To proceed with the interpretation of Greek myths – keys for decryption essentially include the symbol letters, the elementary symbols, the family trees, and the chronology of the myths. To fully understand this web page, it is recommended to follow the progression given in the tab Greek myths interpretation. This progression follows the spiritual journey. The method to navigate the site is given in the Home tab.
Introduction
The progression of mythological tales follows that of human evolution. Just as the stages of learning in childhood – walking, talking, social interaction, etc. – are a summary of universal stages of growth, mythology too retraces human evolution from its origins and anticipates its future development from its present stage of intellectual domination. It is built on the results of experiences rather than around a system of beliefs. It teaches us the necessary preliminary steps for progressing towards each new stage of evolution. Although initiates were unanimous in their understanding of the initial stages of the path, this was not always the case for the more advanced stages. For instance, the Trojan War not only illustrates an inner struggle but probably also a fierce controversy among the supporters of different paths of initiation. Through a number of symbols, mythology is the expression of the synthesis of thousands of years of individual experiences, and the presentation of the knowledge gained in the form of epics. 
Boustrophedon inscription – Code of Gortyn – © Agon S. Buchholz The keys for decoding can be classified into several more or less complex categories. *The first category utilises the symbolic content of the letters of the alphabet, which in turn form proper names, the meaning of which stems partly from the order of their constituent characters. Most often the names of gods, heroes, characters, places, etc. are constructed by an association of significant letters and words from common, everyday language to create a symbolic word puzzle. There is every reason to believe that this method of encryption had already been used by the Egyptians. When referring to Egyptian signs, the Greeks called them “Ta hiera grammata”, the sacred letters, or “Ta hiera glyphica”, an expression meaning “the engraved sacred (letters)” or “hieroglyphs”. Why “sacred” if it was not that they manifested, in their lines, a symbolic content revealing sacred knowledge? The Egyptians themselves referred to them as “the writing of divine words”. *The second category is linked to the meaning conveyed by basic symbols (images, numbers, etc.), often with multiple meanings that try to follow as closely as possible the “dictionaries of symbols.” However, caution is advised when using information given in these works, as the Greeks sometimes took up ancient meanings entirely unknown to us. For instance, they borrowed from the Vedas the image of the cow as a symbol of the “light of Truth” rather than meaning “Mother Earth” or “abundance”, as indicated in dictionaries. And so, the herds of the Sun, Helios, are “parts of Truth” perceived by the seeker through experiences such as illuminations, revelations, or inspirations. This category also includes numbers as basic symbols. *The third category consists of a structure belonging to Greek mythology, at least in its wider sense, for its seed was already present in the mythology of Egypt and the Middle East: the genealogical trees. These provide symbols with multiple ramifications, allowing a play of a number of ideas such as spiritual progression, theory and practice, the succession of levels of consciousness, the history of spirituality, stages of the path, and the necessary conditions to engage with them. Knowledge of two or three hundred characters (among the two or three thousand listed) helps to easily find one’s bearings within the spiritual progression. A detailed study of genealogical trees giving the fundamental structure of myths will begin in the next chapter. At this point, we will only discuss how they are to be used. *The fourth category includes the chronology of the tales, in themselves a coherent assembly of the basic symbols containing teachings or allegorical descriptions of experiences. Once the stage of interpreting simple symbols and the contents of a particular myth is over, the difficulty is to place the story within the frame of spiritual development. The answer is most often given in the myths themselves by an indication of a certain number of generations or years “before” or “after” certain points of reference, such as the Trojan War or the Quest for the Golden Fleece. It can also be given by the age of the characters – Theseus, for instance, was said to be over fifty years of age at t