Pelasgain Creation Myth & Ouroboros

I chose to do my presentation on the Pelasgain Creation Myth. I looked through tens, maybe even hundreds of creation myths, before I found this one. There is one main reason why I chose to use this myth. It had nothing really to do with the creation aspect but to the use of Ophion.

I became obsessed a few semesters ago with the concept of the Great Serpent. However, this is the first time that I have known him as Ophion. The serpent that captured my attention was Ouroboros.

Ouroboros eating its tail

I'm sure most everyone has seen a picture of this wonderful serpent. He is shown by the snake eating his tail. He symbolizes the everlasting cycle of life. I first started to see the concept of Oruborus in the writings of Jung and his analysis of the collective unconscious. I started into this vein of inquiry around the same time that I stumbled upon the Eeusinian Mysteries. I feel that the two things tie together pretty closely. They may not be related to each other in the symbols and stories but in the concepts and human needs that they fulfill. The image and importance of the serpent can be found in all mythologies. It does vary whether the serpent is shown as good or evil but it always has knowledge.

I think the idea of knowledge is why I have linked it to initiation rituals in my mind. The concept of initiation is the quest for knowledge. This knowledge is typically spiritual though other more concrete knowledge may accompany it. As students, we all know that knowledge is power or else we wouldn't be at MSU or more specifically in Dr. Sexson's Mythologies class.

In this short explanation, I have brought together all types of myth under the heading of initiation myths. It is my opinion that all things are a form of initiation. Within creation myths, myths of quests, and death myths, there is always initiations. However, the reverse could then be argued. In every myth creation can be found, death can be found, and quests can be found. No part of mythology can ever exist without the other parts accompanying it. They are all interconnected and interrelated. Each aspect of mythology feeds the others just like the tail feeds the serpent but is also a part of the serpent. Mythology truly is never ending which means that no life is ever ending as life is mythology being acted out.

This is a long and drawn out way of telling why I chose to use this particular myth as my creation myth.

Metamorphosis within Metamorphoses

 As I am getting further and further into Metamorphoses, it is amazing how many examples there are of people and things being changed into new forms. We have discussed so many different examples in class that I don't think that I need to re-examine them at this point. However, some of the transformations that we have not spoken of are not of the physical nature.

From my experiences in Oral Traditions, I have come to understand the importance of names and the spoken language. I'm sure many of you have noticed how names are often changed in Metamorphoses but I don't think it is as easy to understand the significance of these transformations. Changing of names is an outward symbol of the inward transformations that happen within an individuals lifetime or existence, in the case of Ovid's gods.

So much of Metamorphoses' transformations seem to be in the physical sense that we tend to forget or ignore the non-physical alterations. But these changes are just as important! The character (for lack of a better word) was Diana, Artemis, Phoebe, Agrotera, Locheia, and many other facets of herself. While these names represent a single entity, they do not represent the same person. This is the part of my reasoning that is so difficult to articulate. Every one of these names is referencing a different personality that is hosted within the same body. The reason that Diana needs different names for each of these personalities is not due to the fact that she is named by different peoples (or at least not completely for that reason) but from the fact that she needs some tangent symbol of her altered personality, lifestyle, needs, and desires.

We can see this in characters who are not gods as well. When Achilles is spoken of he is given different epithets, depending on what his role at that point was. He could be "swift-footed", "son of Peleus", or "lion-hearted". It purely situational on what epithets, or name, fits the person. An epithet is not only a symbol to the reader but also a symbol to the characters of how to behave. I am sure there are examples in Metamorphoses but none are as dominant in my mind as Achilles.

Following this same line of reasoning, epithets in real life are symbols to the people who are being referred. The reason we do not think of them this way is because we now think of epithets as titles. A few titles, or epithets, in my life include Jennifer, El Presidente (Sorority thing), Jennifer the Charmed, Harold Brusett's granddaughter, or John Cooley's daughter. Whenever someone refers to me as one of these things, my role in the interactions change. In this sense, I am a character of my own reality. Once these structures have been put on me, it is dang hard to break from the character personality that must accompany my current name. The transformation from each name signifies the process of initiation. To gain the name Jennifer the Charmed, I had to become initiated into the world of Dr. Sexson and his classes. Sure part of it may have come from my personality but it came primarily from my personality that fits with the character that I adopt when in the classroom environment. I was able to gain the name John Cooley's daughter from the initiation of my birth. It is very interesting to explore the idea of names having more significance than they appear to.

Another way that I think of names having power is to imagine if my name was different. When my parents were preparing for my birth, my name was to be Roanna. I just cannot see myself as a Roanna. I am most definitely a Jennifer. But after thinking that it leads to the question of how does one define a Jennifer? A Roanna? There is no definition per se except for the character that has been built around this name from my initiation process of birth and childhood. Does this mean that I would be a different person if I had indeed been named Roanna? Maybe but maybe not. That is the point. The point is that transformations and initiations are not always physical. Always remember, words are powerful. Way more powerful than we give them credit for.

We are exploring creation myths so we all should be aware of the power that words can possess. But I think it is worth thinking about how our own words have power, even if we are not a god. I know that we have been told this since childhood in relation to how we treat others. But also our words have power when speaking about anything. By changing the name of something that thing is changed. I know that this isn't Oral Traditions but I think it would be interesting to explore how everyone of us in this class would change if we were given an epithet. Would the rest of the classes' idea of the word change to fit the person or would people change to fit their epithet? I personally think a little of both would happen. Just something to think....

Initiation Within Creation

I decided to take a quick break from reading Metamorphoses this morning and explore around From Primitives to Zen. This site is so cool! Now initially I was drawn to the initiation myths but decided to keep with the theme of the class and start with the creation myths. There are two who have caught my attention at this point. The first of which is the Creation Myth According to the Upanishads.

This myth is in a more fragmented format than some of the others but one of the underlying concepts is different. I had never before seen Death personified as the creator of the world. In all of the other creation myths that I have read there is always a being that is associated with a god but is quite different than the God of Death. They are, of course, related somehow as most gods are within mythologies. The reason that I think this is so interesting is that it leads back to the idea of the circular nature of mythology. Death creates life and life leads to death which then will create new life. I thin that it is important to always remember the circular nature of mythology and life.

The second story that I really connected to was the story of the Earth-Diver Creation Story. It wasn't the fact that the world was created by sand brought from the bottom of the ocean but that the creator was called the Earth-Initiate. As most of you will catch on to as the semester goes on, I am OBSESSED with initiation stories so this definitely fixated me. I think that it is telling that the creator is called the initiate. I had never before thought of the creation of the world as an initiation. I had considered it on a more micro scale, such as an individual person's birth. But never before had I thought of the birth of the world. I wonder if in all creation stories, I could find an initiation story? When reading this particular story, various rituals can be seen, such as walking by the pebble three times before it is the Earth. The new initiate is seeking knowledge just like in any initiation story. This story is most definitely an initiation story! Now I just need to figure out if it is one of many or unique in this manner. The symbolism that connects these two types of tales is very blatant to one who knows where to look. So I guess I better start looking at all of the other creation stories that I have waiting for me.

Phaethon's Story

Now I'm not as far as I probably should be in reading Metamorphoses but it is just so hard to read too quickly through this book. Each and every story brings to mind so many wonderful references and ideas that I never want to move onto a new tale. Now there is one that has completely caught my fancy. Phaethon and Phoebus and the bond between them is so magnificently enthralling. It truly shows the bond that there is always between father and son, even when the relationship is newly acknowledged

I am not by any means an expert in Greek mythology but it has interested me for a long time and I have thus studied it quite a bit. I have read both older texts and texts that analyze those same older texts. One relationship that I have spent the most time studying is the mother daughter bond between Demeter and Persephone. Within this bond is a wide range of emotions that spoken about and displayed. It is quite beautiful to read about. But I had never seen such love and devotion shown between a father and son...until now.

The speeches that Phoebus (Apollo) gives to his son is some of the most beautiful pieces of literature that I have ever read! And trust me as a lit major I have read a lot of great pieces in the past four years at MSU, especially in Dr. Sexson's classes. I absolutely love the wide expanse of emotions that are displayed in just a few short pages. Apollo is able to express hope, love, despair, anger, anguish, and so much more with very little. Sometimes it is easy to forget how much we have lost in our current forms of literature. If someone was to speak like Apollo with such elegance in a piece of work today it would not be all that well received. We have replaced flowing speech about love with short, concise messages about what is useful. Apollo's anger and anguish at his son's fate was so touching that it made me want to cry with him. It is rare that I will be so touched that tears threaten to fall. The fact that they did signify  that this is truly a great work that has been able to withstand the test of time.