Another METRODORUS1 of Lampsacus was a pupil of Anaxagoras, and one of the earliest to attempt' to interpret Homer allegorically.
If the growing Christian Church, in quite a different fashion from Paul, laid stress on the literal authority of the Old Testament, interpreted, it is true, allegorically; if it took up a much more friendly and definite attitude towards the Old Testament, and gave wider scope to the legal conception of religion, this must be in part ascribed to the involuntary reaction upon it of Gnosticism.
The Old Testament, allegorically explained, became the substitute for the outgrown mythology; intellectual activity revived; the new facts gained predominant influence in philosophy, and in turn were shaped according to its canons.
It is worthy of remark, in this respect, that - in accordance with Ramanuja's and Nimbarka's philosophical theories - Jayadeva's presentation of Krishna's fickle love for Radha is usually interpreted in a mystical sense, as allegorically depicting the human soul's striving, through love, for reunion with God, and its ultimate attainment, after many backslidings, of the longed-for goal.
All previous religions are mere types of the true, and their sacred books and observances are to be interpreted allegorically.
