the golden bough-第124节

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！


festival　of　the　spring　equinox。　This　is　the　view　of　the　learned　ecclesiastical　historian　Mgr。　Duchesne；　who　points　out　that　the　death　of　the　Saviour　was　thus　made　to　fall　upon　the　very　day　on　which；　according　to　a　widespread　belief；　the　world　had　been　created。　But　the　resurrection　of　Attis；　who　combined　in　himself　the　characters　of　the　divine　Father　and　the　divine　Son；　was　officially　celebrated　at　Rome　on　the　same　day。　When　we　remember　that　the　festival　of　St。　George　in　April　has　replaced　the　ancient　pagan　festival　of　the　Parilia；　that　the　festival　of　St。　John　the　Baptist　in　June　has　succeeded　to　a　heathen　midsummer　festival　of　water：　that　the　festival　of　the　Assumption　of　the　Virgin　in　August　has　ousted　the　festival　of　Diana；　that　the　feast　of　All　Souls　in　November　is　a　continuation　of　an　old　heathen　feast　of　the　dead；　and　that　the　Nativity　of　Christ　himself　was　assigned　to　the　winter　solstice　in　December　because　that　day　was　deemed　the　Nativity　of　the　Sun；　we　can　hardly　be　thought　rash　or　unreasonable　in　conjecturing　that　the　other　cardinal　festival　of　the　Christian　churchthe　solemnisation　of　Eastermay　have　been　in　like　manner；　and　from　like　motives　of　edification；　adapted　to　a　similar　celebration　of　the　Phrygian　god　Attis　at　the　vernal　equinox。

At　least　it　is　a　remarkable　coincidence；　if　it　is　nothing　more；　that　the　Christian　and　the　heathen　festivals　of　the　divine　death　and　resurrection　should　have　been　solemnised　at　the　same　season　and　in　the　same　places。　For　the　places　which　celebrated　the　death　of　Christ　at　the　spring　equinox　were　Phrygia；　Gaul；　and　apparently　Rome；　that　is；　the　very　regions　in　which　the　worship　of　Attis　either　originated　or　struck　deepest　root。　It　is　difficult　to　regard　the　coincidence　as　purely　accidental。　If　the　vernal　equinox；　the　season　at　which　in　the　temperate　regions　the　whole　face　of　nature　testifies　to　a　fresh　outburst　of　vital　energy；　had　been　viewed　from　of　old　as　the　time　when　the　world　was　annually　created　afresh　in　the　resurrection　of　a　god；　nothing　could　be　more　natural　than　to　place　the　resurrection　of　the　new　deity　at　the　same　cardinal　point　of　the　year。　Only　it　is　to　be　observed　that　if　the　death　of　Christ　was　dated　on　the　twenty…fifth　of　March；　his　resurrection；　according　to　Christian　tradition；　must　have　happened　on　the　twenty…seventh　of　March；　which　is　just　two　days　later　than　the　vernal　equinox　of　the　Julian　calendar　and　the　resurrection　of　Attis。　A　similar　displacement　of　two　days　in　the　adjustment　of　Christian　to　heathen　celebrations　occurs　in　the　festivals　of　St。　George　and　the　Assumption　of　the　Virgin。　However；　another　Christian　tradition；　followed　by　Lactantius　and　perhaps　by　the　practice　of　the　Church　in　Gaul；　placed　the　death　of　Christ　on　the　twenty…third　and　his　resurrection　on　the　twenty…fifth　of　March。　If　that　was　so；　his　resurrection　coincided　exactly　with　the　resurrection　of　Attis。

In　point　of　fact　it　appears　from　the　testimony　of　an　anonymous　Christian；　who　wrote　in　the　fourth　century　of　our　era；　that　Christians　and　pagans　alike　were　struck　by　the　remarkable　coincidence　between　the　death　and　resurrection　of　their　respective　deities；　and　that　the　coincidence　formed　a　theme　of　bitter　controversy　between　the　adherents　of　the　rival　religions；　the　pagans　contending　that　the　resurrection　of　Christ　was　a　spurious　imitation　of　the　resurrection　of　Attis；　and　the　Christians　asserting　with　equal　warmth　that　the　resurrection　of　Attis　was　a　diabolical　counterfeit　of　the　resurrection　of　Christ。　In　these　unseemly　bickerings　the　heathen　took　what　to　a　superficial　observer　might　seem　strong　ground　by　arguing　that　their　god　was　the　older　and　therefore　presumably　the　original；　not　the　counterfeit；　since　as　a　general　rule　an　original　is　older　than　its　copy。　This　feeble　argument　the　Christians　easily　rebutted。　They　admitted；　indeed；　that　in　point　of　time　Christ　was　the　junior　deity；　but　they　triumphantly　demonstrated　his　real　seniority　by　falling　back　on　the　subtlety　of　Satan；　who　on　so　important　an　occasion　had　surpassed　himself　by　inverting　the　usual　order　of　nature。

Taken　altogether；　the　coincidences　of　the　Christian　with　the　heathen　festivals　are　too　close　and　too　numerous　to　be　accidental。　They　mark　the　compromise　which　the　Church　in　the　hour　of　its　triumph　was　compelled　to　make　with　its　vanquished　yet　still　dangerous　rivals。　The　inflexible　Protestantism　of　the　primitive　missionaries；　with　their　fiery　denunciations　of　heathendom；　had　been　exchanged　for　the　supple　policy；　the　easy　tolerance；　the　comprehensive　charity　of　shrewd　ecclesiastics；　who　clearly　perceived　that　if　Christianity　was　to　conquer　the　world　it　could　do　so　only　by　relaxing　the　too　rigid　principles　of　its　Founder；　by　widening　a　little　the　narrow　gate　which　leads　to　salvation。　In　this　respect　an　instructive　parallel　might　be　drawn　between　the　history　of　Christianity　and　the　history　of　Buddhism。　Both　systems　were　in　their　origin　essentially　ethical　reforms　born　of　the　generous　ardour；　the　lofty　aspirations；　the　tender　compassion　of　their　noble　Founders；　two　of　those　beautiful　spirits　who　appear　at　rare　intervals　on　earth　like　beings　come　from　a　better　world　to　support　and　guide　our　weak　and　erring　nature。　Both　preached　moral　virtue　as　the　means　of　accomplishing　what　they　regarded　as　the　supreme　object　of　life；　the　eternal　salvation　of　the　individual　soul；　though　by　a　curious　antithesis　the　one　sought　that　salvation　in　a　blissful　eternity；　the　other　in　a　final　release　from　suffering；　in　annihilation。　But　the　austere　ideals　of　sanctity　which　they　inculcated　were　too　deeply　opposed　not　only　to　the　frailties　but　to　the　natural　instincts　of　humanity　ever　to　be　carried　out　in　practice　by　more　than　a　small　number　of　disciples；　who　consistently　renounced　the　ties　of　the　family　and　the　state　in　order　to　work　out　their　own　salvation　in　the　still　seclusion　of　the　cloister。　If　such　faiths　were　to　be　nominally　accepted　by　whole　nations　or　even　by　the　world；　it　was　essential　that　they　should　first　be　modified　or　transformed　so　as　to　accord　in　some　measure　with　the　prejudices；　the　passions；　the　superstitions　of　the　vulgar。　This　process　of　accommodation　was　carried　out　in　after　ages　by　followers　who；　made　of　less　ethereal　stuff　than　their　masters；　were　for　that　reason　the　better　fitted　to　mediate　between　them　and　the　common　herd。　Thus　as　time　went　on；　the　two　religions；　in　exact　proportion　to　their　growing　popularity；　absorbed　more　and　more　of　those　baser　elements　which　they　had　been　instituted　for　the　very　purpose　of　suppressing。　Such　spiritual　decadences　are　inevitable。　The　world　cannot　live　at　the　level　of　its　great　men。　Yet　it　would　be　unfair　to　the　generality　of　our　kind　to　ascribe　wholly　to　their　intellectual　and　moral　weakness　the　gradual　divergence　of　Buddhism　and　Christianity　from　their　primitive　patterns。　For　it　should　never　be　forgotten　that　by　their　glorification　of　poverty　and　celibacy　both　these　religions　struck　straight　at　the　root　not　merely　of　civil　society　but　of　human　existence。　The　blow　was　parried　by　the　wisdom　or　the　folly　of　the　vast　majority　of　mankind；　who　refused　to　purchase　a　chance　of　saving　their　souls　with　the　certainty　of　extinguishing　the　species。

Chapter　38。　The　Myth　of　Osiris。

IN　ANCIENT　EGYPT　the　god　whose　death　and　resurrection　were　annually　celebrated　with　alternate　sorrow　and　joy　was　Osiris；　the　most　popular　of　all　Egyptian　deities；　and　there　are　good　grounds　for　classing　him　in　one　of　his　aspects　with　Adonis　and　Attis　as　a　personification　of　the　great　yearly　vicissitudes　of　nature；　especially　of　the　corn。　But　the　immense　vogue　which　he　enjoyed　for　many　ages　induced　his　devoted　worshippers　to　heap　upon　him　the　attributes　and　powers　of　many　other　gods；　so　that　it　is　not　always　easy　to　strip　him；　so　to　say；　of　his　borrowed　plumes　and　to　restore　them　to　their　proper　owners。

The　story　of　Osiris　is　told　in　a　connected　form　only　by　Plutarch；　whose　narrative　has　been　confirmed　and　to　some　extent　amplified　in　modern　times　by　the　evidence　of　the　monuments。

Osiris　was　the　offspring　of　an　intrigue　between　the　earth…god　Seb　（Keb　or　Geb；　as　the　name　is　sometimes　transliterated）　and　the　sky…goddess　Nut。　The　Greeks　identified　his　parents　with　their　own　deities　Cronus　and　Rhea。　When　the　sun…god　Ra　perceived　that　his　wife　Nut　had　been　unfaithful　to　him；　he　declared　with　a　curse　that　she　should　be　delivered　of　the　child　in　no　month　and　no　year。　But　the　goddess　had　another　lover；　the　god　Thoth　or　Hermes；　as　the　Greeks　called　him；　and　he　playing　at　draughts　with　the　moon　won　from　her　a　seventy…second　part　of　every　day；　and　having　compounded　five　whole　days　out　of　these　parts　he　added　them　to　the　Egyptian　year　of　three　hundred　and　sixty　days。　This　was　the　mythical　origin　of　the　five　supplementary　days　which　the　Egyptians　annually　inserted　at　the　end　of　every　year　in　order　to　establish　a　harmony　between　lunar　and　solar　time。　On　these　five　days；　regarded　as　outside　the　year　of　twelve　months；　the　curse　of　the　sun…god　did　not　rest；　and　accordingly　Osiris　was　born　on　the　first　of　them。　At　his　nativity　a　voice　rang　out　proclaiming　that　the　Lord　of　All　had　come　into　the　world。　Some　say　that　a　certain　Pamyles　heard　a　voice　from　the　temple　at　Thebes　bidding　him　announce　with　a　shout　that　a　great　king；　the　beneficent　Osi