From Ritual to Romance

by
Jesse L. Weston

Chapter CCC

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CONTENTS
Chapter I
Introductory

Nature of the Grail problem.  Unsatisfactory character of results
achieved.  Objections to Christian Legendary origin; to Folk-lore
origin.  Elements in both theories sound.  Solution to be sought in a
direction which will do justice to both.  Sir J. G. Frazer's Golden
Bough indicates possible line of research.  Sir W. Ridgeway's
criticism of Vegetation theory examined.  Dramas and Dramatic Dances.
The Living and not the Dead King the factor of importance.
Impossibility of proving human origin for Vegetation Deities.  Not
Death but Resurrection the essential centre of Ritual.  Muharram too
late in date and lacks Resurrection feature.  Relation between defunct
heroes and special localities.  Sanctity possibly antecedent to
connection.  Mana not necessarily a case of relics.  Self-acting
weapons frequent in Medieval Romance.  Sir J. G. Frazer's theory holds
good.  Remarks on method and design of present Studies.


Chapter II
The Task of the Hero

Essential to determine the original nature of the task imposed upon the hero.
Versions examined.  The Gawain forms--Bleheris, Diû Crône.  Perceval
versions--Gerbert, prose Perceval, Chrétien de Troyes, Perlesvaus,
Manessier, Peredur, Parzival.  Galahad--Queste.  Result, primary task
healing of Fisher King and removal of curse of Waste Land.  The two
inter-dependent.  Illness of King entails misfortune on Land.  Enquiry
into nature of King's disability.  Sone de Nansai.  For elucidation of
problem necessary to bear in mind close connection between Land and
Ruler.  Importance of Waste Land motif for criticism.


Chapter III
The Freeing of the Waters

Enquiry may commence with early Aryan tradition.  The Rig-Veda.
Extreme importance assigned to Indra's feat of "Freeing the
Waters."  This also specific achievement of Grail heroes.  Extracts
from Rig-Veda.  Dramatic poems and monologues.  Professor von
Schroeder's theory.  Mysterium und Mimus.  Rishyaçriñga drama.
Parallels with Perceval story.  Result, the specific task of the Grail
hero not a literary invention but an inheritance of Aryan tradition.


Chapter IV
Tammuz and Adonis

General objects to be attained by these Nature Cults.  Stimulation of
Fertility, Animal and Vegetable.  Principle of Life ultimately
conceived of in anthropomorphic form.  This process already advanced
in Rig-Veda.  Greek Mythology preserves intermediate stage.  The
Eniautos Daimon.  Tammuz--earliest known representative of Dying God.
Character of the worship.  Origin of the name.  Lament for Tammuz.
His death affects not only Vegetable but Animal life.  Lack of
artistic representation of Mysteries.  Mr Langdon's suggestion.
Ritual possibly dramatic.  Summary of evidence.
Adonis--Phoenician-Greek equivalent of Tammuz.  Probably most
popular and best known form of Nature Cult.  Mythological tale of
Adonis.  Enquiry into nature of injury.  Importance of recognizing
true nature of these cults and of the ritual observed.  Varying dates
of celebration.  Adonis probably originally Eniautos Daimon.
Principle of Life in general, hence lack of fixity in date.  Details
of the ritual.  Parallels with the Grail legend examined.  Dead Knight
or Disabled King.  Consequent misfortunes of Land.  The Weeping
Women.  The Hairless Maiden.  Position of Castle.  Summing up.  Can
incidents of such remote antiquity be used as criticism for a Medieval
text?


Chapter V
Medieval and Modern Forms of Nature Ritual

Is it possible to establish chain of descent connecting early Aryan
and Babylonian Ritual with Classic, Medieval and Modern forms of
Nature worship?  Survival of Adonis cult established.  Evidence of
Mannhardt and Frazer.  Existing Continental customs recognized as
survivals of ancient beliefs.  Instances.  'Directly related' to
Attis-Adonis cult.  Von Schroeder establishes parallel between
existing Fertility procession and Rig-Veda poem.  Identification of
Life Principle with King.  Prosperity of land dependent on king as
representative of god.  Celts.  Greeks.  Modern instances, the Shilluk
Kings.  Parallel between Shilluk King, Grail King and Vegetation
Deity.  Sone de Nansai and the Lament for Tammuz.  Identity of
situation.  Plea for unprejudiced criticism.  Impossibility of such
parallels being fortuitous; the result of deliberate intention, not an
accident of literary invention.  If identity of central character be
admitted his relation to Waste Land becomes fundamental factor in
criticizing versions.  Another African survival.


Chapter VI
The Symbols

Summary of results of previous enquiry.  The Medieval Stage.  Grail
romances probably contain record of secret ritual of a Fertility cult.
The Symbols of the cult--Cup, Lance, Sword, Stone, or Dish.  Plea for
treating Symbols as a related group not as isolated units.  Failure to
do so probably cause of unsatisfactory result of long research.
Essential to recognize Grail story as an original whole and to treat
it in its ensemble aspect.  We must differentiate between origin and
accretion.  Instances.  The Legend of Longinus.  Lance and Cup not
associated in Christian Art.  Evidence.  The Spear of Eastern
Liturgies only a Knife.  The Bleeding Lance.  Treasures of the Tuatha
de Danann.  Correspond as a group with Grail Symbols.  Difficulty of
equating Cauldron-Grail.  Probably belong to a different line of
tradition.  Instances given.  Real significance of Lance and Cup.
Well known as Life Symbols.  The Samurai.  Four Symbols also preserved
as Suits of the Tarot.  Origin of Tarot discussed.  Probably reached
Europe from the East.  Use of the Symbols in Magic.  Probable
explanation of these various appearances to be found in fact that
associated group were at one time symbols of a Fertility cult.
Further evidence to be examined.


Chapter VII
The Sword Dance

Relation of Sword Dance, Morris Dance, and Mumming Play.  Their
Ceremonial origin now admitted by scholars.  Connected with seasonal
Festivals and Fertility Ritual.  Earliest Sword Dancers, the Maruts.
Von Schroeder, Mysterium und Mimus.  Discussion of their nature and
functions.  The Kouretes.  Character of their dance.  Miss
J. E. Harrison, Themis.  The Korybantes.  Dance probably sacrificial
in origin.  The Salii.  Dramatic element in their dance.  Mars, as
Fertility god.  Mamurius Veturius.  Anna Perenna.  Character of dance
seasonal.  Modern British survivals.  The Sword Dance.  Mostly
preserved in North.  Variants.  Mr E. K. Chambers, The Medieval
Stage.  The Mumming Plays.  Description.  Characters.  Recognized as
representing Death and Revival of Vegetation Deity.  Dr Jevons, Masks
and the Origin of the Greek Drama.  Morris Dances.  No dramatic
element.  Costume of character significant.  Possible survival of
theriomorphic origin.  Elaborate character of figures in each group.
Symbols employed.  The Pentangle.  The Chalice.  Present form shows
dislocation.  Probability that three groups were once a combined whole
and Symbols united.  Evidence strengthens view advanced in last
Chapter.  Symbols originally a group connected with lost form of
Fertility Ritual.  Possible origin of Grail Knights to be found in
Sword Dancers.


Chapter VIII
The Medicine Man

The rôle of the Medicine Man, or Doctor in Fertility Ritual.  Its
importance and antiquity.  The Rig-Veda poem.  Classical evidence, Mr
F. Cornford.  Traces of Medicine Man in the Grail romances.  Gawain as
Healer.  Persistent tradition.  Possible survival from pre-literary
form.  Evidence of the Triads.  Peredur as Healer.  Evolution of
theme.  Le Dist de l'Erberie.


Chapter IX
The Fisher King

Summary of evidence presented.  Need of a 'test' element.  To be found
in central figure.  Mystery of his title.  Analysis of variants.
Gawain version.  Perceval version.  Borron alone attempts explanation
of title.  Parzival.  Perlesvaus.  Queste.  Grand Saint Graal.
Comparison with surviving ritual variants.  Original form King dead,
and restored to life.  Old Age and Wounding themes.  Legitimate
variants.  Doubling of character a literary device.  Title.  Why
Fisher King?  Examination of Fish Symbolism.  Fish a Life symbol.
Examples.  Indian--Manu, Vishnu, Buddha.  Fish in Buddhism.  Evidence
from China.  Orpheus.  Babylonian evidence.  Tammuz Lord of the Net.
Jewish Symbolism.  The Messianic Fish-meal.  Adopted by Christianity.
Evidence of the catacombs.  Source of Borron's Fish-meals.  Mystery
tradition not Celtic Folk-tale.  Comparison of version with Finn
story.  With Messianic tradition.  Epitaph of Bishop Aberkios.  Voyage
of Saint Brandan.  Connection of Fish with goddess Astarte.  Cumont.
Connection of Fish and Dove.  Fish as Fertility Symbol.  Its use in
Marriage ceremonies.  Summing up of evidence.  Fisher King
inexplicable from Christian point of view.  Folk-lore solution
unsatisfactory.  As a Ritual survival completely in place.  Centre of
action, and proof of soundness of theory.


Chapter X
The Secret of the Grail (1)
The Mysteries

The Grail regarded as an object of awe.  Danger of speaking of Grail
or revealing Its secrets.  Passages in illustration.  Why, if survival
of Nature cults, popular, and openly performed?  A two-fold element in
these cults, Exoteric, Esoteric.  The Mysteries.  Their influence on
Christianity to be sought in the Hellenized rather than the Hellenic
cults.  Cumont.  Rohde.  Radical difference between Greek and Oriental
conceptions.  Lack of evidence as regards Mysteries on the whole.
Best attested form that connected with Nature cults.  Attis-Adonis.
Popularity of the Phrygian cult in Rome.  Evidence as to Attis
Mysteries.  Utilized by Neo-Platonists as vehicle for teaching.  Close
connection with Mithraism.  The Taurobolium.  Details of Attis
Mysteries.  Parallels with the Grail romances.


Chapter XI
The Secret of the Grail (2)
The Naassene Document

Relations between early Christianity, and pre-Christian cults.  Early
Heresies.  Hippolytus, and The Refutation of all Heresies.  Character
of the work.  The Naassene Document.  Mr Mead's analysis of
text.  A synthesis of Mysteries.  Identification of Life Principle
with the Logos.  Connection between Drama and Mysteries of Attis.
Importance of the Phrygian Mysteries.  Naassene claim to be sole
Christians.  Significance of evidence.  Vegetation cults as vehicle
of high spiritual teaching.  Exoteric and Esoteric parallels with the
Grail tradition.  Process of evolution sketched.  Bleheris.
Perlesvaus.  Borron and the Mystery tradition.  Christian Legendary,
and Folk-tale, secondary, not primary, features.


Chapter XII
Mithra and Attis

Problem of close connection of cults.  Their apparent divergence.
Nature of deities examined.  Attis.  Mithra.  The Messianic Feast.
Dieterich, Eine Mithrasliturgie.  Difference between the two
initiations.  Link between Phrygian, Mithraic, and Christian,
Mysteries to be found in their higher, esoteric, teaching.  Women not
admitted to Mithraic initiation.  Possible survival in Grail text.
Joint diffusion through the Roman Empire.  Cumont's evidence.  Traces
of cult in British Isles.  Possible explanation of unorthodox
character of Grail legend.  Evidence of survival of cult in fifth
century.  The Elucidation a possible record of historic facts.  Reason
for connecting Grail with Arthurian tradition.


Chapter XIII
The Perilous Chapel

The adventure of the Perilous Chapel in Grail romances.  Gawain form.
Perceval versions.  Queste.  Perlesvaus.  Lancelot.  Chevalier à Deux
Espées.  Perilous Cemetery.  Earliest reference in Chattel
Orguellous.  Âtre Perilleus.  Prose Lancelot.  Adventure part of
'Secret of the Grail.'  The Chapel of Saint Austin.  Histoire de Fulk
Fitz-Warin.  Genuine record of an initiation.  Probable locality
North Britain.  Site of remains of Mithra-Attis cults.  Traces of
Mystery tradition in Medieval romance.  Owain Miles.  Bousset,
Himmelfahrt der Seele.  Parallels with romance.  Appeal to Celtic
scholars.  Otherworld journeys a possible survival of Mystery
tradition.  The Templars, were they Naassenes?


Chapter XIV
The Author

Provenance and authorship of Grail romantic tradition.  Evidence
points to Wales, probably Pembrokeshire.  Earliest form contained in
group of Gawain poems assigned to Bleheris.  Of Welsh origin.  Master
Blihis, Blihos, Bliheris, Bréri, Bledhericus.  Probably all references
to same person.  Conditions of identity.  Mr E. Owen, and Bledri ap
Cadivor.  Evidence not complete but fulfils conditions of problem
Professor Singer and possible character of Bleheris' text.  Mr Alfred
Nutt.  Irish and Welsh parallels.  Recapitulation of evolutionary
process.  Summary and conclusion.

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