Full Moon Festival Ode to the Moon God

The moon occupies an extremely important place in Greek culture. Selene was the moon goddess of ancient Greek mythology. Legend has it that she took the halo above her head, rode in a moon car in the night sky, and took turns driving through the sky with her brother, thus forming a day and night cycle. The moon also has a strong mysterious color. The ancient Greeks believed that a full moon meant that things flourished, and that a lack of a moon hindered the development of things.

As representatives of eastern and western civilizations, China and Greece, although different in history and culture, also love the moon. Greece designated the day of the full moon in August of the solar calendar as the "Full Moon Festival", and held a grand carnival on the hot summer day, singing and dancing, and enjoying the moon together.

The moon occupies an extremely important place in Greek mythology, traditions and beliefs. The worship of the moon in China and Greece has spawned many popular myths, legends and literary works, which have had an important impact on the development of ancient Eastern and Western civilizations and the progress of human society.

In ancient Greek mythology, there was a little-known but unique goddess, Selene, who was also the only official depiction of the moon by ancient Greek poets.

Selene's name comes from a literal translation of the Greek word moon, derived from the Greek words "light" and "light", and the same root later developed different words such as yang and yin, light and dark. According to ancient Greek mythology, Selene wore a crescent moon crown with a glorious meaning, wore a robe or veil, and wore a golden halo, and flew through the night sky in a moon car pulled by two sacred horses (also said to be sacred cows), and took turns driving through the sky with his brother Helios, thus forming a day and night cycle.

The love story of the moon goddess Selene and Endemion is also a good story in Greek mythology.

Endimion was a beautiful mortal boy who was adored by Selene. Every night, Selene would visit him while he was asleep. Fearing that his mortal lover would eventually grow old and die, Selene pleaded with Zeus to let him rest in a cave on Mount Cariaratmus so that he would neither die nor leave her. Selene bore entemmon a total of 50 daughters. In the ancient Greek calendar, there were 50 weeks in a year, and 50 months (i.e. 4 years) also became the cycle of the ancient Olympic Games.

Later, with the evolution of Greek mythology and civilization, a number of gods related to the moon have been derived, such as the goddess of darkness Hekate, the goddess of hunting Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, and the queen of heaven Hera. Later, Artemis, Selene, and Hecate were known as the "Three Phase Goddesses", corresponding to the three stages of the moon (maiden), the full moon (woman) and the moon deficiency (old woman).

In ancient Greek mythology, the moon also had a strong mystical color and occupied a very important position in witchcraft and various superstitious activities. The ancient Greeks believed that the lack of the moon would have an impact on human life, the full moon means that things flourish, and the lack of the moon will hinder the development of things, so the lack of the moon is the most conducive to curing diseases or exorcisms. The inhabitants of the Thessaly region of Greece also believe that witches cast spells during lunar eclipses.

Since ancient times, China has used countless ancient poems, proverbs, ballads, etc. to express its feelings for the full moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the same is true in Greece.

The famous ancient Greek poet Homer described in his hymn to Selene the graceful gesture of the goddess wearing a shining dress and a golden crown after bathing in the ocean;

The famous poet and musician Orpheus wrote in Ode to the Moon, "The Queen of the Moon rejoices in peace and joy";

The famous Greek modern poet Cavafis wrote in his poem "Before the Statue of Endimion": "I came from Alexandria in a three-tiered purple boat to perform sacred ceremonies — sacrifices and wines — in honor of Endimion." Here is his statue. Now I gaze intoxicatedly at the famous beauty of Endymion. "The praise of the lover of the moon god, Endimion, as a god shows the poet's admiration for the beauty of young men.

The Way Greeks celebrate the "Full Moon Festival" is mainly based on moon viewing and cultural events. Taking the Full Moon Festival on August 22, 2021 as an example, the Greek Ministry of Culture announced that on that day, 120 museums and archaeological sites across the country were open to the public free of charge for the public to enjoy the moon, and expressed the "hope that the moonlight can illuminate the shadow of the epidemic".

In addition, the cultural institution also held a number of free cultural activities for 5 days, including concerts, dances, dramas, films, poetry appreciation meetings, art exhibitions, stargazing guides, etc. The public can enjoy the comfort of "only when the song is to the wine, the moonlight shines in the golden bottle" in the restaurant on the second floor of the Acropolis Museum; they can also enjoy the moonlight of "the moon rises brightly, the best people are in the hands" under the marble pillars of the Parthenon; of course, they can also feel the grandeur of "the moon is born on the sea, and the end of the world is at this time" on the beach of the Aegean Sea.

The two ancient civilizations of China and Greece have similar worship and praise for the moon in their respective cultural genes, perhaps because the mysterious and cold light of the moon illuminates the dark night, and also illuminates the way forward for the civilizations that are struggling and striving to develop and grow. Through thousands of years of wind and frost, witnessing countless full moons and missing moons, the tradition of enjoying the moon together has been preserved in both cultures, and each has a new cultural memory and genes. This is the charm of mutual learning and mutual appreciation among different civilizations, which is also one of the driving forces for the continuous advancement of human civilization, isn't it? (Source of this article: Economic Daily Author: Qu Junpeng)

Source: Economic Daily