serious singing the orphic hymns as religious texts

Kernos22 (2009)Varia

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Fritz Graf

Serious Singing: The Orphic Hymns asReligious Texts................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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Rfrence lectroniqueFritz Graf, Serious Singing: The Orphic Hymns as Religious Texts, Kernos [En ligne], 22|2009, mis en ligne le 26octobre 2012, consult le 26 octobre 2012. URL: http://kernos.revues.org/1784; DOI: 10.4000/kernos.1784

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Kernos22(2009),p.169-182.

Serious Singing: The Orphic Hymns as Religious Texts

Abstract:InthewakeofAlbrechtDieterich,inthispaperItrytoshowhowtheoverall

arrangementofthehymnsintheOrphichymnbookfollowstheprogressionofanocturnalritual. I insist on the frequency with which the hymns talk about the fear of meeting adivinityoraphasmathatwouldbeinanunkindandviolentstateandcoulddrivetheinitiatesintomadness.Thus,thehymnsconstructthemysteryexperienceasaneventthatis,atleastinpart,dangerousandfrightening.ThisconcernwithmadnessasapossiblenegativeresultoftheinitiatoryexperienceisjustoneaspectoftheroleBacchic(Orphic)initiationplayedin healingmadness sent by evil demons, and it conveys a seriousness to these rites thatmakes them into something very different from the hobby of some placid burghers. FarfrombeingonlythesongsthataccompaniedthetryphofaBacchicsocialevent,thehymnspointtotheemotionalcomplexityandseriousnessofBacchicmysterycults.

Rsum:Dans le sillage dAlbrechtDieterich, cette tude entendmontrer commentlarrangement global des pices reprises dans le recueil des hymnes orphiques pouse laprogressiondunrituelnocturne.Oninsistesurlarcurrence,dansleshymnes,dumotifdelacraintede rencontrerunedivinitouunphasmaquipourrait tremalveillant,violent, etfrapperaitlesinitisdefolie.Ainsi,leshymnesconstruisentlexpriencemystriquecommeunvnementquiest,aumoinspourunepart,dangereuxeteffrayant.Cesoucipourlafoliecommersultatngatifpotentielde lexprience initiatiquenestquundesaspectsdu rlequelinitiationbachique(orphique) jouaitdanslafoliecurativeenvoyepardemauvaisdmons,etcelaconfredusrieuxcesrituelsquitaientquelquechosedebiendiffrentdun passe-temps pour petits bourgeois placides. Loin dtre seulement les chants quiaccompagnaient la truph dunmoment de sociabilit bachique, les hymnes renvoient lacomplexitmotionnelleetaucaractresrieuxdescultesmystresbachiques.

I.

InhisHabilitationsschriftof1891,AlbrechtDieterich (1866-1908)setout toprovetheliturgicalcharacteroftheOrphicHymns.1Hestronglytooksidesintheyetundecideddebatebetweenthosewho,likehimself,regardedtheHymnsasritualtexts,andthosewhothoughtthattheywerepurelyliterarycreationswritten,asLobeckphrased it twogenerationsearlier,toshowhowOrpheus

1 On Albrecht Dieterich see R.WNSCH, inAlbrecht Dieterich. Kleine Schriften, Leipzig and

Berlin, 1911, p.XI-XLII; H.D. BETZ, The Mithras Liturgy. Text, Translation, and Commentary,Tbingen,2003,p.14-26(withearlierbibliography).

170 Fr.GRAF

wouldhavetaughtthebestwaytopray.2Dieterichsmainargumentrestedontheobservation that someof theprayingpersonsaredesignatedas.Using the slowly growing epigraphical record on local religions, he demon-strated that this title reflected actual practice of Dionysiac mystery groupsespeciallyinAsiaMinor.Overacenturylater,wehaveamuchlargerdossieronthese groups: the recent publication by Anne-Franoise Jaccottet contains along list of Dionysiac bouviers3. Dieterichs insight proved to be basicallycorrect, even though his definition needs correction, and his work, togetherwith the researchofOttoKern, established theOrphicHymnsas a liturgicalcollection4. In her commented edition of the hymns, Gabriella Ricciardellitreatedthequestionassettled,andAnne-FranceMorandayear laterwasableto look more closely at the underlying Bacchic groups. She did so at somedepths; but she also, correctly, took account of the often neglected literaryqualitiesofthesehymns,asdidJeanRudhardtwhoseunfinishedstudyontheHymnsjusthasbeenpublished5.

Sofar,sogood.Nobodyseemstohaveseriousdoubtsaboutthe liturgicalfunctionofthehymnsanymore.ButtherestillisMartinWestsjudgmentthatall this is not that serious: rather, the eighty-sevenOrphic hymns attest to acheerfulinexpensivedabblinginreligionbyaliterary-mindedburgherandhisfriends6.Giventhepriceofincenseinantiquity,Idonotknowhowinexpen-siveallthiswouldhavebeen.Astoitsseriousness,itwouldbealltooeasytopointout that thisargumentdependsononesowndefinitionof religionandmightcontainamiteofChristianocentrism;butIdontwanttopursuethislineof argument. The underlying question, rather, is that of how to understandBacchic andOrphicmystery associations: is there a spread from the zealousseriousnessofinitiatesoftheilkofEuripidesHippolytus(atleastinhisfathers

2A.DIETERICH,De hymnis Orphicis capitula quinque,Marburg,1891,againino.c.,70,citingCh.

A.LOBECK,Aglaophamus Sive de Theologiae Mysticae Graecorum Causis Libri Tres,Knigsberg,1829,p.395: sed potius haec mihi sententia est has precationum formulas quicunque composuerit nulli certo aut sacrorum aut hominum generi destinasse sed omnibus, qui deorum aliquem propitiaturi essent, quasi verbis praeire voluisse, non quo crederet quenquam his usurum sed animi causa et ut ostenderet quid Orpheus, si voluisset optimam precandi rationem tradere, praecpturus fuisset.

3 A.-F. JACCOTTET,Choisir Dionysos. Les associations dionysiaques ou la face cache du dionysisme,Zrich,2003,esp.herindex,vol.2,p.349.

4O.KERN,ZudenorphischenHymnen,Hermes24(1889),p.498-508;id.,DieHerkunftdesorphischenHymnenbuchs,inGenethliakon fr Carl Robert,Berlin,1910,p.87-102.

5 G. RICCIARDELLI (ed.), Inni Orfici, Milano, 2000;A.-F. MORAND,tudes sur les HymnesOrphiques, Leiden, 2001; J. RUDHARDT, Recherches sur les Hymnes orphiques, in Ph.BORGEAUD andV.PIRENNE-DELFORGE (eds.), Jean Rudhardt: Opera Inedita,Lige,2008 (Kernos,Suppl. 19), 159-325. Rudhardt planned the study to be exhaustive, p. 176: Nous en [of theHymns,FG]considronsdabordlaforme;noustudieronsensuite lescroyancesauxquelles ilsserfrentpuislesrituelsdontilconstituentunlment;noustenteronsenfindecomprendreletypedepitquilesinspire.Ofthesefourparts,onlythefirsttwoarepublishedandconstituteaverythoroughanalysisoftheformandthedivinerecipientsoftheHymns.

6M.L.WEST,The Orphic Poems,Oxford,2003,p.29.

SeriousSinging:TheOrphicHymnsasReligiousTexts 171

angryreading)tothegailyfestivityofareligiousRotaryClubmeeting?Afterall,someoftheprivatemysterysanctuarieshaveaniconographythatischaracter-izedbytryph,asagainJaccottetpointedout7.And,ifthereweresuchaspread,wheredoourHymnsfitin,andtheassociationthatmightbebehindthem?Inordertodeterminethis,Iwilllookatthecheerfulnessofwhathappenedinthisgroup, and insert it into thewiderworldofDionysiacmystery groups in theimperialtime8.

II.

IwanttostartfromaremarkmadebyDieterichwhich,asfarasIcansee,has been consistently overlooked. At the beginning of his analysis of thestructureofthehymnbook,heexplainsthepositionofthefirsttwohymns,toHecate (h. 1) and to (Hecate) Prothyraia (h. 2), not only with the cosmicfunctionofHecate inh. 1, aswewould expect, butwith the functionof theHekataia in Greek architecture: Nonne et horum mysteriorum sacellum mystas intrantes primum quidem (v.5) contemplatos vel certe veneratos esse pones?9Thepositionofthehymndoesnotonlyrefertoacosmogonicalorderingofthebook(asystemDieterichthenadoptsfortherestofthebook),itreflectsritualreality, theactualexperienceofthe initiateswhenenteringtheirsanctuaryandpassingaHekataioninfrontofitsentrance.

The fact thatDieterich forgets this insight as fast ashehad it shows thatritual is not the most obvious organizational principle of the book; thecosmogonicaldistributionprovedmorefruitfultohim.Onemightalsosuspectthat Dieterich, despite being a student of Usener, was at this point moreinterestedintheologythaninliturgy.Butwecanstillfollowtheritualprincipleas well. The next hymn addresses Nyx. The singer himself calls her a cos-mogonicalprinciple(IaddressNight,themotherofgodsandhumans):thisresonates with the Orphic cosmogonies such as the Derveni text that begintheir genealogies with Nyx10. But it is very likely that the position of Nightrefersalso,andperhapsmainly,tothetimewhentheritualtookplace,aswasthecasewithEleusisandothermysteryrites:theritesbeginatsun-set,andtheylast the entire night11.When entering the sanctuary at dusk for the rites, an

7JACCOTTET,o.c.(n.3),vol.1,p.161f.;seeherindex,vol.2,p.358 s.v.tryph.8IncitingtheHymns,Iuseh.andthenumber.MyGreektextisacombinationofQuandt,

Ricciardelli(whomIfoundthemostreliable),andMorand.9DIETERICH,o.c.(n.2),80.10 Pap. Derv. col. xiv 6; see also Eudemos, fr. 150 WEHRLI = Orph. fr. 20 I BERNAB;

W.BURKERT,DiealtorphischeTheogonienachdemPapyrusvonDerveni, in:Kleine Schriften.III:Mystica,Orphica,Pythagorica,ed.F.GRAF,Gttingen,2006,p.98-99.

11SeeforDionysuse.g.Eur.,Bacchae, 236f.and486;Livy,XXXIX,13,8-10.SeetheremarksofJACCOTTET,o.c.(n.3),p.133and,inherepigraphicalmaterial,esp.nos.19(astrangemidnightbanquetwithbread,);153l.18(andthelampsmentionedinl.7).ForIsis,Apuleiusevenwritesaboutnoxsacrata,Met.XI,21.

172 Fr.GRAF

invocationtoNightmakessense.Thenexthymn,toOuranos(provingthattheoverarchingorderingprinciple isthecosmogonicalsequence)asksforapurelifeforthenewlyinitiate,(awordusedonlyhere):Iregardthisnotasacoincidencebutasareferencetoaritualsequence:wedealwithinitiation.

Towardstheendofthebook,wefindNightsoppositepower,Dawn,h.78.If the rites begun at dusk, they ended at dawn. The hymn that immediatelyprecedes it addressesMemory,Mnemosyne, andasksherexplicitelytoawakenfortheinitiatesthememoryofthesacredriteandtosendawayforgetfulnessofit.Thisisafittingprayerattheendofthesacrednightwithitsritualsthatitiscrucial to remember, both because of the immediate bliss they have broughtand because of the eschatological consequences: the gold leaves from thegravesinHipponionandEntellaagaininvokeMemory12.

If thus one principle of order is the progression of the ritual action, webetter understand how the center of the book works, the invocations toDionysos,his circle andhis twomothers,PersephoneandSemele.Ona firstlevel of understanding, this sequence reflects Orphic mythology, from Zeusseducing Persephone in h. 29 and the result of the seduction, the childDionysos,inh.30,totheTitans,ancestorsofourfathers,inh.37,andfromSemele,thesecondmotherofDionysos,inh.44,tothesequenceofhymns45-53thataddressvariousaspectsofDionysos.Onaliturgicallevel,however,onemightalso thinkof this longsequenceas thecenterof theentire liturgy.Thehymn to Semele is the only hymn that explicitly refers to a ritual act and itsetiology: Persephone created for Semele an honor () among mortalhumansatthetimeofthetrieteris,whentheycelebratethebirthlaborforyourDionysos,thesacredtable,andthepuremysteryrites:

.(h.44,6-9)

ThisdescribesoneoftheritualsperformedduringthebiannuallyrecurringmajorfestivalofDionysos;ithonorsSemelesmotherhoodwithwhatmightbepublicsacrifice(sinceaglossinHesychiusgivesthefestivalname13)andcloselyconnectsthemysterieswithher:Persephone,theLadyofthe BacchicMysteries, thus gave a place of honor to the secondmother ofDionysos14.Semelesbirth labor is remarkable in the lightof the traditional

12ThetextsinF.GRAFandS.I.JOHNSTON,Ritual Texts for the Afterlife. The Bacchic Gold Tablets,

London, 2007. SeeMORAND, o.c. (n.5), p.223f. In theAsklepios rites ofPergamon,however,Memoryisinvokedatthebeginningoftheincubationnight,Altertmer von Pergamon VIII,3,no.156:itiscrucialtorememberonesdream.

13Hesych.,s.v.14 MORAND, o.c. (n. 5), p. 142-144 is rather helpless, and so is RICCIARDELLI, o.c. (n. 5),

p.408f.who,however,notedthepassageinHesychius.


mythwherepregnantSemelediedwellbeforeshecouldgivebirth:isitsimplyacircumlocution for this event, or did thismystery group tell a happier story?One should not forget that several centuries later, a fifth-century CE ivorypyxis in theMuseo Civico Archeologico of Bologna depicts what seems theregularbirthofDionysosfromhismother;theiconographyisunclearenoughto make a decision between Semele and Persephone impossible, but otherimagespresupposeBacchicmysteriesaswell15.

Iamawarethatthisisonlyaworkinghypothesisatbest,andonethatisnoteasytoprove,exceptbytheargumentfromthesequenceofhymns.ButthereareotheraspectsthatbelongtothecollectionoftheHymnsasaritualtext,anditistooneofthemthatIturnnow.

III.

All the hymns have a somewhat peculiar structure; Anne-FranceMorandanalyzeditatlengthandwithusefullytabledmaterial.Theydifferfromordinaryancientprayersintwomainways.

If one looks for the famous and well-researched tripartite structure ofancientprayerinvocatio, argumentum, precesinAusfeldsterm,thesecondpartis somewhatdeficient in theHymns, compared tootherprayer texts; it simplysomehowcontinues the invocation16. Inregularprayer, thissecondparthasavery clear and distinct function that separates it from the invocation: itestablishes the right of theprayingperson to ask thedivinity forhelp, eitherbecause in the past that person has brought lavish offerings, or because thedivinityhelpedinearliercasesandthusthepatron-clientrelationshipisalreadywell-established.EvenProclus,whosehymnsinmanyrespectsareclosetotheOrphichymns,regularlyintroducessuchajustificationashissecondpart.OnlytheOrphichymnsbehavedifferentlyandshrinkthisparttoanappendixoftheinvocation. But there is an easy explanation for this anomaly. The prayingpersonsare initiated,and thedivinity iswellawareof this fact;oftenenough,theprayingpersonsrefer to themselvesas.This isenoughtoestablishthe close relationshipwith the divinity that justifies the claim to divine help.This explanation assumes that the hymns are really sung in a mystery ritualperformedbyinitiatesonly;itdoesnotdeterminewhethertheyhadtobesungallorwhethertheassociationcouldsingsomeshorterselection.

ThesecondanomalyisthattheHymnsdonotaskforindividualandhighlyspecific divine favors, as does, for example, Chryses in the first book of theIliad, Sappho in her prayer to Aphrodite or, presumably, countless humans

15 LIMC, s.v. Dionysos/Bacchus, no. 267. An extensive discussion and good pictures in

C.KERNYI,Dionysos. Urbild des unzerstrbaren Lebens,Stuttgart,1994,p.165-168,withfig.66a-e.16 See the analysis by RUDHARDT, o.c. (n. 2), p.194-207 who notes nous percevons plus

facilementlafindudveloppementquenousnesituonsledbut,p.206.

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everyday.Everythingthesehymnsdemandfromtheirgodsisrathergeneralthat thegodsbepresentat theritual;or that they favor the initiatesandhelpthemwiththeirlife.Morespecificthingsarespecificinrelationtothedivinityonly:Eileithyiaisaskedforgoodbirths,Poseidonforhelpagainstthedangersof earthquakes and sailing, the Clouds for fertile rain. It is this feature thatmadetheProtestantLobeckthinktheywereidealprayers:ashesawit,theydonotexpressindividualandegotisticdesires,butaconcernforgeneralwelfareoftheliturgicalgroup,orevenofthecommunityatlarge17.

As any hymn or prayer, the OrphicHymns ask the divinity to personallyparticipateintheritual.Oneoftherecurrentformswhichthiswishtakesisthatthe divinity might arrive towards the boukolos or the initiate. Theadjective is easily understandable18. It designates someone who is good tomeet; its opposite, (attested only late) characterizes suffering anddiseasethatishardtoescape19.LuciansTimontalksabouthisexperiencewhenhis generosity made him a beggar: suddenly, his former friends disappeararoundacornerwhenthespothimfromafar,as if theyspottedasightthatwasunwelcometomeetandhadtobeturnedaway.20

Toaskadivinity tobe goodtomeet insteadofbeing difficult,ata firstglance, does not seem spectacular; gods are powerful, and fear is part ofepiphany(jederEngelistschrecklich,asRilkehadit),andonewishestomeettheir benign side. There is more to it, however, as already Lucian seems tointimate: his language is religious, resonates with the imagery of meetingdemons and ghosts. Such an unwelcome demon is a , as aMagicalPapyrushasit:inthispapyrus,thespeakerclaimsthathecarriesthegodsnameas a powerful amulet (phylakterion) in his heart, so that no spirit (pneuma), nodemon(daimonion),nosynanthemanoranythingelsethatbelongstotheevilsofHades has power over him21. Outside theHymns, the adjective ismostlyusedofsuperhumanbeingsintheirinteractionwithhumans22.ItisrareandoccursalmostonlyinauthorsoftheImperialepoch.Ininscriptions,againonlyfromtheimperialepoch,itoccursinawell-definedreligiouscontext:itis

17Todohim justice:Lobeckmightwellhave rememberedancient admonitions to selfless

prayerstartingwithPlato, seeA.MOTTE,LaprireduphilosophechezPlaton, inH.LIMETand J. RIES (eds.),Lexprience de la prire dans les grandes religions. Actes du Colloque de Louvain-La-Neuve et Lige 1978, Louvain-la-Neuve,1980 (Homo Religiosus,5),p.173-204.

18 The only scholar who bothered to think about the termwas, not surprisingly perhaps,DIETERICH,o.c. (n.1),p.79.

19 LSJ,s.v.20Lucian,Tim.,5:.21PGMXIII,799:,,

,,.22TheonlypassagewhereitisusedforahumanisPosidipp.,Epigr.,25,1.Afewlateauthors

use it several times, especiallyOppian and Cyrill of Alexandria who both extend its usage toanimalsandthings.


alwaysgiventotheMotheroftheGods,beitinahealingcultinAttica,inaninscriptioninEgyptor,asTheaEuantetos,inLydia23.Theonlyexceptionisadedicatory epigram from Calchedon where it characterizes Poseidon as theprotector at sea, in aprayer-likeperiphrasis.Noneof these inscriptions givesmuchcontextorexplainstheepithet24.

One textdeservesmoreattention.Aprayer for lecanomancy,preserved inHippolytusRefutatioOmniumHaeresium,addressesHecatewithalongcatalogofepithets and identifies her with several female deities and demons: Bombo,Gorgo,MormoandtheMoonGoddessMene,yetanotherAnatolianvarietyoftheGreatGoddess.Attheend,theperformerimploreshertocomeeuantetostothe sacrifices performed. The echowith theOrphicHymns is immediate andclose, and euantetoshas tobe taken literally, asHippolytusmakes it clear: Assoon as he has spoken this, you see fire shooting through the air, and they,afraid of this unexpected view, cover their eyes25. We deal with real andfrightening apparitions, at least in the ancient report on the rites: the bodilyintegrity, the sanity and even the survival of the performers depends on themoodinwhichthedivinitywillmeetthem26.

Theepithet,itseems,isnotasharmlessasonemightthink.Ifwethen turnback to theHymns and theuse theymakeof it, thepicture is onlyslightly fuzzier. The epithet appears in five hymns, four times in the final

23Itmightbeworthwhiletopresentthesmallcorpusofepigraphicaltexts:Attica: 1a. IG II 4714 (Augustan)

. 1b. IG II 4759 (IIp ?) .1c.IGII4760(I/II).

Thracia: 2.Nicopolis ad Istrum (Nikjup) IGBulg (Moesia) II, 682, 1 .

Asia Minor: 3a. Kalchedon (Bithynia) IK (Kalchedon) 14 ||,|,|,| . | ,.3b.N.E.Lydia,KulaTAM V,265[]|[]-[ ]|[ ] . [] | [ ] . 3c.N.W. Lydia, Apollonis:Gkeky TAM V, 1185, 1 [] . 3d. Caria,Aphrodisias;Hellenica,285.

Egypt: 4a. Kanopos (AbuQr), 170-116 BC: SB , 6256 ,, .

24 See alsoEt. Mag., 338, 37: , . The sameinformationinSchol.Ap.Rhod.I,1141,withanallusiontothemythoftheTelchines.

25Hipp., Ref.IV,35;thefinalprayeris:,;Wilamowitzconjectured:,whichmightwellberight.

26InanotherprayertoHecate,ApolloniusofRhodesusestherarecognate,IV,148;thescholionexplainsitas.AsimilarparaphrasisofappearsinEt. Mag.,338.,7andPhot.,Lex.,s.v.,Ep.27,14.

176 Fr.GRAF

prayer.WecouldexpectitinthecaseofMeterAntaia,h.41,10:sheistheformof theGreatMotherwhomeets humans, in a not always friendlyway27.Wemightexpect italso in thecaseofHekateProthyraia;here,however, it is justoneamongthemanyepithets28;itdoesnotappearinthefinalprayerbutinthedevelopedinvocation.Artemis,whohasboththisepithetandisaskedtoarriveasagoddess goodtomeet,fitsaswell29;sheisnotonlyclosetoHekatebutshowed this very quality of being good to meet in an oracle reported byPorphyry,accordingtowhichsheoncepreventedPan,theservantofDionysos,from killing threewoodcutters in the forests aroundDidyma30. Artemis thuscan deflect murderous panic (and we retain the information that Pan, thesenderofextrememania,issubordinatedtoDionysos).TheKouretesbelongtothecircleofCybele;nothingsurprisingherethen31.Thisleavesuswithh.3,toNight:Goddess,good tomeet,hearken the suppliantsvoice, comebenevo-lentandsendtheTerrorsawaythatshine inthenight.Nyx, that is,protectsfromtheterribleanddemon-likebeingsthatroaminthedark.

Thus,thepictureintheHymnsfitstheepigraphicalandliteraryevidence:theepithetcharacterizespowers that arehighlyambivalentandnotverywelcom-ing,or(morerarely)thatprotectfrommoreterriblepowers.

What are we to make of this in the context of theHymns? One answerwouldbe:itallfitsthereligiousworldoflaterantiquitywhereuncannypowers,ghostsanddemonsandthedangersstemmingfrommeetingthemseemtobecomemorevisibleand,perhaps,moreprominent,andoneneededprotectionagainstallthis.Thepeoplewhoweresingingthesehymnsaskedforthisprotec-tion in the sameway they askedPoseidon for protection against earthquakesandstorms,orHygieiaforhelpagainstdisease32,orastheyaskedtheTitansforprotection against angry ancestors:h. 37 addresses themas ancestorsofourfathers, (v.2;which I take as a reference to theOrphicanthropogony),andasksthemtowardofthedifficultanger,ifoneofthechthonicancestorshouldapproachourhouses,,.Onehastobecareful,however,withgeneralizationslikethis:alreadytheauthoroftheDervenipapyrusknowsof spells withwhich themagicians ban impeding demons,

27h.41,10MeterAntaia: final invocation .Schol.

Ap.Rhod.I,1141explainsherasMeter-Rhea;seeaboven.24.28h.2,5Prothyraia,,,.29h.36,7oneofherepithets;14finalinvocation:.30Porph.,fr.307SMITH=Eus.,Praep. V,5f.31 h. 31, 7 Kouretes: final invocation ,

.32Poseidon:h.17,10;Hygieia:h.68,13.


whomtheDerveni author readsas revengingghosts33; the finalprayerof thehymn to the Titans resonates with language in the famous purity law fromfourthcenturyCyrene34,andSarahIlesJohnstonhasshownthepervasivenessofthesebelievesthroughtheages:ourperception,thatiscausedagainbylateantique loss of nerves, ismore amatter of slanted sources andofmodernprejudices than of a drastic religious change35. But even ifwewould assumethat this was a phenomenon typical only of later antiquity, this would stilllocalizethesetextssquarelyinactuallyperformedreligion,andshowaserious-nessthatwouldgobeyondinformalplayfulness.

Thereareother indicationsthatthe initiateswereafraidofvisionsandthepsychicdisturbancestheycreate36.Hymn39,toKorybas,askstheaddresseetosend away his difficultwrath and to put an end to visions, torments of theterrifiedsoul37.Weareagainintheworldofecstaticcults,bothofCybeleandofBacchus,butalsoofthepossibilitythatadivinitymightdriveahumanmadbysendingapparitionsandghosts38.Thesameisvalidforh.37,totheTitans:here, psychic disturbances,mania, fromwhich theTitans protect, result fromthe wrath of evil ancestors. Other hymns also talk about madness: theEumenides dissolve the body throughmadness, (h. 70, 9);Panisaskedtosendawaythepanicspur,,totheendsoftheworld (h. 11, 23); andMelinoe, towhom Iwill return, drives humansmad

33Pap. Derv,col.vi2-7.SeeG.BETEGH,The Derveni Papyrus. Cosmology, Theology, and Interpretation,

Cambridge,2004,p.14andTh.KOUREMENOS,G.M.PARSSOGLOU,K.TSANTSANOGLOU (eds.),The Derveni Papyrus Edited with Introduction and Commentary,Florence,2006,p.168.

34h.37,7f.SeeF.SOKOLOWSKI,Lois sacres des cits grecques. Supplment,Paris,1962,no.115B 29, with R. PARKER,Miasma. Pollution and Purification in Early Greek Religion, Oxford, 1983,p.347; somewhat less close the law from Selinus, M.H. JAMESON, D.R. JORDAN, R.D.KOTANKSY,A Lex Sacra from Selinous,Durham,NC.,1993.

35S.I. JOHNSTON, Restless Dead. Encounters Between the Living and the Dead in Ancient Greece,Berkeley/LosAngeles, 1999,passim. ItwasE.R.Doddswhomost influentially expressed thestereotype;Isuspectthatithaditstremendousimpactespeciallybecauseitresonatedsowellwithcontemporaryculture;afterall,thephrase[AgeofAnxiety]wascoinedbymyfriendW.H.Audenwhoappliedittoourowntime,Pagan and Christian in an Age of Anxiety,Cambridge,1968,p.3.

36Idonotenterintoadiscussionofh.32,6whereAthenaissaidtosendmadnesstohumans:itisinherroleasdivnityofwarthatsheactsthisway.

37h.39,10:,;mytranslationfollowsRicciardellistormentidellanima intimorita.OnKorybantesandpsychicdisturbances,H.JEANMAIRE,LetraitementdelamaniadanslesmystresdeDionysosetdesCorybantes,Journal de Psychologie(1949), p.64-82 andDionysos. Histoire du culte de Bacchus, Paris, 1951, p.119-131 (on modernparallels) and 131-138 (on the Corybantic rites); E.R. DODDS, The Greeks and the Irrational,Berkeley,1951,p.77-79. Jeanmairespaperhasbeeneclipsedby the fameofDoddssbook,atleastintheAnglophoneworld,quiteunjustlyso.

38TheCorybantsarenotonlyacolytesofCybele,theyalsodancearoundthechildDionysoson a few images that range fromHellenistic times to late antiquity and that seem to have aconnectionwithOrphicmythology again, seeW.BURKERT, BacchicTeletai in theHellenisticAge,inT.CARPENTERandC.A.FARAONE(eds.),Masks of Dionysus,Ithaca,N.Y.,1993,p.271,reprintedinKleine SchriftenIII(n.10),p.130-131.

178 Fr.GRAF

withairyghosts,(h.71,6),andisaskedtosendthesoulsspur,,totheendsoftheworld.39Theinitiatesseemtoliveinaworldthatisfilledwiththreatsofmadness.Afterall,theirfirsthymninvokedHecatenotjustasthekey-holderofthecosmosbutasadivinitywhoperformsbacchicdancesamongthesoulsofthecorpses, , and who is much more difficult to meet than any otherdivinity,havingaunassailableform,(h. 1,8)40.

IV.

But there might be more. It is specially the mystery rituals in which theinitiatesmeetthedivinitiesalmostfacetofaceoratleastthisisthewaytheGreek and Roman religious imagination shaped the experience to whichmystery rituals gave rise. When the Eleusinian hierophant called Kore, hesounded the gong, and (no doubt)Kore appeared41. The purified EleusinianinitiateisabletotouchthesnakeonDemeterslap,inanimageontheso-calledUrnaLovatelli,anearlyImperialurnfromaRomancolumbarium42.Imetthegods below and the gods above and worshiped them face to face: thusApuleiusLucius describes the central experienceof the Isis rites43.Dionysosand Ariadnes blissful presence dominates the ritual fresco of the Villa deiMisteri inPompeii.Notallpowers,however,wereconferringbliss.Atheniansknewofthe empusa,anattackingdemonwhofrightenedtheEleusinianinitiates,presumably only if they had not been properly purified before the rites, asJamblichus seems to intimate44. Aeschines mother famously had the samenicknameEmpusa,inoneexplanationbecauseshejumpedunexpectedlyatherclientswhenshewasperformingherinitiationrites45:eventhoughthisisonlyoneoftworivalingancientexplanations,itwouldnothavebeencredibleifthefearoffrighteningdemonsdidnotplayaroleinancientmysterycults46.Thus,initiates could fear the frightful appearance of some divinities, especiallydivinitiesthatwerefelttobemorethreateningthanothersoutsidethemysteryrites as well. And it was especially the powers that dwelled outside the safe

39Eumenides, h.70,9;Panh.11,23;Melinoeh.71,6,11.SeeMORAND,o.c.(n.5),p.185,on:Cetermevoquelafolieetlapeur.

40 On cosmic Hecate, see S.I. JOHNSTON,Hekate Soteira. A Study of Hekates Roles in the Chaldaean Oracles and Related Literature,Atlanta,1990,p.40-42.

41Apollodoros,FGrHist244F110.42ThesCRA II, p. 96 no. 34, with the earlier bibliography; see esp.W. BURKERT,Ancient

Mystery Cults,Cambridge,Mass.,1987,p.94f.,withfig.4.43Apul.,Met.XI,23.44MainpassagesAr.,Ran.,293(withScholia)andIamb.,Myst.III,31,178,8-16DESPLACES;

seealsoClem.,Strom.IV,1,3.45DEM.,Or.18,130;theexplanationIdomeneusofLampsacus,FGrHist 338F2.46 See the discussion in Chr. G. BROWN, Empousa, Dionysus and the Mysteries.

Aristophanes,Frogs285ff.,CQ41(1991),p.41-51andJOHNSTON,o.c.(n.35),p.131-138.


spaceofthecitywhowereperceivedinthisway,suchastheMountainMotherandherfollowers,theKouretesandCorybants,orArtemisandHecate.

Inthiscontext,thehymntoNight,h.3,gainsmoreweight.Wesawthatthepositionof thishymn immediatelyafter theone to (Hekate)ProthyraiamightresonatenotonlywithOrphiccosmogonyasanorderingdeviceofthehymnsbook,but alsowith ritual reality.After anexpositionofNightsmythical andrealfunctions,thehymnaddressesthespecificwishtoher:

,,,,,,,,.

Now,blessedone,Icalluponyou,blissfulandall-desiredone,benigntomeet,hearkentomypleadingvoiceandcomefullofgoodwill,sendawaytheterrorsthatshineinthenight47.

Above, we understood it as one of those prayers that humans in pre-industrial society were addressing to a protective power because they fearedthatdemonsandspecterswerelooseinthedarkofthenight;Christianhymnsregularlyattesttotheseterriblefears48.Maybethatisall.Butif,inthesequenceof rituals that shaped the initiates experience, this hymn really marked thebeginningofthenocturnalrites,theprayerwouldacquireadditionalpoignancy:thegoddessNightprotectstheprayinginitiate,whosevoicethetextpreserves,fromthespectersthatappearedduringthemysteries,andthatotherwisemightbetooterrifyingtotolerate.

V.

InthecontextofDionysiacmysteries,suchfearsseemevenmoreappropri-ate than in almost any other cultic context, perhaps with the exception ofinspired divination.After all, the central experience of theDionysiac initiateswas,frenzy;andalthoughDoddscoinedthedescriptionoftheblessingsofmadness in the very context ofDionysiac cult, these blessings were verymixedindeed.

OneofthemythicalaitiaofthecultofDionysosmakesthisexplicit.Apol-lodorusLibrarycontainsthestoryhowHeradroveyoungDionysosmad;heroamedaboutEgyptandSyria[]andarrivedatCybelainPhrygia:there,hewas purified by Rhea, learned from her the rites of initiation () and

47h. 3, 12-14.Quandtomits in 13, following themajority of themss., and sodoes

Morand; Ricciardelli retains it, follwoing , one of her two hyparchetypes. Itmight well be aconjectureinametricallydeficientverse,asR.Keydellassumed,inhisreviewofG.Quandt(ed.), Orphei Hymni,inGGA204(1942),p.78.

48BeginningwithAmbr., Hymn.,10,5:fugacatervasdaemonum,orPrud.,Cathem.I,37-40:ferunt vagantes daemonas laetos tenebris noctium, gallo canente exterritos sparsim timere et cedere.

180 Fr.GRAF

receivedthelongrobe;thenhepressedthroughThracetowardsIndia49.Thestorygoesbackto theEuropia,anepicpoembytherathershadowyEumeluswhomancientscholarsdatedasearlyasHomer:Dionysus[]waspurifiedinKybela inPhrygiabyRheaandreceivedfromhertheentireritualoutfit50; inthisversion,partoftheoutfitwasthegoldencraterwhichhethenhandedovertoThetis.Madness,,issomethingfromwhichDionysoshastobehealed,and his mysteries are embedded into this process. The story is no secretmysterylore:itisdepictedonanaltarfromtheCoanagora,datedtothemid-secondcenturyBCE51.

Thetwotextsaresilentabouttheexactrelationshipbetweenmysteriesandmadness.OnereadingisthattheDionysiachealmadness;thatiswhatthe Orpheotelests in Plato promise and with what, according to Orpheushexameters cited byOlympiodorus, Dionysos Lyseus is concerned52. That isalsowhatthehymntothestrangegoddessMelinoe,h.71,askshertodo:theinitiatespraytohertosendthesoulsspurtothelimitsoftheearth,showingyoursacredfacefullofbenevolencetothe initiates, , .Melinoe is anangry underworld divinity, and she is angry because her step-father, Hades,rapedher;inthesameway,hergrand-motherDemeterhadturnedintoErinysafterPoseidonrapedher53.Shedriveshumansmadwithairyghosts,as thehymn explicitly asserts. But the goddess is, at the same time, intimatelyconnectedwiththemysteriesofDionysos: in themythnarrated inherhymn,she is the daughter of Zeus and Persephone and thus the sibling sister ofDionysos himself, according to Orpheus version of Dionysos genealogy.GiventherarityofmythsnarratedintheOrphichymns,thismythmustbelongto the lore of these Orphic mysteries, and the otherwise unattested divinitybelongsfirmlyintothisspecificworldofalocalDionysiacmysterycult54.

ButDionysiac ritual,, is in itself.Asoneof theHymnsputs it, Dionysos dances with the nymphs, driven by madness, 55:therelationshipbetweenthegodandmadnessismorecomplexthanDoddsassumed.TheunderlyingideaseemstobethatDionysosissafe,and that it can preserve the initiate frommadness which is understood as adisease. If I may use a modern analogy, Dionysiac madness is a sort of

49 Apoll.,Bibl. III, 5, 1 (= III, 33):

.50Eumelos,fr.11BERNAB (=Schol.A Iliad.VI,131);Schol.Lycophr.,273:

.51DetailedaccountBURKERT,l.c.(n.38),271-274=KleineSchriftenIII(n.10),p.131-134.52OF 232KERN=fr.350BERNAB.53JOHNSTON,o.c.(n.35),p.258-264.54OnMelinoe,seeMORAND,o.c.(n.5),p.181-188.55h.46,5;thetextualproblemofthisverseisirrelevantformyargument.


vaccination, performed with a real strain of live bacteria, but weaker andcontrolled;butasanyvaccinationmightcontainthedangerofarealoutbreakof the illness, thus the mysteries of Dionysos contain the danger of realmadness witness the many stories told about the men and women reallydriventomurderousmadnessbythegod.

Inthiscontext,boththeprayertoMelinoeaswellastheseveralprayersthatask for a benign encountermight gain an additional dimension: the initiates,confronted during their rituals with all these terrible divinities, ask for theabsenceofthewrongandhorrifyingsideofmadness.Althoughonlymythstalkaboutsuchafate,suchasthestoriesofPentheus,AgaueorofthedaughtersofProiteus, these stories could always nurture the fear that such a thingmighthappenduringtheritesor,toturnitanotherway,byevokingthesefears,theOrphicHymns construct their experience as a terrifying one, at least in part.This isnotdifferentfromtheEleusinianexperience: inPlutarchswell-knowndescription,itprogressesfromeveryterriblething,panic,trembling,sweatandbewilderment(,)tofinalblissor,tociteagainPlutarch:anexperiencewhereamarvelouslightmeetsyou,pureplaces andmeadows receive you,withvoices (i.e. singing), dancingand the splendor of sacred sounds and pure visions, , ; and whoever isinitiatedmarvelsandrevels,56.Luciusprogress, inApuleiusMetamor-phoses,frommeetingthepowersoftheunderworldtoworshippingthegodsintheskyfollowsthesameemotionaltrajectory,andtherecanbenoreasonabledoubtthatthesameheldtruefortheBacchicmysteries.

VI.

Onewaytoprotectoneself isprayer,aswehear it in thehymns.Anotherway is purity; we remember that Jamblichus talks about the evil spirits whohinder those initiates who have not been adequately purified57. Purity isimportant in theHymns, but it is rarely expressed beyond the simple use ofadjectives such as and . But there are some instances that givemore. In thehymn toEros, the initiatespray that the godwouldmeet themwith pure thoughts and keep them away from all bad and outlandish drives,58.TheprayertoNemesisaskshertogiveagoodmind(),putanendtoallhatefulhumanthoughtsthatareunholy,utterly

56Plut.,fr.178SANDBACH.57Iamb.,Myst.III,31(cp.aboven.44).58 h. 58, 10 more than just gli slanci sconvenienti, as RICCIARDELLI, o.c. (n. 5), p.459

comments, this points to more severe restrictions, as MORAND, o.c. (n. 5), p.218 saw notnecessarilytolabstinencesexuelle,buttosexualethicssuchasthemysterylawfromPhiladelphiaexpresses(seen.60).

182 Fr.GRAF

arrogant, and fickle ( , , , the sheer stylistic weight of thisendingindicatesitsimportance59).TheseprayerslocatetheBacchicassociationnot too far away from the cultic group in Philadelphia whose sacred lawextensivelytalksaboutpurity,nottheleastsexualpurity60.ButapassagefromanothercontemporarysacredlawofWesternAsiaMinorisevenmorerelevant;itcomesfromthehexametricalrulesoftheassociationofDionyosBromiosinSmyrna61.Heretoo,purityistheoverarchingtheme,fromruleshowtobehaveincasesofmiscarriageanddeathtothesacrificialtaboosonbeansandheart.Atone point only, the text alludes to the consequences of impurity: purity isimportant, lest a cause forwrath arises, .This is clearenoughfortheaudience, theyknowtheconsequencesofdivinewrath:one ismadness,accordingtothePhaedrus62.

VII.

It is time for a summary. In thispaper, Ihavenot tried to show that theOrphichymnsreflectaliturgicalreality;afterall,Dieterichhadalreadydoneso.Ihavehowevertriedtoshowhowtheoverallarrangementofthehymnsinthebookfollowstheprogressionofthenocturnalritual;thisthenhastobeaddedtotheothercriteriaofarrangementthathavebeenanalyzedbyDieterichand,recently, by Anne-FranceMorand. And I have especially tried to show howoften the hymns talk about the fear of meeting a divinity or a phasma whowould be in an unkind and violent state: such an encountermight drive theinitiatesintomadness.Thus,theinitiatesconstructtheirexperienceasaneventthat is,at least inpart,dangerousandfrightening.Thisconcernwithmadnessasapossibleandnegativeresultoftheinitiatoryexperienceisjustoneaspectofthe role Bacchic, Orphic initiation played in healing madness sent by evildemons.All this, then, conveys a seriousness to these rites thatmakes theminto something very different from the hobby of some placid burghers. Farfrombeingonlythesongsthataccompaniedthetryphofabacchicsocialevent,the hymns point to the emotional complexity and seriousness of Bacchicmysterycults.

FritzGRAFTheOhioStateUniversityDepartmentofGreekandLatinCOLUMBUS,OH43210-131E-mail: [email protected]

59h.61,11-12.60F.SOKOLOWSKI,Lois sacres de lAsie mineure,Paris,1955,no.20,l.25-32.61SOKOLOWSKI,o.c.(n.50),no.84=JACCOTTET,o.c.(n.3),no.126.62Plato,Phaedrus,244d-e.

serious singing the orphic hymns as religious texts

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