UDC

930.85:133.4

DOI

10.17238/issn2227-6564.2019.1.119

Authors

Yuliya S. Obidina
National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod; ul. Ul’yanova 2, Nizhny Novgorod, 603005, Russian Federation;
e-mail: basiley@mail.ru

Abstract

This article dwells on the magical practices of ancient Greeks in the Archaic and Classical periods; in particular, the activity of professional magicians and sorcerers called γόητες. The author believes that classical works on magic, both ancient and modern, fail to satisfy contemporary researchers, either in terms of methodological approaches or in terms of propositions put forward therein. Thus, it is time to move away from the traditional assessments of ancient magical practices and consider them within the framework of their time, i.e. from the standpoint of the performers of these rituals. The paper presents a comprehensive analysis of historical evidence of ancient Greek magical practices that brings into the limelight the social group known in ancient times as γόητες. It is shown that magical activity lay outside the sphere of polis religion and initially focused on the souls of the dead; professional magicians interacted with the world of the dead, e.g. the practice of necromancy, hexing, fighting ghosts and casting love spells. It is noted that the image of an ancient Greek magician as a spirit charmer is personified in Orpheus, who through his hymns transmitted the secrets of the Dionysian and Eleusinian cults and is known as a developer of initiation rituals of Dionysian Mysteries. The author concludes that the use of magical activity in the interests of the dead was permissible, while the use of the dead in the interests of the living was condemned both morally and legally.

Keywords

Ancient Greece, polis religion, civic cult, necromancy, oracles of the dead, souls of the dead

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