Customer Reviews

Athene: Virgin and Mother in Greek Religion (Dunquin Series: No. 9)

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Pallas Athene is commonly viewed as a bright, shining goddess of wisdom, crafts (including happy-fuzzies such as weaving), and the art of war. Yet no Greek deity is without flaws and secrets, and Athene has more than her fair share. Kerenyi offers a 94-page essay which delves into areas that -will- throw your views of the Goddess into doubt and disarray. Out of the raging headache brought on by entirely too much information, a new Athene will spring, full-grown and fully rounded, and you will never look at Her the same way again.

This is a good thing.

Kerenyi traces the origin of the name "Athena" to an Etruscan root denoting a "kind of vessel [or] dish" and associates this with ritual vessels used in temples to hold an ever-burning flame, hence: "Vessel of the sacred fire." For Kerenyi, Athena is at the core of ancient Greek religion. She was second only to Zeus in terms of worship received, far surpassing Hera as a representative of the feminine principle. Kerenyi attempts to unpack the rich complexities of this figure. Why was Athena so appealing to the Greeks (and to many still today)? How could such a strong warrior-woman figure flourish in the Zeus-dominated, increasingly patriarchal Greek world? Kerenyi suggests (among other things) that Athena represents a last survival of an ancient matriarchal tradition based on goddess-worship which managed to survive so far into the current era partly by accommodating itself to the new patriarchal order. She was still a rich, powerful, living figure up until the Romans took over and turned her into Minerva, who had much less significance in the new pantheon. This book is indispensable for anyone wanting to delve into the depths behind the figure of the mythological Athena!