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Message: <blockquote data-quote="fusangite" data-source="post: 481384" data-attributes="member: 7240">Having looked at the whole thread, I have something to add:The enemy of polytheism is scholarship. A true polytheistic system is made up of stories and myths which are to some degree contradictory. The process of writing down and rationalising polytheism is the beginning of its destruction. The polytheism of the ancient Greeks was a religion largely of the past by the time it was written down and philosophy had taken the place of polytheistic religion. The real religion of Greece in the late classical period was philosophy; Gods like Zeus, Hera, Athena, etc. were already giving way to the Prime Mover envisioned by Aristotle or the creator imagined by Plato. Classical Greece was largely atheistic or monotheistic with the addition of mystery cults like that of Dionysus. Similarly, under the weight of classical scholarship imported from Greece, the Roman polytheistic system also soon began to collapse. Once one introduces scholastic rigour and logic to a system of thought, the theological truths of polytheism become either inaccessible or nonsensical. Similarly, monotheistic religions in illiterate societies often manifest the characteristics of polytheistic religions. One has to move east of Persia to see polytheistic traditions that are compatible with literacy and philosophy. Europe has no such example. So, perhaps it's best to put the question this way: what is the state of scholarship and philosophy in the society you're running? The answer to this question will narrow the range of polytheistic options you can explore.</blockquote>

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