按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！
of the Pietà of Christian art； the Virgin with the dead body of her divine Son in her lap； of which the most celebrated example is the one by Michael Angelo in St。 Peters。 That noble group； in which the living sorrow of the mother contrasts so wonderfully with the languor of death in the son； is one of the finest compositions in marble。 Ancient Greek art has bequeathed to us few works so beautiful； and none so pathetic。
In this connexion a well…known statement of Jerome may not be without significance。 He tells us that Bethlehem； the traditionary birthplace of the Lord； was shaded by a grove of that still older Syrian Lord； Adonis； and that where the infant Jesus had wept； the lover of Venus was bewailed。 Though he does not expressly say so； Jerome seems to have thought that the grove of Adonis had been planted by the heathen after the birth of Christ for the purpose of defiling the sacred spot。 In this he may have been mistaken。 If Adonis was indeed； as I have argued； the spirit of the corn； a more suitable name for his dwelling…place could hardly be found than Bethlehem； the House of Bread； and he may well have been worshipped there at his House of Bread long ages before the birth of Him who said； I am the bread of life。 Even on the hypothesis that Adonis followed rather than preceded Christ at Bethlehem； the choice of his sad figure to divert the allegiance of Christians from their Lord cannot but strike us as eminently appropriate when we remember the similarity of the rites which commemorated the death and resurrection of the two。 One of the earliest seats of the worship of the new god was Antioch； and at Antioch； as we have seen； the death of the old god was annually celebrated with great solemnity。 A circumstance which attended the entrance of Julian into the city at the time of the Adonis festival may perhaps throw some light on the date of its celebration。 When the emperor drew near to the city he was received with public prayers as if he had been a god； and he marvelled at the voices of a great multitude who cried that the Star of Salvation had dawned upon them in the East。 This may doubtless have been no more than a fulsome compliment paid by an obsequious Oriental crowd to the Roman emperor。 But it is also possible that the rising of a bright star regularly gave the signal for the festival； and that as chance would have it the star emerged above the rim of the eastern horizon at the very moment of the emperor's approach。 The coincidence； if it happened； could hardly fail to strike the imagination of a superstitious and excited multitude； who might thereupon hail the great man as the deity whose coming was announced by the sign in the heavens。 Or the emperor may have mistaken for a greeting to himself the shouts which were addressed to the star。 Now Astarte； the divine mistress of Adonis； was identified with the planet Venus； and her changes from a morning to an evening star were carefully noted by the Babylonian astronomers； who drew omens from her alternate appearance and disappearance。 Hence we may conjecture that the festival of Adonis was regularly timed to coincide with the appearance of Venus as the Morning or Evening Star。 But the star which the people of Antioch saluted at the festival was seen in the East； therefore； if it was indeed Venus； it can only have been the Morning Star。 At Aphaca in Syria； where there was a famous temple of Astarte； the signal for the celebration of the rites was apparently given by the flashing of a meteor； which on a certain day fell like a star from the top of Mount Lebanon into the river Adonis。 The meteor was thought to be Astarte herself； and its flight through the air might naturally be interpreted as the descent of the amorous goddess to the arms of her lover。 At Antioch and elsewhere the appearance of the Morning Star on the day of the festival may in like manner have been hailed as the coming of the goddess of love to wake her dead leman from his earthy bed。 If that were so； we may surmise that it was the Morning Star which guided the wise men of the East to Bethlehem； the hallowed spot which heard； in the language of Jerome； the weeping of the infant Christ and the lament for Adonis。
Chapter 34。 The Myth and Ritual of Attis。
ANOTHER of those gods whose supposed death and resurrection struck such deep roots into the faith and ritual of Western Asia is Attis。 He was to Phrygia what Adonis was to Syria。 Like Adonis； he appears to have been a god of vegetation； and his death and resurrection were annually mourned and rejoiced over at a festival in spring。 The legends and rites of the two gods were so much alike that the ancients themselves sometimes identified them。 Attis was said to have been a fair young shepherd or herdsman beloved by Cybele； the Mother of the Gods； a great Asiatic goddess of fertility； who had her chief home in Phrygia。 Some held that Attis was her son。 His birth； like that of many other heroes； is said to have been miraculous。 His mother； Nana； was a virgin； who conceived by putting a ripe almond or a pomegranate in her bosom。 Indeed in the Phrygian cosmogony an almond figured as the father of all things； perhaps because its delicate lilac blossom is one of the first heralds of the spring； appearing on the bare boughs before the leaves have opened。 Such tales of virgin mothers are relics of an age of childish ignorance when men had not yet recognized the intercourse of the sexes as the true cause of offspring。 Two different accounts of the death of Attis were current。 According to the one he was killed by a boar； like Adonis。 According to the other he unmanned himself under a pine…tree； and bled to death on the spot。 The latter is said to have been the local story told by the people of Pessinus； a great seat of the worship of Cybele； and the whole legend of which the story forms a part is stamped with a character of rudeness and savagery that speaks strongly for its antiquity。 Both tales might claim the support of custom； or rather both were probably invented to explain certain customs observed by the worshippers。 The story of the self…mutilation of Attis is clearly an attempt to account for the self…mutilation of his priests； who regularly castrated themselves on entering the service of the goddess。 The story of his death by the boar may have been told to explain why his worshippers； especially the people of Pessinus； abstained from eating swine。 In like manner the worshippers of Adonis abstained from pork； because a boar had killed their god。 After his death Attis is said to have been changed into a pine…tree。
The worship of the Phrygian Mother of the Gods was adopted by the Romans in 204 B。C。 towards the close of their long struggle with Hannibal。 For their drooping spirits had been opportunely cheered by a prophecy； alleged to be drawn from that convenient farrago of nonsense； the Sibylline Books； that the foreign invader would be driven from Italy if the great Oriental goddess were brought to Rome。 Accordingly ambassadors were despatched to her sacred city Pessinus in Phrygia。 The small black stone which embodied the mighty divinity was entrusted to them and conveyed to Rome； where it was received with great respect and installed in the