Cognitive Approaches to Ancient Religious Experience

Introduction Esther Eidinow, Armin W. Geertz, Quinton Deeley, John North; Part I. Ritual: 1. A cognitive approach to ancient Greek animal sacrifice Hugh Bowden; 2. To the netherworld and back: cognitive aspects of the descent to Trophonius Yulia Ustinova; Part II. Representation: 3. Ancient Greek smellscapes and divine fragrances: anthropomorphizing the gods in ancient Greek culture Esther Eidinow; 4. Belief, make-believe and the religious imagination: the case of the Deus Ex Machina in Greek tragedy Felix Budelmann; 5. Chanting and dancing into dissociation: the case of the Salian priests at Rome Maik Patzelt; Part III. Gender: 6. The Bacchants are silent: using cognitive science to explore the experience of the Oreibasia Vivienne McGlashan; 7. Who is the Damiatrix? Roman women, the political negotiation of psychotropic experiences, and the cults of Bona Dea Leonardo Ambasciano; Part IV. Materiality: 8. Walls and the ancient Greek ritual experience: the sanctuary of Demeter and Kore at Eleusis Michael Scott; 9. Identifying symptoms of religious experience from ancient material culture: the example of cults of the Roman Mithras Luther H. Martin; Part V. Texts: 10. Bridging the gap: from textual representations to the experiential level and back Anders Klostergaard Petersen; 11. A relevant mystery: intuitive and reflective thought in Gregory of Nyssa's representations of divine begetting in the Against Eunomius Isabella Sandwell.