Sibyl is an ancient term used for a prophetess, of which there
are many in mythology. They were usually linked with caves or
springs, both of which are symbolic junctions of the underworld
and the earth of mortals, and could be old women or young maidens.
Delphi in ancient Greece was the home of the most famous oracle
of ancient times, the sanctuary of Pythian Apollo.
Here the Pythia, a priestess of Apollo, gave (frequently ambiguous)
prophecies while seated on a special tripod positioned over a
crack in the earth, from which trance-inducing fumes were said
to issue. As Delphi is prone to earthquakes, the oracle (which
had been there since time immemorial) was held to have originally
belonged to Gaea,
the great Earth Mother. Some say that Poseidon, as earthquake
God, also shared it with Her originally; at any rate Gaea set
the great serpent Pytho to guard it. Apollo, arriving later in
the form of a dolphin, killed Pytho and took the oracle for His
own.
The Sibyl at Cumae, a town in Italy near Lake Avernus, was
said to inhabit a cave with one hundred mouths, each of which
had a voice. She wrote Her prophecies on leaves, which She would
leave at the cave entrance. The Cumaean Sibyl led Aeneas to the
Underworld to visit his deceased father, after telling him to
offer the Golden Bough (mistletoe) to Proserpina.
According to another legend, She offered nine holy books to
the early Roman King Tarquin, but he refused, saying the price
was too steep. She then burnt three of them, and doubled the
price. He again refused, and She burnt three more, again doubling
the price, and the astonished and worried King finally bought
them. These Sibylline Books were then found to contain instructions
for the proper worship of the Gods, and were kept very safe,
consulted only on the direction of the Senate.
Other oracles and sibyls to explore: the Oracle of Zeus at
Dodona, where the god spoke through the rustling of leaves, or
brass vessels which were hung in the sacred oak grove; the Oracle
of Trophonius in Lebadia; the Oracle of Zeus-Ammon in Libya;
the Cimmerian Sybil; the Phrygian Sibyl, and the Tiburtine Sibyl,
Albunea.
This card in a reading indicates inspiration and prophetic
dreams. Pay attention to the themes of your dreaming life, and
explore them with such techniques as card reading, active imagination
or automatic writing.
