CHAPTER VIII.

SAMSON AND HIS EXPLOITS. This Israelite hero is said to have been born at a time when the children of Israel were in the hands of the Philistines. His mother, who had been barren for a number of years, is entertained by an angel, who informs her that she shall conceive, and bear a son,[62:1] and that the child shall be a _Nazarite_ unto God, from the womb, and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hands of the Philistines. According to the prediction of the angel, "the woman bore a son, and called his name _Samson_; and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him." "And Samson (after he had grown to man's estate), went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines. And he came up and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore get her for me to wife." Samson's father and mother preferred that he should take a woman among the daughters of their own tribe, but Samson wished for the maid of the Philistines, "for," said he, "she pleaseth me well." The parents, after coming to the conclusion that it was the will of the Lord, that he should marry the maid of the Philistines, consented. "Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath, and, behold, a young lion roared against him (Samson). And the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him (the lion) as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand." This was Samson's _first_ exploit, which he told not to any one, not even his father, or his mother. He then continued on his way, and went down and talked with the woman, and she pleased him well. And, after a time, he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and behold, "there was a swarm of bees, and honey, in the carcass of the lion." Samson made a feast at his wedding, which lasted for _seven_ days. At this feast, there were brought thirty companions to be with him, unto whom he said: "I will now put forth a riddle unto you, if ye can certainly declare it me, within the _seven_ days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty sheets, and thirty changes of garments. But, if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets, and thirty changes of garments." And they said unto him, "Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it." And he answered them: "Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness." This riddle the thirty companions could not solve. "And it came to pass, on the _seventh_ day, that they said unto Samson's wife: 'Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle.'" She accordingly went to Samson, and told him that he could not love her; if it were so, he would tell her the answer to the riddle. After she had wept and entreated of him, he finally told her, and she gave the answer to the children of her people. "And the men of the city said unto him, on the _seventh_ day, before the sun went down, 'What is sweeter than honey, and what is stronger than a lion?'" Samson, upon hearing this, suspected how they managed to find out the answer, whereupon he said unto them: "If ye had not ploughed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle." Samson was then at a loss to know where to get the thirty sheets, and the thirty changes of garments; but, "the spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, _and slew thirty men of them_, and took their spoil, and gave change of garments unto them which expounded the riddle." This was the hero's _second_ exploit. His anger being kindled, he went up to his father's house, instead of returning to his wife.[64:1] But it came to pass, that, after a while, Samson repented of his actions, and returned to his wife's house, and wished to go in to his wife in the chamber; but her father would not suffer him to go. And her father said: "I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her, therefore, I gave her to thy companion. Is not her younger sister fairer than she? Take her, I pray thee, instead of her." This did not seem to please Samson, even though the younger was fairer than the older, for he "went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned (the foxes) tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between two tails. And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives." This was Samson's _third_ exploit. When the Philistines found their corn, their vineyards, and their olives burned, they said: "Who hath done this?" "And they answered, 'Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion.' And the Philistines came up, and burned her and her father with fire. And Samson said unto them: 'Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.' _And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter_, and he went and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam." This "great slaughter" was Samson's _fourth_ exploit. "Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi. And the men of Judah said: 'Why are ye come up against us?' And they answered: 'To bind Samson are we come up, and to do to him as he hath done to us.' Then three thousand men of Judah went up to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson: 'Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? What is this that thou hast done unto us?' And he said unto them: 'As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.' And they said unto him: 'We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hands of the Philistines.' And Samson said unto them: 'Swear unto me that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.' And they spake unto him, saying, 'No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hands: but surely we will not kill thee.' And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock. And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, _and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burned with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands_. And he found a new jaw-bone of an ass, and put forth his hand and took it, _and slew a thousand men with it_." This was Samson's _fifth_ exploit. After slaying a thousand men he was "sore athirst," and called unto the Lord. And "God clave a hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout, and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived."[65:1] "Then went Samson to Gaza and saw there a harlot, and went in unto her. And it was told the Gazites, saying, 'Samson is come hither.' And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying: 'In the morning, when it is day, we shall kill him.' And Samson lay (with the harlot) till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and went away with them, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of a hill that is in Hebron." This was Samson's _sixth_ exploit. "And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Soreck, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her: 'Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him.'" Delilah then began to entice Samson to tell her wherein his strength lay. "She pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death. Then he told her all his heart, and said unto her: 'There hath not come a razor upon mine head, for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb. If I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.' And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she went and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying: 'Come up this once, for he hath showed me all his heart.' Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hands (for her). "And she made him (Samson) sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the _seven_ locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him." The Philistines then took him, put out his eyes, and put him in prison. And being gathered together at a great sacrifice in honor of their God, Dagon, they said: "Call for Samson, that he may make us sport." And they called for Samson, and he made them sport. "And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand. Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house standeth, that I may lean upon them. "Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport. "And Samson called unto the Lord, and said: 'O Lord God, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.' "And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood and on which it was borne up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said: 'Let me die with the Philistines.' And he bowed himself with all his might; and (having regained his strength) the house fell upon the lords, and upon the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death, were more than they which he slew in his life."[66:1] Thus ended the career of the "strong man" of the Hebrews. That this story is a copy of the legends related of Hercules, or that they have both been copied from similar legends existing among some other nations,[66:2] is too evident to be disputed. Many churchmen have noticed the similarity between the history of Samson and that of Hercules. In Chambers's Encyclopædia, under "Samson," we read as follows: "It has been matter of most contradictory speculations, how far his existence is to be taken as a reality, or, in other words, what substratum of historical truth there may be in this supposed circle of popular legends, artistically rounded off, in the four chapters of Judges which treat of him. . . . "The miraculous deeds he performed have taxed the ingenuity of many commentators, and the text has been _twisted and turned in all directions_, to explain, _rationally_, his slaying those prodigious numbers single-handed; his carrying the gates of Gaza, in one night, a distance of about fifty miles, &c., &c." That this is simply a _Solar_ myth, no one will doubt, we believe, who will take the trouble to investigate it. Prof. Goldziher, who has made "Comparative Mythology" a special study, says of this story: "The most complete and rounded-off _Solar myth_ extant in Hebrew, is that of Shimshôn (Samson), a cycle of mythical conceptions fully comparable with the Greek myth of Hercules."[66:3] We shall now endeavor to ascertain if such is the case, by comparing the exploits of Samson with those of Hercules. The first wonderful act performed by Samson was, as we have seen, _that of slaying a lion_. This is said to have happened when he was but a youth. So likewise was it with Hercules. At the age of eighteen, he slew an enormous lion.[66:4] The valley of Nemea was infested by a terrible lion; Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him the skin of this monster. After using in vain his club and arrows against the lion, Hercules strangled the animal with his hands. He returned, carrying the dead lion on his shoulders; but Eurystheus was so frightened at the sight of it, and at this proof of the prodigious strength of the hero, that he ordered him to deliver the accounts of his exploits in the future outside the town.[67:1] To show the courage of Hercules, it is said that he entered the cave where the lion's lair was, closed the entrance behind him, and at once grappled with the monster.[67:2] Samson is said to have torn asunder the _jaws_ of the lion, and we find him generally represented slaying the beast in that manner. So likewise, was this the manner in which Hercules disposed of the Nemean lion.[67:3] The skin of the lion, Hercules tore off with his fingers, and knowing it to be impenetrable, resolved to wear it henceforth.[67:4] The statues and paintings of Hercules either represent him carrying the lion's skin over his arm, or wearing it hanging down his back, the skin of its head fitting to his crown like a cap, and the fore-legs knotted under his chin.[67:5] Samson's second exploit was when he went down to Ashkelon and slew thirty men. Hercules, when returning to Thebes from the lion-hunt, and wearing its skin hanging from his shoulders, as a sign of his success, met the heralds of the King of the Minyæ, coming from Orchomenos to claim the annual tribute of a hundred cattle, levied on Thebes. Hercules cut off the ears and noses of the heralds, bound their hands, and sent them home.[67:6] Samson's third exploit was when he caught three hundred foxes, and took fire-brands, and turned them tail to tail, and put a fire-brand in the midst between two tails, and let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines. There is no such feature as this in the legends of Hercules, the nearest to it in resemblance is when he encounters and kills the Learnean Hydra.[67:7] During this encounter a _fire-brand_ figures conspicuously, and _the neighboring wood is set on fire_.[67:8] We have, however, an explanation of this portion of the legend, in the following from Prof. Steinthal: At the festival of Ceres, held at Rome, in the month of April, a fox-hunt through the circus was indulged in, _in which burning torches were bound to the foxes' tails_. This was intended to be a symbolical reminder of the damage done to the fields by mildew, called the "_red fox_," which was exorcised in various ways at this momentous season (the last third of April). It is the time of the _Dog-Star_, at which the mildew was most to be feared; if at that time great solar heat follows too close upon the hoar-frost or dew of the cold nights, this mischief rages like a burning fox through the corn-fields.[68:1] He also says that: "This is the sense of the story of the foxes, which Samson caught and sent into the Philistines' fields, with fire-brands fastened to their tails, to burn the crops. Like the lion, the fox is an animal that indicated the solar heat, being well suited for this both by its color and by its long-haired tail."[68:2] Bouchart, in his "Hierozoicon," observes that: "At this period (_i. e._, the last third of April) they cut the corn in Palestine and Lower Egypt, and a few days after the setting of the Hyads arose the _Fox_, in whose train or tail comes the fires or torches of the dog-days, represented among the Egyptians by red marks painted on the backs of their animals."[68:3] Count de Volney also tells us that: "The inhabitants of Carseoles, an ancient city of Latium, every year, in a religious festival, burned a number of foxes _with torches tied to their tails_. They gave, as the reason for this whimsical ceremony, that their corn had been formerly burnt by a fox to whose tail a young man had fastened a bundle of lighted straw."[68:4] He concludes his account of this peculiar "religious festival," by saying: "This is exactly the story of Samson with the Philistines, but it is a Phenician tale. _Car-Seol_ is a compound word in that tongue, signifying _town of foxes_. The Philistines, originally from Egypt, do not appear to have had any colonies. The Phenicians had a great many; and it can scarcely be admitted that they borrowed this story from the Hebrews, as obscure as the Druses are in our own times, or that a simple adventure gave rise to a religious ceremony; _it evidently can only be a mythological and allegorical narration_."[68:4] So much, then, for the foxes and fire-brands. Samson's fourth exploit was when he smote the Philistines "hip and thigh," "with great slaughter." It is related of Hercules that he had a combat with an _army_ of Centaurs, who were armed with pine sticks, rocks, axes, &c. They flocked in wild confusion, and surrounded the _cave_ of Pholos, where Hercules was, when a violent fight ensued. Hercules was obliged to contend against this large armed force single-handed, but he came off victorious, and slew a great number of them.[69:1] Hercules also encountered and fought against _an army of giants_, at the Phlegraean fields, near Cumae.[69:2] Samson's next wonderful exploit was when "three thousand men of Judah" bound him with _cords_ and brought him up into Lehi, when the Philistines were about to take his life. The cords with which he was bound immediately became as flax, and loosened from off his hands. He then, with the jaw-bone of an ass, slew one thousand Philistines.[69:3] A very similar feature to this is found in the history of Hercules. He is made prisoner by the Egyptians, who wish to take his life, but while they are preparing to slay him, he breaks loose his bonds--having been tied with _cords_--and kills Buseris, the leader of the band, _and the whole retinue_.[69:4] On another occasion, being refused shelter from a storm at Kos, he was enraged at the inhabitants, and accordingly _destroyed the whole town_.[69:5] Samson, after he had slain a thousand Philistines, was "sore athirst," and called upon _Jehovah_, his father in heaven, to succor him, whereupon, water immediately gushed forth from "a hollow place that was in the jaw-bone." Hercules, departing from the Indies (or rather Ethiopia), and conducting his army through the desert of Lybia, feels a burning thirst, and conjures _Ihou_, his father, to succor him in his danger. Instantly the (celestial) Ram appears. Hercules follows him and arrives at a place where the Ram scrapes with his foot, _and there instantly comes forth a spring of water_.[70:1] Samson's sixth exploit happened when he went to Gaza to visit a harlot. The Gazites, who wished to take his life, laid wait for him all night, but Samson left the town at midnight, and took with him the gates of the city, and the _two posts_, on his shoulders. He carried them to the top of a hill, some fifty miles away, and left them there. This story very much resembles that of the "Pillars of Hercules," called the "_Gates of Cadiz_."[70:2] Count de Volney tells us that: "Hercules was represented naked, carrying on his shoulders _two columns_ called the Gates of Cadiz."[70:3] "The _Pillars_ of Hercules" was the name given by the ancients to the two rocks forming the entrance or _gate_ to the Mediterranean at the Strait of Gibraltar.[70:4] Their erection was ascribed by the Greeks to Hercules, on the occasion of his journey to the kingdom of Geryon. According to one version of the story, they had been united, but Hercules tore them asunder.[70:5] [Illustration: Fig. No. 3.] Fig. No. 3 is a representation of Hercules with the two posts or pillars on his shoulders, as alluded to by Count de Volney. We have taken it from Montfaucon's "L'Antiquité Expliquée."[70:6] J. P. Lundy says of this: "Hercules carrying his two columns to erect at the Straits of Gibraltar, may have some reference to the Hebrew story."[71:1] We think there is no doubt of it. By changing the name Hercules into Samson, the legend is complete. Sir William Drummond tells us, in his "OEdipus Judaicus," that: "_Gaza_ signifies a Goat, and was the type of the Sun in Capricorn. The _Gates of the Sun_ were feigned by the ancient Astronomers to be in Capricorn and Cancer (that is, in _Gaza_), from which signs the tropics are named. Samson carried away the gates from Gaza to Hebron, the city of conjunction. Now, Count Gebelin tells us that at Cadiz, where Hercules was anciently worshiped, there was a representation of him, _with a gate on his shoulders_."[71:2] The stories of the amours of Samson with Delilah and other females, are simply counterparts of those of Hercules with Omphale and Iole. Montfaucon, speaking of this, says: "Nothing is better known in the fables (related of Hercules) than his amours with Omphale and Iole."[71:3] Prof. Steinthal says: "The circumstance that Samson is so addicted to sexual pleasure, has its origin in the remembrance that the _Solar god_ is the god of fruitfulness and procreation. We have as examples, the amours of Hercules and Omphale; Ninyas, in Assyria, with Semiramis; Samson, in Philistia, with Delila, whilst among the Phenicians, Melkart pursues Dido-Anna."[71:4] Samson is said to have had long hair. "There hath not come a razor upon my head," says he, "for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb." Now, strange as it may appear, Hercules is said to have had long hair also, and he was often represented that way. In Montfaucon's "L'Antiquité Expliquée"[71:5] may be seen a representation of Hercules _with hair reaching almost to his waist_. Almost all _Sun_-gods are represented thus.[71:6] Prof. Goldzhier says: "Long locks of hair and a long beard are mythological attributes of the Sun. The Sun's rays are compared with locks of hair on the face or head of the Sun. "When the sun sets and leaves his place to the darkness, or when the powerful Summer Sun is succeeded by the weak rays of the Winter Sun, then Samson's long locks, in which alone his strength lies, are cut off through the treachery of his deceitful concubine, Delilah, the 'languishing, languid,' according to the meaning of the name (Delilah). The Beaming Apollo, moreover, is called the _Unshaven_; and Minos cannot conquer the solar hero Nisos, _till the latter loses his golden hair_."[72:1] Through the influence of Delilah, Samson is at last made a prisoner. He tells her the secret of his strength, the _seven_ locks of hair are shaven off, and his strength leaves him. The shearing of the locks of the Sun must be followed by darkness and ruin. From the shoulders of Phoibos Lykêgênes flow the sacred locks, over which no razor might pass, and on the head of Nisos they become a palladium, invested with a mysterious power.[72:2] The long locks of hair which flow over his shoulders are taken from his head by Skylla, while he is asleep, and, like another Delilah, she thus delivers him and his people into the power of Minos.[72:3] Prof. Steinthal says of Samson: "His hair is a figure of increase and luxuriant fullness. In Winter, when nature appears to have lost all strength, the god of growing young life has lost his hair. In the Spring the hair grows again, and nature returns to life again. Of this original conception the Bible story still preserves a trace. Samson's hair, after being cut off, grows again, and his strength comes back with it."[72:4] Towards the end of his career, Samson's eyes are put out. Even here, the Hebrew writes with a singular fidelity to the old mythical speech. The tender light of evening is blotted out by the dark vapors; the light of the _Sun_ is quenched in gloom. _Samson's eyes are put out._ OEdipus, whose history resembles that of Samson and Hercules in many respects, tears out his eyes, towards the end of his career. In other words, the _Sun_ has blinded himself. Clouds and darkness have closed in about him, and the clear light is blotted out of the heaven.[72:5] The final act, Samson's death, reminds us clearly and decisively of the Phenician Hercules, as Sun-god, who died at the Winter Solstice in the furthest West, where his _two pillars_ are set up to mark the end of his wanderings. Samson also died at the _two pillars_, but in his case they are not the Pillars of the World, but are only set up in the middle of a great banqueting-hall. A feast was being held in honor of Dagon, the Fish-god; the Sun was in the sign of the Waterman, _Samson, the Sun-god, died_.[73:1] The ethnology of the _name_ of Samson, as well as his adventures, are very closely connected with the _Solar_ Hercules. _"Samson" was the name of the Sun._[73:2] In Arabic, "_Shams-on_" means the _Sun_.[73:3] Samson had _seven_ locks of hair, the number of the planetary bodies.[73:4] The author of "The Religion of Israel," speaking of Samson, says: "The story of Samson and his deeds originated in a _Solar myth_, which was afterwards transformed by the narrator into a _saga_ about a mighty hero and deliverer of Israel. The very _name_ 'Samson,' is derived from the Hebrew word, and means 'Sun.' The hero's flowing locks were originally the _rays of the sun_, and other traces of the old myth have been preserved."[73:5] Prof. Oort says: "The story of Samson is simply a solar myth. In some of the features of the story the original meaning may be traced quite clearly, but in others the myth can no longer be recognized. The exploits of some Danite hero, such as Shamgar, who 'slew six hundred Philistines with an ox-goad' (Judges iii. 31), have been woven into it; the whole has been remodeled after the ideas of the prophets of later ages, and finally, it has been fitted into the framework of the period of the Judges, as conceived by the writer of the book called after them."[73:6] Again he says: "The myth that lies at the foundation of this story is a description of the sun's course during the six winter months. The god is gradually encompassed by his enemies, mist and darkness. At first he easily maintains his freedom, and gives glorious proofs of his strength; but the fetters grow stronger and stronger, until at last he is robbed of his crown of rays, and loses all his power and glory. _Such is the Sun in Winter._ But he has not lost his splendor forever. Gradually his strength returns, at last he reappears; and though he still seems to allow himself to be mocked, yet the power of avenging himself has returned, and in the end he triumphs over his enemies once more."[73:7] Other nations beside the Hebrews and Greeks had their "mighty men" and lion-killers. The Hindoos had their Samson. His name was Bala-Rama, the "_Strong Rama_." He was considered by some an incarnation of Vishnu.[73:8] Captain Wilford says, in "Asiatic Researches:" "The _Indian_ Hercules, according to Cicero, was called _Belus_. He is the same as _Bala_, the brother of Crishna, and both are conjointly worshiped at Mutra; indeed, they are considered as one Avatar or Incarnation of Vishnou. _Bala_ is represented as a stout man, _with a club in his hand_. He is also called _Bala-rama._"[74:1] There is a Hindoo legend which relates that Sevah had an encounter with a tiger, "whose mouth expanded like a cave, and whose voice resembled thunder." He slew the monster, and, like Hercules, covered himself with the skin.[74:2] The Assyrians and Lydians, both Semitic nations, worshiped a Sun-god named Sandan or Sandon. He also was believed to be a _lion-killer_, and frequently figured struggling with the lion, or standing upon the slain lion.[74:3] Ninevah, too, had her mighty hero and king, who slew a lion and other monsters. Layard, in his excavations, discovered a _bas-relief_ representation of this hero triumphing over the lion and wild bull.[74:4] The Ancient Babylonians had a hero lion-slayer, Izdubar by name. The destruction of the lion, and other monsters, by Izdubar, is often depicted on the cylinders and engraved gems belonging to the early Babylonian monarchy.[74:5] Izdubar is represented as a great or mighty man, who, in the early days after the flood, destroyed wild animals, and conquered a number of petty kings.[74:6] Izdubar resembles the Grecian hero, Hercules, in other respects than as a destroyer of wild animals, &c. We are told that he "wandered to the regions where gigantic composite monsters held and controlled the rising and setting sun, from these learned the road to _the region of the blessed_, and passing across _a great waste of land_, he arrived at a region where _splendid trees were laden with jewels_."[74:7] He also resembles Hercules, Samson, and other solar-gods, in the particular of _long flowing locks of hair_. In the Babylonian and Assyrian sculptures he is always represented with a marked physiognomy, and always indicated as a man with _masses of curls over his head_ and a large curly beard.[74:8] Here, evidently, is the Babylonian legend of Hercules. He too was a _wanderer_, going from the furthest East to the furthest West. He crossed "a great waste of land" (the desert of Lybia), visited "the region of the blessed," where there were "splendid trees laden with jewels" (golden apples). The ancient Egyptians had their Hercules. According to Herodotus, he was known several thousand years before the Grecian hero of that name. This the Egyptians affirmed, and that he was _born_ in their country.[75:1] The story of Hercules was known in the Island of Thasos, by the Phenician colony settled there, five centuries before he was known in Greece.[75:2] Fig. No. 4 is from an ancient representation of Hercules in conflict with the lion, taken from Gorio. [Illustration: Fig. No. 4] Another mighty hero was the Grecian Bellerophon. The minstrels sang of the beauty and the great deeds of Bellerophon throughout all the land of Argos. His arm was strong in battle; his feet were swift in the chase. None that were poor and weak and wretched feared the might of Bellerophon. To them the sight of his beautiful form brought only joy and gladness; but the proud and boastful, the slanderer and the robber, dreaded the glance of his keen eye. For a long time he fought the Solymi and the Amazons, until all his enemies shrank from the stroke of his mighty arm, and sought for mercy.[75:3] The second of the principal gods of the Ancient _Scandinavians_ was named Thor, and was no less known than Odin among the Teutonic nations. The Edda calls him expressly the most valiant of the sons of Odin. He was considered the "_defender_" and "_avenger_." He always carried a mallet, which, as often as he discharged it, returned to his hand of itself; he grasped it with gauntlets of iron, and was further possessed of a girdle which had the virtue of renewing his strength as often as was needful. It was with these formidable arms that he overthrew to the ground the monsters and giants, when he was sent by the gods to oppose their enemies. He was represented of gigantic size, and as the stoutest and strongest of the gods.[76:1] Thor was simply the Hercules of the Northern nations. He was the Sun personified.[76:2] Without enumerating them, we can safely say, that there was not a nation of antiquity, from the remotest East to the furthest West, that did not have its mighty hero, and counterpart of Hercules and Samson.[76:3] FOOTNOTES: [62:1] The idea of a woman conceiving, and bearing a son in her old age, seems to have been a Hebrew peculiarity, as a number of their remarkable personages were born, so it is said, of parents well advanced in years, or of a woman who was supposed to have been _barren_. As illustrations, we may mention this case of _Samson_, and that of _Joseph_ being born of Rachel. The beautiful Rachel, who was so much beloved by Jacob, her husband, was barren, and she bore him no sons. This caused grief and discontent on her part, and anger on the part of her husband. In her old age, however, she bore the wonderful child Joseph. (See Genesis, xxx. 1-29.) _Isaac_ was born of a woman (Sarah) who had been barren many years. _An angel appeared to her_ when her lord (Abraham) "was ninety years old and nine," and informed her that she would conceive and bear a son. (See Gen. xvi.) _Samuel_, the "holy man," was also born of a woman (Hannah) who had been barren many years. In grief, she prayed to the Lord for a child, and was finally comforted by receiving her wish. (See 1 Samuel, i. 1-20.) _John the Baptist_ was also a miraculously conceived infant. His mother, Elizabeth, bore him _in her old age_. _An angel also informed her_ and her husband Zachariah, that this event would take place. (See Luke, i. 1-25.) _Mary_, the mother of _Jesus_, was born of a woman (Anna) who was "old and stricken in years," and who had been barren all her life. _An angel appeared to Anna and her husband_ (Joachim), and told them what was about to take place. (See "The Gospel of Mary," Apoc.) Thus we see, that the idea of a wonderful child being born of a woman who had passed the age which nature had destined for her to bear children, and who had been barren all her life, was a favorite one among the Hebrews. The idea that the ancestors of a race lived to a fabulous old age, is also a familiar one among the ancients. Most ancient nations relate in their fables that their ancestors lived to be very old men. For instance; the _Persian_ patriarch Kaiomaras reigned 560 years; Jemshid reigned 300 years; Jahmurash reigned 700 years; Dahâk reigned 1000 years; Feridun reigned 120 years; Manugeher reigned 500 years; Kaikans reigned 150 years; and Bahaman reigned 112 years. (See Dunlap: Son of the Man, p. 155, _note_.) [64:1] Judges, xiv. [65:1] Judges, xv. [66:1] Judges, xvi. [66:2] Perhaps that of Izdubar. See chapter xi. [66:3] Hebrew Mythology, p. 248. [66:4] Manual of Mythology, p. 248. The Age of Fable, p. 200. [67:1] Bulfinch: The Age of Fable, p. 200. [67:2] Murray: Manual of Mythology, p. 249. [67:3] Roman Antiquities, p. 124; and Montfaucon, vol. i. plate cxxvi. [67:4] Murray: Manual of Mythology, p. 249. [67:5] See Ibid. Greek and Italian Mythology, p. 129, and Montfaucon, vol. i. plate cxxv. and cxxvi. [67:6] Manual of Mythology, p. 247. [67:7] "It has many heads, one being immortal, as the storm must constantly supply new clouds while the vapors are driven off by the _Sun_ into space. Hence the story went that although Herakles could burn away its mortal heads, as the _Sun_ burns up the clouds, still he can but hide away the mist or vapor itself, which at its appointed time must again darken the sky." (Cox: Aryan Mytho., vol. ii. p. 48.) [67:8] See Manual of Mytho., p. 250. [68:1] Steinthal: The Legend of Samson, p. 398. See, also, Higgins: Anacalypsis, vol. i. p. 240, and Volney: Researches in Anc't History, p. 42. [68:2] Ibid. [68:3] Quoted by Count de Volney: Researches in Ancient History, p. 42, _note_. [68:4] Volney: Researches in Ancient History, p. 42. [69:1] See Murray: Manual of Mythology, p. 251. "The slaughter of the Centaurs by Hercules is the conquest and dispersion of the vapors by the _Sun_ as he rises in the heaven." (Cox: Aryan Mythology, vol. ii. p. 47.) [69:2] Murray: Manual of Mythology, p. 257. [69:3] Shamgar also slew six hundred Philistines with an ox goad. (See Judges, iii. 31.) "It is scarcely necessary to say that these weapons are the heritage of all the _Solar_ heroes, that they are found in the hands of Phebus and Herakles, of OEdipus, Achilleus, Philoktetes, of Siguard, Rustem, Indra, Isfendujar, of Telephos, Meleagros, Theseus, Kadmos, Bellerophon, and all other slayers of noxious and fearful things." (Rev. Geo. Cox: Tales of Ancient Greece, p. xxvii.) [69:4] See Volney: Researches in Ancient History, p. 41. Higgins: Anacalypsis, vol. i. p. 239; Montfaucon: L'Antiquité Expliquée, vol. i. p. 213, and Murray: Manual of Mythology, pp. 259-262. It is evident that _Herodotus_, the Grecian historian, was somewhat of a skeptic, for he says: "The Grecians say that 'When Hercules arrived in Egypt, the Egyptians, having crowned him with a garland, led him in procession, as designing to sacrifice him to Jupiter, and that for some time he remained quiet, but when they began the preparatory ceremonies upon him at the altar, he set about defending himself and slew every one of them.' Now, since Hercules was but one, and, besides, a mere man, as they confess, how is it possible that he should slay many thousands?" (Herodotus, book ii. ch. 45). [69:5] Murray: Manual of Mythology, p. 263. [70:1] Volney: Researches in Anc't History, pp. 41, 42. In Bell's "Pantheon of the Gods and Demi-Gods of Antiquity," we read, under the head of _Ammon_ or _Hammon_ (the name of the Egyptian Jupiter, worshiped under the figure of a _Ram_), that: "_Bacchus_ having subdued Asia, and passing with his army through the deserts of Africa, was in great want of water; but Jupiter, his father, assuming the shape of a _Ram_, led him to a fountain, where he refreshed himself and his army; in requital of which favor, Bacchus built there a temple to Jupiter, under the title of _Ammon_." [70:2] Cadiz (ancient Gades), being situated near the _mouth_ of the Mediterranean. The first author who mentions the Pillars of Hercules is Pindar, and he places them there. (Chambers's Encyclo. "Hercules.") [70:3] Volney's Researches, p. 41. See also Tylor: Primitive Culture, vol. i. p. 357. [70:4] See Chambers's Encyclopædia, Art. "Hercules." Cory's Ancient Fragments, p. 36, _note_; and Bulfinch: The Age of Fable, p. 201. [70:5] Chambers's Encyclo., art. "Hercules." [70:6] Vol. i. plate cxxvii. [71:1] Monumental Christianity, p. 399. [71:2] OEd. Jud. p. 360, in Anacalypsis, vol. i. p. 239. [71:3] "Rien de plus connu dans la fable que ses amours avec Omphale et Iole."--L'Antiquité Expliquée, vol. i. p. 224. [71:4] The Legend of Samson, p. 404. [71:5] Vol. i. plate cxxvii. [71:6] "Samson was remarkable for his long hair. The meaning of this trait in the original myth is easy to guess, and appears also from representations of the Sun-god amongst other peoples. _These long hairs are the rays of the Sun._" (Bible for Learners, i. 416.) "The beauty of the sun's rays is signified by the golden locks of Phoibos, _over which no razor has ever passed_; by the flowing hair which streams from the head of Kephalos, and falls over the shoulders of Perseus and Bellerophon." (Cox: Aryan Mytho., vol. i. p. 107.) [72:1] Hebrew Mytho., pp. 137, 138. [72:2] Cox: Aryan Myths, vol. i. p. 84. [72:3] Tales of Ancient Greece, p. xxix. [72:4] The Legend of Samson, p. 408. [72:5] Cox: Aryan Mytho., vol. ii. p. 72. [73:1] The Legend of Samson, p. 406. [73:2] See Higgins: Anacalypsis, vol. i. p. 237. Goldzhier: Hebrew Mythology, p. 22. The Religion of Israel, p. 61. The Bible for Learners, vol. i. p. 418. Volney's Ruins, p. 41, and Stanley: History of the Jewish Church, where he says: "His _name_, which Josephus interprets in the sense of 'strong,' was still more characteristic. He was 'the Sunny'--the bright and beaming, though wayward, likeness of the great luminary." [73:3] Higgins: Anacalypsis, vol. i. p. 237, and Volney's Researches, p. 43, _note_. [73:4] See chapter ii. [73:5] The Religion of Israel, p. 61. "The yellow hair of Apollo was a symbol of the solar rays." (Inman: Ancient Faiths, vol. ii. p. 679.) [73:6] Bible for Learners, vol. i. p. 414. [73:7] Ibid. p. 422. [73:8] Williams' Hinduism, pp. 108 and 167. [74:1] Vol. v. p. 270. [74:2] Maurice: Indian Antiquities, vol. ii. p. 155. [74:3] Steinthal: The Legend of Samson, p. 386. [74:4] Buckley: Cities of the World, 41, 42. [74:5] Smith: Assyrian Discoveries, p. 167, and Chaldean Account of Genesis, p. 174. [74:6] Assyrian Discoveries, p. 205, and Chaldean Account of Genesis, p. 174. [74:7] Chaldean Account of Genesis, p. 310. [74:8] Ibid. pp. 193, 194, 174. [75:1] See Tacitus: Annals, book ii. ch. lix. [75:2] Knight: Anct. Art and Mytho., p. 92. [75:3] See Tales of Ancient Greece, p. 153. [76:1] See Mallet's Northern Antiquities, pp. 94, 417, and 514. [76:2] See Cox: Aryan Mythology. [76:3] See vol. i. of Aryan Mythology, by Rev. G. W. Cox. "Besides the fabulous Hercules, the son of Jupiter and Alcmena, there was, in ancient times, no warlike nation who did not boast of its own particular Hercules." (Arthur Murphy, Translator of Tacitus.)