To spare their
king, the Mesopotamians used the idea of a "mock" king. A criminal was
chosen and dressed in royal clothes. He was given all the respect and
privileges of a real king. At the end of the celebration the "mock" king
was stripped of the royal clothes and slain, sparing the life of the real
king.
The
Persians and the Babylonians celebrated a similar festival called the
Sacaea. Part of that celebration included the exchanging of places, the
slaves would become the masters and the masters were to obey.
Early
Europeans believed in evil spirits, witches, ghosts and trolls. As the
Winter Solstice approached, with its long cold nights and short days, many
people feared the sun would not return. Special rituals and celebrations
were held to welcome back the sun.
In
Scandinavia during the winter months the sun would disappear for many
days. After thirty-five days scouts would be sent to the mountain tops to
look for the return of the sun. When the first light was seen the scouts
would return with the good news. A great festival would be held, called
the Yuletide, and a special feast would be served around a fire burning
with the Yule log. Great bonfires would also be lit to celebrate the
return of the sun. In some areas people would tie apples to branches of
trees to remind themselves that spring and summer would return |