MITHRAS AND THE ZODIAC
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14795/j.v5i1.283Abstract
The Roman cult of Mithras has been the object of many controversies, for instance the question of the origin, the mythology, and the role of astronomical-astrological concepts. In this article we focus on another controversial point, the existence and content of a doctrine of salvation. We review systematically the literary, epigraphic, architectural, and iconographic evidence of salvation in Mithraism. We find that the evidence supports the existence of a doctrine that included a soul journey towards the solstices, along the lines of a famous passage in Porphyry's De antro nympharum.
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