A Silent HARVEST Going On?

But the chief part of the ceremony which took place in the precincts of the temple has never been described. Those who beheld it were bound by a vow of silence and they kept it so well that we know only stray bits of what was done. The great temple was at Eleusis, a little town near Athens, and the worship was called the Eleusinian Mysteries. Throughout the Greek world and the Roman, too, they were held in especial veneration. Cicero, writing in the century before Christ, says: "Nothing is higher than these mysteries.


...

And yet even so, holy and awesome though they were, they kept the mark of what they had sprung from. One of the few pieces of information we have about them is that at a very solemn moment the worshipers were shown "an ear of corn which had been reaped in silence."



www.dl.ket.org...

"An ear of corn reaped in silence"

What does this mean to you?

I'm not sure what that means to me personally. Perhaps it was "reaped in silence" to show reverence for the goddess' gift.

Not to get off topic but I thought corn as we know it originated here in the Americas. Perhaps the ancient Greeks had some other kind of grain though.

I don't think this is referring to an actual ear of corn. I believe this phrase is being used metaphorically.

Why dont you give everyone here your explination? Giving us a fake story and then asking us if we know anything about it is odd.....

I am all ears.
(pun intended)

Originally posted by Wertdagf
Why dont you give everyone here your explination? Giving us a fake story and then asking us if we know anything about it is odd.....

I don't have an explanation.

I did not give you a "fake story". Here is another mention of it.

The ultimate Mystery was revealed at Eleusis in "an ear of corn reaped in silence"—a sacred fetish that the Jews called shibboleth.

(Walker, The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, pp. 218-220).

paganizingfaithofyeshua.netfirms.com...

Bible scripture tells the story of the word "shibboleth" being used as a code word for passage. If the person could not pronounce it properly, it was evident that he was an outsider trying to infiltrate. (And was thus killed)

So why is this "ear of corn reaped in silence" associated with this ritual of recognition and secret signals?

Bible scripture mentions a harvesting of people.

Is this 'ear of corn' used metaphorically to describe a harvesting of certain people?

Why does the above passage state that this "harvest in silence" is the revelation of an ultimate mystery?



[edit on 13-11-2009 by Alethea]

reply to post by Alethea


I find the silent reaping curious.


That , to me, seems to slightly imply an almost mournful origin. Possibly even a regretful feel.

The ear of corn could also have a phallic connotation, of course.

The ear could refer to those that had heard the wisdom.

Silent reverence, in knowledge. You've mentioned the way it was pronounced was a form of identification. Perhaps it was a symbol that was not exactly said aloud.

Symbolic conversation through acts, and not words. I guess like a secret handshake or demonstration.

reply to post by Alethea


I'm more interested in this part...

And yet even so, holy and awesome though they were, they kept the mark of what they had sprung from.

???

That eerie poster, Hidden-Hand, makes reference to a Harvest. I wonder if *they* are silently harvesting the "corn"?

By the governments, generally, yes. People are seen as 'collateral'. Pawns that are maneuvered around the chess board, according to the game plan. By the Family, contrary to popular beliefs, many of us do not mean you any harm directly. There is just the matter of divine destiny to uphold and unfold, and we must play our parts in the game, as given to us by the Creator. In many ways, it is actually in our own interest that you are prepared for the coming Harvest. Just not maybe prepared in quite the way that you would like. Still, even then, you are choosing the Negative Polarity with your own Free Will decisions, with a little 'help' and direction from us. Souls are Harvestable in either 'extreme' of the Polarities, one could say.


excerpt from: www.abovetopsecret.com...

reply to post by Alethea


Hello Alethea,

If you want my ignorant opinion of what the whole of your text means and what the little snippet means, here you go.

When it comes to mystery schools the first thing you run into is a stone wall. Only the people on the other side of this wall are members of the mystery school. These members as the texts says keep to their vows and that is precisely why there is a stone wall for outsiders.

Now one of the most important aspects for any mystery school would be coming from the out side and becoming a member which entails the candidate being initiated into the mystery school, which with simple logic would entail that the initiation is mostly comprised of holding your tongue, the vow, keeping in silence.

So to me "an ear of corn which had been reaped in silence." means.....

A candidate who has taken his vow and has become entered to the mystery.

But that's just my 2 cents.

[edit on 13-11-2009 by Izarith]

Originally posted by jinx880101
reply to post by Alethea

 

I'm more interested in this part...

And yet even so, holy and awesome though they were, they kept the mark of what they had sprung from.

???

LOL!!!

This....

"And yet even so, holy and awesome though they were, they kept the mark of what they had sprung from."

Is an out dated educated way of saying this....

"???"

How ironic.

I think.

Goddess worship, & the Feminine aspect.

~ from snips taken from OP & thread author's links~

Revelations were imparted to the initiate through secret "things heard, things tasted, and things seen."
Diodorus Siculus declares that "Demeter was the discoverer of corn," who "also taught mankind how to prepare it for food"; and that she was known as Thesmophorus, because she taught men laws, which accustomed them "to the practice of justice" (Strabo, Geography, IX, i, 12).

++ The ultimate Mystery was revealed at Eleusis in "an ear of corn reaped in silence"—a sacred fetish that the Jews called shibboleth (Walker, The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, pp. 218-220).




Eleusis meant "advent." Its principal rites brought about the advent of the Divine Child or Savior, variously named Brimus, Dionysus, Triptolemus, Iasion, or Eleuthereos, the Liberator.

Like the corn, he was born of Demeter-the-earth and laid in a manger or winnowing basket.
His flesh was eaten by communicants in the form of bread (again the Eucharist), made from the first or last sheaves.
His blood was drunk in the form of wine.
Like Jesus, he entered the Earth and rose again.
Communicants were supposed to partake of his immortality, and after death they were known as Demetreioi, blessed ones belonging to Demeter. ...

if you notice, this threads Silent Harvest, was a pre-runner of the Jesus story...
just as Other cultures prior to the pre-christian era also had their own, creators/floods/savior stories & myths...
which were retold-repackaged via the tribes of Israel & their Torah/and later on, the Bibles new testament.


additional aspects of Zeitgeist, (the religion facet)...

what is intriguing is that Persephone (-the-destroyer)
is just one manistifation of the crone/Demeter/et al...
and a statue of Persephone stands atop the U.S. Capitol building

[edit on 13-11-2009 by St Udio]

Originally posted by Izarith

So to me "an ear of corn which had been reaped in silence." means.....

A candidate who has taken his vow and has become entered to the mystery.

Hello Izarith. Thank you for your reply.

I can't quite fit the candidate into the role of the ear of corn.

A candidate is subject to review and just beginning his initiation; an ear of corn is one that is ripe and mature. It seems incongruent to me that 'ear of corn' would be a proper metaphor for one who is just beginning and is not fully grown.

I think this mystery needs further exploration.

Interesting... as I do not believe that corn... corn as we know it anyway, was present anywhere but in the Americas prior to the discovery by Europeans in the late 15th century.

Ref:
www.campsilos.org...

I would like to qualify (or disqualify) my remarks based on the fact that I am not at all familiar with the quoted passage or the date from when it came. But the gist of what I read seemed to indicate a pre-Colombian origin.

[edit on 13-11-2009 by redoubt]

Originally posted by Alethea
That eerie poster, Hidden-Hand, makes reference to a Harvest. I wonder if *they* are silently harvesting the "corn"?

By the governments, generally, yes. People are seen as 'collateral'. Pawns that are maneuvered around the chess board, according to the game plan. By the Family, contrary to popular beliefs, many of us do not mean you any harm directly. There is just the matter of divine destiny to uphold and unfold, and we must play our parts in the game, as given to us by the Creator. In many ways, it is actually in our own interest that you are prepared for the coming Harvest. Just not maybe prepared in quite the way that you would like. Still, even then, you are choosing the Negative Polarity with your own Free Will decisions, with a little 'help' and direction from us. Souls are Harvestable in either 'extreme' of the Polarities, one could say.


excerpt from: www.abovetopsecret.com...

you know in chaco canyon etc, evidence of cannibalistic feasts has been found by archaeologists creating quite a storm. they referred to the human 'meat' as 'MAN CORN'. which is the title of the book that sets out the evidence for the cannibalistic feasts based on bone fragmentation/signs of cooking, etc..




MAN CORN....

.....

Originally posted by redoubt
Interesting... as I do not believe that corn... corn as we know it anyway, was present anywhere but in the Americas prior to the discovery by Europeans in the late 15th century.

Thank you for the contribution, Redoubt. I read your link.

Here is something I have found from another source.

Man Corn: from the Nahuatl (Aztec) word tlacatlaolli which translates to "a sacred meal of sacrificed human meat, cooked with corn."

So now I am wondering...could this passage "an ear of corn reaped in silence" mean that the "corn" was actually a cannabilistic human sacrifice, and the 'reaped in silence' refers to a solemn ceremony?


Could it be that these type ceremonies still continue today? eww.

reply to post by Alethea


Where did that original quote originate... and when? Like I said, I am totally unfamiliar with it.

reply to post by Alethea


oh probably...

well it wud certainly explain why govts/secret societies go to so much troule to conceal the truth. people might get a tad upset if that sort of thing was going on. cannibalism has been around for a while, and in most religions too. so has human and animal sacrifice. even xty has a sacrifice (jesus); and 'fake' cannibalistic feast: blood and body of christ and you eat it. also the bit where you say 'things they taste'... i have heard that one of the initiations for secret soceity is drinking blood. dunno where i read that tho. who knows.

but dont forget, humans kill and eat animals too. im just saying, think in terms of biology. the aliens may be carnivorous like lions or something.. (some of them. some are hopefully vegetarian....)

also have you read the book 'strange harvest' by moulton howe? given the title of your thread, maybe u shud, if you havent..?

Originally posted by rapunzel222

you know in chaco canyon etc, evidence of cannibalistic feasts has been found by archaeologists creating quite a storm. they referred to the human 'meat' as 'MAN CORN'. which is the title of the book that sets out the evidence for the cannibalistic feasts based on bone fragmentation/signs of cooking, etc..

MAN CORN....

.....

Rapunzel....Wow! Too coincidental! We must have posted at the same time. Your post was not on the board yet when I saw the thread. I was reading the Cedar Mesa Project.


We know that cannabilistic societies have existed in the past. Whether the cannibalism was a way of life for a primitive mind or whether it was a means of population control...that is one thing.

But with the secret mystery schools, if indeed this "ear of corn" refers to man corn and cannibalistic rituals, it would seem to be more of a 'religious' concept than a social concept.

If this is part of a solemn ceremony...then it should be a regularly kept feast. (Not necessarily annual, either.) Now the question is...how do we find out what their special ceremonies really are and when are their most solemn feast days? And which calendar are they using? (I would suspect a lunar calendar.)







[edit on 13-11-2009 by Alethea]

reply to post by Alethea


ha ha, wow tahts weird !!!! i thought u had read my thread before you posted. Ha

[edit on 13-11-2009 by rapunzel222]