Sarapis

Dear folks- I am new to the forum. I have become interested in the Greco-Egyptian Syncretic god Sarapis. I know he is not mentioned in the Olympian pantheon, nor the traditional "mythos" narratives. I was wondering if anyone had information on the religious practices associated with Sarapis? Everything I have found on line so far is based on the general methodology of honoring "the gods," and posit that those forms of worship were also used in regards Sarapis. Of course I realize that a forum centered around the Olympians may not concern itself with those gods outside the traditional pantheon but would appreciate any assistance . Thanks- Milos

Sarapis is essentially a unification of the Egyptian Osiris and the Greek Plouton, although his cult reflected mostly Egyptian traditions, though in a Hellenized style.

Plutarch's On Isis and Osiris is a world dealing with the Hellenistic cult of Isis and Osiris, which grew to become very popular throughout the Mediterranean, and remained to be one of the last Hellenistic religions that put up resistance to Christianity.

You can read it here: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

You also might be interested in Apuleius' Golden Asse, which ends with the main character's conversion to the cult of Isis and Osiris/Sarapis after having wandered around Greece after having been turned into a donkey following misguided dabbling in magic spells.

You can read that here:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

But I would recommend getting a copy of the whole book to read — it is absolutely delightful, and is the only surviving reader-intended novel from Graeco-Roman Antiquity. I wrote a term paper on it at the end of last year.

Another amazing work about Isis and Sarapis-Osiris is written by Reinhold Merkelbach: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

It's in German... but here is at least an English review: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I really can recommand it (as well as other works of Merkelbach concerning Dionysos and Mithras).



Be of good courage!