housekeeper thought that it was done enough, she went in the dark to the garden to get some horse-radish, but instead of gathering horse-radish, she gathered some roots of aconite; these she ignorantly served up with the beef; three of the party, including the poor, kindhearted priest, and Mr. Mac Kenzie, partook of this deadly poison, and immediately expired. On that day week, their three bodies were taken in three separate hearses over the bridge of Spey, as the old woman had foreseen.

THE TRINITY OF THE ARYAN NATIONS.

The Trinity adored in ancient times (see pp. 35-6) were the Sun, Fire, and Air. These three objects were adored as a kind of natural Trinity, the triple repositary of mighty beneficent forces whose operation was essential to the welfare of mankind. It is certain that in worshipping Nature through all her multiplicity of manifestations, the Aryans regarded her as essentially one. We find that the earliest Aryan designation for their objects of adoration was Deva "luminous ones", and the earliest special names for Sun, Fire, and Air, were Mitra (melting), Athar (piercing), and Vayu or Vata (blowing), respectively, while the earliest name for the All-investing deity of heaven, sometimes regarded as one supreme Deity, was either Dyaus, which like Deva meant "the Luminous One", or Varuna, the "All-Investor", or Asura," the Breather". In Genesis ii, 7, God is said to have created Adam and "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life".1

The Zoroastrians believed that there was but one God, Ahura Mazda (see p. 49), and that he created the universe. Matter was also created by him, but was

1 "The Religion of Zoroaster", by Professor Monier Williams, C.I.E. -Nineteenth Century, January 1881. And for a long and interesting account of" Ancient Eastern Legends and Customs", the reader is referred to Miss Gordon Cumming's work, From the Hebrides to the Himalayas (London: Sampson Low and Co.)

neither identified with him, or an emanation from him. He was the sole object of worship as the sole source of life, light, goodness, wisdom, and creative power. They believed in a distribution of rewards and punishments. after death according to deeds done in the body. The moral code was comprised in six words, "Pure thoughts, pure words, pure deeds".

Other doctrines to be noted are the following:-A man's only hope of salvation was to be seen in his own self-righteousness. He was to be rewarded hereafter, not according to his belief in any particular religious dogma, but according to the perfection of his thoughts, words, and deeds. He was gifted with free will. He could choose his own course; he was not the helpless slave of fate or destiny. He was to be judged according to his own works. The soul that sinned was to die, and no sacrifice or substitute was to be accepted. Nor was salvation or religious merit procurable through self-mortification.

Herodotus tells us that, "it is not customary among the Persians to make idols, to build temples and erect altars; they even upbraid with folly those who do". The reason of this he declares to be that the Persians do not believe the gods to be like men, as the Hellenes do, but that they identify the whole celestial circle with the Supreme Being.

Cyrus the Great, who was a Zoroastrian, is thus described in the Bible: "Thus saith the Lord to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built; that saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. Thus saith the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden."

'Now, in the first year of Cyrus, King of Persia, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, King of Persia, that he made proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus, King of 1 Isaiah, chapters xli, xliv, xlv.

Persia, the Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He hath charged me to build Him a house at Jerusalem."

The religious opinions of the Jews and the ancient Persians were very similar. Zoroaster taught that "Every one was to be judged according to his own works. The soul that sinned was to die, and no sacrifice or substitute was to be accepted. A man's only hope of salvation was to be in his own self-righteousness.."2

God declares in the Old Testament, "that the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them, for the iniquity that he hath done shall he die. When the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that that is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive." If a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God. By which it appears that a man is to be saved by his own self-righteousness, and that he must work out himself his own salvation, and not depend upon the merits of any other persons, whoever they may be. "The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son." If this is true, mankind can be saved without believing in the Creed of St. Athanasius. For with God can be no changeableness or shadow of turning.

"The highest attributes of the Supreme Being are, by the Zoroastrians, symbolised by His creations, fire, light, and the sun. Worship is conducted by regularly appointed priests dressed in pure white garments, in the presence of sacred fire, or rather with the face turned towards it. The fire is first consecrated by solemn for

1 Ezra i.

2 The Religion of Zoroaster, by Professor Monier Williams. 3 Ezekiel xviii. Was this book written by Divine Inspiration or

not?

mularies, and then maintained in fire-temples by offerings of sandal-wood and other fragrant substances; every attendant priest being required to wear a veil before his mouth and nostrils so as not to contaminate the fire with his breath. Worship may also be performed in the open air, prayers being repeated with the face towards the sun (compare Ezekiel, viii, 16), or towards the sea, as objects typical of God's power and majesty. There is no image worship, but homage must be paid to the heavenly hierarchy, and no animals ought ever to be sacrificed.'

The religion of the Magians was a worship of the forces and phenomena of nature, of the sun, moon, and elements, and of all the host of heaven. The Magians were great astrologers. (See p. 46.)

In the temple of Dionysos Stylos at Tyre, no images were allowed, but fire was kept constantly burning on the altar, which being reflected on the grand columns of smaragdus, illumined the whole temple. The obelisk, as before stated, was the emblem of Dionysos Stylos (see p. 54), and has the same signification as the Serpent and the Tree of Life, both of which are mentioned. in Genesis in connection with Adam and Eve.

The three cardinal requirements of Egyptian piety were love to God, love to virtue, love to man. Truthfulness was an essential part of the Egyptian moral code; and when, after death, the soul enters the "Hall of the Two Truths, or Perfect Justice", it repeats the words learned upon earth, "O, Thou great God, Lord of Truth! I have known Thee. I have known Thy name. Lord of Truth is Thy name. I never told a lie at the tribunal of truth.""

The honour due to parents sprang naturally from the belief in God as our Father who is in heaven. We constantly find inscriptions on the tombs such as the following: "I honoured my father and my mother. I loved my brothers. I taught little children. I took care of

1 The Religion of Zoroaster, by Professor Monier Williams, C.I.E. 2 Ritual of the Dead.

ut they must pear in the presence of the Divine Jolie, and son, I have not privily die evil to my I have not affuel any, or caused any to weep. I have nolis I have not done any wicked thing I have not dice what was hateful to the gols. I have not ealamnitel the slave to his master. I have not been iïa. I have not stolen. I have not committed adultery. I have not committed murder", and so on.

The Egyptians had a contempt for idleness. "God loathes idle Lan is” (Hjane on NI.) – “Ra (the Sun) the giver of food, destroys all place for idleness." (Ritual of the Dead, xv, 20.) In one of the Letters we read, “Why is thy heart volatile as the chaff before the wind? Give thy heart to something worthy of a man's doing. Give not thy heart to pleasure. Idleness is unprofitable. It is of no service to a man in the day of account. His work is found wanting when weighed in the balance. Such is the man whose heart is not in his business, whose eye scorns it."

But their commandments were positive as well as negative. On the tombs (B.c. 4000) we find the common 1 Die ägyptische Gräberwelt (Leipzig: Von H. Brugsch, 1868). 2 Goodwin, Essays.