Mythos Monday: THE MUSES

When you can't go out, you need an outlet. It only takes one quick scroll through Instagram to be flooded with original artwork, digital choirs, and occasionally, amateurish folklore blogs. You feel yourself getting envious of how people are able to write memoirs while you have watched an entire season of Avatar: the Last Airbender in two days. You need inspiration and definitely motivation so desperately, you look to Greek Mythology for the answers. Enter the Muses.

First, let's be clear: you do not need to spend quarantine writing the next great American novel. If you really want to and the idea is just scratching at your skin to get out, go right on ahead and wow the world. But don't force yourself into an emotional place that you aren't ready for. We all need to be taking some time out of the day to actually feel what we are feeling. Many of us just trying to survive, and thriving artistically is completely out of the question. If that is you, keep taking care of yourself so you can eventually take care of the world around you again.

That being said, creativity can be a great form of self-care. But the tank runs dry pretty quickly when I am not being stimulated by my old, hectic life. Maybe what we all need is a little divine inspiration, and who better to call than the Greek muses?

For those unfamiliar, the muses are the nine the daughters Mnemosyne memory and that garbage-pile of a god we call Zeus. If you are new to Greek mythology, it only takes one quick Google search to realize that these women had one of, if not the worst, father in the ancient world. I am sure they were also aware of this fact, as they didn't spend all their time hanging out on Mount Olympus with dear old dad. Instead, they made their home in other sacred Greek locations, such as the Pierian Spring where all arts and sciences were said to flow. How disgustingly poetic.

In their earliest manifestation, the individual Muses didn't have distinct domains. They were only the inspiring conquests and companions of Apollo, the god of reason, poetry, and all else "apollonian." Hesiod, a shepherd turned poet, was once visited by the Muses and described their collective as "of one mind, their hearts are set upon song and their spirit is free from care. He is happy whom the Muses love."

The Muses' cosmic love was often invoked or showered upon great poets and artists, such as Hesiod and Homer. Similar to Catholic saints, an individual muse may be called on when the individual is in need of inspiration within that muses particular domain. Despite the fact very few stories feature the women, they were so revered that cults even arose around the women, although they were more apollonian and less wildly dionysian.

Of course, you can always call on the entire collection of Muses as Homer did in some of his works. But you may reap better results if you know which Muse to call on based on your specific project. So let's look at the domains of the nine muses as they are named by Hesiod:

EUTERPE

Want to channel the same energy as Eric Whitaker, Conspirare, and everyone else taking their music online? Then it is best to go to the source with the Muse of music herself, Euterpe. With a name that means delightful and joyous, there is no way you won't be able to get out of bed and make your way to that guitar you haven't touched since eighth grade.

POLYHYMNIA

Maybe you have more specific musical interests. Right now, churches are struggling as they are not able to safely meet together and sing. Luckily, Polyhymnia is here to bring the praise. Hymnia, of course, refers to her connection to sacred music. And the poly? Maybe that is because she is also associated with basically everything. Need help with your math homework? As long as its geometry, she can help you. Is your garden looking a little whithered? The Muse of agriculture is there for you. Feeling flustered? Yup, she is the patroness of meditation, too. Basically, if you don't know what Muse to call on, Polyhymnia is a safe bet.

MELPOMENE

Enough with music. Let's move on to a different type of chorus: the Greek chorus. That's right, Melpomene is the Muse of tragedy. Greek tragedies were not just plays about star crossed lovers or tyrannical kings. They were a cultural cornerstone, featuring music, poetry, dance, and religiosity. Aristotle even felt that Greek tragedies were able to purify their audiences. As the hero falls, the viewer experiences catharsis as terror cleanses the soul. I think we could all use a little soul cleansing about now.

THALIA

Maybe you aren't in the mood to write a sulk script. If all you want to do is laugh and share that laughter with others, call on Thalia, the Muse of all things comedy and idyllic poetry. Like Melpomene, she is easily recognized as the drama queen she is. She and her tragic sister can often be recognized by their actor's boots and masks, Thalia sporting the traditional comic mask we still recognize today. Unlike most late-night shows, she knows women can be funny, too.

TERPSICHORE

Let's keep joviality going with some dancing. Really there isn't a lot to say about Terpsichore, the Muse of dance. And as someone with two left feet, I don't find her particularly worth discussing. However, she is also associated with choral singing, so I guess I have to give her some props. If you have plans to start a virtual choir, you may as well call on both Euterpe and Terpsichore.

CALLIOPE

Once you are done crafting your COVID-19 ballet, you'll be pretty tuckered out and in need of a good story. You have heard of Homer and Virgil, but these men would be nothing without Calliope, the Muse of epic poetry. As the chieftess of the muses and the most common ascribed mother of the bard, Orpheus, Calliope has the most backstory and prominence of the nine muses. Her name means "beautiful voice" in Greek, which may be why she is associated with Orpheus and is the namesake of the calliope organ. Beautiful voice? Epic stories? She is the Muse you want to read you bedtime stories.

ERATO

Or you might want something a little steamier. Erato is your gal. As the Muse of lyrical and love poetry, it makes sense why she is the namesake of the "erotic." It's hard to find love is while social distancing, she is just the person to call for help constructing that perfect Tinder message.

CLIO

In this weird alternate timeline we have fallen into, I have become abnormally nostalgic for life before COVID. Heck, I have even found myself missing high school. Yikes. In those moments, I could use some facts and someone to take off those rose-colored glasses. Clio, the Muse of history, is there for all with an interest in the past. You might feel her presence on those late nights going down Wikipedia rabbit holes.

URANIA

However, looking back has it's own atrocities and anxieties. So it might be time to look a little beyond this world entirely with our final Muse. Urania is the governess of the stars and all things astronomy. Now, it may be strange to see disciplines like astronomy and history sitting beside dance and theatre. However, the Greeks were obsessed with applying logic to the illogical like beauty and love. In fact, Urania also so happens to be the symbol of universal love.

It is Urania's loving aspect that leads us to why the Muses are so appealing but unfulfilling. Poet, Constance Naden, had a unique view of the Muse. In her poem, "The Astronomer," Urania visits Naden to make a promise:

"Be thy heart my secret shrine, So shall they strength endure.

So shall thy god-like wisdom soar above All rainbow hues of grief or mirth, And I will love thee as the stars do love Even thy distant earth."

Naden's Urania is promising a lot more than just inspiration, which W.H. Auden described as a goddess whispering in the ear of the artist. The Muses are often described as easily fleeting as their mother, Memory. But Naden is getting something more important from the Muses: consistency. Urania is promising the endurance of passion, sustaining the astronomer, or the artist, when all the inspiration has run out.

Being stuck inside all day has a way of snuffing out your motivation. Writing this blog has really shown me that my artistic stamina is not what it once was. Ideas are not the problem. I have plenty of ideas. What I am working on is writing even when all I can think about is if there are any lemon Oreos left in the cupboard. I can't just stop whenever the Muses take a coffee break. If Homer only wrote when Calliope was rubbing his shoulders, my guess is that we wouldn't have The Odyssey.

So go ahead and place a picture of your favorite Muse above your desk. What can it hurt? But instead of using it summon great ideas, use it as a reminder to keep creating, and let your "god-like wisdom soar above all rainbow hues of grief or mirth." The world looks like a shade of grief right now, and we need art more than ever. Until next time, keep creating

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Works Cited

"catharsis."Aesthetics A-Z, Eran Guter, Edinburgh University Press, 1st edition, 2010. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.goshen.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/eupaes/catharsis/0?institutionId=4125. Accessed 15 Jun. 2020.

"Terpsichore."The American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, edited by Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries, Houghton Mifflin, 6th edition, 2016.Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.goshen.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/hmdictenglang/terpsichore/0?institutionId=4125. Accessed 15 Jun. 2020.

"Tragedy." Bloomsbury Guide to Human Thought, edited by Kenneth McLeish, Bloomsbury, 1st edition, 1993. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.goshen.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/bght/tragedy/0?institutionId=4125. Accessed 15 Jun. 2020.

Cook, James Wyatt. "Hesiod."Encyclopedia of Ancient Literature, James Wyatt Cook, Facts On File, 2nd edition, 2014. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.goshen.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/fofal/hesiod/0?institutionId=4125. Accessed 15 Jun. 2020.

Fry, Stephen. Mythos. Michael Joseph, 2017.

Hamilton, Edith, and Monica Ferrell. Mythology: Edith Hamilton. Spark Pub., 2002.

Naden, Constance. The Complete Poetical Works of Constance Naden. Forgotten Books, 2018.