Abaris: Priest of Apollo who Merged Cultures

Abaris is an interesting subject in ancient mythology in that he has myths and legends in the Celtic, Greek, and Roman histories. This is very rare. Normally legends tend to stick within their own culture. Its a shame that there aren't more examples like this though. As a result, there tends to exist a view that ancient cultures were isolated and were never influenced by one another. Nothing can be further from the truth. That is why this article is so important: the tale of Abaris is quintessential in demonstrating that there was greater influence and merging between cultures than is generally thought.

To properly tell the tale of Abaris I have to first tell two other tales as a good background: The Story of Troy and the founding of London and the Myth of the death of Asclepius. These seem like very different tales and ones that should have nothing to do with Abaris, but by the end, you will see how it all comes together.

The Fall of Troy and the Founding of London
It is well known that the Greeks fought the Trojans for 10 long years and it ended a giant horsey deception. The city fell to the Greeks, but what heppended to the Trojans? Well, alot of them were taken as slaves. And alot of them escaped. One story has a group of Trojans regrouping at the river Danube. There they were undecided as to what to do. They divided. Some pressed on, following a man named Francio, who was the origin of the Franks, France, and the Merovingian kings. The others returned following a man named Turchot who would lend his name to the Turks, and eventually Turkey. Still others escaped with Aeneas. Aeneas eventually ended up in what is modern day Italy and married into royalty there. He had a son called silvius, who in turn had a son called Brutus. Brutus' mother died giving birth to him. And in addition to this, when he was hunting with his father one day, he shot his father by accident with an arrow as he was aiming for a deer. Even though it truly was an accident, the people thought him to be generally unlucky (killing both his parents) so they banished him. Parents should know that naming their son Brutus will lead to no good end (Brutal).

Brutus then fled to Greece where he met some of the Trojans that were being held as slaves. They were not being treated well. Brutus rallied the Trojan slaves and fought for them to get proper treatment. The local king didn't like this much and they made war on each other. The Trojans did remarkably well. So well that the King gave Brutus his daughter to marry as payment for ceasing hostilities. Brutus then had some sort of vision from Apollo (who was big with the Trojans), which told him to take the Trojans north to the white isle and colonize it. So they departed immediately and stopped briefly in Gaul (France) to fight a bit and pick up more Trojans. They finally landed in the British Isles and founded a city on a nice spot on the river Thames. Brutus calls this city 'Troynovant' or 'New Troy'. The island of Britain was said to get its name from what the locals called Brutus, Brytys. The people of that city called themsleves 'Troinovantes' or 'New Trojans' and were eventally known as a Celtic Tribe: the Trinovantes.

Think on this. Some of the Trojans migrate to Britain and bring their gods with them (Apollon, Athene, Posiedon, etc). They bring them to an area that is later known for its worship of the sun god Belenus/Belin. It is easy to see that Apollon changed to Belin/Belenus just as Brutus changed to Brytys in the local language. Apollo and Belenus are the same god. With the influx of the Trojans in and the linguistic similarities, it is more than coincedence.

You might be wondering what happened to this city of New Troy on the Thames river. Well, Brutus and his wife, the Greek Princess, had offspring, and those offspring had offspring, etc. Many kings down the road was this guy named Lud Hubibras. Lud had a very very big ego and thought that it was about time that the city changed name. He liked the sound of the name 'Lud's Town', or 'Caerlud'. This was known in later times as Lugdunum, Londinuom and eventually London. New Troy is thriving to this day.

The Death of Asclepius
Apollo had a son, Asclepius, who was the greatest healer in all the world. He could cure all forms of illness and could even cure death itself. He did this all over the place. It was a great ice breaker at parties. Anyway, Hades got a little bit annoyed about this. His whole business was with the dead and here was Asclepius keeping everyone alive. Hades sent Zeus a nasty email telling him to correct this problem. Zeus, as a good brother, decided to oblige. He sent down a lightning bolt and killed Asclepius instantly. If only Asclepius had taught someone else his ressurection trick, someone could have brought him back to life too.

Apollo, understandably, was very angry. But he did not take his wrath out on Zeus as he knew that would be equally wrong. So instead, he took his mighty bow and took aim at the Cyclops that created the thuderbolt that killed his son. And Bwam! Dead cyclops. Zeus was somewhat enraged at this. I mean, it takes a while to find a craftsman skilled enough to make lightning, they just dont come by every day. In punishment, he made Apollo work as a shepherd for King Admetus for 10 years.

The point of this story is not Apollo, or Asclepius, but the arrow itself. What happened to the arrow that killed the Cyclops? Some legends say that it was given to be hidden by the Hyperboreans (Britain) after Apollo was done his servitude to King Admetus. Some say it was shot into the land of Hyperborea to kill the Cyclops where he worked. Either way, the arrow came to rest on a mountain in Britain and a temple to Apollo was raised around it called 'The Feather Temple' or 'The Temple of Feathers and Beeswax'.

Think about this. What could this arrow be, logically, to inspire such a legend? What if the locals saw a fiery meteor slam into a mountainside? Would they have associated this feiry streak with a sun god? Probably. It is my presumption that the arrow of Apollo was an iron meteorite that crashed into Britain. This meteorite was then a sacred artifact of Apollo. This may not seem inportant at the moment, but trust me, it will all come together.

The Myth of Abaris
Remember Lud Hubibras, the one that changed the name of New Troy to Caer Lud? Well, he had a son: Prince Bladdud, which apparently means 'Wolf Lord'. Anyway, just like the kings all the way back to Brutus had probably done, Lud sent his son to Athens for his childhood to be schooled. In Athens he was known as the 'Son Of Hubibras' or 'Abaris'. While Abaris/Bladdud was in athens, Lud had reports that his son was turning into an exceptional young man. With this in mind, Lud arranged a marriage with a neighboring kingdom for when Abaris/Bladdud returned home. In his huge ego, he fashioned himself 'Lud king of 2 lands' instead of 'Lud, the guy who changed the name of New Troy'. When Abaris/Bladdud returned as a teenager he was horrified to learn that his father had arranged a marriage. Apparently Abaris/Bladdud had fallen in love with a girl of Greek Nobility when he was away in schooling. In fact, he flat out refused to marry the girl his father suggested (how progressive of him). Lud was enraged. He had probably already commisioned a fancy new crown to go with his aquisition of a new land. Anyway, he locked Abaris/Bladdud in a tower as a prisoner for nearly a year hoping to change Abaris's mind. One day Abaris got sick of prison food and stuck his knife in the jailers neck and escaped. Before he did, his mother gave him a royal signet ring so she could recognize him when and if he returned. An alternate version of the legend says that Abaris/Bladdud contracted leprosy when he was away and was banished from court. I choose to believe the former as it goes along with Lud's personality more.

Anyhow, Abaris wandered around at this point and little is known. He apparently went all around Europe. When he went back to Greece he found that his love had been promised to another and married. What is known at this point is that Abaris/Bladdud became a priest of Apollo, that he found the Arrow of Apollo mentioned earlier, and that he had a interest in flying. In the greek world, he was said to travel wearing the Arrow of Apollo as a badge, wrapped in the fruits of the season. It was said that he traveled the world with his arrow, never getting lost and navigating through impassible rivers, mountain passes etc. If this were an iron meteorite, this makes alot of sense. It makes sense as he was probably using it as a compass. Abaris/Bladdud was one smart cookie (like Da vinci in many ways). He was counted as one of the finest physicians and cured two cities of plague. Some say he cured one of the cities by putting the arrow in the water source. With a magnetic iron meteor sliver, he could probably have filtered out some impurities in the water. It would have appeared like a miracle to others, but it is quite scientific. He was quite involved in the spirituality in Greece and even built a temple or two, including a temple to Persephone in Sparta and possibly (though unconfirmed) additions to Delphi. Abaris eventually met up with Pythagoras. He was impressed by Pythagoras and was said to see the divine nature of Apollo within him. Pythagoras did something nasty though. He didn't want Abaris/Bladdud to leave, so he stole his arrow. Abaris stayed with Pythagoras for many years sharing knowledge with the other Pythagoreans and learning a bunch on his own. Abaris was also known by the Greeks for his poetry. Another weird fact is that he was known for flying. It seems like a strange fact to reconcile, but I believe that Abaris/Bladdud may have had a rudimentary hang glider. There are too many legends of him flying to take it for granted.

Eventually, Abaris/Bladdud went back to Britain but he brought with him a wealth of knowledge of Greek and Roman spirituality. He wandered but eventually settled in Bath (CaerBladdud - 'Bladduds Town') where he was enamoured by the hot springs. He may not have discovered them, but her certainly built around them and made them known. The alternate version of his myth has Abaris/Bladdud working as a swineherd near Bath during his leprosy. His pigs caught leprosy too, but were cured when they rolled in the warm mud of the springs. So he dove in and was cured too. I don't buy this, but it is an interesting story. Anyway, Abaris took his native spirituality and that which he learned in Greece and Rome and set up a new spiritual philosophy: Druidry. He started a druid college near Bath and this caught on and spread quickly. Even the word Druid is very similar to the Greek word for tree beings: Dryad. Abaris/Bladdud was quiet successful in this regard, as a priest, and left a legacy that is still felt today. Although these origins are hardly common knowledge. Mythically, if not actually, this is the source. When King Lud died, Abaris/Bladdud returned to court and was recognized by his mother (remember the ring?). He ruled as king for many years. His end was rather tragic though. He attempted a flight from a hill to the temple of Apollo in a contracption he had created (remember the hanglider) and he fell, breaking his neck. His son went on the rule after him though, and his name is one you will recognize form Shakespear: King Lear.

Are Cultural Myths Distinct?
The story of Abaris should illustrate how much movement there was in the ancient world and how the mythos of one culture influences the mythos of another even thousands of miles away. Pagans in the modern era tend to think of cultures as isolated and not interacting. And many rail against the idea that one deity is the same as another. Yet here, it is shown that Apollo and Belenus are the same. It is shown that the Trojans influenced the Celts. Yet the Greeks influenced the Trojans. And the Celts influenced the Greeks by way of the Pythagoerans and Abaris. And the Greeks and Pythagoreans influenced the Celts by way of Abaris and the Druids. Thats alot of back and forth and influence. Thats alot of cross culture worship of gods. I am sure you will find Athena and Posiedon in the Celtic Trinovantes religion just as Apollo can be found in Belenus. And this is just from one story. Think of the influence that was shared when we take into account the millions of stories untold.

Think about it. Are cultures and myth distinct, or simply different masks? What would Abaris say?

Written by RavenDreamer