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... nation for a earthquake or other geological activity in the area around Telphusas streams. A angry God who wishes to punish a water nymph is easier to explain than a rock slide caused by random geologic events. Another event which could be explained to a lesser extent by the theory of a nature myth, is when Apollo appears as a Dolphin in the boat of Minoan sailors.
Although not a common occurrence it is quite possible that while out traveling from Cnossos, a Dolphin could jump into a boat. This would not necessarily be seen as a supernatural occurrence but when combined with a freak storm which blows the Minoan sailors of course to the North could well be seen as a sign from the Gods. The second monolithic theory of myth, which states that a myth is a form of proto science, would apply, in my opinion, in this case to a very lesser extent. The only possible reference would be when Apollo kills the she-dragon and it decays (rots) away. The sun is used to rot away the carcass of the she dragon, so the story tells us, and the word used for rot in the hymn is Python. If I could discount this as just a name used by the ancient Greeks for the area around the temple of Delphi then there would be no reference to a attempt at proto scientific thought.
It would seem that the ancient Greeks did understand that if you left the carcass of a dead animal in the sun it would decay and Apollo is gloating over the decaying body of the she-dragon. The charter theory can be seen as a major part of Hymn to Pythian Apollo. The use of the narrative of the Minoan sailors who were compelled to go to Delphi because of the intervention of Apollo can explain why the priests of Apollo at Delphi were from Crete. This would seem to me be to a classic example of the narrative used to explain why the priests were not from the local populous. This would also give the priests a very good precedent to use if there power base among the people was trying to undermined by new priests.
A check of the parents or nationality of any new priest who wished to join, but who had differing ideas from the controlling powers of the priests of Delphi, could be used to exclude them from the priesthood. The argument that we are the chosen, because Apollo brought us / our ancestors /fellow countrymen is a very compelling argument. The fourth monolithic myth which is that the myth will recreate the link between the Divine and the people, the same way in which the original participants were involved in the myth, I can not say one way or the other. In the research for this essay I have been checking into the ritual that was used at the temple of Apollo at Delphi.
I was unable to get a precise guide to the ritual used and can not therefore say if a retelling of the myth was part of the method in the Oracles predictions. Logic would say that some reference to the myth would be part of the ritual but without proof I cant say. This has only been my research into the ritual used at Delphi and given the short time span and limited resources at my disposal I dont claim that there is no proof of the ritual only that I was unable to find the proof. The fifth monolithic theory used that most myths used are closely associated with ritual, in context of the Primary source, can be seen as valid in this case. The relevant lines of the hymn where the Minoan sailors are instructed to set up a altar on the beach and offer white Barley, followed by singing of Io Paean, Hail Healer is a obvious ritual. G S Kirk identifies five monolithic theories in his work The nature of Greek Myth, and to some extent there are references to each of the five in our primary source Hymn to Pythian Apollo.
If only in the broadest sense as in the case of the second theory regarding proto science or in a minor way as in the first monolithic theory regarding nature, the primary monolithic theory of the myth would be the Ritual theory supported by both the charter and creative myth theories. In any discussion of the Hymn to Pythian Apollo you can not get away from the fact that the temple of Delphi was used as not only a place of worship to Apollo but also as the most famous Oracle of the ancient world. The rituals that the Priestess performs are of a nature which would predict the future in the form of a verse or riddle. The oracle was pronounced by a priestess of Apollo, the Pythia, in a state of possession. The inducement of this possession has been argued for a long time, a theory that the tripod on which she sat was in its position in the rock chamber, conveniently placed to surround her with mephitic vapors from the depth of the earth, now disproved, or that she chewed on Laurel leaves (a plant sacred to Apollo) which contain cyanide are only two of the explanations for her possession.
In reality no explanation is necessary for a divine possession of this type as there have been thousands of cases of speaking through someone else. The theories of charter and creative era, both support the ritual monolithic theory but are not themselves the primary driving force of Hymn to Pythian Apollo. The retelling of the myth and the re-enactment of the myth could be seen as part of the overall ritual of the Oracle That the temple was set up to Apollo, the most civilized and Greek of the Greek Gods and the Priests were Cretans are all part of the known rituals associated with the Oracle. That the Oracle herself was possessed is also known, but as far as I can see the exact rituals themselves are not documented. Even though the exact rituals are not known this is a clear example where the myth surrounding the ritual has grown after the ritual has started, and it could even be argued that the Divine powers of Apollo to tell the future are associated with the Oracle and not that the Oracle was granted the powers from Apollo, as Apollo was one of the later Gods that didnt become popular in Greece until after most of his fellow Olympians were already in place Bibliography: Bibliography Classical Mythology, Images and Insights Stephen L. Harris, Gloria Planner The Nature of Greek Myths G.
S. Kirk Greek Mythology; An Introduction F. Graf (translation by T. Market) The use of Greek Mythology K. Dowden Interpretations of Greek Mythology J. Bremmer Structure and History in Greek Mythology and Ritual W.
Burke Approaches to Greek Myth L. Edmunds The News Concise Dictionary of Greek and Roman Mythology M. Stapelton The Oxford History of the Classical World J. Boardman, J.
Griffin, O. Murray
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