The footnotes have all been taken out by posting this but I've included the bibliography at the end ^_^.
Comparing Initiation Rites: Isis and Demeter
When it comes to mystery cults, the most famous and renowned cult was that of Eleusis, a cult for Demeter and her daughter Kore (also known as Persephone). But in Roman times another cult of a female deity became prominent, the cult of Isis. Demeter and Isis were viewed as very similar by authors in the ancient world, both were goddesses of fertility and crops, and their cults promised a better life after death due to their connections with the underworld. In this essay I will first look at the two myths of the goddesses and their similarities and differences, and then look at their initiation rites for other similarities and differences, and whether these are due to the differences in the myth or just the way the cult developed.
Myths
The myth of Demeter mostly comes to us from the Homeric Hymn to Demeter.
Richardson sums up the story from the Homeric hymn to Demeter very well, Persephone was carried off by Hades with the consent of Zeus, and the only people that heard her cries were Hecate and Helios. When Demeter realised she was missing she became consumed by grief and searched for her for nine days, carrying a burning torch and neither eating for washing. On the tenth day she met Hecate, who said she had heard Persephone, and took Demeter to see Helios, who told her that her daughter had been taken away by Hades. Demeter left the gods and wandered the earth disguised as an old woman, finally arriving at Eleusis. She met the daughters of the king Celeus, and told them a false story about how she arrived there, before asking if she could work for an Eleusinian family. The daughters offer her the job of nursing their brother Demophon, and she is welcomed by the family. She sits sadly in a corner until the maid Iambe makes her laugh, and she refuses their offer of wine but accepts a drink made with water and barley. During the night she secretly gives Demophon ambrosia, the food of the gods, before placing him in a fire to make him immortal, but Demophon’s mother discovers what she is doing, and cries out, Demeter removes the baby from the fire and says that now he can never be immortal. She then orders a temple and altar to be built outside the city and promises to teach her rites to the Eleusinians.
But she is still very depressed and the people begin to starve as the crops are not growing. Zeus sends various gods and goddesses to her demanding she lets the crops grow, but she refuses so Hermes is sent to ask Hades to return Persephone to her mother. Hades agrees, but then tricks Persephone in to eating a pomegranate, which binds her to the underworld. Zeus agrees for Persephone to live on Olympus with her mother for two-thirds of the year, but the other time she must live with her husband. Demeter consents to this and returns the life to the crops, and teaches her rites to the Eleusinians, guaranteeing that their initiates will gain a happy fate after death, and then she returns to the realm of the gods with her daughter.
The myth of Isis is very similar to that of Demeter, but with some different relationships. Her husband Osiris was locked up in a chest by their brother Seth, and thrown in to the Nile, eventually coming ashore at Byblos, where it becomes encased by a tree that is chopped down by the local ruler and used as a pillar for his palace . Isis arrives at Byblos and becomes nursemaid of the prince, in the night she burns the mortal part of his body, but his mother interrupts and panics, Isis reveals her true self and demands the pillar be opened so she can claim her husband . But Seth finds them, kills Osiris, and cuts his body up in to fourteen pieces which are then scattered, Isis collects the pieces and restores Osiris to life with the help of Anubis , and Osiris becomes the king of the underworld.
As we can see, the two myths are quite similar. Both women lose a person they love, Demeter her daughter and Isis her husband-brother, and this leads them on a quest to find that person. In their grief they starve themselves, until they finally stop at the palace of a royal family. Here they find some solace as nurses for the son of the family, and both try to make him immortal by burning him in the fire, but are interrupted by the queen who panics at the sight of her child in the fire and screams, surprising and angering the goddesses who refuse to continue the rites for immortality. Both women then find or have returned to them the person that was lost, Hermes returns Persephone and Isis finds her husband in a pillar holding up a roof. But their happiness cannot last, Demeter must lose Persephone to the underworld for one third of the year while Osiris is butchered by his and Isis’ brother and his remains scattered. The difference then comes after this part, Demeter must accept what has happened to her daughter, she cannot undo the marriage nor go against Persephone’s father, Zeus, who agreed to the marriage in the first place. Isis on the other hand, defies her brother Set and collects the pieces of Osiris, puts them back together, and restores him to life. He becomes king of the underworld and she can go between the two worlds as she likes, she is not tricked in to it, nor is she forced to do so by her father’s will. How do these two stories affect the initiation rites in to their respective cults, and do the differences in the story also lead to differences in the rites?
Initiation Rituals
Both cults had public festivals and more private rituals for people who wished to be initiated in to the mystery side of things. It is difficult to work out what these rituals entailed as no one wrote about them in great detail, but some writers do leave hints as to what went on.
The Eleusinian mysteries appear to have been split in to two groups, the Lesser Mysteries and the Great Mysteries, but before one could take part in the Mysteries they had to go through purification . There were several purification rites , the first was elasis, on the third day of the mysteries the mystai went to Piraeus and bathed in the sea, then each carried a piglet to Athens . Krokosis took place during the procession from Athens to Eleusis, the members of the genos Krokidai tied yellow ribbon around the right arm and left leg of each initiate, possibly to warn off evil or spirits that would dirty the initiate . Finally there was also a fast, initiates were not allowed to eat beans, eggs, chicken or fish nor were they allowed to drink wine . In the myth Demeter accepted a drink made from barley, water and mint, called a cyceon, so they may have been given something similar to drink. Richardson says that the three stages of purification were fasting, jesting, and drinking the cyceon, as this is what Demeter went through when she arrived at Eleusis, the jesting being the maid Iambe making Demeter laugh.
Once these rites were completed the initiate could take part in the Lesser Mysteries held at Agrae near the Ilissos in Athens, and then the Great Mysteries, which may also have been split in to two parts . We are told that initiates have two names, muesis and epopteia, and the epopteia is only open to those who allowed a year to elapse after the Great Mysteries . Some scholars believe that muesis refers to a preliminary stage before either set of mysteries, but the few sources we have are confusing, it is possible that a muesis was someone who had taken part in the Lesser Mysteries but we cannot be certain.
With the cult of Demeter it is believed that various parts of the myth of the abduction of Persephone were acted out. Some authors mention a sacred drama where the priests impersonated the deities and acted the whole myth . There is some confusion created by the sources, Tertullian says that the priestess of Ceres (Demeter) is abducted because the goddess was in the myth, but Demeter is not the one abducted, the priestess was for both goddesses so in the drama she could have been Demeter or Kore, in this case Kore . We are also told by Clement of Alexandria that the drama is celebrated in Eleusis with torches, while Gregory Naziazenos suggests that at least some of these rituals take place at night . This would explain the torches mentioned by Clement, you would need something to light the area if you were performing at night.
Sourvinou-Inwood says that the sacred drama would represent something close to the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, which I summarised above, and so would have included Demeter at Eleusis, her reunion with her daughter and the establishment of the cult and the return of crops, and possibly the division of Persephone’s life between the Underworld and Olympus . She adds that Lactantius describes a ritual search for Persephone at night by people carrying torches, which she says may not be part of the drama as this appears to be several people searching, not just a priest or priestess in the role of Demeter . She says what is actually happening is the initiates re-enacting some of Demeter’s experiences, they also fasted and drank a special drink just as she did, and then took part in the search . But there is plenty of disagreement with this and similar theories. Richardson says that Wilamowitz denied the existence of a drama at Eleusis and the use of the word drama was simply metaphorical . Richardson himself says that the Telesterion at Eleusis was not equipped for a full-scale drama, or for an underworld journey, and it is doubtful that the initiates participated such a drama, “one can hardly believe that vast crowds of perhaps thousands of initiates roamed about the Sanctuary, searching for Core” .
But when you think about it properly, just because the Telesterion had the capacity to fit over a thousand people, does not mean that a thousand showed up. A football stadium could fit twenty thousand people but unless the team is constantly winning matches the average attendance will be closer to fourteen thousand. The Eleusinian mysteries were open to anyone who wanted to join, regardless of gender, social status or homeland. But earlier on his discussion on the two groups of initiates Richardson says that the expenses for initiating a public slave in to the Mysteries is believed to be 15 drachmae . This is a decent sum of money, probably over two weeks wages for the average Athenian farmer or craftsman, who would probably have to save up before being initiated. If we return to the division of the mysteries, and the possible two stages of the Greater Mysteries, one had to allow one year to elapse since the Greater Mysteries before taking part again. A lot can happen in one year, death, the collapse of a business, moving to another part of Athens or Attica. If a member of your immediate family was ill you would not go to finish off your initiation, if you were to do anything religious it would be praying to Asclepius. Personally I think Sourvinou-Inwood is right on the money, initiates were expecting some big experience or revelation. Running around the sanctuary, in the dark, with just a torch would have been quite exhilarating, especially if you were not entirely sure what you were looking for, a statue or a person or something else. Once you found it everyone would arrive, so not only would there be more light but a lot of celebrating as well. How many of the people that attended the Lesser Mysteries would make it all the way to the end? Perhaps the drama, with a big revelation, was what took place a year after one attended the Greater Mysteries. It was your reward for managing to make it all the way to the end of the initiation rites.
When it comes to the initiation for the cult of Isis we have our main evidence from one writer, Apuleius, who describes the initiation and the preparations for it through the eyes of the character Lucius. But we still have a lot of problems with what he gives us.
According to Apuleius one could become an initiate if you had a dream featuring the goddess, who told you who to speak to and how much she wanted you to spend on your initiation, the priest who was going to conduct the initiation was sent a similar dream so he knew you would be coming to speak to him (XI:22). Donalson adds that these visions were granted to people “who sincerely called upon her in faith” , rather similar to people finding Christ after reaching the end of their tether and praying to God for help. The new initiate was then escorted to the baths by the priest and other worshippers, where he washed and was purified by the priest who also prayed to the gods on his behalf (XI:23). Afterwards the initiate returns to the temple and stands or kneels before the statue of Isis, where the priest then gives further instructions. Apuleius says he cannot inform the reader of these instructions as they are a secret, but he does say that Lucius has to abstain from meat and wine for ten days (XI:23) and probably sex as well . Abstaining from something, whether it be food or physical pleasure, is quite common in mystery cults as part of the act of purifying oneself and as we saw earlier is one part of the Eleusinian rites.
After the ten days had passed the initiate was greeted and given gifts by devotees before being dressed in a brand new linen robe and with the priest went in to the heart of the shrine (XI:23). This part of the ritual took place at night as Apuleius says the sun was bringing on the evening when Lucius was greeted by the cult followers (XI:23). What happens next is not described in any great detail, Lucius apparently dies, or comes close to death, and sees all the gods and worships them face to face, before effectively being reborn. Seeing all the gods puts in mind the Eleusinian drama, where one followed the story of Demeter and “saw” the gods and goddesses that she interacted with. They may have had several statues of Isis and other related deities that were illuminated by a few torches, or had priests in the guise of the gods. Donalson uses the word “hallucination” when discussing this experience , it could be that initiates were given a drink that had been infused with herbs known to have hallucinogenic qualities. In a very dark, quiet room with a few torches and a bunch of large, strange statues any hallucination could lead one to believe they had actually floated and soared among the stars and spoken face to face with the gods, in their head the gods probably answered as well. Losing ones inhibitions is not uncommon in cult activities anywhere in the Mediterranean, the Bacchic revellers of the cult of Dionysus probably got drunk as part of their celebrations to the gods, and the priestess of Apollo at Delphi may have inhaled smoke that caused hallucinations. Plutarch says that in the mysteries of Isis portrayed the trials and tribulations she had endured , perhaps suggesting that like the Eleusinian mysteries the initiates had to search for Osiris?
The next morning the initiate was dressed in twelve robes (possibly symbolising the twelve signs of the zodiac as Isis was believed to be ruler of all the stars ) before a wooden platform in front of the statue of the goddess carrying a torch in one hand with a crown of palm leaves on his head, and once this was over there were feasts and banquets that afternoon. Finally the rites were completed the next day with a sacred meal and “an equal show of rites” (XI:24). The description of the robes Lucius is dressed in is very detailed, the tunic and cloak were embroidered with variously coloured mystical animals such as Indian dragons and griffons from the north, the addition of their geographical origin suggests that Isis covered all living things across the world. We certainly do not hear of anything quite so elegant in the cult of Demeter.
Even after this Lucius’ initiation is not complete. He travels to Rome and experiences another dream, this time sent by Osiris, a year after his initiation in to the cult of Isis, he is told that he needs another initiation with the accompanying rituals, this time for the cult of the god of the underworld (XI:27). After much debating he does so, he has another ten days without meat (and presumably wine although this is not stated) and has his head shaved (XI:2 cool . After this (this time no set period of time is given) Lucius has another dream and a third initiation, after which he joins the college of priests (XI:30).
As we can see, there are quite a few similarities and many differences between the rites for the two cults. Both have purification rites that involve bathing and fasting, although the cult of Demeter is a little more specific in what is not allowed and also has a substitute, the cyceon, while that of Isis simply forbids meat and wine. However these rites are a common feature in all mystery cults, so it is no surprised that both of these cults require them as well. Both cults have ceremonies during the day (the procession to Eleusis from Athens for example, and Lucius’ gifts before his initation) that mean the public can take part in the worship of the goddess, but the main rites take place a night, a standard practise in any mystery cult as it makes it difficult for participants to know what is happening let alone some errant, unwanted outsider who may be spying to try and discover the secrets.
The way people can join the cult is different, Eleusis accepts anyone, assuming they can afford it, while to join the cult of Isis one has to have a dream where the goddess calls to them. The initiation ceremonies are different as well, we know more about Isis than we do about Demeter, but even our theories on the rites of Eleusis do not particularly connect with what we know about Isis. The cult of Demeter may have had a sacred drama, a search around the sanctuary for Persephone, and a celebration with torches. Isis had some ceremony inside the heart of the temple, possibly with only the priest for company if that, which may have involved a hallucination induced by a drugged drink or breathing in smoke (it is difficult to find any other explanation for Apuleius’ visions) before seeing statues of the gods that were normally covered or hidden. A search may have also been involved but it would be an individual search rather than a group, and depending on how big the inner sanctum was the search area could have been quite restrictive.
Afterwards the Isis initiate is dressed in beautifully decorated robes and put on display to be viewed by everyone and welcomed in to his new “life” with a feast. For all we know the Eleusinian initiates had a feast and went home, there does not appear to be a public viewing for all and sundry and there is no mention of special robes. The cult of Isis also appears to have just one stage, the other rites that Lucius goes through are for the parallel cult of Osiris, there is nothing to suggest that other Isis initiates also had to go through them. The character of Lucius is given a happy ending of joining the college of priests and finding favour in all his endeavours, but is simply a character in a piece of fiction so we cannot assume that his further initiations are later stages in to the cult of Isis. At Eleusis on the other hand there appear to have been at least two stages, Lesser and Greater, and possibly a further stage after the Greater. The cult of Demeter does not appear to have had a parallel cult, but there are links between it and the cult that buried the dead with the Orphic gold leaves directing people through the afterlife.
Overall we can see that the myths of the two goddesses actually feature more similarities than their initiation rituals do. Isis comes across as a more pro-active goddess than Demeter, Isis refuses to let death get in the way of her marriage and restores Osiris to life, while Demeter has to sit back and watch her daughter leave her once a year. The initiation rituals, what we can make of them, have similar rituals to attain pre-initiation purity but that is probably more due to a standard format for such things. The full Eleusinian mysteries took over a year to complete and were set in several stages, the cult of Isis appears to have just one stage, although there may have been a decent lapse of time between being summoned by Isis in a dream and actually being initiated. Eleusis accepts anyone that can afford the rituals, or has a sponsor willing to pay for them, Isis on the other hand calls you in a dream. These differences are more to do with their development over time, while their myths evidently originated from one place, the initiation rituals were developed separately and so show big differences. To me it is quite fascinating, two goddesses with similar attributes, who were linked with fertility, and whose myths are virtually identical, and yet their rites are so very different, obviously people had different ideas on how to worship a deity, but there are so few similarities that it really is amazing.
Bibliography
Donalson, M.D. (2003)- Isis Invicta: The Cult of Isis in the Roman Empire, The Edwin Meller Press.
Pakkanen, P. (1996)- Interpreting Early Hellenistic Religion, Helsinki.
Richardson, N.J. (1974)- The Homeric Hymn to Demeter.
Sourvinou-Inwood, C. (2003)- "Festival and Mysteries: aspects of the Eleusinian cult" from Greek Mysteries: The Archaeology and Ritual of Ancient Greek Secret Cults eds. M.B.Cosmopoulos, Routledge.
Turcan, R. (1996)- The Cults of the Roman Empire, Blackwell Publishers.
Witt, R.E. (1971)- Isis in the Graeco-Roman World. Thames & Hudson.
Apuleius of Madauros- The Isis-Book translated by J.Gwyn Griffiths 1975, Leiden.