The Odyssey - Manual of Secret Teachings?

Thought about more stories in the Bible resembling passages in the Odyssey, the cleaning of the temple in the New Testament, where Jesus removes the money changers and the dove sellers in Mark 11:15-17 resembles the return of Odysseus to his home in Ithaca and the slaying of the suitors.

Though both recounts are not comparable in length, for the story in Mark is essentially 2 verses, compared to whole books (21-24) in The Odyssey, they both share the basic theme of a house that has been corrupted, overtaken or invaded by strangers, enemies or criminals and the rightful owner or master comes back to settle the score.
 
Did the events on the island of Thrinacia partly inspire the Golden Calf story in the bible?

Asked Grok about this theme, came up with a very good suggestion;

Mark 14:32-42 NIV

Garden of Gethsemane

32
They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

39 Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. 40 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

41 Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

And in this case, as with the other two tales, (Odysseus and the Cattle of Helios, Moses and the Golden Calf) we see here that Simon/Peter is in the same role as Aaron and Eurylochus. They are all the ones that received the orders and failed to comply.
 
'The Seven Basic Plots' by Christopher Booker has a fascinating take on The Odyssey. His thesis is that stories used to be guides for living, showing us how to reach emotional and psychic maturity, and The Odyssey is a foundational text, showing a man who evolves through the most difficult challenges life (and Poseidon, as the 'dark father' or negative masculinity) could throw at him to become a strong, wise, adaptable and self-controlled man fit to take back his kingdom and reunite with his equally impressive wife.

Booker is deeply influenced by Jung's theory of the archetypes and his conception of the psyche as being made up of the ego, shadow, anima/animus and Self. Each man and woman's goal is to integrate the various elements of his psyche to attain psychic unity, which is the archetype of the Self. Odysseus represents a new type of hero in literature, not one who is motivated by glory or greed, but by the simple love of home and family. In the Trojan War myth cycle, Odysseus is the only Greek king who survives the war and the journey home to regain his kingdom. Even James Joyce called Odysseus the most complete man in literature.
 
As I’ve been reading the Odyssey again, the Phaecians keep getting more and more interesting

These people live detached from the harsh realities of the world of suffering that our hero has been living in ever since he departed from Troy. Here is a brief summary:

After leaving Calypso's Ogygia on a raft, our hero navigated for 20 days before reaching Scheria, the island of the Phaecians. But just before reaching the island's shores, Poseidon, coming back from Ethiopia, sends a storm that destroys the raft and almost kills our hero, if not for Ino/Leucothea, a goddess that assists Odysseus.

At the island, our hero goes to sleep after the ordeal. Upon waking up the next day, he encounters the daughter of King Alcinous, who, motivated by Athena, welcomes and guides our hero to his father's palace.

While walking to the palace, Athena helps Odysseus by surrounding him with a mist to protect him from hostility or curiousity from the Phaecians.

At the palace, our hero is well received, participates in games and feasts, and recounts his story so far to the court of King Alcinous and Queen Arete.

Finally, the King decides to help Odysseus return to Ithaca, providing a ship, crew and gifts. Our hero falls asleep before sailing and wakes up on the shores of his home island. What a ride!

The descriptions of Scheria are quite striking, the gardens and orchards are described as lush, abundant and thriving year round. As if there were no seasons. The palace of the King is described as grand, having bronze walls and gold doors, gold and silver statues surround the entrance to the palace. The Phaecians are described as being close or favorites to the gods, specially Poseidon, and gods walked freely among them in their true form, without the need to disguise themselves as they do elsewhere.

They migrated to the island after living near the Cyclops, a race close to Poseidon, but now they live in isolation from other humans. And they play the very important role of listening to Odysseus while the retelling of his story; in this way they represent the reader.

There could be shamanic references indicating that Scheria belongs to another realm. After surviving the storm (another interesting reference) and reaching the shore, Odysseus goes into the island, but finds none and sets to rest. He buries himself under leafs and goes to sleep. He encounters Nausicaa the next morning. And before leaving the island he goes again to sleep and wakes up back in this world at the beaches of Ithaca, where the Phaecian sailors place him while still asleep, by his treasures.

Another interesting detail is their sailing prowess, described as swift, unmatched: their ships sail faster than falcons, guided by divine skill, never lost at sea. Almost not describing a ship or sailors, but something else.

King Alcinous and his family and lieutenants respected the xenia, the hospitality, generosity and protection shown to visitors, but at the same time the Phaecians, the inhabitants of the city, don't seem to be quite familiar with strangers, as Athena had to protect Odysseus from them, I wonder why?

Yet another interesting fact. Ino/Leucothea helps Odysseus by giving him her enchanted veil to keep him afloat, a sort of device that allows him not only to survive the storm, but to reach the shores of the island. Maybe this device did more than just keep him afloat?

So who are/were this people?
 
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Another interesting passage in the Odyssey is the visit to the House of Hades or the Underworld.

Our hero, on the advice of Circe, the sorceress, goes to the Underworld with the intention of meeting with Tiresias, a seer, who knows the way home for Odysseus. Circe mentions that he needs to summon the dead through a ritual. This, by itself, is already interesting. He uses a very specific ritual of milk, honey, wine, barley, blood from victims and prayer to summon them.

After the initial phase of the ritual is completed, the dead appear. Odysseus chats with Tiresias, but also observes and talks with a host of other interesting characters. All of which have reasons for being in the land of the dead. They all have regrets, grudges, unfinished business while living or hold emotions that make this place essentially a purgatory.

After talking with Tiresias, he observes what is called the "catalog of heroines," famous women sent by Persephone, and recounts for the audience what he knows about them. What is interesting is that almost all of them had an affair with either Zeus or Poseidon and had children by them. Often, these gods will disguise themselves as something else, effectively shapeshifting their form to seduce these women.

Among these women is Leda, Helen's mother. As per Laura's research and the Cassiopaeans, we find that Helen is Nefertiti, wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten. And according to the Cassiopaeans, the strange shape of her skull is a genetic tweak by 4D STS, related to the nephilim. So this begs the question if the story of Leda and the other women is a reference to intervention and genetic manipulation by 4D STS. Almost all of these women were of royal descent and had positions of influence and power! I wonder why are they here, in the Underworld.

Going forward, our hero also talks with King Agamemnon, Ajax and Achilles, his buddies from the war of Troy. Again, all of them had reasons to be there. We find that Agamemnon was betrayed by his wife and brutally murdered by his wife's lover upon his return. Ajax didn't want to talk to our hero over differences during the war, and Achilles was lamenting living among the dead after attaining great glory.

Now, what is interesting is that there were prophesies of the death of Achilles in the Iliad, but no mention on how he was actually killed. But digging a bit deeper, we find that there is a lesson to be learned with his story.

The story of the Iliad focuses on the reluctance of Achilles to fight with the Acheans. He was disrespected by Agamemnon when he took Briseis, a woman awarded to Achilles as war prize. Achilles refused to take arms and the Acheans struggled with the Troyans. In desperation, Patroclus, Achilles' close friend, takes up his armor and goes fighting with the Myrmidons, Achilles' clan.

Patroclus is killed by Hector, provoking the rage of Achilles prompting his return to the war. Achilles kills Hector, keeps his body and the Iliad ends with the retrieval of his son's body by King Priam.

What we see here is that Achilles rejected his duty, and because of this he brought tragedy upon himself and those close to him. He lost his friend and Homer brings home the lesson by placing him in the land of the dead, though he doesn't seem to know why he's there, as if he didn't learn his lesson yet.

Comparing this with the story of the Mahabharata, which the C's have mentioned reflects the same events, we find a similar situation with the hero in that epic, Arjuna.

Arjuna had a moment of self-doubt before the Kurukshetra War. He was fighting his own kin after all. His duty was to lead his army but was doubtful, considering not fighting at all and leaving his army high and dry. He has a long philosophical conversation with Krishna (the assisting god, just like Athena was for the Acheans) and comes to the realization that his duty is the right action (Dharma).

The conversation between Arjuna and Krishna is an integral part of the Bhagavad Gita (part of the Mahabharata), and had great philosophical and religious influence around India. And in this sense the Iliad and the Odyssey served the same purpose. Perhaps a way to shape behavior and teach lessons trying to prevent catastrophes from the gods in the sky.
 
Some similarities with Mahabharata I can add.
The story of the Iliad focuses on the reluctance of Achilles to fight with the Acheans. He was disrespected by Agamemnon when he took Briseis, a woman awarded to Achilles as war prize. Achilles refused to take arms and the Acheans struggled with the Troyans. In desperation, Patroclus, Achilles' close friend, takes up his armor and goes fighting with the Myrmidons, Achilles' clan.
Equating Achilles to Arjuna - Arjuna won Draupadi in a archery contest but the latter was forcibly married to the five Pandavas (Arjuna's brothers). The eldest brother, Yudhisthir (easily compared with Agamemnon) enjoyed the husband duties with Draupadi first which would be highly upsetting to Arjuna.
Side note: Some of the events surrounding Draupadi resemble Helen of Troy.

Arjuna doesn't want to fight the war but is convinced by Krishna via a long dialogue, or teachings known as Bhagvad Gita. Later, to protect Yudhisthir (~Agamemnon), Arjuna's 16-year old son Abhimanyu (can compare with Patroclus), jumps into a bloody battle where he sacrifices himself to save his king from being captured; the final blow being delivered by Jaidrath (comparable to Hector).

Patroclus is killed by Hector, provoking the rage of Achilles prompting his return to the war. Achilles kills Hector, keeps his body and the Iliad ends with the retrieval of his son's body by King Priam.

Arjuna gets extremely upset upon hearing the news of his son's death and kills Jaidrath the next day.

And in this sense the Iliad and the Odyssey served the same purpose. Perhaps a way to shape behavior and teach lessons trying to prevent catastrophes from the gods in the sky.
Agree with this. The story of Mahabharata also has no reality but its supposed to contain information on some real events as per C's so, certain names or characters might be real and the rest is just teachings designed to build and manage the Hinduism as a religion.
 
So who are/were this people?
You might find interesting Iman Wilkens book „Where Troy once stood“. I don’t have now the book at hand to check, so I asked Grok:

In Iman Wilkens' book *Where Troy Once Stood*, he proposes a controversial reinterpretation of Homer's *Iliad* and *Odyssey*, arguing that the events described took place in Western Europe rather than the Mediterranean, and that the participants were Celts, not Greeks. Regarding the Phaecians, Wilkens suggests they were a Celtic people living in the region of modern-day Cádiz, Spain, which he identifies as the location of their island, Scheria, in the *Odyssey*.

Wilkens argues that the Phaecians were a seafaring Celtic group, and their island of Scheria corresponds to Cádiz, which he claims matches Homer’s description of a harbor with two projecting headlands and a sheltered port (*Odyssey* 13.96). He ties this to the Atlantic coast, asserting that the Phaecians’ maritime prowess and the tidal patterns described in the *Odyssey* fit the Atlantic better than the Mediterranean, which has minimal tides. According to Wilkens, the Phaecians were part of the broader Celtic culture he associates with the Sea Peoples, who he claims migrated to the Mediterranean after the Trojan War, bringing their oral traditions with them.[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_Troy_Once_Stood)[](https://openlibrary.org/books/OL24632680M/Where_Troy_Once_Stood)

This interpretation deviates significantly from the traditional view, where the Phaecians are a mythical or semi-mythical people in the *Odyssey*, often placed in the Mediterranean (sometimes linked to Corfu or other Greek islands) and known for their advanced ships and hospitality to Odysseus. Wilkens’ hypothesis, which places them in Spain, is not widely accepted by mainstream scholars, who often dismiss his work as speculative.[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_Troy_Once_Stood)
 
You might find interesting Iman Wilkens book „Where Troy once stood“. I don’t have now the book at hand to check, so I asked Grok:

Yup, read that one, there is a good debate here. I do think the world of these epics includes real places around the Baltic and elsewhere, I guess it brings the messages home better when you use places that people recognize.

I think in the case of the Phaecians there could be more hidden behind, maybe outside of this realm. As an example, Poseidon is returning from visiting the Ethiopians when he sees Odysseus drifting in the sea on his makeshift raft. And who are these Ethiopians? There are mentions in the Iliad (Zeus feasting with them, described as being favored by the gods. Then, at Patroclus' funeral, described as living in the edge of the world) and also in the Odyssey. In both described as a special, close to the gods group.

There is also a mention of the Ethiopians in the myth of Cassiopaea, described as semi-mythical, favored people capable of attracting divine attention. And there was a question asked in this session:

20 August 2001
Q: Where is the Ethiopia of the Cassiopeia story? Where it is today?

A: 4th Density.

Q: Okay, what people did it refer to, in a larger group sense, if it was an archetypal expression?

A: Gaul.

Not really sure if the Ethiopians in the Cassiopaea myth and in Homer are the same, but it is a clue. So going back to the Phaecians, maybe there is something similar going on with them.
 
And who are these Ethiopians?
As per Wilkens book (Grok summary):
In Iman Wilkens' book Where Troy Once Stood, the Ethiopians mentioned in Homer's Odyssey and Iliad are reinterpreted as a Celtic people living in what is now the region of East Anglia, England, rather than a group from Africa as traditionally understood. Wilkens argues that the term "Ethiopians" (derived from Greek, often meaning "burnt-faced" or "dark-faced") refers to a tribe in this northern European context, specifically associated with the area around the Wash in eastern England.

He suggests that the Ethiopians' description in Homer, such as their favor with the gods and their distant location, aligns with his broader thesis that the Homeric epics describe events in Western Europe, not the Mediterranean. Wilkens posits that the "two groups" of Ethiopians mentioned by Homer (e.g., Odyssey 1.22–24, where they are described as living at the world's edges, split between east and west) could correspond to Celtic tribes in this region, possibly distinguished by their cultural or geographic divisions.

This interpretation, like much of Wilkens' work, is highly speculative and diverges from the conventional view, where the Ethiopians in Homer are typically seen as a mythical or distant African people living at the edges of the known world, possibly near modern Sudan or Ethiopia. His claims lack support from mainstream classical scholarship.

So there's that....


There are mentions in the Iliad (Zeus feasting with them, described as being favored by the gods. Then, at Patroclus' funeral, described as living in the edge of the world) and also in the Odyssey. In both described as a special, close to the gods group.

There is also a mention of the Ethiopians in the myth of Cassiopaea, described as semi-mythical, favored people capable of attracting divine attention.
This reminds me of what Laura wrote about the Hyperboreans:

....Diodorus regarding the Hyperboreans:

And there is also on the island both a magnificent sacred precinct of Apollo and a notable temple, which is adorned with many votive offerings and is spherical in shape. Furthermore, a city is there which is sacred to this god, and the majority of its inhabitants are players on the cithara; and these continually play on this instrument in the temple and sing hymns of praise to the god, glorifying his deeds … They say also that the moon, as viewed from this island, appears to be but a little distance from the earth and to have upon it prominences, like those of the earth, which are visible to the eye. The account is also given that the god visits the island every nineteen years, the period in which the return of the stars to the same place in the heavens is accomplished, and for this reason the Greeks call the nineteen-year period the “year of Meton”. At the time of this appearance of the god he both plays on the cithara and dances continuously the night through from the vernal equinox until the rising of the Pleiades, expressing in this manner his delight in his successes. And the kings of this city and the supervisors of the sacred precinct are called Boreades, since they are descendants of Boreas, and the succession to these positions is always kept in their family.​

Knight-Jadczyk, Laura. Comets and the Horns of Moses (The Secret History of the World Book 2) (pp. 285-286). Red Pill Press. Kindle Edition.
 

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