Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-8bljj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-07T18:20:07.339Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 9 - God’s Many Names (Chapter 7)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 December 2020

Pavel Gregorić
Affiliation:
Institute of Philosophy in Zagreb, Croatia
George Karamanolis
Affiliation:
Universität Wien, Austria
Get access

Summary

In the seventh and last chapter of De mundo, the author discusses the many names of God, which reflect the various effects God produces in the world (401a12–27). In line with the predominantly Aristotelian background of the author, it is claimed that these effects are not caused by God directly, but by his power (dunamis). This approach helps explain various traditional names, epithets and functions assigned to Zeus in Greek religion and mythology, including names which refer to meteorological phenomena and epithets related to cosmology, but also, perhaps more surprisingly, to human affairs. In this respect, as a detailed comparison shows, the chapter is clearly inspired by various Stoic authors. The central place of the chapter is occupied by the famous Orphic hymn to Zeus. A detailed interpretation of the hymn shows that it is in many ways compatible with the philosophical outlook of De mundo. However, the hymn also features parallels with the Orphic theogony commented upon in the Derveni Papyrus and its later version, which was quoted by late Neoplatonists. The comparison reveals various similarities and differences between these three texts and supports a hypothesis according to which the author of De mundo omitted some parts of the original Orphic theogony. Traces of the missing verses, however, can be seen in the subsequent section (401b8–29), where Fate is discussed. This interconnection helps us to better understand both De mundo and the Derveni Papyrus.

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×