Orphism

[[File:DSC00355 - Orfeo (epoca romana) - Foto G. Dall'Orto.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Orphic mosaics were found in many late-Roman villas.]]

[[File:DSC00355 - Orfeo (epoca romana) - Foto G. Dall'Orto.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Orphic mosaics were found in many late-Roman villas.]]

'''Orphism''' is the name given to a set of religious beliefs and practices''Sexuality in Greek and Roman Culture'' by Marilyn B. Skinner, 2005, page 135, "[…] of life, there was no coherent religious movement properly termed 'Orphism' (Dodds 1957: 147–9; West 1983: 2–3). Even if there were, […]" originating in the [[ancient Greece|ancient Greek]] and [[Hellenistic]] world, associated with literature ascribed to the [[mythical]] poet [[Orpheus]], who descended into the [[Greek underworld]] and returned. Orphism has been described as a reform of the earlier [[Dionysian Mysteries|Dionysian religion]], involving a re-interpretation or re-reading of the myth of [[Dionysus]] and a re-ordering of [[Hesiod]]'s ''[[Theogony]]'', based in part on [[pre-Socratic philosophy]].A. Henrichs, "'Hieroi Logoi' and 'Hierai Bibloi': The (Un) Written Margins of the Sacred in Ancient Greece," Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 101 (2003): 213-216.

'''Orphism''' is the name given to a set of religious beliefs and practices''Sexuality in Greek and Roman Culture'' by Marilyn B. Skinner, 2005, page 135, "[…] of life, there was no coherent religious movement properly termed 'Orphism' (Dodds 1957: 147–9; West 1983: 2–3). Even if there were, […]" originating in the [[ancient Greece|ancient Greek]] and [[Hellenistic]] world, associated with literature ascribed to the [[mythical]] poet [[Orpheus]], who descended into the [[Greek underworld]] ([[katabasis]]) and returned. Orphism has been described as a reform of the earlier [[Dionysian Mysteries|Dionysian religion]], involving a re-interpretation or re-reading of the myth of [[Dionysus]] and a re-ordering of [[Hesiod]]'s ''[[Theogony]]'', based in part on [[pre-Socratic philosophy]].A. Henrichs, "'Hieroi Logoi' and 'Hierai Bibloi': The (Un) Written Margins of the Sacred in Ancient Greece," Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 101 (2003): 213-216.

The suffering and death of the god Dionysus at the hands of the [[Titans]] has been considered the central myth of Orphism. According to this myth, the infant Dionysus is killed, torn apart, and consumed by the Titans. In retribution, [[Zeus]] strikes the Titans with a thunderbolt, turning them to ash. From these ashes, humanity is born. In Orphic belief, this myth describes humanity as having a dual nature: body ({{langx|grc|σῶμα|sôma}}), inherited from the Titans, and a divine spark or soul ({{langx|grc|ψυχή|psukhḗ}}), inherited from Dionysus.Sandys, John, Pindar. The Odes of Pindar including the Principal Fragments. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd, 1937. In order to achieve [[Soteriology|salvation]] from the Titanic, material existence, one had to be initiated into the Dionysian mysteries and undergo ''teletē'', a ritual purification and reliving of the suffering and death of the god.Ana Isabel Jiménez San Cristóbal, Rituales órficos (Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 2006); The uninitiated ({{langx|grc|ἀμύητος|amúētos}}), they believed, would be [[Reincarnation|reincarnated]] indefinitely.Proclus, Commentary on the Republic of Plato, II, 338, 17 Kern 224.

The suffering and death of the god Dionysus at the hands of the [[Titans]] has been considered the central myth of Orphism. According to this myth, the infant Dionysus is killed, torn apart, and consumed by the Titans. In retribution, [[Zeus]] strikes the Titans with a thunderbolt, turning them to ash. From these ashes, humanity is born. In Orphic belief, this myth describes humanity as having a dual nature: body ({{langx|grc|σῶμα|sôma}}), inherited from the Titans, and a divine spark or soul ({{langx|grc|ψυχή|psukhḗ}}), inherited from Dionysus.Sandys, John, Pindar. The Odes of Pindar including the Principal Fragments. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd, 1937. In order to achieve [[Soteriology|salvation]] from the Titanic, material existence, one had to be initiated into the Dionysian mysteries and undergo ''teletē'', a ritual purification and reliving of the suffering and death of the god.Ana Isabel Jiménez San Cristóbal, Rituales órficos (Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 2006); The uninitiated ({{langx|grc|ἀμύητος|amúētos}}), they believed, would be [[Reincarnation|reincarnated]] indefinitely.Proclus, Commentary on the Republic of Plato, II, 338, 17 Kern 224.