50 Rafael Karsten. [N:o 1 



In his statement concerning winds in early Greek religion ^) 

 Professor Gruppe has been equally iinable to bring into view 

 what is characteristic of a primitive manner of thought. The 

 comparatively advanced notion that tiie winds are sent by 

 some of the higher gods, Zeus, Apollo, Athene, and so on, is 

 set forth in the first place, whereas the primitive idea that the 

 winds are themselves living conscious agents is hardly re- 

 cognised at all. In a study on religion the numerous interesting 

 instances of sacrifices performed to the winds, which Greek 

 literature affords, are certainly of much greater importance 

 than all sorts of poetical fancies about winds that have 

 taken the shape of certain animals, horses, stags, gazelles 

 and birds ^), fancies which may be of a certain mythologicals 

 interest but which from a religions point of view are wholly 

 insignificant. 



If Professor Gruppe's book in these as in many other 

 respcets cannot but be called a failure this is to a great extent 

 owing to the erroneous method adopted by him. Gruppe rejects 

 the anthropological method and psychology as a means of 

 understanding religions phenomena. Instead of giving a psy- 

 chological analysis he tries everywhere to assign „historical 

 connection" and foreign infiuence, a ,,borrowing" from other 

 peoples 3). Thus the principal Greek cults are, according to 

 his view, borrowed from the Semites. Professor Gruppe here 

 yields to au error which has been only too common among 

 certain mythologists who, indeed, seem to believe that peoples 

 exchange religions ideas and cults one with another with the 

 same readiness as they exchange objects of trade. In no 

 respect are peoples more conservative and less accessible to 

 foreign infiuence than in matters of religion, and with regard 

 to the beliefs of the Greeks a closer examination certainly 

 shows that they were principally spontaneous creations of the 

 Hellenic mind itself according to the laws which have been at 

 work in religious evolution everywhere. That the uniformity 



') Op. cit. p. 834 sqq. 

 "■') Ibid. p. 834. 



') Gruppe, op. cit. pp. 719—21. Cf. Idem, Die griechischen Culte 

 und Mythen in ihren Beziehungen zu den orientalischen Religionen. 



