Tag: apollo

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Mythologium 2021 welcomes Gelareh Khoie

Gelareh’s talk is called “Artemis, Apollo, and the Dance of Oracular Healing“

Living in a world of rapidly refracting kaleidoscopic consciousness, the besieged ego-self tends to become mired in restless seeking that often leads to exhaustion and confusion. By focusing on the healing potential of the ritual of dance portrayed in the mythology of psychocosmic party-starter twins, Artemis and Apollo, I convey an oracular dimension of healing which could, if adopted, facilitate the maintenance of perfect creative tension between ego and Self.

About Gelareh

Gelareh Khoie is an Iranian-American artist, writer, scholar, and DJ with over thirty years of experience as an entrepreneur and creator. Currently a doctoral candidate at Pacifica, she is researching the spiritual potentials of music and dance conveyed through the sociocultural phenomena of the 1970s known as disco.

2021 Mythologium program
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Mythologium 2021 welcomes Dr. Katherine J. Bailes

Katherine’s talk is called “Healer and Bringer of Plagues“

Grace Dammann, physician and survivor of a near-death accident once said in an interview: “…I know healing when I am in the presence of it. It’s mysterious, magical and God-given.” Healing is numinous and so, it seems, is sickness; they are part of the same archetypal process. In this presentation, we will explore mythic expressions of ancient divinities known for their gifts of healing and plagues such as the Hebrew god Yahweh-Rapha, the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet, the Greek god Apollo and the Fir Bolg, early chthonic inhabitants of Ireland. We will follow this unitive thread through contemporary perspectives on medicine, vaccines, and viruses to ask: What is the message of the plague as it swirls through humanity? What is the unasked question that can heal us now, individually and collectively?

About Katherine

Katherine J. Bailes, JD, PhD is a practicing attorney and an adjunct professor of mythological studies at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. Dr. Bailes holds a BFA in painting from the University of North Texas and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas, School of Law. She later obtained a master’s degree and Ph.D. from Pacifica Graduate Institute, Santa Barbara, California. Her dissertation topic entitled “The Themis Principle: Mystery and Irrationality in the U.S. Legal System” focused on the mythological aspects of the law as expressed in ancient cultures through goddesses such as Athena, Themis, Inanna and Maat. She has received numerous awards and served in a variety of leadership positions in art, law and teaching, successfully combining these fields through her understanding of story and the human capacity for myth making.

2021 Mythologium program
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Mythologium 2020 welcomes Dr. Katherine Bailes

Katherine’s talk is called, “Hollywood Consults the Oracle: The Delphic Oracle and Its Uncanny Expression in Minority Report“

The Oracle in classical Greece held a sacred place in society, consulted for both important matters of state and seemingly trivial personal matters (if one could pay). The words of the oracular priestess were translated through a priest and ultimately interpreted into action by the inquirer. It was an arm of the law; one could call it the “intuitive branch.” The tragic playwright Aeschylus described the lineage of the Oracle in his prologue to The Eumenides, beginning with Gaia, transitioning through two other goddesses to Apollo, the Olympian son of Zeus. Apollo was the bright god of the sun, and the intuitive side of the Oracle seemed to complete his nature.

In this presentation, I will describe the Oracle of Delphi, its priestesses, enquirers, rituals, fees, and probe Hollywood’s adaptation of the oracle in the 2002 movie, Minority Report featuring Tom Cruise (Apollo incarnate). We will uncover the classical remains of the Greek Oracle now dressed in new genders and new costumes, in a plot where murders are predicted using specialized mutated humans called “Precogs,” who “previsualize” crimes by receiving visions of the future. It is a timely review of society’s desire to know the future, control outcomes and destroy that which it cannot control.

About Katherine

Katherine J. Bailes, JD, PhD is a practicing attorney and an adjunct professor of mythological studies at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. Dr. Bailes holds a BFA in painting from the University of North Texas and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas, School of Law. She later obtained a master’s degree and Ph.D. from Pacifica Graduate Institute, Santa Barbara, California. Her dissertation entitled “The Themis Principle: Mystery and Irrationality in the U.S. Legal System” focused on the mythological aspects of the law as expressed in ancient cultures through goddesses such as Athena, Themis, Inanna and Maat. She has received numerous awards and served in a variety of leadership positions in art, law and teaching, successfully combining these fields through her understanding of story and the human capacity for myth making. You can reach Katherine through her LinkedIn profile or email.

2020 Mythologium program