390 A MISSION TO VITI. 



images were ever made of Degei, nor indeed any other 

 god, it would have been very easy to strip the concep- 

 tion of him of any heathen superstitions. Degei, like 

 Jupiter, had a bird, and is supposed to be enshrined in 

 a serpent, the world-wide symbol of eternity, lying 

 coiled up in a cave of Na Vatu, a mountain on the 

 Rakiraki coast of Viti Levu, indicating his turning about 

 by occasional shocks of earthquakes. (Compare p. 223). 

 Some traditions represent him with the head and part 

 of the body of a serpent, the rest of his form being 

 stone, emblematic of everlasting and unchangeable du- 

 ration ; in fact, Degei seems to be the personification 

 of eternal existence. 



Besides Degei, there is a host of inferior gods, but 

 their rank is not easily ascertained, as each district con- 

 tends for the superiority of the deity it has adopted and 

 specially worships. Tokairabe and Tui Lakeba Radi- 

 nadina seem to stand next to Degei ; they are his sons, 

 and act as mediators in the transmission of prayers 

 to their father. Rokomoutu is a son of Degei's sister, 

 and insisted upon being born from her elbow. Some 

 of the gods find employment in Bulu, some on earth, 

 and the latter are the tutelary deities of whole tribes 

 or individuals; thus Rokova and Rokola are invoked 

 by the carpenters, Roko Voua and Vosavakadra by the 

 fishermen, whilst every chief has a god in whom he 

 puts his special trust. 



One of the most universally known gods is Ratu mai 

 Bulu; he is the Ceres of Fiji, and comes once a year 

 from Bulu to cause the various fruit-trees to blossom 

 and yield fruit. During his stay it is forbidden to do 



