Monday, June 28, 2010

Anyway


People are often unreasonable,
Illogical and self-centered.
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind,
People may accuse
You of selfish motives;
Be kind anyway.

Monday, June 21, 2010

If...


If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
And make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about don't deal in lies
Or being hated don't give way to hating
And yet don't look too good nor talk too wise;

Monday, June 14, 2010

Denial ain't just a river in Egypt


Talking about prophecies and oracles in the last post reminded me of another story about Apollo and oracles, at least equally famous, at least equally relevant. This is the story of Cassandra, Princess of Troy. (it begins just before the Mycenaean Greeks invade Troy to start the Trojan war.) She was the smartest and the most beautiful of the daughters of King Priam.

Monday, June 7, 2010

Prophecy is a lost art


Apollo, an Olympian, was god of the Sun. He was also in charge of other matters, one of which was prophecy. That was one of his specialties. Now the Olympian gods could all see into the future a little, but Apollo was the only one who systematically offered this gift to humans. He established oracles, the most famous of which was Delphi, where he sanctified the priestess. She was called the Pythia, after the Python that was one of her incarnations. Kings and Aristocrats, and occasionally ordinary people, would come to Delphi to beg to know what was to be.