I
An illustration of the processional type of dance among the Israelites which immediately suggests itself is that of “David and all the house of Israel dancing before Jahwe with all their might” (2 Sam. vi. 5)[52]. The picture is that of an imposing procession, headed by the king going in front of the Ark into Jerusalem. The entire body of those forming the procession is described as dancing, but special attention is drawn to David, and the words used in reference to his mode of dancing are instructive; he not only dances in the ordinary sense of the word (sāḥaq), but he “rotates (kārar) with all his might” (verse 14), and “jumps” (pāzaz, verse 16), and “whirls round” (ḥūl); and in the parallel passage 1 Chron. xv. 29, his dancing is described as “skipping” (rāqad) or the like; it is the word used in Isa. xiii. 21 of the “hopping” of satyrs, and also of “galloping” horses (Joel ii. 5) and “jolting” chariots (Nah. iii. 2). The self-abandonment of this dancing can be imagined in the light of Michal’s jibe that the king had shamelessly uncovered himself. Nevertheless, the religious character of the processional dance is obvious, and is emphasized by the phrase “before Jahwe,” and by the fact that David “was girded with a linen ephod” (verse 14), the officiating priest’s dress (see 1 Sam. ii. 18).
It is probable that the sacred processional dance is again referred to, though one cannot say so positively, in such passages as Ps. cxlix. 3: “Let them praise His name in the dance; let them sing praises unto Him with timbrel (tôph) and lyre”; cl. 4: “Praise Him with timbrel and dance,” etc.; and although in Ps. lxviii. 24, 25 (25, 26 in Hebr.) there is no special mention of the dance, it is clearly implied by the reference to the damsels playing on the timbrel, which was the usual accompaniment to dancing; the passage runs: “They see Thy goings forth [i.e. processions in honour of Jahwe], O God, the goings forth of my God, my King, into the sanctuary; the singers go before, behind (are) those playing stringed instruments, in the midst (are) damsels playing timbrels,” see also Ps. lxxxvii. 7.
Further quotations are unnecessary, for it is clear that the sacred processional dance formed a normal adjunct to worship among the Israelites.
In studying these types of the sacred dance among other peoples we are faced with the same difficulty that meets us in the case of various passages where the dance is mentioned in the Old Testament, viz. it is by no means always possible to say whether a processional dance is meant or not. It is, therefore, inevitable that some uncertainty should exist in the case of some of the illustrations to be offered; but if not always of the processional type, the examples to be given will all illustrate the sacred dance as an act of honour to some superhuman power.
II
As to those peoples most closely allied to the Israelites, namely the Syrians and Arabs, our data, so far as processional dances are concerned, are very scanty, though we are not without information on the general subject of the sacred dance among them. In one of the inscriptions found in Deir el-Ḳala near Beirut there is a reference to Θεω Βαλμαρκωδι; he is called upon as Βαλμαρκως κοίρανε κώμων; this witnesses to the existence of a Phoenician god known as Baal-Marqôd, according to the Semitic form, i.e. the “Baal, or Lord, of dancing[53].” He was either thought of as the originator of the sacred dance among the Phoenicians, just as the Greeks and others ascribed the origin of dancing to certain gods and goddesses; or else he was so called “because of a bacchanalian dance which was performed in his honour[54]”; or because he was the god, par excellence, to whom dancing was due as an act of homage[55]. The name shows that among the Phoenicians the sacred dance had its place.
We shall come, later on, to other types of the sacred dance among the Syrians and Arabs. Here we may, in passing, point to the fact that the Bedouin Arabs of the Syrian Desert even at the present day perform dances in honour of exalted personages; this may confidently be regarded, especially in view of other evidence to be given below, as pointing to similar dances being performed in earlier times in honour of gods; for divinities were honoured in this way for ages before men were. Thus Ritter describes the dancing of the Bedouin Arabs which he witnessed, adding that the far-travelled sailors who were with him told him that this mode of dancing was strikingly similar to that which they had seen performed by the savage South Sea islanders[56]. Dancing in honour of the newly married couple, regarded as king and queen, is interestingly described by Wetzstein[57]. Such dances, though not now strictly sacred, deserve a passing reference, for they have a long history behind them, and at one time were certainly connected with religion.
In many Babylonian psalms and hymns which were sung in procession, and which have come down to us, there is, it is true, no mention of dancing; but it is difficult to believe that it did not take place, especially in view of the evidence to be given below. The silence may well be due to the fact that it was so obvious a part of the ritual that there would have been no point in mentioning it. One can hardly conceive of its absence, knowing what we do of the Semitic religious temperament, during such a great festival, for example, as that of the re-entry of Marduk on the 11th Nisan into the temple of E-sagila. On this occasion a great procession of priests and choir was formed, and during the re-entry of the god into his sanctuary they sang the hymn beginning:
At such a time of solemn religious rejoicing it can hardly be doubted, judging from many analogies, that some form of sacred dance formed a striking feature of the ritual. The dance-step may well have been of a sedate character, but, as we have seen, the steps and performance of the sacred dance range from an almost march-like, though rhythmical, tread to antics of the most diverse character. It is important to remember that in Assyrian the word for “to dance” (rakâdu) means also “to rejoice.” Among all the Semites the religious festivals were special times of rejoicing. So that when we read of processions during Babylonian and Assyrian festivals it is justifiable to assume that sacred dances were performed as a recognized part of the ritual.
But we are not without tangible evidence on the subject. On an inscription discovered in the palace of Asshurbanipal a procession is depicted which is led by men playing harps; the foremost among these, each of whom has one of his legs raised, quite obviously represent dancers. They are followed by women with arms uplifted, and also by children who seem to be clapping their hands, apparently in rhythmical time with the dancers. An illustration of this is given, e.g., by Jeremias[59], who quotes from the inscription the Assyrian account of Hezekiah’s subjection to Sennacherib. In this inscription, among other things sent by the king of Judah to Nineveh, “playing men and women” are mentioned; the illustration represents these as both dancing and playing instruments. It is, therefore, as Jeremias rightly emphasizes, very important for the light it throws on the subject of the Temple music and worship in pre-exilic times. But it also throws light on Assyrian usage since it is obvious that the inscription reflects Assyrian ideas.
Mention may be made here, but very tentatively, of three inscriptions found in Cyprus by Ohnefalsch-Richter. It is conceivable that these bear witness, though indirectly, to early Mesopotamian ritual, for in style and representation they are somewhat reminiscent of ancient Babylonian cylinder seals. They are numbered cxxviii. 4, 5, 6 and a sacred dance is represented on each; they are cylindrical in form, and very ancient, pre-Homeric and pre-Mycenaean, according to Ohnefalsch-Richter, who says also that they bear a striking similarity to later Olympic representations[60]. The dancers wear long dresses rather like those of priests on Assyrian cylinder seals.
III
A religious processional dance of great interest is that represented on the well-known Hittite rock-inscription at Boghazkeui, in Cappadocia. The central portion of this inscription represents a company of gods and goddesses; towards them, from either side, the procession moves; the figures on the left hand which form the procession are almost exclusively men, while those on the right are all women. The men all wear the cone-shaped Hittite cap and tip-tilted shoes, and they are performing a running-step dance, the right feet being partly raised and touching the ground only with their toes. The inscription belongs approximately to B.C. 1200[61]. That it represents a religious processional dance is clear both because of the presence of gods and goddesses, and also from the fact that in front of or over the heads of a number of the figures there are hieroglyphic signs which denote the names of divinities.
A small inscription on a haematite cylinder, from Cyprus, also represents a Hittite sacred processional dance. As in the previous inscription, the procession, which is preceded and followed by a priest, moves towards the god. Ohnefalsch-Richter thinks that the scene represents a moment at which the dancers are resting[62].
IV
Although we find that among the Egyptians the data leave something to be desired, yet they are sufficient to suggest that dancing as a religious ceremony formed an important feature among them. As is the case among all other peoples the sacred dance has divine sanction.
Ḥatḥor, for example, was the goddess of music and dancing, and is often depicted with a small boy rattling a sistrum in front of her.... The king, in the capacity of Ḥatḥor’s son, similarly rattles a sistrum in front of her and is called “goodly Iḥy (the goddess’s child) of the golden one of the gods.”
The name Iḥwy, a variant form of Iḥy, is applied to the priests of Ḥatḥor; they are represented as “dancing and clattering castanets[63].” At the festivals held in honour of Ḥatḥor and Bastet dancing was an indispensable feature; so, too, at the Apis festivals[64]. Again, Bēs, or Bēsa, originally a dancing figure of the Sudanese type, is represented on inscriptions as holding the youthful sun-god Harpokrates in his left arm, and offering him food with the right hand; he also provides for the young sun-god’s amusement, and is depicted performing grotesque dances before him, and playing the harp and laughing. Thus he, too, became in course of time, a god of dance, music, and merriment[65].
In dancing in honour of their gods and goddesses, therefore, the Egyptians were employing a method of honouring which they imitated from the gods themselves; and this seems to have been the case, at one time or other, of their religious history, with most, if not all, races, so far as the evidence enables us to judge.
As to processional dances Blackman says that
there is some reason for supposing that at Thebes and elsewhere, on the occasion of the annual festival of Ḥatḥor, that goddess’s priestesses, when the temple service and the subsequent procession were ended, paraded the streets, and, in company with the Iḥwy-priests, stopped at one house after another in order to bestow Ḥatḥor’s blessing upon the inmates. This they did by dancing and singing and holding out to their audience—perhaps that they might touch them—the emblems of their goddess, the sistra and mnit-necklaces[66].
Again, according to Apuleius, there was a sacred dance in connexion with the worship of Isis. On stated days there was a great procession held in honour of this goddess which went through the streets of the city; the column was headed by a band of dancing masqueraders. He describes this procession of the Isidis Navigium minutely; among other details he mentions that in one part of it there were musicians, playing on pipes and flutes, followed by a chorus of chosen youths, clad in snowy white garments; behind them came more musicians playing on pipes, and many other men jingling on bronze, silver, and even golden sistra[67].
Another kind of procession, namely of barges, in which dancing also took place, is described by Herodotus in speaking of the religious festivals of the Egyptians. He says:
Now, when they are being conveyed to the city of Bubastis, they act as follows,—men and women embark together, great numbers of both sexes in every barge; some of the women have castanets which they play, and the men play on the flute during the whole journey; the rest of the men and women sing and clap their hands together at the same time. When in the course of their passage they come to any town, they lay their barge near to the land and do as follows, some of the women do as I have described ... some dance, and others stand up and pull up their clothes. This they do at every town by the river-side[68].
Mention may be here appropriately made of a kind of ritual dance, though not processional in the strict sense, which seems to be represented by a scene very often portrayed on the doors of Egyptian temples. Here the king is seen hastening towards the deity while performing a curious dance-like running step in which only the fore-part of the foot touches the ground. Kees has shown that this frequently occurring representation on Egyptian temple-doors does in fact record a ritual dance in honour of the god which was performed by the king when making his offerings[69].
Other types of the sacred dance among the Egyptians will come before us later. It may be remarked here, however, that, in regard to the sacred dance in general, it was, in the more ancient periods, of a staid and measured character, if we may judge from the inscriptions. From the time of the new empire onwards it assumed a form more like that of modern times. As to the apparel worn for the sacred dance and the mode of its performance, what held good of dancing in general applies also to this, as may be gathered, again, from the inscriptions. In most representations the women, like the men, wear quite short tunics, the former being decked with all kinds of ornaments; sometimes long transparent robes are worn, but this is exceptional. The women hold tambourines which they strike with the open palm, others have castanets which they click. Mostly they appear whirling about, evidently in quick time. The representations show that there was much bending and other movements of body and limbs[70].
V
Among the Greeks dancing has from the earliest times been associated with gods and goddesses. Thus, for example, Apollo, Ares, Dionysos, Pan, are all described as dancers. Artemis dances with her companions, and even Zeus and Hera do not disdain it. The “Pyrrhic Dance[71],” accompanied by flute-players, which was performed during the festival of Panathenaia[72], was said by some to be have been invented by the Dioscuri[73], according to others it was originated by Athena. The Muses danced on the Helicon around the altar of Zeus[74]. In the train of Dionysos were the satyrs with their special dance, the Sicinnis[75].
That wherein the gods themselves delighted would, of course, delight their worshippers; and it is true to say that there was scarcely ever worship among the Greeks without song and dance. In his Peri Orcheseōs (XV. 177) Lucian says:
... I pass over the fact that you cannot find a single ancient mystery in which there is not dancing.... To prove this I will not mention the secret acts of worship, on account of the uninitiated. But this much all men know, that most people say of those who reveal the mysteries, that they “dance them out[76].”
There is abundant evidence to show the truth of Farnell’s statement that “the dance and song were indispensable in Greek religious service[77].”
This fondness of the ancient Greeks for dancing necessitated suitable places where it could be performed, whether for religious or secular purposes. Ready-made plots for this were rarely to be looked for, since what was wanted was a more or less circular level space. It happened far more frequently that the ground had to be prepared artificially[78] and a dancing-ground constructed by levelling up the soil which then had sand strewn upon it. But wear and tear, as well as the dampness of the ground, would soon have called for something more solid and abiding, and therefore pavements were laid. By means of patterns formed of differently coloured stones such pavements served also the purpose of facilitating dance-formations. Such places for dancing were a source of pride to the Greek cities in the time of Homer when there were as yet no open spaces of public resort[79].
At least two inscriptions on which the sacred processional dance is depicted have been found in Cyprus; one is a relief on limestone; it represents a procession approaching the deity before whom an altar stands; underneath on the left a sacred dance is vividly portrayed, and on the right a sacred feast is taking place[80]. The other, which is of a simpler character, shows the god seated under a tree, the worshippers are coming towards him in solemn procession[81].
A great deal of light is thrown upon our subject by representations on ancient Greek pottery, etc.; from a wealth of material we select the following illustrations. On a vase-painting in the British Museum[82] a triumphal dance procession is portrayed, it is in all probability intended to be taking place in honour of Dionysos; men and women are dancing, the latter playing tambourines and lyres; in the centre is the god sitting on a camel. Some of the figures are Greek, others are clearly oriental, thus illustrating the alien character of the cult of Dionysos. The dancing in honour of this god is dealt with in Chapter VII; this example of it is given here because it illustrates the processional type of the sacred dance. Many illustrations can be seen in the British Museum, and excellent reproductions of originals are given in various books[83].
Our most informing source is, of course, Greek literature. In the examples to be given we shall not restrict ourselves to processional dances, for it is not always possible to say what formation a dance took.
Sacred dances were performed in honour of Artemis[84] at the feast of Tithēnidia which was celebrated in the temple of Artemis Koruthalia by a stream outside Sparta; on this occasion sucking pigs and loaves were sacrificed to the goddess. She was apparently also honoured with sacred dance on Parnassos, for Farnell refers to a passage in the Phoenissae according to which a maidens’ chorus was danced there “in honour of the ἀθάνατoς Θεά, who, from the context, appears to be Artemis[85].” A passage in Pausanias runs as follows:
A third cross-road leads on the right to Caryae, and to the sanctuary of Artemis; for Caryae is sacred to Artemis and the nymphs, and an image of Artemis Caryatis stands here under the open sky. Here every year the Lacedaemonian maidens dance in troops their national dance[86].
Frazer, in his notes on the passage, says that the dancing of the Lacedaemonian maidens “is said to have been taught the Lacedaemonians by Castor and Pollux (Lucian, De Saltatione, 10)....” “The name Caryae,” he says further, “means ‘walnut-trees,’ and may have been given to the town from the walnut-trees which grew there[87].” Further on Pausanias tells of the Messenians who “waylaid by day the maidens who were dancing at Caryae in honour of Artemis, and seizing the wealthiest and noblest of them, carried them off to a village in Messenia[88].” When dancing in honour of Artemis the maidens were dressed in short chitôn, and carried a basket-like receptacle on their heads[89].
The worship of Artemis, as Curtius has observed, was peculiarly associated with low-lying land and reed-covered marshes. The reeds shared with men in the worship of the goddess, and moved to the sound of the music in her festivals, or, as Strabo says, the baskets danced, or in Laconia maidens crowned with reeds danced[90].
At the Brauronian ceremonies of Artemis it was the custom for young maidens to dance, in honour of the goddess, dressed in saffron robes; in this dance both they and the priestess were called “bears.” The saffron robe, according to Farnell, was “possibly worn in order to imitate the tawny skin of the bear,” but he is doubtful of this; it is, however, very probable, as he says, that in the earliest times of the rite an actual bear-skin was worn by the dancers[91]. This dance was known by the name of Arkteia; quite young girls took part in it, from the ages of five to ten, and it appears to have been a kind of initiation by which they were consecrated to Artemis before arriving at puberty[92].
On the dance called Orkēsis Iōnikē, which was performed in honour of Artemis, see Julii Pollucis Onomasticon, IV. 193. Mention is also made of the dancing in honour of this goddess at Elis, in Pisatid territory, Pausan. VI. xxii. 1; see also Farnell, The Cults of the Greek States, II. 445; and for other dances belonging to her worship see Gruppe, op. cit. I. pp. 254, 283, 342, II. 842 and especially 1284; Lobeck, Aglao. II. 1085 ff.
The dancing performed at the festival of Gymnopaediae, also in honour of Artemis, as well as Apollo and Latona, which was held in Sparta at the beginning of July, is referred to by Pausanias; he says:
In the market-place at Sparta there are images of Pythaean Apollo, Artemis, and Latona. This whole place is called Chorus, because at the festival of Gymnopaediae, to which the Lacedaemonians attach the greatest importance, the lads dance choral dances in honour of Apollo[93].
Gruppe draws attention to the dancing performed in honour of Apollo Karneios[94], so also Bekker[95]. Mention may also be made of the Cretan legend of the birth of Zeus which is represented on coins from Tralles; they have the inscription Διὸς γοναί, with Corybantes dancing in honour of the new-born god, and striking their shields[96].
There can be no doubt that every type of dance among the Greeks was in its origin connected with religion; but in the case of some it is evident that they quite lost their religious character. The “Pyrrhic Dance,” which was at one time purely sacred and later lost this character, is an instance[97]. Another is that of the dance called the “Labyrinth,” known also as the “Game of Troy,” and “Ariadne’s Dance[98].” Réville, in referring to it, says that
in certain mythologies it has been observed that all the stars move, turning round the earth and following their regular courses. Nothing more is wanted for these movements of the stars to be likened to a rhythmic and complicated dance. The consequence will be a religious dance in honour of the “army of the heavens.” The dance will develop in a manner apparently entangled, but nevertheless methodical. There were several sacred dances having this character of imitation of the movements of the stars; among others, that of the “Labyrinth,” which was danced in Crete and Delos. The labyrinth itself, with its thousand circuits, was a symbol of the starry heaven, and the dance of the same name must have been a sort of animated representation of it[99].
An interesting representation of this dance occurs on an Etruscan Polledrara vase, painted by an Ionian artist, and found in Cyprus, where the dance was at one time performed in Amathus in honour of Aphrodite-Ariadne; according to tradition Theseus led the Attic youths and maidens in this dance[100]. The representation is superbly executed. The connexion of the name of Ariadne with this dance is sufficient to show its originally religious character, and probably it remained so always, theoretically; but even as early as the time of Homer, according to the following account from the Iliad, the religious element does not appear prominently:
Also with cunning art he wrought a dancing-floor; like unto that which erst, in broad Knossos, Daidalos had made for fair-haired Ariadne. Thereon young men and comely damsels were dancing, that clasped each other by the wrist. The damsels were arrayed in vestures of fine linen, and the men in fine-spun tunics, glossy with oil. And the damsels wore fair coronals, while the men carried golden dirks hanging from baldrics of silver. Now they would dance with cunning feet, lightly, as when a potter sitting at his task maketh trial of the wheel that is ready to his hands, to see if it run; now they would dance in long lines, facing one another. And a great company stood around the beauteous dancing-place, rejoicing; and two tumblers, leading the dance, kept whirling through the midst[101].
This dance was adopted by the Romans from the Greeks. Virgil compares its complicated evolutions with the windings of the Cretan labyrinth[102]; and
that the comparison is more than a mere poetical flourish appears from a drawing on a very ancient Etruscan vase found at Tragliatella. The drawing represents a procession of seven beardless warriors dancing, accompanied by two armed riders on horseback, who are also beardless. An inscription proves that the scene depicted is the “Game of Troy”; and attached to the procession is a figure of the Cretan labyrinth, the pattern of which is well known from coins of Cnossus, on which it is often represented. The same pattern, identified by an inscription, Labyrinthus, hic habitat Minotaurus, is scratched on a wall at Pompeii, and it is also worked in mosaic on the floor of Roman apartments, with the figures of Theseus and Minotaur in the middle[103].
After pointing out the widespread occurrence of this labyrinth pattern, both for the purpose of games as well as of decorations, Frazer continues:
A dance or game which has thus spread over Europe, and survived in a fashion to modern times must have been very popular, and bearing in mind how often with the decay of old faiths the serious rites and pageants of grown people have degenerated into the sports of children, we may reasonably ask whether “Ariadne’s Dance,” or the “Game of Troy,” may not have had its origin in religious ritual. The ancients connected it with Cnossus and the Minotaur. Now we have reason to hold, with many other scholars, that Cnossus was the seat of a great worship of the sun, and that the Minotaur was a representative or embodiment of the sun-god. May not, then, “Ariadne’s Dance” have been an imitation of the sun’s course in the sky? And may not its intention have been, by means of sympathetic magic, to aid the luminary to run his race on high?... If there is any truth in this conjecture it would seem to follow that the sinuous lines of the labyrinth which the dancers followed in their evolutions may have represented the ecliptic, the sun’s apparent annual path in the sky. It is some confirmation of this view that on the coins of Cnossus the sun or a star appears in the middle of the labyrinth, the place which on other coins is occupied by the Minotaur[104].
Frazer’s interesting suggestion points to the originally religious character of “Ariadne’s Dance,” which in course of time it lost. Like the dances at Harvest and Vintage festivals, “Ariadne’s Dance” was one of the mediums whereby the sacred dance developed into a purely secular amusement. The same may be said of the Geranos, or “Crane Dance,” danced at Delos, which was apparently derived from “Ariadne’s Dance[105]”; and also of the Hormos, or “Chain Dance,” which was also performed by youths and maidens holding their hands in a changing line[106].
Finally, reference may be made to a few representations of the sacred dance found in Cyprus, in addition to those already mentioned. On a vase, numbered cxxxii. 1 by Ohnefalsch-Richter[107], a dance is represented in which men and women are taking part, two of the former hold semi-circular instruments with which they accompany the dance; also, three of the men, one of whom seems to be acting as the leader, carry small swords at their sides; this illustrates the words of Homer in the quotation given above (lines 597-8). Again, on two bronze vases, numbered cxxix. 2 and cxxx. 1, the dance represented shows women only, some of whom are playing instruments, pipe, harp, and drum[108]; a similar representation occurs on a painted Etruscan vase (cxxxii. 4), while on a thin golden plate from a grave near Corinth[109] women are portrayed dancing and clothed with long garments; this is numbered xxv. 15.
VI
In turning now to the sacred dance among the Romans we find that there is not nearly the amount of material from which to gather information that there is among the Greeks. Cicero said: “No man who is in a sober state and not demented would dance either privately or in decent company[110].” If, as we may suppose was the case, this reflected the general opinion, one can well understand why it was that dancing never played such a part in the national life of the Romans as it did in that of the Greeks. Cicero, however, as is clear from the context of this quotation, was referring to dancing as a pastime, which respectable Romans regarded as inconsistent with their dignity. The dance in worship was a different matter. Nevertheless, even in this domain it did not play the part, nor anything like it, that it did among the Greeks. And what there was of it was, in the main, due to Greek influence[111]. Not altogether, however; and the influence of oriental cults must not be overlooked. Reinach, in speaking of the effect that eastern religions produced upon that of Rome, pointedly contrasts the hypocrisy of the sceptical priests in Italy (“deux aruspices, disait Coton, ne peuvent se regarder sans rire”) with the earnestness and sincerity of the oriental priest:
Quelle différence avec le prêtre oriental qui va droit au fidèle, l’appelle son frère et le traite en conséquence, éveille et nourrit les élans de sa dévotion, lui enseigne l’exstase, l’espérance d’un monde meilleur....
Then he refers to the alien influences on the religion of Rome:
Juvénal se plaint que l’Oronte de Syrie se soit déversé dans le Tibre; il aurait pu en dire autant du Nil, du Jourdain, et de l’Halys... L’Empire romain se remplit des adorateurs d’Attis, d’Isis, d’Osiris, de Sérapis, de Sabazios, de Zeus Dolichenos, de Mithra. Les pratiques les plus étranges, empreinte d’un sombre mysticisme, remplacèrent les froides et sévères coutumes romaines[112].
But while giving due weight to the effect of these oriental influences, the fact remains that it is chiefly to Greece that Rome owed the entry of new cults. Within the small domain with which we are specially concerned we have already considered the example of the “Game of Troy,” where it was evident that this was borrowed from Greece. Another example which may be cited is the ritual which accompanied the processions of supplication; a solemn dance-step was characteristic of these; such, for instance, was that which went from the temple of Apollo before the Porta Carmentalis to that of Juno Regina on the Aventine; to her an offering of two white cows was made by the Decemviri. These latter formed the centre of the procession, and in front of them were twenty-seven virgins who had to sing in honour of Juno. The singing took place during a halt in the forum; here the maidens sang their song while dancing with a measured, stately tread. As Wissowa says, the entire ritual was Greek from beginning to end[113]. It is probable that the dancing priests who belonged to the early Roman cultus[114] witness also to Greek influence.
An interesting case of what may well have been an indirect importation from Greece, and which records one of the earliest instances of the sacred dance among the Romans, is mentioned by Frazer:
“In the fourth century before our era,” he writes, “the city of Rome was desolated by a great plague which raged for three years, carrying off some of the highest dignitaries and a great multitude of common folk. The historian who records the calamity informs us that when a banquet had been offered to the gods in vain, and neither human counsels nor divine help availed to mitigate the violence of the disease, it was resolved for the first time in Roman history to institute dramatical performances as an appropriate means of appeasing the wrath of the celestial powders. Accordingly, actors were fetched from Etruria, who danced certain simple and decorous dances to the music of a flute. But even this novel spectacle failed to amuse or touch, to move to tears or laughter, the sullen gods[115]....”
The means which were subsequently found to be effective do not concern us here; the point is that the sacred dance was imported from Etruria, and it is well known that the Etruscans were largely indebted to Greece for their religious ideas and ritual.
It will be unnecessary to offer further illustrations of this type of religious dance among the Romans since it was mainly derived from Greece, and we have already devoted a section to the rite among the Greeks. It only remains to be said that there is a marked difference in the mode of performing the sacred dance between the two peoples. Due largely to national temperament, but also to earlier oriental influences, the Greeks in their sacred dances gave freer vent to natural impulse, a characteristic which was especially pronounced in the ecstatic dance, with which we deal below (pp. 119 ff.). The Romans, on the other hand, were far more restrained and dignified in their performance of them. Nevertheless, among both peoples the sacred dance was a necessary adjunct to worship, and that is the point with which we are specially concerned.
VII
We do not propose to deal, excepting incidentally, with the sacred dance among the Asiatic peoples; firstly, because it would greatly increase the bulk of this volume; and secondly, because it is doubtful whether our doing so would really throw much further light on the subject than we gain from the study of its prevalence among the peoples here considered. It may be said generally, that the Asiatics are like the other peoples with whom we deal in their belief that the sacred dance comes from the higher powers. Among them, too, the sacred dance is an important part of the ritual of worship, it has different purposes, and it is very widespread. That much even a superficial knowledge of the religion of the Asiatic peoples makes clear.
In referring to the subject of Vedic and Brahman worship in India Lehmann says that the original character of Vedic sacrifice was a friendly feast for the gods, and among the different ways of showing honour to the exalted guests during the sacrifices were offerings of incense, music, and dances, which were believed to give them pleasure[116].
VIII
Lastly, we come to consider a few examples of the sacred dance in general among some of the uncultured races.
The Dakotahs perform a sacred dance in connexion with their worship of the sun; it is executed by two young men “in a very singular attitude,” as Schoolcraft says. These two young worshippers perform the dance while in a state of almost complete nudity; each has a small whistle in his mouth with which he accompanies the dance at intervals, and each faces the sun while dancing, that is, as long as the sun is above the horizon. The mode of dancing is a kind of hitch of first one leg and then the other; they do this in a rhythmic manner and keep time by beating on raw hides of parchment.... This dance is kept up for two, and occasionally three, days, during which time the worshippers partake of no food[117].
To take, next, an example from Central America; Lumholtz[118] relates of the Tarahumare Indians of Mexico that they believe that by dancing they are able to gain the favour of their gods; their dancing is “a series of monotonous movements, a kind of rhythmical exercise,” which they keep up sometimes for two nights. “By dint of such hard work they think to prevail upon the gods to grant their prayers.” According to the same writer, the Tarahumares say that the animals taught them how to dance; that is an interesting point which will come before us again in a moment. They regard dancing as a very serious and ceremonious matter, it is “a kind of worship and incantation rather than amusement.” The same is true of the ancient Peruvians, to take a South American example; the sacred dance was the “grand form of religious demonstration among them,” and they were very assiduous in this form of devotion[119].
The belief of the Tarahumares that the animals first taught them how to dance is interesting, for although it points to a relatively low religious mentality, it is a stage in advance, for example, of that of the natives of Ponape, one of the Caroline islands, in the Pacific; among these