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Grail, The Holy
Grail, The Holy, in Arthurian legend, a symbol of perfection sought by the knights of the Round Table. In the latest development of the legend it is identified as the cup of the Last Supper in which Joseph of Arimathea caught the blood of the crucified Christ and which, in some versions, he brought to north Wales at the end of his lengthy wanderings. The legend is most familiar in English in the version of Malory, which is mostly an abridgement of the stories contained in three of the romances of the early 13th-cent. French prose ‘Vulgate’ cycle. The ten principal versions of the legend were written between 1180 and 1230. As well as Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval or Conte del Graal and the Vulgate versions, there is a third major version in that period, the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach (c.1205) which was the inspiration for Wagner's Parsifal. Von Eschenbach's and Chrétien's story, in which Perceval is the successful quester, may be regarded as related to the original and more ‘authentic’ Grail myth which was joined by accretions and euhemerization of a Christian kind until, by Malory's time, it was very far removed from its archetype.
In Malory's Tale of the Sankgreal, Launcelot fathers Galahad on Elaine, the daughter of the Grail King Pelles. On the feast of Pentecost Galahad is brought to the Round Table and seated at the Siege Perilous; the Grail appears, accompanied by lightning, but the knights cannot see it. Led by Gawain they set off in search of it. Launcelot fails in the Quest, despite several glimpses, because of the sin of his amour with Guinevere; Gawain gives up the quest. Three knights distinguished by great purity, Galahad, Bors, and Perceval, come to the castle of Corbenic where they have a vision of Christ and receive the Eucharist from him; they take the Grail from him and carry it to Sarras. Galahad dies in ecstasy; Perceval becomes a monk and dies two months later; Bors returns to Logrus and reports their adventures in Camelot, in particular telling Launcelot of the eminence of his son Galahad. The origins and motivation of the Grail have been explained in three principal ways: (1) as a Christian legend from the first, which altered only in detail through its history; (2) as a pagan fertility ritual, ‘the horn of plenty’, related to the devastation of the land of King Pellam and its redemption; (3) as a Celtic story, already mythological in its origins in Irish, transmitted through Welsh (see Mabinogion) and Breton to the French romance tradition and gradually christianized. |
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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-GrailTheHoly.html MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-GrailTheHoly.html |
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Holy Grail
Holy Grail a feature of medieval legend and literature. It appears variously as a chalice, a cup, or a dish and sometimes as a stone or a caldron into which a bleeding lance drips. It was identified by Christians as the chalice of the Last Supper brought to England by St. Joseph of Arimathea. Miraculous in its powers, it could provide food and healing. However, it would be revealed only to a pure knight, and the Grail Quest appears in different stories. In Arthurian legend the purest knight is variously Parsifal or Galahad . The Grail is one of the most difficult problems of Arthurian legend, introducing as it does features of Christian story, Celtic myth, and ancient fertility cults.
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"Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Grail-Ho.html "Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Grail-Ho.html |
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Grail, The Holy
Grail, The Holy, or Sangreale (perhaps Old Fr., from Lat., gradale, ‘dish’). The legendary subject of several romances in the late Middle Ages. In some versions, (principally the Estoire dou Graal or Joseph of Robert de Boron, c.1200) the sacred object is the chalice or dish used at the Last Supper which passed into the possession of Joseph of Arimathea. The origin of the whole cycle of legends is obscure; it is not even clear whether the Christian elements are primary. In the 13th cent. it reinforced the ecclesiastical propaganda of Glastonbury Abbey and later on was coupled with the legend of Prester John.
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JOHN BOWKER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-GrailTheHoly.html JOHN BOWKER. "Grail, The Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-GrailTheHoly.html |
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Grail, Holy
Grail, Holy in medieval legend, the cup or platter (also called simply the Grail) used by Christ at the Last Supper, and in which Joseph of Arimathea received Christ's blood at the Cross. Quests for it undertaken by medieval knights are described in versions of the Arthurian legends written from the early 13th century onward; it is the immaculately pure Galahad, accompanied by Bors and Perceval, who is destined to find the Holy Grail. In figurative usage, the term is used for a thing which is being earnestly pursued or sought after.
The word comes via Old French graal, from medieval Latin gradalis ‘dish’. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Grail, Holy." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Grail, Holy." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-GrailHoly.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Grail, Holy." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-GrailHoly.html |
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Grail
Grail / grāl/ (also Holy Grail) • n. (in medieval legend) the cup or platter used by Jesus at the Last Supper, and in which Joseph of Arimathea received Christ's blood at the Cross. Quests for it undertaken by medieval knights are described in versions of the Arthurian legends written from the early 13th century onward. ∎ fig. (also grail) a thing that is being earnestly pursued or sought after: profit has become the holy grail. |
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"Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-grail.html "Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-grail.html |
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Holy Grail
Holy Grail In medieval legend, the cup supposedly used by Jesus at the Last Supper and by Joseph of Arimathea at the crucifixion to catch the blood from Jesus' wounds. The quest for the Grail, especially by the knights of Arthurian legend, became a search for mystical union with God.
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"Holy Grail." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Holy Grail." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-HolyGrail.html "Holy Grail." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-HolyGrail.html |
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Grail, the Holy
Grail, the Holy. In medieval romances, a vessel possessing spiritual powers and affording, under certain conditions, mystical benefits to its beholders. It is sometimes identified with the cup used by Christ at the Last Supper.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Grail, the Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Grail, the Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-GrailtheHoly.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Grail, the Holy." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-GrailtheHoly.html |
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grail
grail1 (eccl.) gradual. XIV. ME. grael — OF. :- ecclL. gradāle, for graduāle GRADUAL.
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T. F. HOAD. "grail." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "grail." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-grail.html T. F. HOAD. "grail." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-grail.html |
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Grail
Grailsmall particles of any kind—Johnson, 1755. |
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"Grail." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Grail." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300773.html "Grail." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300773.html |
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Holy Grail
Ho·ly Grail • n. see Grail. |
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Cite this article
"Holy Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Holy Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-holygrail.html "Holy Grail." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-holygrail.html |
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Holy Grail
Holy Grail see Grail, Holy . |
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Cite this article
"Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-HolyGrai.html "Holy Grail." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-HolyGrai.html |
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Holy Grail
Holy Grail, see Grail.
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Cite this article
MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Holy Grail." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Holy Grail." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-HolyGrail.html MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Holy Grail." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-HolyGrail.html |
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Grail
Grail
•ail, ale, assail, avail, bail, bale, bewail, brail, Braille, chain mail, countervail, curtail, dale, downscale, drail, dwale, entail, exhale, fail, faille, flail, frail, Gael, Gail, gale, Grail, grisaille, hail, hale, impale, jail, kale, mail, male, nail, nonpareil, outsail, pail, pale, quail, rail, sail, sale, sangrail, scale, shale, snail, stale, swale, tail, tale, they'll, trail, upscale, vail, vale, veil, wail, wale, whale, Yale
•Passchendaele • Airedale
•Wensleydale • Clydesdale
•Chippendale • Coverdale • Abigail
•galingale • martingale • nightingale
•farthingale • Windscale • timescale
•blackmail • airmail
•email, female
•Ishmael • voicemail • vermeil
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"Grail." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Grail." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Grail.html "Grail." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Grail.html |
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