The myth of Orpheus, because of its relationship with the mystical power or mystery cult known as Orphism, is perhaps the one from Greek mythology which has generated the most studies and debates among experts, who even take care to distinguish between legend and myth. The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, in its latest version, describes a descent into the physical unconscious to find “the right way to act”.
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 in the site is given in the Home tab.
Orpheus among the Thracians – Metropolitan Museum of Arts
We will first examine the different stages of spiritual growth that the evolutions of the myth reveal; then we will study, without going into detail, the myth of the dismembering of Dionysus specific to Orphism.
We will not study the Orphic cosmogonies, nor the rites and beliefs attached to this particular religion. The latter seems to have been reserved for followers of a yoga of knowledge associated with a deep desire for purification. It is probably the same spirit which led the Cathars of France, from the Greek Katharoi “the pure ones”, in an altogether different context.
If we consider that only very great heroes such as Ulysses or Heracles were able to venture into Hades, then Orpheus should be regarded as their precursor, maybe their initiator, or even as a hero of the same stature. Let’s remember that a “descent” into Hades is a dive into the physical unconscious, which requires prior mental and vital liberation. Theseus and his friend Pirithoos who had not acquired the corresponding stature remained prisoners. We will see in a later chapter that Euripides is the first to have mentioned the deliverance of Theseus by Heracles, but that in all likelihood, the ancient versions mentioned irreversible punishment.
However, no primitive myth makes Orpheus the hero of a great epic, even if he seems to have been famous throughout the Greek world as early as the 6th century BC.
Other examples of heroes who were able to return from the kingdom of Hades, such as Sisyphus and Alceste, did not enter there voluntarily and could only be “released” with the permission of Persephone or Hades or after the intervention of Heracles.
The initiating function of Orpheus had to be developed over time until the myth could cover the initiations into small as well as great Mysteries. In the small mysteries, the role of Orpheus was only the one of a musician and a poet (bard), while the most advanced initiations of the great Mysteries were related to the voluntary descent of the hero into the underworld.
This is the reason why, in the quest of the Golden Fleece by Jason, the descent of Orpheus into the kingdom of Hades is not mentioned, an incursion which must have been well known by the poet. That quest belongs to the beginning of the path, and the Orpheus of the Argonautica of Apollonius has no other role than singing and keeping the beat, together with initiating the Argonauts to the mysteries of Samothrace.
It is most likely because of this role of initiator that Orpheus got his reputation of transmitter of the story of the dismemberment of Dionysus, which is the basis of the Orphic beliefs about immortality of the soul.
Orpheus as initiator of the first phase of the path
Neither Homer nor Hesiod mention Orpheus. Also, he does not seem to appear in archaic art. The most ancient vases where he is represented date from the first half of the 5th century BC.
Some ancient authors who considered Orpheus a historical character ranked him among the mythical poets who preceded Homer for several generations and made him a son of Apollo.
Among these mythical poets were also Eumolpos and Philammon.
Eumolpos “who sings and dances well” or “a noble song that sounds right” is therefore the symbol of a just and true harmony in acts as in their expression. The late authors make him a son of Poseidon and the father of Museum. He was considered the founder of the Eleusian mysteries and the first priest of Demeter and Dionysus.
Philammon “who loves the consecration, self-giving (or who likes the sun god Ammon)” is son of Apollo “the god of the manifestation of the light of truth in the mental consciousness” and Chione “evolution of the focusing of consciousness” and was the father of Thamyris. In some traditions, he was the half-brother of Autolycus “who is for himself his own light” or “what radiates its own light”.
According to Pherecydes, it is Philammon and not Orpheus, who was with the Argonauts. In this variant, the author’s stress is on consecration, the manifestation of the psychic light and the focusing of consciousness, while Orpheus emphasizes the work of incarnation, purification and the opening of consciousness.</