ORPHIC FRAGMENT 171
OTTO KERN
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For links to many more fragments: The Orphic Fragments of Otto Kern.
SUMMARY: This fragment comes from a Christian author, attacking our religion by interpreting the mythology literally, but saying that the first causes are Oceanus and Tethys and Phanes, and that Cronus devoured his children.
171. Λόγος λα΄ Θεολογικὸς Έ, Περὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος Γρηγορίου Ναζιανζηνού (Oratio 31.16):
οἵ τε παρ Ἑλλήνων σεβόμενοι θεοί τε καὶ δαίμονες, ὡς αὐτοὶ λέγουσιν,οὐδὲν ἡμῶν δέονται κατηγόρων, ἀλλὰ τοῖς σφῶν αὐτῶν ἁλίσκονται θεολόγοις, ὡς μὲν ἐμπαθεῖς, ὡς δὲ στασιώδεις, ὅσων | 152 Migne δὲ κακῶν γέμοντες καὶ μεταβολῶν· καὶ οὐ πρὸς ἀλλήλους μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὰς πρώτας αἰτίας ἀντιθέτως ἔχοντες· οὓς δὴ καὶ Ὠκεανοὺς καὶ Τηθύας καὶ Φάνητας καὶ οὐκ οἶδα οὕςτινας ὀνομάζουσι· καὶ τελευταῖόν τινα θεὸν μισότεκνον διὰ φιλαρχίαν, πάντας καταπίνοντα τοὺς ἄλλους ἐξ ἀπληστίας, ἵνα γένηται πάντων ἀνδρῶν τε θεῶν τε πατήρ (fr. 168 p. 205), δυστυχῶς ἐσθιομένων καὶ ἐμουμένων.
“Nor do those whom the Greeks worship as Gods, and (to use their own expression) Dæmons, need us in any respect for their accusers, but are convicted upon the testimony of their own theologians, some as subject to passion, some as given to faction, and full of innumerable evils and changes, and in a state of opposition, not only to one another, but even to their first causes, whom they call Oceani (Ὠκεανός) and Tethyes (Τηθύς) and Phanetes (Φάνης), and by several other names; and last of all a certain God (Κρόνος) who hated his children through his lust of rule, and swallowed up all the rest through his greediness that he might become the father of all men and Gods whom he miserably devoured, and then vomited forth again.”
(trans. Charles Gordon Browne and James Edward Swallow, 1894)
Compare Abel fragment 66 n. 1.
Lobeck I 468; Kern De Theogon. 44; Gruppe Suppl. 695.
The story of the birth of the Gods: Orphic Theogony.
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.
Introduction to the Thæí (the Gods): The Nature of the Gods.
How do we know there are Gods? Experiencing Gods.
This logo 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, 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, κιθάρα), the the lyre of Apóllôn (Apollo, Ἀπόλλων). It (here) represents the bond between Gods and mortals and is representative that we are the children of Orphéfs (Orpheus, 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.
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Pronunciation of Ancient Greek
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