Sephiroth
March 10th, 2001, 09:19 PM
here is some info that i found hope u all like it....
In medieval literature, the sacred cup used by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper and later piously sought by the knights of the legendary King Arthur. According to tradition, the Grail was preserved by Joseph of Arimathea, who collected in it the blood from the body of the crucified Christ. The vessel was then conveyed to Britain, where it was transmitted from generation to generation of Joseph's descendants. The Grail possessed many miraculous properties, such as the power of furnishing food for those without sin and of blinding the impure of heart or striking dumb the irreverent who came into its presence.
Parzival
The Holy Grail appears in the medieval romance of Parzival (or Parsifal, or Percival). As a youth, Parzival sets forth to achieve knighthood at King Arthur's court. On the way he reaches the castle of the Fisher King, a renowned angler. The Fisher King, Parzival's uncle (although unknown to him), is custodian of the Holy Grail and of the spear that wounded Christ on the cross. Because of his sinful ways, the Fisher King has been struck dumb on coming into the presence of the sacred chalice. When Parzival enters the castle he witnesses a procession in which the bleeding spear and the Holy Grail pass before the speechless king. Astonished, Parzival fails to ask any questions concerning the strange pantomime, not knowing that if he, a pure and guileless soul, had spoken, his uncle would have been healed. After many wanderings, Parzival returns to the Grail castle, welds together a broken sword or (in another version) restores the power of speech to his uncle, and succeeds him as king.
Legendary Quests
In later legend, the Holy Grail becomes an object of consecrated search, and the leading role in the quest is assigned to Sir Galahad, one of Arthur's knights. Many other knights set out to find the sacred chalice, but the quest is realized only by Sir Bors, in addition to Parzival and Galahad. Many features of the Grail story, notably the hero and the magic vessel, are now regarded as arising from a Celtic saga that was Christianized into a vehicle for moral and religious instruction. The development of this legend was as follows. Chr'etien de Troyes, the 12th-century French poet, left at his death an unfinished poem, Perceval le Gallois, that was continued by other writers. On the same source as that of Chr'etien's romance or on the poem itself, the 13th-century German epic poet Wolfram von Eschenbach founded his Parzival, one of the finest treatments of the Grail theme. In the 15th century the English writer and translator Sir Thomas Malory embodied the quest of the sacred chalice in his Morte d'Arthur. In the 19th century the Grail legend was used by the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson in his Idylls of the King and by the German composer Richard Wagner in his music drama Parsifal.
In medieval literature, the sacred cup used by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper and later piously sought by the knights of the legendary King Arthur. According to tradition, the Grail was preserved by Joseph of Arimathea, who collected in it the blood from the body of the crucified Christ. The vessel was then conveyed to Britain, where it was transmitted from generation to generation of Joseph's descendants. The Grail possessed many miraculous properties, such as the power of furnishing food for those without sin and of blinding the impure of heart or striking dumb the irreverent who came into its presence.
Parzival
The Holy Grail appears in the medieval romance of Parzival (or Parsifal, or Percival). As a youth, Parzival sets forth to achieve knighthood at King Arthur's court. On the way he reaches the castle of the Fisher King, a renowned angler. The Fisher King, Parzival's uncle (although unknown to him), is custodian of the Holy Grail and of the spear that wounded Christ on the cross. Because of his sinful ways, the Fisher King has been struck dumb on coming into the presence of the sacred chalice. When Parzival enters the castle he witnesses a procession in which the bleeding spear and the Holy Grail pass before the speechless king. Astonished, Parzival fails to ask any questions concerning the strange pantomime, not knowing that if he, a pure and guileless soul, had spoken, his uncle would have been healed. After many wanderings, Parzival returns to the Grail castle, welds together a broken sword or (in another version) restores the power of speech to his uncle, and succeeds him as king.
Legendary Quests
In later legend, the Holy Grail becomes an object of consecrated search, and the leading role in the quest is assigned to Sir Galahad, one of Arthur's knights. Many other knights set out to find the sacred chalice, but the quest is realized only by Sir Bors, in addition to Parzival and Galahad. Many features of the Grail story, notably the hero and the magic vessel, are now regarded as arising from a Celtic saga that was Christianized into a vehicle for moral and religious instruction. The development of this legend was as follows. Chr'etien de Troyes, the 12th-century French poet, left at his death an unfinished poem, Perceval le Gallois, that was continued by other writers. On the same source as that of Chr'etien's romance or on the poem itself, the 13th-century German epic poet Wolfram von Eschenbach founded his Parzival, one of the finest treatments of the Grail theme. In the 15th century the English writer and translator Sir Thomas Malory embodied the quest of the sacred chalice in his Morte d'Arthur. In the 19th century the Grail legend was used by the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson in his Idylls of the King and by the German composer Richard Wagner in his music drama Parsifal.