Sun and the Sun Worship - Schaff-Herzog (1911)

8/12/2019 Sun and the Sun Worship - Schaff-Herzog (1911)

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T E NE

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TL E D EI [OITIEO Y

0 J OKSON D . . L . { E d i w - i n- Chi4)

GEOR GE ILLIA.i\1 L ~ lORE l\I.A.( A a b e ta tc E d i tor )

A N D T ... K . 0 L t . O W 1 N Q I ~ , _ A R T M ~ N TK O ITO IU l

LAREX CE A . Gl'" .'TINE BECJ\\YlTH, D. D. JAl E S FREDERH ~ 1< { ; UR D Y ,fH.D4 LLlDqtu.T tmt:Til o l ~ k m u l i (Tiuologv) DL-purlmcnL u_t 1 J .~ O l d 1 -,_flllnunJ

~ R Kl {G CARROLL, LL, D. IIESU f SYL E ~ T RS H D. D.

A l f l l S l'H \ \ I ~ HRlS fO LL, D.D. A ,Ht; lt'l' HE "RY NEW11 S. D LL.D.DtJX.Utrncnl u_. i l u r:fl


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CoPYRIGHT 1911 BY

FUNK \VAGNALLS COMPANY

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Printed n the United State of America

Published September, 1911


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3 7 RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA S u m m . e n h a r tS u n a n d S u n Wo r a h

Charing Cross) Sept. 6, 1862. H e s tudied a t Eton ,791-98, an d a t King 's College, Cambridge (B.A.,803; .A . , 1807; D.D. , 1828) . In 1802 he beme ass is tant master a t Eton ; was rector ofap le Durham, 1820--48; became canon of Dur

am, 1820; bishop of Chester, 1828; archbishop ofanterbury, 1848. He "as unt i r ing in his efforts toovide for schools and to further the erection ofurches, and had consecra ted more t han 200 new

hurches by 1847. H e was t h e leader of the evanlical p a r t y in the Church of England, and earstly opposed to Romanism an d the Oxford move

ent. His pr imacy covered the restoration of theoman Catholic hierarchy to England, the period ofsays and Reviews (q .v.), an d the revival of thenodical power of convocat ion. His publications inude commentaries on Matthew and Mark (London,31), Luke (1832), Jo h n {1835), on Romans an dCorinthians (1843), Corinthians, an d Galatians,

Ephesians, Phil ippians, and Colossians (1845),Thessa.lonians (1851); also, A Treatise on theord o the Creation, and on the M oral AUributethe r e a t o r ~ with particular Reference to the JeHistory, and to the Conaistency o f the PrinciplePopulat ion with the Wisdom and Goodness oDeity (2 vols., 1816); The Evidence o f Christ ianDer i v ed f ro m its Nature an d Reception (1824);mons on the Princ ipa l Festivals o the ChrisC hurch to which are added three Sermons onFriday {1827); Fo u r Sermons on Subject8 Relato the Christ ian Minis t ry {1828); Christian Chariti ts ObligatioTUJ and Objects with Reference toPresent State o Society, i n a Series o f Sermons (18On Regeneration an d Grace (1850); Practicalflections on Select Passages o the New Testam(1859); and numerous occasional sermons.B I B L I O G B A P & T : D N B , lv. 168-170 (civee references $ 0

t e r i n c not ices ) .

SUN AND SUN WORSHIP.A m o n g t h e Hebrews. 1. I n Genera l . Arabs a n d Naba tmana (I 4) .

2 . Babylonia. 6. T h e Hi t t i t e s .3 . E g y p t . 6 . Ind i a .

Na me s a n d Ti t l e s ( 1 ) .Ge ne ra l C onc e p t ions ( 2) .' \Vorship ( I 3 ) . 4 . Aramea, Syr ia , a n d Phenicia . 7 . Ch in a a n d . Japan.D a t e of In t roduc t ion ( 4) . Place N a m e s ( 1) . 8 . Wes te rn Indo-Europe a . n Pe op le s .

9 . Pr imi t i ve Peoples .I n O t h e r Lands. Personal N a m e s ( 2) .Mo n u men ta l Te s t i m o n y (I 3 ) .

I. Among the Hebrews: I n the Old Tes tamente usual name for the sun is shemesh, a name which,th various vocalization, appears in most o f t hemitic languages, as n Babylonian-Assyrian,

Aramaic, Arabic, Phenic ian , and Pall Names myrene (cf. the n a me of the god

and Titles. Shamash, BABYLONIA, VII . , 2, 4, an dsee below, I I. , 2). The signification of

e word is unknown (Brown-Driver-Briggs, H e-ew and English Lexicon, p. 1039, Boston, 1906).he " ord is in the Hebre" prevail ingly masculine,*

t sometimes feminine (as in Gen. xv. 7), as is t h eamaic shemsha, the Assyrian-Babylonian forminvar iably masculine, and t h e Arabic (shams) is

ways feminine (Albrecht, in Z AT W, xv. , 1895, p.4). Poetical names for the sun n Hebrew arem m h(probably t h e glowing one ; Job xxx .

) , and ly.eres (Job ix. 7; meaning of the roo t ofe word doubtful) . In Gen. i (vhere the sun ist called shemesh, b u t is spoken of as the greaterthe t w o grea t l i gh t s " ) the purpose of t h e sun

given as to rule the day, " to divide the l ight

om the darkness ," and to be for signs, an d forasons, and for days, an d for years ; t h a t is, thenction of the sun was conceived as being to indite morning, noon, an d evening, the seasons of thear, and therefore the religious festivals in their

An in teres t ing quest ion is ra ised w ith reference t o t h ende r o f hemesh in Gen. xxxvi i . 9 . T h e s u n a n d t h e

oon an d t he eleven s t a r s [s igns of t h e zodiac] representc ob , R a c he l , a n d the eleVen b r e t h r e n of .Joseph (cf. verse) . B u t t h e word for .. m o o n is in v ar iab ly mascul ine , a n dis argued t h a t consequently hemesh m u s t h ere b e femin ine.

n t h e o t h e r h an d , th e orde r in verse 9 is a s above a n d t h en corresponds in place to Jacob , t h e m o o n t o t h y mother, ' d so on. Moreover, whe re Semi t ic Bab y lo n ian in f luenceevai ls t he ma le is t h e su p er io r ( n o te t he insignificance of

a by lon ia n female dei t ies a f t e r Su mer ian in f luence h a d beme decadent; see AssYRIA, VII . , I 1) , a n d m theolOCYe sun takes precedence o f t h e mo o n .

recurring times. The sun as a measurer ofnatural ly comes into o ~ n e t i o nwith both thean d th e Year (qq.v. ; see also MooN; and TBIBLICAL REcKONING OF). T h e arrangementnn in terca la ted m o n th in la ter t imes revealsfac t t h a t the lunar year v. as made to squareleas t approximate ly, with the solar year, a tra te in t he la ter period of Jewish history.

The Hebrew not ions regarding the sun were tof the region in which Pales t ine was s i tua ted ,of the period when Baby lon ian influence prevaiThe luminary was regarded as "go i ng f o r t h

the morning f rom his pavilion a t2 . Genera l eastern end of the heaven (cf. the

Conceptions. in v.-hich the Babylpnian Shamash represented as issuing from a gate ,

resented b y posts, in W . H . Ward , Seal Cyders o f Western Asia, chap. xiii., Washingt1910) with the joy and confidence of a bgroom (Ps. xix . 5), while his se t t ing is called

en t e r i ng" (i. e., of gates in t h e West; cf. thenate Baby lon ian thought , P . Jensen, Kosmolo

der Babylonier, p. 9, Strasburg , 1890); and th isvolved the idea of a subterranean course innight in order to be in his place of r ising i nmorning (Ps. xix. 5 -7 ; Eccles. i 5, the la t teconception slightly more developed). A n eclipsdarkening of t he sun was considered to be ominof evil, and is one of t h e signs constant ly associav.-ith t he D a y of the Lord (q.v.; cf. Job iii. 5;xiii. 10; Joel i i 10, iii . 15; Amos viii. 9; 1xxiv. 29, and often) . In terference with the ordcourse of the sun is conceived as within God's p(Job ix. 7), an d i ts progress is repor ted to havestayed to work sa lvat ion i n bat t le for Israel (Jox. 12-13) or even reversed as a sign to Hezek

( the shadow of the dia l o r s teps is reversed, 11 Kxx. 9 - 1 1 ; the sun itself, Isa. xxxviii . 8 . With


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n a n d S u n Wo r a h i p T H E NEW S C H A F F - H E R Z O G

egesis of these passages the presen t art ic le doest deal fur ther t h a n to say t h a t the a t t e mp t toieve the earl ie r passage o f difficulty by callingen t ion to i ts poet ica l charac te r seems unnecesy because of the exis tence of the second a n d

uch l a te r passage, where n o t merely suspensionprogress b u t ac tua l reversal equ iva len t to for ty

nutes in t ime is s ta ted a s an ac tua l fac t (if thedegrees be of a circumference). I f the Heb rews

Hezekiah 's age a n d la ter could accept as historicalch a n event , i t is n o t necessary to have recoursethe usual pa l l ia t ive explanat ions of a s ta tementsing so much neare r a pr imi t ive (and more credus) age dea l ing wi th the stopping (appa ren t ly for

enty- four hours, cf. Josh . x . 13, las t clause) ofe sun ' s progress. The effects of t h e sun 's act ion

the ea r th were, accord ing to Hebrew belief, inneral, the product ion of crops (Deut . xxxii i . 14;

Sam. xxiii . 4); i t was his also to give l ight (Gen.Eccles. xi. 7; Rev. vii. 16) a n d h e a t (Ps. x ix . 6).respect to th i s las t funct ion i t is no tewor thy t h a t

references to the scorching h e a t of the sun , t oa t m a y be called i ts mal ign influence, are co m

ra t ively inf requent (Ps. cxxi. 6 ; Isa . iv. 6, xxv.xlix. 10; J o n a h iv. 8; Rev. xvi . 8-9 ) , though t h e

ncept ion of i t s malevolence comes ou t f requent lyo the r lands, as in Ind ia (see below, I I . , 6) a n d inbylonia , where N ergal was a g o d of dest ruct ione BABYLONIA, VII . , 2, 4). T h e prevai l ing Bibal idea of the sun was t h a t of i ts migh t a n d glorya luminary, a n d these na tu ra l ly b ecame the basispoet ica l comparison for heroes a n d the fa i th fu ldges v. 31; I I Sam. xxiii . 4; Ps. x ix . 5-6 ; Cant .

10); Yahweh is himself in metaphor ca l led an (Ps . lxxxiv. 11; Isa. lx. 19), a n d his hea l ingce is in t h e same manner compared wi th a s u n

r igh teousness (Mal. iv. 2). The passage in I sa .v. 23 is n o t e w o r t h y - t h e glory of the restoredn a n d Jerusalem is to be so grea t t h a t even the

n in his br ightness \vill be abashed ( there doest seem a n y basis for the qui te common exegesis

the passage ' hich regards the s u n a n d mo o ne as demonic po\vers which are p u t away, e.g. ,

von Baudiss in , in Hauck-Herzog , RE, xviii . 519,d Semitische Studien , i 118 sqq. , Leipsic, 1876).T h e evidence for the \vorship of t h e sun amongae l i tes i s l imi ted a n d l a te . I I Kings xxiii . 11ords t h e dest ruct ion of the char iots a n d removal

of the horses of the sun from t h e Te m -Worship . pie a t Jerusa lem. Ezek. viii. 16 de-

scribes a vision of the p rophe t in whichsaw twenty-f ive m e n a t the door of the Templership ing the sun in the E a s t a n d p u t t i n g t h ench to thei r nose (i.e., using a branch as symic of the product ive powers of the sun; cf. J . G.zer, Golden Bough, passim, 3 vols., Lo n d o n ,

00; t reo-worship of ten combines \vith the cu l t ofsun) . Wi t h respec t to the char iot a n d horses ofsun the most obvious source is Babylon (see be

w, 11., a n d cf. Jensen , Kosmologie, u t sup. , pp . 108q. ; Schrader, K A T p. 368). I t is hard ly l ikelyt so ear ly as th is the inf luence of the Persians isbe seen (cf. F. Spiegel, Eranische Alter thuma-

nde, ii. 66 sqq. , Leipsic, 1873; for references toPersian sacred horses cf. Herodotus , i. 189, vii.viii . 115; Xenophon, Cyropredia, VIII . , i i i . 12;

and the Mih i r Yast , 13, Am. ed . o f S B E , iii.,2, p. 122, speaks of t h e swif t -horsed s u n ) .idea o f the char io t of the sun appear s outs idthese sources a n d the Greek my th s in Enoch,5, lxxiii. 2, lxxv. 3, 4, 8, where sun , moon, a n dare suppl ied with char iots; Baruch, Apocalyvi.; a n d the Mandreans p laced the seven planechario ts . T h e concept ion of Y ahweh o r of theof Man r id ing on the c louds (Ps . civ. 3; Dan

13) h a s no re la t ionsh ip to th i s idea. Fur therdence of sun-worsh ip in Israel is furn ished bexis tence of sun-p i l la rs (Hebr. IJ-ammanim A

i ma g e s , R . V., s u n - i m a g e s ; for represet ion of o n e to t h e lord, B a a l - ~ a m . m acf.zinger, Archiiologie, p. 183) which the reforkings are sa id t have des t royed ( I I Chron.5, Hebr. verse 4, xxxiv. 4, 7) aga ins t whichexilic a n d post-exilic prophe t s speaking in Isa .8, xxvi i . 9 a n d Ezek . v i 4, 6, a n d t h e pr iest ly \(Lev. xxvi . 30) u t te red the i r th rea t s .* Othe rdences adduced to p ro v e t h e exis tence of worof the sun a m o n g t h e Israel i tes d o n o t bea r einat ion. Cer tainly the n a m e of Samso n , even thi t be der ived from shemesh (wh i ch is n o t al togsure) does n o t show th i s cul t ; i t is n o t a t all nsary, nor is i t the bes t exp lana t ion of the epto regard i t as a sun myth , since i t is r a th e r an at i on of l egend a b o u t a cha rac te r \\ hose explo i t sprobab ly in fac t jus t such as su i t the heroic pof a na t ion ' s development . And as l i t t le fa i thbe p u t in t h e assumpt ion t h a t t h e horses a n d chof fire b y wh i ch El i jah \Vas t r ans la ted are thothe sun . T h e m u c h l a te r pract ise o f the Es(q.v.), as given in Josephus, War, I l . , viii.direct ing the i r worship toward t h e s u n insteatoward Je rusa lem is ha rd ly sufficient, in view o

genera l Phar isaic charac ter of the i r beliefs a n dtoms, t o convict t h e m of following t h e cu l t osun . T h e Mandrean prac t i ses were n o t Jewi shBabylonian in origin. Dr. Briggs, in his co mt a ry on Psa lms (vol. i . , New York, 1906), seesfirst p a r t of Ps . x ix . a h y m n t o the sun .

All indicat ions po in t to a l a te d a te for the i mt a t ion of th i s cu l t in to Israel , a n d also to i t s d et ion f ro m t h e peoples in the immediate envment , a n d ( less l ikely) f rom Assyria . I t is t ruethe Chronic les (11 Chron. xiv. :3) repor ts t h a tsu p p re ssed th i s \Vorship; b u t the para l le l and e

passage in I l{ ings xv. omi ts me4 Dat e o f of the pillars, t h o u g h i t specifiesIn t ro d u c - nu te ly the ant i - idolat rous act iv i t ies

tion. t h a t king. The same s i tua t ionpea ted wi th reference to J osiah

Chron . xxx iv. 4, 7; cf. 11 Kings xxii i . ) . S oappa ren t ly t h e earl ies t ment ion of the sun-p ii s found in Ezekiel , a n d t h i s squares \vith the od a t a a l ready examined. T h e ment ion of the hand cha r io t of the sun , ho \ \ ever, carr ies th is fea

T h e wor d fo r '' s u n - p i l l a r in t h e ~ epa s s a ge s is t h eas t h a t f ound in a n inscr ip t ion o n a n a l t a r a t P a l m y r an o w in t h e A s h m o l e a n M u s e u m a t Oxf o r d , E n g l a n dHoga r th , A uthorit11 a n d A rchaology, pp. 135. 139, Lo1899) , a n d in t h e n a m e B a a l - H a m m a n . w h o w as a s uno f Car t h ag e , a s is s hown b y a vot ive p i l l a r a n d b y in scr ip(W. Gesen ius , Scriptu .rcz l i nqua que Phcznicicz monumt a b le 21, Leipsic , 1807) . O t h e r t r aces of th is n ame a r ef r eq u en t in A r a m e a n e n v i ro n m e n t .


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ack of the t ime of Josiah. I t must be borne in minda t while such place-names as Beth-shemesh, Harres, Timnath-heres, and Heres (see belo,v, I I . , 4, favor the supposit ion tha t the worsh ip of the sun

a d loci there, i t does not follow t h a t dur ing Israe lc t imes th is cu l t was f o l l o ~ e dBibl ica l placemes in Palestine in genera l da te back to pre

ebra ic t imes, and the worship a t those places, iforsh ip there was, was Canaani t ic . The probablea te of the in troduct ion of such worship as is imied in the horses a n d char io t of the sun ( I I I{ingsiii. 11) and the vision of Ezekie l ma y pe rhaps beven as the reign of Manasseh (q. v.), who was antemporary of the vigorous a n d aggress ive Esar

addon and Asshurbanipal. I t is a priori probablea t a king ~ i t hso decided hea then tendencies asanasseh would adopt a cul t which was so popu la r

the cul t of the sun was in the neighboring l andsee below, II . , 3) a n d in Assyria, espec ia l ly ass policy was pro-Assyrian and no t pro -Egyp t ian .nd there are indications of a wide-spread dis t rus t

the power of Yah\\ eh in the days of the decl in ingngdom, jus t before the exile, which would favori s period.II . In Other Lands. 1 . :In G e n e r a l : Tha t , i f

o t in temperate , ye t in t ropical or sub- t ropical reons the sun should from pr imit ive t imes b e a nject of worsh ip is n o occasion for wonder. The

elings of awe which manifested themselves in ear lyes were only heightened as man ' s capac i ty forcreased recognition, as t ime wen t on a n d exper ices enlarged, of the influence of the sun on ther th and i ts contr ibut ions to the well-being of man .

t h a t in some form, explicit o r impl ic i t , e i ther aself a divinity, o r as the seat of deity, o r as inme other way related to the gods, in probab ly

ery inhabi ted land the sun has received homage,fluenced thought , a n d contr ibuted t h u ma n delopment . E v e n in archi tec tura l ma t t e r s i t hasd much to say, con t ro l l ing the orienta t ion of

ruc tures down in to la te Christian t imes, so t h a tthedrals of ten s tand with the ir altars so placeda t worship i s directed to the Eas t , the place ofe rising sun. Some nat ions have found the sun ' swer a n d significance too great and his act ivi t ieso varied to be expressed b y homage to a singlei ty, a n d numerous sun-gods were imagined, and

each was given his own cul t a n d '\\orship.A fundamenta l l aw in religious psychology is t h a t

e human mind works out in to similar forms infferent countries the same or similar conceptionsa l ing i th similar material . Hence , i t is no t surising t h a t the symbols for the sun a re so few y e t

universal . Thus the disk o r circle, vd th o r witht ings, somet imes with rays ( these rays ma y betside the disk or on the face of the disk; for ex

mples of bo th cf. A. J . Evans, in Journal o f HeUenicudies xxi. , 1901, pp. 108, 161); again i t is sur

o u n ~b y a human figure, and often occurs withe accompaniments of serpents (see SERPENT INoRSHIP, etc. , IV., 1), is the almost universalmbol.* Othe r common symbols are the eagle or

Several of these symbols are reproduced on a s inglege in .J. B. Deane , Worahip o f the Serpent p . 51 , London ,33; for a Pbenic ian ex amp l e cf. Benzinger, Arch4olO }i.e,180.

hawk, eagle- o r hawk-headed figures of godswinged horse, the scarab, possibly the s \vaW h e n the figure takes the h u m a n form, i t uappears as vigorous a n d youthful, with goldena n d often golden horns, while a rayed crown oof l ight issuing from his body serve in otherto ident i fy him. The benefactions a t t r ibu ted toa p a r t from the obvious ones of l ight a n d heaqu i te commonly those of life and fert i l i ty; alands as disassociated as Semitic Syria a n d DravInd ia he is connected wi th \\ells and springs (b ly in a way similar to the popu la r occidental sus t i t ion which speaks of the sun as dra ing w

hen i ts obl ique rays are seen shining in the disth rough rifts in the clouds; cf. for th is re la t ionwith water, W. H . Wa rd in A J T ii . , 1898, pp.118). The same th ing occurs in symbolism whfrom the symbol ic disk, there emanate no t on lyof l igh t ( indicated b y s t ra igh t d ivergent linesalso s treams of a te r ( indicated b y para l le ll ines. A representat ion of Shamash wi th s t rof water issuing from h is body is in A. JeremDas Alte Testament im Lichte des alten Orient111, Leipsic, 1906; t h a t the s treams representand not l ight is proved b y the fish swimminthem) . I n accordance with th is concept ion,flowers a n d incense offered to h im a re sometth rown in to a s tream. His course in the heis conceived as made on foo t (as occasional lInd ia ) , on horseback, in a chariot , o r in a boatform of representat ion depending upon themological not ions of the di fferen t peoples.de i ty who in his daily journey passes over the and looks down upon the deeds of men, i t is t range t h a t he should be now the eye of Ouo r Varuna (Heaven) who sees all a n d repor

t h a t exal ted dei ty, or again t h a t he should bjudge of men a n d gods, o r once more (as purethe champion of t r u th and an agent in ethicalr ightness. Sti l l further, occasionally the sunpears as a cul ture dei ty, conceived as givingto men, lead ing the ' advances of civi l izat ion,on the reverse side, punishing those who breaklaws of gods a n d men. And, once more , i tno t to surprise t h a t the sun ma y have t\\o oppaspects, t h a t he may be regarded as kindly amal ign , so t h a t in Babylonia (see below) he isShamash and Nergal , and t h a t in India the Acould, while in the tempera te land of the five rsing gloriously in his praise and in central a n d sern Ind ia affirm yon burning sun is dea th .

2 B a b y l o n i a : In th is land, early a n d late,gods were numerous , though the number teneve r t decrease. Chief among these \\as Sham

ho of th is class of deit ies figures most f requein inscriptions and on seals. H e is the successoo r ident ical wi th the Sumer ian Utu , whose prinshr ines were a t Larsa and Sippara (see B ~ ~ BIV. , 4, 11, VII. , 2, 4; a very excel len t rduction of the figure and inscription of the SipShamash, with the sun 's disk a n d l ight rays' va te r streams, is given in R. W. Rogers, ReligioBabylonia and Assyria p. 84, New York, 1908).

Sippara there were horses and a char io t sacrehim, with which were associa ted a large nu(140 in one list) of sacred objects, and to the ch


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crifices were offered ( in one ca.ee of a white sheep;D B iv. 629). With th is should b e connected

ossibly the horses a n d chariot of the sun ment ionedI I Kings xxii i . 11 (u t sup. , I. , 3). Bu t the wor

ip of Shamash was not confined to these places.e represents the beneficent power of the sun a n de ethical s ide of life. H e was por t rayed on theonument s a n d seals in two postures, s i t t ing andanding, the l a t t e r inc lud ing h is posture as he is

presen ted a s emerging from the gates of d a y (cf.. H . Ward, Seal Cylinders o f Western Asia Washgton , 1910; H . Gressmann, Altorientalische Te x ud Bilder ii. 12, cf. p. 57, Ti ib ingen , 1909). Some

mes he journeys in a boat, a n d once is figured asepping on a human-headed bull. H e wears aara , somet imes rayed, and rays of l igh t a n d somemes st reams of wate r proceed from his shoulders

other par ts of his body. H e carries a serratedord, o r a club, o r both, and occasionally a ba t t l e. H e is spoken of in the inscriptions as sup remedge , avoucher of t ru th , giver of oracles, bestowerlife and heal th . The metal part icu lar ly associatedth him was gold, as si lver was with Sin, the moond. In the course of history th i s de i ty became sopor tan t t h a t he absorbed in to his own personal

y the sun-gods of minor cities. T h e worshiperten brings a goa t o r an antelope as a sacrifice.me noble hymns to him are e x t a n t (cf. M. Jasw, Religion o f Babylonia and Assyria Boston,98; Germ. ed. , issued in par ts , Giessen, 1902q.) . His consor t Aa. of ten appears , som et imes asercessor. While Marduk appears as a sun-god ,

p a r t in this sphere is un impor tan t . Ano the ri ty related t o th i s lumina ry was Ninib , associatedpecially \ \ i th t h e sun of ear ly morning a n d ofring, a god of fert i l i ty and the gua rd ian of boun

ries, as well as a war-deity. I n the case of Ninib,of Shamash, the process of coalescence with o the rds was protrac ted , so t h a t in his person " eremmed u p ma n y ear ly local gods of the field, iner theology regarded as his manifestat ions. Ner

was specifically the sun of high noon a n d of sumr, hence the sun which brough t dest roying heat ,

ver, pest i lence, a n d death , therefore belongingo to the deities of the ne the r world. Associa tedth the sun as fire \vas Girru, known in Assyriancipa l ly as Nusku ; testimonies t o him are der ivedinly from the magica l tex ts , a fact which shows

h a t was regarded as his chief concern. I n thesyr ian Asshur there was original ly seen a solarty, b u t his posit ion a t the head of the pantheonthe \varlike Assyrians led to the ent i re obscura

n of th is significance. Nevertheless, this orig inperhaps to be discerned in his symbol , the disk,

nged and su rmoun ted by the figure of a warr iorcharg ing an arro 'v ( remember the Greek figurethe rays of Apollo shooting his arrows, in the first

ok of the I l ~ a d .F o r Tammuz a s a solar de i tythe article on the subject. I t ma y be added t h a t

mi t ic solar dei t ies seem in l a rge pa r t to havened the ascendency over Sumerian lunar gods,

n be ing the one marked except ion .8 E t r Yp t : I t is demonstrable t h a t in this coun

worship of the sun is prehistoric. Besides thek, plain a n d winged (for a fine example of thete r cf. A. Wiedemann, Religion oj th Ancient

EgyptiaTUJ p. 7 5, New York, 1897), a symbol lemployed ~ a sthe obelisk, a n d pyramids andtabas ( t runca ted pyramids) served the samepose. The grea t center of sun- ,vorsh ip was O nthe Greek Heliopolis and the Hebrew Beth-shemthere is the sacred spr ing connected with theFami ly as a res t ing-p lace on their fl ight in to Est i l l known as the spring of the sun . " Inthe g rea t importance of the Nile led to the co

t ion t h a t the gods made their jou rneys onover the Nile of the heaven , a n d th e solar dei tysupposed to have two, the Made t boa t fomorning and the Sek te t boa t for the af tero r night , and these figure l a rge ly on the monum

The sun-god most noted of all, a n d indeedchief de i ty of Egyp t , 'vas Ra, por t rayed as aheaded man , o r as a hawk, a n d he \Vears a discircled b y the urreus or the serpent (hu t . Ijourneys on his boats the course was kept bymerous other gods. His n ight ly t ravel involvconfl ict ~ i t hthe serpent Apepi, a n d the s tothe first confl ict qui te closely parallels t h a tconfl ict of 1\ larduk with Tia ma t (see B A BVII. , 3, 4), except ing the creat ion of the f i rmaou t of Tiamat ' s spli t corpse. As in Japan , thedynas ty claimed descent f rom the sun. I n theess of amalgamation of deities so note ,vor thyEgyp t , Ra became combined with varioussun-gods, whose names he took. Apparen t lyhad different names in the various par t s of hiscourse: 0 thou \\ ho a r t R a when t h o u risesTe mu when t h o u s e t t e s t I a m l{hin the morning , R a a t noonday, a n d Te m u ievening (E. A. W . Budge, Gods o f the Egypti 335, 352, London, 1904). Fo r hymns of prahim cf. Budge, u t sup. , pp. 335-348 , a n d \V

mann, u t sup. , pp. 4o-42 , 44-51 , 111-118,Myths concerning h im are numerous, thefamous being t h a t of Isis a n d th e serpentNAMES, I., 1). Ha t h o r " as originally the fcounterpart of Ra , and in the rel igious tex tson her head horns and the solar disk. She waconnected wi th the s t a r Sothis (Sirius), t h e ssun in h eaven ." Bast \vas iden t i f ied with R a tfeminine form of Ra) , and symbolizes the heear ly a n d la te summer. Of Horus i t is difficuspeak, since one can no t say ho\v ma n y dei tt h a t name there were. Over t \venty forms of Hare noted b y Budge. I n some of these , or, tpress i t in another "ay, in some of his phases l" as solar, and appears both as the rising andmidday sun, often \\ 'ear ing in the tex ts thedisk. H e 'vas also represented in the moresophic texts as one of the chief forins of Ra, isa hawk 's head, and is repor ted as transformhimself in to the ' '"inged disk " i th the urrcus.temples \vere apparen t ly in all par t s of thet ry. Next to R a is A m e n - o f t e n united 'v i thas Amen-Ra, whose a t t r ibu tes he possesses,hymns speaking of his rays (shining) on a l l fand of his sai l ing over the sky in peace (Bu t sup. , ii. 5, 7) ; as a crown he 'vears hornsthe double disk . Simi lar ly he is lord of the S

boa t and is sa id to shine in the eastern a nwestern horizons. Apparent ly, however, i tonly b y th is union \ \ i th Ra t h a t h e was associ


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1 R E L I G I O U S E N C Y C L O P E D I A S u n a n d S u n Wo r

h the sun , a n d b y i t h e abso rbed a l l the a t t r ies of R a a n d of eve ry o th e r anc ien t form of the-god (Budge, ii. 11). T h u s h e became in ther empire the mighties t of t h e gods of the l and .n ( = disk of the sun) is n o t e w o r t h y because ofa t t e mp t of Amenophis IV. ( 137 5 - 5 8 accord ing

Breasted, History o f the Ancient Egyptian3, p.Ne w York, 1908; for a n account of t h e a t

p t i tself cf. the same a u th o r, pp . 264 sqq . ) ,he here t ic king," to c rea te a mono the i sm b y mag the orship of A t e n d o min a n t in t h e l and .flict wi th the pr iests of Thebes caused h im tod his capi ta l a t Tel l Amarna , a n d t h e revolut ionhis death , with the cover ing u p o f a p a r t of therds, is responsib le for t h e existence o f the fas Amarna Tab le t s (q .v. ) . This de i ty is notethy for the por t raya l o f h i m in th i s re ign as a

the rays from which te rmina te in hands (symzing the blessings h e b e s t o ~ s ,a n d in so mes t\\ o of the hands hold o u t t h e a n k h ( the signife) to Amenophis a n d his consor t , the hand leg toward the recipients (cf. Budge, u t sup. ,

ii., chap. iv. ) . Solar dei t ies were doubt less n u

ous in E g y p t , especia l ly loca l gods , such as theent Menthu, la te r Menthu-Ra a n d I;ler-shef,of Herak leopol i s , who was g ra n te d ma n y ofa t t r ibu tes of Ra.

. A r a m e a , S y r i a , a n d P h e n i c i a: I n the regions designated the ind ica t ions of sun-worship areerous a n d persis tent . I n the Canaani t ic pors the place names have some significance, those

who deny th i s fac t no t hav ing t a k e na ~ : : ~fu l ly in to accoun t the ve ry ea r ly habi t

of indicat ing the k ind o f sanc t i ty inng in a place b y the n a me at tached to i t . T h ees are En-shemesh, f o u n t a i n of S h e m e s h "

of the sun , " J osh. xv. 7, xvii i . 17; Ir-shemet lh,y of Shemesh , " Josh. x ix . 41; cf. Isa . xix. 18;

h-shemesh , house or t emple or c i ty ofmesh," Josh. xxi . 16; Her-heres, m o u n t ofsun ," Judges i. 35; Timnath-heres , t e r r i t o r y

the sun , " Judges i i . 9; a n d possib ly the Kirs of Jer. xlviii . 36, with which , however, cf . thehareseth o r -hereseth o r -hares of I I Kings iii.

Isa . xvi. 7, 11; a n d Jer. xlvii i . 31. I t will beced t h a t t hese names occur main ly i n connec

with the ear ly h is to ry of Israe l a n d a s t h ees which the places h a d (presumably) whenHebre ,vs entered the land. T h e easiest expla

on a n d the most l ike ly is t h a t t h e names ind i

the presence of sanc tua r ie s ded ica ted t o theOthe r secondary a n d general evidences of th is

are the use of the disk, especial ly o n coins, bothg e d a n d pla in , a n d part icu lar ly the d i sk in acent. In one case a coin of Baa lbek has the sunnted on a chariot , a n d in other ins tances he isa steed (cf. e.g., L. Heuzey, in Compte rendusl 'academie des inscriptions, 1902, pp . 190-200) . does no t t ake in to accoun t the existence ofd isk in inscr ip t ions o r monumen ts l e f t b y in

ers, such a s t h a t of Rameses I l . a t Na h r al -b, nor the m a n y coins of l a te t imes which b e a r

disk, though in ma n y cases these a re evidential .has been supposed t h a t possibly t h e rayed s ta rf requent ly seen above the crescent in Syr ianumental remains and coins represents the sun ,

no t a s ta r such 8.8 Venus; b u t t h e probabi l i tt h a t a s t a r is meant . T h e cromlecha of Syr ipossib ly to be connected w i t h sun-worship .reason for th i s is t h a t the Drav id ians st i l l emthese monumen ts in t h a t cult , while some of thplaces are used in worsh ip of the phal lus wi tht h a t differ hard ly a t al l in m a n y part icu larsthose of the s u n (cf. C. R. Conder, Heth and Mpp. 218-219 , London, 1883), a n d connect ions o

a n d phal l ic~ o r s h i p

are no t difficult to find.T o these l ines of ev idence i s t o b e added foregion the format ion o f personal names. Quiprominen t in th is re la t ion is t h e n a me of Sham

P l (however i t ~ s vocalized).N there m a y be adduced f rom Phe Adon-Shmsh, 'bd-Shmsh (Greek H

doros, borne b y a Phenician in a Greek envment , CIS , no. 117, 2 ; t h e Greek equ iva len tShamash i s found in a Be_irut inscr ipt ion KrHeliou bomos-c f . Ceccaldi, Revue archologxxiii . , 1872, pp . 253-256) . Ye t i t is no tewot h a t ac tua l worship of S h a m a s h u n d e r t h a tdoes no t appear in Phenic ia , so far a s monumeevidence goes; i t i s inconceivable , however,Phenicians d id no t know i t s significance.f r agment s of Sanchun ia thon (q .v. ; in EusebPrcrparatio Evangelica, Eng. t ransl . , pp . 37Oxford , 1903) repo r t sun-worship a m o n g thenicians, a n d th i s a u th o r t races t h e cu l t back t oearliest men, who ca l led h im B a a l of H e a v(ib., p . 39). F r o m Edessa come t h e names 'mShmsh, maid of Shamash ," Br-Shmsh, soS h a m a s h , " 'bd-Shm.sh, s e rv a n t o f Shama(Sachau, in ZDMG, xxxvi . , 1882, pp . 145163; Doctrina Addai, ed . Ph i l l ips , p. 39, Lon1876, Eng . t ransl . in A N F, viii. 663). Attenhas f requent ly been ca l led in th is work to thesignificance o f names into which s e r v a n t o f

maid -se rvan t of en te r as elements, t h e yregarded as proofs o f t h e worship in t h e regiothe de i ty whose n a m e forms t h e second elementthe compound. A t the same t ime th i s m a y n oways be assumed as evidence of worship co nporaneous with the person bear ing t h e name,nomenclature of ten persis ts af te r the recogniof i ts significance is lost . Fr o m Emesa , also fMaglu la near Baalbek a n d f rom Pa lmyra , cthe name in Greek form Samsigeramos ( C IG, 4a t tes ted a lso b y Phot ius, Bibliotheca, 181; SCook, GlosBary o f Aramaic Inscriptiona, Cambrid

1898; M Lidzbarski, Ephemeri8 fu r semitischegraphik, Giessen, 1906). Strabo (XVI. , i i 10ment ions a Samsikeramos a s a n officer in Emwhose or ig in (?) was in Apamea ; a n d Josep

Ant. , XVII I . , v. 4) knows of a king of Emesa bing t h a t name; while a Baa lbek L a t in inscr ipalso con ta in s i t (CIL, i l l 14387a) . F r o m Palmcome Br-Shm&h, Tym-Shmsh ( - 'bd-Shm&h) , winscr ipt ions containing t o S h m s h a re f req(cf. Cook a n d Lidzbarski, u t sup . ) ; a n d KShm&h a n d ShmsJv.'dri a re found (CIS, nos. 87, Baudissin (Hauck-Herzog, RE, xviii . 507) i sc l ined t o accept the ending ah' a s a n abbreviatfor the Aramaic form of t h e word ahemesh, a nt o increase grea t ly the volume of tes t imony;the hypothesis can no t be said to be proved.


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n a n d S u n Wo r s h i p T H E N E W S C H A F F - H E R Z O G

Clermont-Ganneau A re hives des missions scienq? lte8 et litth-aires, 3d. series, xi. 182, no. 23, Paris ,85) descr ibes the bronze head of a s ta tue with

, . . . r ayed crown from Tripo l i (cf. Gress- A LO n U 74) dD len ta l mann , u t sup. , u. , a n numerous

a t i 111 o n y. evidences of the same so r t might b eadduced. Ju l ian (Oratio, iv. ) speaks of

essa as long the sacred t e r r i to ry of t h e sun. A tmcsa h o n ey was offered in sacrif ice to the samei ty (Athenreus, xv. , emended tex t) . On e of thet i es of th i s c i ty \vas Elagabalus, who became aa r g o d (he was perhaps a god of the hill- top), a n d

namesake t h e R o m a n emperor (see ELAGABAs ) endeavored to force his cu l t upon the emp i rethe sole legi t imate worship (cf. J . H . M o rd t man n ,ZDittlG xxxi . , 1877, pp. 91-99) ; a conical stoneod in the temple of th is dei ty, a n d this , oncere , shows t h a t b e t ween sun-'\ \-orship a n d t h e

a l l ic cul t there were in terconnect ions . T h e coinsEmesa of ten bea r the image of a de i ty with rayedwn. F o r P a l m y r a t h e fac t of the exis tence of

e cu l t is so well-known as ha rd ly t o need addinal test imony. While Shmsh (however vocal

d) is the p redominan t ob jec t of worship, o the rt i es t he r e were brough t i n t o re la t ions with then ; coins of the c i ty bea r the usual head wi thyed crown, a n d monol ingual a n d bilingual inip t ions a d d fu r the r witness. T h e worship ofamash appear s to have been very ancien t . Onei ty k n o wn as Mlkb l ( Baal i s k ing ?) is iden t id as Sol on a n a l t a r inscr ip t ion in Rome, a n d t h ear eagle is present (Lidzbarsk i , u t sup. , p. 477,

2). T h e pred i lec t ion for so lar de i t ies in th i sion is pe rhaps in th is c i ty mos t st rongly repre

n ted , as is a t tes ted b y the fact t h a t the de i tyl)h l ( M o o n i s lo rd ; cf. yareal] a s a n a m e for

mo o n in MooN, H E B R E W CoNCEPTIONS OF, 1)s identif ied with t h e sun (CIL, i i i . 108), a n d aief of th is god wears the rayed c r o ~of a so larty (Ronzeval le , in Comptes rendus de l ~ m i e

inscriptions, 1903, pp. 2 7 6 sqq . ) . A t Baalbekevidences of sun-worsh ip , outside of t hose b e

ging t o t h e R o m a n imperia l age, are well k n o ' ~ iong these are m a n y evidences of Egyp t ian inence on t h e a r t s ide a t l eas t , t h e disk wi t h urreuspear ing in the reliefs; the re a re also t races ofenician influence. T h e Greek n a m e Heliopolis isicat ive of t h e cont ro l l ing \vorship of the place,

d t h e bronzes a n d o the r a r t objects found t he r eow b o t h t h e rayed crown a n d gilding. T h e coins

en carry th i s same e r a \ \ ~t oge ther with an eagle,i le the inscr ipt ion CIL, iii . 14386d. ment ions the

n. E v e n Balan ios , o r ig ina l ly pe rhaps a form ofd a d (see Rl:MMON) came t o be accepted as solar.r t h e r east , a t Hierapol i s on the Euphra tes , Luc ianea Syria , 34) repor ts a t emple in which was aone for the sun-god , b u t no i mag e of him; a n dm a place ca l led Nizib to the n o r t h comes anze eagle which bears the inscr ip t ion H elios (R.s sau d , Notes de mythologie syrienne, Paris, 1903)e co n n ec t i o n o f the eagle with the sun-god,i ch has been assu med in t h e foregoing, is m a d etain for t h e Semit ic region b y t h e very numerousasions in which they are b r o u g h t toge ther, b y

expl ic i t iden t i f ica t ion j u s t noted, a n d b y theab ian co n cep t i o n of an eastern a n d a western

Nasr ( eagle ) , ev iden t ly re ferr ing to thea n d t h e se t t ing sun . The same connect ion 8 0mon in Eg y p t is confi rmatory, n o t evident ia lla rge n u m b e r of addi t ional witnesses might beduced f rom the region sou th of l l e rmo n a n dof the Jo rdan , b u t most of t h e m would be b u tp lemen ta ry to the t e s t imony a l ready cited. IAmarna Tab le t s Akizzi of K a t n a nea r E m e s a sof S h a m a s h as the God of h i s fa thers; the Sa n d N e rab inscr ipt ions n a m e Shamash appa rena s one among a n u m b e r of dei t ies ; Shamashworsh iped a t Geb a l ( A m a r n a Table t s , nos. 8in Winckler 's number ing) . There \vas a n Amde i ty Sharebu, h e a t , who is pe rhaps to benected with the s u n (Schrader, K A .T, p. 415);gal is ment ioned o n a Canaan i t i c sea l cy l indeTaanach , p robab ly a s the n a m e for a local su(E . Sellin, TeU Ta annek , pp . 27, 105, Vienna ,a n d is ment ioned also in t h e A m a r n a Tablets ,13, 25, 37. T h e Egypt ian de i ty Amon-Raknown i n N o r th Syr ia a n d was identif iedS h a m a s h a t Gebal . One of t h e e igh t t emp lGaza \Vas ded ica ted to the sun .

F ro m anc ien t t e s t imony l ike t h a t of Serviusa n n o ta to r of Vergil 's .dtneid, o n i. 729) thera i sed t h e presumpt ion t h a t in th i s reg ion wher

n a m e Baal i s used of a dei ty, th4 . A r a b i s meant . I t h a s a l ready appe

a n d N a b a - t h a t t h e t i t le of t h e sun-god vt sean . . B 1 B 1 Gnow appear1ng as e o r a a ,

Despotes; now as Melek o r IGng , Greek Basand la te r as Mar, Syr ian for L o r d . N o tquen t ly he rece ived a l so the t i t l e s a v i o r ,cial ly when he was regarded a s a de i ty of heE v e n S a tu rn was b l en d ed \vith th is cu l t in la tm a n t imes . T h e sp read o f t h e Mith ra cu l t o n l yp h as i zed t h e g en e ra l tendency, for as a so larhe gained recognit ion, a l t h o u g h t h e m y t h dg u i sh ed h im f ro m t h e s u n a n d m a d e h im thed u e r of t h a t l uminary a n d the mas te r assit a sks t o i t . E v e n Ta m m u z (q .v. ) a t Byblos,came a sun-de i ty (E . Renan , A-fission de Phep la te xxxi i . 2, Paris , 1864; Macrobius , Saturn1., xxi . 1, Adonis is sure ly the sun ) . A s beo n t h e l a te r Nabat r ean concept ions i t m a y bmembered t h a t in Arabia S h a m s 'vas feminine,the t e s t imony of proper names a t tes ts the fworship. Aramaic names a m o n g the Nab a t r(q. v.), such as Shmsh-grm (see ab o v e , 2), dca r ry conclusive weight, because of the borro

of language \vhich character ized the Nabat reYet m u c h might be sa id for the original N abaorig in of th i s name . S t rabo (XVI . , i l l . 26) ret h a t these p eo p l e had a l t a r s to the sun onhouses, a n d th e t endency is to see the s u n in Du(see NABAT..EANS, I I . , 3 ; cf. J . H . MordtmannZDMG, xxix. , 1875, pp. 99-106) , especia l ly aep i the t inv inc ib le 8 0 c o m m o n in associwith solar dei t ies is appl ied to him. This so lar ac te r may, however, have been acquired a f tcame to Aramean soil, for the indicat ions aret h a t he was orig ina l ly a god of fert i l i tybarsk i , Ephemeris , u t sup . , p . 262) .

6 . T h e H i t t i t e a : I n the presen t state of l iknowledge of the Hi t t i te s reserve respec t ingreligious ideas i s eminen t ly becom ing F r o m


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8 RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA S u n a n d S u n Wo r

crip t ion of Rameses I I . giving the accoun t of thea ty with the H i t t i t e King l{hetas ira (cf. '\V. M.ller, Der Bundnisvertrag Ramses 11. u n d des Cherkonigs, Berl in , 1904; W . H . '\\ 'ard, Seals, etc. ,sup. , pp. 257 sqq.) , i t is clear t h a t the solar d isk

s employed among the Hit t i tes ( th is is a b u n d a n tev iden t a lso f rom other remains) , and there areerences to a sun-god localized as ' ' g o d of Arena , b u t a lso universalized as ' ' lord of all l ands .

e qui te numerous sea ls revea l t h e \\rorship ofamash (or his Hit t i t e equivalent ; these sea ls shows dei ty in a t t i tudes character is t ical ly Babylon), as \\< ell as of a de i ty sinli lar to Nergal . Thei re quest ion of borrowing is here on the carpet ,or i ty betwcen na t ive concept ions a n d t h e accep te of Babylonian-Assyr ian gods being hard toide J. Gars t ang , La11d o the H1:ttites p. 322,

ndon, 1910). T h e series of a r t - rema ins plainlyuenced b y E g y p t i a n ideas do not here co me in to

nsidcra ion.6 . : I nd ia : A dis t inc t change is to be perce ived insing f rom the i rnmediately Semit ic env i ronment .

e emphas i s upon the sun a s a n objec t of worsh ipost , a n d o th e r objec ts fairly divide with h im the

en t ion of devotees (only a b o u t t l l i r ty of the28 h y m n s of the Rig Ved a are to the sun-dei t ies) .India , the l and of ma n y races a n d of d i fferen t

des of c iv i l iza t ion contemporaneously present ,erest ing features are to be discerned, one of \\hichh a t in the V edas the re can be t raced the advancethe Aryan invade rs a s they en te r the land f romnor thwes t a n d a d v a n c e in to centra l a n d sou thInd ia . T h e difference in the concept ion of thein the l l ig Veda a n d in the Atharva Veda is

ev.orthy; in the former the sun is the quickenergiver of life, in the l a t t e r he becomes dead ly

the cause of dea th (E. W . Hopkins, ReligionsIndia, p. 44, Boston, 1895). I n ear ly t imes a n dde r favor ing env i ronmen t Surya, the principal

ic dei ty, son of Aurora, \\ 'as t h e shining god,red bal l in the sky (Hopkins, u t sup . , pp. 4 0 -

H e i s a l so called Sav i ta r, the quickener o rera tor, a n d comes la ter to be iden t i f ied with

local Brahman ic d e i ty Bhaga a n d wi th Pushan ,le in H i n d u i s m he appea rs a s Vishn u, who t r a vd the dome of heaven in th ree s t r ides , thus in

g t h e worlds for t h e gods, who holds the solark as his emblem, a n d has the eagle-man a s his

mpanion . I n the ear l ier t ime th is de i ty was fe l ta s t imu la t ing force, au thor of bir th , giver of lifen to the gods, a n d donor o f wealth. H e dr ives

oss heaven w i th his seven s teeds , a n d notes in hisrse all t h a t passes. Somet imes aga in he i s theof Varuna Ouranos, Heaven ) , the c rea tion

Mithra a n d \ ' a runa . A l i t t le far ther on in t imeadvance of the pr iest ly concept ion is seen, a n d

s ta tement is m a d e t h a t he is the pries t 'sst , the a r range r of sacrifice Rig eda v.

a n d in la ter t ime his g lory was as the div idert ime for the sacrifice. A s P u s h a n the bucolicy he was bestower of a prosper i ty in which the

a l o r pastoral ideas a re predominant , t h o u g hse of the ar r ior o r pr iest are to be seen in va

g. T h e la te r sun-god is Vishnu, whose h y m n sthe earl ies t collection are few, celebrat ing hisee strides, his anchor ing of the ear th , a n d his

munificence. I n the Brahmanas the sun haspower to draw for th a n d o u t a person 's vi ta l i tyto cause his dea th ; a n d so he is regarded of tenmal ignan t Satapatha Brahmarta, I I . , i l l . 3,Eng . t ransl . , SBE, American ed. , ix. 343). Aspr iesthood developed i ts power, the solar godsthe others , lost much of the i r d iv in i ty in the thoough an th ropomorph iza t ion t h e y unde rwen t .in the epics Surya re ta ins much of his old gran

a n d u n d e r Hindu i sm rega ined m u c h of his emi nas creator, furn ish ing the ra in which refreshesea r th a n d so act ing as the prov iden t f a the rfami ly. So in the Bhagavad Gita ( I l l . , ill. 36 occurs a h y mn where a re chan ted the 108 namthe sun, while the poe t t h i n k s t h a t in all theworlds a n d all the brahma-\\orlds the re is nosuper ior to the sun . Amo n g the Hindu sec tsural ly the re a r e some devoted part icu lar ly tsun ; a n d i t _is curious t h a t a feature found in Ea n d e lsewhere repeats i tself here, since somedirec t the i r worsh ip to the sun o f the morning, oto t h a t of noon, a n d st i l l o the rs to the evening \\hile some un i te all in the i r worsh ip a s offeredt r iad o r t r in i ty. The Sauras of sou the rn Ind iaa n exist ing sect of th is sor t . I n the fest ivalssecond o f the four New Year ' s days is sacreAgni o r Surya, a n d Feb. 4 th to the sun. Some ofinest temples in Ind ia tel l of the a rd o r of hissh ipers . For ear ly h y m n s to solar dei t ies cf.kins, u t sup . , pp. 17-18, 48-50, the t ransla t ino ted a t vol. ii . , pp. 249-250 of th i s work, a n d RFrazer, Literary History o f India, p p 49-50York, 1898).

7 . Ch in a . a n d J a p a n : The sun in China ism a r k e d ou t for especial dist inct ion in worship.sacrifices to h im belong n o t in the firs t o r hig

grade in to which cu l t ic offerings are div ided ,in the middle o r second grade. I n Peking h ea large wal led p a rk \ \ ' i th open a l t a r te rrace outthe E a s t Gate, where the especial sacrifices byempero r or his representat ive are offered in thedle of spr ing. I n J a p a n in the Sh in to p a n t h e o nJAPAN, I I . , 1) the sun-goddess A m a t e r a sK a m i (or Amaterasu n o Oho-Kami, Heaven-shining-grea t -Dei ty ; or, to use the now commonnese equ iva len t of he r name, Tien-sho-dai -y in)chief , bears the t i t le ruler of heaven , a n d isto be unriva led in dignity. I t must no t be uns tood f rom these expressions t h a t there is a n ysh ip ove r the o the r deities, nor is the idea qui teof the worshiper in Egyp t , who in address ingone de i ty heaped u p phrases of adora t ion asother de i ty exis ted . The goddess had he r supposphere of influence, however, a n d he r worsh lp istorically perhaps the mos t impor tan t in the i sempire . T h e mythology of the Japanese is in specul iar ly crude and repulsive, to say nothlng ooccasional obsceni ty. T h u s i n the theogonyorigin of Amate ra su is t raced to the ablut ions oprimit ive creat ion de i ty Izanagi , who made

d e s c e n t in to h e l l to see his dead consort .compel led ceremonia l puri f ica t ion on h is re turn,in his ab lu t ions a s he discarded ga rmen tswashed a w a y filth, these became deit ies of vargrades, a n d th e sun-goddess took form fromwashings of h i s l ~ t ey e ( those from his r ight


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oducing the moon-god). Nat ive concept ions va ryom the animistic, which i n d u ce worship o f theysica l sun (still to b e seen), to the anthropomori c whlch regards her as a de i ty whose sphere ofnt ro l centers in the sun . She figures as a benefin t goddess whose chief care is t h e welfare of m a nnd, in the exercise of th is provid ing them witheds a n d s h o ; n g them how to cul t ivate rice. Therror is her emblem, a n d as such is in i tself a n o b

c t of reverence a n d worship, wi th ceremonies pel iar t o itself. The sun crow, a fabulous crea t ion ,he r sacred bird and messenger (cf. the eagle-ha kt h e Egypt ian-Semi t ic -Greek de i t ies a n d t h e ravensW o t a n o r Odin). F o r a praye r to th i s de i ty offered870 A.D. cf. W . G. Ashton , Shinto, pp. 125-127

ondon, 1905). The idea. of d i fferen t sun-gods forffe ren t pa r t s of t he d a y reappears in Japan .aka-h i rume ( young-sun - fema le ) is t h e mo rn i n gn , as is also Ho-no-akari , while Ho-no-susori is theon sun a n d Ho-no-wori the evening sun . Other

y th ica l sun-gods are known, as Nigi -haya-h igen t le - swi f t - sun ) , and Hiruko , the first-born ofanag i a n d Izanami .8 . We s t e r n X n d o - E u r o p e a n P e o p l e : Amo n g t h e

ryan na t ions o f the West the cu l t of the sun t akesre la t ive ly un impor tan t place. The Greeks and

omans , i t is t rue , were devoted to Apollo. Bu t thea tu re form of th i s de i ty is the resul t o f a longr iod of development , as is manifest f ro m t h e dirse ep i the t s and the va r ian t r i tes emp l o y ed in his

orship. Amal g ama t i o n with o the r gods i s evident ,d t h a t so lar deities were among these i s unques

onable . Hellos (Lat in , Sol a n d Apollo were origa l ly dist inct (cf. L. R . Farnel l , Cults o f the Greekates, iv. 136 sqq. , Oxford, 1907), a n d the merging

the t ' o as comple ted only b y the Romans of

mperia l t imes, so t h a t n o t unt i l the Christ ian eraas Apollo made to ride in the char iot of the sun,d appa ren t ly n o t t i l l t he R o m a n period in Greekstory d i d he receive the rayed cro n. T h e idenicat ion of Hellos a n d Apollo a t the end of thecond Chris t ian cen tu ry is expl ic i t ly a t te s ted b y

ausan ias (VII . , xxiii . 8; Frazer ' s t ransl . , i. 364,ondon, 1898), b u t ho 'v much earl ie r th i s h a d comeout is uncerta in . Among the gods ho went in toe composi t ion of Apollo is a Cretan de i ty f iguredi th r ays s t reami n g from his shoulders m u c h likeose of the Bab y l o n i an Shamash (u t sup . , 11., 2 ; -

A J . Evans, in Journal o HeUenic Studies, xxi. ,01, p. 170). The iden t i f ica t ion of Apollo had , hower, been growing for centuries, a n d i t was in p a r t

u e to th is phase of his being, though also t o his acvi t ies as a n oracle god and to his re la t ion t o music,a t he was one of the most influential members ofe Greco -Ro man pantheon. H e insp i red some ofe nobles t p roduct ions b o t h in a r t a n d l i teraturef. the Homeric h y m n to Apollo, Eng . t ransl . andscussion b y An d rew Lang in Homeric Hymns, Lon

on, 1899). The ear ly Teu tons a n d Scand ina viansndoub ted ly h a d a cu l t of the s u n - s u c h ant iqui t ies

a sun char iot wi th six wheels and d i sk and horsee ing conclusive (cf. K . Blind, 14 A Prehis tor ic Sunhar iot in Denmark , in Westminster Review, clx.,

903, pp. 552-558). Evident ia l also is the cycle ofst ivals a t critical points in t h e y e a r - a t the wintern d s u m m e r solsticee and in spring a n d au tumn .

Bu t the Teutonic pan theon a s reflected in t h e Ea n d sagas seems to contain n o sun -de i ty unless Bbe one. T h a t he was a l igh t -god is clear, b u t t h a\Vas solar is disputed.

9 . P r i m . i t i v e P e o p l e s : I n the ba rba rous s t acivilization, as well as among t h e more advastages, the cul t of the sun is of ten reg is te red b ybolic ac t s which, though t h e y do n o t a l way s invac tua l worship, y e t are indicat ive of a high d

of reverence. Such are the Sioux cus toms of ing toward the sun when they smoke the ceremop i p e and o f p re sen t i n g to h im t h e ca lumet ; t hthe N a t chez of smoking toward t h e eas t a t suna n d t h a t of bur ial o f t h e dead fac ing the eapract ised b y Ainus, Gu aray o s , Yunanas , andt ra l ians . Somet imes t h e evidence demonstratworship, as is the case among m a n y Amer i can Int r ibes which pe rpe tua te t h e sun-dance, a n ance remo n y performed dur ing t h e first week ofI n th is ce remo n y the sun ' s benefact ions are rembered a n d he is pra i sed a s the g iver of life toand i t s suppor ter, the donor of corn and thewh o makes i t grow, a n d also a s giv ing succethe hun t . A t t h a t t ime praye rs are offered fort inua t ion of his gi f t s a n d sacrifices are znade toPrimit ive peoples of ten reg is te red the ir adoraof the sun by crue l rites , especia l ly b y h u m a nfice. I n Centra l a n d S o u t h America the firs t-was usual ly the sacrifice to the s u n (cf. J . G. FrGolden Bough, ii. 52 sqq. , London, 1900;cases are collected). I n the Azt ec region onegrea t dei t ies o f the official cu l t 'vas t he sunOmetecut l i ( twice lord , i .e., supreme lord),a sor t of der ivat ive was Uitzi lopochtl i , t he sspring, summer, a n d a u t u m n , \vhose messengerthe humming bird . H e was beloved, the p

called themselves his ch i ld ren , a n d they del igin pra is ing his qual i t ies of kindness and his benet ions . His worsh ip was performed eight t imPstwenty- four hours, conduc ted b y courses of prA t three annua l fes t iva ls h i s glory as ce lebrain May, August , a n d December. A t t he lasp e r fo rmed o n e of t h e r i tes wh i ch so as toundedear ly R o m a n Cathol ic mis s io n a r i e s - th e makina n image of t h e sun-god in d o u g h mi x ed 'v i tblood of slaughtered infants , pierc ing i t wiarrow to typ i fy the dea th of t h e fad ing sun) ,then ea t ing i t in sac ramenta l fashion. The 'sun , Tezca t l ipoca , bro the r of Uitzi lopochtl i ,d i ffe ren t in quali t ies, be ing s te rn ' here his brwas k ind , a g o d of j u d g m e n t a n d re t r ibut ion. Athe Gonds, a Drav id ian t r ibe o f India , the suthe chief ob jec t o f worship a n d t o him h u m a nfices were offered, which were la te r represen teda manik in of st raw. Simi lar ly t h e K h o n d s ofoffered h u m a n beings in sacrifice to him, t houg

' 'as n o t thei r chief dei ty. T h e S a n t h a l s regarsun as the highest of all spiri ts. Amo n gDravidian t r ibes he was adored b o t h as the ca n d a s t h e parad ise of souls. GEo. W . G L M O R EB I B LI O G R A . P B T: F o r t he cu l t o f t h e s u n in t he S

Eg y p t ian -H i t t i t e region consul t : E. Renan, MisaPhenicie, Par is , 1864; E. M . D e V o g u ~M ~ l a n gdolooi orientale, P ~ r i s 1869; idem, Syrie, Palestine,Athos, ib. 1876; C. R. Conder, in P E F. Quarter lyment. 1881. 80-84 ; F. A. Paley, Gold-wor:Jhip i n itt ion to Sun-u Orllhip, in Contemporary Review, xlv i


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S RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA S u n a n d S u n Wo r sS u n d a y

7 0 -2 7 7 ; P . Jen sen , KotJmologie der Babylonier, pp . 1 0 8 -1 , S t rM b u rg , 1890; \1. JW5trow, Rel ig ion o f Bahulon iad As s y r i a , Boston , 1898; W. H . Wa r d , i n A J T ii898) , 11 5 -11 8 ; idem, Seal Culinder o f Western Asia,

Va.ehington, 1910 ; S. I . Cur t i ss , P r i m i t i ve Se m i t i c Relig ion-day, Ne w Yor k , 1 9 0 2 ; R. Du ssau d , Note de mythologierienne, 2 pa r t s , Par is , 1903-Q5; L . Frobe n ius , Das Zei ttcr des Sonnengotte11, vol. i. , Ber l in , 1904 ; G. V. Sc h i are l l i , As t r on o m y i n the 0 . T. , Oxford , 1906 ; Vol lers , in

rchiv f i ir Religion:tU'issenllChaft, ix (1906) , 1 7 6 -1 8 4 ; T. Clay, A m u r r u , the Hom e o f the N o r th e rn Semites,

hi ladelph ia , 1910; J . Ga rs ta ng , L a n d o f the Hittite:J,

ew York, 1910; D B , iv. 627 - 629 ;E B

i v. 4821 - 22 ; J E. 5 88 - 597.

Documents

Sun and the Sun Worship - Schaff-Herzog (1911)