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The Life-Giving Spring: Water in Greek Religion, Ancient and Modern, a Comparison

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45 The Life-giving Spring: Water in Greek Religion, Ancient and Modern, a Comparison E VY JOHANNE HÅLAND B ERGEN , NORWAY In Greece, springs in caves have long played a Spring, which is celebrated on the first Friday after central role in religious beliefs and practices. In ancient Easter Sunday, the Resurrection of Christ. During times springs, represented water nymphs. Today springs this festival, Athenians visit the Virgin Mary’s chapel are dedicated to the Virgin Mary (Panagia) under her inside a circular Spring House, hewn in the rock on the attribute of the Life-giving Spring (Zōodochos Pēgē). southern slope of the Acropolis to obtain life-giving Both ancient and Christian believers have expressed water. The Sacred Spring is situated inside a cave their beliefs in rituals connected to purity and water over which is constructed a church (Plate 1). Many by fetching holy water from the caves dedicated to believers underscore the importance of being baptised these female divinities. The water is thought to be in water from one of the many sacred springs, which are particularly healing and purifying during the festivals dedicated to the Virgin. Cults dedicated to the sacred dedicated to the goddesses and saints. These beliefs and healing spring-water, have also been important for are reflected in the modern festival of the Life-giving political purposes both in ancient and modern Greece. Plate 1: The church dedicated to the Life-giving Spirit, Athens: The Holy Spring is behind the low wall (author photograph). Evy Johanne Håland, PhD., is a historian/researcher, in Bergen, Norway, Her most recent publications include, Greek Festivals, Modern and Ancient: A Comparison of Female and Male Values, Norwegian Academic Press, 2007; Women, Pain and Death: Rituals and Everyday-Life on the Margins of Europe and Beyond, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008 (editor); and forthcoming, Competing Ideologies in Greek Religion, Ancient and Modern (2009). Since 1983, her fieldwork has taken her to the Mediterranean, mainly Greece and Italy where she has been researching religious festivals since 1987. [email protected] 46 PROTEUS: A Journal of Ideas Cleaning the Acropolis caves Eirinē plans to be here during the afternoon on May 1, At nine o’clock in the morning on Saturday, April but the service/mass will be in the morning, starting at 4, 1992, my mother and I arrive at the cave of the approximately 8:30. Life-giving Spring.1 Eirinē Melas, who cleans the The cave is situated within the archaeological Acropolis caves on a monthly basis (Plate 3), tells us quarter of the Sanctuary of Asklepios, the ancient it is dedicated to Agioi (cf. Agios, i.e. Saint) Anargyroi, healer of sickness, and today the entrance is secured the patron saints of healing.2 Eirinē has carried out with bars and several padlocks. When they reach the this task since the death of her husband who worked cave this morning, everyone washes in the spring and at the Acropolis.3 Today, Eirinē’s daughter, two drinks the water. The two women assert the water is other women, and a young man, Panagiotis, are also miracle-working and healing. They have been here present. He shares Eirinē’s religiosity, and, during regularly since childhood. They explain that among the our stay, he presents several newspaper cuttings about many icons in the cave, the most holy represents the the “cave-churches.”4 I always have regarded the two Panagia and the Child. In front of the icon, one of the caves as caves, but my informants always refer to women arranges a bunch of flowers (nasturtium). So, them as churches. With the exception of Panagiotis’ even if the cave is still dedicated to Agioi Anargyroi, participation, the key performers of the rituals in in reality the Panagia is the one who gets the gifts. the caves are women. They assert Similarly, while the icon of Agioi that since childhood they have Anargyroi is still in the cave, the been brought to the Life-giving tamata (i.e. metal plaques depicting a Spring to fetch holy water along vow or request) are mainly dedicated with their mothers: “It has always to the icons of the Panagia. The been like this.” A clear example of most common offering is a silver- or how Greek children are socialised, gold-plated ex-voto representing this is a common response to the person or limb that has already researchers’ questions—a reaction that been, or is seeking to be, cured by underscores the differences between the icon in combination with the the perspective of many Greeks and water. Before she leaves the cave, the more linear view of time and the flower-arranging woman fills a history shared by most Western bottle with holy water, in keeping Europeans.5 with a tradition she learned from Eirinē tells me her arrival this day her mother when she was five years was delayed by a visit to a church in old. The other woman also brings Monastiraki. While she lights candles with her a bunch of flowers. She and fetches water in the cave, we chat only “gives half of it to the icon in about the annual festival dedicated to this cave, because the other half is the Life-giving Spring, scheduled in going to be offered to the icon of the the cave in approximately a month. It Panagia in the other cave, where we will go when we have finished here.”7 is not clear whether the festival will Plate 2: The entrance to the Sacred She states “this is the oldest church be celebrated this year due to two Spring, the Acropolis cave at Athens in Greece, and Paul was preaching practical problems, one the actual (author photograph). date of the festival in 1992, coincides here.” She lights the candles in front with the celebration of Workers Day on May 1. The of the icon, and she and her partner light the many second is the relationship between the new parish priest olive-oil lamps. All the devotees fill their bottles with and the celebrants: According to Eirinē’s daughter, water, while saying “even if it is not raining, there will the young successor to the elderly priest in the nearby always be water in the cave.” Byzantine Church resists participating at the festival, After a while, Eirinē fills a bucket with holy water, claiming it represents a pagan custom. During the which we carry further up the rock into the other cave- conversation, I learn the previous year, the younger church along with a candelabrum for votive candles priest stated he was ill, suffering from a heart disease. as well as a broom, some soap, and other objects. “But, we don’t believe that,” added Maria. The church opens above the theatre of the ancient Despite the commonalities between Orthodox god, Dionysus. This cave is dedicated to the Panagia practices and popular traditions, tensions between Crysospēliōtissa, or the Chapel of Our Lady of the the two often come to the fore during celebrations.6 Golden Cavern (Plate 4).8 Within, Eirinē or someone In 1991, the festival was observed only after Eirinē’s else lights a lamp every evening. son invited a priest from the University of Piraeus to On the walls of the church are faded Byzantine officiate at the ceremony. Later that day, Eirinē and paintings, but the cave was also important for the Panagiotis tell me they also plan to talk with the priest ancients. The two churches are from the fifth or the from Piraeus to ensure the ceremony will be held. sixth century. In both churches we see a newspaper Evy Johanne Håland,: The “Life-giving Spring” 47 article framed and glazed. Panagiotis tells me that There were once two storeys separated by a he put it up himself. He does not remember exactly wooden-floor in the chapel dedicated to Panagia when and where the article was published, only that he Crysospēliōtissa. The upper-floor was situated where “found (i.e. read) it some years ago,…the year I was on the ladder leading up to the icon of the Sleeping Tinos during the Panagia” (i.e. August 15, 1989). The Panagia (i.e. her Epitaphios) stops (cf. Plate 4). While article describes the legend behind the cult dedicated Eirinē is cleaning, she arranges the candelabra she to the Panagia Crysospēliōtissa in this particular cave. brought from the cave dedicated to the Life-giving Eirinē and Panagiotis recount the article in their own Spring on a certain place, claiming this is where the way: “In the beginning of Christianity there was a “holy table” used to be, and “there was a church above,” miraculous icon in this cave. It was painted by Agios referring to the second floor.14 She continues explaining (i.e. the Evangelist) Luke (i.e. during Mary’s lifetime). this actual “upper” church “is named after the death or Roxane, the daughter of a pagan medical doctor, was ‘Dormition’ of the Panagia, because the icon from 1894 approached by Panagia in a dream, who asked the depicts her death.” They decorate the icon with olive- young woman “to set her free.” “She was imprisoned.” oil lamps and flowers. They also decorate the rest of the In other words, the icon cave, but they leave all the was buried here.9 After lamps in front of the icon of three dreams, Roxane the Panagia and the Child. asked the other Christians When asked if the location to go along with her. By of the lamps is purposive, digging up the icon, she Eirinē replies “No.” The liberated the Panagia, most important icon was who then appeared to her actually moved to Moscow; in a vision.
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