Design and Tradition: A short account of the principles and historic development of architecture and the applied artsFenn, Amor
History
Design and Tradition: A short account of the principles and historic development of architecture and the applied arts
Fenn, Amor
Architecture; Art; Decoration and ornament; Decoration and ornament -- History
Oannes, who is represented in composite fish and man form, according to
tradition lived with mankind during the day to instruct them in the Arts
and Sciences; being immolated at night and re-incarnated at dawn.
_Season Myths_
In the Scandinavian tradition of Baldur, the god of Peace, which bears
some resemblance in respect to immolation and re-incarnation, the god
was killed by the blind Hoder at the instigation of Loki. By order of
Odin, everything that sprung from earth, air, fire and water was
forbidden to injure Baldur, but the mistletoe, not being included, was
made into an arrow and shot at random. It effected his death, but by
general request of the gods, he was restored to life.
Baldur is really a season myth, symbolizing the death of the sun at the
end of the year, with the resuscitation in the Spring. So also is the
tradition of Persephone abducted by Pluto, and allowed to revisit her
mother, Demeter, at the dawn of Summer. Another parallel is the story of
Orpheus and Eurydice.
_Sun Myths_
Of myths associated with the Dawn there is the tradition of Apollo and
Daphne, where the story of the nymph being chased by the god and
transformed into the tree symbolised the early dawn dispersed by the
Sun, or the effect of the growing power of the Sun on vegetation.
Similar in idea is the tradition of Wabun, son of Mudjekee-Wee, the
North American Indian Apollo, who chased Darkness with his arrows over
hill and valley, waking the villagers, calling the Thunder and bringing
the morning. He married Wabung Annung, whom he transplanted to the
Heavens, where she became the Morning Star.
Associated also with the sun is the myth of Clytie, a water nymph, who
for unrequited love of Apollo, was changed into a sun-flower, which
traditionally still turns towards the sun, following him through his
daily course.
_Belief in Natural Phenomena_
It has already been suggested that in primitive times intentional and
conscious life was ascribed to a host of natural objects and phenomena,
indications of which survive in the common speech of the present day.
Thus we speak of inanimate things as if they had consciousness and
intelligence. We say the Weather is good or bad, the Wind furious, the
Sea treacherous, the Seasons inconstant or the Earth thirsty. It is also
customary to speak of the “head” or “foot” of a mountain, and “arm” of
the sea and the “mouth” of a river or a cave.
Conscious action is suggested by such statement as the wind “whistles,”
“howls” or “moans”; the torrent or river “murmurs”; the fields “smile”
or the sky “threatens.”
These afford undoubted evidence of early belief in personality and
consciousness--a belief originally simple, but later becoming more
complex, monotheistic in the earlier form, developing into polytheism in
assigning different deities to the various elements.
_Greek and Roman Deities_
In Greek and Roman mythology there are twelve deities, six gods and six
goddesses.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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