1000000031

M Y T

Ihat the firll heatheo, dei6ed Ihofe

gr.at

meo to whom

Ihe reíl of mankind were indebled for any fignal bener... ,

as J upiter, Apollo, Cere" Baeehus, Hereule., .tEfeula .

píus,

ee.

in order ro induce others,

we1l of rhe pre–

fenc as fUlure ages, to reverence and to imitare rhent.

Would

nOl

a" ancient p,,¡ an.

he were ro returo upon

the eanh, have Cpecious

argu01ents,

lean,

fupport

bis religioo, when he f.w weak mortal, bea,ify or

c~·

nonize

merely

rheir owo authority, other weak mor ·

tals (frequently mere pedaots,) and place them in

heClven,

.withoul Ihe permiflion or approba,ion of Ihe S upremo

B<Íng? H appy is il for mankind, ,.hen al different ,imes

f,¡¡aeious pontiffs pur;:. Ihe calendar, and ,he braio.

of Ihe pcople, from a herd of prelended f.inlS, aod pre·

vcnt them,

leatl artcr.their death , from doing ¡oju ry

foeielY, by interrup,ing Ihe induílry of ,he I.oorious

inhabitao.. wilh keepiog thei r fe(¡iv , ls.

The ,hird religion was idolatry, or ,he religion of the

populaee. For ,he eommon people, born 'o be deeei ved

in every thing, confounding in lheir imagi nations rhe Ha ..

tues of the gods, the ¡dols of lheir divinitles. rhe em–

blems of ,heir virtues and of religiou. wocfhip, Wilh ,he

gods, diviDities, virtues and worfhip themrelvu, adored

theCe im.:.ges , ano proceeded ro extravagandes rhe mon

ridiculous , and frequ eotry moll

crimio~l,

in thei r

cere–

monies, fea(ts, libl lioilS, facdfices,

6c.

h is tO be rear.

ed, tliat, as long a.. there are upon the eanh men of ou r

Jimi,ed eapaci,ies, ,his triple religion will cooíl.ody fub.

(irl

under éi!feren, fo rms; and we are mueh deeeived, if

it may not be fo und under lh'e empire of ChriílianilY it

felf, oo,wilhílandiog the puri,y of its dotlrioe.

will

be eafily eoneeived, ,ha, it is

00'

of the religioo

phi .

lofo phers , oor ,h., of Ihe populaee, of whieh we

are.to

tre'l in Ihi. a"icle of My'hology; but of lhat whieh

fubfiíled uoder Ihe authori'yof lhe m.giCl"ey and the prieíl.

hood, and

eonfe~uen(ly

of paganifm io general.

As far as we ac ••ble to judge by all ,he aocient au–

thors \Ve have read, the

pagans

adored

~he

fovereign L ord

of the univerfe unGer tbe Dame of

Fa/~

Dtjlin),

which

)Ve mull not confound "",¡th

ForlulI~.

",ho was regarued

os a

fubah ero di. inity . J upiler himfelf, all ,he gods,

every animltcd ueing, the heavens , the eanh , the whole

frame of nature, was fub(ervient ro D etli ny, and nothiog

could reverfe iu deeree.. This divioi,y

WdS

fo highl y

adorable, as to b« above 01.11 rank; and was

reg~rdcd

t oo fupreme

be rep,tfenled uoder any fenfible image or

{!atue, or..to have any temple ereéted for iu worfhip. We

do not remember to have read, that Qny Cacrifice \Vas e–

"'er ofFered ta lhis Dd liny, or that any temple orcity was

~ver

dediuteu to i15 oame.

are almon inclined to

thiok, that ,he pagan. were fenfi ble; tha, lhe ,em ple and

lbe worlhip of ,he Cod of gods ought lo be in the heart

of mean . r-..1e-ntion is made, indeed. of a temple tltat was

dedicated tOthe

nknown God, but \Ve are ignorant whe.

Ihcr or not Deflioy were.lhereby meanl. 'Ve muíl not

coofou nd ,hi, D eOioy, moreover, \Vilh lhe goddef, cf

chance, of which there are (óme antique (latues

tl~at

re.

preCent her in a

r~cunlb:nt

ponure, and playing with Itr–

tle bones; for tbis

W3S

DorhiDg more than an inventioD

fome I[."u",y.

Aflt, ,his ¡;ca:ral and

p~lilof"phieal

idea of lhe Su ·

M Y T

prome Bei og. com!s lh , poG,i ve religioo of the Plj¡.n••

Thi. \Vas eOlirely founded on fable . whieh took ilS Tlfó ei·

lhcr from an::ieo t traditioo, . or hitloricaf evcnts, altereci

or augmen ,ed by Ihe imagi oacions of lhe poelS, by fuper.

Clilion, er by Ihe ereduluy of the pcople; or elfe il eon–

liíled of

.!I~goric

or moral fiélioos.

erowd of wri,ers,

and among ,h. reíl

N. d 1,

e.ml'

(Natalis Co:nes,) ,b,

.bbou Bannie r aod Plueh.,

have nude ml oy ro·

fearehes ioto lhe odgin o, fable : and 'hey ,hiok: Ihey

bave diCcoyered in Cource,

l .

in the

,anity

of m.ankind ;

2 .

iD ,be wao, of Jellers and charaéle,, ;

in ,he oelu ·

five

eloqueoce of oratars;

in the relatlong of tr.nel·

Jers;

5. iD

rhe 6étions of poets, painters. ll:atuaries,

aód

dramatic writers;

io the divedity and unif\)rmity of

oamea ; , . io lhe igoorance of Irue philofophy;

in·,he

foundatioo of colonies, aod

tr}(~

,¡oyendon of arts; 9.

lhe defire of having gods for our aDeeílors ;

10.

in ,he

iOlperfeél or f.lfe

m..

rpretation of the boly ferip,ures;.

] l .

in (he ignorance of ancient hifiory;

12.

in a like ig.

noranee of eh ronology;

13,

in tha.t of foreign laoguages;

14'

in the Innflacion of ,he religion of the Egyptiaos aod

PhCEnicians into Greece;

15 .

in the ignorance of geo·

graphy; and ,

16.

in ,he belief tI,al Ihe firel people had of

the intercourCe of gods wi th men o

is cena'n, that all

thefe matters rakl!n together are fufficieo t tOproduce f11a ...

oy Ihoufand, of f.bles; are more ,han fuffieient tOeoable

us to deceive ourreh'es and otheu, and to give rire

in-

6nite reyeries. Bu r we thould take care how we dra w

froOl

Ih.re

fourees demooílr.tioos th.., migh ' be ured: by

¡olidels, as arguments too\'erthrow the hittory of the jews;

a people lhe moíl ílupid, moíl eredulous, and oll.o..,iou.

of all olhers! lo lhe mean ,ime, the p'2an philofophers

,hemfel ves ofTerted, thal it ",as a god who ioveoted

,he

fable: fo much they were cODvincined of its ingenuity,

.nd of ilS Clrong leDdeney

ioílruél mankiDd in their

dUly .

Mythology ,herefore, ",..en properly lI ealed, begic.

with making learned reCearches ioto the real origio of

fél·

ble,

pagaolfm, and of tha< idol.ury whieh \Vas its con·

fequeoee .

reeurs for this purpole tveo to ,he begiooiog

of ,he world: and .fter "oding ,ba, Laban, the falher.

in·1aw of ,he patriarch Jaccb, was a maker of idols ; and

, ha¡ he had hlS lilde images, Of houOlOld gods, whieh he

formed of b.ked eanh, and whieh -O,e\Vs Ihat idolacry

exífied in the grt!atetl antiquity;

then explains

colmog,·

n)'.

and

Ih' .g on)',

or the be lief ,ha"he firíl iobabitaoes of

the earlh entt!rtained of the

crearion

of lhe univerfe, 2nd

\Vha, ,he pag, n ,heology laugbl of lhe geoealogy of their

falfe gods . le Debins \Vilh ,he tradi,ioA of the ChalJeaos, a

people

ancient, that Nimrod

w~s

their fiect king; bUl al

the Came time fo credulolls and Cupernitious, tln t we may

reg.rd

Ihem as ,he aUlhors of all ,hofe f, bles, a. d Ihe

prop'g.'ors of

.11

thofe vi fioo" lhat have fioee bliodeJ

hum3n rcaron. According ro th is tradition, a monfler

named

Oann:J,

O",

half "Ih aou half man,

fpr.ng

from

,h. fea, before ,he ehaos was eOOlplelely difperfed, aod

gavc b ws

rhe ChaldeAns .

W(lman

caBed

O!norl(l.

reigned overall the eanh.

Rtf

cul her in two, aod mOlde of

onc moicty the ht!!::tt'cns, and of Ih\! other lhe cauh. They

Iikewife invented

th~

twOprimitive beings, of which (he

good one, who was naOled

Orafina¡i/",

had lhe diree·

lioD