Sirince, Turkey: Safe Haven according to Mayan Believers

 

Tourists have been flocking to a small village in Turkey called Sirince as the rest of world welcomes the “21st of December” – the day as foretold by the ancient Mayan Hieroglyps would be the end of the world. Sirince is a small agricultural village famous for its wines, olive oil, soaps and other beauty products. Indeed, anyone who visits Sirince will fall in-love with this former Greek village. It is different from the urban and fast-paced lifestyle of Kusadasi and Izmir but also has this so-called therapeutic silence; a place of relaxation and rejuvenation. It is also said to be the ascension place of the Blessed Mother when she had stayed in the Bulbul mountains close to Ephesus.  With all these positive auras, qualities and stories; it is no wonder that believers and spiritualists associate Sirince as a safe haven against the impending end of the world.

 

Happy New Aztec era!!! 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

Istanbul’s Underground Cistern: Finding Luck with Medusa’s Head

One of the most recognizable faces in ancient history and the most talked about villainess of the ancient world is Medusa. Everyone avoids looking directly at her as history would tell us how she turned every person into a stone with a simple eye contact. According to the classical mythology, Medusa is one of the Gorgon sisters, along with Stheno and Euryale- all three were chthonic monsters of the archaic world. In the more popular version, Medusa was beheaded by the hero Perseus, who couldn’t even look directly at Medusa’s head and gave it to the goddess Athena, which later on was placed on her shield; the Aegis.

 

Through these years I have always been fascinated by Medusa’s influences and stories. There seems to be a greater role she had played apart from the monstrous woman she was. Even Freud wrote in his essays portraying Medusa as the male fear of castration. Another school of thought and perhaps a bit horrifying yet fascinating portrayal of Medusa was being the male fear of devouring female sexual potency. Quite a loaded statement but this was explained by Ellen D. Reeder in her book Pandora: Women in Classical Greece. Indeed Medusa has been the goddess of double meaning. She is the cure and the disease, of order and chaos, of beauty and monstrosity, of hidden desires and passions. And finding Medusa’s head in the most beautiful underground cistern of Istanbul proved another example of her unrelenting power and potent force in history.

 

On this powerful and beautiful city of Istanbul (formerly Constantinople), lies a massive underground cistern of the world.  Beneath the Hippodrome, just few meters away from the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia, is an underground chamber approximately 143 meters by 65 meters. According to history, this underground palace was once a great Basilica which was probably built in the 4th century. Then after its destruction, it was reconstructed by Ilius which gave the name Ilius Basilica and commonly known today as Basilica Cistern (Yerebatan Sarnici).

 

Basilica Cistern of Istanbul was built by Emperor Justinian I in 532 with the sole purpose of providing water to the growing demand of Constantinople. This underground water cistern could hold approximately 80, 000 cubic meters of water and certainly the biggest if not one of the biggest cisterns in Istanbul. The Basilica Cistern was long forgotten and it was only in the year 1545 when it was rediscovered by a Frenchman Peter Gyllius, who happened to be researching about Byzantine Antiquities. Today, it is no longer used as a cistern but rather a very interesting alternative tourist attraction of Istanbul, and perhaps one of the “coolest” ones.

 

And another important thing that captures the imaginations of all those travelers are the two massive inverted columns with Medusa’s head. When I say inverted, the heads were used as a base and not the other way around. There are many theories on why they were used as a base but maybe the most plausible one is to slowly forget paganism during the early Roman period. By being submerged into the water, one will never know that those heads exist. As to why they have been brought here, rumor has it that they were just recycled and carried here in  Istanbul from another city, making these big columns as foundations of this massive Underground Cistern. And truly another beautiful feature of this underground cistern are the huge, gigantic columns all over the place that evoke stories of palaces and kingdoms of the underworld.

 

Nowadays, the two heads of Medusa have created countless stories of mysticism and fears. It for this reason that one visits the Basilica Cistern of Istanbul. In fact through history one has this idea of a female rage and Medusa’s head full of venomous snakes and a deathly stare created this perfect imagination. Another popular story of the ancient world was the fact that Medusa was the only living mortal of the three Gorgon sisters. She was actually a very beautiful lady who had seduced Poseidon and had a tryst in Athena’s Palace. Enraged with what had happened, Athena cursed Medusa and gave her that monstrous look that whoever looked at her would turned them into a stone.

 

My sole purpose really of visiting the Basilica Cistern was to see these heads of Medusa. I have this long fascination about Medusa and just couldn’t ignore the fact that maybe she was just portrayed negatively in so many stories. In my visit to Sicily, I found this three-legged creature with Medusa’s head in the center and being used a talisman and a good luck charm. Even the famous Versace brand has used Medusa’s head as its logo. And the more popular Starbucks has also used Medusa’s head in its brand.  Indeed, there are countless stories of mysticism associated with Medusa. And finding her head in this underground water cistern is another proof of her undying reputation; even more colorful than other powerful figures of the classical mythology.

 

As I walked around the underground cistern, I can’t help but marvel on the ingenuity of the past civilization. The gigantic columns that seemed to be holding the world above, the vast area and the two heads of Medusa were definitely a feast to the eyes and food to the brain. I just remember in one of my readings that only after Medusa was beheaded that her true powers were unleashed. Out from her severed neck, Pegasus was born. It is believed that Pegasus was the most beautiful creature the underworld has seen. It is no doubt that behind all of those stories about Medusa,  she was in reality a very beautiful lady that had captured the heart of Poseidon and only capable of bringing such beauty like Pegasus.

 

Sitting beside Medusa’s head in the underground chamber felt really weird. It took a while and maybe after few minutes, I did look and analyze her face. I forced myself into believing that behind those monstrous facade, lies a woman so pure of heart that only knows nothing but love and care to the world. This was Medusa for me.

 

 

 

 

Suggested Readings: http://rg.ancients.info/medusa/article.html, http://www.istanbultrails.com

 

 

Marian Pilgrimage: The House of Virgin Mary (Meryemana), Ephesus

On top of the Bulbul mountains, almost 8kms away from the center of one of the most highly preserved civilizations of Turkey (Ephesus), lies a nondescript century-old house built of red stones with a spring of water running beside it. While on your way to the sacred site, you can’t help but notice the serene country side and the once powerful city of Ephesus with views of the Library and the Great Theater where St John had preached.

My focus this time was to visit the House reputed to be the place where Mary, the mother of Jesus had lived during the last years of Her life. While so many things have to be considered at this time and age regarding the veracity of this claim, almost everyone who had gone to this place can attest to such unexplainable peace that only the Mother could give. In one of the gospels of St John, Jesus before His death on the cross entrusted him the care of His mother.

“Here is your Mother” and from then on St John took Her. It was during that time that the need to flee from Jerusalem was of utmost importance. St John’s brother St James was beheaded and St Peter was imprisoned while St Stephen was stoned to death. These series of events was also mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles where the world was divided among them to preach and spread the Gospel. St John took Mary with him and together they came to Asia Minor and lived in the mountains close to Ephesus.

These Bible stories were in fact confirmed historically by so many glaring evidences. The presence of the tomb of St John in Ephesus and the first ever Basilica of the World dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and even the first Ecumenical Council in 431 AD for the definition of Dogma of the Divine Motherhood of Mary. Furthermore, the Villagers of Kirkindje, who were the direct descendants of the Christians of Ephesus had passed on for generations and generations the belief of the Death of the Virgin Mary, which they called Panaghia Kapulu. They  have kept this tradition alive through the annual pilgrimage on the 15^th of August.

It is no surprise at all that thousands of pilgrims from all over the world have visited this place. There are numerous stories of healing and miracles attributed to the water coming from the spring at the back of Mary’s house. The House was already in ruin when it was first discovered in 1891. The search was commissioned after a book was published in Germany entitled “ The Life of the Blessed Virgin”. It was written by an invalid lady and stigmatized Nun, Anna Katherina Emmerich.  Invalid as she was and never had left Germany all her life, she narrated her visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary enjoying the last years of her life on the hills of Ephesus. Her visions were told with such amazing accuracy about the house built in red stones and the spring of water running beside it.

The House of the Virgin Mary was built upon the original foundation which dates back to 1^st and 4^th centuries.  The last restoration took place in 1951. The decorations were simple and only a statue of the Blessed Virgin at the end dominated the place. There is also a small section for the Islam faith as they venerate Mary as well being their Mother and of the Prophet Jesus. As you turn right before the exit door, you’ll see images of Pope John Paul celebrating the Holy Eucharist outside the House of Virgin Mary. Not only him but also the Pope before him and even Pope Benedict XVI. One of the locals said in jest, that Vatican knows how important this place is as every Pope needs to pay his respect and has to come to Turkey for a pilgrimage.

The Virgin Mary opted to stay on this side of the world where the only thing of importance was the running water needed for everyday life. She was so happy and had enjoyed the fresh air and some of the little chores around the house. It was even far from the cosmopolitan city at that time which was Ephesus and going up on the hills was no laughing matter. She is the Queen of all Queens and a true-blooded royalty. But in this house where she had lived for the last years of her life just proved to us that we don’t really need so much in this world to be happy. Just be appreciative of the so many simple things around us which I believe; is the secret to a very fun and fulfilling life.

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Getting There & What To Do:

1. Take a cab either from Kusadasi or Selcuk (or wherever you are). Drive to/from Kusadasi is approximately 27minutes. Spend at least 30 mins to an hour depending on your need. Bring some plastic bottles with you or refill an empty one with the running water at the House of Virgin Mary.

2. Write your petitions on a white cloth (see picture above) and tie it along with hundreds of petitions.

3. There is an interdenominational mass every Sunday or sometimes early in the morning. Sometimes you’ll see some priests roaming around the area.

4. Good time to visit would be early morning and before it closes in the afternoon; after 4pm.

The Library of Celsus

The four female statues standing at the entrance said it all. The four ladies represent wisdom, intelligence, virtue and knowledge ( sophia, ennoia, arete and episteme respectively).
The Library of Celsus is the most definitive representation and also the most beautiful edifice in Ephesus. Built in 117 AD, the Library of Celsus at that time was the 3rd biggest library next to Alexandria and Pergamum.

The picture above was taken during a classical concert held at the library grounds. Definitely a night to remember!