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Tiresias: The Ancient Mediterranean Religions Source Database



9698
Porphyry, On The Cave Of The Nymphs, 24
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Intertexts (texts cited often on the same page as the searched text):

7 results
1. Homer, Odyssey, 13.103-13.112 (8th cent. BCE - 7th cent. BCE)

2. Plato, Timaeus, None (5th cent. BCE - 4th cent. BCE)

3. Plutarch, On Isis And Osiris, 46 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)

46. The great majority and the wisest of men hold this opinion: they believe that there are two gods, rivals as it were, the one the Artificer of good and the other of evil. There are also those who call the better one a god and the other a daemon, as, for example, Zoroaster The casual reader will gain a better understanding of chapters 46 and 47 if he will consult some brief book or article on Zoroaster (Zarathustra) and the Persian religion. the sage, That is, one of the Persian Magi or Wise Men. who, they record, lived five thousand years before the time of the Trojan War. He called the one Oromazes and the other Areimanius Cf. Moralia, 1026 b, and Diogenes Laertius, Prologue, 2. ; and he further declared that among all the things perceptible to the senses, Oromazes may best be compared to light, and Areimanius, conversely, to darkness and ignorance, and midway between the two is Mithras; for this reason the Persians give to Mithras the name, of Mediator. Zoroaster has also taught that men should make votive offerings and thank-offerings to Oromazes, and averting and mourning offerings to Areimanius. They pound up in a mortar a certain plant called omomi, at the same time invoking Hades Cf. Diogenes Laertius, Prologue, 8. and Darkness; then they mix it with the blood of a wolf that has been sacrificed, and carry it out and cast it into a place where the sun never shines. In fact, they believe that some of the plants belong to the good god and others to the evil daemon; so also of the animals they think that dogs, fowls, and hedgehogs, for example, belong to the good god, but that water-rats Cf. Moralia, 537 a and 670 d. belong to the evil one; therefore the man who has killed the most of these they hold to be fortunate. 46. The great majority and the wisest of men hold this opinion: they believe that there are two gods, rivals as it were, the one the Artificer of good and the other of evil. There are also those who call the better one a god and the other a daemon, as, for example, Zoroaster the sage, who, they record, lived five thousand years before the time of the Trojan War. He called the one Oromazes and the other Areimanius; and he further declared that among all the things perceptible to the senses, Oromazes may best be compared to light, and Areimanius, conversely, to darkness and ignorance, and midway between the two is Mithras: for this reason the Persians give to Mithras the name of "Mediator." Zoroaster has also taught that men should make votive offerings and thank-offerings to Oromazes, and averting and mourning offerings to Areimanius. They pound up in a mortar a certain plant called omomi at the same time invoking Hades and Darkness; then they mix it with the blood of a wolf that has been sacrificed, and carry it out and cast it into a place where the sun never shines. In fact, they believe that some of the plants belong to the good god and others to the evil daemon; so also of the animals they think that dogs, fowls, and hedgehogs, for example, belong to the good god, but that water-rats belong to the evil one; therefore the man who has killed the most of these they hold to be fortunate.
4. Ptolemy, Syntaxis Mathematica, 1.6 (1st cent. CE - missingth cent. CE)

5. Origen, Against Celsus, 6.22 (3rd cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)

6.22. After this, Celsus, desiring to exhibit his learning in his treatise against us, quotes also certain Persian mysteries, where he says: These things are obscurely hinted at in the accounts of the Persians, and especially in the mysteries of Mithras, which are celebrated among them. For in the latter there is a representation of the two heavenly revolutions - of the movement, viz., of the fixed stars, and of that which take place among the planets, and of the passage of the soul through these. The representation is of the following nature: There is a ladder with lofty gates, and on the top of it an eighth gate. The first gate consists of lead, the second of tin, the third of copper, the fourth of iron, the fifth of a mixture of metals, the sixth of silver, and the seventh of gold. The first gate they assign to Saturn, indicating by the 'lead' the slowness of this star; the second to Venus, comparing her to the splendour and softness of tin; the third to Jupiter, being firm and solid; the fourth to Mercury, for both Mercury and iron are fit to endure all things, and are money-making and laborious; the fifth to Mars, because, being composed of a mixture of metals, it is varied and unequal; the sixth, of silver, to the Moon; the seventh, of gold, to the Sun - thus imitating the different colors of the two latter. He next proceeds to examine the reason of the stars being arranged in this order, which is symbolized by the names of the rest of matter. Musical reasons, moreover, are added or quoted by the Persian theology; and to these, again, he strives to add a second explanation, connected also with musical considerations. But it seems to me, that to quote the language of Celsus upon these matters would be absurd, and similar to what he himself has done, when, in his accusations against Christians and Jews, he quoted, most inappropriately, not only the words of Plato; but, dissatisfied even with these, he adduced in addition the mysteries of the Persian Mithras, and the explanation of them. Now, whatever be the case with regard to these - whether the Persians and those who conduct the mysteries of Mithras give false or true accounts regarding them - why did he select these for quotation, rather than some of the other mysteries, with the explanation of them? For the mysteries of Mithras do not appear to be more famous among the Greeks than those of Eleusis, or than those in Ægina, where individuals are initiated in the rites of Hecate. But if he must introduce barbarian mysteries with their explanation, why not rather those of the Egyptians, which are highly regarded by many, or those of the Cappadocians regarding the Comanian Diana, or those of the Thracians, or even those of the Romans themselves, who initiate the noblest members of their senate? But if he deemed it inappropriate to institute a comparison with any of these, because they furnished no aid in the way of accusing Jews or Christians, why did it not also appear to him inappropriate to adduce the instance of the mysteries of Mithras?
6. Plotinus, Enneads, 2.3.7 (3rd cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)

7. Porphyry, On The Cave of The Nymphs, 18, 20-23, 25-28, 5-6, 15 (3rd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)

15. One particular, however, remains to be explained, and that is the symbol of the olive planted at the top of the cavern, since Homer appears to indicate something very admirable by giving it such a position. For he does not merely say that an olive grows in this place, but that it flourishes on the summit of the cavern. "High at the head a branching olive grows, Beneath, a gloomy grotto s cool recess.." But the growth of the olive in such a situation is not fortuitous, as some one may suspect, but contains the enigma of the cavern. For |37 since the world was not produced rashly and casually, but is the work of divine wisdom and an intellectual nature; hence an olive, the symbol of this wisdom flourishes near the present cavern, which is an image of the world. For the olive is the plant of Minerva, and Minerva is wisdom. But this Goddess being produced from the head of Jupiter, the theologist has discovered an appropriate place for the olive by consecrating it at the summit of the port; signifying by this that the universe is not the effect of a casual event and the work of irrational fortune, but that it is the offspring of an intellectual nature and divine wisdom, which is separated indeed from it (by a difference of essence), but yet is near to it, through being established on the summit of the whole port (i.e., from the dignity and excellence of its nature governing the whole with consummate wisdom). Since, however, an olive is ever-flourishing, it possesses a certain peculiarity in the highest degree adapted to the revolutions of souls in the world, for to such souls this cave (as we have said) is sacred. For in summer the white leaves of the olive tend upwards, but in winter the whiter leaves are bent downward. On |38 this account also in prayers and supplications, men extend the branches of an olive, ominating from this that they shall exchange the sorrowful darkness of danger for the fair light of security and peace. The olive, therefore being naturally ever-flourishing, bears fruit which is the auxiliary of labour (by being its reward, it is sacred to Minerva; supplies the victors in athletic labours with crowns and affords a friendly branch to the suppliant petitioner. Thus, too, the world is governed by an intellectual nature, and is conducted by a wisdom eternal and ever-flourishing; by which the rewards of victory are conferred on the conquerors in the athletic race of life, as the reward of severe toil and patient perseverance. And the Demiurgus who connects and contains the world (in ineffable comprehensions) invigorates miserable and suppliant souls.


Subjects of this text:

subject book bibliographic info
about,users of Beck (2006) 185, 186
about Beck (2006) 185, 186
alexander of abonuteichos Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
allegory Beck (2006) 86
amelius Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
anthropomorphism Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
anubis Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
aphrodite Waldner et al (2016) 214
apogenesis Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 127
apollonius,priest of sarapis Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 125
apuleius,metam. bk Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
ares Waldner et al (2016) 214
aries (zodiacal sign) Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 98
artagnes heracles ares astronomy,astrology,and astral lore Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 185, 186, 212, 213
asclepius Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
asia minor Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
astrology,in porphyry Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
astrology,planets Waldner et al (2016) 214
astrology,star signs Waldner et al (2016) 214
astrology Waldner et al (2016) 214
astronomy/astrology Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94, 98, 127
astronomy Waldner et al (2016) 214
attis Waldner et al (2016) 214
axis,universal Beck (2006) 109, 110, 111
bears Beck (2006) 109
bull Beck (2006) 107
cave Beck (2006) 86, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
celestial Beck (2006) 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 212, 213
chaldea Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
clockwise vs. counterclockwise Beck (2006) 110
cognition Beck (2006) 108, 109, 186
cognitive/intellectual capacities Beck (2006) 108, 109
coinage Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
colures,equinoctial/solstitial Beck (2006) 108, 111
composition as star map Beck (2006) 212, 213
contradiction/paradox Beck (2006) 108, 109, 212, 213
cosmos/cosmic Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
cosmos as divine and rational Beck (2006) 185, 186
daily/universal Beck (2006) 185, 186
desire,for second-level lives Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
determinism,astrological Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
diffusion Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
dionysus Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
doctrine Beck (2006) 86
dogma Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
domains Beck (2006) 212, 213
domes Beck (2006) 105
dream Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
dualism,gnostic Esler (2000) 74
earth Beck (2006) 110
east vs. west Beck (2006) 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
ecliptic Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
equator,celestial Beck (2006) 86, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111
equinox Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 212
equinoxes Beck (2006) 86, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 185, 186, 212
ethos and world view,soul,descent and ascent of Beck (2006) 86, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 185, 212
ethos and world view Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
euboulos Waldner et al (2016) 214
eucharist,christian Beck (2006) 112
fall of the logos Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
genesis vs. apogenesis Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
gnostic traditions Esler (2000) 74
grades,mithraic Beck (2006) 114
healer Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
heaven as text Beck (2006) 186
heaven vs. earth Beck (2006) 213
helios Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
hemispheres,celestial Beck (2006) 109, 110, 111
hot vs. cold Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 213
houses,planetary Beck (2006) 107
icon and/or mythic event Beck (2006) 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
image of the cosmos Beck (2006) 86, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212
images Beck (2006) 105
imitations mimeâ¯sis Beck (2006) 105, 106, 185
john,gospel of Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
kelsos Waldner et al (2016) 214
kronios Waldner et al (2016) 214
leo,zodiacal sign Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86
logos (λόγος) Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
macrocosm/microcosm Beck (2006) 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 185
magicians Waldner et al (2016) 214
magna mater Waldner et al (2016) 214
mars Beck (2006) 107
mesiteâ¯s,proper seat of Beck (2006) 107, 185, 186, 212
mesiteâ¯s Beck (2006) 111
mind and brain Beck (2006) 185
mithraea Esler (2000) 74
mithraeum Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 126; Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 185, 212
mithraic Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94, 125
mithras,as creator Beck (2006) 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
mithras,bull killing Waldner et al (2016) 214
mithras,grades Waldner et al (2016) 214
moon Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 98
mortality vs. immortality Beck (2006) 111, 112, 212, 213
mystagogue Waldner et al (2016) 214
mysteries,hellenistic Esler (2000) 74
mysteries,mithras Esler (2000) 74
mystery Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 125, 126, 127, 134
myth Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 94, 98
neo-platonists Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 125
neoplatonists Beck (2006) 86
nephthys Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
niche,cult- Beck (2006) 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
niches,mid-bench Beck (2006) 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
norm Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
north vs. south Beck (2006) 86, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
north wind vs. south wind Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 213
northern side-bench vs. southern sidebench Beck (2006) 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 213
numenios of apamea Waldner et al (2016) 214
numenius Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94; Beck (2006) 86; Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
oceanus Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86
opposition Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 127
oracle Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
p. Beck (2006) 212, 213
pallas,author Waldner et al (2016) 214
pantheon Beck (2006) 105
performative,representations,public,makers of Beck (2006) 109
performative Beck (2006) 112, 113, 212, 213
persia Waldner et al (2016) 214
planetary Beck (2006) 185, 186
planets,plato,cosmology and psychology of Beck (2006) 185, 186
planets Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 134; Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
plato,against astrological determinism Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
plato,platonic tradition Waldner et al (2016) 214
plato Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
plotinus Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77; Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
plotinus on astral semantics Beck (2006) 186
poles,celestial Beck (2006) 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
polysemy/multivalence Beck (2006) 109
porphyry,on astrology Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
porphyry,on will Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
porphyry Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 94, 98, 125, 126, 127, 134; Waldner et al (2016) 214
porphyry on mithraism Beck (2006) 86
post-mortality belief,belief,mithras context Waldner et al (2016) 214
purity Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 127
pythagoras,pythagoreans Waldner et al (2016) 214
pythagorism Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
quadrants,seasonal Beck (2006) 114, 115
reason/rationality Beck (2006) 186
religion,hellenistic religions Esler (2000) 74
representation Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
right vs. left Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
ritual Beck (2006) 111
rock-birth,of agdistis,; of mithras Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94
s. prisca (rome),; texts Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
salvation Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 125, 126, 127, 134; Beck (2006) 213
same vs. diverent Beck (2006) 186
scorpius (constellation) Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 98
seasons Beck (2006) 212, 213
semantics/semiotics Beck (2006) 112, 113
senses of these terms in ancient astronomy see p. Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
serpens Beck (2006) 109
seth Esler (2000) 74
seven-gated ladder Beck (2006) 114
smith,j. z. Beck (2006) 112, 113
snake Beck (2006) 109
sol,; as cosmic emblem in mithraism Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86
solstices Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 98, 127; Beck (2006) 212
soul,choices of' Marmodoro and Prince (2015) 198
soul,platonist representation of the Beck (2006) 185
soul Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 125; Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185
soul gates at the solstices Beck (2006) 86, 111, 112, 213
space Beck (2006) 106
spring vs. autumn Beck (2006) 212, 213
springs (water),; (season Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86
star-talk Beck (2006) 107, 109, 185, 186, 212, 213
stars,as divine/rational communicators Beck (2006) 185, 186
stars,as signs Beck (2006) 185, 186, 212, 213
stars Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
statue Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
structures Beck (2006) 105
summer vs. winter Beck (2006) 212, 213
sun/sol Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
swerdlow,n.m. Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 98
symbols symbol systems/complexes Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
syncretism Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 126
taurus Beck (2006) 107
taurus (constellation) Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 98
terrestrial Beck (2006) 110
theologians,ancient pagan Beck (2006) 86
theology Bricault and Bonnet (2013) 77
time Beck (2006) 106, 114, 186
torchbearers (mithraic) Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 126, 127
turcan,r. Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 86, 94, 98, 125
uboulus Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94
ulansey,d. Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 98
uniform circular Beck (2006) 185, 186
universal vs. planetary motion Beck (2006) 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115
ursa major and/or ursa minor Beck (2006) 109
venus Beck (2006) 107
vermaseren,m.j. Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 98, 134
way in vs. way out Beck (2006) 106, 111, 212, 213
winds Beck (2006) 213
winkler,j.j. Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 134
winter solstice Beck (2006) 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 212, 213
zodiac and signs of the Beck (2006) 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 212, 213
zoroaster Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 94; Beck (2006) 106
zoroastrianism Alvar Ezquerra (2008) 127
νοῦς Hirsch-Luipold (2022) 185