Mount Parnassus

In a later version, the Titaness Metis, whose name means cunning intelligence, gave Cronos a drug that made him vomit.

First came up the stone he had swallowed last, which Zeus set up at Delphi, at the foot of Mount Parnassus, as a sign and a wonder for mortals.

A stone said to be the very stone was still shown to visitors at Delphi in the time of Pausanias, who says that the people there anointed it with oil every day, and after the stone came the swallowed gods, one after another grown to their full strength.

Then began the great war between the old gods and the new, between the Titans, who fought from Mount Othrys, and the children of Kronos, who fought from Mount Olympus, in the north of Greece.

Therefore a learned man ought not too much to be ashamed to bear that some time, which Apollo, god of learning himself, was not ashamed always to bear.

And because ye would have a man wait upon the muses, and not at all meddle with shooting, I marvel that ye do not remember how the nine muses their self, as soon as they were born, were put to nurse to a lady called Euphemis, which had a son named Erotus, with whom the nine Muses, for his excellent shooting, kept ever more company withal, and used daily to shoot together in Mount Parnassus.

And at last it chanced that this Erotus to die, whose death the Muses lamented greatly, and fell ill upon their knees afore Jupiter their father, and at their request Erotus, for shooting with the Muses on earth, was made a sign, and called Sagittarius in heaven.

Therefore you see that if Apollo and the Muses either were examples indeed, or only feigned of wise men to be examples of learning, honest shooting may well enough be companion with honest study.

On the north wall in the same room, Raphael painted the Parnassus, and this is one of my favorite works of art in the entire world.

Above a large window overlooking the Belvedere courtyard, he used the window frame as a pedestal, painting Mount Parnassus rising above it with a Castilian spring flowing below.

At the mountain peak sits Apollo, god of poetry and music, Instead of an ancient lyre, Apollo plays a contemporary Renaissance Lida da Bracho with nine strings, one for each of the surrounding nine muses.

Surrounding Apollo are 18 classical and Renaissance poets across two historical groups.

Welcome, ad nauseum listeners, to episode 231.

I am here in the bunker, that is, Vomitorium Central, on the grassy slopes of Mount Parnassus with my good friend and more than passable co-host, Dr. Jeffrey T. Winkle.

Our middle initials stand for nothing.

No. That's a lesson we learned long ago.

After a long and difficult search that brought him across central Greece, he came to a place called Pitho.

Located beneath the cloud-covered Mount Parnassus, it seemed to be a suitable place to found his oracle.

Only one problem, the location was already occupied by other gods like Gaia and Poseidon.

It also happened to be guarded by a fearsome female snake called Python.

Apollo fought and killed the snake and so took control of the place, and his priestess became known as the Pythia, the same name given to his festival.

The Sanctuary of Delphi is situated dramatically on the foothills of Mount Parnassus.

Today, the ruins are surrounded by towering limestone cliffs on three sides.

To the south, the sanctuary overlooks the Valley of Amphissa and the Gulf of Ithia.

Lines Written for the Opening of a Hall Devoted to Music, Oratory, Social Functions, and the Drama by Lewis V. F. Randolph.

Read for LibriVox.org. 'Tis many a league across the seas to Thrace, And many an age has run its reckless race, Since at the sacred sweet Castalian spring On Mount Parnassus, mortals sought to bring Their votive offerings to the glorious nine, The Muses, both by birth and deeds divine, Daughters of Zeus and fair Mnemosyne, Patrons of history and poesy— Clio, Euterpe, and their sisters seven, Who brought the thoughts of gods to earth from heaven.

At feasts of great immortals when they sang, Apollo played, and grand Olympus rang With wave on wave of high majestic song, And then with rapturous plaudits loud and long.

They sing the story of creation fair, And all the dreadful perils heroes dare; For Cadmus, at his nuptials, they rejoice, Or erst lament Achilles' death with voice So mournful and with tones of such distress That gods and men mixed tears of tenderness.

and it's possible that in the future, we will find further evidence to indicate the worship of the 12 Olympians is even older.

In ancient Greece, high on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, a mysterious woman sat in a dark chamber and spoke with the voice of a god.

Shrouded in sweet-smelling fumes and holding sacred laurel leaves, the Oracle of Delphi would fall into an otherworldly trance.

She would then deliver cryptic prophecies that could sway the fate of kingdoms.

While the Pythia's prophetic gift was revered as a miracle, modern researchers have hunted for a more scientific explanation.

According to legend, the prophetic powers of Delphi were discovered by chance.

A shepherd named Coretas noticed his goats acting strangely near a fissure on Mount Parnassus.

When he drew close, he was suddenly overcome by visions in the voice of Apollo.

The history of Delphi is absolutely fascinating.

It was established sometime before 1200 BC, clinging to the steep slopes of Mount Parnassus.

And for over a thousand years, it was the absolute undisputed center of the ancient world.

It was the ultimate authority.

Not just rain, but fierce, targeted electrical storms and lightning strikes that specifically target the invading army.

And it gets worse for them.

Oh yeah, massive landslides sheer off the side of Mount Parnassus, crushing thousands of Celtic soldiers.

And finally, as if that wasn't enough, a sudden, terrible, localized frost sets in overnight, freezing the survivors.