Archaeologists have uncovered the Ancient Greek version of an evil wishing well.
Thirty lead curse tablets thrown into a 2,500-year-old well in the ancient Greek cemetery of Kerameikos have been dredged up, each one engraved with messages calling on underworld gods to curse mortals.
Now, scrawling curses on tablets to cripple political rivals and even prevent witnesses from testifying was par for the course in Ancient Greek and Roman societies that often blurred the lines between magic and religion. But laymen also called upon the underworld gods with these curse tablets, who frequently used binding spells to hinder their enemies.
Burying such curses with the dead was commonplace, and dead children and war victims made particularly apt 'delivery' boys, given their tortured souls' penchants to lounge around their burial sites.
However, a new law forbidding curse tablets in tombs enacted by Athens statesman Demetrius of Phalerum during the fourth century BCE may have forced spellbinders to get more creative and seek a more liquid transmission.
Curses Never Go Out of Style
As archaeologists unearth ancient curse tablets, some Twitter users facetiously worried that they might have just made a huge, world-ending mistake.
Others pointed out that the cursed tablets in the water well very likely worked - but only because they poisoned the water supply with dangerous quantities of lead.
Humor aside, the real anthropological lesson we can all walk away with is this:
Human pettiness truly knows no historical bounds.
So many of us who claim to be religious submit to this idea of an all-knowing deity wielding a grand design. And yet we never tire of asking them to do our dirty work in our own vain pursuits for money and power. One can easily draw parallels to today, where we might let our worst impulses take over and pray for others - politicians, rivals, enemies - to fail.
What do you think?
28 comments
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Nora Mijnssen
2020: coronavirus, giant hornets, aliens.
Also 2020:
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Cory Michael Lee Wells
Lucifer who was Yahweh's most trusted angel was also referred to as "The Morning Star." Throughout the Bible many times angels take on the likeness of a star. The point is that angels were an essential piece in the creation of Man. Yahweh, who is a being of pure light, used His magic combined with angel dust to create Adam (Angel dust and magic). Magic is absolutely real and present in our world today. To clarify there is magic(majesty), and wicked(wicca). Any spiritual conjuring of power can be directed in one of these ways. Although not all can perform magic because it is power of life which resides in our blood; any can use wickedness through desecration of the body or spirit. The important thing here is that we need to be aware that just because we have lived many generations since the ascribing of the Bible, all things contained in its scriptures are still true today. Prophets, sorcerers, and other "mythical" beings still dwell in the earth with us.
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Anisahoni
The "angels" were extraterrestrials. Read "The Anunnaki Chronicles" Zecharia Sitchin and "The Arcturus Probe" Jose Arguelles. "Lucifer" was also an extraterrestrial.
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Krystina S.
If Lucifer was God's most trusted angel, it would seem that God was/is not a good judge of character. 'Cause see how that great relationship turned out. Wiccans are NOT wicked. They are not a Judeo-Christian belief system, and many here are Wiccan reverands. The English language is not a pretzel for false etiological relationships. It would be good to remember the Earth does not revolve around the Christian mindset....
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Michael Gabriel
Samuel the light brnger(Lucifer) May have had a problem bowing to mortals but he is not an enemy of God. He most certainly works in his service to take and punish the wicked would be the opposite of his mission otherwise and would obviously not be a threat to the Almighty. We should pray to Samuel(satan). with our thanks. God has given him the most difficult and unpopular job there ever was or could be.
And as far as the Wiccan religion goes. They pray and depend on the Goddess. This is the living earth. A powerful Entity in its own right with wisdom beyond the ages and the power of nature behind her but she was also created and given her power and ability through the Almighty Creator of all.
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EC
Pretty effective way to throw a curse! Lead tablets in a water well...
I often curse my enemies but, since I am an honest and forthright person, I have a dearth of enemies. Were I a hypocritical, self-serving liar like so many of our politicians (irrespective of their side), I’d imagine many people would be (or would want to be) poisoning my well with the curse of heavy metals!
Don’t be a douchebag. Don’t get cursed.
Hail Satan!
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Karl Axel Lindström
i curse people daily... May Trumps Beard grow inwards and his camel explode! for example :p
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Rodney Knight
I will not comment on the contents of the pieces it was a different time different people I believe after study the Pieces should be returned to the cemetery and buried with the proper respect these are private communications between the person and their gods and should not be fodder for comment by people who have no idea what drove them to such drastic actions how would you feel if your private communications with God where read and commented on by people who have no idea who you are when some of these pieces where placed Christ had not been born into the world so these people had no concept of his words judging them by your standards is not only shameful but cowardly you have no idea what was going on in these peoples world after an appropriate time of study the pieces should be returned to the cemetery and reinturd with respect
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Stiann Combrinck
You all just need to really focus your minds, chill out and have a bong, mother Nature know what she's doing... She's been at it for billions of years, respect GREEN.
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Richard Lee Cornell
Curse be upon my friends who do not repay money so loan to them. Curse be upon the tax man who each year seek more silver for saying that it is for the school children. Curse upon those who prey upon my weakness when it comes to eating sweets. Curse be upon this virus for it has force me to stay away from Judy.
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Daniel J. Trebas
Your post should have been written in "cursive". But I wont curse the lack of cursive font options when posting.😁🤪👍
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Chaplain Shawn
"Human pettiness truly knows no historical bounds." The excerpt from the article is right on the mark. Human pettiness is human, not godly or Judeo-Christian. Dr. Paul Kurtz is credited with defining Secular Humanism, and commented in his pamphlet What Is Secular Humanism? that ancient Greece and ancient Rome were secular. What Kurtz did not comment on was that both civilizations were"religious." Here is the paradox. There can be no form of religion under the banner of Secular Humanism because Secular Humanism rejects all religion.
"So many of us who claim to be religious submit to this idea of an all-knowing deity wielding a grand design. And yet we never tire of asking them to do our dirty work in our own vain pursuits for money and power. One can easily draw parallels to today, where we might let our worst impulses take over and pray for others - politicians, rivals, enemies - to fail." The last few sentences tie to the prior quote very well because human pettiness is once again seen in prayer. However, the prayer is not meant for God (the Judeo-Christian God).
The question should be evident. How do we know we are praying to God? How do we discern God from Satan? When these questions are answered, it will be apparent who we pray to, and who is speaking to us. It will also be apparent by our actions who we praise. If we are praying to God in sync with faithfulness, gentleness, goodness, joy, kindness, love, patience, peace, and self-control; then we are praying to God. If we pray for our selfish ambitions, our prayer is meant for Satan, not God. The nine attributes are referred to as the fruit of the Spirit, and represent God's character.Additionally, curses meant for other human beings are not meant for God's ears. Curses are meant for Satan's ears, and run contrary to the fruit of the Spirit. A curse can also repay evil with more evil. Someone does bad to you, and you speak or wish bad upon them. The Secular are in the flesh or in the world. They do walk in the Spirit. They are in conflict with the Spirit. Evil can be discerned from good quite easily because evil is the opposite of the fruit of the Spirit. Evil is selfish ambition, adultery, fornication, unclean, lewdness,idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentious, jealous, an outburst of wrath, dissension, heresy, envy, murder, drunkenness (whether alcohol or drugs - intoxicants), revelries, and the like.
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Anisahoni
Yes and what if it is all a sham originally meant to control others? Dr, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist on stardust: “The atoms of our bodies are traceable to stars that manufactured them in their cores and exploded these enriched ingredients across our galaxy, billions of years ago. ... And we are atomically connected to all atoms in the universe. We are not figuratively, but literally stardust.”
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Sherri Louise James
Mmm. I've never heard that before. I guess that's what people call The Big Band Theory! I wish my husband was still alive. I'd love to hear his thoughts about this. He was a very intelligent man who seemed to know everything and could talk for HOURS about it. We never thought we were created by "the guy in the sky". LOL But, my husband never talked about the stardust thing. Thanks for the info. Makes sense. It was STARDUST, not EARTH dust. LOL Be safe, my friend.
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Philip Joseph Ryan
Well, to be precise, we are 93% stardust and 7\% Big Bang dust by 3% mass.
It is generally accepted, in astro-physics, that all the elements were produced through the nuclear fusion occurring in stars, creating heavier and heavier elements. I would be interested to know when and where the reference to Mankind coming from stardust/the stars was first mentioned-
Krystina S.
I know that Carl Sagan said in the original "Cosmos:" We Are All Made Of Stardust.....
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EC
Malarkey.
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Anisahoni
OMW, Joe Biden just came in with his "No Malarky" bus!
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Laurel Lee Newman-Curry
Always interested where saying originated--seems this is insight to where 'well wishes' may have began! Laughter is good medicine. Best to all. Rev. Laurel
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Carla Webb
Its easy for us to turn on God insead of turning to him and to wonder why he is not stepping in to rid us of thiis Vile virus. Something I red a few days ago from the bible was nothing shall seperate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus and that means nothing.
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The Heretic Hour
The Great I Am Creator of all the see and unseen created the ET's that have been coming to planet Earth for 270 million years. These ET's took their DNA and mixed it with a Primate from Earth and created mankind. The Bible contains some selected stories out of thousands of man's interactions with them. The Great I Am incarnated Mary to deliver the Lamb and the truth to man. Jesus denounced the old "Gods." We have TWO commandments delivered by Jesus, 1) Love yourself. 2) Love your neighbor as yourself.
I Pray for Peace on Earth, and goodwill for ALL of humanity.
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Lionheart
That’s a very interesting fictional thought. I also hope for pease on earth, and goodwill for all of humanity.
🦁❤️
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Lionheart
And I also hope I can spell better next time 🤪
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Tom
Lionheart...be well...you definitely add interesting color to our blog...Peace...Tom B
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Anisahoni
You are referring to the Anunnaki no doubt and ignorance here prevails. Obviously some know absolutely nothing about the work of Zecharia Sitchin and archaeologists as well as the ancient clay tablets of the Sumerians. Instead of asking you to clarify, they refer to it as fiction. These are probably the same folks who believe in the great "guy in the sky."
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Tom
Respectfully...God dpes not "hear" negative prayers...Peace...Tom B B
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Daniel Gray
If they think witchcraft is going to work, then let them keep their dreams and become shattered when they dont work
I believe the ancient and arcane religions very much came from God. They were the first spark. The first indication of something greater than ourselves always watching. I believe that their prayers and incantations are much stronger than today because a greater proof needed to be witnessed. I believe they still hold this ability. I also believe the Almighty doesn’t care what religion you follow, but that you keep its laws and rituals and prayers sacred and performed with reverence. I truly believe that is what matters and is pleasing to our creator.