the question: does Melikertes ever appear to his worshippers? Pausanias describes another adyton in the context of a hero cult, that of the oracle of the hero Trophonios at Lebadeia, where in order to consult the oracle, the worshipper descends into an underground khasma. There, those who reach the inner sanctum, the adyton, learn the future. According to Pausanias, there is no single way of doing this, but some learn through seeing, others through hearing (9.39.11). What about the himeros evoked by Aristides? The word can express longing or yearning, but also love and desire. This is the word used by Philostratos, for example, when he describes how desire is awakened in Achilles and Helen after they hear descriptions of each other. Yet, in the case of Melikertes, Aristides is not talking about romance, but about a dead, heroized, child. At first glance, it may seem that the himeros described by Aristides is caused by the vision of the boy’s image, but on closer examination, it becomes clear that this himeros is very closely related to what precedes as well; it is the participation in the rites (telete, ) and oath, as well as the description of the picture that follows that awakens the himeros for the hero. Moreover, Aristides emphasizes at the end of the passage that these sights are the sweetest to see and to hear making it very clear that both components are essential. In some way, then, himeros is closely linked with initiation into the mystery of the hero Melikertes. Something similar seems to be at work in the where we see worshippers falling in love with heroes. Indeed, in some cases, loving a hero seems to be a form of initiation. When phantoms first appear, the vinegrower explains to the Phoenician, the identity of each is not immediately obvious. Heroes may appear in different guises—they can change their appearance, their age, or their armor—and they can be difficult to recognize from one time to the next (21.Iff). He gives the example of a Trojan farmer who particularly empathized with the hero Palamedes. After the farmer displays his admiration for Palamedes in various ways, the hero decides to visit and reward his admirer, whom he describes as his Palamedes appears to the farmer as he tends his vine:

DOI link for the question: does Melikertes ever appear to his worshippers? Pausanias describes another adyton in the context of a hero cult, that of the oracle of the hero Trophonios at Lebadeia, where in order to consult the oracle, the worshipper descends into an underground khasma. There, those who reach the inner sanctum, the adyton, learn the future. According to Pausanias, there is no single way of doing this, but some learn through seeing, others through hearing (9.39.11). What about the himeros evoked by Aristides? The word can express longing or yearning, but also love and desire. This is the word used by Philostratos, for example, when he describes how desire is awakened in Achilles and Helen after they hear descriptions of each other. Yet, in the case of Melikertes, Aristides is not talking about romance, but about a dead, heroized, child. At first glance, it may seem that the himeros described by Aristides is caused by the vision of the boy’s image, but on closer examination, it becomes clear that this himeros is very closely related to what precedes as well; it is the participation in the rites (telete, ) and oath, as well as the description of the picture that follows that awakens the himeros for the hero. Moreover, Aristides emphasizes at the end of the passage that these sights are the sweetest to see and to hear making it very clear that both components are essential. In some way, then, himeros is closely linked with initiation into the mystery of the hero Melikertes. Something similar seems to be at work in the where we see worshippers falling in love with heroes. Indeed, in some cases, loving a hero seems to be a form of initiation. When phantoms first appear, the vinegrower explains to the Phoenician, the identity of each is not immediately obvious. Heroes may appear in different guises—they can change their appearance, their age, or their armor—and they can be difficult to recognize from one time to the next (21.Iff). He gives the example of a Trojan farmer who particularly empathized with the hero Palamedes. After the farmer displays his admiration for Palamedes in various ways, the hero decides to visit and reward his admirer, whom he describes as his Palamedes appears to the farmer as he tends his vine:

the question: does Melikertes ever appear to his worshippers? Pausanias describes another adyton in the context of a hero cult, that of the oracle of the hero Trophonios at Lebadeia, where in order to consult the oracle, the worshipper descends into an underground khasma. There, those who reach the inner sanctum, the adyton, learn the future. According to Pausanias, there is no single way of doing this, but some learn through seeing, others through hearing (9.39.11). What about the himeros evoked by Aristides? The word can express longing or yearning, but also love and desire. This is the word used by Philostratos, for example, when he describes how desire is awakened in Achilles and Helen after they hear descriptions of each other. Yet, in the case of Melikertes, Aristides is not talking about romance, but about a dead, heroized, child. At first glance, it may seem that the himeros described by Aristides is caused by the vision of the boy’s image, but on closer examination, it becomes clear that this himeros is very closely related to what precedes as well; it is the participation in the rites (telete, ) and oath, as well as the description of the picture that follows that awakens the himeros for the hero. Moreover, Aristides emphasizes at the end of the passage that these sights are the sweetest to see and to hear making it very clear that both components are essential. In some way, then, himeros is closely linked with initiation into the mystery of the hero Melikertes. Something similar seems to be at work in the where we see worshippers falling in love with heroes. Indeed, in some cases, loving a hero seems to be a form of initiation. When phantoms first appear, the vinegrower explains to the Phoenician, the identity of each is not immediately obvious. Heroes may appear in different guises—they can change their appearance, their age, or their armor—and they can be difficult to recognize from one time to the next (21.Iff). He gives the example of a Trojan farmer who particularly empathized with the hero Palamedes. After the farmer displays his admiration for Palamedes in various ways, the hero decides to visit and reward his admirer, whom he describes as his Palamedes appears to the farmer as he tends his vine: