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 What Caused the Greco-Roman Obsession with the Phallus? (21)

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What Caused the Greco-Roman Obsession with the Phallus?

The Worship of the Penis

To Ancient Greece, the penis was the main symbol of fertility.

- History of Sex, Ancient Greece

One of the more astonishing aspects of Greco-Roman culture was their acute obsession with sex organs, especially male genitalia. Phallic worship is known to have been practiced by a number of different Pagan religions , but none could ever match the emphasis that the Greco-Roman builders and artists had with the penis. Here is a short synopsis concerning this fairly pornographic tradition:

In Ancient Greek art, there is a lot of phallus or penis worship by men. Men are generally depicted naked, including soldiers...Prostitutes were generally depicted naked with naked men. Men liked to depict their own penises as dainty little penises in later Greek art. Early Greek art (5th century BC) tells a different tale. In the artwork from that timeframe, men gave themselves oversized phalluses. Sometimes they had double penises. They depicted plants as being penises in the ground. They even depicted animals as having penis features, such as a horse with an erect penis for a head or birds with erect penises for heads.

- History of Sex, Ancient Greece

More than a few of the official religious rites and rituals of Greco-Roman Paganism, also included an inordinate amount of phalluses. For example, when 'the Dionysus cult had a public parade every year in which the men carried the largest penis possible by a team of men in a parade through the cities.' When it came to worshiping Hephaestus, this god is nearly always depicted riding on a donkey who sports a fairly large erection, Also, in the Temple of Aphrodite, 'the altars were topped with phalluses.' There is also a legend concerning a extremely phallocentric god whose Temple has yet to be discovered. Here are the details concerning this unknown god of the penis:

We know from the writings of monks in monasteries that they found a rather unique temple in Velia. This temple's god had no face, nor body, but was represented in the form of a penis and called "Mutunus Tutunus." Phalluses were erected all over this temple and sometimes the penis statues would be crowned with flowers.

- History of Sex, Roman Empire

The phallus wasn't just a preoccupation of the artists and the priests aiding in the creations of new idols and temples. It was also a matter of common sense and business self-interest. Greco-Roman merchants even 'created dildos constructed from leather and marketed them.'

In a rather ironic twist of fate, many Greco-Roman fertility rites and practices were centered not upon the female and feminine sexuality, but upon the male and phallic idolatry. To symolize new life 'the penis was the main symbol of fertility', instead of the womb, or the woman's body. As once source concludes 'fertility was taken from the women and given to the men both in their religion and through phallic iconization.' According to a peculiar set of Greek myths, Zeus had somehow found himself miraculously pregnant and eveutually 'gave brith to the gods. Because of this, 'Zeus' penis became the womb for the gods' furuther establishing phallic worship as a major aspect of Greco-Roman religious faith.

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2 points

Manliness meant a lot back then. You had to defend yourself, know how to hunt and compete and generally be tough.

What was one thing men have that the fairer gender lacks? DICKS.

BIG FUCKING DICKS. And so they LOVED dicks. They put it on pottery, on walls, on EVERYTHING.

It was a symbol of fertility, of pleasure, of lust and of manhood.

maccabaeus(231) Disputed
1 point

I'll give you another, far more simple answer. It can explained using the following equation.

Abstract Monotheism = Heterosexuality

Phallic Polytheism = Homosexuality

Well, we know that Greco-Roman Paganism had a lot of Phallic worship. What else did they have a lot of?

Prevalence of Homosexuality

Male homosexuality was common in Ancient Greece,

- Ancient Greece, History of Sex

We know that like the Greeks, Roman men frequently engaged in prostitution.

- History of Sex, Roman Empire

However research would seem to suggest homosexuality was rife in ancient Rome.

- Nick Pisa, Daily Mail

There is no disputing how enormously widespread [homosexual] practices were, far wider than anything we find in our contemporary societies.

- Pederasty & Homosexuality in Ancient Greece, by José Solano

Homosexual relationships seem to have been prevalent in ancient Greece.

- Homosexuality and the Ancient Greeks

Attraction to males and homosexual relationships in the active role with one's social inferiors was common, approved by society, and could even be regarded as a sign of masculinity.

- ReligionFacts.com

The collapse of the Roman Empire and the arrival of the Barbarians was due to the spread of homosexuality...The Roman colony of Carthage was a paradise for homosexuals and they infected many others.

- Professor De Mattei

The ancient Greek experience with homosexuality provides the historical and empirical evidence that socially sanctioned homosexuality can spread its practice to practically the entire society.

- Pederasty & Homosexuality in Ancient Greece, by José Solano

1 point

Abstract Monotheism = Heterosexuality

Abstract Monotheism = Preaching heterosexuality and condemning homosexuality, then turning around (no pun intended) and getting it on with a male prostitute in secret before returning to your wife and children and ministry. I.e. massive fucking hypocrite

There. Fixed.

And look how great those society were. :)

And look how great those societies were. ;)

2 points

They weren't obsessed with dicks, they just didn't have the perverted attitude towards the human body that the monotheistic religions have encouraged.

The Greeks and the Romans had a healthy attitude towards their body, whereas perverts like yourself want everyone to hate their own bodies so they feel as guilty as possible. After all, guilt is what religion feeds on.

maccabaeus(231) Disputed
1 point

The most likely explanations as to their Phallic worshiping tendencies are historically obvious. Many, many, many of them were, quite simply, gay. I wonder if they somehow were highly susceptible to the so-called gay gene? I doubt it...

Prevalence of Homosexuality

Male homosexuality was common in Ancient Greece,

- Ancient Greece, History of Sex

We know that like the Greeks, Roman men frequently engaged in prostitution.

- History of Sex, Roman Empire

However research would seem to suggest homosexuality was rife in ancient Rome.

- Nick Pisa, Daily Mail

There is no disputing how enormously widespread [homosexual] practices were, far wider than anything we find in our contemporary societies.

- Pederasty & Homosexuality in Ancient Greece, by José Solano

Homosexual relationships seem to have been prevalent in ancient Greece.

- Homosexuality and the Ancient Greeks

Attraction to males and homosexual relationships in the active role with one's social inferiors was common, approved by society, and could even be regarded as a sign of masculinity.

- ReligionFacts.com

The collapse of the Roman Empire and the arrival of the Barbarians was due to the spread of homosexuality...The Roman colony of Carthage was a paradise for homosexuals and they infected many others.

- Professor De Mattei

The ancient Greek experience with homosexuality provides the historical and empirical evidence that socially sanctioned homosexuality can spread its practice to practically the entire society.

- Pederasty & Homosexuality in Ancient Greece, by José Solano

anachronist(889) Disputed
2 points

I'll say it again, the Greeks and Romans had a healthy attitude towards their sexuality and their own bodies. Most people are actually slightly bisexual, but thanks to bigots like yourselves, people can't be honest about their sexuality anymore.

Why do you hate you so obsessed with other people's sexuality and sex lives, maccabaeus? Are you jealous? Are you more of a voyeur? Are you gay?

And even if there was an absurd amount of bumming in Greece and Rome, why would that be bad? What's wrong with gay people? Who are you to tell me what do do with my penis? I'm happy with the way my body is, and I'm honest about my sexuality (Personally I err on the side of bisexuality). Why are you so obsessed with sex?

1 point

Question: What the one, the only, the absolute, primary, and sole cause of this obsession?

Answer:Homosexuality

Uh... have you seen the Washington monument? What about the Eiffel Tower? Big Ben? So long as men have dicks men will relate to the phallus. This is prevalent in all cultures, past and present, far and wide. Also, homosexuality is prevalent in all cultures (some just prefer to practice it in the closet [i.e. Saudi Arabia or the American Bible Belt] and pretend it's not a "problem") and if the Greco-Romans embraced and celebrated their homosexual community, more power to them. That's a damn sight more progressive than the Christian Church.

1 point

Would the leaning tower of Pisa be a symbol of erectile dysfunction?

I dont see why not =D

maccabaeus(231) Disputed
1 point

So you see nothing wrong with a slow, but steady increase in the frequency of pedophilia, for example? Or do you actually believe that won't ever happen now, because we're so much more enlightened now? I doubt it and suspect that things may get pretty bad in the coming decades and centuries that follow:

The Quest for Little Boys

The form of homosexuality that was most common in ancient Greece was pedophilia, meaning a relationship between an adult man and a male youth. For the Greeks, pederasty was more than a sexual pasttime or preference - it was nearly a social institution. A same-sex relationship between an older man, probably in his 20s or 30s, known as the erastes, and a beardless boy, the eromenos or paidika, became a cultural ideal. The relationship was regarded as mutually beneficial, as the older man would educate, protect, love, and provide a role model for his lover, while the eromenos offered his partner with beauty, youth, admiration, and love.

- Homosexuality and the Ancient Greeks, ReligionFacts.com

Pedophilia...became the ideal form of homosexual relationships. A free male youth was a more noble partner than a male slave (and perhaps more than a woman as well) because he could be from a noble family and would eventually become a free citizen.

- Homosexuality and the Ancient Greeks, ReligionFacts.com

The institutionalized practice of homosexual relationships between men and boys may date as far back as 650 B.C. and that it was apparently a premeditated means, established by Cretan "sages," of preventing overpopulation in the upper classes. It then spread to other areas of the Greek speaking world. "Culture" was transmitted in Athens by the "best" men "training" the "best" boys...[Some[ believe that it was the means by which the "Greek miracle" provided the foundation of Western civilization.

- Pederasty & Homosexuality in Ancient Greece, by José Solano

It appears that a male citzen who had been an eromenos in his youth lost no respect for it - in fact a history with a noble partner could be an honor - but he was expected to take the active role (whether with a women or a man) now that he had become an adult.

- Homosexuality and the Ancient Greeks, ReligionFacts.com

1 point

I think you missed the point of my post and I don't know how we jumped to pedophilia. That, and I'm unclear on what you're trying to say. I think pedophilia will probably always continue to exist as it has in the past, and no, I don't support it.

1 point

Look at most of the male idols from Greek and Roman culture. Most had sex with several women.

They probably saw the penis as "extra cool" because it isn't burdened to stop while waiting on a child to be born. Males can impregnate others while already having a baby on the way, it also erects when stimulated, take that and remove all sexual meaning from that for a minute--what else erects when stimulated? Most crops they had. They grow upward. To build house or watchtower you have to erect one. We stand erected to become "productive".

I think Greco-Roman culture thought because of this, the penis is a symbol for much of the life around them.

Males being free and the protectors, only encouraged the penis to be worshipped.

As for homosexuality, sex itself wasn't too big of a deal in terms of who you do it with, the penis was all around, sex was all around, so it was an open culture.

maccabaeus(231) Disputed
1 point

It was also a culture featuring violent rape as a man's natural right, while the wife and sister and mother would hide in the corner, while the screaming little slave boys and girls were given force-fed lessons about the birds and the bees:

+ The Right to Rape +

Rape was common in Ancient Greece and seen by men as a 'right of domination.'

- Ancient Greece, History of Sex

Everyone agrees that even today rape remains a serious problem which must be prevented at any cost. However, the modern world's prosecution and incarceration of rapists is, in fact, a distinctly Judeo-Christian practice. Throughout the many centuries of Christianity, rape was seen as an outrage which was severely punished by the Church and State authorities. It never worked perfectly, of course, but the main ideal of catching and punishing those who sexualy assaulted others has enver waivered for nearly 2,000 yeas.

In stark contrast to this, many pre-Christian societies seldom, if ever, bothered to punish those who sexually assaulted others, whether they were male or female, slave or free. Greco-Roman civilization was no different and, as a consequence, the frequency of rape was much, much higher than it is today.

Indeed, it is only due to the Christian faith that the Roman Empire finally made rape a serious crime and began pnnishing those who committed it. Before that occurred however, the practice of violent sexual assault was viewed by Pagans as being within their 'rights' to do so, and that they did. A common method used by Greco-Roman males was to hide themselves near the wells used for drinking water. The rapists 'staked out water wells and then raped the women when they went to get water.' These weren't the only victims. One source notes that it was very common for Greco-Roman men 'to rape prostitutes, slaves, and their own wives.' Prostitutes, in particular, were vulnerable to attacks as 'Roman men were also allowed to beat and rape prostitutes who didn't perform the services they wanted for the prices that they wanted.'

Were Greece and Rome exceptional examples when it came to the acceptance and frequent occurence of violent rape? One should keep in mind that the ancient world also contained cultures where rape was fairly uncommon and highly frowned upon by most everyone. Some of them even had laws which prohibited and punished rape as a crime. The key to understanding why rape was such a common practice within the Greco-Roman Empire, is to understand their religious faith. In short, the Pagan Greeks, and soon after them the Romans, worshiped a certain set of gods who were known to be serial rapists, as well as violent murderers and sexual perverts. One source notes the major myths surrounding at least some of these Pagan deities:

Zeus, the god, was the master rapist who raped many women. He raped Leda in the form of a swan. He raped Danae disguised as the rain. He raped Alkmen disguised as her own husband. Zeus even raped other men, such as Ganymede.

- Ancient Greece, History of Sex

Thus, it should come as no surprise that rape was indeed tolerated and frequently practiced by a great many Greco-Roman men. One of the only groups that had a strict prohibition against rape were the Jews. History took a turn for the better when the religion of Christianity finally began to gain influence over the beliefs and behaviors of Greco-Roman citizens. In time, rape became a serious crime as it still is today.