Time travelers in antiquity
Time travel is not just the theoretical consequence of modern physics acquisitions. Greek myths tell of mysterious characters capable of flying thousands of kilometers and breaking the barriers of space-time. Here is the extraordinary story of Aristea of Proconnesus.
In his writings, the Greek author Strabo mentions the enigmatic figure of Aristeas of Proconnesus, who in his opinion was even Homer's teacher.
It is believed that Strabo is a real character, despite the legendary nature of many of the traditions concerning him.
In fact, in literature he is remembered as a mysterious person possessing extraordinary powers.
His legendary travels remained imprinted in the conscience and minds of the ancient Greeks, so much so that they felt the need to pass on their memory to subsequent generations.
Originally from the island of Proconnesus (now the island of Marmara, in the sea of the same name), according to what is reported in the Suda lexicon, his activities took place mainly during the fiftieth Olympiad (580 BC-577 BC).
Many of the testimonies concerning him refer to his travels in the northern regions. According to The opompus he visited the mythical Hyperborea, homeland of the also mythical people of the Hyperboreans.
In Greek myths, this region is described as being a perfect country, illuminated by the bright sun for six months of the year. Some authors have identified Hyperborea as the northern end of the lost continent of Atlantis, still others with Thule, others simply with Scandinavia and Northern Europe, lands unknown and mysterious to the ancient Greeks.
The details of this long journey are reported by Herodotus, who believed that Aristea had been possessed by Apollo and that he would have followed him in the form of a raven to the extreme northern regions. Thus he writes in his “Stories” (IV, 13):
"Aristeas of Proconnesus, son of Castrobius, composing an epic poem, said that he had arrived, possessed by Phoebus, near the Issedonians and that beyond the Issedonians live the Arimaspis, one-eyed men, and beyond these the griffins guardians of the 'gold, and beyond these the Hyperboreans, which extend to a sea.All these, except the Hyperboreans, starting with the Arimaspis, continually attack their neighbors; and thus the Issedonians were driven out of their country by the Arimaspis, and the Scythians by the Issedonians; and the Cimmerians, who live on the southern sea, pressed by the Scythians, abandoned the country."
It is said that Aristea had the gift of ubiquity, that is, the ability to be in multiple places at the same time. Perhaps, this power of him is associated with another extraordinary characteristic of him: Aristea was a time traveler.
It is always Herodotus who tells a truly curious fact (Histories, IV, 13-16). One day, Aristea entered a shop in Proconnesus and there, suddenly, he fell to the ground dead. Immediately, the shopkeeper came out of the shop spreading the news of his death.
However, a man from Cyzicus contradicted the news by claiming to have met and spoken with Aristea moments earlier. No one believed the man's version.
When Aristea's family members mobilized to recover the body from the shop and organize the funeral, they were astonished to discover that the body of the deceased had disappeared. No one was able to say whether Aristea was still alive or dead.
In a twist, Aristea reappears on Proconnesus seven years later, writing the poem in which his travels to the northern regions are described. But he doesn't end there! After writing his work, Aristea disappears a second time, only to reappear 240 years later!
The second return took place in Metoponto, near Taranto. Aristea ordered the fabrication of a statue depicting himself and the construction of a new altar dedicated to the god Apollo, with whom he had been traveling in the guise of a sacred raven.
An incredible story! Can a mortal man travel through time, appearing centuries after the death of his family? It's a story similar to Albert Einstein's twin paradox! Did Aristeas travel with Apollo at near-light speeds, slowing down his time?
In reality, Aristea is not the only chrononaut from ancient times. Proteus, deity of the sea, son of Poseidon, in addition to having the ability to transform himself into any form, possessed the gift of predicting the future. His name alludes to the "first born".
In the Odyssey it is said that Proteus used to come out of the sea around midday to lie down to rest in the shade of the rocks, surrounded by Poseidon's flock of seals that he looked after.
Anyone who wanted to know their fate from the god, using their faculties as a sincere and truthful seer, had to approach him at that time and catch him sleeping, also using brute force to hold him back, since he was able to transform himself to try to escape the sometimes thankless task of predicting.
What, then, is the meaning of these ancient myths? According to "orthodox" researchers, these are simple imaginative stories, whose symbolic meaning is not always so clear.
However, there is no shortage of those who believe that these stories, enriched by legendary elements, refer to historical nuclei that actually happened, so impressive as to push our ancestors to collect them and pass them on in written form to posterity.
If so, are these men in possession of ancient technologies coming from the descendants of some lost advanced civilization of which we still have no certain evidence?
If instead they are only imaginary stories, the interesting fact remains that our ancestors had the ability to create stories about men capable of challenging the barriers of time, indicative of a very sophisticated conception of the fourth dimension!
