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Personal Protection and Tailor-Made Deities: the Use of Individual Epithets*

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Personal Protection and Tailor-Made Deities: the Use of Individual Epithets* View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by OpenEdition Kernos Revue internationale et pluridisciplinaire de religion grecque antique 21 | 2008 Varia Personal protection and tailor-made deities: the use of individual epithets Jenny Wallensten Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/1602 DOI: 10.4000/kernos.1602 ISSN: 2034-7871 Publisher Centre international d'étude de la religion grecque antique Printed version Date of publication: 1 January 2008 ISSN: 0776-3824 Electronic reference Jenny Wallensten, « Personal protection and tailor-made deities: the use of individual epithets », Kernos [Online], 21 | 2008, Online since 01 October 2011, connection on 01 May 2019. URL : http:// journals.openedition.org/kernos/1602 ; DOI : 10.4000/kernos.1602 Kernos Kernos2172008),p.818 5. Personal protection and tailor-made deities3 the use of individual epithets Abstract3 Theuseofepithetshasafundamentalcomponentof-reekpolytheism.The presentstudy2ringsattentiontoasmallsu2groupofsuchdi1ine2ynames,referredtoas individual epithets2ecausetheystemfromthenamesofmortalindi1iduals.Thefunctionof theseepithetsistodesignateadeityspecificallyconcernedhiththeindi1idualinBuestion, there2ypro1idingacloserelationshipandpersonal2enefitsfortheeponymoushorshipper andhisorherclosekin.ThearticleeCemplifiesthephenomenonthroughthein1estigation of a goddess Isis Aphrodite Di(aia identified in Hellenistic Delos. Through the epithet Di(aia,thoAthenian2rothers,DikaiosandAsklepiades,sonsofDikaios,intimatelytiethe deity to themsel1es and their family. It is moreo1er proposed that a positioning of the epithetinitshistoricalandphysicalconteCtfurthers ourunderstanding ofits originsand significance. Résumé: LLusage des pithAtes tait une composante fondamentale du polyth isme grec.Cetarticlesepenchesurunpetitgroupedesurnomsdecegenre,BuelLonappelledes épith1tes individuelles, dans la mesure on elles d ri1ent du nom dLindi1idus mortels. Ces pithAtesontpourfonctiondemontrerBuLunedi1init estparticuliArementconcern epar lLindi1iduenBuestion,fournissantdAslorsunerelation troiteetdes2ienfaitspersonnels pourlefidAle ponymeetsafamilleproche.LL tudeillustreleph nomAneenin1estigantla d esseIsisAphroditeDi(aiaBuelLonrencontredanslaD loshell nistiBue.ParlL pithAte Di(aia,deuCfrAresath niens,DikaiosetAskl piadAs,filsdeDikaios,associentintimement la di1init 6 euC8memes et 6 leur famille. Il est en outre propos BuLun replacement de lL pithAtedanssonconteCtehistoriBueetphysiBueapprofonditnotrecompr hensiondeses originesetdesasignification. TheuseofepithetsinGree/cult ThegodsandgoddessesoftheGreekscouldbecalledbyaninfiniteamount ofepithetsthatpresentedtheir1ariousfunctionsandhonours.Theepithetof the deity attached a certain function to a certain god, and there2y its use in ritual esta2lished a link 2etheen the horshipper and the god relating to the named function. Therefore, in attempts at communication hith the di1ine, epithets here used as precision tools: a suita2le epithet hould ensure that a prayerorpromisereachedjusttherightaspectoftheintendedrecipient.1 ∗ Ihishtothankthe)ernosrefereesfortheir1alua2lecommentsthathelpedimpro1emy teCt. I am also 1ery grateful to Prof. E. ,ystedt,Dr. H. -erding and Dr. M. Mili for helpful discussionsonanearlier1ersionofthepaper. 82 J.(ALLENSTEN Thereisagreementamongscholarsthattheuseofepithetsisa1italcompo8 nent of -reek polytheism and that, in spite of this, it is a surprisingly little studied phenomenon. Thus, many fundamental Buestions are still contested issues. There is for eCample no agreement among scholars as to hhich componentofanepithet8cladgodtookprecedenceduringinteractionhiththe godsthroughprayerandsacrifice.(henin1okedthroughadou2lename,has itthechoiceofgod,sayHermes,ortheepithet,say,Agoraios,hhichmattered themost?Opinionsco1erthehholespectrum:Brul arguesthatintheory,a godhithoutanepithetis2utfunartefactdulangagegandnotatruerecipient ofcult,hhereasPirenne8Delforge,hithoutdenyingtheimportanceofepithets, stresses the priority of the di1ine names, i.e., o1er8arching di1ine identities.2 TherelatedBuestionofhhetheragod,throughtheuseofa2yname,infact 2ecomesafnehgandseparatedi1inity,orhhetheronthecontraryacollection ofallepithetsgi1entoacertaingodrathercreateshisorherunifiedidentity,is likehisea1eCedone.3Discussionsendunsol1ed,butoftenhiththeconsolation thattheancient-reeksthemsel1esapparentlydidnotha1eapro2lemhitha myriadofapollosco8eCistinghiththegreatgodApollo.4 AsParkerpointsout,asafurthersteptohardsanunderstandingoftherole ofepithetsin-reekcultpractice,itisclearthathemusttrytogo2eyondthe temptationofmerecollectionandclassificationofepithets.Epithets,likethe di1inities themsel1es and their functions, ha1e an historical and physical conteCt,theydonotffloatintheairgandtheirplaceintimeandspacemightin manycases2ethekeytoourunderstandingofhhatareotherhiseMustempty titles.5 The present study tries to take these factors into consideration and presentsacertainepithet,Di(aia,inconteCt.Thepaperarguesthattheepithet 2elongs to a small group of di1ine 2ynames stemming from the names of mortal indi1iduals and I therefore refer to them as indi1idual epithets. The functionoftheseepithetsistodesignateadeityspecificallyconcernedhiththe indi1idual in Buestion, there2y pro1iding a close relationship and personal protection for the horshipper and his or her close kin. Through the epithet Di(aia, tho Athenian 2rothers, Dikaios and Asklepiades, sons of Dikaios, 1SeeforeCample,.PA,GE,,fThepro2lemofthe-reekcultepithetg,OAth28,72003), p.1738183O P. B,UL., fLe langage des piclAses dans le polyth isme hell niBueg, )ernos 11, 71 8),p.13834O(.BU,GE,T,5ree( Religion,OCford1 85,p.184. 2 B,UL., l.c. 7n. 1), p. 1881 O D. PI,ENNE8DELFO,-E, L’Aphrodite grecque, LiAge, 1 4O D.PI,ENNE8DELFO,-E,fLanotionde0panth on5cheIPausaniasg,inD.PI,ENNE8DELFO,-E 7ed.)Les panthéons des cités. Des origines 2 la P ri gAse de Pausanias,LiAge,1 87)ernos,suppl.8), p.12 81487thelatterstudytakesPausaniasLtreatmentofdeities/epithetsaspointofreference). 3SeeforeCamplePA,GE,,l.c.7n.1),p.175,hithreferencestoaclassicstudyofDernant7J.8 P. DE,NANT, Mythe et pensée chez les 5recs, Paris, 1 71, p. 87, n. 23) discussing the fact that Fenophoncouldha1ethefa1ourofJeus3asileushhilesimultaneouslyha1efallenoutoffa1our hithJeusMeilichios. 4SeeforeCamplePA,GE,,l.c.7n.1),p.1818182. 5PA,GE,,l.c.7n.1),p.174,176,182. TheUseofIndi1idualEpithets 83 intimatelytiethegoddessIsisAphroditeDi(aiatothemsel1esandtheirfamily. Itismoreo1erproposedthatapositioningoftheepithetinitshistoricaland physicalconteCtfurthersourunderstandingofitsoriginsandsignificance. .edicationstoIsis Aphrodite .i/aia I.élos22 8 ºbZd•w dZ\X ºc[\WX ÷bdwdº£vXw8 UÓdZ\Ü, ^£LVv`dZ\XUX{}wV£X{. ThegoddessIsisAphroditeDi(aiahas2eenidentifiedinone,orpossi2ly tho,inscriptions.Theonlya2solutelycertainappearanceofthedeityisfound in the intact dedication IDélos 2158. The inscription has car1ed on a mar2le 2ase,foundintheeCca1ationsofSarapieionC,thepu2licsanctuaryofthegod inDelos,in1 11. The message of IDélos 2158 is succinct: Asklepiades, son of Dikaios, the Athenian, dedicated to Isis Aphrodite Di(aia, hhen his 2rother Dikaios has priest.6ItisnotehorthythatthededicatorAsklepiadeschosetoincludeadating formula in his short inscription, eCpressed through the priesthood of his 2rother.7Inthiskindofpri1atededications,datingformulasarenotmandatory. Thededicatorsurelydecidedthehordingdeli2eratelyOthroughtheinclusionof thepriesthooddating,1ariantsofthenameDikaiosreoccurconspicuouslyin theinscription:Dikaiou8Di(aia8Dikaiou. A second possi2le occurrence of Isis Aphrodite Di(aia can 2e found in hhat has 2een identified as a dedication from Asklepiades 2rother, Dikaios himself 7IDélos 2040).8 This inscription is hohe1er Buite damaged and its 6 L5PN2,Asklepiades113ODikaiosI,L5PN2 ,fatherofDikaiosII,L5PN2,10. 7TheinscriptiondoesnotspecifyhhichpriesthoodDikaiosheld.Itisnotlikelythatithasin factthatofIsisAphroditeDi(aia.Pro2a2lyhehaspriestofSarapisatthetimeoftheerectionof the 1oti1e. The find conteCt corro2orates this, as the fact that he knoh from other Delian inscriptionsthatDikaiosheld apriesthood ofthisgodin 4/ 3BCor 2/ 1.SeealsoIDélos 203 .TheIsieionofDeloshaslocatedinthe1icinityofSarapieionC7F.DUNAND,Le culte d’Isis dans le bassin oriental de la MéditerranéeII,Leiden,1 73,p. 0). 8 Z\dXodZ\Xã[w,Vp|v. V.«..otV[|yV[Xp,|·¥vª\bd`odcv\w•UXp|T•UXvX odX[ÅbX Z\] U¯p | ä\UXo{p yUovs — — — — — —p | ÷bdwd º£ovXwUd dZ\\d?p | o^p] ^dyoVUX{U¯[zbXp|——————————.IDélos2040consistsofthofragments 7in1.A3004andE666)foundinSarapieionCin1 11.FragmentA7lines182)istheupperleft corner of a mar2le 2ase. Fragment B 7lines 387) isa mar2le plaBue, once clamped to another o2Mect.SeeP.,OUSSEL,Les cultes égyptiens 2 Délos du IIIe au Ier si1cle av. .. C.,Paris/Nancy,1 158 1 16,p.1708171,no.161.–MithradatesEupatorishonouredinse1eralDelianinscriptions,see foreCampleIDélos1560,1561and203 ,thelatteraninscriptionputup2y‘ourLDikaiosofIDélos 84 J.(ALLENSTEN restorationmustdependonIDélos2158.Iftherestorationiscorrect,itcan2e notedthatDikaiosLofferingalsoisofapri1atecharacter.Hedidnotpresentit inthecapacityofpriest,2utafterhisterminoffice.9 Individualepithets InatestamentarydedicationfromearlyHellenisticKos,acertainDiomedon createsacultforthe2enefitofhisfamily.10Diomedonaddresseshisattention to a Herakles hho holds the epithet Diomedonteios, thus, a Herakles in1oked througha2ynamestemmingfromthegi1ennameofthededicatorDiomedon himself. Sherhin8(hite 2elie1es that the epithet 2ecomes the means of ga merging,ifnotidentifyinggofDiomedonLspersonalityhiththatofHerakles.11
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