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What practice is Orpheus credited with originating among his people after his unsuccessful attempt to rescue his wife?

User Hari Babu
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Final answer:

Orpheus is credited with the foundation of a religious movement known as Orphism, which brought about a lifestyle focused on purity, including vegetarianism, and provided a detailed picture of the afterlife.

Step-by-step explanation:

Orpheus is credited with originating a religious movement known as Orphism among his people after his unsuccessful attempt to rescue his wife Eurydice. This movement emphasized on an Orphic lifestyle that focused on purity and vegetarianism, isolating adherents from normal social relations and practices. Additionally, Orpheus was considered a significant figure in the realm of music and poetry, often depicted charming animals, trees, and stones with his music, and was deeply associated with the concept of Mysteries and initiation rites.

The movement that arose around the teachings associated with Orpheus delved into eschatology, giving a detailed picture of the afterlife, heavily influenced by Orphic poems about his descent into Hades, and propagated by Orpheotelests, or wandering initiators. Their esoteric and anthropological ideas, distinct from traditional Greek religion, eventually spread to various Greek territories, significantly influencing concepts of life after death and spiritual purification across the ancient Hellenic world.

User Boggin
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