Hyperborea a mythical region.

 Hyperborea is a mythical region, deeply shrouded in mystery, mentioned in various ancient tales, both in mythologies and historical and esoteric texts. Its etymology comes from the Greek "Hyperbóreos," which means "beyond the north wind" or "beyond Boreas," the Greek god of the north wind. This land was supposedly located at the northernmost edges of the Earth, where the cold and darkness of winter never reached, and the sun shone continuously, like a kind of Arctic paradise.

Descriptions in Classical Sources

In Greek mythology, the Hyperboreans were a blessed race, living in an idyllic land that, according to accounts, was unreachable by ordinary mortals. Apollonius of Rhodes, Pindar, and Herodotus mentioned the Hyperboreans in their works. In these accounts, they spoke of a long-lived, peaceful, and deeply spiritual race that lived beyond the Rhipaean Mountains (often identified with the Ural Mountains or even the Alps today).

According to Pindar, the Hyperboreans were in constant contact with the gods, often sending tributes and offerings to Delphi, the sacred city of Apollo, god of light and prophecy. In fact, in some versions of the myth, it is suggested that Apollo himself visited Hyperborea during the winter to enjoy the eternal summer and joy of this mystical land.

Hyperborea in Esotericism and Theosophy

In theosophy and esoteric thought from authors like Helena Blavatsky, Hyperborea is seen as the original homeland of one of the earliest human races. In "The Secret Doctrine," Blavatsky talks about cosmic cycles and root races, suggesting that the Hyperboreans were a race that existed before Lemuria and Atlantis, linked to the second cycle of humanity.

It was said that the Hyperboreans were not human in the material sense we understand today, but ethereal beings inhabiting a higher-vibrational Earth, which allowed their longevity and divine connection. Their downfall, similar to that of Atlantis, was not physical but spiritual, as the materialization of bodies and the drift away from higher truths led to their condemnation to oblivion.

The occultist Julius Evola and other traditionalist authors also spoke of Hyperborea in terms of a primordial myth. In his worldview, Hyperborea represented a spiritual state rather than a geographical one, a place of purity and perfection lost over time due to humanity's degeneration. Evola connected this myth with the idea of a lost Golden Age, where humans lived in harmony with cosmic forces.

Hyperborea in Maps

For centuries, especially in the Middle Ages, attempts were made to locate Hyperborea on maps. In ancient maps from the 16th and 17th centuries, it is sometimes represented as a circular island around the North Pole. The cartographer Gerardus Mercator, famous for his map projection, created a map where the North Pole is surrounded by four large landmasses, which many believe could correspond to descriptions of Hyperborea. These maps placed these lands in what we now know as the Arctic, in what some think might have been an attempt to reconcile real geography with mythological accounts.

Some Renaissance maps showed Hyperborea as a vast region north of Scandinavia, beyond the Barents Sea, even connected to Greenland. However, as cartography and exploration of the Arctic advanced, the idea of a habitable land at the North Pole was discarded in favor of a colder, more desolate reality.

Modern Hypotheses and Alternative Theories

More recently, in alternative and pseudoscientific theories, Hyperborea has been associated with the Hollow Earth and the existence of advanced civilizations living beneath the Earth’s surface. Some authors, like the explorer Olaf Jansen, in his book "The Smoky God," narrate stories about the entrance to a hidden paradise in the North Pole. These narratives, while lacking scientific evidence, persist in conspiracy circles and certain modern esoteric movements.

Additionally, conspiracy theorists have linked Hyperborea to racial theories and lost civilizations, some with unfortunate connections to extremist ideologies, idealizing this land as the origin of a pure and advanced race, concepts that have been strongly criticized for their lack of historical rigor and their use in political contexts.

Conclusion

Hyperborea is, in essence, a representation of a deep longing for a lost time and place, an ideal paradise where humanity was closer to the divine and to nature. This myth, like many others about lost lands (Atlantis, Lemuria), strikes a chord in the collective imagination. The existence or nonexistence of this region is less important than what it symbolizes: the desire to regain a primordial state of purity and spiritual connection.

Through the ages, from classical antiquity to modern esotericism, Hyperborea has endured as a symbol of a glorious past and a lost destiny that perhaps one day will be recovered, not in the physical realm, but in the spiritual.