Olive and Olive Oil Myths III - Ancient Roman Myths
22-06-2023
11:36
The Dryad, Evelyn De Morgan (1855 - 1919), English painter. The fairy's foot has not yet separated from the solid trunk of the tree from which it was born. The purple irises on the dryad's feet symbolize the little Greek goddess Iris. Model Jane Hales is the maid in the artist's house.
Olive and Olive Oil Myths III - Ancient Roman Myths
The peoples that make up the Roman civilization are thought to come from three different origins; the natives who have lived there since the Neolithic age, the Etruscan people, unlike their neighbors with their controversial non-Indo-European language with unique smithing skills, and the Indo-European migratory invaders who descended from the north of the Alps. For this reason, foundation myths are also associated with the beliefs of these peoples. There is evidence that the Etruscans migrated from Anatolia to Italy, one of the claims being that they were descended from the Lydians.
When we reach the times of the rise of the Roman Empire in the history of humanity, the olive tree still preserves its sacred character. Romulus and Remus, the founders of the Roman countries, just like Apollo and Artemis, BC. They believed that he was born under an olive tree around 800 BC. Their father is Mars, who was the god of fertility at first but later became the god of war, and their mother is Rea Silvia, a priestess of Vesta (the goddess of home and family), who swore to remain a virgin for thirty years.
Here, a virgin priestess takes the place of the goddess Leto in the myths of ancient Greek civilization. Rhea Silvia, or "the guilty woman of the forest," whose virginity is broken, is customarily sentenced to be buried alive, and the twins she gives birth to must be killed. However, the butler tasked with killing the twins shows mercy and dumps them adrift in the Tiber. The fact that the protagonist of the story is a pure and uncontaminated priestess brings to mind the Kanephoros in the rites performed for Athena, on the one hand, and the Egyptian myth of Moses, on the other hand, in terms of the twins being released into the river instead of being killed. The myth of the abandonment of the newborn baby is also present in the myths of other geographical peoples. The role of a virgin maiden may be related to the beliefs of the Etruscans, who are thought to have migrated from the Aegean, however, information on the origins of Etruscan religious beliefs is insufficient and controversial.
At the end of the story, the river god Tiberinus finds the twins and gives them to nurse a she-wolf named Lupa, who has just lost her own cubs. The myth of being suckled by a female predator after being abandoned is the first test a warrior male must pass. A similar form of this belief is present in the Gray Wolf Epic of the Gokturks of Central Asian origin. Then Tiberinus rescues Rhea Silvia and marries her. In another version of the story, the twins are raised by a prostitute (wolf goddess), the wife of a shepherd, whom other shepherds call the Wolf. Romulus kills his brother Remus and founds Rome. The element of "enemy brothers" is present in the myths of many peoples, a new city is being established, the help and approval of the gods must be sought for the safety and safety of the city, the death of Remus is actually a sacrifice to the gods, this sacrifice made in the place where the novel will rise, it should be given for the happy future of the new city that will rise. It is a necessary price.
Although the legend is in some ways very archaic, it is ultimately about the connection of Indo-European beliefs and the local peoples, the Etruscans, to Roman history. Before the establishment of Rome, the Sabines, a local tribe living east of the Tiber River, and the Romans fought many times. The rise of Roman civilization will take place after the end of these wars. The followers of Romulus, who founded the city, are mostly warrior men, poor but without women. On the other side are the Sabines, whose chief characteristics are wealth and fertility (because they have women) and their king, Titus. In a way, both sides are complementary to each other. The war does not end with a victory, but thanks to the mediation initiative of women, there are no longer two different peoples, peace has been achieved, society is complete. The story is depicted by the painter Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825), with a 5-meter-long painting entitled 'The Intervention of the Sabine Women'. Especially in Etruscan beliefs, women are in a superior position, they are as free as men in social life and they represent the family. According to Mircea Eliade, this myth, mythologized by the personality of the founding hero Romulus, is the "historicization" of Indo-European myths.
Intervention of the Sabine Women, 1796 - 1799, Jacques-Louis David (1748 - 1825), Louvre Museum. (For details: gazeteduvar.com.tr
Over the centuries, when the influence of the Greek fertility and earth gods began to increase in the history of Roman belief, only the belief in Jupiter associated with Romulus remained of the Indo-European beliefs. Etruscan culture, and especially its beliefs, emerged with the integration of Italic and Greek elements. The cult of Athena manifests itself as the belief in Minerva, the protector of arts and craftsmen. In addition to Athena's attributes, Minerva now has the attribute of the god of school and trade. The Etruscans had a large navy, they traded, they used iron, they built cities. When Roman diplomats went to a new country, they carried olive branches to show that they had come for peace. According to a belief of Greek origin, while Hercules was navigating the Mediterranean coast, he would pull out olive saplings from wherever his staff hit. It is rumored that this staff, which is also considered a war tool of Hercules, was made from wild olive wood. According to Roman beliefs, the symbol tree of the first month in the calendar is olive, traditionally used to expel evil spirits. Roman traders played an important role in the spread of olive cultivation along the eastern Mediterranean coast. Merchants who identify themselves with Hercules also have a temple built in his name. The Romans also used olive oil in death and religious ceremonies, the deceased was blessed by sprinkling olive oil on his face, and it was believed that he would be cleansed of sins in this way.
Founded BC. Dating back to 800 BC, Rome was culturally under Greek influence for centuries, its wealth increased with trade, followed by the growth of its sovereignty, eventually the proclamation of the Republic highlighted its political and commercial power, thus making Rome a political and cultural center as an imperial capital. B.C. Under the rule of the Etruscan Kings until the 500s, temples were built for the Greek gods, and then the foundations of the republic were laid under the leadership of the noble and aristocratic class. On the one hand, with the decrease in relations with the Greek mainland, on the other hand, with the atmosphere of tolerance brought by the republic, BC. Around 200 BC, the Greek gods begin to assimilate. In addition, the worship of Isis became very common among the Roman peoples. So that; B.C. In a temple that was decided to be built by the Senate and the People in 9 A.D., activities to worship the successful generals of the past, the deceased emperor Augustos and all gods could be carried out.
Thanks to the tolerance brought by the republic, there was a polytheistic cosmopolitan situation among the Roman peoples at that time. Their obsession with rules and laws is reflected in their religious worship and behavior. According to them, no matter which god it comes from, belief must somehow be associated with daily activities and religious rituals, and a life as required by belief must be lived, otherwise Rome will perish. Roman peoples, over time, resorted to almost all gods, regardless of their origin. This profound transformation in beliefs goes back to the transport of the black stone, the symbol of Cybele, the first goddess of Anatolia, to Rome with a Roman fleet.
B.C. 43 - M.S. The famous Roman poet Ovidus, who lived between 17 BC, tells the story of the emergence of the wild olive tree in his work called “Transformations”: “While the Muses (musees), who are forest nymphs, were having fun with the accompaniment of songs, a shepherd came and disturbed them with rude words. Eventually, a bush—from the botanical point of view, the olive family, belonging to the plant family of shrub species—appears to cover the shepherd's mouth, and the shepherd turns into a wild olive tree. According to Ovid, the bitter fruits of the wild olive, the weed, carry the sting of the shepherd's ugly words.
In time, the Roman peoples would begin to question their belief in the mighty "creator god". In human consciousness, reason and creativity, logic and questioning begin to become an important element. The nine female Muses in the story sing and dance in all the feasts of the gods, usually in a choir led by Apollo. They do not have an epic about themselves, but the names of the Muses are mentioned in almost every poem. Musicians have taken an active role not only in the field of music, but also in literature, art, science and even all branches of science. They have been considered as a source of inspiration (muse) by giving direction to all branches of science. In the history of Greek mythology and philosophy, Muses are known to be the most revered last goddesses. It was also believed that muses were healers who completed man's moral deficiencies.
Music, art and creative thought developed in the cities where civilization rose and became a part of humanity. In this story, the transformation of the shepherd into an olive tree or the beginning of rooting by turning into a tree seems to be one of the symbolic stories of the nomadic peoples dealing with animal husbandry, the process of olive cultivation and settlement, or the conflicts of these two different cultures. In the Roman period, we can say that the human mind and creativity began to compete with the power of the gods that they created. In addition; humanity invented writing and money, new social classes emerged, reason and logic began to transform beliefs. The times have been reached when the power of thought begins to compete with the power of the sacred. The peoples of these ages in the Mediterranean basin will, in a slow but steady process, abandon the polytheistic beliefs of their ancestors and turn to the belief of a single god, unique and absolute, omnipotent.
Compiled by: Uğur Saraçoğlu ugisaracoglu@yahoo.com
Resources:
1. Introduction to the History of Religions, Mircea Eliade, 1979, Translated by Lale Arslan, Kabalcı Publishing House, 2000.
2. History of Religious Beliefs and Thoughts 2: From Gotama Buddha to the Birth of Christianity; Mircia Eliade, Translated by Ali Berktay, Kabalcı Publications, 2016.
3. Olive and Olive Oil from Past to Present, World-Mediterranean-Turkey, Aytaç Eryılmaz, January 2020.
4. The Moral Predecessors of the Mythology of the Moses; Ayna Isababayeva, Assist.Prof.Dr., Erciyes University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Music, Art-Art 3/15.