ART. XI. A Differtation on the Myfleries of the Cabiri; or the great Gods of Phenicia, Samothrace, Egypt, Troas, Greece, Italy, and Crete; being an Attempt to deduce the feveral Orgies of Ifis, Ceres, Mithras, Bacchus, Rhea, Adonis, and Hecate, from an Union of the Rites commemorative of the Deluge with the Adoration of the Hoft of Heaven. By George Stanley Faber, A. M. Fellow of Lincoln College. In Two Volumes. 8vo. 16s. Rivingtons, &c. 1803. MR R. BRYANT, after giving his extensive collection of radicals, in his mythology, from which, as has been juftly obferved, any word in the world might have been derived, introduces a short chapter on etymology, in which he complains of former etymologifts, that " many, in the wantonnefs of their fancy, have yielded to the most idle furmifes; and this too with a degree of licentioufnefs, for which no learning nor ingenuity can atone". That this fentence was not fometimes applicable to his own etymologies, few readers will be bold enough to contend; though certainly his learning and ingenuity made more atonement than thofe of the majority of learned and ingenious writers could have made. The refult appears to be, that he has become the founder of a new etymological fect, the pupils of which, though they differ from him in many great points, agree in fplitting words into as many parts as they think proper, and affigning to them boldly the fignifications of fome of their radicals. Mr. Faber, in the prefent work, commences with a fet of about 114 radicals, or variations of radicals (we may not have counted quite exactly), concerning which, he previously says: "In Mr. Bryant's catalogue of radicals, feveral occur which I shall find no occafion to ufe; while fome, which to me will prove of effential fervice, are omitted by that excellent writer. Hence the fubjoined lift will be found to vary in many particulars from that of Mr. Bryant." P. 24. This difference may feem of fmall importance; but, in our opinion, it is not fo. If, in the prodigious multitude of derivations hazarded (we can ufe no other term) by Mr. Faber, fome of Mr. Bryant's radicals are of no ufe, their right to be confidered as radicals must be reduced to almoft nothing; and thofe which are found of fo frequent ufe by Mr. F. ought, on the other hand, to have prefented themselves to Mr. BryWe fhall give, however, the cleareft idea of Mr. F.'s fyftem, by tranfcribing his radicals, with which the reader will of courfe compare the etymologies we fhall produce. ant. 2 "Ain, Ani, a Ship. Aran, An Ark. Ar, Aur, Ur, Or, Light. Ar, a Mountain. Arc, Arg, Org, Erech, Arech, a long Ship, or Ark. Ares, Eres, the Sun. As, Ath, Ait, Es, Fire. Bal, Bel, Bol, Baal, Lord. Bu, Bo, Boi, Bo, an Ox. Car, Cur, Cor, Sar, Sir, the Sun. Chan, Chon, Chen, a Prieft. Cal, Cul, Col, Hollow, an epithet of the ark. Da, The. Dac, Dag, a Fish. Du, Dus, Thu, Thus, God. Ga, Gai, Illuftrious. Ham, Om, Heat, Fire. Hipha, Siphina, Hiph, Siph, a decked or covered Ship. Luc, the Sun. Ma, Mai, M', Great. Menu, Manes, Menes, Noah. Menah, Men, Monah, Mon, any Thing Noetic, the Ark, the Moon. Nuh, Nuch, Nuach, Nus, Nau, Noah. Ob, Op, Aub, a Serpent. On, Aun, the Sun. Patar, Petar, to difmifs, to open, to let out. Ph', P', Pu', The. Phree, Phri, Phra, Pherah, the Sun. Phi, a Mouth, an Oracle. Phont, a Prieft. S', a a common Prefix to an afpirated Vowel. San, Son, Azan, Azon, the Sun. Tal, Ital, Aital, the Sun. Theba, an Ark. Tin, Tinnin, a Sea-Monster. Tit, the diluvian Chaos. Tor, a Bull. Yuneh, Yoneh, Juneh, Jonah, a Dove. On this lift many remarks might be made; we fhall, however, content ourselves with one or two. The radicals are, in general, fupported by Hebrew derivations in the margin*. To many of thefe, obvious objections occur; but they would lead us into a tedious detail. Luc, 46 Luc, for the Sun, is, however, fupported by no fimilar term in any language; but is only illuftrated by words arbitrarily faid to be derivatives from it. Thus Avna as, Lycabas, is faid to be a year, or a revolution of Luc"; but, as long as there is no proof that Luc means the Sun, a revolution of Luc will have no fenfe. Mr. Bryant indeed tells us, that El-Uc is the origin of Auxes, and thence meant the Sun; but of this fanciful derivation the proofs are very flender. In the fame note on Luc, Mr. F. gives two fine fpecimens of the dafh of etymology. Engl. Luck, from the ufual metaphor of profperity being reprefented by light, and adverfity by darknefs." "Look, from the circumitance of light being neceffary for the organs of vifion." P. 29. Is not this a worthy difciple of the etymological school? After this, when we come to the radical of "Patar, Petar, to difmifs, to open, to let out", we cannot but wonder at the omiffion of a French word, manifeftly derived from that fource! The fyllem of Mr. F. which is to be fupported by his radi cals, is briefly this; "that the whole idolatry of the Gentile world (for it is by no means confined to the Cabiri) is built, almoft univerfally, upon a traditional remembrance of the deluge, joined to the fuperftition of worshipping the heavenly bodies.' This, however, is all conjecture. When he tells us, it is fcarcely poffible that all recollection of the flood could have been very foon erafed from the minds of the Noachida", or defcendants of Noah, we readily agree with him; but, when he would perfuade us therefore, that in a few generations they began to worfhip Noah and the ark; and that foon after, joining the worfhip of the heavenly bodies with that fuperftition, they called Noah the Sun, and the ark the Moon, and became unable to distinguish one from the other, we cannot refrain from fmiling at the wild fuppofition; unfupported by any thing that we can perceive, except his mere conjecture. The whole foundation of his fyftem is placed in these two or three, perfectly conjectural, fentences. Previous to the building of the Tower (of Babel) then, I conceive that all mankind were accustomed. to commemorate the cataftrophe of the deluge; but, at the fame time, I think it probable, that they had now begun to entertain too exceflive a veneration for their arkie anceflors. This v neration was, by the degenerate Nimrod, foon perverted into grofs idolatry, and blended with the antediluvian worship of the hoft of heaven. Noah and the Sun were henceforth regarded as one divine object; and the Ark, in which he was preferved, was profanely reverenced in conjunction with the Moon." P. 14. Under all this pallage, which is, in fact, the basis of the whole work, the margin, aftally crouded with notes, is pure as as the difk of the moon herfelf. Not a fingle proof, or attempt towards a proof, that there is a fhadow of foundation for any one of the pofitions in it; which, in truth, we believe there is not. Believing, therefore, the whole ftructure of the book to be perfectly without a bafis, we fhal! not think it neceffary to make a regular procefs of examination through the fubordinate parts; but, fhowing the wonderful extravagance of fome of the refults, fhall leave our readers, if their tafle fhall incline them, to examine the particulars for themfelves. We fhall firft, however, copy from this book a fpecimen of another etymologift, juft to show how this fect of philofophers can make any thing from any thing; quidlibet ex quolibet, as the fchoolmen phrafed it. "Col. Vallancey adopts the opinion of M. Court de Gebelin concerning pagan mythology in general; and afferts, that the names and explanations of the Cabiri appear to be all allegorical, and to have fignified no more than an almanack of the viciffitudes of the feafons, calculated for the operations of agriculture." Hence he makes the Uranus of Sanchoniatho to be a corruption of the Irish word Aoran, a ploughman; his eldest fon Ilus to be weeds or flones; his fecond fon Betylus to be Biadhtal, food; his third fon Dagon to be Dagh, great crops of wheat; and his fourth fon Atlas to be Athlus, fallow. In a fimilar manner, Cronus, whom Sanchonia:ho declares to be the fame as llus, he fuppofes to be Crainn, a ploughman; Ceres to be Ceara, a flail; and her daughter Proferpine to be Por Saibhean, the feed of oats. Such is the first part of his fyftem. Afterwards he maintains, that Eon, Cronus, Saturn, and Dagon are all one person, and all equally the patriarch Adam; and concludes at length, that the Myfteries of the Cabiri were founded upon the arkite worship." P. 7. Now fee, reader, with wonder, what Mr. Faber makes of Greek names, which you perhaps vainly fuppofed the Greeks to have comprehended, but of which, it feems, they could not have had a notion, unlefs they could have come to our countryman for inftruction. It is ftrange, however, that they had not fome light from tradition, if there be any foundation for the accounts. One very curious circumftance is, that Mr. F. often obliterates feveral generations, making three or four fucceflive individuals all land for the fame, namely, Noah. Ex. gr. "Both Inachus and his imaginary fon Phoreneus, as well as his grandfon Argus, are equally the fcriptural Noah". Surely one of them would have been enough. Inachus is a cor ruption of the Hebrew word Nuach or Nach"; pretty easy"and Phoroneus is compounded of Ph' Aron-Nus, the arkite Noth", rather violent. But with the aid of Captain Wilford, we fhall go ftill further, and prove Afculapius alfo to be still the fame perfonage. "Captain Captain Wilford fuppofes, that the Efeulapius of claffical mytho logy is the Hindoo Afwiculapa, or the chief of the race of the horse; and he further intimates, that Afwiculapa was very nearly related to two hero-gods, who are evidently the fame as Caftor and Pollux. Thefe were believed to be the children of the Sun, and the grdcefs Devi; the Sun, at the time of their intercourfe, having affumed the form of a horse, and Devi that of a mare. Hence it appears, how very widely the helio-arkite fuperftition had extended itself. A horfe was one of the most ufual fymbols of Noah, and a mare, of the Ark: the Sun, therefore, united with the horfe, is no other than the great folar patriarch, while his confort is merely the Hippa, or Ark. Confequently, the children of Afwi, or the horfe, at the head of whom was placed Afwiculapa, are the allegorical offspring of the Ark, whofe chief was Noah, confidered in his double character of both a folar and a diluvian deity." P. 99. To us, who are plain men, this really feems like bantering the reader. Prefently we have the whole family metamor phofed, by the fame rule. "He was faid by fome to be the fon of Apollo, and Arfinè the daughter of Leucippus; and by others of Apollo, and Coronis the daughter of Phlegyas. The mother of Arfinoè was Philodicè, and the father of Philodicè was Inachus. The two fifters of Arfince were espoused to Caftor and Pollux." p. 101. "Both thefe genealogies are equally mythological; and the first of them is replete with thofe repetitions, which are fo common in the fables of the poets. Inachus and his defcendant Efculapius are the fame great patriarch; Leucippus is Luc- Hiph, the flar God of the Ark; Arfinoè is a variation of Baris- Noè, the Ark of Noah; Philodicè is Bala Daga, the lordly fish; and Coronis feems to have derived her name from Cor-On, the Sun." Ib. In vain will a Greek contend, that Leucippus is derived from a white Horfe, that Arfinoe means a mafculine understanding, and Philodice, a friend to Juflice. We fhall be answered in the words of the Scholiaft on Dionyfius, quoted by Mr. Bryant. Ει βάρβαρον το ονομα, ου χρη ζητειν Ελληνικήν ετιμολογίων avrov, if the terms be foreign, it is idle to have recourfe to Greece for a folution". But are they foreign? They are in appearance as complete Greek compounds as any exilling: and the affumption that they are foreign, is merely arbitrary and unfounded conjecture. Surely if the rule of the Scholiaft is called by Mr. Bryant golden, the converfe of that rule is formed of no lefs precious materials, "that if the terms be Greek, it is idle to have recourfe to foreign languages for a folution". But this is not recognized by the prefent etymological fe&t. Of this, we will now give a few of the more ftriking infances. Artha |