The human race is extremely superstitious in nature. Even in this age of availability of extensive information and knowledge, logic often takes a back seat in the first instance (Berk 2016). People tend to associate the occurrences in the natural world with that of a higher Super Power which cannot be defined or be touched. Such a frame of mind is due to the evolution of mythologies and mystical stories. Mythology refers to a story which is told through out the ages for the purposes of developing morals and values (Potter 2018). People consider these stories to be fantasies and fairy tales but their implications on the shaping of society is high. The religious doctrines are framed keeping the mythologies and their values in mind. The Gods and Goddesses mentioned in the mythologies find their standing even in the modern religions of the world. Mythologies also have a strong influence in shaping the concerned society. The values and morals derived from these stories help the people of the society to understand what is expected of them and what the things which are considered to be immoral are (Berk 2016). As such, the influence of mythology can be found both in the religion of the world and in the society where such myths have taken birth. The Roman mythology derives its inspiration from the Greek mythology and Italian influences. Most of the Gods and Goddesses defined in Roman mythology have their foundation in Greek mythology (Chatterjee 2017). This paper seeks to discuss the influence of Roman mythology on Roman religion and society. For this purpose the paper first discusses about the evolution of Roman mythology, making references to some of the most important stories in this mythology. The paper then analyzes the modern Roman religion and sees the extent to which Roman mythology has influenced the shaping of modern Roman religion. Next, the paper looks in to the impact of Roman mythology on the Roman society and analyzes how Roman mythology has influenced Roman society. The paper concludes with the significance of mythology and its impact in the contemporary modern time period.
The Gods and Goddesses mentioned in Roman mythology were conceived to be very friendly with the human population (Berk 2016). They interacted with the human race frequently and also interfered in the ordering of their society. When the civilization of Rome began to become dominant in the peninsula of Italy, the people of Rome began to draw heavily from the culture of the Greeks (Hamilton 2017). The impact of Greece on Rome was so high that there was even an overlap in their mythical stories. However, prior to the influence of Greeks on the Romans, there were around thirty original gods and goddesses who belonged solely to the Roman civilization. These gods and goddesses were known as “indigetes” and they constituted the Roman pantheon (Hamilton 2017). The people of Rome even held festivities and celebrations in honor of these gods and goddesses. Roman mythology, like all other mythologies of the world sought to provide certain moral values to the human race, which they considered to be important for the society. It is for such aspect that the gods and goddesses of Roman mythology were considered to belong to one particular aspect of life or domain. For instance, the character of Ceres was seen to be a goddess whose main domain was the growth of crops (Oosten 2015). Thus, whenever Rome was in need of more food grains, the people worshiped the goddess of Ceres so that their food crops would increase.
With regard to the growth and development of the religion in Rome, Roman mythology has had a profound influence. According to the stories, the second king of Rome of Sabine, names Numa Pompilius was the god who founded the civilization of Rome (Bondanella 2017). Numa was married to a goddess names Tatia, but rumor has it that the god also had a consort, by the way of Egeria (Bondanella 2017). She was a nymph or a goddess of prophecy and also of the fountains. The most important gods and goddesses of the Roman mythology are that of Minerva, Juno and Jupiter. Minerva is considered to the goddess of wisdom (Oosten 2015). According to mythology, Minerva was the goddess who was the most intelligent and exercised great strategies and tactics while undertaking any decision (Hamilton 2017). The god known as Jupiter is the God of War (Oosten 2015). His character is portrayed to be one of aggressive and impulsive but always manages to win the war due to his cunning and shrewd war decisions. Juno is the goddess of love and peace (Hamilton 2017). Her character taught people how to be graceful and always fight for the loved ones.
The main objective in the evolution of mythology is the various moralistic doctrines which are imbibed in the religious scriptures. Rome is seen to be a country of great reverence for tradition and customs (Vukovi? 2018). The religion of Rome is highly influenced by the mythologies in the sense that even in the modern contemporary period, the references made to the Roman mythology is very high. The ancient Roman religion based on mythology began to gradually fade away with the introduction of Christianity within the peninsular region. Christianity began to attract many rulers in the European continent and when Constantine I became the ruler of the Roman civilization, he introduced the doctrines of Christianity within the Roman civilization (Hunt 2016). This was the time when the ancient Roman religion gave way to the new religion of Christianity. However, this did not mean that Roman mythology stopped having influence over the religious scriptures. There are several important gods and goddesses of the Roman mythology which is referenced even till date. For instance, the god of Apollo is considered to be the God of Sun (Welch 2015). The day “Sunday” is considered to be the day when Apollo is worshipped. Moreover, the goddess Fourtuna is worshipped as she is considered to be the one impacting the fortune of a person (Hamilton 2017). The god of love, Cupid is worshipped worldwide as he makes people fall in love (Maurizio 2015). All the various gods and goddesses as a result, still find their standing in the modern world due to their imagery in the ancient mythological stories.
Roman mythology also has a huge impact on the Roman society (Hamilton 2017). The very purpose of mythological stories is that they provide certain values and moralistic ideals which needs to be adhered by the society for their well-being (Blundell 2016). Myths consist of many such characters, especially those of various gods and goddesses which have certain human like qualities. These gods and goddesses are shown to be facing those crises which any individual could have faced and the myths then tell a story on how those gods and goddesses used their power and presence of mind to overcome the concerned obstacle. As a result, myths are shown to those stories which inspire the human race to undertake relevant challenges and used moral ideals to overcome the hurdle (Hansen 2017). The people of the Roman society are considered to be very fierce and wise because the society is framed after the reading of such mythologies. These Romans derive their ideas and inspiration from the god of Jupiter and Minerva and the like (Blundell 2016). These gods and goddesses are the epitome of moral values and courage and they have played a significant role in shaping the Roman society as evidenced today.
The gods and goddesses are shown in their human form in the mythologies, consisting of various human emotions such as hate, jealousy, love and envy (Berk 2016). The mythologies tell a tale of how these various gods and goddesses overcame their hurdles with determination and strength. The myths encouraged the people to use such strength and nobility while undertaking any action because the world is not a fair place where everything will go in accordance to one’s desires (Campbell 2017). The monsters defeated by the gods and goddesses in these mythologies represent the problems and hardships faced by the people in the modern world of today. Just like how those gods and goddesses overcame their problem, the mythologies try to show that it is possible for the human race also to overcome their burdens (Segal 2015). The important life lessons have been portrayed in these mythologies and as such, their impact on the shaping of the society is too paramount. The importance of Roman mythology on Roman society has been mentioned by many scholars. One such scholar is that of Ovid. Ovid was sent to exile by the then Emperor Augustus who wanted to bring the old gods of Rome back in to reverence (Berk 2016). In his works, especially that of Metamorphoses, Ovid wrote about the creation of the world and the transformation of the human bodies from the past to the present age. He talked about all the ages and how the gods and goddesses behaved in these time periods. All of these stories mentioned in the book has helped the future generation to understand the basis of the Roman civilization and the various qualities needed in an individual who would form an integral part of the Roman society (Berk 2016).
In conclusion it is observed that mythologies play a significant part in the shaping of religion and society of the human population. Rome is a country where the religious doctrines of Christianity is followed. However, due to the presence of many gods and goddesses in the ancient times, the society of Rome still worships not a single deity but many number of deities. This has a serious impact of the Roman religion as the mythologies have changed the very thinking capacity of the Roman people. Moreover, the stories of the mythologies also inspire the people to act in similar manner with determinism and nobility while undertaking any tasks. The society of Rome is rich in cultural values and traditions in their outlook and this is a significant contribution of the Roman mythologies. The very purpose of mythologies is to impart certain important morals to the people which are considered to be socially desirable. Rome, as a society, has managed to ascribe to these moral ideas of great strength and courage as those propounded by the deities of Minerva and Jupiter. These in turn, has shaped the modern society of Rome along with its religion in accordance with the values mentioned in the Roman mythologies.
References:
Berk, F.M., 2016. The role of mythology as a cultural identity and a cultural heritage: the case of phrygian myhtology. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 225, pp.67-73.
Blundell, S., 2016. The Origins of Civilization in Greek and Roman Thought (Routledge Revivals). Routledge.
Bondanella, P., 2017. The Eternal City: Roman Images in the Modern World. UNC Press Books.
Campbell, J., 2017. The historical development of mythology. JCF (all but Amazon) via PublishDrive.
Chatterjee, R., 2017. Vintage Wine in New Bottles: A ThinkSpace approach to Greek and Roman Mythology.
Hamilton, E., 2017. Mythology: Timeless tales of gods and heroes. Hachette UK.
Hansen, W., 2017. The Book of Greek and Roman Folktales, Legends, and Myths. Princeton University Press.
Hunt, A., 2016. Reviving Roman Religion: Sacred Trees in the Roman World. Cambridge University Press.
Maurizio, L., 2015. Classical mythology in context.
Oosten, J.G., 2015. The War of the Gods (RLE Myth): The Social Code in Indo-European Mythology. Routledge.
Potter, T., 2018. Origins Of Empire: The Lasting Influence Of Ancient Ecological Behaviors In Roman Mythology.
Segal, R.A., 2015. The rebirth of the hero: mythology as a guide to spiritual transformation.
Vukovi?, K., 2018. Rome Fellowships: The mythology of the Tiber in Roman space and literature. Papers of the British School at Rome, 86, pp.347-348.
Welch, T.S., 2015. Tarpeia: Workings of a Roman Myth. The Ohio State University Press.
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