God Apollo
Prophetic gift of Apollo. None of the immortals can compare in beauty with Apollo! He is forever young - a tall, slender, golden-haired god; his penetrating, clear eyes see everything that happens on earth and what is destined to happen in the future. [None of the gods, as the Greeks thought, knew the future better than him, so the inhabitants of Hellas built many temples of Apollo with oracles - special places where anyone could receive a prediction. The most revered was the oracle in the sacred city of Apollo - Delphi. This is what they said about its foundation.]
Apollo and Python. When Apollo grew up and gained strength, he decided to take revenge on the snake Python for his mother. Having found him on the spurs of Mount Parnassus, the golden-eyed Apollo pelted him with his sparkling arrows. Fleeing from the formidable god, Python fled. Apollo pursued him to the most sacred Delphi, where Python tried to elude him into the sanctuary of Mother Earth. However, the formidable god entered there too and struck his enemy to death right at the edge of the sacred chasm. Of course, there was no need to kill the snake in the sanctuary - it was a religious crime, and it was necessary to cleanse oneself of its filth. Apollo underwent purification on the island of Crete, and then returned to Delphi. [To atone for Apollo’s guilt in desecrating the sanctuary, the Pythian Games were established here, in which all free Hellenes participated.] And in the temple, Apollo, having learned from Pan the art of predicting the future, founded an oracle.
Terpsichore. Roman
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Priestess Pythia.
He gave answers to the questioners here through the Pythia priestess. She sat on a special tripod over a crevice from which vapors rose, and inhaled them. Having entered a state of frenzy, she began to shout out fragmentary incoherent words, which were carefully recorded by the Delphic priests. Then a poetic answer was composed from these words and given to the questioner. In the entire history of the Delphic Oracle, not a single incorrect prediction is known! Of course, this is explained not so much by the prophetic gift of the Pythia as by the dexterity of the priests. All answers given to the question were designed in such a way that several opposing interpretations could be given. For example, the Lydian king Croesus, who asked whether he should start a war against the Persians, was told that by starting it he would destroy a great kingdom. At the same time, of course, it was not specified which kingdom was meant. If Croesus defeats the Persians, that means the prediction has come true; If the Persians defeat Croesus, it means that he misunderstood the prediction: he was promised that he would destroy the great kingdom, but not the Persian one, but his own.
Apollo and the Muses. Parnassus. The golden arrows of Apollo's quiver are like the sun's rays; radiance spreads wherever he appears. Therefore, they also call him Phoebus, that is, radiant, clear. He is a wonderful musician, enchanting everyone with the sounds of his cithara. That's why they call him Kifared. On earth, Apollo is the inspirer of the arts. He is always accompanied by the daughters of Zeus, the goddess-muses. There are nine of them, and each patronizes its own art or science. Melpomene - tragedies, Terpsichore - dancing, Clio - the science of history, Urania - astronomy, Erato - love songs, Polyhymnia - solemn poetry, Calliope - knowledge and poetry recounting heroic events, Euterpe - lyric poetry, Thalia - comedy. Since Apollo leads their choir, he received the name Musagetes ("Leader of the Muses"). The favorite place of Apollo and the muses is Mount Parnassus. On the slopes of this mountain flowed the famous Kastalsky spring - a source of inspiration for poets and, in general, all people who are involved in the musical arts.
Apollo is the destroyer and the healer. Apollo holds a bow in his hands, with arrows from which he strikes all his enemies. These arrows bring with them pestilence, epidemics, death to dozens of people, and therefore Apollo was called Apollo the Destroyer. But by sending diseases, Apollo can heal them, which is why he was called Apollo the Healer.
Asclepius. Roman
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Asclepius and his descendants. The son of Apollo was Asclepius, the most skillful of doctors, who healed any illnesses and wounds and even tried to disrupt the world order, intending to resurrect the dead. Of course, the gods could not allow this, and Zev incinerated Asclepius with his lightning. However, then, heeding Apollo’s pleas, the Thunderer resurrected the doctor and accepted him to Olympus. So Apollo's son Asclepius became the god of healing. The sons of Asclepius became skilled healers, and from them came the family of Asclepiad doctors on earth; his daughter Hygieia became the goddess - the giver of health [we still use her name in the word "hygiene"], and Panacea (Panacea) sent people healing from all pains. Apollo, the father of Asclepius and a healer of diseases, was called by many honorary nicknames, including Alexikakis (“Abominator of Evil”), Prostatus (“Intercessor”), Paean (“Resolver of Diseases,” “Helper in Trouble”).
Apollo is the patron saint of farmers and shepherds. Apollo is one of the most powerful gods, so when he enters the assembly of gods on Olympus, everyone stands before him respectfully and even with some fear. However, in addition to all the listed functions and epithets, Apollo had some others, not so high. The farmer also honored him, calling him Sminfey (“Mouse One”), since he protects grain from mice; the shepherds called him Apollo of Lyceum ("Wolf"), as he protects the flocks from wolves. So it turned out that most people in Greece considered Apollo their patron under different names.
Apollo and Hyakinthos. Apollo is the most beautiful of the gods, but there are matters in which he is unlucky, and these are matters of love. More often than not, God's good attitude turned into a tragedy for the one who experienced it. Apollo's friend was the beautiful young man Hyakinthos, but the god of the west wind Zephyr (who himself wanted to be friends with the young man and therefore envied Apollo) made it so that Apollo accidentally hit him with a discus, in throwing which he competed with Hyakinthos, and killed him. From the blood of the young man arose a flower that immortalized his name in human memory - hyacinth.
Apollo playing
on the cithara
Apollo and Daphne. Apollo's love for the beautiful nymph Daphne also ended sadly. Aphrodite has a son - a cheerful, fast, playful, insidious boy, Eros. He flies on golden wings over the world, over lands and seas; in his hands he has a small golden bow. No one is protected from the arrows of the naughty Eros; they can even hit the thunderer Zeus. Without pain, arrows pierce into hearts, and the flame of love flares up in them. These arrows do not always bring joy and happiness; they often bring suffering, the torment of love, and even death. People suffer, and gods suffer too.
Once the golden-haired Apollo laughed at Eros’s small bow; the boy was offended and sent two arrows: one, exciting love, into the heart of Apollo, and the other, killing love, into the heart of the nymph Daphne.
Apollo met a beautiful nymph and fell in love with her. But as soon as Daphne saw the golden-haired god, she began to run with the speed of the wind. “Stop, beautiful nymph! - Apollo called to her. “Why are you running away from me, like a lamb pursued by a wolf?” After all, I am not your enemy! Look, you hurt your feet on the thorny grass. Don’t run so fast, because love makes me rush in your footsteps!” But Daphne ran faster and faster.
When her strength began to leave her and she realized that her loving god was about to overtake her, Daphne prayed to her father, the river god Peneus: “Help me, father! Take this image away from me - it only causes me suffering!” As soon as she said this, her body became numb, bark covered it, her hair turned into leaves, and her hands into branches. Daphne became a laurel. For a long time the saddened Apollo stood next to the tree, for a long time he heard the beating of Daphne’s heart under the tree bark, and finally he said: “Let your greenery never wither, oh laurel! Stay forever green! It happened as the great god said. And Apollo himself from then on wore a laurel wreath and decorated his lyre and quiver with arrows with laurel greens.
We are in the Borghese Gallery in Rome. Before us is the sculpture “Apollo and Daphne” by Bernini. Cupid committed... ...in a sense an atrocity. Yes, he made Apollo fall in love with Daphne. Cupid shot an arrow of love at him. And now Apollo is pursuing Daphne, who received another arrow, the arrow of hostility. Yes, that's why she rejects him. Daphne was famous for her incredible beauty. The myth says that she began to cry out to her father for help. She was a nymph and began to convince her father that she wanted to remain chaste, but Apollo did not want to leave her alone. Cupid helped Apollo a little, and he was almost overtaking her. And at that moment, when Apollo was almost grabbing her. Daphne again begs her father for help, and he heeds her pleas and turns her into a laurel tree. It was this moment that Bernini captured. When Apollo almost caught up with Daphne. Yes, this transformation is happening before our eyes. I just wanted to say that this sculpture looks like a scene from a movie. Yes, events seem to be unfolding before us now. This is one of the features of the Baroque. See how Apollo's robes flutter. You can feel the speed. The fabric wraps around his body and flutters behind him. Apollo rushes forward with all his might, his movements are very gracefully conveyed, but as he approaches, Daphne bends back, her body forms an arc, and it seems that she is transforming against her will. There is surprise, almost horror, on her face. Absolutely right, because her fingers turn into branches and leaves. And at that moment, when he lightly hugs her around the waist, her body turns into bark and his hand only touches the bark. Everything here speaks of the inaccessibility of beauty and the passion of Apollo. He had almost grabbed the object of his desire, but at that very moment he lost it forever. But even during the rampant persecution, he treats her with some tenderness. Look at his open fingers, it’s as if he began to realize what was happening to her and was taken aback. He even slowed down a little. Those. Do you think at this second it begins to sort of understand what’s happening? Yes. I think you can see it in the way he looks at her. Yes, you're probably right. He is sad. Sad because he noticed the look of horror on her face. It seems to me that this is also a kind of metaphor for the art of sculpture, the transformation of one form into another. Yes. Yes. Only here it is not the transformation of natural material into flesh that occurs, but, on the contrary, the flesh turns into natural material. From which you can make sculptures. Right, right. Very interesting. Those. Before us is a kind of reflection on what sculpture is. This is especially important for Bernini, because he dealt with precisely such transformations. He could turn marble into angel wings or, I don’t know, into a cloud. And our story ends with Daphne turning into a tree, and Apollo decides to always protect him.
The myth of Apollo
The Titanide Leto became involved with the already married god Zeus. They made love in the form of a quail and a quail, as a result of which Summer became pregnant. But she could not give birth, because the legal wife of Zeus, Hera, deliberately kept the goddess of childbirth, Ilithyia, near her. So Leto wandered pregnant until she reached the island of Delos, where she was delivered of her pregnancy: first with her daughter Artemis, and then, with the help of Ilithyia, with her son Apollo. The goddess Themis fed little Apollo with nectar and ambrosia, and Hephaestus gave him a bow and arrows.
The Goddess Leto is the image of a mother “glorious with her children.” This is her main achievement. She was called "eternally sweet" and "eternally meek." It was only thanks to her children that she took an honorable place on Olympus. Her son was traditionally called not by his patronymic, but by his mother's name - Letoid, which is considered a confirmation of his matriarchal preferences. Leto's son and his sister killed the Titan Titius, who was harassing his mother. (No other mother in Greek mythology enjoyed such protection.)
While still very young, Apollo killed the serpent Python (Dolphinius), the brainchild of Hera, who was devastating his native island and pursuing his mother. Then he cleansed himself of the taint of murder in Thessaly and, upon returning, established the Pythian Games in his native Delphi. The god Pan taught Apollo divination, and he established his temple in Delphi with Pythian priestesses, who predicted the future in a trance. Apollo was generally revered as an oracle and prophet; he was called the “driver of fate” (Moiraget).
Later, Apollo, Artemis and Leto acted as a united family front in all Olympic and earthly feuds (the only exception was the rivalry between Artemis and Apollo). So the three of them fought on the side of the Trojans, and together they helped the hero of the defeated Troy, Aeneas. In the Trojan War, Apollo invisibly participates in the murder of the main Achaean heroes - Patroclus (by Hector) and Achilles (by Paris).
Apollo's loyalty to his family and mother is undeniable. Together with his sister, he shot all the children of Queen Niobe, who boasted that as a mother she was better than Leto, since she gave birth to many more children. But Apollo characteristically confirmed here his opinion about the superiority of quality over quantity.
At the same time, maintaining the order established by his father Zeus, Apollo actively participated in the battles of the Olympians - first with the giants, then with the titans.
The destructive arrows of Apollo and Artemis bring death to the sick and infirm, and also cause illness, affecting completely innocent people. Carrying diseases, Apollo treated them. He is a protector from evil and illness; It is he who is credited with getting rid of the plague in Athens during the Peloponnesian War.
One of the main functions of Apollo in pastoral Greece was shepherding and guarding herds. In addition, Apollo was the founder and builder of some cities and the nominal father of some tribes. Sometimes, however, Apollo’s service to people is presented as a punishment from Zeus, who was trying to humble his independent son in his own way.
Apollo could not stand rivals. They say that he arranged the accidental murder of his sister's lover - obviously an excessive contender for her attention. He did not tolerate competitors in art either, believing that he had no equal in it. To be convincing, he flayed alive the satyr Marsyas, the companion of the goddess Cybele, after he dared to compete with him in playing musical instruments. Both played equally well, and even the muses could not determine the winner, but Apollo was also able to play on an inverted lyre, but this was impossible to do with a flute.
Apollo also had conflicts with classical patriarchal heroes: for example, when Hercules, obeying the usual marauding instinct of any courageous warrior, tried to steal a tripod from the temple of Apollo, the god entered into a fight with him. However, in other myths, Apollo and Hercules found a city together or were cleansed of the taint of murder while in temporary slavery. Apollo also helped Theseus in his battle with the Cretan Minotaur.
Once Apollo, along with Hera and Poseidon, even rebelled against his authoritarian father. But the rebellion was suppressed. For this, Apollo and Poseidon had to build walls for King Laomedon (then, when the king refused to pay for the work, they destroyed these walls).
Apollo retained his ancient chthonic features for a long time. He was identified with the raven, wolf, swan, mouse and ram. In the form of a raven, he indicated where the city should be founded. In the form of a swan, he managed to put the hero Hercules to flight. Like Apollo of Lyceum (Wolf) and Smintheus (Mouse), he patronizes the corresponding animals, but also saves people from their invasions.
God Apollo had no luck with female lovers. As you know, he endowed Cassandra with the prophetic gift, but the daughter of King Priam rejected his advances. Then the vengeful Apollo made sure that no one believed her prophecies. Once Apollo seduced the nymph Dryope, turning into a harmless turtle. The kind girl put it in her bosom, but then the god turned into a hissing snake, which put everyone around him to flight and, left alone with Dryopa, conceived a child with her, Amphis, who founded the city and built a temple in honor of his father, and his mother made him a priestess . However, Dryopa was eventually kidnapped back by her Hamadryad friends. The nymph Daphne also rejected Apollo and turned into a laurel. And the nymphs Coronis and Marpessa became his lovers, but betrayed him.
The children of Apollo were considered to be the soothsayers Branchhus and Mopsus (the son of the god and soothsayer Manto), the famous prophetess Sibylla, and Idmon, a participant in the Argonauts’ campaign. The most famous son of Apollo was the healer Asclepius, born of Coronis, who was killed by Zeus for resurrecting a man, and later returned to life in a different capacity. Taking revenge on Zeus for the murder of his son, Apollo killed the Cyclopes who were forging lightning for the Thunderer. For this, he had to serve as a shepherd for King Admetus in Thessaly, where he helped the king escape from the god of death.
After serving his sentence under Admetus, Apollo became the most moderate and emotionally balanced god of Olympus. The main company of the mature Apollo were the muses, the patroness of various sciences and arts. And he himself was called Musaget - leader of the muses. Apollo was considered associated with the mythical northern country of the Hyperboreans, in which science, morality and the arts flourished. How this myth arose and whether it is connected with historical lands and civilizations is unknown to us.
From the nymph Cyrene, Apollo had a son, Aristaeus, the muse Thalia gave birth to the Corybantes, and the muse Urania gave birth to the singers Linus and Orpheus. His lovers were the young men Hyakinthos and Cypress, who are sometimes considered as forms of Apollo himself.
In ancient Greek vase painting they especially liked to depict Apollo in the scene of the battle with Hercules for the tripod; at the time of the abduction by Hermes of the herds of King Admetus, guarded by Apollo; during the scene of the murder of the titan Tityus and Niobe's children; and also as a classical Musageta (leader of the muses). These must have been especially significant subjects of his mythology for the ancient Greeks.
Apollo became the Sun God at a rather late time. Of particular interest is a late antique work related to this function - the speech of the Roman emperor and mystic sun-worshipper Julian “To King Helios”.
In the Christian Middle Ages, artists often depicted Mount Parnassus with Apollo and the Muses; Apollo as the sun god driving a chariot; in company with his sister Artemis; Apollo in love and Daphne rejecting him; as well as the competition between Apollo and Marsyas. In other words, people of art preferred to portray this god for the most part as a patron of the arts and a jealous rival in creativity, or as a lover rejected by the Girl. Apparently, these stories were emotionally close to them.
Apollo (Phoebus), son of Zeus, god of light and sun, guardian of life and order
Apollo (Phoebus), Greek - son of Zeus and the Titanide Leto, god of light and sun, guardian of life and order, formidable shooter and infallible soothsayer.
Apollo was born on the island of Delos, where his mother fled to escape from Python, a terrible serpent with the head of a dragon, who was pursuing her on the orders of Hera, the jealous wife of Zeus. Then Delos was a floating island, rushing along the stormy waves, but Leto had no other choice, since by the will of Hera she could not find refuge on solid land. But as soon as Leto entered Delos, a miracle happened: two rocks suddenly rose from the depths of the sea, blocking the further path of both the island and Piron. On Mount Kinthos, Leto gave birth to twins: a daughter, Artemis, and a son, Apollo.
When Apollo grew up, he took to the skies with his usual weapons - a golden kithara and a silver bow - and headed to the country where Python lived to take revenge for the persecution of his mother. He found him in a deep gorge under Mount Parnassus, showered him with arrows and killed him after a short fight. Apollo buried Python's body in the ground and, so that not even a memory would remain after him, he changed the former name of the country - Pytho - to Delphi. At the site of his victory, Apollo founded a sanctuary with an oracle to proclaim the will of Zeus in it.
Although Python was a hideous monster, his origin was after all divine, so Apollo had to be cleansed by killing him, otherwise he could not begin his divine functions. Therefore, by decision of Zeus, he went to Thessaly and served there for eight years as a simple shepherd. After being cleansed of the spilled blood, he returned to Delphi, but did not stay there forever. As winter approached, he rushed off in his chariot harnessed by snow-white swans to the land of the Hyperboreans, where eternal spring reigns. Since then, Apollo invariably spent spring and summer in Delphi, and autumn and winter in the land of the blessed Hyperboreans, or visited the gods on high Olympus.
The appearance of Apollo on Olympus always brought joy and good mood. He was accompanied by the muses - goddesses of art, who recognized him as their leader (Musaget). None of the gods could surpass him in playing the cithara (lyre); At the sound of his singing, even the god of war, Ares, fell silent. He was the favorite of Zeus (just like his sister Artemis), and this often aroused the jealousy of the other gods. People revered him for many reasons. After all, he was the god of light and sun, without which life is impossible, as well as the creator of harmony and beauty, without which life is worth little. He kept people in wars and dangers, healed them from illnesses, took care of the world order established by Zeus, loved and rewarded good and punished evil. The golden arrows of his bow never missed, as did the punishing arrows that brought with them pestilence. His prophecies were infallible. True, they never came from him himself; he only communicated the will of Zeus to people through soothsayers: the Delphic Pythia, Sibyls and other oracles. (If the prophecies did not come true, and this also happened, then, of course, the people who misinterpreted them were to blame.)
In the world of gods and heroes, Apollo played an important role and himself became the hero of numerous myths. For example, there is a story about his musical competition with the satyr Marsyas, who literally paid for the defeat with his own skin (see also the articles “Pan”, “Midas”, “Hyakinthos”, “Niobe”, etc.). In the Trojan War, Apollo fought on the side of the defenders of Troy.
Like all gods, Apollo had many lovers. And yet, despite his origins and beauty, he was not always successful with women. His first love, the nymph Daphne, chose to turn into a laurel tree right before his eyes in order to escape from him; and even two mortal women, Cassandra and Marpessa, rejected his advances. Of his descendants, the most famous were Orpheus, Asclepius and Aristaeus; according to some myths, his sons were also Lin and Hymen.
Apollo was one of the oldest Greek gods; most likely, his cult came to Greece from Asia Minor; some myths directly name the Ortygia grove near Ephesus as his birthplace. According to the Czech orientalist B. the Terrible, his Asia Minor predecessor was the Hittite god of doors (gates) Apulun. Initially, Apollo was the guardian god of the herds, then the cities of the Greek colonists, and eventually became the god of light and the sun (and his sister Artemis - the goddess of the hunt, nature and the moon) and also had a number of other functions. Some of them were quite far from its original purpose. For example, since Apollo allegedly sailed from Crete to Delphi on a dolphin, he became the patron saint of sea travel. In poetry he is called the Bow-Bearer, the Silver-Bowed, the Clairvoyant, the Far-Sighted, the Light-Born, or most often the Shining One (Phoebus). The Romans accepted his cult without changes, and, it seems, even earlier it was adopted from the Greeks by the Etruscans. In honor of Apollo, festivals were held in Delphi in the spring and autumn, and every four years the Pythian Games were held (since 582 BC, not only athletes, but also poets and musicians competed; in their significance, the Pythian Games were second only to the Olympic Games). Similar celebrations, although differing in program, also took place in Delos, Miletus and other places. In Rome, games dedicated to Apollo were celebrated from 212 BC. e. In memory of his victory at Actium in 31 BC. e. Augustus founded the Actium Games dedicated to Apollo.
The most famous monuments of ancient architecture and sculpture are associated with the name of Apollo. The oldest temple of Apollo in Greece, partially preserved to this day, is located in Corinth (mid-6th century BC). And today you can see 7 monolithic Dorian columns of this temple from the original 38. The architect of the Temple of Apollo at Bassae in Arcadia, which is best preserved, was the co-author of the Athenian Parthenon Ictinus. Of the other temples dedicated to Apollo and which, as a rule, had oracles, the Delphic one should be mentioned first of all. The first building (7th century BC) burned down, the second (late 6th century BC) was destroyed by an earthquake; Few and yet majestic remains of the third structure (circa 330 BC) have survived to this day. It is surpassed in scale by the temple at Didyma near Miletus, built in the 6th century. BC e. and destroyed in 494 BC. e. by the Persians and then restored. The temple of Apollo on Delos played an important role, in which in 478-454. the common treasury of the Greek states, united in the so-called Delian League (amphiktyony), was kept. Magnificent temples were dedicated to Apollo in Syracuse and Selinunte in Sicily (6th and 5th centuries BC), in Asia Minor Alabanda and Hierapolis, in Claros near Colophon, in Roda, in Cumae near Naples and other places; in Argos, Apollo had a common temple with Athena. He was in Rome already at the end of the 5th century. BC e. a temple was built outside the Carmenta Gate, another one was built on the Palatine by Augustus after 31 BC. e.
Of the ancient sculptural images of Apollo, the most famous are “Apollo Belvedere” (“a model of male beauty”) - a Roman copy of the Greek bronze sculpture of Leochares (2nd half of the 4th century BC), “Apollo Musagetes” - a Roman copy of the original by Scopas (mid 4th century BC), “Apollo Saurocton” (killing a lizard) - a copy of the work of Praxiteles (2nd half of the 4th century BC) and “Apollo Cyfared” (“Apollo with a cithara ") - a Roman copy of the Greek original (3rd century BC). All these statues are in the Vatican Museums, antique copies of these and other statues are available in the National Museums in Rome and Naples, as well as in the Louvre in Paris. Among the best images of Apollo, preserved in the Greek original, are “Apollo” from the western pediment of the Temple of Zeus in Olympia (460-450 BC, Olympia, museum) and the marble “Apollo” - a copy of the statue of Kalamis (c. 450 BC), found in the Theater of Dionysus under the Acropolis (Athens, National Archaeological Museum). The Etruscan statues of Apollo are of approximately the same age, for example, “Apollo” from the pediment of the temple in Veii (late 6th century BC, Villa Giulia Museum). Until recently, the name of Apollo was given to archaic statues of young men in a frozen pose (kouros) - mostly erroneously. As for the images of Apollo on reliefs, vases, etc., even the most detailed catalog cannot cover them.
Sculptors and artists of modern times depicted Apollo no less often than ancient ones. Among the sculptures we will name the bronze “Apollo” by Giambologna (1573-1575, Florence, Palazzo Vecchio), “Apollo and Daphne” by L. Bernini (1624, Rome, Galleria Borghese), “Apollo and the Nymphs” by F. Girardon (1666, Versailles, Palace park), “Apollo with Python” by O. Rodin (1900, Paris, Rodin Museum). In painting - “Apollo and Diana” by L. Cranach the Elder (early 16th century, Munich, Pinakothek), “Apollo and the Muses” by Tintoretto (c. 1580, Venice Academy), “Apollo and Daphne” by P. Veronese (2- half of the 16th century, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art) and the painting of the same name by N. Poussin (1664, Paris, Louvre).
Images of Apollo are often found in Prague museums, palaces and other architectural monuments, especially in frescoes. The oldest of them is the relief of Apollo M. del Piombo and Campione (1555-1560) in the Prague Belvedere (summer palace) “Star”.
Of the poetic works, the first place, at least in time, is occupied by the “Hymn to Apollo,” attributed to Homer (possibly 7th century BC). He wrote the hymn of the same name in the 3rd century. BC e. Callimachus. In Pushkin’s poem “The Poet” (1827): “Until Apollo demands a poet / To the sacred sacrifice...” - poetry is implied.
It is impossible not to mention musical works dedicated to Cyfared and Musaget: two “Hymns to Apollo” of the 1st or 2nd century. n. e., the melody of which was recorded with the first symbols known to us, which can roughly be called notes. And if we talk about modernity, then in our century I. Stravinsky wrote the ballet “Apollo Musagete” (1928).
The ancient Greeks named several of their cities by the name “Apollo”, one of them is located in present-day Albania and today is called Poyani, the other is located in Bulgaria and is called Sozopol.
Nowadays, the name “Apollo” has been revived in a different, not at all mythical, context. This was the name of the American space program, during which, on July 21, 1969, man first set foot on the surface of the Moon.
Nikolay Kun
Birth of Apollo
The god of light, golden-haired Apollo, was born on the island of Delos. His mother Latona, driven by the wrath of the goddess Hera, could not find shelter for herself anywhere. Pursued by the dragon Python sent by Hera, she wandered all over the world and finally took refuge in Delos, which at that time was rushing along the waves of a stormy sea. As soon as Latona entered Delos, huge pillars rose from the depths of the sea and stopped this deserted island. He became unshakable in the place where he still stands. All around Delos the sea roared. The cliffs of Delos rose sadly, bare without the slightest vegetation. Only sea gulls found shelter on these rocks and filled them with their sad cry. But then the god of light was born Apollo, and streams of bright light spread everywhere. They covered the rocks of Delos like gold. Everything around blossomed and sparkled: the coastal cliffs, Mount Kint, the valley, and the sea. The goddesses gathered on Delos loudly praised the born god, offering him ambrosia and nectar. All nature around rejoiced along with the goddesses.
The struggle between Apollo and Python and the founding of the Delphic Oracle
Young, radiant Apollo rushed across the azure sky with a cithara in his hands, with a silver bow over his shoulders; golden arrows rang loudly in his quiver. Proud, jubilant, Apollo rushed high above the earth, threatening everything evil, everything born of darkness. He strove to where the formidable lived Python, who pursued his mother Latona; he wanted to take revenge on him for all the evil that he caused her.
Apollo quickly reached the gloomy gorge, the home of Python. Rocks rose all around, reaching high into the sky. Darkness reigned in the gorge. A mountain stream, gray with foam, rushed rapidly along its bottom, and mists swirled above the stream. The terrible Python crawled out of his lair. His huge body, covered with scales, twisted between the rocks in countless rings. Rocks and mountains trembled from the weight of his body and moved from place. The furious Python brought devastation to everything, he spread death all around. The nymphs and all living things fled in horror. Python rose, powerful, furious, opened his terrible mouth and was ready to devour the golden-haired Apollo. Then the ringing of the string of a silver bow was heard, as a spark flashed in the air of a golden arrow that could not miss, followed by another, a third; arrows rained down on Python, and he fell lifeless to the ground. The triumphant victory song (paean) of the golden-haired Apollo, the conqueror of Python, sounded loudly, and the golden strings of the god’s cithara echoed it. Apollo buried Python's body in the ground where the sacred Delphi, and founded a sanctuary and an oracle in Delphi in order to prophesy in it to people the will of his father Zeus.
From a high shore far out to sea, Apollo saw a ship of Cretan sailors. In the guise of a dolphin, he rushed into the blue sea, overtook the ship and flew up from the sea waves to its stern like a radiant star. Apollo brought the ship to the pier of the city of Chris and led the Cretan sailors through a fertile valley, playing the golden cithara, to Delphi. He made them the first priests of his sanctuary.
Daphne
Based on Ovid's poem "Metamorphoses"
The bright, joyful god Apollo knows sadness, and grief befell him. He experienced grief shortly after defeating Python. When Apollo, proud of his victory, stood over the monster killed by his arrows, he saw next to him the young god of love Eros, pulling his golden bow. Laughing, Apollo said to him:
What do you need, child, such a formidable weapon? It’s better for me to send the smashing golden arrows with which I just killed Python. Can you be equal in glory to me, Arrowhead? Do you really want to achieve greater glory than me?
The offended Eros proudly answered Apollo:
Your arrows, Phoebus-Apollo, do not miss, they strike everyone, but my arrow will strike you.
Eros flapped his golden wings and in the blink of an eye flew up to high Parnassus. There he took two arrows from the quiver: one - wounding the heart and evoking love, he pierced the heart of Apollo with it, the other - killing love, he shot it into the heart of the nymph Daphne, daughter of the river god Peneus.
Once he met the beautiful Daphne Apollo and fell in love with her. But as soon as Daphne saw the golden-haired Apollo, she began to run with the speed of the wind, because the arrow of Eros, killing love, pierced her heart. The silver-bowed god hurried after her.
Stop, beautiful nymph, - cried Apollo, - why are you running from me, like a lamb pursued by a wolf, like a dove fleeing from an eagle, you rush! After all, I’m not your enemy! Look, you hurt your feet on the sharp thorns of the thorns. Oh wait, stop! After all, I am Apollo, the son of the thunderer Zeus, and not a mere mortal shepherd,
But the beautiful Daphne ran faster and faster. As if on wings, Apollo rushes after her. He's getting closer. It's about to catch up! Daphne feels his breath. Her strength is leaving her. Daphne prayed to her father Peneus:
Father Penei, help me! Open up quickly, earth, and swallow me up! Oh, take this image away from me, it causes me nothing but suffering!
As soon as she said this, her limbs immediately went numb. The bark covered her tender body, her hair turned into leaves, and her arms raised to the sky turned into branches. Apollo stood sadly in front of the laurel for a long time and finally said:
Let a wreath of only your greenery adorn my head, let you from now on decorate both my cithara and my quiver with your leaves. May your greenery never wither, O laurel, remain forever green!
And the laurel quietly rustled in response to Apollo with its thick branches and, as if in agreement, bowed its green top.
Apollo at Admetus
Apollo had to be cleansed from the sin of the shed blood of Python. After all, he himself cleanses the people who committed murder. By decision of Zeus, he retired to Thessaly to the beautiful and noble king Admetus. There he tended the king's flocks and with this service he atoned for his sin. When Apollo played a reed flute or a golden harp in the pasture, wild animals came out of the forest, enchanted by his playing. Panthers and fierce lions walked peacefully among the herds. Deer and chamois came running to the sound of the flute. Peace and joy reigned all around. Prosperity entered the house of Admet; no one had such fruits; his horses and herds were the best in all of Thessaly. All this was given to him by the golden-haired god. Apollo helped Admetus get the hand of the daughter of King Iolcus Pelias, Alcesta. Her father promised to give her as a wife only to someone who would be able to harness a lion and a bear to his chariot. Then Apollo endowed his favorite Admet with invincible power, and he fulfilled this task of Pelias. Apollo served with Admetus for eight years and, having completed his sin-atonement service, returned to Delphi.
Apollo lives in Delphi during the spring and summer. When autumn comes, the flowers wither and the leaves on the trees turn yellow, when the cold winter is already close, covering the top of Parnassus with snow, then Apollo, in his chariot drawn by snow-white swans, is carried away to the land of the Hyperboreans, which knows no winter, to the land of eternal spring. He lives there all winter. When everything in Delphi turns green again, when flowers bloom under the life-giving breath of spring and cover the valley of Chris with a colorful carpet, golden-haired Apollo returns to Delphi on his swans to prophesy to people the will of the thunderer Zeus. Then in Delphi they celebrate the return of the soothsayer god Apollo from the country of the Hyperboreans. All spring and summer he lives in Delphi, he also visits his homeland Delos, where he also has a magnificent sanctuary.
Apollo at the Muse
In spring and summer, on the slopes of the wooded Helikon, where the sacred waters of the Hippocrene spring mysteriously murmur, and on high Parnassus, near the clear waters of the Castalian spring, Apollo dances with nine muses. Young, beautiful muses, daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, are Apollo's constant companions. He leads the choir of muses and accompanies their singing by playing his golden lyre. Apollo walks majestically ahead of the choir of muses, crowned with a laurel wreath, followed by all nine muses: Calliope - the muse of epic poetry, Euterpe - the muse of lyric poetry, Erato - the muse of love songs, Melpomene - the muse of tragedy, Thalia - the muse of comedy,
Terpsichore is the muse of dance, Clio is the muse of history, Urania is the muse of astronomy and Polyhymnia is the muse of sacred hymns. Their choir thunders solemnly, and all nature, as if enchanted, listens to their divine singing.
When Apollo, accompanied by the muses, appears in the host of gods on bright Olympus and the sounds of his cithara and the singing of the muses are heard, then everything on Olympus falls silent. Ares forgets about the noise of bloody battles, lightning does not sparkle in the hands of the cloud suppressor Zeus, the gods forget strife, peace and silence reign on Olympus. Even the eagle of Zeus lowers its mighty wings and closes its watchful eyes, its menacing screech is not heard, it quietly dozes on the rod of Zeus. In complete silence, the strings of Apollo's cithara sound solemnly. When Apollo cheerfully strikes the golden strings of the cithara, then a bright, shining round dance moves in the banquet hall of the gods. Muses, Charites, the eternally young Aphrodite, Ares and Hermes - everyone takes part in a cheerful round dance, and in front of everyone is the majestic maiden, Apollo’s sister, the beautiful Artemis. Flooded with streams of golden light, the young gods dance to the sounds of Apollo's cithara.
Sons of Aloe
The far-reaching Apollo is menacing in his anger, and then his golden arrows know no mercy. They amazed many. Those who were proud of their strength, who did not want to obey anyone, died from them. sons of Aloe, Ot and Ephialtes. Already in early childhood they were famous for their enormous growth, their strength and courage that knew no barriers. While still young men, they began to threaten the Olympian gods Ot and Ephialtes:
Oh, just let us mature, just let us reach the full measure of our supernatural power. We will then pile Mount Olympus, Pelion and Ossa one on top of the other and ascend them to heaven. We will then kidnap Hera and Artemis from you, Olympians.
Thus, like the Titans, the rebellious sons of Aloe threatened the Olympians. They would carry out their threat. After all, they chained the formidable war god Ares, and he languished in a copper prison for thirty months. Ares, insatiable with battle, would have languished in captivity for a long time if the swift Hermes had not kidnapped him, deprived of his strength. Ot and Ephialtes were powerful. Apollo did not bear with their threats. The far-striking god pulled his silver bow; like sparks of flame, his golden arrows flashed in the air, and Ot and Ephialtes, pierced by the arrows, fell.
Marsyas
Apollo cruelly punished the Phrygian satyr Marsyas because Marsyas dared to compete with him in music. Cyfared Apollo could not bear such insolence. One day, wandering through the fields of Phrygia, Marsyas found a reed flute. The goddess Athena abandoned her, noticing that playing the flute she herself had invented was disfiguring her divinely beautiful face. Athena cursed her invention and said:
Let the one who picks up this flute be severely punished.
Not knowing anything about what Athena said, Marsyas picked up the flute and soon learned to play it so well that everyone listened to this simple music. Marsyas became proud and challenged the patron of music, Apollo, to a competition.
Apollo came to the call in a long, lush robe, a laurel wreath and a golden cithara in his hands.
How insignificant the forest and field dweller Marsyas with his pathetic reed flute seemed before the majestic, beautiful Apollo! How could he extract from the flute such wondrous sounds as those that flew from the golden strings of the cithara of the leader of the muses, Apollo! Apollo won. Angered by the challenge, he ordered the unfortunate Marsyas to be hanged by the hands and flayed alive. This is how Marsyas paid for his courage. And the skin of Marsyas was hung in a grotto near Kelen in Phrygia and they later said that it always began to move, as if dancing, when the sounds of the Phrygian reed flute reached the grotto, and remained motionless when the majestic sounds of the cithara were heard.
Asclepius (Aesculapius)
But Apollo is not only an avenger, he does not only send death with his golden arrows; he heals diseases. Son of Apollo Asclepius - god of doctors and medical art. The wise centaur Chiron raised Asclepius on the slopes of Pelion. Under his leadership, Asclepius became such a skilled physician that he surpassed even his teacher Chiron. Asclepius not only healed all diseases, but even brought the dead back to life. By this he angered the ruler of the kingdom of the dead Hades and the thunderer Zeus, since he violated the law and order established by Zeus on earth. An angry Zeus threw his lightning and struck Asclepius. But people deified the son of Apollo as a healing god. They erected many sanctuaries for him, and among them the famous sanctuary of Asclepius at Epidaurus.
Apollo was revered throughout Greece. The Greeks revered him as the god of light, a god who cleanses man from the filth of shed blood, as a god who prophesies the will of his father Zeus, punishes, sends diseases and heals them. The Greek youths revered him as their patron. Apollo is the patron saint of navigation; he helps found new colonies and cities. Artists, poets, singers and musicians stand under the special patronage of the leader of the choir of muses, Apollo the Cyfared. Apollo is equal to Zeus the Thunderer himself in the worship that the Greeks paid him.
Notes:
Apollo is one of the most ancient gods of Greece. Traces of totemism were clearly preserved in his cult. For example, in Arcadia they worshiped Apollo, depicted as a ram. Apollo was originally a god who guarded flocks. Gradually he became more and more the god of light. He was later considered the patron of settlers, the patron of the founding Greek colonies, and then the patron of art, poetry and music. That is why in Moscow, on the building of the Bolshoi Academic Theater, there is a statue of Apollo with a lyre in his hands, riding a chariot drawn by four horses. In addition, Apollo became the god who predicted the future. Throughout the ancient world, his sanctuary in Delphi was famous, where the Pythia priestess gave predictions. These predictions, of course, were made by priests who knew well everything that was happening in Greece, and they were made in such a way that they could be interpreted in either direction. In ancient times, it was known that the prediction given in Delphi to King Croesus of Lydia during his war with Persia. They told him: “If you cross the Halys River, you will destroy the great kingdom,” but which kingdom, your own or the Persian, this was not said.
An ancient Greek stringed musical instrument similar to a lyre.
A city on the shores of the Gulf of Corinth, which served as a harbor for Delphi.
Goddess of memory.
The greatest mountains in Greece are on the Aegean coast, in Thessaly.
That is, one who plays the cithara.
Nikolai Kun. Legends and myths of Ancient Greece
