J. SACRED STONES AND OTHER INANIMATE OpsEctTs.—As a preliminary, we may ask what traces of the worship of inanimate things can be observed in Asia Minor or Greece, and what is the idea involved in this worship? Many examples are known ‘of such things being regarded with deep religious veneration.
(1) Stones, Pillars, Columns, etc.—A rude and shapeless stone, which had fallen from heaven (Suorerjs), doubtless a meteorite, existed originally at Pessinus, and was brought to Rome about B.c. 204; it is a type of many other similar stones at Orchomenos, Thespiz, Synnada, Adada, ete. Many of these stones had some approximate regu- larity of shape, sometimes perhaps accidental, in other cases distinctly due to human workmanship. Such were the conical or roughly pyramidal stones in the temples at Paphos (of Aphrodite), Perga (Artemis), Delphi (Apollo), ete. : obelisks, columns, and stones of a distinctly tetragonal shape are indicated in many other cases: above all other gods in Greece such stones or pillars were connected with Hermes, and called Hermaia or Hermat.*
It admits of no doubt that many sacred stones had primarily a purpose in family life or social or political organization. Boundary stones or termini were erected by mutual agreement between dis- putants, and were consecrated by every religious sanction known at the time, by ceremonial, and by a curse on the violator or remover; and the belief indubitably was that the ceremonies of erec- tion ‘and consecration had caused Divine power and life to take up its abode in the stone: this Divine power demanded worship in recognition and propitiation, and was able and ready to punish neglect or violation. The terminus was valueless
* usOopiov oxyodcevor +o ‘Bpueioy (Polyenus, Strat. vi. 24); 73 "Epucioy és 0 Meconvios zal Meyadororirass cioly dpe: (Pausanias, vili. 34, 6). These Hermaia were columns, or heaps of stones, or single stones. A useful collection of ancient authorities will be found in Mr. M. W. de Visser’s treatise, de Groecorum diis non referentibus humanam speciem, Leyden, 1900.
RELIGION OF GREECE
unless it was respected and inviolate: human need was urgent that it should be respected, but mere human power was unable to make it so: accord- ingly, the Divine power was invoked to supply the deficiency, and by proper rites was brought down and caused to dwell in the pillar or the stone. One of the ceremonies proper to the cult of such sacred stones was the pouring of oil on them; and in general a similar ceremonial to that described in § IT was practised. Similarly, in a house any peculiarly important bearing member, a central pillar or roof-tree, was placed under Divine protec- tion by invoking the Divine power to reside in it.
In all cases there is but one method and one principle. The more urgent man’s need is, and the more important for his life and well-being any stone or erection is, the more does it become necessary to make the Divine power take up its abode in the stone. In other words, the stone becomes a Beth-el, or ‘House of God’; the pillar embodies the god Hermes.
The subject in its bearing on early Greek religion has been admirably treated by Mr. A. J. Evans in an elaborate paper on ‘Mycenzean Tree and Pillar Cult’ (Journ. of Heil. Stud. 1901, pp. 99-203), which will henceforth be regarded as fundamental in this department, though it will doubtless receive development and improvement and correction in details from both the author and others. The preceding remarks will show why the objection recently raised against Mr. Evans’ theory in Journ. of Hell. Stud. 1901, pp. 268-275, cannot weigh with us: the objection is that many of his examples of ‘sacred pillars’ are obviously structural members, and need not therefore be considered to have any religious purpose: we, however, hold that the structural importance pro- duced the sacred character of the ‘pillar.’ The sacredness of rude purposeless stones was perhaps due to ‘false analogy,’ that fruitful agency in thought, and should be regarded as not primitive, but cases of degradation.
Probably no one could doubt that the rude meteoric stone was worshipped because it had fallen from heaven, and was obviously and un- mistakably a mark and sign and example of Divine activity and power. Similarly, it seems beyond doubt that the boundary stone, or the supporting member of the family home and roof, is made into a dwelling-place of Divine power, in order that human needs may be satisfied by Divine aid. The same principle of interpretation must be applied in many other cases where the stone was neither in itself an object useful to man, nor marked by its natural character and origin as Divine. It was often urgently necessary to pro- tect a locality for the common use of men, and this was done in a similar way by setting up one or more sacred stones in it; but in such cases the sacred stone was an addition, and not an integral part of the structure or equipment. _
In a town it was urgently required that the street, the common property and a necessary con- venience for all, should be inviolate and properly kept and respected by the dwellers or passers-by. The common need was guaranteed by the sacred Hermai or pillars, which were made the residence of Divine power by charming it into them through the proper rites; and misdemeanour in the street or encroachment on it was thus constituted a dis- respect of the divinity, and punished by him.