PURIFICATION. 149 



Do not let the form deceive you ; do not look upon this as an arti- 

 ficial work, fabricated by a priestly hand. Under the strange com- 

 plexity and burdensome tyranny of the sacerdotal form, I see two 

 sentiments everywhere revealing themselves in a human and pathetic 

 manner : 



The effort to save the loved soul from the shipwreck of death ; 



The tender brotherhood of man and nature, the religious sympathy 

 for the dumb animal as the divine instrument in the protection of 

 human life. 



The instinct of antiquity perceived what observation and science de- 

 clare: that the Bird is the agent of the grand universal transition, and 

 of purification the wholesome accelerator of the interchange of sub- 

 stances. Especially in burning countries, where every delay is a peril, 

 he is, as Egypt said, the barque of safety which receives the dead spoil, 

 and causes it to re-enter the domain of life and the world of purity. 



The fond and grateful Egyptian soul has recognized these benefits, 

 and wishes for no happiness which it cannot share with the animals, 

 its benefactors. It does not desire to be saved alone. It endeavours 

 to associate them in its immortality. It wills that the sacred bird 

 accompany it to the sombre realm, as if to bear it on its wings. 



