Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - A Dreamy Myth of Apollo (Olympians #11)

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Starting point is 00:01:09 That's the powerful backing of Amex. Conditions apply. Welcome to Get Sleepy, where we listen, we relax, and we get sleepy. My name's Thomas. Thank you so much for tuning in. In this series, we have already met Artemis, goddess of the moon. Now we shall meet her twin brother, Apollo, as we continue our journey with the Olympians, the great gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus.

Starting point is 00:01:54 Where Artemis is silver, Apollo is gold. He is the god of archery, medicine, music, prophecy and the sun. He is also one of the most popular gods in the ancient Greek world. Temples and shrines dedicated to him have been found across Europe, the Middle East, East and North Africa. In many ways, he is the God of civilization. Reason, logic, law and order are represented through agriculture, science and music, all of which are special to the Golden God.

Starting point is 00:02:50 But tonight, we will explore his most mystical element, The Power of Prophecy. A big thank you to Frankie for writing this story and the entire series, all of which I've had the pleasure of narrating for you. Before we get to our story, a quick reminder that you can enjoy listening to Get Sleepy completely be ad-free by becoming a Get Sleepy Premium member. Not only will you be supporting the show, making sure we can continue producing episodes to help you and every listener sleep better, but you'll get lots of amazing perks in return, making it the very best way to fall asleep.

Starting point is 00:03:41 Along with ad-free listening, our premium members can enjoy the entire catalogue of stories, is now closing in on 1000 episodes. Plus every single Thursday we release a brand new premium exclusive episode. Tomorrow night Vanessa will be reading to us as a family works together to uncover a secret ingredient from an old family recipe. So be sure to join us there tomorrow night. New members get a seven-day free trial to begin with and you can cancel any time. For more information and to sign up to Get Sleepy Premium, go to getsleepy.com slash support. Now my friends, it's nearly time to begin our story. I hope you're feeling calm and restful, but we can spend a moment now softening both body and mind a little further to help guide

Starting point is 00:04:52 us towards sleep. Close your eyes and lie comfortably in your bed. Clear your mind of everything but the rhythm of your breathing. Apollo grants second sight and has power over oracles, and those through whom he spoke would begin their connection to the God with meditation. In calming the mind, you can create a blank space in your consciousness

Starting point is 00:05:45 that the God may fill with insights and images of what is or what will be. On the dark canvas of your mind, imagine a soft rain of golden sparks. Allow them to drift down, down like flecks of pure gold or snow in full sunshine. Sometimes an or a seer would answer questions directly. But other times the asker would get a riddle in return. Your mind and body are calm and at peace.

Starting point is 00:06:49 What image does the God Apollo send to you? What riddles does he whisper in your ear? This is where our story begins. The first thing that the new-born god Apollo saw was the face of his twin sister, Artemis. She was born under the light of the moon and immediately began to help her mother Leto to deliver her brother. As the golden sum broke over the horizon, so Apollo arrived in the world. Leto, her children finally delivered to her, hugged her twins and gazed at the sunrise across the island of Delos. As Lito held her two newborns, she remembered a prophecy that came to her when she was

Starting point is 00:08:32 pregnant. Through the haze of the memory, the words faded in and out of focus. It was like trying to catch water in her hands. Then suddenly the prophecy became as clear as day. She saw her son becoming one of the most beloved gods. She saw him ruling over music, science, medicine and prophecy. Leto even saw that this very prophecy was not coming through her, but to her from her unborn son. Leto came back from her reverie. and looked back down at her children. They were to be the divine twins. The twin deities were forever bonded from that moment on.

Starting point is 00:09:51 As children, they were inseparable, though their likes and preferences were as different as they were. the sun and moon. Zeus, their father, was determined that they were to grow to become fully fledged members of the Olympians. He encouraged their childhood curiosities in order to discover what they would be gods of as they reached adulthood. It was when Apollo and Artemis were about five years old that they discovered their major shared interest. They were playing in the high woods on the slopes of Olympus one day under the watchful eye of Zeus. The two children challenged one another to see who could throw a stone the furthest.

Starting point is 00:11:01 Apollo and Artemis were equally matched. Amused by their competition, Zeus showed them how to make rudimentary slings and throw their stones even further. Again, both children were evenly matched. Without any prompting from their father, they put their heads together and started working on something else. Every time Zeus got too close, trying to peer over their little shoulders, they admonished their father and told him to back away.

Starting point is 00:11:58 gave them space and waited patiently. Finally, the twins turned to the king of the gods and showed him their new invention. They had attached the stone to a stick with a few leaves on one end. They then strung a stick so it bent slightly. By pulling at their little bow, they could launch their makeshift arrows further and more accurately than either sling or arm. Zeus, impressed by the genius of his children, called to his eldest son, Hephaestus. He told the twins to show their brother what they had made.

Starting point is 00:13:03 Hephaestus watched an amazement, as the twins demonstrated and chatted about ways to make their new toy even better. Hephaestus, gripped by a sudden inspiration, went off to his workshop immediately. The next day he presented his little siblings with two fine gifts. For Artemis he made a silver bow and a quiver of silver arrows. For Apollo, he made the same, but in shining gold. The twins were forever associated with archery, and neither one could best the other. Another of Apollo's powers came to fruition with the help of a different family member.

Starting point is 00:14:16 Leto's mother was the titaness Phoebe, who was known for her shining beauty. This shining quality was passed down to the twins, blessing Artemis with the light of the moon, and Apollo with the light of the sun. Phoebe was also the owner and guardian of a sacred site at Delphi. In the chasms on the hillside, there was a cave that held the Omphalus, the stone that Zeus's mother Rhea gave to his father, Cronos, instead of the infant Zeus. Cronus ate the stone, which allowed Zeus to grow up in secret, and eventually free his siblings, whom Cronos had eaten.

Starting point is 00:15:26 Once Cronos was defeated, Zeus placed the stone in the keeping of Phoebe, who set it in this cave. As a result of the divine intervention, the cave was often filled with strange vapors. A silvery purple mist leaked out from the floors of the cave, painting the space with gossamer curtains of clouds. Phoebe gave this sight to her grandson Apollo, telling him that he could use it to unlock a special gift for mankind. The young god, now in adulthood, sat near the sea one day and pondered this mystic cave at Delphi. He knew that it would become a place sacred to humans for many centuries,

Starting point is 00:16:36 and could even shape the destinies of the mortals themselves. His eyes landed upon a ship on the water. The sleepy vessel slid across the glittering blue waters with such grace that Apollo was struck by an idea. Apollo leapt into the water. and his body transformed the moment he dived beneath the surface. He became a smooth and powerful porpoise. Without hesitation, he swam towards the ship.

Starting point is 00:17:28 Even to this day, sailors consider the sight of a porpoise to be good luck. for this reason. These sailors waved and called to the animal, not knowing that it was a god in disguise. Apollo got close to the ship and leapt out of the water, landing on the deck. The sailors worried about the health of such a lucky animal, pushed it back into the sea. Three times Apollo leapt on deck, and three times the sailors sent him back. As the sailors were preparing to return the animal to the water once more, a woman stopped them. She came towards the animal and knelt by its side, gazing deeply into its eyes.

Starting point is 00:18:46 She told the sailors that this was no ordinary porpoise. Suddenly, a breeze caught the ship's sails, and the vessel moved of its own accord towards the shore at Delphi. The woman told the ship's crew to allow the vessel to travel unheeded. She told them that she did not know how the knowledge came to her, but that she did not know how the knowledge came to her, but that they were now all in the hands of the gods. Once the ship reached land, the porpoise sprang off and transformed back into the form of shining Apollo. The ship's crew and their one passenger were welcomed by the young God.

Starting point is 00:19:57 He told them they had been blessed and that they would now have a new life. Apollo initiated all of the men of the ship as his priests, and together they built a temple to him at the entrance of the cave. The woman became the first Pythia, or oracle of Apollo. She was the most powerful woman in all of ancient Greece. Travelers and pilgrims from all over the known world would make their way to the oracle of Delphi to ask her advice. The Pythia would hear their questions and step into the inner sanctum of the temple,

Starting point is 00:21:01 deep into the vapor-filled cave. The mists would encircle her and envelop her in the prophetic power of the God Apollo. who would reveal to her the answer or advice needed. The pithier, helped by the priests who attended her, would pass on the information to the asker. This most sacred order of Apollo stood at Delphi for millennia. Countless mortals, demigods, and gods themselves would come to seek the advice of the oracle. Sometimes her answers would be straightforward and clear. Other times, they were little more than riddles or clues.

Starting point is 00:22:07 Askers would offer prayers and gifts to Apollo, no matter what the answer happened to be. Those who ignored the Pythia or thought her answers to be a hoax soon came to regret their foolishness. The Oracle at Delphi was seen as the only place in the entire world where mortals could have direct access to the gods and their wisdom. And so, prophecy came to rest under the powers of Apollo. The oracle at Delphi would come to influence the stories of nearly all the notable heroes and kings of the age. The most famous story, however, was that of Heracles.

Starting point is 00:23:19 He was born with the name Alcides, and as a young man was struck with madness. committed terrible crimes and went to the oracle of Delphi to discover how to purify himself and do penance for his wrongs. Apollo took pity on his half-brother and told Alcides through the Pythia that he must complete ten labours under his cousin, King Eurystheus. Before Alsides left for the quest that would eventually include twelve labours in total, the Pythia stopped him. The mists of the caves swirled around her as another message from Apollo came to her. She turned her bright eyes to Alcides and declared that,

Starting point is 00:24:28 in order to shed his shame, he must shed his name, taking up a new one. The huge hero stood transfixed. The Pythia's voice took on a new quality. It was as if another deeper voice spoke with her own. She reached out a hand. and Apollo's voice renamed the hero, Heracles. It was foretold that his name would travel through time and survive forever in glory and history. It's easy to see why humanity would come to worship and love Apollo, more widely and completely than any other Olympian.

Starting point is 00:25:36 In addition to his oracle at Delphi, Apollo also gave the human world two other gifts. Both were spread among the civilian world by way of Apollo's sons. Apollo fell in love with a mortal woman named Coronis. He sent one of his white ravens to watch over the pregnant coronis, while he attended his godly duties. Because she was mortal, however, her life was destined by the fate. to be fleeting. Coronus gave birth to a son whom she named Esclepius.

Starting point is 00:26:37 In order to save her from her fate or mortality, Apollo placed her among the stars as the constellation Corvus. He also turned ravens from white to black, to forever symbolize his mourning over the loss of his beloved. Apollo took his baby son to one of his foster children, the centaur, Chiron. Chiron had been rejected from his herd long ago, before the world was populated with human beings. Apollo had taken him in, raised him and taught him much. In return, Chiron would now take Asclepius and raise the child. As the years passed,

Starting point is 00:27:47 Kairon began to notice that the child showed a remarkable aptitude for knowledge and learning. His young mind was like a sponge, absorbing nearly everything that Kairon taught him. Before he was out of childhood, he knew all the herbs in Kairon's lexicon and their use. uses. He knew how to administer first aid and heal the most common maladies. He had even started experimenting with his own remedies. Apollo often visited Chiron and Asclepius at Chiron's home at the foot of Mount Pileon. He He too was impressed by his son's growing knowledge. Chiron tried to teach the boy about other arts, such as archery, wrestling, poetry, prophecy and music.

Starting point is 00:29:07 Over the many centuries that Chiron lived among humans, he would foster numerous future heroes. He was used to boys taking to the arts of war far more than the arts of healing. Asclepius, however, had no interest in sports or fighting beyond that casual practice of staying physically fit. By the time Asclepius reached the age where teenage boys cut their long hair and officially became young men. He was a more accomplished hero than even Chiron. Asclepius waved goodbye to his foster father and ventured out into the wild. He wandered from Mount Peleon, up the peninsula, and into greater grease. The day was bright under a pure blue sky. The heat from the sun was

Starting point is 00:30:30 pleasantly offset by a cool breeze. Occasionally Asclepius would glance up at the sun, where he knew his father was driving the sun chariot across the sky and keeping an eye on him. He heard the lowing of cows from the pasture next to the road. They sounded worried and discontent. A moment later, a snake appeared from the long grass at the edge. of the pasture and slithered onto the road in front of the young man. Esclepius didn't hesitate for a moment. He immediately rushed to the creature and took note of its injuries.

Starting point is 00:31:35 It must have frightened the cows and been accidentally trampled. Asclepius used all his knowledge to heal the snake, not caring that it was a creature of the earth rather than a human being. As he was finished, the snake revealed itself to be his aunt, the goddess Athena. Snakes were sacred to both her and Apollo. She revealed that due to her nephew's kindness and care, she would reward him. whispered in his ear secret healing powers known only to the gods. With this knowledge, Asclepius made his way through the world, healing any and all who needed

Starting point is 00:32:46 his aid. He set up some of the first medical centers. These places were dedicated to healing the body, mind and spirit. They also served as training centers, where others could learn the healing arts. Apollo had another son with the goddess Calliope, one of the muses. Despite both parents being divine, the child was born mortal. They called the boy Orpheus, and he was raised by Calliope with the help of her eight sisters, the other muses.

Starting point is 00:33:50 From the moment he was born, Orpheus was surrounded by art. Calliope herself was the muse of epic poetry. His aunts presided over history, hymns, dance, choral poetry, pastoral music, drama, comedy, and astrology. Their home on Mount Parnassus was a paradise for those searching to be inspired. Apollo himself would visit and teach the boy the art of composing and playing music. Apollo's liar was given to him by his brother Hermes, but it was Apollo himself who created the art form. No one in creation was surprised as Orpheus quickly became the most accomplished and skilled

Starting point is 00:35:02 mortal musician the world had ever seen. The only being who could play better than him was Apollo himself. Orpheus outstripped every nymph. satyr and demi-god with his beautiful music. The news of his skill also travelled with him as he set out into the world. He was asked to join the crew of a very special ship, the Argo. Jason, the young man who was leading the crew, insisted that they had a musician to the company of heroes.

Starting point is 00:36:01 Orpheus accepted immediately. The seagulls wheeled above the harbour as Orpheus came down the dock with his liar under one arm and a sack of belongings in the other. The dock was a flurry of activity as the ship was prepared for the upcoming voyage. Jason stood in the middle of the activity, directing people and answering questions. When he saw Orpheus, he greeted him warmly. Jason spoke excitedly of his plans, the ship and the other crewmates. It seemed to Orpheus that nearly every great hero alive was going on this journey.

Starting point is 00:37:13 Jason told his friend that he was not the only person chosen for something other than fighting skills. Jason called over another young man and introduced Orpheus to Asclepius. The two sons of Apollo stared at one another as the world around them quite The movement of the ship slowed and stopped. The seagulls froze in mid-air. Apollo appeared between his sons, his face beaming. No one can say what passed in those timeless moments.

Starting point is 00:38:12 between brothers and father. There were tears and laughter and hugging. Apollo spoke to both of them of his pride. Once Apollo allowed time to trickle back into the world, however, Orpheus were as close as any brothers' could be. They went on the quest for the golden fleece with Jason and his Argonauts. Despite a crew full of heroes, the sons of Apollo provided services that would prove to be invaluable, saving the lives of their fellow sailors many times over. Without ever having to lift a sword, Orpheus and Asclepius showed they had many heroic

Starting point is 00:39:26 qualities. Through these two shining examples of mortal heroism, Apollo provided the world with both music, and medicine. His sons would eventually be worshipped as gods and raised to Olympus for their hard work. They earned their immortality. And yet there is still one more important quality that Apollo gave to man. mankind. Some say that it's more valuable than prophecy, music or medicine, because it gives a deeper meaning to our brief mortal existence.

Starting point is 00:40:30 In the early stages of designing human beings with Zeus, the Titan Prometheus modeled his creations out of clay. He tried several different versions, not sure what he wanted humans to look like. Zeus was happy to let his friend deal with the design aspects, while he made plans for the great accomplishments that this new race would achieve. However, Prometheus ran into a creative block and needed some help. He asked Zeus for advice, but the king of the gods was not a creative person in that way, and suggested that Prometheus talk to Apollo. Apollo gladly offered his help and followed Prometheus to the banks of the river where he was working. It was the perfect place to sculpt. The river was cool, clear and steady.

Starting point is 00:41:58 Around the banks grew tall grasses and bright yellow irises. A willow tree hung gracefully over the water, providing a sheltered place to work. Prometheus had collected all different colours of clay in order to create a beautiful and diverse array of beings. Apollo looked down at the little figures and studied them. They were, to put it simply, not the most beautiful. They had too many limbs, and they were altogether too clunky. Apollo expressed his opinions to Prometheus, who agreed with him.

Starting point is 00:43:05 He just didn't know how to fix them. He wanted humans to be as beautiful as the gods. Apollo suggested that Prometheus do just that. make them the same general shape as the gods, with two arms, two legs, two ears, two eyes, one mouth, and one nose. Prometheus liked the idea, but worried that to completely re-sculpt every figure would take too long. Apollo looked again at the clay figures. He told Prometheus not to start from scratch, but to simply split each one of these clunky figures in two.

Starting point is 00:44:14 Prometheus immediately got to work. We made two beings from each one, creating the humans that we would recognize today. Prometheus, Zeus and Athena gave life to the humans, changing them from simple clay to living creatures. it was Apollo that gave us soulmates. By splitting each original design into two, every human was inherently connected to one another. Whether it be as a lover or as a friend, every person has a soulmate that is made of the same clay. Apollo gifted humanity

Starting point is 00:45:21 with the opportunity for deep connection in ways that even the gods cannot truly understand. The great Grecian philosopher Plato wrote extensively about this concept of soulmates. and how Apollo created this gift. He described the moment when two soulmates meet, saying, And when one of them meets with his other half, the actual half of himself,

Starting point is 00:46:03 the pair are lost in an amazement of love and friendship and intimacy. Someone sits under the sun, enjoying the feeling of its warmth on their skin. Beside them is the person they love best in this world. Someone who understands them completely. They can read one another's minds. They are there for each other at their best and worst. It's the person they can be their truest selves with, the person with whom they shared their clay.

Starting point is 00:47:03 Music drifts through the air, tugging at their shared happiness in the way that only music can. It enhances the perfect nature of the day by providing an emotional underscore to this moment. These people could be a pair from ancient Greece, or a couple lounging in a park today. All these elements are gifts of Apollo, and He gives them to us freely, asking nothing in return, but that we give our thanks to the Golden God. You know, I'm going to be able to be. Thank you. You're going to be.

Starting point is 00:48:45 We're going to be able to be. You know, I'm gonnae, you know, You know, I'm going to be able to be. We're going to be able to be. You know,

Starting point is 00:49:23 I'm going to be able to I'm going to ...heed. ...you know about... ...with... ...you know? ...their... ...and...

Starting point is 00:49:37 ...so... ...and... ...the... ...and... ...the... ...and... So, you know,

Starting point is 00:49:59 We're going to be able to be. You know, I'm going to be able to be. You know, you know, I'm not I'm going to be able to I'm going to

Starting point is 00:51:08 I'm going to I'm going to I'm going I'm You know, you know, You know, Dr.

Starting point is 00:51:19 . . ...you know... ...that... ...their... We're going to be able to be. We're going to be able to be. You know,

Starting point is 00:52:25 you know, We're going to be able to be. You know, I'm going to be able to be. Thank you. So, you know, and

Starting point is 00:53:31 you know, Thank you. You know, You know, you know, Thank you. So, you know,

Starting point is 00:55:06 Thank you. Thank you.

Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - A Dreamy Myth of Apollo (Olympians #11)

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