XLIX] Studies im primitive Greek religion. 59 



related to populär beliefs, are of a certain iiiterest in this re- 

 spect. Many of these philosophers not only recognised the 

 fact that among the heavenly bodies the moon is nearest to 

 earth^); some of them even taaght that it is an ,,earthy" 

 (yewÖTi) body and nourished b}^ the earth 2), or that it „shines 

 with a false light", its light being borrowed from the sun ^). 

 — As a matter of fact the moon's connection with earth seemed 

 obvious; it disappeared into the bowels of the earth at the 

 break of day, and from thence it rose again when night 

 approached. This being the case we can understand why at 

 the crossroads especially, places that lead down to the under 

 world and that everybody was obliged to pass, the moon- 

 deity came to play on important part. Here „Hecate" passed 

 up and down, being thereby, owing to the remarkable attract- 

 ive power which the Greeks like all primitive peoples ascribed 

 to the moon *), likely to drag down with her to the nether 

 world all things and persons who came into contact with her 

 demonian rays. Hence the importance attached by custom to 

 the transportation of evil and unclean matters to the crossroads 

 at times when the moon was in the wane. We also under- 



^) Cf Diog. Laert. IX, 7, 3: dvai de rov i)Xiov xvy.kov e^vnazov, töv 

 de Tf/j aeXifvi]; ngooyeiuTarov . . . (Leucippus). Ibid. VII, 145 (Xeno). 



-) Stob. I, 26: yeådrf TrfV (Tth^vr^v å7Te(pi]vaT0 (Thales). Ibid. VII, 145 

 TQécpea&ai de rå tujivga tavxa . . . ti)v de aeXi^vi^v ex STorlficov iååzcov, åeQO- 

 [iiyfi rvyxåvovaav y.a\ ^QÖoytiov ovoav . . . yeojöeorénm' de T7/r (reXYjvijv dre 

 xal ^(joayeiorénav ovaav (Xeno). 



*) Diog. Laert. II, 1, 2 : ti)v de aeXi]vi}v ^levdocpai^i, xal åjtö i)Xiov 

 (pmri^ea&ai (Auaximander) Ibid. VII, 145: ... Tr)v de oeXifvi^v ovx 7dtov e/ew 

 q)cös, åXXä sxaQ' i)Xlov Åan^åveiv éjttXa[inofitvi]v (Xeno). Cf. Ibid. IX, 7, 3 

 (Leucippus). 



^) Tlie general prevailing idea was that the waning moon caused things 

 to decrease and decay whereas the waxing moon caused them to grow and 

 increase. Cf. Plin. Hist. Nat. II, 102 : Quo vera conjectatio existit, haud frustra 

 spiritus sidas lunam existimari. Hoc esse quod terras saturat, accedensque 

 corpora impleat, abscedens inaniat. — That the moon effects the menstruation 

 of women ([ifives, xarafi-qvia), which seemed to coincide with the its changes 

 (Arist. Hist. anim. VII, 2, 1), that it promotes the development of the foetus; 

 and that it sometimes causes madness or „lunacy", was a common idea among 

 the Greeks as among many other peoples. See more fully on these ideas 

 Pauly-Wissowa, Realencydopädie der dassischen Alterthnmswissenschnft, s. v. 

 'Aberglaube', pp. 39, 40. 



