Some features of the chthonic essence of the goddess Cybele in the black sea region in classical antiquity period

Yartsev Sergey Vladimirovich, Shushunova Elena Valeryevna

The article looks into the complex topic of the spiritual content of the goddess Cybele’s cult in the Black Sea region during the Antiquity period. The main sources of research are ancient images of Cybele. They include special Bosporan terracotta statuettes of the goddess that have regional characteristics. The authors pay special attention to the sacred essence of the lion in the classical iconography of Cybele, as well as some items from the paraphernalia of this image of the goddess. The article considers the direct connection of Cybele with childbirth, as well as the ability of the goddess and accompanying her lion and special objects to resurrect the dead by indicating and sanctifying the way for their souls in the other world and into a new life. The authors of the article come to the conclusion that this cult resembled the religious practice of animating the newborn bodies of babies with souls of deceased ancestors. This was facilitated by the fact that it was during this period in the Antiquity world that ideological transformations intensified. As one of the forms the transformations also manifested themselves in the form of the development of the apotheosis of deceased ancestors.

Keywords:ancient civilization, goddess Cybele, god Attis, lion, fertility cult, chthonic cults, ancestor cult, apotheosis of the dead.