passage is probably quite early. It is remarkable that some taboos which survived into the Levitieal legislation, disappeared among the more conserva- tive Arabs.
ii. Four main types of Uncleanness may be distinguished : unclcanness connected with (a) the functions of reproduction, (A) food, (c) leprosy, (d) death. These must now be considered in detail.
(a) Uncleannas connected with the funetion.i oj reproduction. — These functions early excited the suijerstitious awe of mankind, which invested the organs and their activities with mysterious powers. Sexual intercourse was widely regarded as proiluc- ing uncleanness, which might be removed by bath- ing, but in some cases fumigation was also required. Among the Arabs it was specially necessarj- to take precautions against the demons on the con- summation of marriage (Wellh. Rcste Arab. Hcid.^ 155). The Book of Tobit yields an interesting parallel to this. Before Tobias married Sarah she had been given to seven husbands, who had been slain on the bridal night by Asmodieus her demon lover (To 3'"" G'^- " 7"). Tobias drove away the demon by fumigation, burning on the ashes of incense some of the heart and liver of a fish (S''''). It is probable that among the Hebrews intercomse was always considered to produce defilement. This is expressly laid down in P (Lv 15'"). Naturally the defilement was slight, involving bathing and uncleanness till the evening. Certain conditions of holiness, however, required complete abstinence. This was so when J" was to ajjpear on Sinai (Ex I9'°). So David's men may eat holy bread only on conilition that they ' have kept themselves from women' (1 S 21''). David's reply is obscure (see Driver and II. P. Smith on the passage, also W. R. Smith, I.e. pp. 455, 456). But it seems clear that on a warlike expedition David asserts that women were taboo. The prohibition of women to those engaged in war is widespread. War was regarded as sacred ; the warriors were holy as long as the campaign lasted. Among many savage peoples continence must be observed not only by the warriors, but, on grounds of sympathetic magic, by those left at home, and after their return this taboo with many others is enforced with even greater strictness (Frazer, I.e. i. 3'28 ; W. R. Smith, I.e. 455). No such strictness ob- tained among the Hebrews in historical times, but Uriah's refusal to visit his wife while the caniiiaign was in progress was probablj' due to a religious scruple of this kind (2 S 11"""). Perhaps it is on this ground that we may explain why a man is excused from military service during the first year after marriage, Dt '2 J°.
Puberty is regarded by nuuiy people as a period when evil can be averted only by the observance of very rigorous taboos. The l)oys then pass through elaborate ceremonies of initiation, cir- cumcision often playing an important part. So far as boys are concerned, the original meaning of circumcision was lost among the Hebrews by the custom of performing it on the eighth day. But uncircumeision came to be regarded as un- cleanness, depriving the ollender of approach to God or membership in the community. In the case of girls an analogous rite was often per- formed, uiough not, so far as we know, by the Hebrews.
But the greatest terror was aroused by men- struation. At its first appearance the girl was often strictly isolated, ancl in some cases this was continued for years. All through life, precaution.s, tlioui^h not so stringent, had to be taken. The blood was regarded aa highly dangerous for men to touch or even see (Frazer, I.e. i. 325, 320, iii. 204-233 ; W. R. Smith, I.e. 447, 448 ; Spencer and
828 UNCLEAN, UNCLEANNESS
UNCLEAN, UNCLEANNESS
Gillen, The Natlcc Tribes of Central Australia, pp. 460 461 ; Kalisch aud Uilliuaiin-Ryssel on Lv 1519-24) . Anion" the Arabs ' meusliuous women raiKht not take part in feasts and sacrilices only for them are the old expressions for clean and un- clean customary in pre - Islamic Arabic OVelUi. I c 170) This was true also in Israel. As in so many other cases, the strictness of the taboos on this state is much moditied. But it naturally fell anion" the graver types of uncleanness. i'or it tvas a^conditfon doubly unclean combminK die un- cleanness of the reproductive ^""'^tw"^ ^"^'\ "^'^^ of blood. It was regarded as unclean in old Israe (Gn 31» 2 S 11*). In the Priestly Code (Lv lo'» -*) the period of ' separation ' is deaned as seven days The uncleanness was communicated to the bed or seat ; contact with either of these produced ^f'-^^' ness till evening, and required "'^ ^^^.^l"°S.f^''°f /, and clothes. So infectious was the impurity that any one touching an article on the bed or seat in- curred the milder penalty of uncleanness till the evening. This is the penalty prescribed according to tlie present text of Lv lo^^ for contact with the patient herself . But it is incredible that a secondary ^tage of uncleanness should require a more com- plete purihcation than the primary. Probably the words^' shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and' have fallen out. The meaning of the injunction in Lv 15"-* is uncertain. Probab y it doei not refer to conjugal relations which m these conditions were not only said m Lv 20 (H) to incur the punishment of death, but were viewed with utter repugnance in antiquity It is poss^^le that the reference may be, as some t^ink, t^o dehle ment caused by the commencement of the discharge durin" intercourse. , ,