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A Sign From Apollo At The Delphic Oracle

9/27/2013

By Anthon St. Maarten

While planning a European tour, I set the intention to receive a sign from the famous Oracle at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, Greece. Apollo, the god of revelation and inspiration, not only sent me a good omen, he also made sure the moment was captured on video...without me being aware of it at the time.

Anthon St. Maarten at the Oracle of Delphi

Would you not do the same if you were going to visit the remains of the legendary sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, Greece? Well, I did! I humbly requested a simple sign or personal omen from the god of light, truth and prophecy, while I was planning my recent European tour*. I knew for several months before I undertook this odyssey that Apollo would not disappoint, but ultimately I received much more than I had anticipated.

The renowned oracle who communicated Apollo’s messages to the people, and the priests who interpreted them, no longer ply their trade at this once glorious place, but Apollo has certainly not abandoned his remarkable temple. He still answers the call of mortals here, despite the fact that most of us now live in a world devoid of the mystical and the miraculous. Yes, he certainly does. I have proof.

At first I was somewhat disenchanted with this sacred site, but I nevertheless paid my respects to Apollo at the foot of his altar. I also paused for a while at the remains of the grand entrance to the temple, reminding him that the two of us had a date here with destiny. But nothing came to me. I even snooped around the entrance to Pythia's chamber, in the hope that the famous oracle woman would appear from the depths below to step out onto the Rock of Sybil in a trance.

In this altered state of consciousness, possibly induced by the hallucinogenic gasses from below the temple foundation, she would utter mysterious, prophetic messages from Apollo himself. It is rumored that she predicted the fall of Troy. Surely she could manage a simple little sign from Apollo for me? Yet, the temple ruins remained as silent as the grave.

Maybe the Christians, who later turned a part of the site into a church, were successful in driving out the last remnants of the old religion with their Grecian crosses? They posted these crucifixes at the entrance to the sanctuary, possibly to dispel the evil and heresy of the site’s pagan past. They no longer had any need for the protection of the colossal Naxian sphinx, which used to guard this place from up high, on top of a marble column.

In The Powerful Presence Of The Maiden Goddess

9/1/2013

By Anthon St. Maarten

For millennia pilgrims have made the trek up to the Acropolis, the mythological citadel of Athens. Heeding the whispers of an ancient deity, my feet wandered off the beaten tourist track to find their way to the doorstep of the Goddess Athena.

Many centuries have come and gone since the Athenians ascended the Acropolis to seek the guidance and protection of Athena, the maiden goddess of wisdom, war and divine intelligence. Her status as the favorite daughter of Zeus, and powerful patron deity of the city of Athens, remains evident to this day.

Expecting to be mostly drawn to the Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus, when I visited the Acropolis of Athens in Greece, I was instead keenly aware of the omnipresence of Athena’s legacy.

My undergraduate education in literature and drama afforded me a reasonably good understanding of the role of the god Dionysus in ancient Greek culture. I knew about the festivals and plays, and as a student I often imagined visiting the remains of those historic open-air auditoriums.

But when my friend Sandra and I reached the Theatre of Dionysus, I did not hear the echoes of the choruses of long-forgotten Greek tragedies, or the murmur of the 17,000 spectators who came to see them lament. Instead I heard the resounding, reassuring voice of Athena only – a goddess I never paid much attention to before. She called to me, inviting me higher up to her sanctuary.