mystical temple, which was an edifice so vast and capacious, that the most
ample theatre did scarce exceed it. At their entrance, they purified
themselves by washing ther hands in holy water ; and, at the same time,
were admonished to present themselves with minds pure and undefiled,
without which the external cleanness of the body would by no means be
accepted. After this the holy mysteries were read to them out of a
book called nt'rgwjxa ; which word is derived from iferga., i. e. a stones
because the book was nothing else but two stones fitly cemented together.
Then the priest that initiated them, called '1s£«0«vt*i£, proposed certain
questions, as, whether they were fasting ? &c to which they returned an-
swers in a set form, as may be seen in Meursius's treatise on this festival;,
to which I refer the reader. This done, strange and amazing objects
presented themselves ; sometimes the place they were in seemed to
/l) Theseo-
44
346
they were very cautious what persons they admitted to it; therefore such
as were convicted of witchcraft, or any other heinous crime, or had com-
mitted murder, though against their wills, were debarred from these mys-
teries ; and though in later ages, all persons, barbarians excepted, were
admitted to them, yet in the primitive times, the Athenians excluded all
strangers, that is, all that were not members of their own commonwealth,
Hence, when Hercules, Castor, and Pollux, desired to be initiated, they
were first made citizens of Athens, as we learn from Plutarch (1). Nor
were they admitted to the Mo?ygix fttyaKa. or greater mysteries, but only
to the or less, which were sacred to Proserpina, and first instituted
on this account: on a time when the Athenians were celebrating the ac-
customed solemnity, Hercules happening to go that way, desired he might
be initiated ; but it being unlawful for any stranger to enjoy that privilege,
and yet Hercules being a person who, by reason of his great power, and
the extraordinary services he had done for them, could not be denied,
Eumolpus thought of an expedient, whereby to satisfy the hero's request,
without violating the laws ; which he did by instituting another solemnity,
which was called Mixga, i^vs-^ia, or the lesser mysteries, which were after-
wards solemnly observed in the month Anthesterion, at Agrse, a place
near the river Ilissus ; whereas the greater vvere celebrated in the month
Boedromion. at Eleusis, an Attic borough, from which Ceres was called
Eleusinia. In latter times, the lesser festival was used as a preparative
to the greater ; for no persons were initiated in the greater, unless they
had been purified at the lesser ; the manner of which purification.was
thus : having kept themselves chaste and unpolluted nine days, they came
and offered sacrifices and prayers, wearing crowns and garlands of flow-
ers, which were called lcfptga, or l^sga ; they had also under their feet
Aio£ xaSiot, i. e. Jupiter's skin; which was the skin of a victim offered to
that god. The person that assisted them herein was called 'T^avog, from
'Yfug, i. e water, which was used at most purifications : themselves were
named MoV*i, i. e. persons initiated.
About a year after, having sacrificed a sow to Ceres, they were admit-
ted to the greater mysteries, the secret rites of which (some few except-
ed, to which none but priests were conscious) were frankly revealed
to them ; whence they were called e^o^oi, and iiroTrrcti, i. e. inspectors.
The manner of initiation was thus : the candidates being crowned with
myrtle, had admittance by night into a place called Mv&xbs tfyxbs, i. e. the
mystical temple, which was an edifice so vast and capacious, that the most
ample theatre did scarce exceed it. At their entrance, they purified
themselves by washing ther hands in holy water ; and, at the same time,
were admonished to present themselves with minds pure and undefiled,
without which the external cleanness of the body would by no means be
accepted. After this the holy mysteries were read to them out of a
book called nt'rgwjxa ; which word is derived from iferga., i. e. a stones
because the book was nothing else but two stones fitly cemented together.
Then the priest that initiated them, called '1s£«0«vt*i£, proposed certain
questions, as, whether they were fasting ? &c to which they returned an-
swers in a set form, as may be seen in Meursius's treatise on this festival;,
to which I refer the reader. This done, strange and amazing objects
presented themselves ; sometimes the place they were in seemed to
/l) Theseo-
44