Ancient Religion

Heraclitus

by Catherine Rowett

in The Routledge History of Philosophy volume 1, (ed C.C.W. Taylor) London: Routledge 1997, pp 88-127. Revised paperback edition, Routledge 2003.

The God Enki in Sumerian Royal Ideology and Mythology

by Peeter Espak

2010, University of Tartu, PhD dissertation, 284 pp. 2010, University of Tartu, PhD dissertation, 284 pp.

The cult of Pan in ancient Greece

by philippe borgeaud

Dios en la ética de Aristóteles - God in Aristotle’s Ethics

by David Torrijos-Castrillejo

Pensamiento: Revista de investigación e Información filosófica, ISSN 0031-4749, Vol. 68, Nº 255, 2012 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Razón y existencia en el acesso a la Divinidad) , págs. 5-23.

In the last few years, a new paradigm of the knowledge of the divinity in Aristotle has emerged, affording the... more In the last few years, a new paradigm of the knowledge of the divinity in Aristotle has emerged, affording the possibility of understanding him as efficient cause. In that case, if God is efficient cause and gives rise to teleology, this must have some existential significance for man. We can ask ourselves therefore whether the knowledge of metaphysics can offer some orientation also for ethics. Yet if this were true, the need would arise to deepen the question of how much the gods love men and what would the nature of their relationship be to natural justice. Given that man is born and lives thanks to the divinity, the conclusion is that two consequences follow: a response of religious thanksgiving is needed but also, that since the will of the divinity desires the good for man, the human search for happiness is the same as the fulfillment of the divine law. All this is explained, to a certain extent, in the context of the friendship between man and the divine.

A CLASH OF CULTURES IN OUR GENES by Carol P. Christ

by Feminism and Religion

Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project

I carry the exact replica of MDNA handed down from mother to daughter since the depths of the last Ice Age 17,000... more I carry the exact replica of MDNA handed down from mother to daughter since the depths of the last Ice Age 17,000 years ago.  My father carries  the YDNA of the Indo-Europeans handed down from father to son since the time when his male ancestors invaded Europe about 5000 years ago. 

My female ancestors moved with the seasons as they gathered fruits and nuts, roots and greens to feed their families. Some of them may have blown red ochre around their hands to leave their marks in ritual cave-wombs.

HELLENISMO, Mounichion 2788

by Daphne Varenya

Review of Ted Kaizer, The Religious Life of Palmyra (2002)

by Ulf Scharrer

Religion

by Ulf Scharrer

Co-authored with Constanze Dittrich, Andreas Gruschke, Stefan Hauser,
in: Annegret Nippa (ed.), Kleines ABC des Nomadismus, Hamburg 2011, p. 180-181.

Mémoire et Ruines de Mésopotamie

by Anne-Caroline Rendu Loisel

dans, Prescendi F., Volokhine Y. (éds.), Dans le laboratoire de l'historien des religions, mélanges offerts à Philippe Borgeaud, Religions en perspectives 24, Labor et Fides, Genève, 2011, p.599-614.

Work Notes on Etruscan Devotional Plates II

by Mel Copeland

This is a PDF file of our website, 'Translation of Etruscan Devotional Plates II," with images compiled from documents supplied to Academia.edu. While these plates and the document sources supply very little light (Etr. LVS) on the Etruscan language, because of their short phrases, many of the words used on the Devotional Plates are contained in the Etruscan Phrases GlossaryA.xls and therefore clarify specific declensions. Sources of the images used on this site are identified and the source documents posted on Academia.edu should be reviewed to compare their non-Indo-European translations to the Etruscan Phrases work.

In contrast to offerings from the British Museum and University of Bologna, where their analyses, following Pallottino, are generally speculation based on guesswork relating to short funerary inscriptions, the Etruscan Phrases work is supported by a strong grammar and vocabulary based on all texts, small and large. Thus, to clear the mystery of the Etruscan language alleged by such esteemed institutions, it is imperative that the Etruscan Phrases GlossaryA.xls be audited. We mention this since the only prospect of clearing up the Etruscan Mystery is through a verifiable audit of the Etruscan Grammar recorded in Etruscan Phrases. The British Museum, University of Bologna and other "Pallottino School" works have not produced a vocabulary or grammar that can be audited, since their theory is that the Etruscan language is unlike any other known to man, not Indo-European.  Etruscan Phrases claims that the Etruscan Language is similar to Latin, French, Italian and Romanian, an Indo-European language. It offers a grammar, declension patterns and regular, measurable shifts between Etruscan and these languages; ergo the work can be easily audited.

We should hope, therefore, that there will be many linguists / scholars who will jump at the chance to clear up the Etruscan Mystery and rewrite the histories so clearly overshadowed by the Pallottino School theories, to help even the museums containing Etruscan artifacts explain a bit more about the items in their displays.

Etruscan GlossaryA.xls an index to about 2,500 Etruscan words that are similar to Latin, French, Italian and Romanian. Declension patterns follow those in Latin. The 2,500 words equal the repeated words in 6,000 words of the major extant texts. The texts have been frozen in time, covering ~700-400 B.C., representing a lens to understanding the early formation of Indo-European languages, particularly the early Italic-Latin-Celtic languages, such as Italian, French & Romanian / Dacian. (By 45 BC. the language was a dead language - no one understood or could write Etruscan)

This GlossaryA works together with Indo-European Table 1 which refutes theories by the Pallottino school of thought that the Etruscan language is not Indo-European and an isolate, unlike any other language. It is very close to Latin and, curiously, Romanian, Italian and French. The Latin suffix, "us" shifts to "o" as in Italian (Titus vs Tito); first person conjugation patterns are similar to French and Romanian. This GlossaryA provides a quick look at the grammatical structure of the Etruscan language, how closely it coincides with Latin. A more detailed Declension Table can be seen on the Etruscan Phrases website. These PDF documents facilitate independent confirmation of the words in GlossaryA.xls , the Grammar and Declension Table. All words can be examined from actual images of texts on the Etruscan Phrases website. Over 150 texts, with about 6,000 words can be examined at Etruscan Phrases.

The Etruscans surfaced in Italy about 1,000 B.C., reputed to have arrived from Lydia / Phrygia. The Phrygians originated near Macedonia in Thrace, according to Herodotus. One may therefore inquire whether the ancient Thracians (Dacians, Gettae, modern Romanians), spoke a language common to the Phrygians, at the time of the Trojan War and after (~1180 B.C.). The Thracians, Phrygians and Lydians (also dead languages) were allies of the Trojans, according to the Iliad. Etruscan Phrases finds a common vocabulary among Latin, Italian, French, Romanian, Etruscan and Phrygian. While French, Spanish, Italian and Romanian are considered Romance languages, showing a similar Latin heritage, Etruscan is not, of course, a Romance language, as it preceded Latin, at least in the written form (giving Rome its alphabet).

Resolution of the Etruscan Mystery may be likened to Michael Ventris' decipherment of Linear B and Jean-François Champollion's decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphics using the Rosetta Stone - written in Egyptian hieroglypics, Demotic and Greek. The decipherment of Etruscan is a bit more challenging, since we have no multilingual Rosetta Stone, but we do have enough vocabulary and grammar to establish that Etruscan is similar to Latin, French, Italian and Romanian. (Certainly far more vocabulary and a more extensive grammar is provided in Etruscan Phrases than that used by Ventris to claim translation of Linear B as an old form of Greek)

The Devotional Plates may be an easy entry into an audit, for those who are hesitant to examine the larger texts, such as the Zagreb Mummy (Script Z).

Chapple, R. M. 2011 'Irish National Strategic Research (INSTAR) Programme- Findings From the First Phase 2008-2011. Review' Blogspot post

by Robert M Chapple

A Radiocarbon Date from the Wall Plaster of Enclosure D of Göbekli Tepe.

by Oliver Dietrich

Co-authored with Klaus Schmidt.
Neo-Lithics 2/2010, 82-83.

Crossing boundaries: The inscribed votives of Southeast Italy’

by Kathryn Lomas

in M. Bergeron and A. Smith (eds), The Gods of Small Things. Pallas: revue d'études antiques 86 (2011): 311-329

The sanctuaries of south-east Italy have produced many votives, mainly small items of little intrinsic value. However,... more The sanctuaries of south-east Italy have produced many votives, mainly small items of little intrinsic value. However, a small quantity of these items were inscribed, despite the fact that literacy was an elite-dominated skill in pre-Roman Italy. This paper explores the significance of the act of inscribing votive objects - especially those of little intrinsic value or prestige - and the implications for our understanding of both the role of writing in ritual, and of the value and significance of the objects that were inscribed.

Hellenismo- Elapheboli

by Daphne Varenya

Necromanteion

by Daphne Varenya

Les responsabilités religieuses à Rome

by Françoise Van Haeperen

in Religions & Histoire, Hors-série n° 7, 2012, p. 34-39.

Work Notes on the Tavola Eugubine Tablet 1a, Script N462-N748

by Mel Copeland

The Tavola Eugubine is a series of bronze tablets found near the city of Gubbio. There are seven tablets, some of which are written on both sides. The tablets are said to be written in the Umbrian language and in Latin. The texts of the group tend to follow a common theme, that of an oration. This text is a highly repetitive, hierophantic oration dealing with a funeral and perhaps a secret Bacchanalian rite. The archeological context of the tables is of interest, whether the seven bronze tablets were found in situ as one collection. This text appears to be an eulogy to Lord Tito.

This is an update of our work on the Tavola Eugubine, tables 1a, IIB , III and IV (http://www.maravot.com/Translation_EugubineQ.html et al.). Changes produced on this page will be added to our Etruscan GlossaryA.pdf. All of the words in the glossary follow a grammar similar to Latin. One can easily discover that the several hundred texts on Etruscan Phrases all share a common language and grammar. This controverts the prevailing theory that the Etruscan language is not an Indo-European language. It also warrants further examination of the prevailing conclusion that the Tavola Eugubine is written in the Umbrian language.

Etruscan GlossaryA.xls/pdf. is an index to about 2,300 Etruscan words that are similar to Latin, French, Italian and Romanian. Declension patterns follow those in Latin. The 2,500 words = the repeated words in 6,000 words of the major extant texts. The texts have been frozen in time, covering ~700-400 B.C., representing a lens to understanding the early formation of Indo-European languages, particularly the early Italic-Latin-Celtic languages, such as Italian, French & Romanian / Dacian. (By 45 BC. the language was a dead language - no one understood or could write Etruscan.)

This GlossaryA works together with Indo-European Table 1 which refutes theories by the Pallottino school of thought that the Etruscan language is not Indo-European and an isolate, unlike any other language. It is very close to Latin and, curiously, Romanian, Italian and French. The Latin suffix, "us" shifts to "o" as in Italian (Titus vs Tito); first person conjugation patterns are similar to French and Romanian. This GlossaryA provides a quick look at the grammatical structure of the Etruscan language, how closely it coincides with Latin. A more detailed Declension Table can be seen on the Etruscan Phrases website. These PDF documents facilitate independent confirmation of the words in GlossaryA.xls , the Grammar and Declension Table. All words can be examined from actual images of texts on the Etruscan Phrases website. Over 150 texts, with about 6,000 words can be examined at Etruscan Phrases.

The Etruscans surfaced in Italy about 1,000 B.C., reputed to have arrived from Lydia / Phrygia. The Phrygians originated near Macedonia in Thrace, according to Herodotus. One may therefore inquire whether the ancient Thracians (Dacians, Gettae, modern Romanians), spoke a language common to the Phrygians, at the time of the Trojan War and after (~1180 B.C.). The Thracians, Phrygians and Lydians (also dead languages) were allies of the Trojans, according to the Iliad. Etruscan Phrases finds a common vocabulary among Latin, Italian, French, Romanian, Etruscan and Phrygian. While French, Spanish, Italian and Romanian are considered Romance languages, showing a similar Latin heritage, Etruscan is not, of course, a Romance language, as it preceded Latin, at least in the written form (giving Rome its alphabet).
Resolution of the Etruscan Mystery may be likened to Michael Ventris' decipherment of Linear B and Jean-François Champollion's decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphics using the Rosetta Stone - written in Egyptian hieroglyphics, Demotic and Greek.

The decipherment of Etruscan is a bit more challenging; since we have no multilingual Rosetta stone, but we do have enough vocabulary and grammar to establish that Etruscan is similar to Latin, French, Italian and Romanian. (Certainly far more vocabulary and a more extensive grammar are provided in Etruscan Phrases than that used by Ventris to claim translation of Linear B as an old form of Greek.)

We look forward to the time when a peer review of these Work Notes will warrant corrections to the prevailing record, showing that the Etruscan language was similar to Latin and decry the theory that the "Etruscan language is unlike any other and not an Indo-European language." The theory of a non-Indo-European Etruscan language is absolutely false.

There is a far richer record to be written of an Indo-European branch, dead as of ~400 B.C., that can shed light on the movements of the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age Italic peoples, perhaps out of southeastern Europe to Anatolia and then to Italy by sea. Herodotus, who recorded the Etruscan tradition, that they came from Lydia as a result of a long drought after the Trojan War, may be right. We mention this because there is more to be gained in sorting out the grammar at Etruscan Phrases - and possible confirmation of Herodotus - than can ever be hoped for in the bogus theory that "the Etruscan language is unlike any other language known to man." Wikipedia et al. should be corrected.

This text may be of interest to those interested how the liturgy of an Augur may compare to that of a modern liturgy.

The moral teachings of Ptah-hotep

by Kartikeya Senapati

Legal Theories and Ancient Practices in John Selden's Marmora Arundelliana

by Joseph Wallace

published in the "Journal of the History of Ideas," vol. 72 (July 2011): 393-412.

This article examines John Selden’s 1628 edition of a set of Greek inscriptions in the context of his developing legal... more This article examines John Selden’s 1628 edition of a set of Greek inscriptions in the context of his developing legal theories and his classical scholarship. While the edition has often been studied as an exercise in specialized scholarship, this essay relates it to several of Selden’s other works as well as a broad range of ancient and early modern legal thought. I argue that the edition provides a way to understand Selden’s thinking about the intersection between political and religious obligation, methods for changing existing laws, and the distribution of goods and honors in a religious society.

Kinderspielzeug oder Kultobjekte? Überlegungen zu anthropomorphen Figurinen der Wietenberg- und Tei-Kultur.

by Oliver Dietrich

In: S. Berecki, R. E. Németh, B. Rezi (Hrsg.), Bronze Age Rites and Rituals in the Carpathian Basin. Proceedings of the International Colloquium from Târgu Mureş 8.-10.10.2010 (Târgu Mureş 2010), 87-106.