Pitonisa: learn about origin, history, organization, works and more!

Pythia, also known as Pythia, was the name given to the priestess who served in the Temple of Apollo in the city of Delphi, located near Mount Parnassus in Ancient Greece. Unlike many Greek women who were considered second-class citizens, the Pythoness was one of the most powerful women in Greek society.

Due to her powers of foresight brought about through her direct contact with the god Apollo, the priestess of Apollo, also known as the Oracle of Delphi, was commonly sought after.

People used to cross the entire Mediterranean to seek help and advice from the priestess in Delphi, a place with a lot of mythological relevance for the Greeks. In this article, we bring the light of the god Apollo to this very important priestly class, but so forgotten in the history books.

In addition to presenting the origin and history of the pythonesses, we show how the oracle was organized, the evidence of their powers, as well as whether they still exist today. Get ready to travel through time and gain access to the secrets of this interesting part of ancient history. Check out.

To better understand the roots of Pitonisa, nothing better than investigating its origin and history. After this historical tour, you will have information about the presence of this priestess today, as well as details about the Temple of Apollo. Check out.

The name Pythia or Pythoness, comes from the Greek word meaning serpent. According to the myth, there was a snake represented as a medieval dragon that lived in the center of the earth, which, for the Greeks, was located in Delphi.

According to the myth, Zeus slept with the goddess Leto, who became pregnant with the twins Artemis and Apollo. Upon learning of what had happened, Hera, wife of Zeus, sent a serpent to kill Leto before he gave birth to the twins.

The serpent’s task failed and the twin gods were born. In the future, Apollo returns to Delphi and manages to kill the Python serpent in the Oracle of Gaia. So, Apollo becomes the owner of this Oracle, which becomes the center of worship for this god.

After completing the renovation of the Temple, Apollo appointed the first Pythoness in approximately the 8th century BC.

Then, from the use of a kind of trance obtained by the vapors that came out of the crevice of the temple and that allowed her body to be possessed by the god, the Pythoness made prophecies, which made her the most prestigious oracular authority among the Greeks.

At the same time, due to her prophetic powers, the priestess of Apollo was considered one of the most powerful women in all of classical antiquity. Famous authors such as Aristotle, Diogenes, Euripides, Ovid, Plato, among others, mention this oracle and its power in their works.

It is believed that the Oracle of Delphi operated until the 4th century CE, when Roman Emperor Theodosius I ordered the closure of all pagan temples.

Today, the Oracle of Delphi is part of a large archaeological site that is part of the Unesco World Heritage Site. The ruins of the Oracle can still be visited in Greece.

Although the direct transmission of the prophetic secrets of the Pythoness through the centuries is not known, in many attempts to practice Hellenic pagan reconstructionism, whose basis is the ancient religion of the Greeks, there are contemporary priestesses who dedicate their journey to Apollo and who can make prophecies, under the influence of the god.

The Temple of Apollo still stands the test of time and is dated to approximately 4 centuries before the Common Era. It was built on top of the remains of an older temple, dating back to around 6 centuries before the Common Era (that is, it is over 2600 years old).

The ancient temple is believed to have been destroyed by fire and the effects of earthquakes. Inside the temple of Apollo there was a central part called the adytum, which was also the throne on which the pythoness sat and uttered her prophecies.

In the temple, there was a very famous inscription that said “know thyself”, one of the Delphic maxims. Much of the temple and its statues were destroyed in the year 390, when the Roman emperor Theodosius I decided to silence the oracle and destroy all traces of paganism in the temple.

The Temple of Apollo was where the Oracle was. To understand a little more about how it works, keep reading for more information about your organization’s triple foundation. Check out.

Since the beginning of the operation of the Oracle of Delphi, it was believed that the god Apollo dwelt inside a laurel tree, sacred to this god, and that he was able to give the oracles the gift of seeing the future through its leaves. The art of divination was taught by the god to the three winged sisters of Parnassus, known as Trias.

However, it was only with the introduction of the Cult of the god Dionysus at Delphi that Apollo brought ecstasy to his followers and oracular power through the Pythoness, his priestess. Sitting on a stone next to a crevice that released steam, the priestess of Apollo went into a trance.

At first, the pythonesses were beautiful young virgins, but after one of the priestesses was kidnapped and raped in the 3rd century BC, the pythonesses became women older than 50 years to avoid the problem of rape. However, they were dressed and groomed to look like young girls.

In addition to the Pythoness, there were many other officiants at the Oracle. After the 2nd century BC, there were 2 priests of Apollo in charge of the sanctuary. Priests were chosen from among the leading citizens of Delphi and had to dedicate their whole lives to their office.

In addition to looking after the Oracle, it was part of the priestly work to conduct sacrifices at other festivals dedicated to Apollo, as well as running the Pythian Games, one of the predecessors of the current Olympics. There were still other officials such as the prophets and the blessed, but little is known about them.

According to historical records, the Oracle of Delphi could only prophesy during the nine hottest months of the year. During the winter, Apollo was believed to abandon his passing Temple, then being occupied by his half brother, Dionysus.

Apollo returned to the temple during the spring and, once a month, the oracle had to undergo purification rites that included fasting so that the Pythoness could establish communication with the god.

Then, on the seventh day of each month, she was led by the priests of Apollo with a purple veil covering her face to then make her prophecies.

In antiquity, people who visited the Oracle at Delphi for advice were called suppliants. During this process, the supplicant underwent a kind of shamanic journey that had 4 different phases and were part of the consultation process. Find out what these phases are and how they worked below.

The first step in the consultation process with the Pythoness was known as The Journey to Delphi. On this journey, the suppliant would go towards the Oracle motivated by some need and would then have to submit to a long and arduous journey to be able to consult the oracle.

Another main motivation for this journey was to get to know the oracle, meet other people during the journey and gather information about the oracle so that the supplicant could then find the answers they were looking for to their questions.

The second step on the shamanic journey to Delphi was known as the Preparation of the Supplicant. At this stage, the suppliants underwent a kind of interview in order to be introduced to the oracle. The interview was conducted by the temple priest, who was responsible for deciding which cases merited the oracle’s attention.

Part of the preparation involved presenting their questions, offering gifts and offerings to the oracle, and following the procession on the Sacred Path, wearing laurel leaves as they entered the temple, symbolizing the path they had taken to reach it.

The third step was the Visit to the Oracle itself. At this stage, the suppliant was led to the aditus, where the Pythoness was, so that she could ask her questions.

When they were answered, he was to get out of there. To reach this state, the supplicant went through many ritualistic preparations to reach a deep meditative state appropriate for his or her consultation.

The fourth and final step of the journey to the Oracle was the Return Home. Since the oracles’ main function was to provide answers to questions and thus help to shape strategies to promote actions in the future, the return home was essential.

In addition to following the Oracle’s guidelines for a desired unfolding, it was up to the supplicant to apply the knowledge acquired in it to confirm the indicated consequences.

There are many scientific and spiritual explanations for the work of the pythonesses. Here are three main ones:

1) smoke and fumes;
2) excavations;
3) illusions.

With them, you will be able to understand how the oracle works. Check out.

Many scientists have tried to explain how the Pythonesses got their prophetic inspirations through the smoke and vapors that came out of the crevice in the Temple of Apollo.

According to the work of Plutarch, a Greek philosopher who was trained as a high priest at Delphi, there was a natural spring flowing below the temple, whose waters were responsible for the visions.

However, the exact chemical components present in the water vapor from this source are not known. It is believed that they were hallucinogenic gases, but there is no scientific proof. Another hypothesis is that the hallucinations or state of divine possession was caused by inhaling the smoke of a plant that grew in the area.

Excavations begun in 1892 by a team of French archaeologists led by Théophile Homolle of the Collège de France brought up another problem: no cracks were found at Delphi. The team also found no evidence of smoke production in the area.

Adolphe Paul Oppé was even more incisive in 1904, when he published a very controversial article, stating that there was no steam or gases that could cause visions. Furthermore, he found inconsistencies about some incidents involving a priestess.

However, more recently, in 2007, evidence was found of a source at the site,…