• The Origins of the Witch

  • Jun 21 2024
  • Length: 15 mins
  • Podcast

The Origins of the Witch

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  • Summary

  • Who is the whitch?

    Circe, therefore, seems to embody the archetype of the ancestral witch, the source from which everything began. She concocts potions, wields a wand, practices divination and prophecy, and occupies a role that straddles antagonist and helper to the hero, as seen in the later stages of her encounter with Ulysses. Everything aligns perfectly, except for one crucial aspect that defines Circe's magical nature: she's not actually a sorceress, as the common label "Circe the Sorceress" suggests. Circe is a goddess, a divine being within the realm of Greek religion, where magic doesn't exist.

    The term "magic" itself is anachronistic. It didn't exist in Homer's time, the 8th century BC.The concept of magic emerged later, in the 5th century BC, with Herodotus. He described the Persian priests who performed sacrifices, funeral rites, divination, and dream interpretation – the Magi.

    The episode that could be considered the origin story of magic (at least etymologically) occurred during the Persian Wars under Xerxes' rule, more precisely in 480 BC. The Persian magi sacrificed their emperor's white horses to aid the army in crossing the Strymon River.Herodotus, needing to describe this feat by the priests, couldn't categorize it as something mortals could achieve. Perhaps for the first time, the Greeks became aware of powers beyond those of the Olympian gods. The West had encountered magic...
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