CLASSICS 2K03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Homeric Hymns, So Weird, Crypteia
28 Jun 2016
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Religion and the gods were everywhere in the greek world. The existence of the gods and their involvement in everyday life was taken as a given. We see religion as something that someone believes in contrary to what we may believe. The greeks saw their religion as simple fact. Doing the right thing is what truly mattered rather than belief in the gods. The right actions depended upon the god and what you wanted to be accomplished. It was not always clear which actions would appease the god. One could never be sure that their action is what the god wanted. It mattered more that you offered, rather than what the offering was. No recorded instances of human sacrifices in greek history. The greeks kept the best meat, the gods got the bones. Greeks did not often eat meat (save for fish in some areas) Bonding experience for the people of the polis.
