An Online Encyclopedia
James Randi is a very interesting character. He is a professional magician who uses the art to debunk scam artists and hoaxers. A professional skeptic if you will.
He wrote a book called
An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural and just recently placed it online with some entries updated.
The online version is here:
An Encyclopedia of Claims...
The entry for Delphi (Also, Delphos):
The Oracle of Delphi, probably the best-known of the Greek divining agencies, was essentially a political force. The women in charge were not above accepting bribes to give appropriate answers to inquirers. It was believed that the god Apollo spoke through the Pythian priestesses while they were in various states of drug-induced trance.
The ambiguous nature of their utterances became a popular joke, as when they were asked to tell King Croesus the outcome of an upcoming battle to be fought across a river. The response: "When Croesus passes over the river he overthrows the strength of an empire." The questioner was pleased and left a generous offering at the temple. A great empire did fall that day, but it was his own. Such procedures gave rise to the expression, "Delphic statement" used to designate anything that can be taken two or more ways.
Today, investment advisors and meteorologists are the tamer versions of the Oracle of Delphi.
Posted by DaveH at June 19, 2005 2:29 PM