Ancient and Folk Religions
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Arakhneion - Spider's temple on the web
- "I have drunk, and seen the spider."
- William Shakespeare, The Winter's Tale II, i
Welcome to Spider's temple on the web. Spider is my tutelary spirit (or daimon in Greek) and I have chosen to honor her by creating this website which will serve as a repository of information about Spider drawn from myth, legend, literature, and popular culture, as well as highlighting my own writings about our developing relationship and my thoughts on her. This will be a continous work in progress, so check back often. If you have any links or information you'd like contribute, please e-mail me.
Also note that while I use "she" and "her" in reference to Spider, this is merely a matter of linguistic convenience. In legend Spider can appear as either male or female, and in fact has come to me in both forms - as well as forms that defy our simplistic categories of gender. Spider simply IS - but it becomes clumsy to constantly reiterate that or use gender-neutral language. Since Spider tends to appear to me in a largely female form, and the story of Arakhne appeals to me more than any other of her legends, I tend to favor this form of address, but that doesn't mean that it is indicative of her true nature, a fact you should keep in mind as you read the following pages.
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Classical Mythology
- Many years ago the Greeks thought up strange stories about gods and mighty humans to explain the nature of the universe. Plato called these stories myths. Most of the myths involved heroic quests, immortality, fierce creatures, epic battles, rape, love affairs, quarrels, friendship, betrayal, revenge, suckling infants, despair, punishment, reward and thunderbolts. The gods had great powers but were not flawless. These stories were passed down through the centuries. When Rome took control of Greece the Romans adopted the gods and gave them Latin names. They also created a few myths of their own including The Founding of Rome. In the following pages I will tell you about the first gods from the beginning of the universe in The Creation. I’ll write about Hermes who achieved many feats at the age of one day old in Hermes the Baby Rascal. You will hear about Persephone who was kidnapped by her uncle and the earth’s first winter in The Rape of Persephone. In The Gorgon’s Head Medusa will be transformed into a hideous monster and then killed. Read on and explore the fascinating world of the myths of Greece and Rome.
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Encyclopedia Mythica
- Please enter the award-winning internet encyclopedia of mythology, folklore, and religion. Here you will find everything from A-gskw to Zveda Vechanyaya, with plenty in between.
The mythology section is divided to six geographical regions: Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, Middle East, and Oceania. Each region has many clearly defined subdivisions that will ease your search.
The Folklore section contains general folklore, Arthurian legends, and fascinating folktales from many lands.
In addition, we feature special interest areas to enhance and refine your research. A Bestiary, legendary heroes, an image gallery, and genealogical tables of various pantheons and prominent houses.
To bring our entities to life, we have created an image gallery, where you will find hundreds of images of all kinds of deities, heroes, and strange creatures of every description.
The encyclopedia will serve the serious researcher, the student, and the casual reader with equal success. Come in and enjoy!
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From Myth To Eternity
- "From Myth To Eternity" is a comprehensive guide to the world of the classical Greek mythology. It will appeal to a wide audience, from children curious to learn more about mysterious world of ancient gods and heroes, to those seriously studying Greek myths from historical, anthrophological and artistic perspectives.
This title does not suffer from oversimplified presentation of classical myths, nor does it go to the other extreme of being a boring scholar text. It combines story telling with rich illustrations of archaeological artifacts like vases, sculputures or other arts that were inspired by a particular story. We learn about main attributes of gods and heroes and how to recogize them (for example, on a vase we just saw in a museum). The title also reflects on historical events that were related to and inspired these myths, and the facts that we know about them today. In addition, the maps of the Greek world are given, to indicate places in which mythical events might have happened, or actually happened. The content is presented in a visually attractive way that will keep you reading for hours.
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Native American Nations
- Your Source for Indian Research
These pages are designed to provide the reader with the best possible American Indian information for personal research, tribal histories, census and rolls. We have many pages of our own from books, microfilm and research. Enjoy yourself and come back often!! Be sure to check the list on the left for other new items to the website.
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Neos Alexandria
- This website serves as a common meeting place for all who are inspired by the Greco-Egyptian culture inaugurated by the Ptolemies
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Nova Roma
- Nova Roma is dedicated to the study and restoration of ancient Roman culture. From its founding to 330 CE, when it ceased to be the center of Imperial authority, Rome laid the foundation for our modern Western civilization. Founded 2,750 years after the Eternal City itself, Nova Roma seeks to bring back those golden times, not through the sword and the legions, however, but through the spread of knowledge and through our own virtuous example.
The modern practice of the religion of the Romans, the Cultus Deorum Romanorum is an attempt to reconstruct the ancient religion of the Romans as closely as possible. The Cultus Deorum Romanorum, cannot be approached by inserting Roman deity names into Greek religion or any other system, for it is a unique product of the culture that created it. It demands steadfastness, devotion to duty and working in harmony with the eternal gods and with universal order, for the benefit not only of ourselves but also the world around us. With right action and attitudes towards the gods, both the State and the individual will prosper. Yet the cultus deorum involves more than pious action and worldly power; there are also mystery traditions which focus on inner spiritual growth.
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Powers of Literature
- Powers of Literature is produced by Gary Homer Gutchess, PhD. He welcomes your comments about the site.
From ancient Greek Goëtes (meaning sorcerer, one who raises the dead and cleans out haunted houses), Italian Gucci, Swiss Goetschi, Dutch Goetschius, bad American misspelling Gutchess, Dr. G has taught college English, practiced law, worked in politics, and managed business enterprises in the USA, from most of which he is retired if not forgiven. He holds a PhD in English from the University of Notre Dame.
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