There was a widespread, albeit undefined, belief in survival after death among the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians in particular.
- The idea that the dead continue to exist in their graves and need human nourishment was a primitive one.
- The ancient Greeks believed that the deceased lived in a gloomy and bleak world, as recorded in the Homeric epics.
- In this way, the dead demanded no food from the living and posed no threat.
- Another Homeric idea was to put select heroes in the Isles of the Blessed, who were immune from death.
The Eleusinian Mysteries, which included the worship of Demeter, promised its followers a pleasant afterlife in the sixth century B.C.
- The idea of metempsychosis was retained in mystery cults in general, and pleasure would be attained by those who had lived a pure life in this world.
- Similarly, the cults of Dionysus, Sabazius, Attis, and Isis promised a pleasant life beyond death.
- The deceased were thought to live in a subterranean realm or be transported to higher realms.
- There was a widespread, albeit undefined, belief in survival after death among the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians in particular.
The idea that the dead continue to exist in their graves and need human nourishment was a primitive one.
- The ancient Greeks believed that the deceased lived in a gloomy and bleak world, as recorded in the Homeric epics.
- In this way, the dead demanded no food from the living and posed no threat.
Another Homeric idea was to put select heroes in the Isles of the Blessed, who were immune from death.
- The Eleusinian Mysteries, which included the worship of Demeter, promised its followers a pleasant afterlife in the sixth century B.C.
- The idea of metempsychosis was retained in mystery cults in general, and pleasure would be attained by those who had lived a pure life in this world.
- Similarly, the cults of Dionysus, Sabazius, Attis, and Isis promised a pleasant life beyond death.
- The deceased were thought to live in a subterranean realm or be transported to higher realms.
You may also want to refer to my Comprehensive list of World Pagan Religious Terms And Concepts.
You may also want to read more about Paganism here.
Be sure to check out my writings on Religion here.