Goddesses Quote by Scott Berkun
““The Greeks were so committed to ideas as supernatural forces that they created an entire group of goddesses (not one but nine) to represent creative power; the opening lines of both The Iliad and The Odyssey begin with calls to them. These nine goddesses, or muses, were the recipients of prayers from writers, engineers, and musicians. Even the great minds of the time, like Socrates and Plato, built shrines and visited temples dedicated to their particular muse (or muses, for those who hedged their bets). Right now, under our very secular noses, we honor these beliefs in our language, as the etymology of words like museum ("place of the muses") and music ("art of the muses") come from the Greek heritage of ideas as superhuman forces.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Art of Innovation, 2010
Ancient Greeks personified creative inspiration as muses, a tradition that lives on in modern language and concepts.
In simple terms: Creative ideas were linked to divine muses, influencing today’s words like “museum”.
Key Takeaway
Recognize the historic roots of creativity terminology.
Themes
creativity
mythology
language
heritage
inspiration
Mood
reflective
educational
Type
cultural
historical
When to use this quote
- education
- marketing
- branding
- artistic projects
Key Concepts
etymology
cultural continuity
artistic motivation
historical perspective
Questions to Reflect On
- How does knowing this history affect our view of creativity?
- Can we revive reverence for inspiration today?
A Different Perspective
Modern secular contexts may overlook the original reverence for inspiration.
![“Human beings, who are almost unique [among animals] in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.” — Douglas Adams” quote by Scott Berkun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b7c/scott-berkun-12409_ability-to-learn_human-beings-who-are-almost-unique-among_74918.jpg)
![“When I'm the speaker, I know that special moment [just before speaking] is the only time I will have the entire audience's full attention. Unless an alien spaceship crash-lands on stage midway through the talk, the silence before I begin is the most powerful moment I have. What defines how well…” quote by Scott Berkun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/426/scott-berkun-12409_aliens_when-i-m-the-speaker-i-know-that-special_210194.jpg)
![“History can’t give attention to what’s been lost, hidden, or deliberately buried; it is mostly a telling of success, not the partial failures that enabled success.[31] Without at least imagining the missing dimensions to the stories, our view of how to make things happen in the present is…” quote by Scott Berkun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/07f/scott-berkun-12409_failure_history-can-t-give-attention-to-what-s-b_625395.jpg)
