|
Main
- books.jibble.org
My Books
- IRC Hacks
Misc. Articles
- Meaning of Jibble
- M4 Su Doku
- Computer Scrapbooking
- Setting up Java
- Bootable Java
- Cookies in Java
- Dynamic Graphs
- Social Shakespeare
External Links
- Paul Mutton
- Jibble Photo Gallery
- Jibble Forums
- Google Landmarks
- Jibble Shop
- Free Books
- Intershot Ltd
|
books.jibble.org
Previous Page
| Next Page
Page 43
Fishers on the West Coast believe that were they to set their nets so
that in any way it would encroach upon the Sabbath, the herrings would
leave the district. Two years ago I was told that herrings were very
plentiful at one time at Lamlash, but some thoughtless person set his
net on a Sabbath evening. He caught none, and the herrings left and
never returned.
I know several persons who refuse to have their likeness taken lest it
prove unlucky; and give as instances the cases of several of their
friends who never had a day's health after being photographed.
In addition to the many forms of superstition which we have been
recalling, there were, and still are a great many superstitions
connected with the phenomenon of dreaming, but as the notions in this
series were very varied, differing very much in different localities,
and everywhere subject less or more to the fancy of the interpreter, and
as I believe that the notions and practices now in vogue in this
connection are of comparatively recent origin, I will not enter upon the
subject.
APPENDIX.
YULE, BELTANE, & HALLOWE'EN FESTIVALS:
_Survivals of Ancient Sun and Fire Worship._
History and prehistoric investigations have shown quite clearly that
prehistoric man worshipped the Sun, the giver and vivifier of all life,
as the supreme God. To the sun they offered sacrifices, and at stated
periods celebrated festivals in his honour; and at these festivals bread
and wine and meat were partaken of, with observances very similar in
many respects to the practices of the Jews during their religious
feasts. But although the sun was the supreme deity, other objects were
also worshipped as subordinate deities. These objects, however, were
generally in some manner representative of sun attributes; for example,
the Moon was worshipped as the spouse of the Sun, Venus as his page. The
pleiades and other constellations, and single stars were also deified;
the rainbow and the lightning were sun servants, the elements, the sun's
offspring. Many animals and trees were reverenced as representatives of
sun attributes. Above all, fire was worshipped as the truest symbol of
the sun upon earth, and all offerings and sacrifices in honour of the
sun were presented through fire; thus sun and fire worship became
identified.
In Britain sun-worship appears to have been purer in prehistoric than it
afterwards was in historic times, purer also than the sun-cult of
historic Egypt, Greece, or Rome; that is, there appears to have been in
British sun-worship less of polytheism than prevailed in Egypt, Greece,
or Rome. But during the historic period, the numerous invasions and the
colonizations of different portions of this country by the Romans and
other nations, who brought with them their special religious beliefs and
formul� of worship, caused the increase of polytheism by the commingling
of the foreign and native elements of belief, and later on, these were
mixed with Christianity, and in these mixings all the elements became
modified, so that now it is very difficult to separate with certainty
the aboriginal, invasional, and Christian elements.
From many indications it seems more than probable that the sun-cult in
prehistoric Britain was very similar, even in many minor points, to the
solar worship of the ancient Peruvians. At the same time, there is not
the slightest probability that these two widely separated sun-cults ever
had a common point of historical connection, nor, in order to explain
their similarities, is such an historical explanation necessary. Quite
sufficient is the explanation that both possessed in common a human
nature, emotional and intellectual, moving on the same plane of
childlike intelligence, and that both from this common standpoint had
regard to the same striking and regularly recurring scenes of natural
phenomena. Prescott thus describes the worship of these ancient
Peruvians:--"The Sun was their primary God; to it was built a vast
temple in the capital, more radiant with gold than that of Solomon's;
and every city had a temple dedicated to the sun, and blasphemy against
the sun was punished with death. The principal festivals of the year
were at the equinoxes and solstices. That at midsummer was the grandest.
It was preceded by a three days' fast; then every one who had time and
money visited the city. Great fires were kindled from the sun's rays or
by friction, from which sacred fires people kindled their hearth;" all
household fires having previously been extinguished. Poor countries and
districts, where the arts were in a backward condition, instead of
having temples like the Peruvians, dedicated mountains and stone circles
to the great luminary. It is the all but universal opinion that in this
country, centuries before the Christian era, the religion of the people
was Druidism; but this is merely the name of a system, and is equivalent
to our saying that the present religion of our country is
Presbyterianism, a statement which conveys no idea of the nature of our
religious worship. The Druids were a priestly order who governed the
country, and directed the worship of the people, the principal objects
of worship being, as we have already said, the sun and fire. "The
Druids," says the late Rev. James Rust, "formed an ecclesiastico-political
association, and professed to explain the deep mysteries respecting God
and man, and were the sacerdotal rulers, and called in consequence
Druids or mystery-keepers. They were not allowed to commit anything to
writing respecting their mysteries, and no one was allowed to enter
their order till after a prolonged probation, terminating in swearing
most solemnly to keep their mysteries secret for ever; and by this means
they obtained great power and influence over all classes of the people."
Previous Page
| Next Page
|
|