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(Though
some of these myths below are mainly Roman, the gods and goddesses
are synonymous with those of Greece, and the myths are based on
still older ones of a similar nature.)
Apollo:
God
of music, healing and light
Brother to Artemus and 1/2 brother to Terpischore,
son of Leto and Zeus. In a passage of Pindar, Apollo
is called the dancer; (and there is a Greek line extant which
represents Jupiter himself in the very act of dancing). The
Gymnopedite was instituted by Lycurgus, and was invented (Lacedemon)
by the Spartans as an early excitation to the courage of their
children, and in order to lead them on insensibly to the exercise
of an armed dance (Pyrrhic). The choir of the children
regulated their motions by those of the men, and all danced at
the same time, singing hymns in praise of Apollo.
The festival was sacred to Apollo
for the poetry, and to Bacchus for the dance.
Aphrodite:
Goddess
of Love and Fertility;
From the Island of Cyprus, featured lewd dances in the rites.
Bacchus:
(Dionysus)
The God Of Wine.
The
Bacchanalia
or Bacchic dance is named after him. Bacchus
was wont to make pilgrimages, accompanied by a train of Nymphs,
Satyrs, and Centaurs, into distant lands to teach mankind the
cultivation of the grape and the preparation of wine, great feasts
were indulged in, and a regular series of dances was performed,
in which a multitude of people took part. The story of Dance of
the Lapitha,
the Lapithæ dwelt near Mount Olympus, in Thessalia.
They are celebrated in history for the total destruction of the
Centaurs (their neighbors) who, in a fit of intoxication,
behaved in a rude manner to the wives of the former.The
Lapithæ were great votaries to the god of wine, and of dancing,
of which he is reputed by some to be the inventor, held
the first place in the ceremonies of his worship, the victory
of the Centaurs was celebrated by a solemn dance, inverted on
this occasion by Pirithous, prince, or king of Lapithæ. But
it required so extraordinary an exertion in the dancer, that it
was entirely confined to the robust inhabitants of the country.
Bes: This
god is often figured as dancing, playing tambourines and pipes.Egyptian
mythology, God of music and dance. Usually shown as a 'Grotesque
Dwarf'.
Book
of Exodus:
(more
click here)
we
are told that Miriam the sister of Moses, and all the women of
Israel celebrated the destruction of the Egyptians with timbrals
and dances. This would be about 1,500 years before the
birth of Christ. The Greeks amused themselves by dancing
the "Armed
dance" (Pyrrhic) before the walls of Troy during
the memorable siege from 1184 to 1194, B.C. King David, of Israel,
danced before all the people B.C. 1050; and 1000 B.C.,
Solomon wrote, 'there is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a
time to mourn and a time to dance.' Lycurgus, the great Spartan
law-giver, about 323 B.C., framed a law which made it imperative
that the Spartan youth should be trained in a military dance
from the seventh year of age. Christ also speaks of the elder
brother of the Prodigal Son hearing
music and dancing.
Castor
(God)
and Pollux
(Satan):
(Protectors
of the Sea)
twin sons of Jupiter and Keda, brothers to Helen. The first
teachers of dancing. Some mythological writers assert that
the art of dancing was first taught by Pollux
and Castor to the Lacedæmonians, while others attribute
the invention to Minerva, who, after the defeat of the giants,
danced for joy. Castor
and his brother Pollux
highly trained in military
dances, distinguished themselves in these manly exercises,
and were pronounced far superior to all the heroes of their time.
Castor
spent his alternate days with is brother in Hades.
Cymbele:
daughter
of Menoes (King of Phrygia and Dindymenis his wife). Cymbal
was said to invent diverse things such as the Flagelot of several
pipes, the tabor, the cymbal (of course) and Dancing.
Flora:
Goddess
of Flowers and Festivals
The May
Dance of ancient origin, as it dates back to the dancing at
the 'Feast of Flora'. In her honor were held the last of April
and the first of May. (see Maia)
Hecate:
Goddess
of Magic Arts;
Hecate had the power over the dead and would be worshipped at
night, these rites were usually secret and included dancing.
Ishtar:
Goddess
of Love and Fertility (Babylon);
Married to Tammuz.
Ishtar would descend to the underworld for six months, the earth
died and nothing would be born, when her husband descended, the
earth was reborn (The Seasons), all would celebrate her
return from the underworld. When Ishtar descends, she must pass
seven gates, at each gate she must leave one of her attributes,
so when she arrives she is naked with no defenses. It is said
that the dance of the Seven
Veils depicts this. Salome
dance (Shalome) would be depicted as the welcoming back.
Jupiter:
Jupiter
(aka Jove) was the supreme Roman deity, and was called
' the father of men and gods '.
He is the father
to Terpischore
(some
say Zeus) and
the nine
Muses as well as Apollo.
Married to Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory and son of Rhea. The
Pyrrhic,
or Armed dance, as it was called, was supposed to be
the very first dance,
and was intended to amuse and divert the infant Jupiter, and by
the noise and clash of swords against bucklers, to drown his cries.
Maia:
Mother
of Mercury ;
it is said the Maypole
dance is undoubtedly of Roman origin, and came from some ceremonies
connected with the worship of Maia, the mother of Mercury, and
the presiding goddess of that month. For many centuries it was
the chief dance of rustic Ol' England.
Mediatorial Dances:
were
those performed when sacrifices were offered to the gods, and
when expiating sins. These were distinct in character from many
of the dances performed at religious festivals, which are
classed among the domestic dances.
Minerva:
goddess
of wisdom
was the daughter of Jupiter,
who sprung from his brain; Minerva, who, after the defeat of the
giants, danced for joy.
Osiris:who
was the Egyptian equivalent of Bacchus
and Dionysos;
and co-eval with them was the Astronomic dance, a dance which
was one of a marvelous age, and about which more perhaps has been
written, than about any other dance of the early ages. It was
an intricate and cleverly-executed dance, meant to represent the
courses of the stars, and performed by a large number of dancers.
Not only in Egypt, but in Assyria and even Greece this dance was
known, and respectively around the fire-surmounted altars of Ra,
Baal-peor, and Jove, who were the three chief, or sun-gods, of
these nations, did the dance revolve (orchestra-1596-sir John
Davis). Osiris loved gaiety and much enjoyed songs and dances.
He had with him always a company of musicians, among whom were
nine maidens cultured in all the arts relating to music. Hence
the Greeks call them the Nine
Muses.
Pan:
(Nature
God)
The
Rural Dances were invented by Pan (half goat-half man),
who appointed the woods and the fine season of the year for the
time and place of their performance. The
Greeks and Romans observed them with the greatest solemnity in
the celebration of the festival sacred to the god whom they believed
to be the inventor.
Plato:
the celebrated Greek Philosopher, who lived B.C. 429-348, divides
the dances of the ancients into three classes, viz.: (I) The
military dances; (2) the domestic dances; (3) the
mediatorial dance. The Emmeleïa was a sort of tragic
movement or ballet, of which the elegance and majesty were greatly
celebrated by Plato
Romans:
were
introduced at the festivals of Bacchus,
the god of wine. Originating, as they did, in a state of drunkenness,
it is not surprising that the gross indecencies practiced by both
men and women in these lascivious dances finally brought dancing
into disrepute among the Romans.
Shiva:
Indian Mythology
Lord
Shiva is considered the supreme lord of the dance, who along with
his wife Goddess Parvathi perform dances called Tandava and Lasya.
The Tandava dance depicts Shiva's power to destroy the Universe
through natures Power. There are seven types of Tandava: Ananda,
Gauri, Kaali, Samara, Tripura, Sandhya, Uma. The Lasya dance has
two types as well: Jarita and Yauvaka, these are performed by
Parvathi and are considered the female form of Tandava. It Is
Graceful and Erotic in movement.
Terpischore:the
inventress of dancing
from
Greek mythology is the Goddess of Dance. Terpischore
comes from the Greek word 'Terpein' (to enjoy/delight in)
'and Choros' (to dance). She was one of the nine
daughters of Jupiter - 'God of the Sky' (some say Zeus
was father) and her mother was Mnemosyne, the Goddess of Inspiration
and Memory... It's Interesting to note that the mother of the
inventive goddesses, are also recognized as the goddess of memory-important
to dance. Jupiter was the supreme Roman deity, and was called
'the father of men and gods'. Terpischore
is the half-sister of Apollo,
plus she had nine sisters known as 'The
Nine Muses', each muse was a goddess of the arts of whom Terpischore
was one. The Muses were the inventors of and presided over poetry,
music, dancing, and the liberal arts and sciences. Terpischore's
main job was to inspire and promote dance. She also played
the Lyre and Citahra (said to be of her invention).
Thesus:
King of Athens
On
his return to Crete, Thesus invented a dance depicting his fight
with the Minotaur, which became known as the Delian dance of
the Labyrinth, or the Flight of the Cranes (first Stage
or choric dance) in which he himself assisted at the head
of a numerous and splendid band of youths, around the altar of
Apollo.
The dance was composed of three parts; the Strophe, Anti-strophe,
and the Stationary. In
the strophe, the movements were from the right to the left; in
the anti-strophe from the left to the right; and in the stationary,
they danced before the altar; so that the stationary did not mean
an absolute pause or rest, but only a slower or graver movement.
To this dance (Delian dance of the Labyrinth) Thesus gave
the name of Geranos,
or the Crane, because the figures which characterized it,
bore a resemblance to those described by cranes in their flight.
The ancient Grecian dance Farandole
(Provence) which we owe to Thesus, and which the Phoneticians
had imported to Marseilles.
Goddess
Rhea:
The
wife of Saturn and the mother of Jupiter and Zeus. Saturn, AKA Kronos,
had devoured all her male children for fear that one of them would
dethrone him, so when Jupiter (Zeus?) was born, Rhea deceived
Saturn by giving him a stone, which he devoured instead of the child.
Jupiter was then concealed, and Rhea invented the Pyrrhic,
or Armed dance, (sometimes called Kronou
Teknophagia or Crane Dance) to amuse and divert him, and
to drown his cries by the noise of swords striking against bucklers,
and by her, communicated the dance to her priests (Curettes,
or priests of Cybele) in Phrygia and Crete. |
