Hi,
Just wondering on what people's ideas were on what the holy grail actually is. A goblet, book, money ...etc. Please give me ur suggestions

It was the grail Jesus drank from at the last supper.

But with that said, I think it later on turned into a symbol for spiritual insights and knowledge - in other words the quest for the holy grail is not the search for a physical object.

According to my study of the Da Vinci code....on both fronts, its a myth that began to float around soemwhere around 500 ad. The legdn was that the cup that Christ used at the last supper was saved and had been passed around...

I'm afraid its just a myth though...

Unless, its hidden in the vaults at the vatican...

If I am remembering correctly, the older grail myths never descried the grail, and when they began to describe it later, it was just a stone. The cup of christ part was added later.

I thought the way the da Vinci code used it...as the womb of Mary, was ingenius...

I think the grail is a myth. However, should one be found it would definitely be in Castle Aaargh.

i think its a great story just like the da vinci code either that or the vatican not letting on

Grail myths prior to the 12th century? Any actual evidence of that? (the Da Vinci Code, being a work of fiction does not count as evidence...)

There are earlier mentions of the cup used by Christ (in the Bible for example), but AFAIK no mention of the "Grail" exists prior to the mid-medieval period.

Please, by all means, correct me if I'm wrong.

Just thought I'd add my two cents...

A quick search of trusty ol' Wikipedia reveals that the earliest literary record of the concept of the grail is Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, le Conte du Graal (The Story of the Grail) circa 1180-1191. De Troyes claimed he was working from a source book given to him by his patron, Count Philip of Flanders, which for some reason has not sirvived to today. It is worth noting that in de Troyes' work it is not referred to as the "Holy" Grail, mereley un (a) graal. The word graal, as it is earliest spelled, appears to be an Old French adaptation of the Latin gradalis, meaning a dish brought to the table in different stages of a meal.

The popular concept of the Holy Grail originated in Robert de Boron's Joseph d’Arimathie (Joseph of Arimathea). Here it is suggested it was the cup Christ used at the Last Supper and was subsequently used to catch his blood while he died on/was taken down from the cross. According to de Boron Joseph travels to the west (presumably Britain or France) and founds a dynasty of Grail keepers.

Subsequent writers of the grail myth implemented the term sangreal. As Dan Brown showed in his famous novel, this term can mean either san graal (or greal), which means Holy Grail, or sang real, meaning royal blood. Though all these works have their roots in Chrétien, several contain pieces of tradition not found in Chrétien which are possibly derived from earlier sources.

Some scholars have suggested the concept of a holy (or magical) vessel come from early Celtic myths and folklore, including a life-restoring cauldron and magical platters or dishes that symbolize otherworldly power or test a hero's worth. These suggestions are backed up when it is considered that the stories of the Grail are totally absent from the folklore of those countries that were and are Eastern Orthodox (eg Arabs, Slavs, Romanians, or Greeks). Nor has the Grail been as popular a subject in some predominantly Catholic areas, such as Spain and Latin America, as it has been elsewhere. The notions of the Grail, its importance, and prominence, are a set of ideas that are essentially local and particular, being linked with Catholic or formerly Catholic locales, Celtic mythology and Anglo-French medieval storytelling.

I am sorry that I plagiarised so heavily from the Wikipedia site, I just wanted to present an abridged version of the extensive material that appears there. There is, or course so much more to this rich tale. I know what I want to believe, although I doubt it is true...

Well i think there's really something special about the holy grail, it could be a code, or maybe a key to open something more important. Well whatever it is, nobody wants the world to know, or it'll be warfare between real people and those who try to control the world... That's what i think...