The Gospel of Hellas - Research Institute for Waldorf Education

the gospel of hellas
quite different form. The gods deserted the cella of their temples because
human beings no longer perceived and adored their presence. But as the temple
declined, the theatre sprang into being and became its natural successor.
Just as the temple may be called the eyebrows of the gods, so did the
theatre of Dionysus which now arose become the ear of that god who wished
to penetrate the depths of the human soul. His theatre resembled a seashell
in form. And just as the murmur of the waves on the shore resound in the
seashell, so did reverberations of the word of the god within resound from the
orchestra.
Any consideration of the Greek temple must, therefore, necessarily include
the theatre, for the theatre of Dionysus originated from the same source as the
temple, that of the sacred dance—the dance of the satyrs. The circular space
at the center of the theatre was filled by the orchestra (the word orchestra
is derived from the Greek verb orcheomai, to dance) surrounding the altar of
Dionysus. In front, in the first row of the spectators, stood the seat of the
god’s high priest. The theatre was divided into two parts, the larger being given
over to the spectators with fourteen (twice seven) sections or kerkis, formed
into a sloping hollow in the shape of a horseshoe curve. At this point it is of