FISH AND FAST DAYS 355 



It has long been known that there is a special 

 association of the very ancient and primitive Greek cult 

 of Orpheus, with the much later cult of Christianity. 

 Many of the most important doctrines and practices of 

 the widely spread secret society of the Orpheists closely 

 resemble those of Christianity. Carvings and medals 

 of Orpheus bringing all animals to his feet by his music 

 were, by the earliest Christians, adopted as equally well 

 representing Christ the Good Shepherd. But recent 

 discoveries carry the matter much further. Orpheus is 

 one of the names of a mythical hunter and fisherman of 

 prehistoric times, who taught his people music, and by 

 his magic helped them to successful catches of fish, and 

 to the "netting" of beasts, as well as of fish. His 

 followers adopted the fish as their "totem," or sacred 

 animal, and they represented Orpheus (whether known 

 by that or other names) as the warden of the fishes, a 

 fish-god, and himself a fish " the great fish " and a 

 " fisher of men.' Fishes were kept in his temples and 

 eaten solemnly (at first in the raw condition), in order 

 to transmit to his worshippers his powers. 



In Greece, where the cult of Orpheus was introduced 

 by way of Thrace, he became mixed with, or made a 

 substitute for, Dionysus (the wine-god), and the same 

 legends were told about the one as the other. He and 

 his followers are pictured as wearing a fox's skin 

 (supposed by some to have been originally the skin of 

 a sea-fox or shark), and the fable of the fox and the 

 grapes, and the very ancient story of the fox fishing 

 with his tail, belong to the Orpheus legends. 



Very ancient peoples, earlier than the Greeks of 

 classical times, habitually adopted some animal as their 

 totem and name-god as do many savage races to-day. 



