The Delphic Endeavour

Sikelianos’ vision for a new world order based on age-old and universal spiritual principles impacted his entire work as poet, playwright and essayist. And like every true visionary, he had specific and practical proposals, which he set out in his writings, as to how his vision might be realised. Contained in this volume is a selection of these writings translated into English for the first time. His vision arose as an answer and solution to mankind’s social and political problems in the troubled times in which he lived. He saw behind the historical conflicts a pressing need for a universal spiritual renaissance of mankind and it was to this goal that he gave the name the “Delphic Endeavour”. It was Sikelianos’ belief that Delphi provided the perfect centre for a spiritual alliance of peoples and like-minded individuals. It had been a spiritual centre from time immemorial, was regarded as the centre of the ancient world and had been the meeting-place for the Amphictyony, a league of city-states, making it an obvious choice for the new world spiritual amphictyony that he envisaged. He therefore famously organised Festivals in Delphi in 1927 and 1930, the true purpose of which was, however, to draw together spiritual envoys from all nations and highlight the deeper spiritual motives behind the Delphic Endeavour. These writings of Sikelianos and his vision as embodied in his Delphic Endeavour remain equally relevant today. Never has there been a greater need for a World League of Nations founded on spirit, in which every nation and every person, guided by an enlightened consciousness, will play a necessary part.