Eleusinian mysteries

plural noun

1. the mysteries, celebrated annually at Eleusis and Athens in ancient times, in memory of the abduction and return of Persephone and in honor of Demeter and Bacchus.

Eleusinian mysteries

plural noun

1. a mystical religious festival, held in September at Eleusis in classical times, in which initiates celebrated Persephone, Demeter, and Dionysus

Word History and Origins

Origin of Eleusinian mysteries¹

First recorded in 1635–45

Example Sentences

The priestesses of rites known as the Eleusinian Mysteries were called Melissae, which means “bees” in Greek.

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The great temple was at Eleusis, a little town near Athens, and the worship was called the Eleusinian Mysteries.

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The Eleusinian Mysteries, which were always chiefly Demeter’s, had indeed great importance.

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I would love to have been part of the rites of the Eleusinian Mysteries in ancient Greece, to have experienced those plant medicines and been part of that secret initiation.

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The Eleusinian Mysteries celebrated the death and "return" of Kore, or Persephone, over a three-day period just as Easter, a much later holiday, celebrates the death and resurrection of God's son Jesus over a three-day period beginning on Good Friday and ending on Easter.

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