Descent At The Necro-Oracle Of Acheron Poem by dimitrios galanis
Descent At The Necro-Oracle Of Acheron
Ηaving not provided hοney-milk, wine, barley-flour
for entering's libations
we reached to the ancient sanctuary
on an August's flaming high noon.
The ruins upon the stony outcropping
were gazing Acheron - in earshot.*
The willows on both banks worshipping its flow.
On a corner of the yard, mislaid,
still there, in flinders a hand mill
for the hallucinogens lupins
offered for four weeks to the pilgrims.
Without their effect we should not see
deads' souls fluttering ''as dreams in the air'' **
By ' formidable awe ' we were not seized.
''The half-ruined walls, wide wide,
you suppose free the... souls to circulate
in their void inside upper part,
come into view through openings unseen,
be shown by projected metallic huge hooks
hanging from winches and pulleys
to hover, imagine, as ''souls normal ''.***
There still, the strait downstream pore,
towards the waterman's ferry
in the darkness gloom of the waterproof chanel
lest out of leakage cancelled be any ferriage
and lost be the tolls charged!
Taking advantage of the exemplary Odysseus' myth,
utilizing technologie and harnessing botany
it seems that for whole centuries
the oracle granted to the ill-starred mortals
the expectancy of a bearable life.
Worthy the lustral procedure and time spent,
we noticed,
and set out on our own Descent
to the clear, refreshing waters of Acheron.
S.Dacaris: The necro-oracle of Ephyra
..
The original poem in greek was devoted
to the great professor S.Dacaris, whose assistant I was
for two years in excavations.He had excavated
the necro-oracle of Ephyra[Acheron].
To some of his conclusions, I point out in the poem.
10 Mar.2016
I had no knowledge of both the myth of the 'oracle of the dead' or the physical location of the site which you describe.. So, it was obvious that I read about it before I decided to comment on this poem.. It seems it was mentioned by Homer, Herodotus... And it has an interesting history of being destroyed by the Romans in BC 167, and then a monastery being built on the site in the 18th Century for St. John.. Greek archaeologist Sotirios Dakaris in Epirus in the 1960s, for whom you had dedicated the poem.. I guess this much knowledge that I acquired, would be enough for the time being to (hopefully) make a comment on your poem.. I am amazed at how you had combined two very interesting and almost opposite knowledge of myths with archeology and rational thinking and created this wonderful poem.. And now, I want to take a bit of a liberty! ! I want to imagine myself being a part of this group that went on the expedition.. So, here it goes - A narrative entirely supposed but real! As I, a man who has been brought up in Greece, being told about the myth of the 'oracle of dead', maybe at first by my grandparents for stories, and having read Homer and Herodotus in college, went with a lot of expectation alongside equal scepticism inside the place.. I wonder what would happen? ? Will the dead talk to me and tell me about my future? ? Or the future of the world even? ? Will there be better days or worse for us? ? So much thoughts in our minds, as we went in, but as we proceeded we realised that very archetecture of the place, the mechanisms of it are made in a manner that would give us hallucinations! ! Ah, the sceptic in me wins.. The studies were correct, they were given food that created hallucinations.. Nothing supernatural here.. But I feel disappointed, as I am not only an explorer but also an artist.. How, o how I had wished that Homer's words I had felt too.. But the disappoinment turns into a sublime pleasure as I realised that I don't need the myth.. Why should I? ? The beauty of the 'waters of Archeons' is sublime and aesthetically pleasing to me without any mythical mysticism! ! The ones who had believed in the supernaturals had had the feeling of awe at the hallucinatory experience of the place (or maybe that they had none, but spoke not as they were told that they can't speak of their experience lest they be cursed!) , but I feel the beauty of Nature - the pleasure in knowing something new... The sheer joy in debunking a myth as a rational! ! .... A wonderful poem Dimitrios.. May skepticism win over mysticism always.. But as artists with the ability to appreciate beauty we will take pleasure in all - the myth, the mythical literature, the debunking of the myth, and the 'new' literature talking about the debunking of the myth! ! ! Thank you as usual, my friend and teacher. As you see, I learn from you and your works.. Always..
One note, Souren, more.Το professor S.Dacaris and his encouragement I owe largely my spiritual formation.He used to advise me to read that and that book, he first urged me to learn german too and it was during the dictatorship, when he was not anymore a professor.I went to Germany and learned the language in six months..I could refer to many details to show you his care about a student, me, to see the decisive influence of a great personality to younger students.I kept in my life his care for my own students, and I had the great chance to help many many of them....Best wishes
That is why I'm always moved by your steady will to fly into sphaeres unknown.I was expecting you to look up to encyclopaedeias to find out what was what....S.Dacaris was a great man and a great professor.I 'm so glad he kept me as his assistant for two years when excavating Dodona.Then political situation changed.A dictatorship seized power, democracy in ''the refrigerator'', he was expelled from the university....and I lost my academic career at the side of a great professor...You see, Souren, time can bring things you do not expect, you are obliged to follow paths you have not imagine...//The first time I visited the oracle it was with professor Dacaris himself, during the dictatorship. I was working in a high school nearby, he -expelled and unemployed-came and took me to visit the oracle, where he had, years ago, done the excavations.By chance we met there a great poet Takis Sinopoulos, a democrat too, fighter too against the dictatorship.Little stories with its great meaning, Souren.Congratulations for having paved first the road to understand in its full meaning the poem.
The poem is very interesting to one not familiar with this oracle. I am sure I don't understand it all but nevertheless I enjoyed reading.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
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4/19/2024 11:44:26 AM # 1.0.0.1119
Lost be the tolls charged! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, dear Edward for having read it.