Delphi

Origin and importance

According to Greek mythology, Apollo founded the oracle by killing the great serpent Python that guarded the place. The site was considered the "navel of the world" (omphalos) — Zeus, looking for the centre of the world, sent two eagles flying from opposite ends of the world; both met in Delphi. A stone (the omphalos, still preserved at the museum) marked the central spot.

In real history: the place was sacred since pre-Hellenic times (probably to a chthonic mother goddess), then absorbed by the Apollonian cult around the 8th century BC. From there, Delphi grew enormously: temple of Apollo, treasures of multiple Greek cities, sacred theatre, stadium for the Pythian Games. The most powerful figures of the Greek and Mediterranean world consulted Delphi: kings, generals, founders of colonies, merchants, individual citizens. The Spartans before declaring war, the Athenians before founding colonies, the Romans before campaigns of expansion.

How the oracle worked

The consultation was strictly ritual: 1) The consultant arrived at the temple after long preparation. 2) Made offerings (a sacrificed goat that, if it shuddered "correctly" indicated divine receptivity to consult). 3) Bathed in the sacred Castalian fountain. 4) Approached the temple and presented his question to the priests. 5) The Pythia, sitting on a tripod over a fissure in the rock from which "vapors" rose (volcanic gases? Modern hypotheses suggest ethylene from geological faults), entered into a trance and pronounced ambiguous "responses". 6) The temple priests "translated" the cryptic responses into coherent verses for the consultant.

The Delphic prophecies were famously ambiguous: many fits and misses depending on the interpretation. Famous example: King Croesus of Lydia consulted before war against Persia; the oracle replied "if you cross the Halys river, a great empire will fall". Croesus crossed and was defeated by Cyrus — the empire that fell was his. Inscribed on the temple frontispiece: "Know thyself" (γνῶθι σεαυτόν) — the central spiritual maxim of Delphic wisdom, more than any specific prediction.

Visiting Delphi today

The archaeological site of Delphi is one of the most spiritually impressive places to visit today. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. You can visit: the Apollo Temple (with reconstructed columns), the sacred way of treasures (where each Greek city had its own treasure house with offerings), the theatre, the stadium, the Castalian fountain, and the Athenian treasury. The archaeological museum houses extraordinary objects, including the famous Charioteer of Delphi (Greek bronze of 478 BC) and the omphalos stone. The atmospheric energy of the place is palpable; many visitors report a sense of subtle sacredness still vibrating in the rocks of Parnassus.