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Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...
, Python ( el, Πύθων; ''
gen Gen may refer to: * ''Gen'' (film), 2006 Turkish horror film directed by Togan Gökbakar * Gen (Street Fighter), a video game character from the ''Street Fighter'' series * Gen Fu, a video game character from the ''Dead or Alive'' series * Gen l ...
''. Πύθωνος) was the serpent, sometimes represented as a
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
-style dragon, living at the center of the
earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
, believed by the ancient Greeks to be at Delphi.


Mythology

Python, sometimes written Pytho, presided at the Delphic oracle, which existed in the cult center for its mother, Gaia, "Earth", Pytho being the place name that was substituted for the earlier ''Krisa''. Greeks considered the site to be the center of the earth, represented by a stone, the '' omphalos'' or navel, which Python guarded. Python became the chthonic enemy of the later Olympian deity
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...
, who slew it and took over Python's former home and oracle. These were the most famous and revered in the ancient Greek and Roman worlds. Like many monsters, Python was known as Gaia's son and prophesied as Gaia's son. Therefore, Apollo had to eliminate this opponent before establishing his temple in Delphoi.


Versions and interpretations

There are various versions of Python's birth and death at the hands of Apollo. In the '' Homeric Hymn to Apollo'', now thought to have been composed in 522 BCE when the archaic period in Greek history was giving way to the Classical period, a small detail is provided regarding Apollo's combat with the serpent, in some sections identified as the deadly drakaina, or her parent. The version related by
Hyginus Gaius Julius Hyginus (; 64 BC – AD 17) was a Latin author, a pupil of the scholar Alexander Polyhistor, and a freedman of Caesar Augustus. He was elected superintendent of the Palatine library by Augustus according to Suetonius' ''De Grammati ...
holds that when
Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...
lay with the goddess
Leto In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Leto (; grc-gre, Λητώ , ''Lētṓ'', or , ''Lātṓ'' in Doric Greek) is a goddess and the mother of Apollo, the god of music, and Artemis, the goddess of the hunt.Hesiod, ''Theogony'404–409/ref> ...
, and she became pregnant with
Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...
and Apollo, Hera was jealous and sent Python to pursue Leto throughout the lands, to prevent her from giving birth to the twin gods. Thus, when Apollo was grown he wanted to avenge his mother's plight and pursued Python, making his way straight for
Mount Parnassus Mount Parnassus (; el, Παρνασσός, ''Parnassós'') is a mountain range of central Greece that is and historically has been especially valuable to the Greek nation and the earlier Greek city-states for many reasons. In peace, it offers ...
where the serpent dwelled and chased it to the oracle of Gaia at Delphi; there he dared to penetrate the sacred precinct and kill it with his arrows beside the rock cleft where the priestess sat on her tripod. Robert Graves, who habitually read into primitive myths a retelling of archaic political and social turmoil, saw in this the capture by
Hellenes The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, other ...
of a pre-Hellenic shrine. "To placate local opinion at Delphi," he wrote in ''The Greek Myths'', "regular funeral games were instituted in honor of the dead hero Python, and her priestess was retained in office." According to an epigram from 159 BC, it seems that Python in particular meant to rape Leto.
Clearchus of Soli Clearchus of Soli ( el, Kλέαρχoς ὁ Σολεύς, ''Klearkhos ho Soleus'') was a Greek philosopher of the 4th–3rd century BCE, belonging to Aristotle's Peripatetic school. He was born in Soli in Cyprus. He wrote extensively on eastern cul ...
wrote that while Python was pursuing them, Leto stepped on a stone and, holding Apollo in her hands, cried (''híe paî'', meaning "shoot, child") to him, who was holding a bow and arrows. The politics are conjectural, but the myth reports that Zeus ordered Apollo to purify himself for the
sacrilege Sacrilege is the violation or injurious treatment of a sacred object, site or person. This can take the form of irreverence to sacred persons, places, and things. When the sacrilegious offence is verbal, it is called blasphemy, and when physica ...
and instituted the
Pythian Games The Pythian Games ( grc-gre, Πύθια;) were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece. They were held in honour of Apollo at his sanctuary at Delphi every four years, two years after the Olympic Games, and between each Nemean and ...
, over which Apollo was to preside, as penance for his act.
Erwin Rohde Erwin Rohde (; 9 October 1845 – 11 January 1898) was one of the great German classical scholars of the 19th century. Rohde was born in Hamburg and was the son of a doctor. Outside of antiquarian circles, Rohde is known today chiefly for h ...
wrote that the Python was an earth spirit, who was conquered by Apollo, and buried under the ''omphalos'' and that it is a case of one god setting up his temple on the grave of another. The priestess of the oracle at Delphi became known as the Pythia, after the place-name Pytho, which Greeks explained as named after the rotting (πύθειν) of the slain serpent's corpse in the strength of Hyperion (day) or Helios (the sun).
Karl Kerenyi Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austri ...
notes that the older tales mentioned two dragons who were perhaps intentionally conflated. A female dragon named Delphyne (; cf. , "womb"), and a male serpent
Typhon Typhon (; grc, Τυφῶν, Typhôn, ), also Typhoeus (; grc, Τυφωεύς, Typhōeús, label=none), Typhaon ( grc, Τυφάων, Typháōn, label=none) or Typhos ( grc, Τυφώς, Typhṓs, label=none), was a monstrous serpentine giant an ...
(; from , "to smoke"), the adversary of Zeus in the
Titanomachy In Greek mythology, the Titanomachy (; grc, , , Titan battle) was a ten-year series of battles fought in Ancient Thessaly, consisting of most of the Titans (the older generation of gods, based on Mount Othrys) fighting against the Olympians (t ...
, who the narrators confused with Python. Python was the good
daemon Daimon or Daemon (Ancient Greek: , "god", "godlike", "power", "fate") originally referred to a lesser deity or guiding spirit such as the daimons of ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology and of later Hellenistic religion and Hell ...
(ἀγαθὸς δαίμων) of the temple as it appears in Minoan religion, but she was represented as a dragon, as often happens in Northern European folklore as well as in the East. This myth has been described as an allegory for the dispersal of the fogs and clouds of vapor that arise from ponds and marshes (Python) by the rays of the sun (the arrows of Apollo).


See also

* '' Python'', a genus of the family
Pythonidae The Pythonidae, commonly known as pythons, are a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia. Among its members are some of the largest snakes in the world. Ten genera and 42 species are currently recognized. Distributi ...
, which the genus was named after *
Apollo Belvedere The ''Apollo Belvedere'' (also called the ''Belvedere Apollo, Apollo of the Belvedere'', or ''Pythian Apollo'') is a celebrated marble sculpture from Classical Antiquity. The ''Apollo'' is now thought to be an original Roman creation of Hadri ...
* Dragons in Greek mythology * Pythia *
Serpent (symbolism) The serpent, or snake, is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. The word is derived from Latin ''serpens'', a crawling animal or snake. Snakes have been associated with some of the oldest rituals known to mankind and represent ...
* Saint George and the Dragon * Metaphor of the sun *
Yamata no Orochi , or simply , is a legendary eight-headed and eight-tailed Japanese dragon/ serpent. Mythology Yamata no Orochi legends are originally recorded in two ancient texts about Japanese mythology and history. The 712 AD transcribes this dragon nam ...


Notes


References

* Burkert, Walter, ''Greek Religion'' 1985. * Deane, John Bathurst, ''The Worship of the Serpent'', 1833. Cf. Chapter V., p. 329

* Farnell, Lewis Richard, ''The Cults of the Greek States'', 1896. * Joseph Fontenrose, Fontenrose, Joseph Eddy, ''Python; a study of Delphic myth and its origins'', 1959. * Goodrich, Norma Lorre, ''Priestesses'', 1990. * Guthrie, William Keith Chambers, ''The Greeks and their Gods'', 1955. * Hall, Manly Palmer, ''The Secret Teachings of All Ages'', 1928
Ch. 14 cf. Greek Oracles
* Harrison, Jane Ellen, ''Themis: A Study of the Social Origins of Greek Religion'', 1912. cf. Chapter IX, p. 329 especially, on the slaying of the Python. * Kerenyi, Karl, (1951) 1980. ''The Gods of the Greeks'' especially pp 135–6


Homeric Hymn to Pythian Apollo
* * * Erwin Rohde, Rohde, Erwin, ''Psyche'', 1925. * Smith, William; ''
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 ...
'', London (1873)
"Python"
{{Authority control Greek dragons World-bearing animals Children of Gaia Deeds of Apollo Ancient Delphi Legendary serpents Deeds of Hera Leto