The Gospel of Hellas - Research Institute for Waldorf Education

the gospel of hellas
Alpha – A A O – Omega
MOON SATuRN
Epsilon – E E Y Y – Ypsilon
MERCuRY JuPITER
Eta – E H O O – Omicron
VENuS MARS
I
Iota
SuN
admiration and gratitude, devotes herself to the vastness of the world. Omega
is the force which the soul experiences in the feeling of potency and domination.
In the Alpha-feeling the soul widens herself to receive the last glimpse of light.
In Omega she is forced to close herself, to stand on her own. 102
In the middle of the seven vowels stands (I) Iota. It represents equilibrium
between the mood of Alpha and that of Omega. One can feel such a balance
in words like harmonia, ambrosia, Aphrodite, kalokagathia and tragodia, all words
which were intimately connected with the impulses of art and beauty, ideals of
self-education of the Hellenes. The Alpha sways to the Omega, finds its balance
in the middle sound of Iota and ends as it began. 103 The polarities between
Alpha and Omega express themselves even more profoundly when taken as a
basis for understanding the difference between the character of Greek and that
of Latin. 104
The gesture of A signifies receiving with open arms through awe and
astonishment. The character of O indicates conquering through force with
closing arms. These sound-gestures can be seen in the forms of the Greek letters
Alpha and Omega. These forms reappear in the most characteristic designs of
Greek and Roman architecture. The pediment of the Greek temple forms the
capital letter of an Alpha; the Roman arch traces the gesture of a capital letter
of Omega.
There is an Alpha in Athens (derived from Pallas Athena) and an Omega
in Roma (Rome, derived from the Greek rhome which means force and power,
underlying the name of the founder Romulus). The word for man sounds in