Section 2. Literature

https://doi.org/10.29013/EJLL-20-2-24-29 Griva Anna, Phd Candidate, Faculty of Italian Language and Literature, School of Philosophy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens E-mail: [email protected] ASPECTS OF IN SAPPHO’S FR. 2 Abstract. In this article the Sapphic fragment 2 (Lobel-Page 2/ Voigt 2) is considered under investigation. In this fragment the poetess is addressed to Venus, invoking her to appear in front of a group of her adorers. Through this poem various views of the goddess are detected, which are not directly visible in a general reading, such as her relation to the regenerative powers of the nature (Aphrodite Antheia), as well as to the death. It is also attempted an interpretation of the elements mentioned by the poetess in the frame of the ceremony (apples, roses, leaves, nectar), as well as the meaning of the presentation of the goddess as cupbearer in the end of the fragment, with a parallel reading of the Sapphic fragment 141 (Lobel-Page 141). In this frame the Sapphic poetry is illumi- nated through the ceremonial nature of the archaic period and its extensions to the religious and spiritual level. Keywords: Sapphic fragment 2 (Lobel-Page 2/ Voigt 2), Aphrodite Antheia, archaic Greek cer- emonies, Sapphic fragment 141 (Lobel-Page 141), symbols of Aphrodite. In fragment 2 (Lobel-Page 2/ Voigt 2) Sappho ἔλθε δὴ σὺ στέμ[ματ’] ἔλοισα Κύπρι, calls Aphrodite in a temple probably dedicated to her: χρυσίαισιν ἐν κυλίκεσσιν ἄβρως ὀμ[με]μείχμενον θαλίαισι νέκταρ ..ὀρράνοθεν οἰνοχόαισον ...κατίοι[σα [descending δεῦρυ μ†μ’ ἐς Κρητας .π[ ]ναῦον from heaven ἄγνον, ὄππ[αι δὴ] χάριεν μὲν ἄλσος μαλί[αν], βῶμοι †δ’ ἔνι θυμιάμε- come to me from here in this νοι [λι]βανώτῳ· bright temple, in a pleasant grove of apple trees, where incense is always burnt ἐν δ’ ὔδωρ ψῦχρον κελάδει δι’ ὔσδων in the altars μαλίνων, βρόδοισι δὲ παῖς ὀ χῶρος ἐσκίαστ’, αἰθυσσομένων δὲ φύλλων and gentle water gurgles κῶμα †κατέρρ[ει]· through the trees; and all the place is covered by the shadow of roses; and from the rustling ἐν δὲ λείμων ἰππόβοτος τέθαλε leaves ἠρινίοισιν ἄνθεσιν, αἰ δ’ ἄνητοι sleep is dropping μέλλιχα πνέοισιν [ ]

24 ASPECTS OF APHRODITE IN SAPPHO’S FR. 2

here the meadow where the horses graze is full of during the 8th century AD, when archaic Greece vernal flowers and the breezes blow always gently adopts eastern elements due to the contact with the Neo-Assyrian Empire. Inanna, goddess of fertility Aphrodite come, and love, can be related to Aphrodite due to the fact, offering with grace in golden among others, that the Assyrians name the planet calyxes mixed nectar that the Greeks called Aphrodite after her. This re- to the fellow drinkers] veals an interaction between different religious be- liefs [6, 138–139]. Here a ritual is meant: incense is burnt in the al- In the current poem, both the apple and the rose tars, while Aphrodite is invoked by the poet, as in the are mentioned; in this way the connection of Aph- case of celebrations in favor of the gods. The greatest rodite to the rituals of vegetation is validated. As far part of the surviving poem concerns the description as the apple is concerned, we could remark that it of the natural landscape. We could interpret this de- appears as a symbol not only of the vegetation but scription as an exaltation of the goddess in the con- also of the beauty, as it is evident in the myth of Paris, text of the ceremony, since Aphrodite bears, among where this fruit constitutes a beauty prize. Accord- other properties, the cognomen Antheia (Άνθεια). ingly, a connection of nature’s powers of vegetation Aphrodite Antheia is connected to the vegetation and rebirth to the idea of beauty can be seen. The fact and the beauty of the nature; it would be thus rea- that Paris is expected to receive an erotic trophy, after sonable to assume that what is described is an effect his offer of the apple, reveals the existence of a trip- of her own influence on the cycle of seasons and the tych of powers: love – vegetation – beauty. This trip- blossoming. Sappho mentions Crete, aiming prob- tych can be easily understood if is corresponded to ably at the specification of the goddess’ relevant role: the triptych: cosmogonic powers – fertility – harmo- Aphrodite Antheia was worshiped in Knossos and ny of the natural world. Love is related to the power was connected to the cycle of vegetation: Hesychius of every creation. Vegetation denotes the becoming provides this information in his dictionary, in the en- (γίγνεσθαι) of the world before it comes into be- try “Antheia” (for more information about Antheia ing (εἶναι). Beauty is the result, the ultimate perfect [9, 58–62]). The Cretans claimed that Aphrodite form of the world. Consequently, the apple’s sym- was first worshiped in their island (Diod. Sic. 5.77.4- bolic function is important for the understanding 5). It is also characteristic that one of the Graces, of the symbolization of Aphrodite in this poem: the which was the goddess of flowers and wreathes that apples of the , for example, are involved were worn in the ceremonies, was called Antheia. in events related to cosmogonic unions (the apple Aphrodite Antheia was a symbol of vegetation and trees that produced them were ’ wedding gift withering, as well as of life and death; thus from this to and ), to the preservation of the cosmic view she was connected to the worship of Adonis natural order (which was almost overturned in the (see Sappho’s poem about Adonis’ death: Voigt case of ) or to love stories (as is the case 140?). Since it is assumed that her origin is eastern, with Atalanta, where the apples are the beginning of she has been related to the eastern deities, who are the love story with Hippomenes or Melanion). That associated with the cycle of seasons and are symbol- is to say, they are always connected to situations of ized by the dove, the myrtle, the apple, the poppy the triptych cosmogonic power – fertility – harmo- and the rose [16, 209]. Burkert [1, 1–6] stresses the ny of the natural world. Apart from that, in Alcinous’ influence of the East in the Greek religion and more legendary garden, in the island of the Phaeacians, specifically in the worships of Aphrodite, basically which constitutes a microcosm of harmony, there

25 Section 2. Literature are «μηλέαι ἀγλαόκαρποι» [apple trees with shiny land. What is more, the description of Achilles’ shield fruits] (Od. 7, 115). offers a complete view of the world). So, the surviving fragment, by insisting on the Apart from the apple, there are specific elements description of the natural landscape, makes us think of the ἔκφρασις that are vital for the understanding of the literary device that has been called ἔκφρασις not only of the poem but of the general worshiping [ekfrasis], which flourished during the Hellenistic reality of the era as well. The poet has the leaves drip- period: these expressive techniques consist in rhe- ping sleep to the attendants.Τ he word used for sleep torical descriptions of works of art and frame the is “κῶμα”; we are thus presented with a state in which protagonists’ action. In other cases, these digressions one comes due to some supernatural influence: as consist in the description of natural phenomena, Page writes “…a state of trance or coma induced by the exotic animals and plants or they examine natural sound of the water and the rustling leaves” [12, 37]. functions of man’s body and soul, such as crying, Since Aphrodite is the one who displays her power kiss or love [5, 68–69]. Here, of course, we are not through nature, we come to the conclusion that the presented with a description of a work of art; never- leaves are in fact a metonymy for the goddess herself. theless, the landscape and its harmony are similar to So, while she is worshiped, Aphrodite does not hesi- the description of a painting. The representation of tate to attend the ceremony by affecting the state of natural elements in Sappho as well as the ἐκφράσεις her worshipers. “ Κῶμα” is a gate that leads to another or the digressions-descriptions in the Hellenistic dimension, as for example when one, being hypno- novel, should be considered not as a decorative de- tized or in a state of ecstasy, experiences another real- scription but as an essential element of the literary ity which in various religious or spiritual contexts is work: that is to say, just as in the Hellenistic novel regarded as more “real” than the one perceived by our the aforementioned components frame the action of senses. For example, the worshipers of were the couple until the final union, so in Sappho’s poem able to see the appropriate treatment while in a state of the description frames again a nucleus in the center hypnosis, that is to say to understand the disease’s true of which love is situated, since it is about the goddess nature and to deal with it. A similar case is divination, who represents the cosmogonic powers that through where the seer, in an ecstatic state, discovers the truth union bring about creation. So, Sappho’s singular art of the present and the future. in this fragment consists in the fact that the descrip- The rose is also a basic symbol of Aphrodite: tion is assimilated into the context of the specific ac- symbol of beauty for the ancient Greeks, but symbol tion of the characters, leading in the same time the of death and rebirth for the Romans: during Rosalia, reader to the center of the poem, that is to say to the which they were held in May, the Romans used roses complex role of the goddess Aphrodite. We could as a symbol of nature’s rebirth and the remembrance claim the same about the Homeric descriptions that of the dead. The roses’ red or purple color recalled do not just play a decorative role or a role of a “break” the color of blood, in a kind of appeasement. In in the context of the continuous action of the epic, ancient Greece, Aphrodite is connected to the un- but function as well as a means for the action, the mo- derworld too: let us not forget the important role of tives and the personality of the characters to be better Aphrodite as goddess-threnodist, a role more appar- understood or in order for a crucial information to be ent in the traditions about Adonis, a god whose ritu- given, sometimes outside the frame of the main ac- als were connected to the ritualistic lament [3, 637]. tion of the epic (see Od. 5, 66–85: the description of What is more, many ancient goddesses who shared Calypsos’ island shows Ulysses’ ethos, his persisting common features with Aphrodite were depicted as choice to return home despite the charms of the is- great mourners. It is said that Inana’s laments for the

26 ASPECTS OF APHRODITE IN SAPPHO’S FR. 2 death of Dumuzid shook the foundations of heaven. case where, in the poem, the goddess’ presence is a In the Canaanite tradition Anat’s laments for Baal worshiping representation (see the Sapphic fr. 140 are proverbial, while according to the Egyptian tra- who refers to the death of Adonis) we should accept dition Isis wandered inconsolable throughout the that, in this moment, the mortal man or woman who world looking for Osiris’ remnants. Death is part represents god becomes god, becomes what he/she of the regenerative circle of nature and not an end; pretends to be (for more information about that see consequently, it befits the goddess of love and cos- [14, 130–139]). In the case of Sappho, though, the mogonic powers to have also a side related to the goddess shall not remain unseen; she shall be the underworld. In this way, the beauty and the circle of one who shall be treating the fellow drinkers, she seasons are combined through the rose, as befits the shall be the cupbearer. The cupbearers were often subject of a poem at the center of which Aphrodite related to beauty. For example, Zeus’ favorite cup- Antheia is placed. bearer is Ganymedes, famous for his beauty. In the What is more, the water and the wafts of air have Iliad 1 (494–612) the scene with as a a magical function just as the leaves that cause sleep. cupbearer constitutes a parody of Ganymedes’ role: All the elements, the air, the water, the earth and the in this case, the comic element consists in the re- fire – the last two as they reside in vegetation which is versal of the established image of the beautiful cup- the result of the interaction between soil and sun – take bearer. Similarly, appears as a cupbearer in part in the state of drunkenness, of the “holy sleep” another fragment of Sappho: which takes hold of the worshipers of the goddess. Τhe poem ends with an exhortation to the god- κῆ δ’ ἀμβροσίας μὲν dess to reveal herself to the table of the fellow drink- κράτηρ ἐκέκρατ’ ers that revere her. The presence of the goddess at Ἔρμαις δ’ ἔλων ὄλπιν θέοις’ ᾠνοχόαισε. the table evokes θεοξένια [theoxenia], in which the κῆνοι δ’ ἄρα πάντες worshipers of the goddess believe that she is among καρχάσι’ ἦχον them, invisible, during the meal. According to the κἄλειβον ἀράσαντο δὲ πάμπαν ἔσλα traditions of the Greeks, every stranger was poten- τῷ γάμβρῳ. tially a disguised god. That is why hospitality, by offering meal, was considered a main element of (Lobel-Page 141) piety towards gods. Θεοξένια, as events in honor of the gods, are a remote consequence of the belief [Ambrosia was mixed that the gods reveal themselves during a meal. The in the krater most well known θεοξένια were held at Delphi, but Hermes took and filled gods’ glasses. the case of θεοξένια in honor of Dioskuri in Paros Everyone was holding the cups and Acragas is distinctive since the gods themselves they were making libations and wished were believed to be guests. Similarly, in Xenophanes to the groom every good] (1.6) the god presides over the symposium held in honor of him (for θεοξένια see also [7, 145–176]). In this case, Hermes treats the gods who obvi- Lidov [10, 100] claims that the presence of the god- ously attend a wedding. In this case, of course, we dess is not to be taken literally. But if we take into cannot conclude whether this is a wedding of gods account the Greeks’ aforementioned beliefs it is not or of mortals, in which case the gods are present in strange for the worshipers to enter a psychological the context of θεοξένια. If the latter is true, we are state in which they truly “see” the gods. Even in the obviously presented with a poem that can fall under

27 Section 2. Literature the category of Sappho’s epithalamia: the gods are his work The Bacchae, the used to go to present, they bless the wedding, but they keep their the mountains holding thyrsi and torches, dancing distance from men: they have their own god – cup- frantically, singing religious hymns and screaming bearer who treats them exclusively, they eat their wildly. There they used to hunt small animals (deers, own food and the only thing that unites them with goats, bulls, serpents etc.) which, after having caught men at the shared table is the blessing of the wedding them, they would dismember while alive with their and the gods’ wishes. bare hands (as Agave did to Pentheus, thinking he In fr. 2, though, the originality of the poet con- was a lion) and then they would eat them raw. Raw sists in the fact that in the context of θεοξένια, not only foodism is interpreted as the culmination of a holy does the goddess reveal her presence or enjoys the mystery according to which the worshipers of god mortals’ offerings but she also plays an active role, she believed that the god assumed the form gets directly involved with men, she becomes their of various animals, attending in this way the mystery cupbearer, she offers them a requital for their piety: himself as well. Dismembering and raw foodism was the goddess offers a precious exchange, since she of- thus equivalent to the eating of the gods. This prac- fers nectar which causes drunkenness and refers to the tice can be found in mythology where the myth of gods’ nectar. So, Aphrodite brings about drunkenness the devouring of the baby Dionysus, who had as- to the drinkers. In the Orphic Ηymn to Hermes the sumed the form of a goat or a bull, by the after come to a similar state of drunkenness when Hera’ s order is represented (for the eating of the feed on some sort of nectar, which is brewed honey gods see [8] and [17]). Behind the symbol, then, a (l. 550–563): then, in an ecstatic state, they declare deep spiritual and psychic process is concealed. the truth. That is to say, the consumption of nectar Finally, thte man in the poem comes into a di- might symbolize an ecstatic divine state during which vine state in which he can discover the goddess’ true one can see the truth behind appearances (see Pind. nature which in this case is about the triptych love Ol. VII, 8-10, where the poet offers nectar as a gift – circle of nature – beauty. Besides, the mysteries from the Muse). The fact that it is the Muses who con- are traditionally related to the aforementioned el- sume this substance indicates their close connection ements whose philosophical aspect has been ana- to poetry and the possibility of the revelation of divine lyzed above: the initiates participated in allegorical truths. In this ceremony too, then, Sappho’s song plays representations concerning the myth of a goddess a crucial role to the revelation of the divine. who usually would die and be reborn and used to Drunkenness can be thought of as a kind of - symbolize the soul’s destiny after death and in the nia that leads the worshiper outside the daily reg- same time the law and the unity-harmony that con- ularity. Apart from that, a kind of theosis through nect all beings. The initiates believed that during the drinking is implied at this point. The offering of the ceremonies not only was the goddess present but nectar (cf. fr. 141 (Lobel-Page), where Hermes offers also that they were somehow themselves part of the ambrosia to the gods, stirring it in the krater) could divinity. Plotinus explains (Enneads, VI.9, 11.5–15): be symbolically interpreted as follows: during the Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν δύο οὐκ ἦν, ἀλλ᾽ ἓν ἦν αὐτὸς ὁ ἰδὼν πρὸς ceremony, the participants experience god’s essence, τὸ ἑωραμένον, ὡς ἂν μὴ ἑωραμένον, ἀλλ᾽ ἡνωμένον symbolized in the poem by nectar; this recalls the [There were not two; the one who saw was one holy eating of the gods: according to Euripides, in with what he saw; it was not a vision but a union].

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