Kazantzakis: We, the Greeks, the Architects of the World (EN-GR)

EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis).  “Aniforos” was Kazantzakis last novel, published in November 2022.  Please link here for some information from the Kazantzakis Museum and watch the video of the presentation of the novel at Benaki Museum on Nov. 7, 2022.  Below is the leading editorial containing an excerpt from “Aniforos” published recently by “Estia” – Greece’s oldest and most respected newspaper.

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ΤΟ ΑΡΧΙΚΟ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΟ ΚΕΙΜΕΝΟ ΑΚΟΛΟΥΘΕΙ

Kazantzakis: We, the Greeks, the Architects of the World

The Ecumenical Value of the Parthenon Sculptures From “Aniforos” / “Uphill”

We chased the word above the chaos, clipped its wings, tied it to the temples of the mind, Apteros Niki (“Wingless Niki”) – The Greeks, to save the essence, gave it form – The balance in the Sculptures is also the Greek miracle.

We also PARROT this neologism in Greece – “the perfect is the enemy of the good.” We do not look back to see that perfection was born in the ancient years in this country. We do not look back to see how the top writer, Nikos Kazantzakis, praised perfection by simply visiting the Parthenon Sculptures there in exile where they are.

That should have been the argument. We should focus on this in our campaign to recover the Sculptures. In the perfect, which is expressed by the harmonious coupling of wisdom, power and beauty, which combine incomparably.

But a Kazantzakis had to stand before them to express what touches only the Greek soul. Kazantzakis writes in “Aniforo”: “I stand in front of the Parthenon relief and I feel that the great secret of perfection in life and art is called: balance. In Greek art, the flesh did not weigh down to gain strength or become light to earn grace. He managed to lighten up precisely at the point where the grace begins. He found and stood at the border, invisible to the naked eye, of perfect balance. This is the Greek miracle.

“To save the essence, the Greeks struggled to find the simplest and most perfect form. The Greek craftsman entered the forest of life, the confusing and dark, where you don’t see the sky and you drown; he entered the forest of life and started to work. Clean up the chaos, banish the unnecessary, and make the forest a tree and the tree a pillar. It came out of the forest and now the forest had condensed it into a Doric column”.

Let’s invite the “trustees” of the British Museum to read these lines, and if they speak to their souls, then perhaps it is worth continuing to discuss with them.

We doubt it, though. Because they never showed these Sculptures in a way that shows they have become partakers of their perfection. They used to rub them with wire brushes to make them whiter. Because they were unable to understand that the light emerges from the layers of the partially light-colored marble of Attica, which was carved by those whom Kazantzakis calls “Architects of the world.” The Ancient Creators. Born also of those of the Greek land who discovered the light within themselves, the Word that led them to sculpt the world’s wonders.

“Before us, they shouted with shrill voices like vultures, and the longings of man spoke and could not articulate a sober speech; we chased the word above the chaos, we clipped its wings and tied it to the pleas of the mind, fearless Niki!” writes Kazantzakis, continuing to stand in front of the Sculptures.

He continues: “Before us, the thoughts were an untrained, chattering, incoherent bunch that was overcome by panic in front of thunder, lightning, dreams, and death. They could not form an organized army in the first attack of the darkness; they scattered. We organized the reflections and created the syllogism – position, contrast, composition – we discovered roads, opened laws, and defeated chaos.

“Before us, matter was the heavy, unhappy, unsmiling enemy. We fought the matter persistently, fiercely as a man fights a woman; we discovered the secret doors, we entered, he surrendered. We also kissed her on the mouth and her bowels were filled with son.

“If every people were to be appointed to the Government of the Universe and to take a responsible position, we Greeks should be appointed the “Architects of the World”.

There, in the British Museum, one will see the creations of other ancient peoples and will realize that precisely they brought the darkness and the burden of unhappiness, where the chisel of a Greek craftsman depicted the path to the light.

Today, we may be given a unique opportunity, another ancient civilization from the Far East, artifacts of which are also in the British Museum, which claims their return. We read in the news that the Chinese newspaper Global Times has called on the British Museum to return thousands of Chinese relics since it is now clear that it cannot guarantee their safety following the scandal that has erupted with the theft of exhibits. No wonder the Museum managers avoided commenting even to the BBC.

It is the moment when an international dynamic is created since all the arguments of the British Museum are collapsing. We must move immediately. Let’s not miss the opportunity. Otherwise, we will prove unworthy of the title “Architects of the world.”

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Καζαντζάκης: Εμείς, οι Έλληνες, οι Αρχιτέκτονες του Κόσμου

Η Οικουμενική Αξία των Γλυπτών του Παρθενώνα από τον «Ανήφορο»

ΣΗΜΕΙΩΣΗ ΣΥΝΤΑΞΗΣ (Νίκος Σταματάκης). Ο «Ανήφορος» ήταν το τελευταίο μυθιστόρημα του Καζαντζάκη, που δημοσιεύτηκε τον Νοέμβριο του 2022.  Παρακαλούμε συνδεθείτε εδώ για μερικές πληροφορίες από το Μουσείο Καζαντζάκη και παρακολουθήστε το βίντεο της παρουσίασης του μυθιστορήματος στο Μουσείο Μπενάκη στις 7 Νοεμβρίου 2022.  Παρακάτω είναι το κύριο άρθρο που περιέχει ένα απόσπασμα από τον «Ανήφορο» που κυκλοφόρησε πρόσφατα η «Εστία» – η παλαιότερη και πιο σεβαστή εφημερίδα της Ελλάδας.

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Ἐμεῖς κυνηγήσαμε ἀπάνω ἀπό τό χάος τήν λέξη, τῆς κόψαμε τά φτερά, τή στελιώσαμε στ’ ἀητώματα τοῦ νοῦ, Ἀφτέρουγη Νίκη – Οἱ Ἕλληνες γιά νά σώσουν τήν οὐσία τῆς ἔδωσαν φόρμα – Ἡ ἐξισορρόπησις στά Γλυπτά εἶναι καί τό ἑλληνικό θαῦμα