MYTHOLOGY & RELIGION IN THE LIVES OF THE ANCIENT ROMANS
The vitality of Roman religion, much like its Greek counterpart, canbe found in its mythology. The major myths, especially in the hands of theplaywrights, served as a basis for creative re-interpretation and oldstories became a vehicle for new alleged truths. This steady flow ofimagination has proved a continuous delight and inspiration to artiststhrough the ages but an embarrassment to scholars, for it is often quitedifficult to disentangle the various motifs of a story and trace the mythback to its nuclear belief or ritual that started it on its long and variedcourse. With Roman religion, there is less difficulty in tracing back themyths, for the Romans were more prosaic than the Greeks since they borrowedgods from other cultures. Thus, it is comparatively easy to distinguish thevarious layers in Roman religion and trace its development from primitive Any religion, in its formative stages, "reflects the needs andcharacteristics of the society that practices it, and the Romans, like theearly Greeks, were bound up in their religion" (Adkins, 1996). They sawspirits at work in the vital functions of the earth and sky and believed
The official gods of the Roman state served much more importantfunctions. The ancient Romans, however, identifiedhim with the Greek Kronos, the tyrannical father of Zeus. As Ovid once remarked, "It is expedient that there should be gods andfestivals to boost public morale and guarantee social integration andadvancement" (Palmer, 1974). Though they enjoyed considerable power and prestige and frequently attendedmany social festivities, their life was one of possible social ostracismand even death. were inhabited by mysterious forces which hadto be satisfied if the daily life of a community was to operate smoothlyand effectively. In its public manifestations, the Romanreligion tended to lavish ceremony which had a mass appeal and could, inthe wrong hands, easily be manipulated for social or political purposes. A slightly more sinister figure was Silvanus, the god of the untilled land. But this was not so easy in thecase of Dionysus who had come into the Greek and Roman pantheon at a laterdate. One main point which has not yet been discussed lies in the Romanintellectuals that sought religious satisfaction in more austere ways bytaking refuge in philosophy that either denied the existence of the gods orrelegated them to a position where their influence on human affairs wasminimal. Thegod Janus, like many Roman deities, was a personification, meaning that hesymbolized non-living, material objects. Hermes, the messenger god, was theRoman Mercury; Mars was identified with the god Ares whom the Greeks hadlittle respect for and thus exiled him to the barbarous domains of theworld. The extent of this cult worship and the nature of its practices wererevealed to the Roman senate who were greatly concerned that it mightgenerate undesirable social manifestations and lead to allegiances withother political bodies instead of Rome. Their chief deity was Jupiter who, like his Greek counterpartZeus, was primarily associated with the sky and its phenomena. Roman religion was also a matter of propriety and state-ordainedobservance. Yet at times, the Roman system of religion failed to providesatisfaction for some individuals.
Common topics in this essay:
Greek Roman,
Republican Rome,
Mythologically Priapus,
,
Greek Kronos,
Romans Greeks,
Vestal Virgins,
Sibylline Books,
Janus Roman,
Demeter Greek,
roman religion,
roman system,
gods roman,
capitoline hill,
sibylline books,
worship cybele,
roman society,
roman citizens,
social cultural,
control roman,
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