Greek Religion and Superstition--Whence the Greeks
derived their Religion--Jupiter regarded as the
President of the Law and Protector of
Cities--Entertainment of Strangers--Dreams and
Charms--Sacred Stones--Omens of Evil--Sacrificing the
Hair--Flight of Birds--Compassing the Altar to the
Right--Methods of discovering whether a Person was in
Love--Love secured by Magic--Marriage Ceremonies--Most
lucky time for Marriage--Way of protecting a Child
from Evil Spirits--Divers magical Ceremonies--Strange
Laws as to Dead Bodies--Fingers and Toes of Dead Men
worn as Charms to frighten away Ghosts--Preparing a
Body for Burial--Superstitious Customs--Swine and
Swine's Flesh--Drinking Toasts--How Strangers were
expected to behave in a Strange Land--Prophets
consulted before Armies marched to Battle--Certain
words avoided--Sneezing--Evil Omens--Throwing a Person
overboard to save a Ship.
Herodotus was of opinion that the Greeks derived their religion and
superstition from the Egyptians; Plutarch arrived at another
conclusion; while many maintained that Orpheus brought the mysteries
of religion into Greece. Whoever is right, this we know, that the
Greeks became so prone to worship ancient deities, and so anxious to
do homage to all the divinities, that they erected altars to unknown
gods, for fear they would fail in their duty to any power that could
assist them in time of need. Above all gods, Jupiter was held in the
highest esteem. He was regarded as the president of law and justice,
as the protector of cities, as governor and director of their
councils, and as chief of their societies. To him they ascribed
thunder, and supposed it was he who delivered them from the Persians,
and who assisted them to buy and sell to advantage. They erected
altars to him in the courts of their houses and before their gates.
Regarding him as the god of strangers, they received and entertained
visitors with great ceremony. As a sign of fidelity, the right hand of
fellowship was given to a stranger, to whom salt was presented, in
token that his person would be safe under the entertainer's roof. A
stranger's bottle was kept, and when a visitor arrived at the door the
head of the family and he joined feet together on the threshold. A cup
of wine was drunk to an unknown person before his name was asked. To
return respect to those in the house, the stranger did reverence to
the genius of the place, and saluted the ground with a kiss. When one
sojourned in a strange land, he was expected to conform to the
recognised customs thereof; and on taking his departure he not only
bade farewell to those with whom he had become acquainted, but took
leave of their deities. When an important agreement was entered into,
Jupiter was sacrificed to, and called to witness the covenant.
The Greeks purified themselves after frightful dreams; they wore
charmed rings to protect themselves from witchcraft; they were
accustomed to spit three times on seeing a madman; and they spat every
time the devil's name was mentioned in their hearing. Stones were
cast at every cat and weasel met by one when commencing a journey,
and the meeting of a bitch with whelps was carefully avoided. The
crowing of hens and the whistling of maidens were listened to with as
great fear as the hissing of a serpent.
If a rat or a mouse ate a hole in one's clothes, evil, it was thought,
was about to befall the luckless owner. The people had days of good
luck and of bad omen. They cut their hair, and sacrificed it to
rivers. They marked the flight of birds, particularly that of the owl.
On seeing this night bird flying overhead at the battle of Salamis,
the soldiers considered it a good sign, took courage, and won the
fight. When one was going round an altar, he took care to keep his
right hand towards it. People anointed sacred stones in token of
thankfulness, as Jacob poured oil on the stone he took for a pillow at
Bethel.
To know if one was in love, special notice was taken of his garland at
a feast, and from its appearance the wearer's feelings were supposed
to be known, though it might be thought there was no necessity for
such observation; for, according to an old proverb, "Love and the
cough can never be concealed."
If one could not secure a lady's affections in the usual way of
courting, he endeavoured to get something of hers into his possession
in order to bewitch her. Having received a glove, a ring, or any other
article, he operated on it in a magical way, and thus obtained his
desire. If a lady's girdle was properly tied into a true-lover's knot,
she could not resist loving him who performed the charming trick.
Another way of softening a woman's heart was by throwing a bitten
apple into her lap. If she received it and ate the fruit, her
affections were won. All the tokens and charms did not come from the
gentleman's side, for it was not unusual for a lady, when she wanted
to control a lover's affections, to send him charmed garlands, roses,
or bitten apples.
On the wedding day, a bride, on coming to the house of her husband,
found the doors hung with garlands made of herbs, flowers, and plants
consecrated to certain gods and goddesses, which possessed peculiar
virtues suitable for the occasion. Cakes were bestowed on the bride on
her marriage day; and there was a custom among the Greeks and Romans
of combing her hair with a spear which had belonged to a man that lost
his life in a fight, or with a weapon that had been used in killing a
man. If this was done, she was sure to have brave sons. As the bride
rose to leave her father's house, she was carried over the threshold;
and as she entered her husband's house, a practice similar to that
observed among other nations was followed,--throwing figs and other
fruit at her head, as an omen of fruitfulness. It was also the custom
for a servant, on first coming into his new home, to have palm
branches and various ornaments placed on his head, to secure
prosperity. As the bride was led into her chamber, there was a sieve
carried along with her, and a pestle hung at the door, implying that
afterwards she was to assist in the household duties. When the bride
and bridegroom were together in the house, they ate an apple between
them, to signify the pleasantness and harmony they were to enjoy in
after life. Recourse was had to augury, the day before the wedding, to
ascertain whether the married life was to be prosperous. Before the
bride retired for the night, she was bathed with water drawn from nine
different springs. The time of the year the Grecians deemed most lucky
for marriage was the first month of winter. This was contrary to the
views of the Persians, who considered spring the proper season for
entering into the matrimonial state. The Greeks thought it better to
get married in the first or second quarter of the moon rather than
when it was waning. General rules were at times departed from, for
occasionally astrologers were consulted as to the most auspicious day
and hour for the happy lovers being united.
Through magical influence, a husband could have been made to hate his
wife; but, to regain his affections, a spider caught in early morn was
confined in a box, protected by charms, prepared for its reception.
When a child came into the world, three men kept watch all night to
keep away evil spirits. One of those on guard was armed with an axe,
another with a pestle, and the third with a broom. Each protector kept
his implement swinging through the air, to prevent the approach of the
dreaded beings. As soon as a child was born it was washed in water or
wine, and wrapped in a cloth worn by the mother when she was a virgin.
In the cloth were wrought the image of the Gorgon and the snakes of
that monster's head, together with the likenesses of two dragons. When
the child was five days old, it was carried about the hearth to
introduce it to the Penates. Arrangements were then made for naming
the child. A feast was prepared, at which there were doves, thrushes,
coleworts, and toasted cheese, besides many other things. The feast
was kept up for seven days. The mother, in gratitude for her child,
sacrificed to Diana, and the father returned thanks to the nymphs for
giving him a fruitful wife.
If the little stranger died in infancy, it had only a cold funeral
without fire, or any burial service or mourning. Sons, as soon as they
were three years old, were registered in the tribe. A feast was then
prepared, called "the shearing feast," because at that time the
youngster's hair was cut, and consecrated to one of their gods.
The Athenians had a law, that if any one happened to discover a dead
body, whether of a friend or a stranger, he should cast earth on it
three times; and the Romans had a similar law. If a Greek omitted this
duty, he was bound to make satisfaction by sacrificing a sow-pig. But
some went farther, and insisted that whoever saw a dead body and did
not cast dust upon it, was both a law-breaker and an accursed person.
The people feared that the gods underground were angry if the dead
were left uncovered with their kindred dust. No greater imprecation
could have been cast at an enemy than that he might not be covered
with the earth. Hence it was that the ancients stood in great fear of
death on the ocean, for there their bodies could not be interred. When
one went to sea, it was not uncommon for him to tie a reward to his
body, that in case he should be drowned and his body found, the finder
would see it buried, and so become entitled to the treasure. Next to
the happiness of being assured that the body would be buried, was that
of being interred in one's own country, and not among strangers. When
a man died far from home, frequent solemn invocations were made for
his soul, which, it was thought, could hear and understand what was
said by friends even in distant lands. At the burial of one that was
slain in battle, his comrades marched three times round the burning
pile or grave, shaking their arms, and throwing swords, bridles,
belts, and other articles into the fire or grave after the body. When
a soldier fell fighting in the field, and his body could not be found,
he was honoured with the carriage of an empty bier, and funeral
ceremonies as if his remains were present.
If a man killed himself, the hand with which the deed was committed
was cut off, and buried in another place to that in which the other
part of the body was interred. If one man killed another in a
righteous cause, the slayer washed his hands and held up the weapon
that had been used towards the sun, with the blood on it, to show that
he feared not though the heavens as well as the earth knew what he had
done. The ancients were of opinion that if one were slain by a
relative, the blood could never be thoroughly wiped off the blade that
had cut down the individual. And for fear the Furies would avenge the
death of one killed by a relation, amulets and spells were provided to
prevent untoward events. The most powerful charms were supposed to be
parts of the slain individual. Therefore the fingers, toes, and other
extreme parts of the body were cut off and worn under the arm-pits, to
prevent the murdered person's ghost taking revenge for the unlawful
deed. In preparing a body for burial, the Greeks took a piece of money
and put it into the mouth, to give to the ferryman Charon. With the
money a small quantity of pudding or cheese was put in for Cerberus,
to propitiate him. As a corpse was being carried out to be interred,
the deceased was commended to the protection of the infernal gods. To
burn a body was considered more honourable than to lay it in the cold
grave, for the Greeks thought that the divine and purer part of man
was carried by fire to the abode of the gods above. This belief
induced fanatical persons, when tired of life below, to burn
themselves, that they might all the sooner take their flight to the
regions of bliss. If a high wind sprang up when a body was being
consumed by flames, it was regarded as a favourable omen. On the body
being consumed, the fire was extinguished with red wine.
After a funeral, the people fumigated the house with brimstone, and
cleansed themselves by passing over a fire. They then kept a feast, or
rather feasts, at which they sacrificed to Mercury, that he might
carry the soul of the deceased to the realms of happiness. At the same
time the ghosts of relations were sacrificed to. Those who petitioned
the gods had garlands about their necks, or green boughs in their
hands. The branches were either laurel or olive, because the former
signified triumph, and the latter peace and goodwill.
Swine and swine's flesh were held in high esteem by the Greeks and
Romans, for various reasons--one of which was that Jupiter was nursed
by a sow. It was the custom to drink healths or toasts, and the last
one before going to bed was to Mercury, that he might give sound sleep
and pleasant dreams. Great men would, on a high occasion, drink to a
favourite, and hand him the cup to keep. When a person drank to the
health of one he loved, he partook of part of the liquor, and poured
the remainder of the wine on the ground. Drinking cups in remote times
were made from bulls' horns. The Greeks consecrated their horses to
the sun, and before engaging in war they consulted their prophets and
diviners. In particular, they paid great attention to the utterances
of Egyptian priestesses kept by them. Then, similar to the manner of
the Jews, Persians, and others, the Greeks consecrated to the gods, in
the event of obtaining victory, portions of goods secured from the
vanquished; and even relations were offered in sacrifice to the gods
supposed to have given triumph to the victorious armies. A Greek
general did not think it lucky to march his forces before full moon,
or until the seventh day of the month. Sacrifices were offered to the
water when an army came to a river,--a custom observed by other
nations.
Certain words were never pronounced by the Greeks. For instance, they
carefully withheld their lips from uttering "prison;" and if they
happened to hear what they thought an unlucky speech, they replied,
"Let it return to thine own head." So far did they carry their
superstition, that if one heard an unfavourable expression when he was
about to drink, he would throw the liquor on the floor and call for
another cup. Sneezing was so superstitiously regarded, that it came to
be counted among the number of gods. It was deemed inauspicious if a
host sent his guests away from a feast without giving each of them a
piece of cake, or such like, to take home. The cracking of a table and
the spilling of wine or salt were regarded as evil omens. When a Greek
ship was in danger in a storm, one of the crew or a passenger was
chosen by lot, and thrown overboard, like Jonah, to appease the spirit
that ruled the winds and the waves.