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sdiGood morning, and a sunny Wednesday to you all! Now we're really getting into the meat of it, so let's pick the puzzle-box back up, shall we?
VI. On Gods Cosmic and Hypercosmic.Of the Gods some are of the world, Cosmic,* and some above the world, Hypercosmic. By the Cosmic I mean those who make the Cosmos. Of the Hypercosmic Gods some create Essence, some Mind, and some Soul.† Thus they have three orders; all of which may be found in treatises on the subject.
Of the Cosmic Gods some make the World be, others animate it, others harmonize it, consisting as it does of different elements; the fourth class keep it when harmonized.
These are four actions, each of which has a beginning, middle, and end, consequently there must be twelve gods governing the world.
Those who make the world are Zeus, Poseidon, and Hephaistos; those who animate it are Demeter, Hera, and Artemis; those who harmonize it are Apollo, Aphrodite, and Hermes; those who watch over it are Hestia, Athena, and Ares.‡§
One can see secret suggestions of this in their images. Apollo tunes a lyre; Athena is armed; Aphrodite is naked (because harmony creates beauty, and beauty in things seen is not covered).
While these twelve in the primary sense possess the world, we should consider that the other gods are contained in these. Dionysus in Zeus, for instance, Asklepios in Apollo, the Charites in Aphrodite.
We can also discern their various spheres: to Hestia belongs the Earth, to Poseidon water, to Hera air, to Hephaistos fire. And the six superior spheres to the gods to whom they are usually attributed. For Apollo and Artemis are to be taken for the Sun and Moon, the sphere of Kronos should be attributed to Demeter, the ether to Athena, while the heaven is common to all. Thus the orders, powers, and spheres of the Twelve Gods have been explained and celebrated in hymns.
* Gilbert Murray notes, "I translate κόσμος ['cosmos'] generally as 'World,' sometimes as 'Cosmos.' It always has the connotation of 'divine order.'"
† Arthur Darby Nock translates this line differently: "Of the supramundane some make the essences of the gods, some the intelligence, some the souls." (Emphasis mine.) That is, they don't just make Essence, Mind, and Soul generally, it is that the Hypercosmic Gods make the Cosmic Gods, which in turn go and make other things.
‡ Thomas Taylor notes, "Such of my English readers as are capable of ascending to a knowledge of the gods, through a regular course of philosophic discipline, may consult my translation of the Elements of Theology, by Proclus [p. 300], my Introduction to the Parmenides of Plato, and my Notes on the Cratylus, where the orders of the gods are more fully unfolded." I was unable to find a full online scan of Taylor's Cratylus, Phædo, Parmenides and Timæus of Plato, but it's still in print and easy to find.
§ Once again, here and below, Taylor uses the Roman deities: Jupiter, Neptune, Vulcan, Ceres, Juno, Diana, Mercury, Venus, Apollo, Vesta, Minerva (also Pallas), Mars, Bacchus, the Graces, and Saturn. Note that Taylor has swapped the order of Mercury and Apollo!
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Date: 2021-12-08 01:59 pm (UTC)These four actions, of course, correspond to the elements: fire creates, air animates, water blends, and earth stabilizes. The three qualities also have their astrological correspondence. Probably derived from this, I've seen the division of the world into threes of fours pretty commonly in occult philosophy (e.g. Papus).
But while the astrological associations are a bit abstract, for some reason tying these qualities to the Olympians makes them feel a lot more direct and sensible to me. For example, I've been trying to make sense of Athena for almost as long as I've been reading Greek myth (as a Millennial growing up in America—a civilization as toxic as any there have been—perhaps this is unsurprising). Sallustius casting her as the one who defends the edifices Hestia builds, though, for whatever reason makes Her conception "gel" in my mind: while I frankly think most of what we've built is more in need of Ares' talents, Athena's the one to turn to for preserving anything that's worth saving through the Dark Age to come.
I'll be meditating on these for a long time, I think.
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Date: 2021-12-08 02:01 pm (UTC)While I'm making astrological associations, maybe for fun let's tie Sallustius' view of the Olympians to the zodiac and see what we end up with?
Some of these are very traditional: for example, Manilius also assigns Hestia to Capricorn and Hera to Aquarius. Some of them make sense if you turn your head and squint: for example, Zeus to Aries certainly fits his mythos and Demeter opposite him is logical enough. Most of the rest are pretty strange to me at first blush, and I'll need to think about it.
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Date: 2021-12-13 11:55 pm (UTC)