遊戲與狂歡－古代奧運的身體意涵

身體作爲新世紀的重要議題，可以有不同的取徑深入研究。本文即以古代奧運的身體活動爲文本，就文化觀點探討身體在此活動中所展現的意義。經文獻分析發現，古希臘人崇尚自然，面向大海，心胸開闊，豁達人生，重視休閒，善舞蹈，喜競爭，強調身心和諧，信仰多神並存，並與神同形、同性、同樂。審視古代奧運的身體，獲知係富休閒的自由人，利用祭祀宙斯的儀典，以宗教儀式爲平台，藉裸體競技爲媒介，配以音樂、詩歌朗誦、舞蹈與藝術展演的天地人神的身體遊戲。競技賽會力主和平共處，特重智慧、勇敢、節制與正義的身體教化。勝利者，獲頒橄欖冠、雕像、頌歌。如神的英雄身體塑像，公開陳列，供人瞻仰崇拜，名垂千古，凸顯生命之神聖永恒；並以盛宴狂歡，慶賀身體的優越性，同時，無視於周遭現實環境，展現自由、解放的身體，進入欣喜若狂、興奮不已的狀態，一如酒神之狂顛。

關鍵字

古代奧運；身體意涵；多神論

並列摘要

The body is a crucial issue in the new century, and there are many paths lying ahead for a deeper study. In this paper, the physical activities observed in ancient Olympics are used as the basis for the study of the meaning of bodies in such activities from a cultural point of view. It is found in literature reviews that the ancient Greeks worshiped nature and ocean, and had an open mind and generous life. They valued leisure, loved to dance and enjoyed competition. Also, they emphasized physical and psychological harmony, believed in the existence of multiple gods and shared the form, disposition and joy with the gods. It is realized from reviewing the bodies in ancient Olympics that the rich and leisurable citizens staged the bodily games of heaven, earth, human and deities in the Zeus-worshiping ceremonies with the religious rituals as a platform and the competition in naked bodies as the media, along with music, chanting, dancing and arts. The competitions emphasized in peaceful coexistence and valued the bodily teachings of wisdom, bravery, restraint and justice. Winners were rewarded with laurels, statues and songs of praise. The statues of heroes' bodies poising in the divine form were displayed for public worshiping, and the name of heroes found their way into the history books to bring out the eternal holiness of life. Wild feasts were given in the name of bodily superiority, while the free and liberated bodies were revealed regardless the actual ambience. It was a state of extreme ecstasy and excitement like the trance of Dionysus.