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THE STUDENT'S MYTHOLOGY
A Compendium of Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Assyrian, Persian,
Hindoo, Chinese, Thibetian, Scandinavian, Celtic, Aztec,
and Peruvian Mythologies,
In Accordance with Standard Authorities.
Arranged for the Use of Schools and Academies.
by
C. A. WHITE.
New Edition, Revised and Corrected.
New York.
A. C. Armstrong & Son,
714 Broadway.
1889.
Entered According to Act of Congress in
the year 1870, by
W. J. Widdleton,
In the Clerk's Office of the District
Court of the United States for
the Southern District of New York.
Copyright, 1882, by W. C. Bush.
PREFATORY NOTE.
The Student's Mythology has been in use in manuscript for nearly three
years in one of our largest academies, where it has been received with
much favor by both teachers and pupils. Even in that form, which
subjected them to the inconvenience of long dictations, it was
preferred to any of the ordinary text-books on the subject. Copies
were sought for the use of other institutions, and the principals of
the academy referred to, consented that the work should be prepared
for the press.
In carrying out the plan, the subject matter was carefully classified,
and such additions made as were deemed necessary for completeness. As
a farther precaution, the whole was submitted to the revision of an
eminent classical scholar.
Mythology is a subject which needs to be treated with peculiar care;
and text-books are often objected to by parents and teachers as still
retaining the taint of pagan corruption, and presenting dangerous
images to the youthful mind. It was this difficulty which first led to
the preparation of the present work. The Student's Mythology lays no
claim to any superiority in point of erudition; the text-books already
before the public leave nothing to be desired in this particular. It
is a practical work, prepared by an experienced teacher, and already
submitted to the decisive test of the schoolroom. It is not designed
for young persons who are already advanced in classical studies, but
rather for pupils who have not yet entered, or who, like the greater
number of those attending our female academies, are not likely ever to
enter upon any regular classical course. For the former, it may prove
a useful introduction to these studies, while the latter will find in
the work the most important and pleasing features of mythology.
With such views, it has been considered most judicious to present the
classic fables in their simplest, which is also their most poetic
form, giving the allegorical meaning attached to the ancient myths,
only where their application is clear and simple. For the same reason
the writer has avoided questions of comparative mythology, except in
cases where the analogies are too obvious to be passed unnoticed. The
work has been compiled with care from reliable sources, and will,
perhaps, be found to contain much that is new and interesting; many
articles, such as those on the public games, the theatrical
entertainments of the Greeks, the Assyrian, Chinese and American
mythologies, will be found a pleasing addition, as these subjects have
not been treated in the ordinary text-books. The chapter on the "Poets
of Classic Fable," and the "Supplement" containing a notice of the
ancient writers whose names occur in the body of the work, will, it is
hoped, be found generally useful.
Among the modern authors to whom the writer has been particularly
indebted, we may mention Calmet, Anthon, Tooke, Bulfinch, Huc and
Schlegel. In preparing the article on Druidism, Martin's "Histoire de
France," and the "Monuments Celtiques" of Reynaud, have been
consulted, together with the Irish Chroniclers and other standard
authorities. The matter of the Mexican and Peruvian mythologies, has
been chiefly taken from Clavigero and Prescott. Reference has been
made throughout to the New American Cyclopædia.
The work now completed is offered to the public in the hope that it
may render the subject of mythology more generally popular in our
schools, and obviate the dangers attending this otherwise attractive
study.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
Origin of Mythology--Divinities called Celestial 15
CHAPTER II.
Greek and Roman Divinities--Jupiter--Juno--How represented--
Parentage and Actions--Probable Origin of these Fables--
Adventures of Jupiter--Story of Europa--Search of Cadmus--
Punishment of Lycaon 23
CHAPTER III.
Apollo--His Parentage and Exploits--How represented--Story of
Æsculapius--Banishment of Apollo from Heaven--Transformation
of Hyacinthus and Cyparissus--Story of Admetus and Alcestis--
Attributes of Apollo--Punishment inflicted on Marsyas and on
King Midas--Story of Midas--Death of Phæton--Transformation
of Daphne--Things Sacred to Apollo 29
CHAPTER IV.
Mars (Ares)--His Parentage--How represented--Animals Sacred to
Mars--Names given to Mars--His Temple--Priests called Salii 34
CHAPTER V.
Mercury (Hermes)--His Parentage--How represented--Offices of
Mercury--Benefits conferred by Mercury on Man--Why considered
the Patron of Thieves--Story of Io and Argus 36
CHAPTER VI.
Bacchus (Dionysus)--Parentage of the God--How represented--Story
of Semele--Infancy of Bacchus--Transformation of Nymphs into
Stars--Silenus--How represented--Exploits of Bacchus--How
worshipped--Plants Sacred to the God--Bacchanalia or Orgia--
Story of Pentheus--Punishment inflicted on Alcithoe and her
Sisters--Transformation of Mariners into Dolphins 39
CHAPTER VII.
Celestial Goddesses--Juno--Hera--Parentage of Juno--How
represented--Iris, Messenger of Juno--Children of Juno--
Jealousy of the Goddess--Transformation of Callista and
Arcas into Bears--Sacrifices offered to the Goddess--Plants
held Sacred to her 43
CHAPTER VIII.
Minerva--Pallas Athena--How represented--Origin of the Olive--
The Palladium--Minerva, as the Patroness of Female Industry--
Story of Arachne--The Bird of Minerva--Story of Medusa's Head 45
CHAPTER IX.
Venus--Aphrodite--Birth and Education of Venus--Marriage with
Vulcan--How represented--Temples of Venus--The Graces--Cupid
--Festivals of the Goddess--Birds and Plants Sacred to her--
Sacrifices--Temple of Venus Calva--The Apple of Discord--
Decision of Paris--Story of Hippomenes and Atalanta--Death of
Adonis--Origin of the Red Rose--Names of the Graces 49
CHAPTER X.
Latona--Leto--Her Parentage--Persecution of Juno--Birth of
Apollo and Diana--Transformation of Lycian Peasants into
Frogs--Punishment of Tityus--Latona a Personification of
Night--How represented by Painters and Sculptors 54
CHAPTER XI.
Aurora--Eos--Attributes of the Goddess--How represented--Story
of Cephalus and Procris--Marriage of Aurora with Tithonus--
Transformation of Tithonus--Memnon--His Death and Obsequies--
Vocal Statue 56
CHAPTER XII.
Terrestrial Gods--Saturn--His Parentage--How represented--His
History--The Golden Age--Sacrifices offered to Saturn--The
Saturnalia--Modern Carnival--Janus--Contradictory Accounts
of his Origin--Temple of Janus--Quirinus at Rome 61
CHAPTER XIII.
Vulcan--Hephæstus--Parentage of this God--Why banished from
Heaven--Occupation of Vulcan--His Most Celebrated Works--
Marriage with Venus--The Cyclops--Vulcania--Temple on Mount
Etna--Cacus--Cæculus--Other Works of Vulcan 64
CHAPTER XIV.
Æolus--Supposed origin of the Fable--Momus--His Parentage--
Criticisms passed on other Divinities--His Banishment from
Olympus 67
CHAPTER XV.
Terrestrial Goddesses--Vesta--Hestia--Her Parentage and
Attributes--How represented--Worship of Vesta at Rome--
Vestal Virgins--Their Obligations and Privileges--Anecdote 69
CHAPTER XVI.
Cybele--How called by the Greeks--Parentage and Attributes--How
represented--Temple of Cybele on Mount Dindymus--Sacred Image
--Festival of Megalesia--Galle and Corybantes--Bona Dea--
Story of the Vestal Claudia 72
CHAPTER XVII.
Ceres--Demeter--Parentage and Attributes--How represented--
Story of Proserpine--Eleusinian Mysteries--Rites practiced
--Story of Triptolemus--Sacrifices offered to Ceres--Feasts
called Ambarvalia--Described by Virgil 75
CHAPTER XVIII.
Themis--Origin and Attributes--Astræa changed into the
Constellation Virgo--Erigone--Nemesis--Her Office--Temple
of Nemesis at Rhamnus 80
CHAPTER XIX.
The Muses--Their Number, Names and Attributes--Why there are
Nine Muses--Punishment or the Daughters of Pierus 82
CHAPTER XX.
Gods of the Woods, and Rural Deities--Pan--Names given to this
Deity--His Origin--How represented--Famous Action related of
Pan--Origin of Pan's Reeds--Satyrs and Fauns--Terminus--
Vertumnus--Pales 84
CHAPTER XXI.
Goddesses of the Woods--Diana--Parentage and Attributes of this
Goddess--How represented--Habits of Diana--Her Attendants--
Punishment of Chione--Story of Niobe--Temple of Diana at
Ephesus--Burned by Erostratus--Despoiled by Nero--Plundered
by the Goths--Nymphs--Naiades--Oreades--Oceanides--Dryades
and Hamadryades--Arethusa--Story of Echo--Transformation of
Narcissus 87
CHAPTER XXII.
Gods of the Sea--Neptune--Poseidon--Parentage of the God--How
represented--Offices of Neptune--Feasts held at Rome in his
Honor--Children of Neptune--Triton--Phorcus or Proteus--
Sirens--Ulysses--Orpheus--Scylla and Charybdis--Melicertes--
Thetis--Glaucus 93
CHAPTER XXIII.
Infernal Deities--Pluto--Hades--Parentage of the God--His
Kingdom--Representations and Emblems--Dis--Plutus--Hell--
Cerberus--Fates--Furies--Judges of the Dead--Punishment
inflicted on the Condemned--Giants--Ixion--Sisyphus--
Tantalus--The Belides--Salmoneus--Elysium 99
CHAPTER XXIV.
Fabulous Monsters--Centaurs--Geryon--Harpies--Briareus--The
Chimæra--Explanation of this Fable--The Sphinx--Fabulous
History--Statue of the Sphinx in Egypt 105
CHAPTER XXV.
Household Divinities--Penates--Offices and Attributes--Lares--
Their Offices--Sacrifices offered to the Goddess Mania--
Honors paid to the Lares--Virtues worshipped as Divinities 108
CHAPTER XXVI.
Demigods and Heroes--Their Origin--Hercules--His Parentage--
Twelve Labors of the Hero--Field of Narbonne--Death of
Hercules 114
CHAPTER XXVII.
Jason--Expedition in search of the Golden Fleece--Medea--Her
Revenge--Theseus--Tribute imposed on the Athenians--Departure
of Theseus--Destruction of the Minotaur--Ariadne--Death of
Ægeus 119
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Castor And Pollux--Their Parentage--Death of Castor--
Constellation Gemini--Prometheus--His Parentage--His
Impiety--Pandora's Box--Punishment of Prometheus 123
CHAPTER XXIX.
Orpheus--Story of Eurydice--Death of Orpheus--Transformation
of Thracian Women into Trees--Arion--Amphion 125
CHAPTER XXX.
Atlas--His Parentage--Transformed by Perseus into a Mountain--
Explanation of the Fable--Pleiades--Hyades--Hesperides--Orion
--His Parentage, Exploits and Death--Transformation into a
Constellation--Perseus--His Parentage--Rescue of Andromeda--
Death of Acrisius 129
CHAPTER XXXI.
Bellerophon--Victory over the Chimæra--His Presumption and its
Punishment--Deucalion--Legend of the re-peopling of the Earth
after the Deluge--Probable Explanation--Dædalus--Labyrinth--
Death of Icarus--Ceyx--Alcyone--Halcyon Birds 134
CHAPTER XXXII.
Meleager--The Calydonian Hunt--Erisichthon, Nisus and Scylla 140
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Poets of Classic Fable--Homer--Hesiod--Virgil--Ovid 145
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Heroes Celebrated by the Poets--Agamemnon--Sacrifice of
Iphigenia--Quarrel with Achilles--Murder of Agamemnon by
Ægisthus and Clytemnestra--Achilles--His Parentage--
Discovered by Ulysses at the Court of Lycomedes--His
Quarrel with Agamemnon--Death of Patroclus--Exploits
during the Siege--Death of Achilles--Sacrifice of
Polyxena--Transformation of Hecuba 152
CHAPTER XXXV.
Ulysses--His Marriage with Penelope--Feigned Insanity--Exploits
during the Siege of Troy--Lotus Eaters--Slaying of the Sacred
Cattle by the Sailors--Their destruction--Ulysses in the
Island of Calypso--Cast on the Shores of Phæacia--His Arrival
in Ithaca--Suitors of Penelope--Her Deliverance by Ulysses 156
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Orestes--Education at the Court of Strophius--Pylades--Murder
of Clytemnestra--Orestes pursued by the Furies--Discovery of
Iphigenia at Tauris--Circumstances added by the Tragic Poets
--Hector--Character and Exploits of the Hero; his Death--Fate
of Astyanax--Oedipus--Eteocles and Polynices--Theban War--
Heroism of Antigone 164
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Æneas--His Parentage--His Flight from Troy--Interview with
Andromache at Epirus--Prophecy of Helenus--Æneas driven by a
Storm on the Coast of Africa--Received by Dido at Carthage--
Departure of Æneas--Death of Dido--Funeral Games--Descent
into the Infernal Regions--Landing of Æneas in Italy--War--
Death of Turnus and Marriage of Æneas with Lavinia--His Death 171
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Sibyls--Story of the Cumæan Sibyl--Legend of the Sibylline
Books--Their destruction--Opinions entertained regarding
these Verses--Divination by Omens--The Augurs--Different
Classes of Omens--Anecdote 176
CHAPTER XXXIX.
Oracles--Oracle of Jupiter at Dodona--Manner of giving
Responses--Oracle of Delphi--Account given by Diodorus--
The Pythia--Remarkable Responses--Unsuccessful attempts made
to plunder this Temple--Despoiled by Nero and others--Oracle
of Trophonius--Story of the Hero and his Brother--Agamedes--
Discovery of the Oracle--Peculiar Rites observed by the
Votaries--Oracle of Jupiter Ammon--Its Situation--Temple
founded by Bacchus--Expedition sent by Cambyses--Ruins still
existing--Fons Solis--Account given by Belzoni--Oracle of
Esculapius at Epidaurus--Remarkable Embassy sent to Epidaurus
by the Roman Senate--Treatment of Votaries in the different
Oracles of Esculapius--Oracle of the Castalian Fount--Anecdote
of the Emperor Hadrian--Opinions entertained with regard to
these Oracles--Quotation from Milton 180
CHAPTER XL.
Classic Games--Why connected with Mythology--Olympic Games--By
Whom instituted--Time and Manner of their celebration--
Olympiads--Nature of the Contests--Qualifications required of
the Competitors--Prize awarded to the Victors--Honors bestowed
--Horse and Chariot Races--Philip of Macedon--Alcibiades--
Cynisca--Intellectual Contests--Herodotus--Dionysius--Pythian
Games--By whom instituted--Time of their Celebration--Prize--
Nemean Games--Crowns bestowed--Isthmian Games--Why so called--
Instituted in Honor of Melicertes--Garland bestowed on the
Victor 191
CHAPTER XLI.
The Greek Drama--Peculiarities of the Greek Theatre--Description
of the Theatre of Bacchus at Athens--Stage Machinery--Dress of
the Actors--Masks--The Chorus--Measures of the Choral Dance--
Chorus of the Furies--Story of Ibycus--Attempt made to revive
the Ancient Chorus--Time occupied by Theatrical Entertainments
--Their cost--Comparison with the Roman Amphitheatre 197
CHAPTER XLII.
Celebrated Statues--The Olympian Jupiter--Minerva of the
Parthenon--Subsequent Fate of this Temple--Apollo Belvidere
--Diana à la Biche 206
_PART II._
CHAPTER I.
Egyptian Divinities--Osiris--Apis and Serapis--Parentage of
Osiris--His Death and Sepulture--Isis--Attributes--Emblematic
representation--Rites of Isis forbidden at Rome--Condemned by
Juvenal--Apis--Manner of transmigration--Festivals in Honor
of Apis--Discovery of a Successor--Oracles obtained from this
Divinity--Germanicus--Harpocrates--Quotation 209
CHAPTER II.
Eastern Mythology--Divinities of the Assyrians--Baal or Bel--
Tower of Babel--Proper Names of the Phoenicians and
Carthaginians--Worship of Baal introduced among the
Israelites by Achab--Reproaches of Jeremias--Moloch--Nations
devoted to his Worship--Human Sacrifices--Representation of
this God--His Worship forbidden by Moses--Valley of Hinnom--
Quotation from Milton--Astaroth or Astarte--Sacrifices in
Honor of this Goddess--Abuses attending her Festivals--Thammuz
identical with Adonis--Mourned by the Assyrian Women--Lines
from Milton--Vision of Ezekiel--Oannes--Dagon 213
CHAPTER III.
Persia--The Zend-avesta--Doctrines of Zoroaster--Ormuzd or
Ormasdes--Ahriman--Worship of Fire--The Guebers--Perpetual
Fires--Bakoo--Magic and Astrology--Parsees of Hindostan 218
CHAPTER IV.
Hindoo Mythology--Brahma--The Vedas--Doctrine of the Vedas--
Brahma, Vishnu and Siva--Offices of these Deities--Avatars of
Vishnu--Krishna--Siva--Doctrines regarding the Soul--
Metempsychosis--Castes--Buddha--His Doctrines--Buddhism
suppressed in India 222
CHAPTER V.
China--Absence of any State Religion in China--Doctrine of the
Lettered--Confucius--His Writings--Honors paid him in China--
Difficulties occasioned among Christian Missionaries--Lao-tze,
founder of the Religion of Tao or Reason--His Writings--
Chinese Buddhists--Temple of Buddha at Pou-tou--General
Feeling of the Chinese with regard to Religion 229
CHAPTER VI.
Thibet--The Grand Lama--Prevailing Religion of Thibet and
Tartary--Lamaseries--The Grand Lama, a Perpetual Incarnation
of Buddha--His transmigrations--Mode of discovering his
Successor 236
CHAPTER VII.
Mythology of Scandinavia--Compared with that of Greece and
Rome--The Eddas--Account of the Creation--Form of the Earth
--Asgard, Odin--Names of this Deity--Valhalla--Thor--Recovery
of Thor's Hammer--Frey and Freya--Bragi--Heimdall--Vidar--
Hodur--The Valkyrior--Loki and his Progeny--Death of Baldur--
His Funeral--Loki's Punishment--The Elves--Runic Letters--
Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods 238
CHAPTER VIII.
Celtic Mythology--Druidism--Derivation of the Word Druid--
Origin of Druidical Worship--Account given by Cæsar--
Characteristics--Divinities worshipped by the Druids--Esus--
His Attributes--Bel--Teutates--Camul--Tarann--Priests--Their
Duties--Bards--Their Influences--Druids, properly so called--
Sacred Plants--Mystic Writing of the Druids--Their Political
Authority--Druidesses--Of the Loire--Of the Island of Sena--
Human Sacrifices offered by Druidesses--Virgins of Tara--
Sacrifices offered by the Druids--Victims chosen--Belief of
the Druids in a Future State--Festivals of the Druids--
Festival--Solstices--Beltane or Beal-Tinne--Ceremonies
observed in Ireland--St. Patrick at Tara--First of November--
Breton Legend--Superstitious Practices belonging to the Day--
Suppression of Druidism in Gaul--In England--Mona--Iona--
Druidical Monuments--Menhirs--Dolmens--Cromlechs--Stonehenge
--Carnac--Popular Superstitions 257
CHAPTER IX.
Mexico--Mythology of the Aztecs--Its Peculiar Characteristics--
Belief of the Aztecs with regard to the Supreme Being--
Subordinate Deities--Huitzilopotchli--Legend of Quetzalcoatl--
Household Divinities--Belief of the Aztecs with regard to a
Future State--Singular Ceremony--Rites of Burial--Aztec
Priests--Priestesses--Mexican Temples--Pyramid of Cholula--
Sacrifices--Their Number--Victims offered annually to
Tezcatlipoca--Cannibal Repasts--Montezuma 274
CHAPTER X.
Mythology of the Ancient Peruvians--Belief in One God--Worship
of the Sun, Moon, and Stars--Legend of Manco-Capac--Pretended
Origin of the Inca Race--Legend of the Deluge--Tradition of
White Men from the East--Temple of the Sun in the Island of
Titicaca--Temple of Cuzco--Peruvian Priesthood--Sacrifices
offered to the Sun--Festivals of the Sun--Feast of Raymi--
Resemblance of certain Peruvian Rites to those observed by
the Ancient Romans--Virgins of the Sun--Burial Rites of the
Peruvians--Cupay 284
SUPPLEMENT.
Notice of Authors, etc., mentioned in this Volume--Æschylus--
Cæsar--Cicero--Demosthenes--Diodorus--Euripides--Herodotus--
Justin--Juvenal--Mæcenas--Pelasgi--Plinius--Procopius--
Simonides--Sophocles--Strabo--Titicaca--Varro 292
MYTHOLOGY.
CHAPTER I.
_Ques._ What is Mythology?
_Ans._ This word is derived from the Greek, _Mythos_, a myth or fable,
and _logos_, a discourse. A myth is, properly speaking, an allegory or
fable invented to convey some important moral or religious truth, or
illustrate some operation of nature. Mythology includes also the
historical myths, or the narratives of gods, demigods, and heroes,
which were current among the heathen in ancient times.
_Ques._ Why is it necessary to become acquainted with these fables?
_Ans._ Because ancient literature and art cannot be fully understood
or appreciated without some knowledge of Mythology. It was mingled
with every theme of the classic poet, and inspired the highest skill
of the painter and sculptor.
These subjects keep their place to some extent in modern art, and
mythological allusions are so frequent in our literature that an
acquaintance with classic fable is considered a necessary part of a
liberal education.
_Ques._ Did all the heathen nations worship the same deities?
_Ans._ The mythology of different nations varied as to the names and
attributes of their divinities. There are, nevertheless, so many
points of resemblance, that it is believed by many that the principal
mythical systems had one common origin. To trace these analogies, and
the developments which gave rise to so great a diversity, is the
province of comparative mythology.
_Ques._ In what important point do all these systems agree?
_Ans._ In the rite of sacrifice. We meet everywhere the same
offerings: flowers, first fruits, libations of milk, honey, and wine;
also sacrifices of animals, which were either partaken of by the
votaries or consumed as holocausts upon the altar.
This mode of worship varied but little in ceremonial, and the
sacrifices of the different heathen nations resembled, in their
exterior form, those offered to the true God by the ancient
patriarchs. The idea of propitiating the deity in such a manner seems
to have been universal both in the old and the new world, and we are
forced to believe that it was drawn from a common fount of primeval
tradition.
_Ques._ How did the belief in the heathen deities originate?
_Ans._ When the early traditions of the human race became corrupt, the
sublime idea of one God, self-existent and eternal, was lost or
obscured. We find it, though vaguely perhaps, in the character and
attributes of certain divinities, as the Zeus (Jupiter) of the Greek,
and the Alfâdur of Scandinavian mythology. There are passages in the
early Greek poets which show clearly a belief in the unity of God. In
the verses attributed to the mythic poet Orpheus, and generally known
as Orphic Remains, we find the following:
"One self-existent lives; created things
Arise from him; and He is all in all.
No mortal sight may see Him, yet Himself
Sees all that live; * * *
* * * For He alone
All heavenly is, and all terrestrial things
Are wrought by Him. First, midst and last he holds
With His omniscient grasp."
The same idea is expressed in the verses of the poet Aratus, quoted by
St. Paul in his address to the Athenians on the Hill of Mars.
Instead of ministering spirits obeying the will of the Supreme Being,
and communicating that will to man, there arose a number of inferior
deities, each exercising some peculiar and partial sovereignty. The
god whom the warrior invoked in battle was powerless to bless the
field he cultivated in time of peace; the power of Jupiter was
worshipped in the rolling thunder; but when the earth trembled or
fiery torrents burst from the mountain top, the wrath of Pluto must be
appeased, and sacrifices were offered to the infernal powers. The
strife and turbulence of nature were attributed to the gods, who
became in some manner identified with the elements they were supposed
to govern.
The honors paid to the memory of departed heroes assumed, in the
course of time, the character of religious worship. Hence arose a
class of demigods, whose real achievements, transmitted by popular
tradition and embellished by the poets, became altogether legendary
and mythical.
_Ques._ Were the Greek and Roman mythologies the same?
_Ans._ They were, to a great extent. The ancient Latins had,
undoubtedly, their own gods and their peculiar superstitions, but they
do not appear to have had any regular mythology. When the Romans
received the arts and sciences from the Greeks, they adopted, also,
their divinities and their entire system of religion.
They shared a tradition, which seems to have been universal, of a
time of primeval innocence, when man dwelt in a peaceful world,
ignorant alike of sorrow and of sin. This was the Golden Age. Avarice
and discord were unknown; men had not learned to slay animals for
food, nor had the earth been disturbed by the plough. Neither the
labors of the husbandman, nor the merchant's traffic disturbed the
joyous leisure of that happy time; no ships ploughed the seas, and the
glittering steel rested harmless in the mine. Ovid thus describes the
days of innocence:
"The Golden Age was first, when man, yet new,
No rule but uncorrupted reason knew,
And, with a native bent did good pursue.
Unforced by punishment, unawed by fear,
His words were simple, and his soul sincere;
Needless was written law where none oppressed;
The law of man was written in his breast:
No suppliant crowds before the judge appeared,
No court erected yet, nor cause was heard,
But all was safe; for conscience was their guard.
* * * * * * *
No walls were yet, nor fence, nor moat, nor mound,
Nor drum was heard, nor trumpet's angry sound,
Nor swords were forged; but, void of care and crime,
The soft creation slept away their time."
The Silver Age was far inferior to that of gold; but virtue still
dwelt on earth, and the Immortals had not altogether departed from the
abodes of men. Jupiter then divided the year into seasons, shortened
the winter days, and let loose the northern blasts, so that men were
obliged to build dwellings, and cultivate the ungrateful soil.
Their first habitations were caves and grottoes, leafy coverts of the
forest, or huts rudely constructed of the trunks of trees and
interwoven boughs.
The Brazen Age came next; men grew fierce and warlike, but were not as
yet altogether impious.
The Iron Age gave birth to all the calamities that afflict mankind.
Avarice and violence reigned supreme; men were not satisfied to till
the earth, but dug into its hidden mines, and drew thence gold and
iron, potent instruments of ill to man.
The same poet says:
"Then land-marks limited to each his right;
For all before was common as the light.
Nor was the ground alone required to bear
Her annual income to the crooked share,
But greedy mortals, rummaging her store,
Digged from her entrails first the precious ore
(Which next to hell the prudent gods had laid,)
And that alluring ill to sight displayed.
Thus cursed steel, and more accursed gold,
Gave mischief birth, and made that mischief bold:
And double death did wretched man invade,
By steel assaulted, and by gold betrayed."
_Dryden's Ovid._
MOUNT OLYMPUS.
_Ques._ Where were the gods supposed to dwell?
_Ans._ On the summit of Mount Olympus, in Thessaly. This mountain
hides its head, covered with perpetual snows, in a belt of clouds.
The Greeks imagined above these, a sublime abode reposing in eternal
sunshine, and free from the storms which vexed the lower world. A gate
of clouds, guarded by the goddesses of the seasons, opened to permit
the passage of the Celestials when they descended to earth. Each god
had his own dwelling, but all were obliged to repair, when summoned,
to the palace of Jupiter. Even those deities whose usual abode was on
the earth, in the waters, or in the lower shades, were compelled to
assemble in Olympus at his command. Here they feasted on ambrosia and
nectar, discoursed upon the affairs of heaven and earth, and were
delighted at intervals by the music of Apollo's lyre, and the songs of
the Muses.
Vulcan was smith, architect and chariot builder to the gods. He built
their dwellings on Olympus, and constructed the furniture in so
wonderful a manner, that the tripods and tables were endowed with
motion, and ranged themselves in order without the aid of hands. The
robes of the different divinities were wrought by Minerva and the
Graces. Everything of a solid nature was constructed of metal.
THE GODS--DIFFERENT CLASSES OF DEITIES.
_Ques._ Did the Greeks believe that the gods resembled men?
_Ans._ Yes; in many particulars. They supposed them to have the same
passions, both good and evil. They were immortal, yet could suffer
pain and receive wounds. Instead of blood a fluid called ichor filled
their veins. The deities resembled men also in form, but they were,
with some exceptions, of majestic stature and shone with celestial
beauty. They could render themselves invisible at will, and were
otherwise endowed with supernatural powers. There was this restraint
upon their wonder-working gifts: no divinity was permitted to reverse
the act of another. For example, when an offended god subjected a
mortal to some cruel transformation, no other deity, not even Jupiter
himself, could undo the spell.
_Ques._ Into what classes were the gods divided?
_Ans._ Ancient writers differ in the classification of the Greek and
Roman divinities. According to one division, which we will follow, the
Celestial gods were: Jupiter, Apollo, Mars, Mercury and Bacchus. The
goddesses were: Juno, Minerva or Pallas, Venus, Aurora and Latona.
To these higher divinities, Saturn, Janus, Vesta and others were
sometimes added. There were also Terrestrial divinities, Gods of the
Sea, Infernal deities, etc. etc.