In Classical Antiquity, an oracle was a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel or prophetic opinion, predictions or precognition of the future, inspired by the gods. As such it is a form of divination.

The word is derived from the Latin verb ''ōrāre'' "to speak" and properly refers to the priest or priestess uttering the prediction. In extended use, ''oracle'' may also refer to the site of the oracle, and to the oracular utterances themselves, called ''khrēsmoi'' (χρησμοί) in Greek.

Oracles were thought to be portals through which the gods spoke directly to man. In this sense they were different from seers (''manteis'', μάντεις) who interpreted signs sent by the gods through bird signs, animal entrails, and other various methods.

The most important oracles of Greek antiquity were Pythia, priestess to Apollo at Delphi, and the oracle of Dione and Zeus at Dodona in Epirus. Other temples of Apollo were located at Didyma on the coast of Asia Minor, at Corinth and Bassae in the Peloponnese, and at the islands of Delos and Aegina in the Aegean Sea. Only the Delphic Oracle was a female; all others were male. The Sibylline Oracles are a collection of oracular utterances written in Greek hexameters ascribed to the Sibyls, prophetesses who uttered divine revelations in a frenzied state.

Origins

Walter Burkert observes that "Frenzied women from whose lips the god speaks are recorded in the Near East as in Mari in the second millennium BC and in Assyria in the first millennium BC. In Egypt the goddess Wadjet (eye of the moon) was depicted as a snake-headed woman or a woman with two snake-heads.Her oracle was in the renowned temple in Per-Wadjet (Greek name Buto). The oracle of Wadjet may have been the source for the oracular tradition which spread from Egypt to Greece. Evans linked Wadjet with the Minoan snake goddess, a chthonic deity and one of the aspects of the Great Mother.

In Greece the old oracles were devoted to the Mother Goddess. At the oracle of Dodona she will be called Diōnē (the feminine form of ''Diós'', genitive of Zeus, PIE *''Dyaeus''; or of ''dīos'', "godly", literally "heavenly"), who represents the earth-fertile soil, probably the chief female goddess of the PIE pantheon. Python, daughter (or son) of Gaia was the earth dragon of Delphi represented as a serpent and became the chthonic deity, enemy of Apollo, who slew her and possessed the oracle.

In the Bible there is a reference to Oracle in II Chronicles 5:7-9 "And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his palace, to the oracle of the house, into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubim: For the cherubim spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above. And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle but they were not seen without. And there it is unto this day."

Pythia

The Pythia, the oracle at Delphi, only gave prophecies the seventh day of each month, seven being the number most associated with Apollo, during the nine warmer months of the year; thus, Delphi was not the major source of divination for the ancient Greeks. Many wealthy individuals bypassed the hordes of people attempting a consultation by making additional animal sacrifices to please the oracle lest their request go unanswered. As a result, seers were the main source of everyday divination.

The temple was changed to a center for the worship of Apollo during the classical period of Greece and priests were added to the temple organization—although the tradition regarding prophecy remained unchanged—and the apparently always-female priestess continued to provide the services of the oracle exclusively. It is from this institution that the English word, oracle, is derived.

The Delphic Oracle exerted considerable influence throughout Hellenic culture. Distinctively, this female was essentially the highest authority both civilly and religiously in male-dominated ancient Greece. She responded to the questions of citizens, foreigners, kings, and philosophers on issues of political impact, war, duty, crime, laws—even personal issues. Nevertheless there was a catch. The Pythia, when about to deliver, would chew leaves from Apollo's sacred laurel tree and would then sit on her holy tripod, seated in the innermost sanctum, over a crack on the rock from where noxious volcanic fumes emanated. Dazed and disoriented, she would then be "possessed by the voice of Apollo" and utter inarticulate sounds before fainting. Only the priests were present there, and they had the task of "translating" her utterances in plain speech. The priests were extremely well versed on the various matters of state, as part of their work was to debrief pilgrims about all that they knew. In addition, no question to the god was ever dealt with immediately. After the query was submitted, several days of prescribed ceremonial had to be observed before Apollo was so satisfied as to speak through his priestess, which gave the priests precious time for research.

The semi-Hellenic countries around the Greek world, such as Lydia, Caria, and even Egypt also respected her and came to Delphi as supplicants.

Croesus, king of Lydia beginning in 560 B.C., tested the oracles of the world to discover which gave the most accurate prophecies. He sent out emissaries to seven sites who were all to ask the oracles on the same day what the king was doing at that very moment. Croesus proclaimed the oracle at Delphi to be the most accurate, who correctly reported that the king was making a lamb-and-tortoise stew, and so he graced her with a magnitude of precious gifts. He then consulted Delphi before attacking Persia, and according to Herodotus was advised, "If you cross the river, a great empire will be destroyed." Believing the response favorable, Croesus attacked, but it was his own empire that ultimately was destroyed by the Persians.

She allegedly also proclaimed Socrates to be the wisest man in Greece, to which Socrates said that, if so, this was because he alone was aware of his own ignorance. After this confrontation, Socrates dedicated his life to a search for knowledge that was one of the founding events of western philosophy. He claimed that she was "an essential guide to personal and state development." This Oracle's last recorded response was given in 393 AD, when the emperor Theodosius I ordered pagan temples to cease operation.

The oracle's powers were highly sought after and never doubted. Any inconsistencies between prophecies and events were dismissed as failure to correctly interpret the responses, not an error of the oracle. Very often prophecies were worded ambiguously, so as to cover all contingencies - especially so ''ex post facto''. One famous such response to a query about participation in a military campaign was "You will go you will return never in war will you perish". This gives the recipient liberty to place a comma before or after the word "never", thus covering both possible outcomes. Another was the response to the Athenians when the vast army of king Xerxes I was approaching Athens with the intent of razing the city to the ground. "Only the wooden palisades may save you", answered the oracle, probably aware that there was sentiment for sailing to the safety of southern Italy and reestablishing Athens there. Some thought that it was a recommendation to fortify the Acropolis with a wooden fence and make a stand there. Others, Themistocles among them, said the oracle was clearly for fighting at sea, the metaphor intended to mean war ships. Others still insisted that their case was so hopeless that they should board every ship available and flee to Italy, where they would be safe beyond any doubt. In the event, variations of all three interpretations were attempted: some barricaded the Acropolis, the civilian population was evacuated over sea to nearby Salamis Island and to Troizen, and the war fleet fought victoriously at Salamis Bay. Should utter destruction have happened, it could always be claimed that the oracle had called for fleeing to Italy after all.

Dodona

Dodona was another oracle devoted to the Mother Goddess identified at other sites with Rhea or Gaia, but here called Dione. The shrine of Dodona was the oldest Hellenic oracle, according to the fifth-century historian Herodotus and in fact, dates to pre-Hellenic times, perhaps as early as the second millennium BC when the tradition probably spread from Egypt.Zeus displaced the Mother goddess and assimilated her as Aphrodite.

It became the second most important oracle in ancient Greece, which later was dedicated to Zeus and to Heracles during the classical period of Greece.At Dodona Zeus was worshipped as Zeus Naios or Naos (god of springs Naiads,from a spring which existed under the oak), and Zeus Bouleos (cancellor). Priestesses and priests interpreted the rustling of the oak leaves to determine the correct actions to be taken.The oracle was shared by Dione and Zeus.

Trophonius

Trophonius was an oracle at Lebadea of Boeotia devoted to the chthonian Zeus Trophonius. Trophonius is derived from the Greek word "trepho" (nourish) and he was a Greek hero, or demon or god. Demeter-Europa was his nurse. Europa (in Greek: broad-eyes) was a Phoenecian princess who Zeus transformed into a white bull abducted and carried her to Creta, and is equated with Astarte as a moon goddess by ancient sources. Some scholars connect Astarte with the Minoan snake goddess, whose cult as Aphrodite spread from Creta to Greece.

"Oracles" in other cultures

The term "oracle" is also applied to parallel institutions of divination in other cultures. Specifically, it is used in the context of Christianity for the concept of divine revelation, and in the context of Judaism for the Urim and Thummim breastplate, and in general any utterance considered prophetic.

China

Oracles were common in many civilizations of antiquity. In China, the use of oracle bones dates as far back as the Shang Dynasty, (1600–1046 BC). The I Ching, or "Book of Changes", is a collection of linear signs used as oracles that are from that period. Although divination with the I Ching is thought to have originated prior to the Shang Dynasty, it was not until King Wu of Zhou (1046–1043 BC) that it took its present form. In addition to its oracular power, the I Ching has had a major influence on the philosophy, literature and statecraft of China from the time of the Zhou Dynasty (1122 BC – AD 256).

Celtic polytheism

In Celtic polytheism, divination was performed by the priestly caste, either the druids or the vates. This is reflected in the role of "seers" in Dark Age Wales (''dryw'') and Ireland (''fáith'').

Hinduism

In ancient India, the oracle was known as Akashwani or Asariri (Tamil), literally meaning "voice from the sky" and was related to the message of god. Oracles played key roles in many of the major incidents of the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. An example is that Kansa, the evil uncle of lord Krishna, was informed by an oracle that the eighth son of his sister Devaki would kill him. There are still a few existing and publicly accessible Oracles in India.

Tibetan Buddhism

In Tibet, oracles have played, and continue to play, an important part in religion and government. The word "oracle" is used by Tibetans to refer to the spirit that enters those men and women who act as media between the natural and the spiritual realms. The media are, therefore, known as ''kuten'', which literally means, "the physical basis".

The Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in northern India, still consults an oracle known as the ''Nechung Oracle'', which is considered the official state oracle of the government of Tibet. The Dalai Lama has according to custom, a custom that has endured for centuries, consulted the Nechung Oracle during the new year festivities of Losar. Nechung and Gadhong are the primary oracles currently consulted; former oracles such as Karmashar and Darpoling are no longer active in exile. Another oracle the Dalai Lama consults is the ''Tenma oracle'', for which a young Tibetan woman is the medium for the goddess. The Dalai Lama gives a complete description of the process of trance and spirit possession in his book ''Freedom in Exile''. .

Pre-Columbian Americas

In the migration myth of the Mexitin, i.e., the early Aztecs, a mummy-bundle (perhaps an effigy) carried by four priests directed the trek away from the cave of origins by giving oracles. An oracle led to the foundation of Mexico-Tenochtitlan. The Yucatec Mayas knew oracle priests or ''chilanes'', literally 'mouthpieces' of the deity. Their written repositories of traditional knowledge, the Books of Chilam Balam, were all ascribed to one famous oracle priest who correctly had predicted the coming of the Spaniards and its associated disasters.

Sub-Saharan Africa

The Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria in Africa have a long tradition of using oracles. In Igbo villages, oracles were usually female priestesses to a particular deity, usually dwelling in a cave or other secluded location away from urban areas, and, much as the oracles of ancient Greece, would deliver prophecies in an ecstatic state to visitors seeking advice. Two of their ancient oracles became especially famous during the pre-colonial period: the Agbala oracle at Awka and the Chukwu oracle at Arochukwu. Though the vast majority of Igbos today are Christian, many of them still use oracles.

Amongst the related Yoruba peoples of the same country, the Babalawos (and their female counterparts, the Iyanifas) serve collectively as the principal aspects of the tribe's World-famous Ifa divination system. Due to this, they customarily officiate at a great many of its traditional and religious ceremonies.

Norse mythology

In Norse mythology, Odin took the severed head of the mythical god Mimir to Asgard for consultation as an oracle. The ''Havamal'' and other sources relate the sacrifice of Odin for the oracular Runes whereby he lost an eye (external sight) and won wisdom (internal sight; insight). to be a consulted oracle

Hawaii

In Hawaii, oracles were found at certain heiau. These oracles were found in towers covered in white kapa. In here, priests received the will of gods. These towers were called "'Anu'u." AN example of this can be found at Ahu'ena heiau in Kona. http://gohawaii.about.com/od/bigislandofhawaiiphotos/ig/kailua-kona/kailua_kona_038.htm

References

Further reading

Broad, William J. 2007. ''The Oracle: Ancient Delphi and the Science Behind Its Lost Secrets''. New York: Penguin Press.

Broad, William J. 2006. ''The Oracle: The Lost Secrets and Hidden Message of Ancient Delphi''. New York: Penguin Press.

Curnow, T. 1995. ''The Oracles of the Ancient World: A Comprehensive Guide''. London: Duckworth – ISBN 0-7156-3194-2

Evans-Pritchard, E. 1976. ''Witchcraft, oracle, and magic among the Azande''. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Fontenrose, J. 1981. ''The Delphic Oracle. Its responses and operations with a catalogue of responses''. Berkeley: University of California Press (main page)

Smith, Frederick M. (2006). ''The Self Possessed: Deity and Spirit Possession in South Asian Literature''. Columbia University Press, USA. ISBN 0231137486.

Stoneman, Richard (2011). ''The Ancient Oracles: Making the Gods Speak.'' Yale University Press, USA

Category:Divination Category:Prophecy Category:Ancient Greek religion

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Coordinates	40°37′29″N73°57′8″N
name	Mark Vincent Hurd
birth date	January 01, 1957
birth place	Flushing, New York, USA
education	Baylor University
residence	Palo Alto, California, USA
spouse	Paula Kalupa}}

Mark Vincent Hurd (born January 1, 1957) is co-president, director, and board member of Oracle Corporation, and the past chairman, chief executive officer, and president of Hewlett-Packard. At Hewlett-Packard, Hurd succeeded CFO Robert Wayman, who served as interim CEO from February 10, 2005 to March 28, 2005, after former CEO Carly Fiorina had stepped down. On September 22, 2006, Hurd succeeded Patricia C. Dunn as chairman after she resigned after the pretexting controversy. Hurd resigned his positions at HP on August 6, 2010, after an internal investigation uncovered expense-account irregularities.

Education

Hurd graduated in 1979 with a bachelor of business administration from Baylor University, where he played tennis.

Early career

Hurd spent 25 years at NCR Corporation, culminating in a two-year tenure as chief executive officer and president. His leadership was marked by successful efforts to improve operating efficiency, bolster the product line and build strong leadership. In the fiscal year of 2004, NCR generated revenue of $6.0 billion, up 7 percent from a year earlier, and net income rose nearly fivefold to $290 million.

Hurd was named president of NCR in 2001 and was given additional responsibilities as chief operating officer in 2002. Hurd began working for NCR as a junior salesman in San Antonio in 1980, and subsequently held a variety of positions in general management, operations, and sales and marketing. He also served as head of the company's Teradata data-warehousing division for three years.

Hurd is a member of the Technology CEO Council, a coalition of chairmen and chief executive officers of IT companies, which develops and advocates public policy positions on technology and trade. Hurd has since been removed from mention on the official website of the Council, and is conspicuously missing from the Council's listed members.

Hurd served on the board of directors of News Corporation until 2010, but was not renominated to his seat following the Jodie Fisher scandal.

Hewlett-Packard (2005–2010)

Management style

After the board forced Chairman and CEO Carly Fiorina to resign in January 2005, CFO Robert P. Wayman became interim CEO for several months. Hurd was appointed permanent CEO and also held the title of President, a post which was not used by several of his predecessors (Michael Capellas was President of HP briefly in 2002 after its merger with Compaq). Hurd was also elected to the board of directors but unlike previous CEOs, he initially was not chairman of the board. On September 22, 2006, Hurd succeeded Patricia C. Dunn as chairman after she resigned after the pretexting controversy.

Under his leadership, the company has been the first in the sale of desktop computers since 2007, and laptop computers since 2006. In 2008, it also increased its market share in inkjet and laser printers to 46% and 50.5%, respectively. Hurd said that he gets up every day at 4:45 a.m. in California without an alarm clock because competitors on the east coast are already awake.

Hurd has a reputation for aggressive cost-cutting. He laid off 15,200 workers — 10% of the workforce — shortly after becoming CEO. Other cost-cutting includes reducing the IT department from 19,000 to 8,000, reducing the number of software applications that HP uses from 6,000 to 1,500, and consolidating HP's 85 data centers to 6. In the recent recession, Hurd imposed a 5% pay cut on all employees and removed many benefits. Hurd himself took a pay cut of 20% in his base salary, although the compensation committee increased his bonus by the same amount. Following the acquisition of EDS, Hurd instructed that all EDS employees should have their salaries adjusted to match the salaries of their HP counterparts, with pay cuts of as much as 20%. He also promised that those employees below scale would see their payscales adjusted through an internal process that never materialized.

Hurd forecast that in 2009, HP's sales could drop as much as 5% in the midst of the recession, but its profit would increase by nearly 6%.

In 2009, Hurd was considered one of the "TopGun CEOs" by Brendan Wood International, an advisory agency.

Resignation

On August 6, 2010, he resigned from all of his positions at HP, following discovery of inappropriate conduct in an investigation into a claim of sexual harassment made by former reality TV actress Jodie Fisher. The probe concluded that the company's sexual-harassment policy was not violated, but that its standards of business conduct were. Hurd said he "realized there were instances in which I did not live up to the standards and principles of trust, respect and integrity that I have espoused at HP" and added that he believed it would be "difficult to continue as an effective leader at HP." In exchange for releasing HP from future litigation, Hurd received $12.2 million in severance, plus vested options and restricted stock for an estimated total of $34.6 million.

Oracle Corporation CEO Larry Ellison, a close friend of Hurd who has also been the object of sexual harassment claims, sent an e-mail to the New York Times saying "the HP Board just made the worst personnel decision since the idiots on the Apple Board fired Steve Jobs many years ago. That decision nearly destroyed Apple and would have if Steve hadn't come back and saved them. HP had a long list of failed CEOs until they hired Mark who has spent the last five years doing a brilliant job reviving HP to its former greatness".

Compensation

In 2008, Hurd's total compensation was $33,952,237, including a base salary of $1,450,000, stock award of $7,907,660, cash bonus of $23,931,882, and $662,695 in perquisites and other compensation. It was the largest bonus of any CEO in 2008, although Hurd himself implemented a wage freeze on the employees.

In 2009, Hurd made a total of $24,201,448, including a base salary of $1,268,750, stock award of $6,648,092, cash bonus of $15,809,414 and $475,192 in benefits and other compensation. Hurd said he believes in what he calls "pay for performance", such that employees have a substantial part of their salaries "at-risk", which gets paid only when the company's performance measures up.

Lawsuit

A shareholder derivative lawsuit has been filed following the imbroglio over Hurd's departure. The suit seeks unspecified damages and changes to HP's corporate governance. It claims that HP lost "significant credibility" due to the controversy and a loss of $9 billion in market capitalization when shares began trading the Monday after Hurd's resignation, and that his severance package could have been significantly smaller if HP's board fired him for cause. The suit was filed on behalf of shareholders by Brockton Contributory Retirement System against Hurd, and HP's board members.

Oracle Corporation (2010–present)

On September 6, 2010 Hurd was named co-president and member of the board of Oracle Corporation by CEO Larry Ellison. Hurd succeeded Charles Phillips. Safra A. Catz remains the other Oracle co-president.

Bibliography

''The Value Factor: How Global Leaders Use Information for Growth and Competitive Advantage'' by Mark Hurd and Lars Nyberg, Bloomberg Press, 2004, ISBN 1-57660-157-9

Fall 2003 Baylor Business Review "Enterprise Decision-Making" by Mark Hurd, ISSN 0739-1072

References

External links

An HP Executive Team Biography of Mark Hurd

Fall 2006 Baylor Business Review Q&A; with Mark Hurd

Fall 2006 Baylor Business Review "Five Leadership Tips from Mark Hurd"

Fall 2003 Baylor Business Review "Enterprise Decision-Making"

BBC article on appointment to H-P

March 30 2005 - H-P CEO Mark Hurd speaks

Jan. 17, 18 of 2003 - Kellogg School of Management’s Digital Frontier Conference - Mark Hurd is keynote speaker

Meet H-P’s New Boss - ZDNet - CNET Networks

Mark Hurd: Technology Transformation Takes Commitment, Investment Government Technology Magazine May, 2009

Category:1956 births Category:American chief executives Category:Baylor University alumni Category:Hewlett-Packard people Category:Living people Category:People from New York City Category:NCR people

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