apollongivesthekitharatoorpheus

Apollo Gives the Cithara to Orpheus

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Apóllohn Gives the Kithára to Orphéfs: Inked pencil sketch by Kallímakhos, created November 22nd of 2008. One morning I woke up with this image in my mind, perhaps from a dream but I cannot really remember.

While living on Mount Parnassus with his mother and sisters, Orphéfs (Orpheus; Gr. Ὀρφεύς) met Apóllohn (Apollo; Gr. Ἀπόλλων). The God grew fond of the boy. Apollo gave him a lyre. He taught Orphéfs how to play the lyre while the boy's mother, Kalliópi (Calliope; Gr. Καλλιόπη), inspired him to write poetry. Orphéfs then wrote and sang songs. His songs charmed everyone who heard him, to such extent that they were loved even by the animals, rocks, and vegetation.

Kithára - (cithara; Gr. κιθάρα, ΚΙΘΑΡΑ) - The kithára is the 7-stringed lyre of Apóllohn, created by his brother Ærmís (Hermes; Gr. Ἑρμῆς) from the shell of a turtle, who gave it to the God after he had stolen his cattle. The seven strings of the kithára represent the seven centers of the soul, similar to the chakras of the Hindus. The word kithára is the etymological root of the word guitar.

Please visit this page: The Lyre of Apóllohn.

The logo to the left is the principal symbol of this website. It is called the CESS logo, i.e. the Children of the Earth and the Starry Sky. The Pætilía (Petelia; Gr. Πετηλία) and other golden tablets having this phrase are the inspiration for the symbol. The image represents this idea: Earth (divisible substance) and the Sky (continuous substance) are the two kozmogonic substances. The twelve stars represent the Natural Laws, the dominions of the Olympian Gods. In front of these symbols is the seven-stringed kithára (cithara; Gr. κιθάρα), the the lyre of Apóllohn (Apollo; Gr. Ἀπόλλων). It (here) represents the bond between Gods and mortals and is representative that we are the children of Orphéfs (Orpheus; Gr. Ὀρφεύς).

PLEASE NOTE: Throughout the pages of this website, you will find fascinating stories about our Gods. These narratives are known as mythology, the traditional stories of the Gods and Heroes. While these tales are great mystical vehicles containing transcendent truth, they are symbolic and should not be taken literally. A literal reading will frequently yield an erroneous result. The meaning of the myths is concealed in code. To understand them requires a key. For instance, when a God kills someone, this usually means a transformation of the soul to a higher level. Similarly, sexual union with a God is a transformation.

We know the various qualities and characteristics of the Gods based on metaphorical stories: Mythology.

Dictionary of terms related to ancient Greek mythology: Glossary of Hellenic Mythology.

SPELLING: HellenicGods.org uses the Reuchlinian method of pronouncing ancient Greek, the system preferred by scholars from Greece itself. An approach was developed to enable the student to easily approximate the Greek words. Consequently, the way we spell words is unique, as this method of transliteration is exclusive to this website. For more information, visit these three pages:

Pronunciation of Ancient Greek

Transliteration of Ancient Greek

Pronouncing the Names of the Gods in Hellenismos

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