What is an idol? An idol is a physical representation, a two-dimensional icon or a three-dimensional statue, of a specific aspect of the divine we call gods. Prayers are offered to them, offerings are made to them, and they become the focal points between us and the gods. But what makes an idol distinct from another type of statue? A bust of a great philosopher is not an idol; a photograph of a king is not an idol. We may idolize them, and seek to be like them, but we do not offer reverence and worship in the manner we do to the gods.
In Greek, there are two words for what we would call an idol: είδωλο and ίνδαλμα. The former, eidolo, is the root of ειδωλολατρικός—eidololatrikos, idolator, and Pagan—whereas the latter, indalma, is the physical appearance or manifestation of a thing. In the Bible, indalma appears in the Old Testament and is translated as an “apparition” or “spirit”. Eidolo, therefore, becomes the term we are most interested in. All statues could be considered indalma, but what makes it eidolo?
In Hindu practice, the ritual of Prana Pratistha is utilized to bring an idol “to life”. Prior to this ritual, it is an empty vessel that has a particular form, but is not essentially useful for worship. Likewise, we see in Ancient Egyptian ritual that the idols prepared for the dead were similarly imbued with the relevant spiritual presence before offerings could be made. In Classical Greece, the temples of the gods were not houses of worship in the sense of a modern church or synagogue; they were the literal homes of the gods housed within. Priests were generally the only ones regularly in them, and they were opened to the general public during important holidays or in times of great need1. The point here is that while a shrine to Zeus may be maintained in the temple of Apollo in Delphi, this shrine would never be confused for the dwelling place of Zeus (Greek philosophic thought had an entire framework of lesser daimons to attend the many requests of the gods, so offering at a shrine was still effective, but more indirect). Because the installation of these gods was so rare, there isn’t much information available on the method of their installation.
We can infer that something analogous to Prana Pratistha likely was involved based on Pythagorean and Platonic philosophies. Both assumed the existence of a universal monad that contained all things. The relationship between the monad and the gods (and, by extension, humans) differed between the two, but the idea applied to investing a divine presence into an idol would be similar to the Hindu practice; the difference being that the Hindu practice views the function as a morsel of the divine monad being pulled into a specific shape—god – whereas the Greek function would be to invest the actual god as a separate entity. In either event, it is very likely that the Greek ritual would have existed. Similarly, the soul of the person passing into the Duat in Egyptian theology was invested in the funerary idols; not as a piece of a greater divine whole but as a distinct and recognizable indalma of the dead enlivening an eidolo.
Modern Paganism has a similar ritual, though in most cases it is far less formal. By making regular offerings to an indalma of the deity we wish to interact with, we grow the presence of the god in the idol, making it eidolo. Whether done via a single elaborate dedication, or a long-term, slow evolution, the practice of enlivening the idols, the creation of eidolo is alive for us, eidololatrikos.
An Examen of Witches 