the golden bough-第51部分

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f　the　kings　from　Rome；　but　this　appears　to　have　been　a　mere　afterthought　devised　to　explain　a　ceremony　of　which　the　old　meaning　was　forgotten。　It　is　far　more　likely　that　in　acting　thus　the　King　of　the　Sacred　Rites　was　merely　keeping　up　an　ancient　custom　which　in　the　regal　period　had　been　annually　observed　by　his　predecessors　the　kings。　What　the　original　intention　of　the　rite　may　have　been　must　probably　always　remain　more　or　less　a　matter　of　conjecture。　The　present　explanation　is　suggested　with　a　full　sense　of　the　difficulty　and　obscurity　in　which　the　subject　is　involved。

Thus　if　my　theory　is　correct；　the　yearly　flight　of　the　Roman　king　was　a　relic　of　a　time　when　the　kingship　was　an　annual　office　awarded；　along　with　the　hand　of　a　princess；　to　the　victorious　athlete　or　gladiator；　who　thereafter　figured　along　with　his　bride　as　a　god　and　goddess　at　a　sacred　marriage　designed　to　ensure　the　fertility　of　the　earth　by　homoeopathic　magic。　If　I　am　right　in　supposing　that　in　very　early　times　the　old　Latin　kings　personated　a　god　and　were　regularly　put　to　death　in　that　character；　we　can　better　understand　the　mysterious　or　violent　ends　to　which　so　many　of　them　are　said　to　have　come。　We　have　seen　that；　according　to　tradition；　one　of　the　kings　of　Alba　was　killed　by　a　thunderbolt　for　impiously　mimicking　the　thunder　of　Jupiter。　Romulus　is　said　to　have　vanished　mysteriously　like　Aeneas；　or　to　have　been　cut　to　pieces　by　the　patricians　whom　he　had　offended；　and　the　seventh　of　July；　the　day　on　which　he　perished；　was　a　festival　which　bore　some　resemblance　to　the　Saturnalia。　For　on　that　day　the　female　slaves　were　allowed　to　take　certain　remarkable　liberties。　They　dressed　up　as　free　women　in　the　attire　of　matrons　and　maids；　and　in　this　guise　they　went　forth　from　the　city；　scoffed　and　jeered　at　all　whom　they　met；　and　engaged　among　themselves　in　a　fight；　striking　and　throwing　stones　at　each　other。　Another　Roman　king　who　perished　by　violence　was　Tatius；　the　Sabine　colleague　of　Romulus。　It　is　said　that　he　was　at　Lavinium　offering　a　public　sacrifice　to　the　ancestral　gods；　when　some　men；　to　whom　he　had　given　umbrage；　despatched　him　with　the　sacrificial　knives　and　spits　which　they　had　snatched　from　the　altar。　The　occasion　and　the　manner　of　his　death　suggest　that　the　slaughter　may　have　been　a　sacrifice　rather　than　an　assassination。　Again；　Tullus　Hostilius；　the　successor　of　Numa；　was　commonly　said　to　have　been　killed　by　lightning；　but　many　held　that　he　was　murdered　at　the　instigation　of　Ancus　Marcius；　who　reigned　after　him。　Speaking　of　the　more　or　less　mythical　Numa；　the　type　of　the　priestly　king；　Plutarch　observes　that　his　fame　was　enhanced　by　the　fortunes　of　the　later　kings。　For　of　the　five　who　reigned　after　him　the　last　was　deposed　and　ended　his　life　in　exile；　and　of　the　remaining　four　not　one　died　a　natural　death；　for　three　of　them　were　assassinated　and　Tullus　Hostilius　was　consumed　by　thunderbolts。

These　legends　of　the　violent　ends　of　the　Roman　kings　suggest　that　the　contest　by　which　they　gained　the　throne　may　sometimes　have　been　a　mortal　combat　rather　than　a　race。　If　that　were　so；　the　analogy　which　we　have　traced　between　Rome　and　Nemi　would　be　still　closer。　At　both　places　the　sacred　kings；　the　living　representatives　of　the　godhead；　would　thus　be　liable　to　suffer　deposition　and　death　at　the　hand　of　any　resolute　man　who　could　prove　his　divine　right　to　the　holy　office　by　the　strong　arm　and　the　sharp　sword。　It　would　not　be　surprising　if　among　the　early　Latins　the　claim　to　the　kingdom　should　often　have　been　settled　by　single　combat；　for　down　to　historical　times　the　Umbrians　regularly　submitted　their　private　disputes　to　the　ordeal　of　battle；　and　he　who　cut　his　adversary's　throat　was　thought　thereby　to　have　proved　the　justice　of　his　cause　beyond　the　reach　of　cavil。

Chapter　15。　The　Worship　of　the　Oak

THE　WORSHIP　of　the　oak　tree　or　of　the　oak　god　appears　to　have　been　shared　by　all　the　branches　of　the　Aryan　stock　in　Europe。　Both　Greeks　and　Italians　associated　the　tree　with　their　highest　god；　Zeus　or　Jupiter；　the　divinity　of　the　sky；　the　rain；　and　the　thunder。　Perhaps　the　oldest　and　certainly　one　of　the　most　famous　sanctuaries　in　Greece　was　that　of　Dodona；　where　Zeus　was　revered　in　the　oracular　oak。　The　thunder…storms　which　are　said　to　rage　at　Dodona　more　frequently　than　anywhere　else　in　Europe；　would　render　the　spot　a　fitting　home　for　the　god　whose　voice　was　heard　alike　in　the　rustling　of　the　oak　leaves　and　in　the　crash　of　thunder。　Perhaps　the　bronze　gongs　which　kept　up　a　humming　in　the　wind　round　the　sanctuary　were　meant　to　mimick　the　thunder　that　might　so　often　be　heard　rolling　and　rumbling　in　the　coombs　of　the　stern　and　barren　mountains　which　shut　in　the　gloomy　valley。　In　Boeotia；　as　we　have　seen；　the　sacred　marriage　of　Zeus　and　Hera；　the　oak　god　and　the　oak　goddess；　appears　to　have　been　celebrated　with　much　pomp　by　a　religious　federation　of　states。　And　on　Mount　Lycaeus　in　Arcadia　the　character　of　Zeus　as　god　both　of　the　oak　and　of　the　rain　comes　out　clearly　in　the　rain　charm　practised　by　the　priest　of　Zeus；　who　dipped　an　oak　branch　in　a　sacred　spring。　In　his　latter　capacity　Zeus　was　the　god　to　whom　the　Greeks　regularly　prayed　for　rain。　Nothing　could　be　more　natural；　for　often；　though　not　always；　he　had　his　seat　on　the　mountains　where　the　clouds　gather　and　the　oaks　grow。　On　the　Acropolis　at　Athens　there　was　an　image　of　Earth　praying　to　Zeus　for　rain。　And　in　time　of　drought　the　Athenians　themselves　prayed；　Rain；　rain；　O　dear　Zeus；　on　the　cornland　of　the　Athenians　and　on　the　plains。

Again；　Zeus　wielded　the　thunder　and　lightning　as　well　as　the　rain。　At　Olympia　and　elsewhere　he　was　worshipped　under　the　surname　of　Thunderbolt；　and　at　Athens　there　was　a　sacrificial　hearth　of　Lightning　Zeus　on　the　city　wall；　where　some　priestly　officials　watched　for　lightning　over　Mount　Parnes　at　certain　seasons　of　the　year。　Further；　spots　which　had　been　struck　by　lightning　were　regularly　fenced　in　by　the　Greeks　and　consecrated　to　Zeus　the　Descender；　that　is；　to　the　god　who　came　down　in　the　flash　from　heaven。　Altars　were　set　up　within　these　enclosures　and　sacrifices　offered　on　them。　Several　such　places　are　known　from　inscriptions　to　have　existed　in　Athens。

Thus　when　ancient　Greek　kings　claimed　to　be　descended　from　Zeus；　and　even　to　bear　his　name；　we　may　reasonably　suppose　that　they　also　attempted　to　exercise　his　divine　functions　by　making　thunder　and　rain　for　the　good　of　their　people　or　the　terror　and　confusion　of　their　foes。　In　this　respect　the　legend　of　Salmoneus　probably　reflects　the　pretensions　of　a　whole　class　of　petty　sovereigns　who　reigned　of　old；　each　over　his　little　canton；　in　the　oak…clad　highlands　of　Greece。　Like　their　kinsmen　the　Irish　kings；　they　were　expected　to　be　a　source　of　fertility　to　the　land　and　of　fecundity　to　the　cattle；　and　how　could　they　fulfil　these　expectations　better　than　by　acting　the　part　of　their　kinsman　Zeus；　the　great　god　of　the　oak；　the　thunder；　and　the　rain？　They　personified　him；　apparently；　just　as　the　Italian　kings　personified　Jupiter。

In　ancient　Italy　every　oak　was　sacred　to　Jupiter；　the　Italian　counterpart　of　Zeus；　and　on　the　Capitol　at　Rome　the　god　was　worshipped　as　the　deity　not　merely　of　the　oak；　but　of　the　rain　and　the　thunder。　Contrasting　the　piety　of　the　good　old　times　with　the　scepticism　of　an　age　when　nobody　thought　that　heaven　was　heaven；　or　cared　a　fig　for　Jupiter；　a　Roman　writer　tells　us　that　in　former　days　noble　matrons　used　to　go　with　bare　feet；　streaming　hair；　and　pure　minds；　up　the　long　Capitoline　slope；　praying　to　Jupiter　for　rain。　And　straightway；　he　goes　on；　it　rained　bucketsful；　then　or　never；　and　everybody　returned　dripping　like　drowned　rats。　But　nowadays；　says　he；　we　are　no　longer　religious；　so　the　fields　lie　baking。

When　we　pass　from　Southern　to　Central　Europe　we　still　meet　with　the　great　god　of　the　oak　and　the　thunder　among　the　barbarous　Aryans　who　dwelt　in　the　vast　primaeval　forests。　Thus　among　the　Celts　of　Gaul　the　Druids　esteemed　nothing　more　sacred　than　the　mistletoe　and　the　oak　on　which　it　grew；　they　chose　groves　of　oaks　for　the　scene　of　their　solemn　service；　and　they　performed　none　of　their　rites　without　oak　leaves。　The　Celts；　says　a　Greek　writer；　worship　Zeus；　and　the　Celtic　image　of　Zeus　is　a　tall　oak。　The　Celtic　conquerors；　who　settled　in　Asia　in　the　third　century　before　our　era；　appear　to　have　carried　the　worship　of　the　oak　with　them　to　their　new　home；　for　in　the　heart　of　Asia　Minor　the　Galatian　senate　met　in　a　place　which　bore　the　pure　Celtic　name　of　Drynemetum；　the　sacred　oak　grove　or　the　temple　of　the　oak。　Indeed　the　very　name　of　Druids　is　believed　by　good　authorities　to　mean　no　more　than　oak　men。

In　the　religion　of　the　ancient　Germans　the　veneration　for　sacred　groves　seems　to　have　held　the　foremost　place；　and　according　to　Grimm　the　chief　of　their　holy　trees　was　the　oak。　It　appears　to　have　been　especially　dedicated　to　the　god　of　thunder；　Donar　or　Thunar；　the　equivalent　of　the　Norse　Thor；　for　a　sacred　oak　near　Geismar；　in　Hesse；　which　Boniface　cut　down　in　the　eighth　century；　went　among　the　heathen　by　the　name　of　Jupiter's　oak　（robur　Jovis）；　which　in　old　German　would　be　Donares　eih；　the　oak　of　Donar。　That　the　Teutonic　thunder　god　Donar；　Thunar；　Thor　was　identified　with　the　Italian　thunder　god　Jupiter　appears　from　our　word　Thursday；　Thunar's　day；　which　is　merely　a　rendering　of　the　Latin　dies　Jovis。　Thus　among　the　ancient　Teutons；　as　among　the　Greeks　and　Italians；　the　god　of　the　oak　was　also　the　god　of　the　thunder。　Moreover；　he　was　regarded　as　the　great　fertilising　power；　who　sent　rain　and　caused　the　earth　to　bear　fruit；　for　Adam　of　Bremen　tells　us　that　Thor　presides　in　the　air；　he　it　is　who　rules　thunder　and　lightning；　wind　and　rains；　fine　weather　and　crops。　In　these　respects；　therefore；　the　Teutonic　thunder　god　again　resembled　his　southern　counterparts　Zeus　and　Jupiter。

Amongst　the　Slavs　also　the　oak　appears　to　have　been　the　sacred　tree　of　the　thunder　god　Perun；　the　counterpart　of　Zeus　and　Jupiter。　It　is　said　that　at　Novgorod　there　used　to　stand　an　image　of　Perun　in　the　likeness　of　a　man　with　a　thunder…stone　in　his　hand。　A　fire　of　oak　wood　burned　day　and　night　in　his　honour；　and　if　ever　it　went　out　the　attendants　paid　for　their　negligence　with　their　lives。　Perun　seems；　like　Zeus　and　Jupiter；　to　have