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Legends of Babylon and Egypt in Relation to Hebrew Tradition

The interconnected influences of different traditions of ancient mythology on one another consumed the archaeological efforts of the late 19th and early 20th century, though much work in Britain and Europe was interrupted by the outbreak of World War I.
This fascinating 1918 study-adapted from a series of lectures delivered to the British Academy in 1916 rings with the frustration of its British author.
A renowned classical scholar, King incorporates the then latest research from American academics into his intriguing analysis of the impact of Babylonian and Egyptian mythology on the foundations of Judaism.
Drawing on newly discovered five-thousand-year-old texts, he weaves a narrative of the folklore of human origins unbroken from our earliest collective memories. His comparison of the creation and deluge stories from a range of ancient Old-World civilizations remains compelling today.
Biblical myths are found mainly in the first 11 chapters of Genesis, the first book of the Bible. They are concerned with the creation of the world and the first man and woman, the origin of the current human condition, the primeval Deluge, the distribution of peoples, and the variation of languages.

Egyptian Literature

The basic stories are derived from the popular lore of the ancient Middle East; parallels can be found in the extant literature of the peoples of the area. The Mesopotamians, for instance, also knew of an earthly paradise such as Eden, and the figure of the cherubim—properly griffins rather than angels—was known to the Canaanites. In the Bible, however, this mythical garden of the gods becomes the scene of man’s fall and the background of a story designed to account for the natural limitations of human life.

Similarly, the Babylonians told of the formation of humankind from clay. But, whereas in the pagan tale the first man’s function is to serve as an earthly menial of the gods, in the scriptural version his role is to rule over all other creatures. The story of the Deluge, including the elements of the ark and the dispatch of the raven and dove, appears already in the Babylonian myths ofGilgamesh and Atrahasis. There, however, the hero is eventually made immortal, whereas in the Bible this detail is omitted because, to the Israelite mind, no child of woman could achieve that status.
Lastly, while the story of the Tower of Babel was told originally to account for the stepped temples (ziggurats) of Babylonia, to the Hebrew writer its purpose is simply to inculcate the moral lesson that humans should not aspire beyond their assigned station.
Scattered through the Prophets and Holy Writings (the two latter portions of the Hebrew Bible) are allusions to other ancient myths—e.g., to that of a primordial combat between YHWH and a monster variously named Leviathan (Wriggly), Rahab (Braggart), or simply Sir Sea or Dragon. The Babylonians told likewise of a fight between their god Marduk and the monster ; the Hittites told of a battle between the weather god and the dragon Illuyankas ; while a Canaanite poem from Ras Shamra (ancient Ugarit ) in northern Syria relates the discomfiture of Sir Sea by the deity Baal and the rout of an opponent named Leviathan. Originally, this myth probably referred to the annual subjugation of the floods.
Ancient myths are utilized also in the form of passing allusions or poetic “conceits,” much as modern Westerners may speak of Cupid or the Muses. In the prophetic books, for example, there are references to a celestial upstart hurled to earth on account of his brashness and to the imprisonment of certain rebellious constellations.

The prophets used myths paradigmatically to illustrate the hand of God in contemporary events or to reinforce their prophecies. Thus, to Isaiah the primeval dragon was the symbol of the continuing force of chaos and evil that will again have to be vanquished before the kingdom of God can be established on earth. Similarly, for Ezekiel the celestial upstart serves as the prototype of the prince of Tyre, destined for an imminent fall; and Habakkuksees in the impending rout of certain invaders a repetition on the stage of history of YHWH’s mythical sortie against the monster of the sea.
Legends in the Hebrew Scriptures often embellish the accounts of national heroes with standard motifs drawn from popular lore. Thus, the Genesis story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife recurs substantially (but with other characters) in an Egyptian papyrus of the 13th century BCE. The account of the infant Moses being placed in the bulrushes (in Exodus) has an earlier counterpart in a Babylonian tale about Sargon , king of Akkad (c. 2334–c. 2279 BCE), and is paralleled later in legends associated with the Persian Cyrus and with Tu-Küeh, the fabled founder of the Turkish nation. Jephthah’s rash vow (in Judges), whereby he is committed to sacrifice his daughter, recalls the Classical legend of Idomeneus of Crete, who was similarly compelled to slay his own son. The motif of the letter whereby David engineers the death in battle of Bathsheba ’s husband recurs in Homer’s story of Bellerophon.

The celebrated judgment of Solomon concerning the child claimed by two contending women is told, albeit with variations of detail, about Buddha, Confucius, and other sages; the story of how Jonah was swallowed by a “great fish” but was subsequently disgorged intact finds a parallel in the Indian tale of the hero Shaktideva, who endured the same experience during his quest for the Golden City. On the other hand, it should be observed that many of the parallels commonly cited from the folklore of indigenous peoples may be mere repetitions of biblical material picked up from Christian missionaries.
Folktales in the Hebrew Bible sometimes serve to account for the names of places in Palestine or for the origins of traditional customs and institutions. Thus, the familiar story of the man who must struggle with the personified current of a river before he can cross it is localized (in Genesis) at the ford ofJabbok simply because that name suggests the Hebrew word abḳ (“struggle”), and Samson’s felling of 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of an ass is placed at Ramath-leḥi because leḥi is Hebrew for “jawbone.”
Similarly, a taboo against eating the thigh muscle of an animal is validated in Genesis by the legend that Jacob was struck in the hip when he fought with an otherworldly being at Penuel (“Face of God”). The custom of annually bewailing the vanished spirit of fertility is rationalized in Judges as a lamentation for the hapless daughter of Jephthah.

Leonard William King

“Under the Sumerians the wife could not obtain a divorce at all, and the penalty for denying her husband was death.”

Born on 8 December 1869, Leonard William King was an Assyriologist and an English archaeologist who studied at Rugby School and King’s College, Cambridge. He died on 20 August 1919 in London, United Kingdom.
King taught Babylonian archaeology and Assyrian at King’s College for several years where he published many works on these subjects. He also collected stone inscriptions in the Near East. His translations of ancient works like the Code of Hammurabi gained wide popularity. He was also the Assistant Keeper of Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities at the British Museum.
Science lost a genius scholar in Assyriology as announced in The Times last Saturday about the premature death of Dr. Leonard William King. Other than building a European reputation in the literary field, he was also an energetic person whose love for open air and adventure led him to see, travel and dig up the palaces of ancient Assyrian Kings—a dual capacity in demand in modern archeologists.
He entered the Egyptian and Assyrian Department of the British Museum after receiving an education at Rugby and King’s College, Cambridge. He released his first work, “Babylonian Magic and Sorcery,” in 1896, which was a symbol of his mastery in the subject combined with the attention and precision he was recognized for. Afterwards, the “Letters of Hammurabi” was released, which is still a classic work on the subject.
Not long making an excavation trip to Mesopotamia, he reopened the diggings on the Konyunjik (Nineveh) site after a year where he worked for the British Museum for over one year, until he had to return home because of dysentery and give up his position to a colleague. He made an expedition into Persia to re-copy the great Inscription of Darius on the rock fact at Behistun during this excavation period (which was previously published by Sir Henry Rawlinson in the early days of his cuneiform decipherment) and camped for a fortnight beneath the inscription with his colleague to accomplish the job. With the assistance of ropes and tackling, the entire text was re-copied and eventually the British Museum published it with a full translation. It is needless to mention more than a few of King’s works, which the Semitic scholars know well. But his piece on the monumental history of Babylonia, which he was engaged with at the time of his death, ranks first among all his publications. Two volumes have already been published in this work.
He was a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and became a Litt.D. (Cambridge) early in his career. King was also elected as Professor of Assyrian and Babylonian Archeology by King’s College, London. He was often engaged in the unselfish masters of craft, always remembered his juniors, was always eager to help them, and was especially careful to give credit to the ones who deserved it; and anyone who worked with him can testify to his noble character. He used his knowledge of the Near East at the disposal of the Government in London after the war started. He left behind a wife, one son and a daughter.

Notable Works

Schweich Lecture – Legends of Babylon and Egypt in Relation to Hebrew Tradition (1946)
Chronicles Concerning Early Babylonian Kings (Volume 1 and 2) 1907
Egypt and Western Asia in the light of Recent Discoveries 1907
Babylonian Religion and Mythology. – 1903
Encyclopaedia Biblica (contributor)1903
The seven tablets of creation: or The Babylonian and Assyrian legends concerning the creation of the world and of mankind. – 1902
The Code of Hammurabi (translation) 1899
Letters and Inscriptions of Hammurabi (3 volumes) 1898 to 1900
Leonard William King. First steps in Assyrian: a series of historical, mythological, religious, magical, epistolary and other texts for beginners, printed in cuneiform characters having interlinear transliteration and translation and a sketch of Assyrian grammar, sign-list and vocabulary. Kegan Paul Trench, Trbner. p. 399. Retrieved 2011-07-05. 1898

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Judaism – About the Jewish Religion

The Hebrew religion, also called Judaism , is the oldest monotheistic religion in the world at roughly 4,000 years old. Adherents of Judaism believe in one God (Yahweh) who revealed himself through the prophets of old. The history of the Hebrew religion (Judaism) is vital to our comprehension of the Jewish beliefs, which has a strong custom of law, culture and heritage. There are currently about 14 million Jews worldwide. Most of them live in the United States and Israel. Hebrew’s believe there’s only one God (Yahweh) and he has formed a covenant with them. Their God reveals himself to his followers through the ancient prophets and rewards the good people and punishes the sinful. The majority of Jews do not believe the Messiah has come yet, but that he will come in the future. Jewish people worship in holy places called synagogues, and their spiritual leaders are called rabbis. The six-pointed Star of David is the symbol of Judaism.
Jewish people worship in holy places called synagogues, and their spiritual leaders are called rabbis. The six-pointed Star of David is the symbol of Judaism.
The name of the consecrated text of the Hebrew people is the Tanakh or the “Hebrew Bible.” It consists of the books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, arranged differently. The first five books of the Tanakh are called the Torah, which describes the laws Hebrews must observe.

Religious Texts

The Torah explains the roots of the Hebrew faith. Yahweh (God) revealed himself to Abraham, who is known as the originator of the Hebrew religion. Hebrews believe that Yahweh (God) made a personal covenant with Abraham, and that his descendants were the chosen people who would build a great nation. Abraham’s son Isaac, and his grandson Jacob, also play significant roles in ancient Hebrew history. Jacob was given the name Israel, and his offspring and subsequent generations were known as Israelites. Over 1,000 years after Abraham, the prophet Moses brought the Israelites out of Egypt, after 400 years of slavery. Yahweh (God) revealed his laws, known as the Ten Commandments, to Moses at Mt.
Around 1000 B.C., King David became ruler of the Hebrew nations, after he slew the giant Goliath, and his heir Solomon erected the first holy Temple in Yerushalem (Jerusalem). In 931 B.C. the Kingdom separated and the Hebrew nations divided into 2 groups: Judah in the South and Israel in the North. Around 587 B.C., the Babylonians demolished the 1st Temple and drove many Hebrews into exile. They constructed the 2nd Temple around 516 B.C., and the Romans demolished it in 70 A.D. The demolition of the 2nd Temple was noteworthy because Hebrew communities no longer had a primary gathering place.

Although the Tanakh, which contains the Torah, is Judaism’s most hallowed document, many supplemental documents were produced in future years. They provided understanding of how the Tanakh should be construed and wrote down the oral laws that weren’t recorded already. Around 200 A.D., academics assembled the Mishnah, a guidebook that defines and clarifies the Jewish code of law that was verbally transmitted before.
The Talmud, a compilation of instructions and commentaries on Jewish law, was established later.
The Talmud incorporates the Mishnah and the Gemara, a study of the Mishnah. It consists of the explanations of thousands of rabbis and focuses on the relevance of the 613 commandments of Jewish law. The original adaptation of the Talmud was finished during the 3rd century AD, and they finished the 2nd version in the 5th century AD. Judaism has additional written texts and commentaries, such as the “13 Articles of Faith” by the Jewish philosopher Maimonides.

Hebrew Sabbath and Biblical High Holy Days

Shabbat (Sabbath) is a day of rest and prayer for Hebrews. It starts at sunset on the 6th day of the week (Friday) and finishes at sunset on the 7th day (Saturday). The period from noon on the 6th day (Friday) until sunset on the 6th day is known as Shabbat Preparation time. Orthodox and Conservative Jews abstain from physical work, using any electronic device or any other activities not allowed on Shabbat. The majority of practicing Jews observe Shabbat by reading and debating the Torah, or going to a synagogue or socializing with other Jews.
The Talmud, a compilation of instructions and commentaries on Jewish law, was established later. The Talmud incorporates the Mishnah and the Gemara, a study of the Mishnah. It consists of the explanations of thousands of rabbis and focuses on the relevance of the 613 commandments of Jewish law. The original adaptation of the Talmud was finished during the 3rd century AD, and they finished the 2nd version in the 5th century AD. Judaism has additional written texts and commentaries, such as the “13 Articles of Faith” by the Jewish philosopher Maimonides.
Pesach (Passover): Pesach (Passover) is 7 days long and occurs in the spring, it is considered a moment of birth and newness, a time to rise up. It is a festival to commemorate the Hebrew people’s emancipation from slavery in Egypt. Specifically, Pesach (Passover) relates to the biblical narrative of when Yahweh (Hebrew God) “passed over” the homes of Hebrew families, sparing their firs-born, during a plague that killed all of the other first-born babies in Egypt.
Shavout (Feast of Weeks, Pentecost): Shavout is a festival of revelation which occurs 7 weeks and 1 day (50 days) after Pesach, at the onset of summer. It is the moment where the Hebrew people met Yahweh (Hebrew God) face to face on Mt. Sinai to receive the 10 Commandments and the Torah. It is a spiritual process where the potential becomes a reality.
Sukkot (Feast of Huts): Sukkot is a festival of ingathering, of reaping the benefits of all our works, it occurs after the harvest in the fall. Sukkot is a time of fulfillment, of rejoicing. It is the moment in history that has not happened yet, the moment of fulfillment when all work is done and Yahushua the Messiah comes.
Sh’mini Atzeret (Eighth Day of Assembly and Completion): This is the least known of all the festivals and is tacked on at the end of Sukkot, it is a signal of the onset of the upcoming winter. It is the festival of inwardness, contraction and starting over again. Sh’mini Atzeret completes the cycle, it is the seed gone underground in seeming death, but only to be ready for the spring to give new life. It is the moment of Moses’ death: the death that moves at once towards new life, towards the people crossing the Jordan into Israel, the Promised Land.
Rosh Hashanah (Top of the Year): Rosh Hashanah is the Hebrew festival to commemorate the birth of the universe and humanity. It is a feast of beginning. According to Hebrew tradition, it is the anniversary of the creation of Adam, the birthday of the human race. Today it is recognized as the Jewish New Year.

Persecution of the Jews

Events where Jewish people were persecuted or killed include:

1066 Granada Massacre – On December 30, 1066, a Muslim mob attacked the royal palace in Granada and slaughtered over 1,000 Jewish families.
The Spanish Expulsion – The rulers of Spain declared a royal edict that proclaimed that all Jews who did not convert to Christianity would be expelled from the country, 200,000 Jews were exiled.
The Spanish Expulsion – In 1492, the rulers of Spain declared a royal edict that proclaimed that all Jews who did not convert to Christianity would be expelled from the country, 200,000 Jews were exiled.
The Holocaust – The most heinous of modern-day inhumanities, the Nazis massacred several million Jews.

The Formation of Israel

Many Jews migrated to their motherland, Palestine, during and after the Holocaust and supported Zionism, a crusade to form a Jewish state that developed in 19th-century Europe. Israel became a sovereign nation in 1948, and David Ben-Gurion became its first prime minister. This was a victory for the Jewish people who had lobbied for a sovereign state in their motherland. Tensions between the Jews and Arabs residing in Palestine have intensified in the years since they made Israel a sovereign state and continues to happen today.

There are several sects in Judaism, which include:

Orthodox Judaism: Orthodox Jews are typically known for their strict observance of traditional Jewish law and rituals. For instance, most believe Shabbat shouldn’t involve working, driving or handling money. Orthodox Judaism is a diverse sect that includes several subgroups, including Hasidic Jews. This form started in the 18th century in Eastern Europe and holds different values than traditional or ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Hasidic Jews emphasize a mystical experience with God that involves direct communion through prayer and worship. Chabad is a well-known Orthodox Jewish, Hasidic movement. supernatural

Reform Judaism: Reform Judaism is considered a liberal category of the religion that values ethical traditions over strict observance of Jewish laws. Followers promote progressive ideas and adaptation. Most of the Jews living in the United States follow Reform Judaic traditions.
Conservative Judaism: Many people consider this form of Judaism somewhere in between Orthodox and Reform Judaism. Typically, conservative Jews honor the traditions of Judaism while allowing for some modernization.
Reconstructionist Judaism: Reconstructionism dates back to 1922 when Mordecai Kaplan founded the Society for the Advancement of Judaism. This sect believes that Judaism is a religious civilization that’s constantly evolving.
Humanistic Judaism: Rabbi Sherwin Wine founded this denomination of Judaism in 1963. Humanistic Jews celebrate Jewish history and culture without an emphasis on God.
While there are various denominations of Judaism, many Jews don’t identify with a particular classification and simply refer to themselves as Jewish.

There are different factions of Judaism including:

Orthodox Judaism: Orthodox Jews are recognized for their rigid adherence of traditional Jewish law and customs. For example, they do not believe that you should handle money, work or drive on Shabbat. Orthodox Judaism is a distinct faction that comprises various subgroups, such as the Hasidic Jews. Hasidic Judaism emerged in the 18th century in Eastern Europe and has beliefs that differ from ultra-Orthodox or traditional Judaism. Hasidic Jews stress a transcendent relationship with God that forms a spiritual union through worship and prayer. Chabad, established in 1775, is the largest and best-known Orthodox Jewish Hasidic group.
Reform Judaism: Reform Judaism is a lenient faction of the religion that places significance on moral behaviors instead of rigid adherence to Jewish laws. Its devotees encourage open-mindedness and the ability to adapt. The bulk of the Jews in the United States practice Reform Judaism.
Conservative Judaism: This sect of Judaism is a mixture of Orthodox and Reform Judaism. Generally, Conservative Jews observe the customs of Judaism while permitting some modernization.
Reconstructionist Judaism: Reconstructionism Judaism was started in 1922 by Mordecai Kaplan when he founded the Society for the Advancement of Judaism. This branch considers Judaism to be a theological doctrine that evolves continuously.
Humanistic Judaism: Humanistic Judaism was started in 1963 by Rabbi Sherwin Wine. Humanistic Jews celebrate the Jewish culture and way of life without a significance on God.
Many Jews do not identify with a specific denomination and simply call themselves Jewish.

Israel Abrahams

Israel Abrahams was born in London on November 26, 1858; and died in Cambridge on October 6, 1925. He was one of the most prominent Hebrew academics of his time. He penned several books on Judaism and co-founded the newspaper Jewish Guardian.
Israel Abrahams was schooled at Jews’ College, where his father was superintendent, and at University College in London. In 1881, he got a Master of Arts (MA) degree from University College. Abrahams instructed non-religious subjects and classes on how to preach and write sermons at Jews’ College, and became the senior instructor of the school in 1900.
He was honorary secretary of the Jewish Historical Society of England and was an active member of the Committee for Training Jewish Teachers, the Committee of the Anglo-Jewish Association, and of several more associations of Jewish society.
In 1889, he became joint editor of the Jewish Quarterly Review. He was a major contributor of magazine articles like his weekly editorials for the Jewish Chronicle under the title of “Books and Bookmen”, and was popular for his columns about scholarly subjects. Abrahams teamed up with Claude Montefiore to write the book Aspects of Judaism (1895). His chief works were Jewish Life in the Middle Ages (1896) and Chapters on Jewish Literature (1898), and he also helped with the Encyclopaedia Biblica (1903).
After lecturing for numerous years at Jews’ College, Abrahams succeeded Solomon Schechter in 1902, as reader in Talmudic and Rabbinic literature at the University of Cambridge, and was granted an honorary Master of Arts (MA) degree from the University.
In 1914 he produced a commentary on Simeon Singer’s A Companion to the Authorised Prayer Book. In 1922 he delivered the Schweich Lecture of the British Academy. He distributed the lectures under the title Campaigns in Palestine from Alexander the Great.

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Hindu Gods and Heroes

Understanding Hinduism

HINDU GODS AND HEROES

The religion of India is a complex topic, going back over thousands of years. Here Barnett is interested with the folk and village religions not the Brahmaicopinions on philosophy and higher religion. He seeks to demonstrate how these religions emerged from the age of the Rig Veda on.
Hinduism is the world’s oldest religion and is rich in cultural and spiritual doctrines generally misconstrued in the West. This book addresses some principles of Hinduism and explains what we can learn from Hinduism, and show that all religious doctrines are the same, albeit taught in diverse manners.
One of the most significant characteristics taken from Hinduism is to acknowledge the views and values of other religions. This viewpoint is rooted into Hindu society because of the numerous gods and Hindu sects.
In Hinduism, it is understood that everyone has their own personal experiences and can follow the path they are most attracted to. The Rig Veda says: “In the world there are many different roads but the destination is the same.”
There would be much less hostility if we accepted each other as individuals having unique experiences. We all have distinct paths in life and our experiences regulate our opinions, intelligence, ideas and actions.

What is dharma and karma?

In the West, we consider Karma as “what goes around comes around.” It is the Universal law of cause and effect–the energy you put into something will become reality.
This notion is highly revered in Hinduism and is an ancient world philosophy that illustrates the cycles of life. It is a solid philosophy to observe to help break patterns of harmful understanding and behavior. The Bhagavad Gitateaches us to “perform always the work that has to be done (dharma), for man to attain to the highest (state of consciousness).
Karma is correlated with the concept of reincarnation. Hindus think the human soul has many lives that have various forms, and it is our dharma that determines karma. Does what one does in this life decide our reincarnation in the next life?
There is no way to confirm how accurate this belief system is, although it is logical on many levels. We can practice the wisdoms of dharma and karma in our daily lives as it effects our present existence, and perhaps impending existences. Every ancient philosophy and contemporary religion depict the concept of death and resurrection including the story of Jesus dying on the cross and resurrecting from the dead. We encounter this view frequently in Hindu mythology, typically in the legends of Shiva, the destroyer. Shiva is a facet of our psyche that gives us the fortitude and tenacity to change. Essentially, Shiva destroys ego.
When we understand how to modify our belief systems and transform our prejudices, we conquer the underlying patterns of ego that come in our developmental years. If we can accept our imperfections and limitations, we will become a stronger individual.
At this stage of enlightenment, it is appropriate to drive out your dharma and do the right thing. By doing so, you enhance your consciousness. All that you contemplate and do, you become and experience. This is your karma and you control karma through your dharma.

The many Gods is one God

In contrast to most major religions that believe there is only one god, Hindus worship many gods. But Hindus believe in one god too. They call it Brahman, the Absolute, or the Truth. The gods, or devas, in Hinduism portray aspects of our psyche. This concept is found in all other ancient mythologies such as the classics, Celtic, Nordic, Mayan, etc.
Modern religions have removed personifications from God and present him as an infinite and all-powerful entity that is everywhere and in everyone. The distinction between the Hindu ideology and western practices is that Hindus consider the one God is The Self. Buddhists recognize this also. The ancient Buddha, Gautama Siddhartha, declared, “Each of us is a God.”

Barnett, M.A., Lionel David LITT

Lionel David Barnett was an English orientalist. He was born in Liverpool, Merseyside, England, United Kingdom on October 21, 1871 and passed on January 28, 1960 at 88. He is the child of Baron Barnett, a Liverpool financier, and Adelaide Barnett. He married Blanche Esther Barnett and they had to 2 children, Helan Angela Barnett and Richard David Barnett. In 1932, at the age of 61, Barnett became blind in one eye and had only
Lionel Barnett was educated at Liverpool High School, Liverpool Institute, University College, Liverpool and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he received a first class degree in classics and was a 3 time winner of a Browne medal, a medal presented to the best student in Latin and Greek poetry at Cambridge University.
In 1899, he joined the British Museum as Assistant Keeper in the Department of Oriental Printed Books and Manuscripts. In 1908 he became Keeper, a post he held until his retirement in 1936. He was Professor of Sanskrit at University College, London from 1906 to 1917, founding Lecturer in Sanskrit at the School of Oriental Studies from 1917 to 1948, Lecturer in Ancient Indian History and Epigraphy from 1922 to 1948, and Librarian of the School from 1940 to 1947. In 1948, at the age of 77, he rejoined the British Museum, which was perilously short of staff, as an Assistant Keeper, working there until his death. He was made a Companion of the Bath (CB), a British order of chivalry, in 1937.

Most widely held works by Lionel D Barnett

The path of light : Rendered from the Bodhi-charyāvatāra of Sānti-deva, a manual of Mahā-yāna Buddhism by Śāntideva
31 editions published between 1909 and 2012 in English and held by 1,478 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Antiquities of India; an account on the history and culture of ancient Hindustan by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
25 editions published between 1913 and 2016 in English and Undetermined and held by 374 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
The heart of India : sketches in the history of Hindu religion and morals by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
25 editions published between 1908 and 2011 in English and held by 349 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Indien / Religion
Hinduism by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
27 editions published between 1901 and 2013 in English and held by 311 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
The Greek drama by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
30 editions published between 1900 and 1976 in English and held by 273 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Brahma-knowledge; an outline of the philosophy of the Vedānta, as set forth by the Upanishads and by Sánkara by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
32 editions published between 1907 and 2015 in English and held by 272 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Hindu gods and heroes; studies in the history of the religion of India by Lionel D Barnett (Book)
22 editions published between 1922 and 2012 in English and held by 258 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Bhagavad-gītā, or, The Lord’s song (Book)
21 editions published between 1905 and 1951 in English and held by 206 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
The path of light by Śāntideva (Book)
15 editions published between 1909 and 2012 in English and German and held by 169 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
The Path of Light is Barnett’s 1909 translation of an important text to Mahayana Buddhism. It is the treatise of the Bodhicharyavatara of Santideva?part of the Wisdom of the East series. Barnett gives a detailed introduction to Mahayana Buddhism and its significance
Hitopadeśa, the book of wholesome counsel by Francis Johnson (Book)
9 editions published in 1928 in English and held by 125 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Chronicles the life and adventures of Robin Hood who, with his band of followers, lived as an outlaw in Sherwood Forest dedicated to fight against tyranny
Some sayings from the Upanishads: done into English with notes by L.D. Barnett by UPANISHADS
5 editions published in 1905 in English and held by 94 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

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Hebraic Literature

Jewish Sacred Texts

Hebraic Literature

In this book, Maurice Henry Harris translates 3 of Judaism’s most revered religious texts into English. Collectively they serve as an outstanding initiation into Judaism and the Hebraic culture. Harris performs an exhaustive examination of the archaic Hebrew transcripts, and presents them in a style easily grasped by English speakers.
First, Harris renders the compilation of archaic Babylonian texts known as the Talmud, which expands on the Biblical canon. Next, he translates the Rabbinic writings and commentaries identified as the Midrash, many of which undertake to explain complex Bible verses. Last, Harris interprets the mystical Hebraic works known as the Kabbalah.
Hebrew literature includes archaic, medieval, and contemporary works written in the Hebrew language. They wrote Hebrew literature in many parts of the world during the ancient and medieval eras, whereas recent Hebrew literature is predominantly Israeli.
The relevance of Judaism’s religious texts is much broader than their theological significance. These ancient chronicles not only contain Judaism’s religious doctrines but likewise the cultural, social and historical traditions of Hebrew society. In Israel, where views regarding Hebrew heritage stretches from the extreme-orthodox to the secular, religious writings denote various of purposes from a sacred, moral and real-world handbook to daily life, to an educational treasure on their history and culture.
The Torah, sometimes called the Pentateuch, or the five books of Moses, is the cornerstone of all Hebrew religious texts. It recounts the narrative of the Creation of the world, Yahweh’s covenant with Abraham and his descendants, the revelation of the 10 Commandments at Mt. Sinai, the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their wanderings in the desert. Likewise, Torah implies instruction. The Pentateuch uses the word Torah to designate a distinct group of statutes; used in this way, Torah means “law,” and is generally translated as such.

Throughout the generations, Hebrew tradition proclaimed the Torah to have divine authorship, many academics and contemporary Hebraic scholars maintain that different writers composed the Torah incrementally over time, causing it to not only be an outline of Hebraic history but also its byproduct.
The Talmud is a written version, which originates from the 2nd century CE, of the Hebraic oral law and the commentaries on it. The word Talmud is derived from the Hebrew verb ‘to teach’ or ‘to learn’. It is the genesis from which the code of Hebrew Halakhah (law) was developed, and is an incorporating of the Mishnah and the Gemara. The Mishnah is the authentic written version of the oral law and the Gemara is a written record of the subsequent Rabbinic debates, including their differing viewpoints.
Midrash and Rabbinic readings “discern value in texts, words, and letters, as potential revelatory spaces,” writes the Hebrew scholar Wilda C. Gaffney. The word Midrash literally means “study,” but the term was also used to denote a Rabbinic work that interprets Scripture. These works contain interpretations and commentaries on the written Torah and the oral Torah; and non-legalistic Rabbinic literature and Hebraic religious laws.

Kabbalah is an academic component of Judaism that helps people with their perception of Rabbinic Judaism. The word “kabbalah” means “reception” and in Rabbinic Judaism the word expresses the reception of divine instruction. The Kabbalah is an assemblage of mystical concepts from the Rabbinic era, Kabbalah came about in the middle Ages as part of an accepted practice of Hebrew life that measured the extent of religious mysteries; outlined the avenues for communication with God; and gathered spiritual power for the atonement of the universe.
Even though Kabbalah regarded its traditions as eternal revelations declared by God when he conceived the world, it was a cultural invention whose traditions and observances evolved in reply to shifts within Judaism and through their dealings with non-Jewish societies.

Maurice Henry Harris

“Do not be daunted by the insurmountability of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work but neither are you free to abandon it.” – Talmud Selections English, Hebraic Literature: Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and Kabbala

Maurice Henry Harris was born on November 9, 1859, in London, England and died on June 23, 1930, in New York City. He was educated in London before going to Columbia College in New York City, where he earned a both his Masters and PhD degree in 1887. Later, he went to the Emanu-El Theological Seminary of New York City. Harris was classified as a notable rabbi by Marquis Who’s Who. Maurice Henry Harris married Kitty Green, of London, on August 14, 1888, they had 3 children.
In 1883, Harris was appointed rabbi of Temple Israel of Harlem, New York, a position he kept till 1904. He was elected vice-president of the Society for the Aid of Jewish Prisoners, second vice-president of the New York Board of Jewish Ministers, and an administrator of the Jewish Protectory.
Amongst his most famous publications are: “The People of the Book: A Biblical History” (3 vols.); “Selected Addresses” (3 vols.); and Hebraic Literature. Harris also wrote articles for the “Jewish Quarterly Review” and the “North American Review.”

Books by Maurice H. Harris

Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and Kabbala, (Washington, London: M.W. Dunne, [1901])
History of the Mediaeval Jews, from the Moslem Conquest of Spain to the Discovery of America, (New York, Bloch Publishing Co., 1916)
Jewish History and Literature: A Course of Lessons from the Rise of the Kabbala to the Expulsion of the Jews by Spain. (Philadelphia : Jewish Chautauqua Society, 1899)
The People of the Book: A Bible History for School and Home / (New York: Block Pub. Co., 1922)
Selected Addresses, (New York: P. Cowen, 1896)
The Story of the Jew: Briefly told from the Patriarchal Era to the Present Day, Together with a Confirmation Manual / (New York: Bloch, 1919)
Temple Israel Pulpit: Selected Addresses / (New York: P. Cowen, 1895)

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Eusebius of Caesarea

Eusebius of Caesarea

“But most wonderful of all is the fact that we who have consecrated ourselves to him, honor him not only with our voices and with the sound of words, but also with complete elevation of soul, so that we choose to give testimony unto him rather than to preserve our own lives.”

Eusebius of Caesarea, also known as Yusebius Pamphili or Eusebius Pamphili, was born between 260/265 AD and died in 339/340 AD. He was an academic of the biblical canon, a historian and a lecturer regarded as one of the most learned individuals of his time.
Eusebius became the pontiff of Caesarea Maritima about AD 314. He wrote Preparations for the Gospel, On Discrepancies Between the Gospels and Demonstrations of the Gospels, studies of the biblical text.

As “Father of Church History”, he wrote the Chronicle, the Ecclesiastical History, On the Martyrs and On the Life of Pamphilus. He also wrote a biographical piece on Constantine the Great, the first Christian Emperor, entitled “Who was Augustus” between AD 306 and AD 337.
Although Eusebius’ works provided understanding of the history of the early church, he was not without prejudice, especially regarding the Yisralites (Israelites), for while “Eusebius indeed blames them for the crucifixion of Yahusha the Messiah (Jesus), he nevertheless states that they can be forgiven, even for this sin and that those that crucified him can receive salvation.”
Some academics have questioned the veracity of Eusebius’ writings. For example, Lynn Cohick, said that “Eusebius is a notoriously unreliable historian, and so anything he reports should be critically scrutinized.”
Eusebius’ Life of Constantine, which was written as a eulogy after the emperor’s death in 337 AD, is “generally disparaged for factual omissions, felt by some as so inadequate that it cannot be the work of Eusebius at all.” Others attribute his foibles as merely an attempt at constructing an idealistic hagiography, calling him a “Constantinian flunky” because, as an adviser to Constantine, it would be prudent for him to declare Constantine in the strongest light imaginable.

Of the substantial scholarly works of Eusebius, many are still extant. Eusebius succeeded in making his writings indispensable by including so many excerpts from their original sources in his works. This saved his successors the laborious task of re-producing the initial research of past authors. They have preserved much which would otherwise be forgotten because of Eusebius.
Eusebius’ study of the martyrs of his own time and the past led him to do his studies of the history of the church and of the world.
Eusebius wrote several eulogies in honor of Constantine, which included commentaries, addresses and letters that extended over the whole of his life and that included an important treatise on the names and locations of biblical cities including the distances between these cities.

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Ethelbert William Bullinger

“The majority of mankind think that they think; they acquiesce, and suppose that they argue; they flatter themselves that they are holding their own, when they have actually grown up to manhood, with scarcely a conviction that they can call their own. So it was, and so it ever shall be.”

Ethelbert William Bullinger was born on December 15, 1837 in Canterbury, Kent, England and died on June 6, 1913 in London, England.
He was a biblical scholar, Anglican priest and ultra-dispensationalist theologian.
Bullinger was the youngest of the 5 children of William and Mary Bullinger. His family traced their lineage back to Heinrich Bullinger, the Swiss Reformer.
Bullinger attended King’s College London from 1860 to 1861, and he received an associate degree in theology. He married Emma Dobson, in October 1861 after his graduation. He received a Doctor of Divinity in 1881 from Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury, who pointed out Bullinger’s “eminent service in the Church in the department of Biblical criticism”.
He worked in the Church of England from 1861 to 1888. He began as associate curate in the parish of St. Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey, in 1861, and was anointed as a priest in 1862. He served as parish curate in Tittleshall from 1863 to 1866, in Notting Hill from 1866 to 1869, in Leytonstone from 1869 to1870 and in Walthamstow until he became pastor of the new church of St. Stephen’s where he served from 1874 to 1888.

His Works

Bullinger was editor of a monthly journal Things to Come, subtitled A Journal of Biblical Literature, with Special Reference to Prophetic Truth. The Official Organ of Prophetic Conferences for over 20 years (1894–1915), and he contributed many articles.

A Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the English and Greek New Testament (1877)
Numbers in Scripture (1894)
Figures of Speech Used in the Bible (1898)
He was Primary editor of The Companion Bible (published in 6 parts, 1909–1922). It was finished by his associates after his death.

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History of Douay-Rheims

This e-text comes from multiple editions of Challoner’s revised Douay-Rheims Version of the Holy Bible.
In 1568 English exiles, many from Oxford, established the English College of Douay (Douai/Doway), Flanders, under William (later Cardinal) Allen. In October, 1578, Gregory Martin began the work of preparing an English translation of the Bible for Catholic readers, the first such translation into Modern English.
Assisting were William Allen, Richard Bristow, Thomas Worthington, and William Reynolds who revised, criticized, and corrected Dr. Martin’s work.
The college published the New Testament at Rheims (Reims/Rhemes), France, in 1582 through John Fogny with a preface and explanatory notes, authored chiefly by Bristol, Allen, and Worthington.
Later the Old Testament was published at Douay in two parts (1609 and 1610) by Laurence Kellam through the efforts of Dr. Worthington, then superior of the seminary.
The translation had been prepared before the appearance of the New Testament, but the publication was delayed due to financial difficulties. The religious and scholarly adherence to the Latin Vulgate text led to the less elegant and idiomatic words and phrases often found in the translation. In some instances where no English word conveyed the full meaning of the Latin, a Latin word was Anglicized and its meaning defined in a glossary. Although ridiculed by critics, many of these words later found fcommon usage in the English language. Spellings of proper names and the numbering of the Psalms are adopted from the Latin Vulgate.
In 1749 Dr. Richard Challoner began a major revision of the Douay and Rheims texts, the spellings and phrasing of which had become increasingly archaic in the almost two centuries since the translations were first produced.

He modernized the diction and introduced a more fluid style, while faithfully maintaining the accuracy of Dr. Martin’s texts. This revision became the ‘de facto’ standard text for English speaking Catholics until the twentieth century. It is still highly regarded by many for its style, although it is now rarely used for liturgical purposes.
The notes included in this electronic edition are generally attributed to Bishop Challoner. The 1610 printing of the second tome of the Old Testament includes an appendix containing the non-canonical books ‘Prayer of Manasses,’ ‘Third Booke of Esdras,’ and ‘Fourth Booke of Esdras.’ While not part of Challoner’s revision, the 1610 texts are placed in the appendices of this e-text. Also included are the original texts of two short books, ‘The Prophecies of Abdias‘ and ‘The Catholike Epistle of Iude the Apostle,’ to give the reader a sense of the language of the first editions in comparison to the Challoner revision. Further background on the Douay-Rheims version may be found in a selection from the preface to the 1582 edition and the original glossary included in the appendices.

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Doctrina Christiana

The First Book Printed in the Philippines

The first book printed in the Philippines has been the object of a hunt which has extended from Manila to Berlin, and from Italy to Chile, for four hundred and fifty years.
The patient research of scholars, the scraps of evidence found in books and archives, the amazingly accurate hypotheses of bibliographers who have sifted the material so painstakingly gathered together, combine to make its history a bookish detective story par excellence.
It is easy when a prisoner has been arrested and brought to the dock to give details of his complexion, height, characteristics and identifying marks, to fingerprint him and to photograph him, but how inadequate was the description before his capture, how frequently did false scents draw the pursuer off the right track!
It is with this in mind that we examine the subject of this investigation, remembering that it has not been done before in detail. And, to complete the case, the book has been photographed in its entirety and its facsimile herewith published. In studying the Doctrina Christiana of 1593 there are four general problems which we shall discuss.

First, we shall give a physical description of the book.
Secondly, we shall trace chronologically the bibliographical history of the Doctrina, that is, we shall record the available evidence which shows that it was the first book printed in the Philippines, and weigh the testimonies which state or imply to the contrary.
Thirdly, we shall try to establish the authorship of the text, and lastly, we shall discuss the actual printing.

It hardly needs be told why so few of the incunabula of the Philippines have survived. The paper on which they were printed was one of the most destructible papers ever used in book production. The native worms and insects thrived on it, and the heat and dampness took their slower but equally certain toll. Add to these enemies the acts of providence of which the Philippines have received more than their share—earthquake, fire and flood—and the man-made devastations of war, combined with the fact that there was no systematic attempt made in the Philippines to preserve in archives and libraries the records of the past, and it can well be understood why a scant handful of cradle-books have been preserved. The two fires of 1603 alone, which burned the Dominican convent in Manila to the ground and consumed the whole of Binondo just outside the walls, must have played untold havoc upon the records of the early missionaries. Perhaps the only copies of early Philippine books which exist today, unchronided and forgotten, are those which were sent to Europe in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and may now be lying uncatalogued in some library there.

One copy of this Doctrina was sent to Philip II by the Governor of the Philippines in 1593; and in 1785 a Jesuit philologist, Hervas y Panduro, printed Tagalog texts from a then extant copy. Yet, since that time no example is recorded as having been seen by bibliographer or historian.
The provenance of the present one is but imperfectly known. In the spring of 1946 William H. Schab, a New York dealer, was in Paris, and heard through a friend of the existence of a 1593 Manila book.
He expressed such incredulity at this information that his friend, feeling his integrity impugned, telephoned the owner then and there, and confirmed the unbelievable “1593.” Delighted and enthused, Schab arranged to meet him, found that he was a Paris bookseller and collector who specialized in Pacific imprints and was fully aware of the importance of the volume, and induced him to sell the precious Doctrina. He brought it back with him to the United States and offered it to Lessing J. Rosenwald, who promptly purchased it and presented it to the Library of Congress. Where the book had been before it reached Paris we do not know. Perhaps it is the very copy sent to Philip II, perhaps the copy from which Hervas got his text. Indeed, it may have been churned to the surface by the late Civil War in Spain, and sent from there to France. In the course of years from similar sources may come other books to throw more light upon the only too poorly documented history of the establishment of printing in the Philippine Islands.

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Deuterocanonical Books of the Bible

Deuterocanonical books of the Bible are works recognized by the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy to be canonical parts of the Christian Old Testament but were not included in the Hebrew Bible. The word deuterocanonical is a Greek term that means ‘belonging to the second canon’. The literal meaning of the word is misleading, but it does highlight the reluctance with which these works were admitted into the canon by some.
The word Deuterocanonical was initially used in 1566 by the converted Jew and Catholic clergyman Sixtus of Siena to describe scriptural passages of the Old Testament whose canonicity was prescribed for Catholics by the Council of Trent, but which had been withheld from some early canons, specifically in the East. Their acceptance among early Christians was not broad, but regional councils in the West published official canons that included these books as early as the fourth and fifth centuries.

The deuterocanonical scriptural texts are:

Tobit
Judith
Additions to Esther (Vulgate Esther 10:4-16:24, but see also Esther in the New American Bible)
Wisdom
Ben Sira, also called Sirach or Ecclesiasticus
Baruch, including the Letter of Jeremiah (Additions to Jeremiah in the Septuagint[2])

Additions to Daniel:

Song of the Three Children (Vulgate Daniel 3:24-90)
Story of Susanna (Vulgate Daniel 13, Septuagint prologue)
The Idol Bel and the Dragon (Vulgate Daniel 14, Septuagint epilogue)
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees

There is considerable overlap between the Apocrypha section of the 1611King James Bible and the Catholic deuterocanon, but there are distinct differences. The Apocrypha section of the 1611 King James Bible comprises the aforementioned dueterocanical books declared by Trent, plus the following three books that were not considered canonical:

1 Esdras (also known as 3 Esdras)
2 Esdras (also known as 4 Esdras)
Prayer of Manasses

These three books make up the Apocrypha section of the Clementine Vulgate, where they are characterized as “outside of the series of the canon.” The 1609 Douai Bible includes them in an appendix, but they are omitted from recent Catholic Bibles. They are found, along with the deuterocanonical books, in the Apocrypha section of Protestant bibles.

The book of Tobit, Judith, Baruch, Wisdom, Sirach and the Maccabees are not in either the Hebrew or Protestant Bibles. This raises the question: if there is controversy about some books, what is the criteria for admitting the other books? The truth is there is not certainty for any book, just a probability based on the information we have.
The Bible hasn’t been around since the time of Adam. For a few millennia, God’s Word was what the prophets passed on orally. The very notion of a Bible, a compilation of religious writings, occurred over time, after the arrival of the Old Testament Hebrews from the Exile, commencing with Ezra. The Bible, as we proclaim it today, originated with the Hebrew prophets. During the time when Yahushua roamed the earth, people recognized the books of Moses as Scripture. The Sadducees gave the prophetic works a lower ranking though the other religious groups, including the Pharisees, believed them to be inspired. Over time, other books categorized under the name of Writings, or Wisdom Books, were combined with the first books with no specific arrangement, and without knowing what authority they should be given.

It was only when the Romans destroyed their nation that the Pharisees called a council in Jamnia to recognize the Jewish community (in the year 95). At this council they established a list of inspired Scriptures and systematically excluded all the books written in Greek: as they perceived, God could only have spoken in the language of the Jewish people.
The early Christian church already had its own practice. The apostles accepted the Greek Bible without choosing between the different books, and they concentrated their discourses on the newly written Christian books to ascertain the ones to include in the New Testament. In 384, a proclamation of Pope Damasus definitively determined the canon of the Christian Bible. They retained some books from the Greek Bible, books which the Hebrews had renounced in Jamnia. They are the so-called deuterocanonical books.
Some of these books were not written in Hebrew but in Greek, because many Hebrews were residing in Greek-speaking countries; therefore, many books were added in the Greek translation of the Bible. It was only when the Romans destroyed their nation that the Pharisees called a council in Jamnia in order to recognize the Jewish community (in the year 95). At this council they established a list of inspired Scriptures and systematically excluded all the books written in Greek: as they perceived, God could only have spoken in the language of the Hebrew people.

Twelve centuries later, when the Protestants separated from the church, they did not challenge the “canon,” namely the choice of the New Testament books. They did, however, disagree about the deuterocanonical books. Their final determination was to remove them and call them “apocryphal,” that is to say, not authentic.
If we acknowledge that God progressively taught his people throughout the Old Testament days, then we can comprehend the relevance of these books which are works of the last three centuries before Christ. They are the connecting links between the Hebraic books and the New Testament books written in Greek.
The disputes regarding the deuterocanonical books caution us that if there is not a means to establish which are the inspired books, no one will be able to tell decisively what is the word of God and what is not.

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Custom and Myth

Practices and Rituals

The book Custom and Myth contains 15 sketches by Andrew Lang ranging from Method of Folklore and Star Myths to those of Art of Savages. It demonstrates the author’s perception of the insufficiency of the widely accepted methods of comparative mythology. He does agree that “myths are the result of a disease of language, as the pearl is the result of a disease of the oyster.”
Mr. Lang rejects the idea supported by many other renowned philologists, including Max Müller, Kuhn, and Breal – that proper names in the old myths can depict their explanation. He instead claims that the study of names, which carries the entire structure of philological “comparative mythology” rests, is an evolving and unstable foundation.
He says that stories are initially anonymous, and names are added later on, and eventually, adventures generally gather around some legendary divine, heroic, personage, or human. Thus, a Greek myth or a Hindu legend might be popular among people who may have never heard of India or Greece. For example- Jason’s story is widely prevalent in North America, Madagascar, Finland, and Samoa. Every myth present here serves a controversial objective to an extent, as it supports the theory of the novelist that isn’t clarified by comparative mythology. According to him, folklore has survivals of primitive concepts familiar to many people as the same theories appear to be created in identical physical and social circumstances.
The theory of a myth prevalent to multiple races relies on the premise that there is a common intellectual condition among them. We might push back a god from Phœnicia to Accadia or Greece to Phœnicia. Still, ultimately, we come to a story full of theories such as those that the Eskimo tell in their dark huts, Bushmen by the campfire, and Australians in the shadows of the “gunweh,”—evil, ignorant, vague like the dreams of the savage myth-makers from which they originated.

On every page of this literary “Universal Provider, you will experience the wide reading, the genius generalization faculty, the marvelous reputation, and the unshakeable amusement,” who modestly compares these essays to “flint-like flakes from a Neolithic workshop.” The notion that the primary purpose of a myth is to provide a rationale for a custom didn’t require significant efforts to be embraced. Several scholars considered myths in their earliest stages to be accounts of social practices and beliefs at the beginning of the 20th century.
Sir James Frazer said that myths and traditions were the shreds of evidence for humanity’s oldest preoccupation—that is, fertility. From the mystical through the spiritual to the scientific—– Human civilization evolved in stages—and myths and practices (having survived till the scientific stage) were the witnesses to ancient modes of thinking which were otherwise impossible to recreate.
As far as the relationship between myth and ritual is considered, myths were the key to explain the rituals, which were otherwise indecipherable according to Frazer. He hence mentioned in Adonis, Attis, Osiris in1906 that the intention behind creating the legendary story of Attis’s self-castration was to throw light on the castration done by the Attis’s cult’s priests to themselves at his festival.
Biblical scholars emphasized the importance of searching for the situation in life and custom (the “Sitz im Leben”) initially possessed by fictional texts in their own informative manner.
Several scholars focused on the ceremonial functions of myths, especially in Britain and the Scandinavian countries, commonly referred to as the Myth and Ritual school (from where British biblical scholar S.H. Hooke was widely known). They focused on researching the Middle East before the rise of Islam and even after that, especially about the rituals related to holy kingship and New Year’s celebrations.

The discovery about the creation of epic Enuma elish being recited at the Babylonian New Year’s festival was significant: the myth was, it was argued, expressing in language that which the ritual was enacting through action. The relationship between myth and ritual in ancient Greece has been thoroughly investigated by classical scholars, and the study of sacrifice by Walter Burkert named Homo Necans: The Anthropology of Ancient Greek Sacrificial Ritual and Myth (1983) was enormously influential.
There is no concrete evidence suggesting the connection between myths and cult behavior, but it is believed to exist. According to Frazer, ritual came before, and myth was created as an eventual explanation. However, there is no consensus opinion regarding which originated first. Modern scholars prefer to focus on the diversity of the relationship between myth and ritual rather than on temporal priority. While it has been established that some myths are linked to rituals, it makes sense to suggest that the myth communicates through the narrative language what the ritual expresses through the symbolism of action. Typically, the content of essential myths about the world’s origin usually represents a tradition’s dominant cultural form.
Agricultural civilizations throw light on agricultural practices in their myths; pastoral cultures on pastoral practices, hunter-gatherer societies on the origin of game animals and hunting practices; and so on.
Thus, many myths introduce representations of acts and organizations that are fundamental to the way of the life of society and link these to primordial times. In particular traditions, the myths deal with topics like initiation ceremonies, customs of secret cultures, and harvest rituals.

Andrew Lang

Born on March 31, 1844, Andrew Lang was a Scottish author specializing in folk and fairy tales.
He also wrote novels, was a literary critic, and made significant contributions to anthropology.
The Andrew Lang lectures at The University of St Andrews hold The Andrew Lang lectures in his honor.
Born in 1844 in Selkirk, Scottish Borders, Lang was the first of the 8 children of the town clerk of Selkirk, John Lang, and his spouse Jane Plenderleath Sellar whose father was a factor to the first Duke of Sutherland, Patrick Sellar. Lang married the youngest daughter of C. T. Alleyne of Clifton and Barbados, Leonora Blanche Alleyne, on April 17, 1875.
Even though she never received credit, she was the collaborator, translator, or author of Colr/Rainbow Fairy Books by Lang.
Lang went to Loretto School, Selkirk Grammar School, and the Edinburgh Academy, and the University of St Andrews and Balliol College, Oxford, where he secured first class in the final classical schools in 1868, after which he became a fellow of Merton College and eventually honorary fellow. He soon made his mark in poetry, journalism, and history as one of the most influential authors and critics of that time. He also joined a Neo-Jacobite society known as the Order of the White Rose in the 1890s and 1900s, a popular community of authors and artists. He was elected FBA in 1906.
In 1666 Admiral Penn sent William back to Ireland to govern the family estates. There he crossed paths again with Thomas Loe and, after listening to him preach, elected to join the Quakers (the Society of Friends), a faction that was deemed religious fanatics who were denounced by respectable society and subject to religious persecution.
On July 20, 1912, he lost his life to angina pectoris at the Tor-na-Coille Hotel in Banchory, Banchory, survived by his wife. A monument was built for the people to visit in the south-east corner of the 19th-century section in the cathedral precincts at St Andrew’s, at his burial place.
Today, Lang is primarily known for his writings on mythology, folklore, and religion. He was interested in folklore from a young age and was influenced by E. B. Tylor when he read John Ferguson McLennan before coming to Oxford.
Custom and Myth, released in 1884, is his earliest piece. He described the “irrational” aspects of mythology as survivals from more primitive forms in Myth, Ritual and Religion in 1887. The 18th-century notion of the “noble savage” strongly influenced his Making of Religion: in it, he confirmed the presence of high spiritual ideas among “savage” races, drawing a comparison with the contemporary interest in supernatural phenomena in England.
Lang’s perfectly written and illustrated version of fairy tales in 1889, Blue Fairy Book, has become a classic. He published several other fairy tale series, commonly known as Andrew Lang’s Fairy Books. He credited his wife with translating and transcribing many of the tales in the collection in the preface of the Lilac Fairy Book. He investigated the roots of totemism in his 1903 book- Social Origins.
Lang participated actively in journalism in numerous ways. From sparkling “leaders” for the Daily News to miscellaneous articles for the Morning Post to being the literary editor of Longman’s Magazine for several years; he was the most sought-after critic for periodic reports or introductions to new editions or as editor of delicate pieces.

List of the Andrew Lang Lectures at the University of St Andrews:

The lectures from 1927 to 1937 have been gathered into a book- Concerning Andrew Lang. These are the included lectures:

George Gordon’s “Andrew Lang,” December 1, 1927.
“Andrew Lang’s Work for Homer” by Alexander Shewan – November 15, 1928.
“The Raw Material of Religion” by R. R. Marett – October 25, 1929.
“Andrew Lang as Historian” by Robert S. Rait- October 24, 1930.
“Andrew Lang and the Maid of France” by Louis Cazamain- October 22, 1931.
“Andrew Lang and the Border” by John Buchan-October 17, 1932.
“Lang, Lockhart, and Biography” by H. J. C. Grierson- December 6, 1933.
“Andrew Lang and the House of Stuart” by J. D. Mackie- November 21, 1934.
“Andrew Lang and the Literature of Sport” by Bernard Darwin- November 26, 1936.
“Andrew Lang’s Poetry” by A. Blyth Webster- October 20, 1937.

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