The figure of Orpheus and the Mysteries
of Orphism originate in Greek Antiquity
and have continued to influence the
Western world to the present day. In this timeline,
we trace major events and figures in the Orphic
tradition, from its earliest mentions to the present
day. The figure of Orpheus, in philosophy,
spirituality, and the arts is perhaps one of the
most enduring and pervasive in history, as the
many Orpheum Theaters today attest.
Orphic Hymn
I am a child of Earth and
starry Sky, but my race is heavenly. You
yourselves know this. I am parched with thirst
and am dying; but quickly grant me cold
water flowing from the Lake of Memory.
Orphic Mysteries
What Orpheus delivered in hidden allegories, Pythagoras learned when he was initiated into the Orphic Mysteries; and Plato next received a perfect knowledge of them from the Orphean and Pythagorean writings. – Proclus