By Dr. Jenny Kellogg,
Co-leader, Ancient Greece Through the Lens of the Yuga Cycles of Time
Athens is a very ancient city whose roots go back to Neolithic times when the Divine was worshipped as a mother goddess, indivisible from nature and the cosmos.
Athens is a very ancient city whose roots go back to Neolithic times when the Divine was worshipped as a mother goddess, indivisible from nature and the cosmos.
The hill we know of today as the Acropolis has been the site of communal worship and civilization long before Classical Athens in 500 BC. Possessing good fortification, natural springs, and a view of the surrounding mountains and sea ports, the Acropolis is not just the center of Athens but a well-positioned site to protect and manage a community. Perhaps for this reason the Acropolis eventually became the sacred precinct of the goddess Athena.
Today we visit the remnants of the cultural activity that flourished on the Acropolis over many thousands of years— the temples of Athena, who was the goddess of war, the goddess of the city, and the goddess of victory.
As we tour the classical temples of the Acropolis, we can discern Athena’s roots in the mother goddess— the goddess who gave life, supported its flourishing, and accompanied life into death’s mystery. Together we will attune ourselves to the many layers of this essential goddess to the Greek people and let the natural beauty of the Acropolis park speak to us of the pre-modern world and our connection to it.
By Dr. Jenny Kellogg,
Hellenistic Expert, Greek Translator,
Author of Book of Exercises II, by George Seferis
Jennifer Kellogg’s masterful translation is inspired in the most literal sense of the word: it breathes new life into these remarkable texts, sets them dancing before our eyes, so that we can discover Seferis’s verse all over again, as if for the very first time.” —Kareem James Abu-Zeid
Dr. Kellogg’s new book is a translation of Book of Exercises II by George Seferis, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1963. This book has not yet been translated into English and contains material from his diaries spanning 1931-1971. It recently won the Constantinides Translation Prize from the Modern Greek Studies Association.
Here’s the link to the book pre-order and here’s the link to the prize announcement.
Right, Jenny with the Acropolis Hill in the background. Our Greece Tour is May 5-17, 2025. Sign up by Oct. 25, 2024 for special discount.
