Trojan prophetess Cassandra foretold the Trojan War and the inevitable destruction of the great city of Troy at the hands of the Greek invaders, led by Agamemnon, Odysseus, Menelaus, and others. Unfortunately, Apollo had cursed Cassandra to the end result that no one ever believed her visions of the future. Neither Cassandra’s kinfolk, the reigning royal family of Troy, nor anyone else, considered Troy’s defeat a probable reality. They merely thought Cassandra’s ramblings were the product of a fragile and unraveled mind. After the war, Agamemnon, King of Mycenae, took Cassandra into captivity as a concubine. The couple had two children together before he met his tragic end at the hands of his murderous wife Clytemnestra and her lover. At Cassandra’s death, her burial occurred in the city of Mycenae, and her soul received the bounty of everlasting life in the Elysian Fields.
The Cumaean Sibyl uttered her prophetic announcements at Apollo’s temple in Cumaea, a Greek colony located in Italy. According to the poet Virgil, she lived in a cave and prophesied by singing and writing the words on the sacred leaves of the oak. Sibyl means prophetess, and there were many Sibyls throughout the ancient Greek and Roman world. To the Romans, the Cumaean Sibyl was the most famous. Legend goes that she offered nine books of prophecy concerning the future of Rome to the last remaining king of the old Roman Kingdom, prior to the advent of the Roman Republic. King Tarquin refused to pay the high price she demanded. The Sibyl then burned three of the books and offered the six remaining books at the same original price. Again, the shortsighted king refused. The Sibyl burned three more of the books, leaving only three of the original nine. She offered them to the king at the same high price. Outwitted, the king purchased the books. He had them sequestered in the Temple of Jupiter to be consulted only in dire emergencies. The books were lost when the temple burned to the ground in 83 BCE. To restore them, it was necessary for the works to be re-collected from other Sibylline worship centers. The prophetic texts remained in the Temple of Apollo until they too were burned in 45 AD by General Flavius Stilicho, who considered them a pagan evil.
The Norse prophecy of Ragnarok startles us with its intensity and ominous vision of doom for a stark, apocalyptic end of the world wherein winter follows upon winter. Translated as the Twilight of the Gods, Ragnarok tells of a great battle involving the gods and all of humankind. The dead also rise and participate. During the course of events, catastrophic earth changes occur that leave the world in ashes. These include devastating earthquakes, boiling volcanoes, deadly comets that set the world aflame, poisonous air and waters, famine, pestilence, and other occurrences that make life untenable. The world burns, and then the sea rises to cover all habitable land.
The sun grows dark.
The earth sinks into the sea.
All life on earth perishes, ending in darkness, and the gods perish as well, even Odin. Ragnarok signals the end of the current world cycle. A ray of hope is that a new world cycle then begins for the gods and humankind.
I hope you have enjoyed our look at three ancient prophecies through the mythic lenses of the Greeks, Romans, and Norse cultures. I wonder what the Mayans would have to say about these. What prophecies are you most familiar with?
Cheers & Happy Reading!
Flossie Benton Rogers, Conjuring the Magic with Paranormal Fantasy Romance
A very tricky thing with prophecies. As a rule people make everything to discredit the ones who foresee the future. especially the negative prophecies. Let’s not forget about Nostradamus, closer to our times. He is also very contested and commented on.
There was a Bulgarian woman Baba Vanga whose predictions were famous as they, mostly, turned true. And here we had a visionary. a Romanian Orthodox monk, theologian and artist Arsenie Boca. He died before Romania was stormed by the 1989 Revolution which he foretold.
I believe there are people who had this ability to predict on a long term the future events. A about Mayan predictions, I understand they were wrongly interpreted as the physical end of mankind.
Wow, I loved hearing of Baba Vanga and the Romanian Orthodox monk Arsenie Boca. I always learn such interesting things from you, Carmen, and it’s invaluable. Nostradamus is interesting to me too.
Most of the prophecies I’m familiar with are Biblical, but I know a fair amount about Nostradamus too. He always comes to mind when I think prophecy. I was familiar with Ragnarok (love Norse myth) but not to the extent that you described it. Very intriguing post, Flossie!
Yes, Mae, I am always impressed by the way there are deeper details in these prophecy stories. I remember the Daniel prophecies.
Great post, Flossie. Poor Cassandra, to offer truth and not be believed. Thanks for reminding me of these foretellings.
Thank you, Daisy.