Redefining Ancient Orphism : A Study in Greek Religion (Paperback)

Part I. Introduction: Definitions Old and New: 1. The name of Orpheus; 2. Orphism through the ages: a history of scholarship; 3. The problem of definition; Part II. Orphic Scriptures or the Vaporings of Many Books?: 4. Orphic textuality: a hubbub of books; 5. Orphic Hieroi Logoi: sacred texts for the rites; 6. Orphic mythology: the content of Orphic poems; Part III. Orphic Doctrines or the Pure from the Pure?: 7. Orphic purity: piety or superstition?; 8. Life in the afterlife: the initiates' privilege and the mythic tradition; 9. Original sin or ancestral crimes: Zagreus and the concern with purification; 10. Conclusions: redefining ancient Orphism.