|
The
kings, in founding a temple, not only bestowed upon it the
objects
and
furniture required for present exigencies, such as lambs and
oxen,
birds,
fish, bread, liquors, incense, and odoriferous essences;
they
assigned to it an annual income from the treasury, slaves, and
cultivated
lands; and their royal successors were accustomed to renew
these
gifts or increase them on every opportunity. Every victorious
campaign
brought him his share in the spoils and captives; every
fortunate
or unfortunate event which occurred in connection with the
State
or royal family meant an increase in the gifts to the god, as
an
act of thanksgiving on the one hand for the divine favour, or as
an
offering
on the other to appease the wrath of the god. Gold, silver,
copper,
lapis-lazuli, gems and precious woods, accumulated in the sacred
treasury;
fields were added to fields, flocks to flocks, slaves to
slaves;
and the result of such increase would in a few generations
have
made the possessions of the god equal to those of the reigning
sovereign,
if the attacks of neighbouring peoples had not from time to
time
issued in the loss of a part of it, or if the king himself had
not,
under
financial pressure, replenished his treasury at the expense of
the
priests.
To prevent such usurpations as far as possible, maledictions
were
hurled at every one who should dare to lay a sacrilegious hand on
the
least object belonging to the divine domain; it was predicted of
such
"that he would be killed like an ox in the midst of his
prosperity,
and
slaughtered like a wild urus in the fulness of his strength!...
May
his
name be effaced from his stelæ in the temple of his god! May his
god
see pitilessly the disaster of his country, may the god ravage
his
land
with the waters of heaven, ravage it with the waters of the
earth.
May he be pursued as a nameless wretch, and his seed fall under
servitude!
May this man, like every one who acts adversely to his
master,
find nowhere a refuge, afar off, under the vault of the skies or
in
any abode of man whatsoever." These threats, terrible as they
were,
did
not succeed in deterring the daring, and the mighty men of the
time
were willing to brave them, when their interests promoted them.
Gulkishar,
Lord of the "land of the sea," had vowed a wheat-field to
Nina,
his lady, near the town of Deri, on the Tigris. Seven hundred
years
later, in the reign of Belnadinabal, Ekarrakaîs, governor of
Bîtsinmagir,
took possession of it, and added it to the provincial
possessions,
contrary to all equity. The priest of the goddess appealed
to
the king, and prostrating himself before the throne with many
prayers
and
mystic formulas, begged for the restitution of the alienated
land.
Belnadinabal
acceded to the request, and renewed the imprecations which
had
been inserted on the original deed of gift: "If ever, in the
course
of days, the man of law, or the governor of a suzerain who will
superintend
the town of Bîtsinmagir, fears the vengeance of the god
Zikum
or the goddess Nina, may then Zikum and Nina, the mistress of the
goddesses,
come to him with the benediction of the prince of the gods;
may
they grant to him the destiny of a happy life, and may they
accord
to
him days of old age, and years of uprightness! But as for thee,
who
hast
a mind to change this, step not across its limits, do not covet
the
land: hate evil and love justice." If all sovereigns were not so
accommodating
in their benevolence as Belnadinabal, the piety of private
individuals,
stimulated by fear, would be enough to repair the loss,
and
frequent legacies would soon make up for the detriment caused to
the
temple possessions by the enemy's sword or the rapacity of an
unscrupulous
lord. The residue, after the vicissitudes of revolutions,
was
increased and diminished from time to time, to form at length in
the
city
an indestructible fief whose administration was a function of the
chief
priest for life, and whose revenue furnished means in abundance
for
the personal exigencies of the gods as well as the support of his
ministers.
This
was nothing more than justice would prescribe. A loyal and
universal
faith would not only acknowledge the whole world to be the
creation
of the gods, but also their inalienable domain. It belonged to
them
at the beginning; every one in the State of which the god was
the
sovereign lord, all those, whether nobles or serfs, vicegerents
or
kings, who claimed to have any possession in it, were but
ephemeral
lease-holders
of portions of which they fancied themselves the owners.
Donations
to the temples were, therefore, nothing more than voluntary
restitutions,
which the gods consented to accept graciously, deigning
to
be well pleased with the givers, when, after all-, they might
have
considered
the gifts as merely displays of strict honesty, which merited
neither
recognition nor thanks. They allowed, however, the best part of
their
patrimony to remain in the hands of strangers, and they contented
themselves
with what the pretended generosity of the faithful might see
fit
to assign to them. Of their lands, some were directly cultivated
by
the
priests themselves; others were leased to lay people of every
rank,
who
took off the shoulders of the priesthood all the burden of
managing
them,
while rendering at the same time the profit that accrued from
them;
others were let at a fixed rent according to contract. The
tribute
of dates, corn, and fruit, which was rendered to the temples to
celebrate
certain commemorative ceremonies in the honour of this or that
deity,
were fixed charges upon certain lands, which at length usually
fell
entirely into the hands of the priesthood as mortmain
possessions.
These
were the sources of the fixed revenues of the gods, by means of
which
they and their people were able to live, if not luxuriously, at
least
in a manner befitting their dignity. The offerings and sacrifices
were
a kind of windfall, of which the quantity varied strangely with
the
seasons;
at certain times few were received, while at other times there
was
a superabundance. The greatest portion of them was consumed on
the
spot by the officials of the sanctuary; the part which could be
preserved
without injury was added to the produce of the domain, and
constituted
a kind of reserve for a rainy day, or was used to produce
more
of its kind. The priests made great profit out of corn and
metals,
and
the skill with which they conducted commercial operations in
silver
was
so notorious that no private person hesitated to entrust them
with
the
management of his capital: they were the intermediaries between
lenders
and borrowers, and the commissions which they obtained in these
transactions
was not the smallest or the least certain of their profits.
They
maintained troops of slaves, labourers, gardeners, workmen, and
even
women-singers and sacred courtesans of which mention has been
made
above,
all of whom either worked directly for them in their several
trades,
or were let out to those who needed their services. The god was
not
only the greatest cultivator in the State after the king,
sometimes
even
excelling him in this respect, but he was also the most active
manufacturer,
and many of the utensils in daily use, as well as articles
of
luxury, proceeded from his workshops. His possessions secured for
him
a
paramount authority in the city, and also an influence in the
councils
of
the king: the priests who represented him on earth thus became
mixed
up
in State affairs, and exercised authority on his behalf in the
same
measure
as the officers of the crown.
[Illustration:
203.jpg A VOTARY LED TO THE GOD TO RECEIVE THE REWARD OF
THE
SACRIFICE]
Drawn
by Faucher-Gudin, from a Chaldæan intaglio in the
Berlin
Museum.
He,
had, indeed, as much need of riches and renown as the least of
his
clients.
As he was subject to all human failings, and experienced all
the
appetites of mankind, he had to be nourished, clothed, and
amused,
and
this could be done only at great expense. The stone or wooden
statues
erected to him in the sanctuaries furnished him with bodies,
which
he animated with his breath, and accredited to his clients as the
receivers
of all things needful to him in his mysterious kingdom. The
images
of the gods were clothed in vestments, they were anointed with
odoriferous
oils, covered with jewels, served with food and drink; and
during
these operations the divinities themselves, above in the heaven,
or
down in the abyss, or in the bosom of the earth, were arrayed in
garments,
their bodies were perfumed with unguents, and their appetites
fully
satisfied: all that was further required for this purpose was the
offering
of sacrifices together with prayers and prescribed rites. The
priest
began by solemnly inviting the gods to the feast: as soon as they
sniffed
from afar the smell of the good cheer that awaited them, they
ran
"like a swarm of flies" and prepared themselves to partake of it.
[Illustration:
204.jpg THE SACRIFICE: A GOAT PRESENTED TO ISHTAR.]
Drawn
by Faucher-Gudin, from an Assyrian intaglio
illustrated
in A. Rich, _Narrative of a Journey to the Site
of
Babylon in 1811_. The sacrifice of the goat, or rather
its
presentation to the god, is not infrequently represented
on
the Assyrian bas-reliefs.
The
supplications having been heard, water was brought to the gods
for
the
necessary ablutions before a repast. "Wash thy hands, cleanse thy
hands,--may
the gods thy brothers wash their hands!--From a clean dish
eat
a pure repast,--from a clean cup drink pure water." The statue,
from
the
rigidity of the material out of which it was carved, was at a
loss
how
to profit by the exquisite things which had been lavished upon
it:
the
difficulty was removed by the opening of its mouth at the moment
of
consecration, thus enabling it to partake of the good fare to its
satisfaction.*
The banquet lasted a long time, and consisted of every
delicacy
which the culinary skill of the time could prepare: the courses
consisted
of dates, wheaten flour, honey, butter, various kinds of
wines,
and fruits, together with roast and boiled meats.
*
This operation, which was also resorted to in Egypt in the
case
of the statues of the gods and deceased persons, is
clearly
indicated in a text of the second Chaldæan empire
published
in _W. A. Insc_, vol. iv. pi. 25. The priest who
consecrates
an image makes clear in the first place that
"its
mouth not being open it can partake of no refreshment:
it
neither eats food nor drinks water." Thereupon he performs
certain
rites, which he declares were celebrated, if not at
that
moment, at least for the first time by Ea himself: "Ea
has
brought thee to thy glorious place,--to thy glorious
place
he has brought thee,--brought thee with his splendid
hand,--brought
also butter and honey;--_he has poured
consecrated
water into thy mouth--and by magic has opened
thy
mouth._" Henceforward the statue can eat and drink like
an
ordinary living being the meat and beverages offered to
it
during the sacrifice.
[Illustration:
205.jpg THE GOD SHAMASH SEIZES WITH HIS LEFT HAND THE
SMOKE
OF THE SACRIFICE.]
Drawn
by Faucher-Gudin, from a Chaldæan intaglio pointed out
by
Heuzey-Sarzcc; the original is in the Louvre. The scene
depicted
behind Shamash deals with a legend still unknown. A
goddess,
pursued by a genius with a double face, has taken
refuge
under a tree, which bows down to protect her; while
the
monster endeavours to break down the obstacle branch by
branch,
a god rises from the stem and hands to the goddess a
stone-headed
mace to protect her against her enemy.
In
the most ancient times it would appear that even human sacrifices
were
offered, but this custom was obsolete except on rare occasions,
and
lambs,
oxen, sometimes swine's flesh, formed the usual elements of
the
sacrifice. The gods seized as it arose from the altar the
unctuous
smoke,
and fed on it with delight. When they had finished their repast,
the
supplication of a favour was adroitly added, to which they gave a
favourable
hearing. Services were frequent in the temples: there was one
in
the morning and another in the evening on ordinary days, in
addition
to
those which private individuals might require at any hour of the
day.
The
festivals assigned to the local god and his colleagues, together
with
the acts of praise in which the whole nation joined, such as that
of
the New Year, required an abundance of extravagant sacrifices, in
which
the blood of the victims flowed like water. Days of sorrow and
mourning
alternated with these days of joy, during which the people and
the
magnates gave themselves up to severe fasting and acts of
penitence.
The
Chaldeans had a lively sense of human frailty, and of the risks
entailed
upon the sinner by disobedience to the gods. The dread of
sinning
haunted them during their whole life; they continually
subjected
the motives of their actions to a strict scrutiny, and once
self-examination
had revealed to them the shadow of an evil intent, they
were
accustomed to implore pardon for it in a humble manner. "Lord, my
sins
are many, great are my misdeeds!--O my god, my sins are many,
great
my
misdeeds!--O my goddess, my sins are many, great my misdeeds!--I
have
committed
faults and I knew them not; I have committed sin and I knew
it
not; I have fed upon misdeeds and I knew them not; I have walked
in
omissions
and I knew them not.--The lord, in the anger of his heart,
he
has stricken me,--the god, in the wrath of his heart, has
abandoned
me,--Ishtar
is enraged against me, and has treated me harshly!--I make
an
effort, and no one offers me a hand,--I weep, and no one comes to
me,--I
cry aloud, and no one hears me:--I sink under affliction, I am
overwhelmed,
I can no longer raise up my head,--I turn to my merciful
god
to call upon him, and I groan!... Lord reject not thy
servant,--and
if
he is hurled into the roaring waters, stretch to him thy
hand;--the
sins
I have committed, have mercy upon them,--the misdeeds I have
committed,
scatter them to the winds--and my numerous faults, tear them
to
pieces like a garment." Sin in the eyes of the Chaldæan was not,
as
with
us, an infirmity of the soul; it assaulted the body like an
actual
virus,
and the fear of physical suffering or death engendered by it,
inspired
these complaints with a note of sincerity which cannot be
mistaken.
Every
individual is placed, from the moment of his birth, under the
protection
of a god and goddess, of whom he is the servant, or rather
the
son, and whom he never addresses otherwise than as his god and
his
goddess. These deities accompany him night and day, not so much
to
protect
him from visible dangers, as to guard him from the invisible
beings
which ceaselessly hover round him, and attack him on every side.
| 
댓글 없음:
댓글 쓰기