Date: Mon, 10 Feb 2003 08:25:35 -0800
From: Michael Andre-Driussi 
Subject: Re: (urth) Lowering the tone

Nigel wrote:
>Is it simply too gross to point to the phallic associations of the name, or
>at least its diminutive?

No, not at all.  Thanks for raising the point -- bringing it up -- drawing
it to our attention.

For all I know "Attis" might have a similar etymology (aside from association).

Speaking of Attis, the FUNK & WAGNALLS STANDARD DICTIONARY OF FOLKLORE,
MYTHOLOGY, AND LEGEND has some nice notes: mention of the pine connection,
which we've noted before; a calendar of events, which goes like this

===
March 22 -- pine tree is cut and brought into the sanctuary of Cybele where
it is "swathed with woolen bands, decked with violets" and has an effigy of
a young man tied to it.

March 23 -- no comments given.

March 24 -- Day of Blood, with bloodletting and probably the
self-emasculation rites.

March 25 -- the resurrection celebration in a "licentious carnival."  (I've
always thought that this must be among the non-castrated, but this just
shows my own ridiculous biases.)

March 26 -- day of repose.

March 27 -- festival closes with a procession of the goddess image to the
Almo River where wagon and image were bathed.
===

Beware the ides of March, indeed!

Intriguing, but Green left Earth on March 14, came back April 15.

Arthur Cotterell's A DICTIONARY OF WORLD MYTHOLOGY has this tidbit:

"Union was achieved through either self-mutilation or a sacred marriage: to
all devotees was open what had once been the prerogative of West Asian
kingship" (under ATTIS).

I find this interesting as a case where there is mention of an option to
self-castration: a "sacred marriage."

=mantis=



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