Peoples who think that all the luck depends on their king-man-god (the
second sort, the superior sorcerer, with no god in him) hold, we are
to believe, that his luck and cosmic influence wane with his waning
forces. Therefore they kill him, and get a more vigorous recipient of
his _soul_ (not of a god) and of his luck.[29] Of king-killing for
this reason Mr. Eraser gives, I think, one adequate example. Of the
transmission of the soul of the slain divinity to his successor he 'has
no direct proof,' though souls of incarnating gods are transmitted
after natural deaths.[30]
Now this is a very important part of the long-drawn argument which is
to suggest that Christ died as a mock-king, who also represented a god.
First, we have seen that there are two kinds of man-god. In one kind a
real god, 'of an order different from and superior to man,' is supposed
to become incarnate. The other kind of man-god is only a superior
'sensitive' and sorcerer.[31]
Now Jesus, by Mr. Frazer's theory, died as representative of a god,
therefore as one of the first two kinds of man-gods. But Mr. Frazer
does not here, as I said, produce one solitary example of a man-god
proved to be of the first class--a king in whom an acknowledged god
is incarnate--being slain to prevent his inspiring god from waning
with the man's waning energies.[32] Many examples of that practice
are needed by the argument. I repeat that not one example is produced
in this place. Mr. Frazer's entire argument depends on his announced
failure to 'insist on' the distinction between two sorts of man-gods
which he himself has drawn.[33] So I keep on insisting.
Again, it can hardly be said that any examples are produced of a king
of the second sort (a man-god who is really no god at all, but a
'sensitive,' sorcerer, or magic-man) being slain to preserve the vigour
of his magic. The examples to be cited all but universally give no
proof of the idea of preserving man's _magical_ vigour from the decay
of old age.
The cases given, as a rule, are mere instances of superannuation. It
is possible (would that it were easy) to pension off aged professors
in the Scottish Universities. But to pension off a king merely means a
series of civil wars. The early middle ages 'tonsured' weak kings. How
tempting to represent this dedication of them to God as a mitigation of
sacrifice! Kings, in fact, among some barbaric races, are slain merely
by way of superannuation. Nay, the practice is not confined to kings.
It is usual among elderly subjects.[34]