Ancient Greek Religion: State Rituals and Mystery Cults’ Salvation

In ancient Greece there were the state religions of each city and mystery religions, which could be state or individual. State religious services provided protection for the city. These were often the typical Olympian gods, such as Athena for Athens,

Apollo for Delphi, or Poseidon for Corinth. The State Religion festivals were open to the state’s citizens and were meant to encompass society and its response to issues. Opposed to them were the mystery religions, which were meant to be secret and open only to those who had been initiated. These initiates would have knowledge that the general public did not have, and by knowing these secrets, they would receive favors from the particular gods. They usually progressed to understanding the ideas of attaining salvation in the afterlife.

One of the earliest mystery religions was dedicated to the worship of Demeter and the Elysian Mysteries near Athens, which dated to the Mycenaean period, 1200; this became a popular belief in the Athenian city as a counter to the traditional Olympian gods and goddesses. The cult ultimately received official recognition by the city of Athens. Festivals were held outside of Athens each year, with the major festival held every five years. Ultimately, Athens took over official sponsorship, increasing the number of initiates and opening the religion to anyone not guilty of murder and/or being a barbarian (i.e., not speaking Greek).

The myths show the three facets of Demeter and Persephone’s mystery: the descent (Persephone’s capture by Hades), the search (Demeter looking for her daughter), and the ascent (Persephone returning from the Underworld). This latter phase was the high point of the festival, when Persephone is reunited with her mother Demeter who returns the Earth to abundance. Its antiquity is demonstrated where the participants celebrated Potnia (the goddess of nature), mentioned in Mycenaean texts. While the celebrations did not mean that the initiative would be immortal, it was instead hoped that they would achieve a higher level in the afterworld.

The Athenians who took over the celebrations separated them into the Lesser and Greater Mysteries festivals. The Lesser Mysteries were under the Archon Basileus during the month of Anthesteria, when initiates offered sacrifice to Demeter and Persephone and, upon their acceptance, could then take part in the Greater Mysteries celebrations. The tyrant Pisistratus transferred to Athens the Greater Mysteries, which took place in the month of Boedromion during late summer for ten days. The celebration had the transfer of the cult statue and other objects from Eleusis to Athens. The participants would make the procession back to Eleusis along the Sacred Way, where upon their arrival, they would celebrate the festival all night and take a special drink.

This was then followed with the initiates taking part in the reenactment of the tale of Demeter and Persephone, the showing of the sacred objects, and the singing or saying of prayers. The initiates were sworn not to reveal the secrets, under punishment of death. Since the sentence was death for revealing their rites, only the basics are known today. After this came the Mysteries’ climax, which may have been a public speech and ceremony or a private meditation, perhaps helped along with psychotropic drugs in the drink. The ceremony ended with an all-night feast and commemoration of the dead.

Another popular religion was the worship of Dionysus. Known from Mycenaean records, Dionysus was the god of wine, theater, and fertility. The worship also included the Dionysia, a large Athenian festival instituted by Pisistratus and were a crucial component of the Dionysian Mysteries. These rituals included dancing, singing, and drinking to produce orgiastic experiences. These acts often allowed marginalized groups to find relief from the constraints of social stratification. To participate in the mysteries, adherents had to be initiated into the secret rites, providing the means to find salvation. The rites celebrated the birth and death themes found in the Eleusinian Mysteries.

In these rituals, everyone was seen as equal, unlike the traditional state religion, which favored the wealthy. Mystery religions provided members of society, especially the disenfranchised to find salvation.