The beautiful myths of ancient Greece and its pagan religion had a tremendous impact on the development of world culture. Among the twelve immortal deities seated on Olympus, one of the most revered and beloved among people was and remains the god Apollo. In his honor, magnificent temples were erected and sculptures created. It seemed to embody all the immortal beauty reigning in music and poetry. The sun-like golden-haired deity to this day is for us the personification of youth, mind, talent and grace.
Apollo - the god of the sun
The top of the Greek pantheon belongs to the mighty and thundering Zeus, but the second after him is Apollo - his beloved son. The ancient Greeks considered him the god of the Sun and the arts, among which the main role was played by music. The sunlike youth also patronized the divination and the art of archery. He was both a legislator and a punisher, a defender of shepherds and the rule of law. The patron saint of medicine, Apollo at the same time could send diseases. In Roman mythology, as in Greek, this god was called Apollo, but also Phoebus, which meant "radiant, " "bright, " "pure."
Apollo - the god of Greece - was most often depicted as a walking or standing beardless, handsome young man with golden hair, fluttering in the wind and crowned with a noble laurel. In his hands he holds his invariable attributes - lyre and bow, his figure is strong and courageous. The symbol of Apollo is the Sun.
The birth of a beautiful god
According to myths, the god Apollo was the son of Zeus and the titanide Leto (she was the daughter of a titan). Before the future god was born, Summer had to wander for a long time to hide from the wrath of the goddess Hera - the legitimate wife of Zeus. Apollo's mother could not find shelter anywhere. And only when it was time to give birth, she was sheltered by the deserted island of Delos. Painful childbirth lasted a long nine days and nights. The vengeful Hera did not allow Ilithia, the goddess of childbearing, to provide Summer with help.
Finally, a divine baby was born. It happened on the seventh day of the month, under a palm tree. That is why the seven subsequently became a sacred number, and many pilgrims who sought to worship the birthplace of Apollo aspired to the ancient palm tree growing on Delos in ancient times.
Apollo and Artemis
But the ancient Greek god Apollo was not born alone, but with his twin sister - Artemis, who is known to us as the goddess of hunting. Brother and sister were skilled archers. The bow and arrows of Apollo are made of gold, and the arms of Artemis are silver. The girl was born earlier. And, as Homer writes, it was she who later taught her brother archery.
Both twins always without a miss hit the target, death from their arrows was easy and painless. Brother and sister had an amazing ability to completely disappear from sight (the girl was dissolved among the forest trees, and the young man retired to Hyperborea). Both were honored for their extraordinary purity.
Unhappy love
It sounds strange, but the radiant god Apollo was not happy in love. Although partly he is to blame for this himself. There was no need to laugh at Eros, saying that he lacked accuracy when shooting from an bow. In revenge to the scoffer Apollo, the god of love struck a heart with a golden arrow, another arrow (disgusting love) Eros fired into the heart of the nymph Daphne.
Apollo, intoxicated by his love, began to pursue the girl, but Daphne, in horror, rushed to the river god - her father. And he turned his daughter into a laurel tree. Even after this, the love of the inconsolable youth did not pass. From now on, the laurel became his sacred tree, and a wreath made of its leaves adorned the head of God forever.
On this Apollo's love misadventures did not end. Once he was captivated by the beautiful Cassandra - the daughter of Priam (King of Troy) and Hekuba. Apollo gave the girl the gift of divination, but took the word from her that in return she would give him her love. Cassandra deceived God, and he took revenge on her, making it so that people did not believe in her predictions, considering the prophetess insane. The unfortunate girl during the Trojan War struggled to warn the inhabitants of Troy about the danger that threatens them, but they still did not believe her. And Troy was captured by enemies.
Son of apollo
The holy god of medicine, Asclepius (Aesculapius in the Roman version) is considered the son of Apollo. Born to mortals, he subsequently received the gift of immortality for his unsurpassed ability to heal people. Asclepius was brought up by the wise centaur Chiron, it was he who taught him healing. But very soon the student surpassed his mentor.
The son of Apollo was such a talented doctor that he was even able to resurrect dead people. The gods were angry with him for that. After all, while resurrecting mortals, Asclepius violated the law established by the gods of Olympus. Zeus struck him with his lightning. The Greek god Apollo got even for the death of his son by the fact that he killed the Cyclopes, which, according to legend, forged the peruns (thunder and lightning that Zeus metal). However, Asclepius was pardoned and returned from the kingdom of the dead by the will of the Moirs (goddesses of fate). He was granted immortality and the title of the god of healing and medicine.
God the musician
Apollo - the god of the Sun - is always associated with these string attributes: bow and lyre. One of them allows him to skillfully shoot arrows at the target, the other to create beautiful music. Interestingly, the Greeks believed that there was a kinship between the two arts. Indeed, in both cases there is a flight to some goal. The song also directly flies to people's hearts and souls, like an arrow to a target.
Apollo’s music is pure and clear, as is himself. This master of melodies appreciates the transparency of sound and the purity of notes. His musical art raises the human spirit, gives people spiritual insight and is the exact opposite of the music of Dionysus, which carries ecstasy, violence and passion.
On Mount Parnassus
According to legend, when spring comes to earth, the Greek god Apollo goes to Mount Parnassus, next to which the Kastalsky spring is murmuring. There he leads round dances with eternally young muses - the daughters of Zeus: Thalia, Melpomene, Euterpa, Erato, Clio, Terpsichore, Urania, Calliope and Polygymy. All of them are patrons of various arts.
The god Apollo and the muses together form a divine ensemble in which the girls sing, and he accompanies them singing by playing their golden lyre. In those moments when their choir is heard, nature trails off to enjoy the divine sounds. Zeus himself at that time becomes meek, and the lightnings in his hands fade away, and the bloody god Ares forgets about the war. Peace and tranquility reign then on Olympus.
Delphic Oracle Foundation
When the god Apollo was still in the womb, his mother, on the orders of Hera, was everywhere pursued by the fierce dragon Python. And so, when the young god was born, he soon wanted to avenge all the torment that fell to the lot of Summer. Apollo found a gloomy gorge in the vicinity of Delph - the abode of Python. And the dragon appeared at his call. His appearance was terrible: a huge scaly body wriggled in countless rings between the rocks. The whole earth trembled from his heavy tread, and the mountains crumbled into the sea. All living things ran away in horror.
When Python opened his fire-breathing mouth, it seemed that another moment, and he would devour Apollo. But the next instant there was a ringing of golden arrows that pierced the body of the monster, and the dragon fell down. In honor of his victory over Python, Apollo founded an oracle in Delphi so that Zeus's will was announced to people in it.
But, although Apollo is considered the god of predictions and prophecies, he himself never did this. The answers to numerous questions of people were given by the priestess-Pythia. Coming into a state of frenzy, she began to shout loudly the incoherent words that were immediately recorded by the priests. They interpreted the predictions of Pythia and passed them on to the questioners.
Atonement
After the god Apollo shed the blood of Python, according to the decision of Zeus, he had to be cleansed of this sin and atone for it. The young man was expelled to Thessaly, the king of which at that time was Admet. Apollo was to become a shepherd in order to achieve atonement by simple hard work. He humbly grazed the royal flocks and sometimes, right in the middle of the pasture, had fun playing a simple reed flute.
His music was so wonderful that even wild animals came out of the forest in order to listen to it. When Apollo, the god of ancient Greece, was playing music, ferocious lions and carnivorous panthers walked peacefully among his herds with deer and chamois. Around reigned joy and peace. In the house of king Admetus prosperity was instilled. His horses and gardens became the best in Thessaly. Apollo Admet also helped in love. He endowed the king with tremendous power, thanks to which he was able to harness the lion to the chariot. Such a condition was made by the father of Admet's lover - Alkesta. Apollo served as a shepherd for eight years. Having completely atoned for his sin, he returned to Delphi.
Delphic Temple
Apollo is the god of ancient Greece, who, like other revered Olympic deities, was immortalized. And not only in marble statues and legends. In his honor, the Greeks erected numerous temples. It is believed that the very first temple dedicated to the god of the Sun was built precisely in Delphi, at the foot of the Oracle. Tradition says that it was completely built from the branches of a laurel tree. Of course, a building made of such fragile material could not stand for long, and soon a new religious building appeared on this site.
What is the account of the Apollo temple in Delphi, the ruins of which have survived to our time, it is now difficult to say, but today it is clear how magnificent this Delphic temple was once. Art historians say that over the entrance to the sanctuary was inscribed with the two main commandments of God, which read: "Know yourself" and "Know the measure."
