Eusebeia (Greek: from "pious" from ''eu'' meaning "well", and ''sebas'' meaning "reverence", itself formed from ''seb-'' meaning sacred awe and reverence especially in actions) is a Greek word abundantly used in Greek philosophy as well as in the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...
, meaning to perform the actions appropriate to the gods. The root ''seb-'' () is connected to danger and flight, and thus the sense of reverence originally described fear of the gods.
[ Burkert, Walter. ''Greek Religion''. trans. by John Raffan. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1985. (Originally published as ''Griechische Religion der archaischen und klassichen Epoche''. Stuttgart: Verlag K. ]Kohlhammer Verlag
W. Kohlhammer Verlag GmbH, or Kohlhammer Verlag, is a German publishing house headquartered in Stuttgart.
History
Kohlhammer Verlag was founded in Stuttgart on 30 April 1866 by . Kohlhammer had taken over the businesses of his late father-in-l ...
, 1977.) 272-275.[Mikalson, Jon. "Piety and Honor." ''Honor Thy Gods: Popular Religion in Greek Tragedy''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1991. 165-202.]
Classical Greek usage
The word was used in
Classical Greece
Classical Greece was a period of around 200 years (the 5th and 4th centuries BC) in Ancient Greece,The "Classical Age" is "the modern designation of the period from about 500 B.C. to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C." ( Thomas R. Marti ...
where it meant behaving as tradition dictates in one's social relationships and towards the gods. One demonstrates eusebeia to the gods by performing the customary acts of respect (festivals, prayers, sacrifices, public devotions). By extension one honors the gods by showing proper respect to elders, masters, rulers and everything under the protection of the gods.
For
Platonist
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato and philosophical systems closely derived from it, though contemporary platonists do not necessarily accept all of the doctrines of Plato. Platonism had a profound effect on Western thought. Platonism at l ...
s, "eusebeia" meant "right conduct in regard to the gods". For the
Stoics
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early 3rd century BCE. It is a philosophy of personal virtue ethics informed by its system of logic and its views on the natural world, asserting tha ...
, "knowledge of how God should be worshiped".
The Epicureans (in Vatican Saying 32) teach that a pious attitude towards a person of wisdom benefits the one who does the honoring.
In
ancient Greek religion
Religious practices in ancient Greece encompassed a collection of beliefs, rituals, and mythology, in the form of both popular public religion and cult practices. The application of the modern concept of "religion" to ancient cultures has bee ...
and
myth
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
the concept of eusebeia is anthropomorphized as the ''
daimon
Daimon or Daemon ( Ancient Greek: , "god", "godlike", "power", "fate") originally referred to a lesser deity or guiding spirit such as the daimons of ancient Greek religion and mythology and of later Hellenistic religion and philosophy.
The wor ...
'' of piety, loyalty, duty and filial respect. According to one source, her husband is
Nomos (Law), and their daughter is
Dike, goddess of justice and fair judgment. In other tellings, Dike is the daughter of the god
Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...
and/or the goddess
Themis
In Greek mythology and religion, Themis (; grc, Θέμις, Themis, justice, law, custom) is one of the twelve Titan children of Gaia and Uranus, and the second wife of Zeus. She is the goddess and personification of justice, divine order, fai ...
(Order).
[Eusebia: Greek goddess or spirit of piety, duty & filial respect]
"
Theoi Greek Mythology
'' ed. by Aaron J. Atsma. Accessed on 2007-12-11. The Roman equivalent is
Pietas
''Pietas'' (), translated variously as "duty", "religiosity" or "religious behavior", "loyalty", "devotion", or "filial piety" (English "piety" derives from the Latin), was one of the chief virtues among the ancient Romans. It was the distingui ...
.
The opposite of eusebeia is
asebeia Asebeia ( Ancient Greek: ἀσέβεια) was a criminal charge in ancient Greece for the "desecration and mockery of divine objects", for "irreverence towards the state gods" and disrespect towards parents and dead ancestors. It translates into E ...
, which was considered a crime in Athens. The punishment could have been death or being
exiled. Some philosophers, such as
Anaxagoras
Anaxagoras (; grc-gre, Ἀναξαγόρας, ''Anaxagóras'', "lord of the assembly"; 500 – 428 BC) was a Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher. Born in Clazomenae at a time when Asia Minor was under the control of the Persian Empire, ...
,
Protagoras
Protagoras (; el, Πρωταγόρας; )Guthrie, p. 262–263. was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher and rhetorical theorist. He is numbered as one of the sophists by Plato. In his dialogue '' Protagoras'', Plato credits him with inventing t ...
and
Socrates
Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no t ...
were accused and trialed by the
Heliaia Heliaia or Heliaea ( grc, Ἡλιαία; Doric: Ἁλία ''Halia'') was the supreme court of ancient Athens. The view generally held among scholars is that the court drew its name from the ancient Greek verb , which means ''congregate''. Another ve ...
.
Dyssebeia
In Greek mythology, Dyssebeia (; Ancient Greek: ) was the spirit and personification of impiety and ungodliness, as opposed to Eusebeia. Her Roman equivalent was Impietas.
Family
According to Aeschylus, Dyssebeia was the mother of Hybris."I ...
was considered the opposite ''daimon'' to eusebeia.
In ancient India
The Indian emperor
Ashoka
Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, s ...
in his 250 BCE
Edicts
An edict is a decree or announcement of a law, often associated with monarchism, but it can be under any official authority. Synonyms include "dictum" and "pronouncement".
''Edict'' derives from the Latin edictum.
Notable edicts
* Telepinu Pro ...
used the word "eusebeia" as a Greek translation for the central
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
concept of "
dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
" in the
Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription.
[Hacker, Paul. ''Dharma in Hinduism'', Journal of Indian Philosophy, 2006, 34:479-496]
New Testament usage
"Eusebeia" enters the New Testament in later writings, where it is typically translated as "godliness," a vague translation that reflects uncertainty about its relevant meaning in the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...
. For example, "Divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness (eusébeia), through the true (full, personal, experiential) knowledge of Him Who called us by His own glory and excellence" (2 Pet 1:3)
Peter. As the following quotation from
Bullinger
Heinrich Bullinger (18 July 1504 – 17 September 1575) was a Swiss Reformer and theologian, the successor of Huldrych Zwingli as head of the Church of Zürich and a pastor at the Grossmünster. One of the most important leaders of the Swiss R ...
demonstrates, interpreters adapt the meaning of eusebeia to fit the idea appropriate to Christian practice (and not on philological grounds):
References
{{Authority control
Greek goddesses
Society of ancient Greece
New Testament Greek words and phrases
Personifications in Greek mythology