Mithras: Introduction

Mithras, the focus of the cult

The Mysteries of Mithras was a prominent mystery religion in the Roman Empire from early A.D.  to the 4th century. In theory, it came from Persia, being the roman version of the Persian fire/sun god Mithra. This theory was espoused by Franz Cumont, though there is much debate about this. Plutarch claims that it was started by the pirates of Cicilia in Asia minor and, because of archeological evidence showing that the most important cult in this area was dedicated to Perseus, David Ulansey, in his The Origins of the Mithraic Mysteries, takes this to mean that Mithras is a version of Perseus and uses this to develop his theory on the astrological focus of Mithraism.

Because of the nature of a mystery religion, the adherents wrote nothing down, at least, nothing that survived. There exists a text referred to as the “Mithras Liturgy” from the Greek Magical Papyri and it should be taken into account, but its legitimacy is questioned. The only information available from ancient times are the temples themselves (called “Mithraeums” by scholars), the iconography and offerings in them, and the things written about them by ancient writers.

Each temple (Mithraeum) was different, but had at its focus the tauroctony, the image (usually carved) of Mithras killing a bull. The meaning of this is debated. Cumont's “The Mysteries of Mithra” consider it an expression of Mithras as a creator. The bull has wheat emerging from its tail, Mithras stabbing him with a dagger, usually in the shoulder while looking away, a scorpion attached to the bull's testicles, and a dog and a snake drinking the blood. Cumont and various other scholars consider this to mean that by killing the bull, Mithras brings fertility to the world, essentially creating it, while accompanied by Sol, Luna, and the Torchbearers. This idea draws much from the Iranian legends and is supported by the Neo-Platonist Porphyry who, in his commentary "The Cave of the Nymphs”, cites Eubolos as saying that Mithra was the “maker and father of all things”. Cumont also takes the fact that Mithras is looking away to mean that he is listening to the raven perched on his cloak which is giving him orders from Sol to kill the bull. Other ideas on the meaning of this scene focus on the astronomical implications. This theory is espoused by, among others, Beck, Ulansey, and Gordon. The idea, basically, is that the bull-slaying scene is actually a star chart which was meant to serve as a guide for the initiates soul. Obviously, none of this can be said for certain. With the mystery religions, all we can do is make educated guesses from the scant material that survives.

Part of the difficulty of understanding the religion comes from the fact that no two Mithraeums are the same. There are some similarities. The general layout has a central aisle flanked by benches on each side. There was often a niche or a relief attached to the back wall at the end of the aisle. In front of this were two fire altars.¹ The temples were meant to look like caves and the size of them varied considerably, some being twenty m. or more, though they were usually smaller as the Mysteries was a “Religion of small groups”.² This was the general layout but style varied according to taste and no two were exactly alike. There can be, and often were, elements in one not present in any other.

-----

    1. Vermaserein,Mithras, the Secret God. 39-40

    2. Turcan, Cults of the Roman Empire 218-219