Greek mythology is replete with cautionary tales of the consequences of hubris, that tendency of exceptional humans to push the bounds of the natural order and transgress upon the prerogatives of a pantheon of jealous gods and goddesses. It is inherent in a human condition caught between the bestial and the divine: what is the […]
One of the most iconic scenes in world mythologies is that of the dragon combat, where a hero overcomes a great monster in order to secure both immortal fame and the earthly rewards of the rule of a kingdom. Perseus used the freshly severed head of Medusa to petrify the great sea monster Cetus and […]
Central to the mythologies of many, if not most cultures, are tales of how the earth, the universe, and the gods who rule it came into being. These cosmogonies (origins of the universe) and theogonies (origins of the gods) can be divided into two broad categories. More familiar to, but not exclusive to Abrahamic religions […]
The origins of the goddess of erotic desire in both the mythology and religious practice of the ancient Greeks is, typically, a matter of conflicting accounts and theories. Many suppose that Aphrodite is related, even etymologically, to her counterpart in Mesopotamia, namely the patroness of love and war Ishtar aka Astarte and Innana. Given the […]
Zeus holds his place at the pinnacle of the Greek pantheon for a number of reasons. First and foremost, he earned it by right of might, overthrowing his own titanic father, “crooked Cronus” after a war between the Titans and Cronus’ Olympian progeny. This victory was not without the help of Zeus’ mother Rhea. Hearing […]
The Canadian heavy metal band Gatekeeper‘s release of their first LP East of Sun via Cruz del Sur last year catapulted the band into the spotlight as the new wave of traditional heavy metal gains ever more steam. But as today’s festivities turn our minds back to Canada’s unification into a single Dominion in 1867, […]
Among the many perils braved by Jason and his crew of Argonauts as they sailed toward the enchanted East was what we can rightly call the archetypal heavy-weight boxing match. Apollonius of Rhodes relates the episode most famously as the opening scene of Book 2 of his Hellenistic epic “Argonautica.” Shortly before encountering the Harpies […]
The American heavy metal band The Lord Weird Slough Feg have recently released their latest album New Organon. Masterminded as always by guitarist, vocalist, and philosophy professor Mike Scalzi, “New Organon” is largely a series of meditations on various philosophical figures, texts, and ideas from throughout history. This includes tracks on Greek philosophers such as […]
Among the myriad femmes fatales of Greek mythology, the Sirens of Homer’s Odyssey are among the most popular as the subject of heavy metal lyrics. This comes as little surprise given that their method of deadly temptation is through the allure of music. Some sources say the Sirens were daughters of one of the Muses […]
The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is duly famous both as a classic ‘katabasis’ (heroic descent into the underworld) and as a cautionary tale whose moral is that there cannot be love without trust. Son of Calliope, one of the 9 Muses, Orpheus was naturally a master poet and musician, and also a fitting husband […]
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