Importance of the God Apollo

For the ancient Greeks, each God had a specific role in the world and a history particular. The God Apollo was the son of Zeus and the Titan Leto and was born on the island of Delos. It is the divinity that symbolizes the energy of the Sun, music, art and masculine beauty. Related to the image of him, he usually appears as a handsome young archer accompanied by a laurel and a lyre.

Its role in western culture

The Pythian Games were an athletic celebration similar to the famous Olympic Games and they were celebrated to honor the God Apollo. In this sense, athletes today are characterized by having slender bodies, that is, Apollonian.

Apollo is considered the God who represents balance and a fundamental idea is attributed to him as a guide to human existence: know yourself. This aphorism was found engraved in the Delphi temple dedicated to Apollo and was later picked up by the Athenian philosopher Socrates.

According to mythological accounts, Apollo was despised by the nymph Daphne because Eros had previously shot two arrows at each one of them (Apollo nailed a golden arrow that represented love and Daphne a lead one that symbolized love). hate). This story reminds us of a very present idea: love and hate are

feelings opposite but at the same time compatible. On the other hand, this story of heartbreak has been embodied in art and it is worth noting Bernini's sculpture known as Apollo and Daphne.

In the Homeric story of the Iliad, the god Apollo shows his warrior spirit and fights bravely on behalf of the Trojans.

Like many other Gods, Apollo is contradictory, as he is sometimes sympathetic, but sometimes irritated and vengeful. His contradictory dimension allows us to remember that humans also have two faces.

Greek poets and soothsayers looked to two deities for inspiration: the Muses and Apollo. In this sense, the traditional verses of the Greek poets tried to express the Apollonian spirit.

Finally, it is worth remembering the Apollo Program, the space project led by the United States during the period of Cold War with the Soviet Union.

The Apollonian and the Dionysian in Nietzsche

In the 19th century, the philosopher Nietzsche rescued the figures of Apollo and Dionysus to explain his vision of life and art. Thus, the Apollonian metaphorically refers to finished, beautiful artistic forms that seek perfection, while the Dionysian symbolizes the opposite, that is, impulsive art and passional. In others words, the Apollonian represents the rational vision of art and life and the Dionysian is everything that expresses the vitality and creative energy of the human spirit.

Images: Fotolia – nyiragongo / luisfpizarro