Memories of Ancient Greece

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Guest Post by Duncan Wyndham with photos by Denise Roy

Those who sing HU know this is a time of miracles. This is also a time of prophecy. What the ancients experienced in places like Delphi and Epidaurus in Greece, we can experience as well today. (Delphi Athena is pictured above.) It is HU that wakens us to the potential of Soul. 

My wife, Denise, and I researched Greece ahead of our journey there so we knew the places that we wanted to visit. This was a spiritual quest as well as a vacation. Thus when we made “wrong” turns and ended up where we were planning to go but by different roads, meeting key people along the way, it was more than ok. It was the intended journey all along. 

In late September we rented a car in Athens and drove into the Peloponnese. Our first goal was Napflio, a lovely port town that was to be our headquarters. Napflio is 30 minutes from Epidaurus, 30 minutes from Mycenae, 10 minutes from Tiryns, 3 hours from ancient Sparta, and a half day from Delphi on the mainland. It was a sound place to center ourselves.   

Our greater journey began as soon as we crossed the Corinth Canal, entering the Peloponnese. After two wrong turns and a winding journey on a mountainous road hugging the coast, we drove right into the grounds of the ancient healing center of Epidaurus. This was confirmation that the spirit of our journey was already leading us. We decided, however, to check in at Napflio and come back another day when we recovered a bit from jet lag.   

Our first night in Napflio, there was an epic thunderstorm lasting several hours, with more lightning strikes than we had ever seen in a single event. At one time it seemed like Zeus himself was tossing thunderbolts. Of all the places in Napflio, only our apartment lost power, necessitating a visit from our host, one of those small but potent miracles. After conferring with the electric utility, she determined that the only way to restore our power was to flip the master switch. 

I had a dream with Asclepius the night before our second visit to Epidaurus but didn’t recognize him until seeing a frieze of him in the dream temple. Asclepius was both a historical man practicing medicine and a demi-god, known to visit people in their dreams to bring about healing. Those who sought healings would visit the temple, making payment of some sort, then spend the night in hopes of having a dream with Asclepius. Many did. In the museum at Epidaurus there are Stelae, stone monoliths, that look like large gravestones, covered in script, recording many of those miraculous healings that occurred in dreams. 

Epidaurus is a sacred site, a place where earth energies and the spiritual intentions of a group of people have blended, leaving noticeable traces. We could feel the healing energy here. Even the trees were different. There was a species of pine that gave off a very subtle scent that lifted our hearts. The oak trees, relatively small, live long in this arid mountainous country, producing large acorns. We brought home an acorn from an Epidaurus oak which we plan to plant. 

Part of the healing process, the cathartic moments of ancient Greek plays. The theater at Epidaurus is stunning. The acoustics are such that you can drop a coin on the ground and hear it clearly even at the very top. Ancient Greek plays are once again performed there in June and July each year.

After a relaxed day swimming in the Mediterranean near Napflio, we next visited Mycenae, the Seat of Power for the Mycenaean culture. These were the Greeks living in the Age of Heroes. They fought the Trojan War around 1200 BCE. As a retired high school English teacher, having taught many Greek myths and stories, I had a great love for this culture. 

The seat of power at Mycenae still exists. We passed through an energy field, like a curtain, about a half kilometer from the site. This was pure, clean energy. The typical thoughts of the day seemed to drift away as we approached. Upon entering the citadel itself, which sits on a mountain, the wind began to blow. Gentle, insistent. It felt timeless there, like home in the higher worlds. Of all the places we visited in Greece, this for us held the highest vibration. 

The Mycenaean fortress was built with Cyclopean stones, stones so huge that the later Greeks believed only the giant Cyclops could have built them. Most impressive, the massive stone over the entrance, part of the Lion Gate, two lions carved on a triangular shaped stone protecting the city. Mycenae is mentioned in Homer. It was the home of Agamemnon, who was the leader of the Greek armies laying siege to Troy. 

Interesting note, the heroes during the Trojan War and before could actually hear the gods, as meticulously researched by Julian Jaynes in his book, The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind. They had their own version of inner guides, the gods, who could steer them unerringly if they listened carefully. Listening and obeying were key. In the later time of classical Greece, roughly 500 to 300 BCE, this ability seemed to have been lost for most people, perhaps one of the reasons leading to the belief in classical Greece that they were living in a lesser age than the Age of Heroes.   

The longer we vacationed in Greece, the more we began to dream in Greece, sometimes in this era, sometimes from a long time ago. Midway through our stay, Denise had a dream where she was on assignment, driving around the hills and mountains and valleys of Greece, bringing spiritual food. On a monitor in the truck she was driving was an intercom where she could check in and receive instructions from our Spiritual Guide. This was a confirmation that our journey, though planned by us, had also been planned by Spirit for greater purposes. 

The Menelaion, the ancestral home of Menelaus and Helene (Helen of Troy), was my wild goose chase up a steep lonely mountain. The incredible mythic dream of the Trojan War might have begun in this location with the kidnapping of Helen by Paris of Troy. The thought of it captured my imagination, making it a must-see site.

To get there we had to drive almost 3 hours, then take an incredibly narrow dirt road, with switchbacks so intense the road seem to overlap itself. There were a few precipitous drop-offs along the way. Luckily no other vehicle was coming from the opposite direction when we were going up or down. I can’t believe my wife went up there with me. At the top we sat for awhile and looked out over the countryside, dreaming mythic dreams.

On our last day in Napflio we decided to visit Tiryns, another Mycenaean city, since it was only 10 minutes away. That morning, during my daily quiet time, a voice of prophecy spoke to me: “This will be the last day of your mortal life. You will not live past this day.” I thought, well heck, that would be a dramatic end to this vacation. This message repeated several times while we were on a cliffside hike later that morning. On one side, mountains towered above us. On the other a sheer cliff down to the Mediterranean below. I wondered if some accident would occur along this trail, but we hiked six miles without incident. 

That afternoon we arrived at Tiryns. Shortly after climbing into the fortress, I struggled to  breathe. I was suddenly overcome with emotion, weeping and shaking. I walked rapidly to a section of the city away from the few people there. As I walked I remembered living in Tiryns and the sadness I felt on the last day of my life there, leaving the home I loved.

Just as the prophecy stated, “You will not live past this day.” But Duncan lived and Soul had the experience, once again, of knowing that life continues after mortal death. My weeping turned to laughter. I laughed with gratitude for life and for God’s love. 

On our second to last day in Greece, we drove to Delphi. There was a noticeable difference in spiritual energy. It picked up several kilometers away. Denise and I looked at each other. “We have entered a myth,” I said. Delphi is one of the most famous of the ancient Greek sites. Here, lined up in ascending levels on Mt. Parnassus, are sleeping quarters, the Temple of Apollo, a theater, and a stadium, all built into the side of the mountain.

The Temple of Apollo features the oracular vault where the Pythia sat and spoke prophecies that were then translated by attendant priests. This was known as the voice of Apollo. Supplicants would come to Delphi, and if they received a favorable response, would be allowed to ask a question to be answered by the Pythia.

The Delphic prophecies were notable for being vague, open to interpretation. Petitioners, especially those suffering from hubris (offensive pride), were often led to their ruin. The Delphic prophecies were featured in many Greek myths and histories. 

We visited this site twice, once in a hurry on the day we arrived, just to get the lay of the land. The second time early the next morning to try to beat the crowds, we did a contemplation as close to the oracular vault as possible. We heard the HU but not the voice of Apollo. However, both times on the way back down from the temple, at a certain point on the trail, we were overcome with feelings of joy. 

Our time in Greece helped us to see life anew. We had inner and outer adventures in spiritual places. We also learned that behind our plans are the plans that Divine Spirit has for us, infusing every adventure with the opportunity for growth.

 

 Duncan Wyndham is an instructional coach at Portland State University. He is a storyteller and a poet, with a book of poems, “Opening the Love Window,” coming out soon. He lives in Portland, Oregon, with his wife, Denise. Together they enjoy travel and their four grandsons. 

Denise Roy is an Architectural Designer, and teaches at Portland Community College.  She is an active volunteer with local environmental groups. She enjoys photography and painting, along with her four grandsons and travel with her husband.