were so prevalent with the Gods, that their enemies were defeated and put to flight as far as Chalcis: whence it was sometimes called Xaλxδικον διωγμα. Another sacrifice, called Ζημια, the mulct,' was offered as an expiation of any irregularities which happened during the solemnity. At the beginning of the festival, all prisoners committed to gaol for smaller faults, that is, such as did not render them incapable of communicating in the sacrifices and other parts of divine worship, were released."

The Eleusinian mysteries, the most noted solemnity of any in Greece, were also instituted in honour of Ceres; and from their being derived from Egypt, it may not be foreign to the present subject to introduce some account of their mode of celebration in Greece.* "They were often called, by way of eminence, Murrypia, the mysteries,' without any other note of distinction; and so superstitiously careful were they to conceal these sacred rites, that if any person divulged any part of them †, he was thought to have called down the divine judgment upon his head, and it was accounted unsafe to abide in the same house with him. He was even apprehended as a public offender, and put to death. Every thing contained a mystery Ceres herself (to whom, with her daughter Proserpine, this solemnity was sacred) was not called by her own name, but by the unusual title of Αχθεια, which seems to be derived from αχθος,

*Potter's Grecian Antiq. vol. i. p. 449.

+ Conf. Herodot. ii. 171. &c.; and Hor. Od. iii. 2. 26.

grief or heaviness; because of her sorrow for the loss of her daughter, when stolen by Pluto. The same secrecy was strictly enjoined, not only in Attica, but in all other places of Greece where the festival was observed, except Crete; and if any person, not lawfully initiated, did even through ignorance or mistake chance to be present at the mysterious rites, he forfeited his life.... Persons of both sexes, and all ages, were initiated. Indeed it was not a matter of indifference whether they would be so or not; for the neglect of it was looked upon as a crime, insomuch that it was one part of the accusation for which Socrates was condemned to death. All persons initiated were thought to live in a state of greater happiness and security than other men, being under the more immediate care and protection of the Goddess. Nor did the benefit of it extend only to this life; even after death they enjoyed (as was believed) far greater degrees of felicity than others, and were honoured with the first places in the Elysian shades. But since the benefits of initiation were so great, no wonder they were very cautious what persons they admitted to it. Such, therefore, as were convicted of witchcraft, or any other heinous crime, or had committed murder, though against their will, were debarred from these mysteries; and though in later ages all persons, barbarians excepted, were admitted to them, yet in the primitive times the Athenians excluded all strangers, that is, all who were not members of their own commonwealth. Hence, when Hercules, Castor,

and Pollux desired to be initiated, they were first made citizens of Athens.* Nor were they admitted to the greater mysteries, but only to the less, which were sacred to Proserpine, and were instituted for this purpose, in order that the laws might not be violated by the admission of Hercules." They were not celebrated, like the former, in the month Boëdromion, at Eleusis (an Attic borough, from which Ceres was called Eleusinia), but at Agræ, a place near the river Ilissus, in the month Anthesterion. "In latter times, the lesser festival was used as a preparative to the greater; for no persons were initiated in the greater, unless they had been purified at the lesser. The manner of the purification was this: - having kept themselves chaste and unpolluted nine days, they came and offered sacrifices and prayers, wearing crowns and garlands of flowers, which were called opeрa, or spa. They had also, under their feet, Alos xodov, Jupiter's skin,' which was the skin of a victim offered to that God. The person that assisted them herein was called υδρανος, from ύδωρ, 'water,' which was used at most purifications; and they themselves were named μvoτα, or per

sons initiated.

ισμέρα,

"About a year after, having sacrificed a sow to Ceres, they were admitted to the greater mysteries, the secret rites of which, some few excepted (being reserved for the priests alone), were frankly revealed to them; whence they were called sopor,

"Plut. in Thes."

--

and лOTTα, 'inspectors.' The manner of initiation was thus the candidates, being crowned with myrtle, had admittance by night into a place called uσTixos σnxos, 'the mystical temple,' which was an edifice so vast and capacious that the most ample theatre did scarce exceed it. At their entrance they purified themselves by washing their hands in holy water; and, at the same time, were admonished to present themselves with minds pure and undefiled, without which the external cleanness of the body would by no means be accepted. After this the holy mysteries were read to them out of a book called Teτρwμa; which word is derived from Tτpa, a stone,' because the book consisted of two stones fitly cemented together. Then the priest who initiated them, called popaτYS, proposed certain questions, as whether they were fasting, &c.; to which they returned answers in a set form. This done, strange and amazing objects presented themselves. Sometimes the place they were in seemed to shake round them; sometimes it appeared bright and resplendent with light and radiant fire, and then again was covered with black darkness. Sometimes thunder and lightning, sometimes frightful noises and bellowings, sometimes terrible apparitions astonished the trembling spectators. The being present at these sights was called auroia, intuition.' After this they were dismissed with these words, ' κογξ, ομπαξ.””+

"See Meursius's treatise on this festival."

+ Some have supposed these words to answer to the " Procul, O procul, este profani," and to have that meaning in Sanscrit. If so, they were misapplied.

66

εποπτεια,

During that part of the ceremony called OTTEα, inspection," the Gods themselves were supposed to appear to the initiated; and it was in order to discover if the candidates were sufficiently prepared for such a mark of their favour that these terrific preludes were instituted. Proclus thus describes them in his Commentary on Plato's Republic: "In all initiations and mysteries, the Gods exhibit themselves under many forms, and appear in a variety of shapes. Sometimes their unfigured light is held forth to the view; sometimes this light appears under a human form; and it sometimes assumes a different shape." In his commentary on the first Alcibiades, he also says, "In the most holy of the mysteries, before the God appears the impulsions of certain terrestrial dæmons become visible, alluring the initiated from undefiled goods to matter."

Apuleius mentions the same extraordinary illusions," the sun being made to appear at midnight, glittering with white light;" and it is supposed that Ezekiel † alludes to similar scenes when speaking of the abominations committed by the idolatrous" ancients of the house of Israel in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery."

The preliminary ordeals, through which candidates were obliged to pass, previous to admission into the Egyptian mysteries, were equally, if not more, severe ;. and it frequently happened that their lives were exposed to great danger, as is said to have

* Metam. lib. ii. 256.

+ Ezek. viii. 12.