It was also important that the Delphic Oracle didn’t cause the ruin of Greek society. This way of framing answers meant that any bad consequences flowing from her words would not be seen as wrong advice, merely misinterpreted advice! Like most religious speech, there needed to be room for ambiguity in the god’s answers. It was important that the Oracle never gave entirely straight answers. It is suggested that she answered in garbled and nonsensical sentences that the priests and priestesses interpreted. On the seventh day of each of these nine months, the Oracle sat on a tripod holding a laurel wreath and a bowl of Castalian spring water (holy water) and answered questions put to her. The Oracle sat in the cave year-round except for the three winter months. The Delphic Oracle was a woman over 50, generally from Delphi. The Oracle in her cave with fumes from below The Sanctuary of Apollo that grew at Pythia was founded on the legend that Apollo had slain a python or serpent (pythus) whose body fell into a great fissure where it rotted and released vapors. It was once known as Pythia and the Oracle was known as the Pythia priestess.īefore the myth of Apollo had taken hold, it was the Oracle of Pythia that was consulted about all of the most important decisions facing Greek leaders.Ī shrine to Pythia existed for several centuries but by the 7th century BCE, this prehistoric oracle became known as the oracle of Delphi who resided at the Sanctuary of Apollo.ĭelphi became a site for the congregation of people from all over Greece, as well as Asia Minor and Egypt, with celebrations throughout the year including the Pythian Games. Some suggest the Omphalos stone marks the location of the tomb of Dionysus, and Homer recounts the myth of Apollo coming to Delphi as a dolphin.ĭelphi was not always called Delphi. There are other ancient sources with different accounts.
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