The Belief in Immortality and the Worship of the Dead Part 39

Truly a religious revival of a remarkable kind!

[Sidenote: Description of the _Nanga_ or sacred enclosure of stones.]

To conclude this part of my subject I will briefly describe the construction of a _Nanga_ or sacred stone enclosure, as it used to exist in Fiji. At the present day only ruins of these structures are to be seen, but by an observation of the ruins and a comparison of the traditions which still survive among the natives on the subject it is possible to reconstruct one of them with a fair degree of exactness. A _Nanga_ has been described as an open-air temple, and the description is just. It consisted of a rough parallelogram enclosed by flat stones set upright and embedded endwise in the earth. The length of the enclosure thus formed was about one hundred feet and its breadth about fifty feet.

The upright stones which form the outer walls are from eighteen inches to three feet high, but as they do not always touch they may be described as alignments rather than walls. The long walls or alignments run east and west, the short ones north and south; but the orientation is not very exact. At the eastern end are two pyramidal heaps of stones, about five feet high, with square sloping sides and flat tops. The narrow pa.s.sage between them is the main entrance into the sacred enclosure. Internally the structure was divided into three separate enclosures or compartments by two cross-walls of stone running north and south. These compartments, taking them from east to west, were called respectively the Little Nanga, the Great Nanga, and the Sacred Nanga or Holy of Holies (_Nanga tambu-tambu_). The part.i.tion walls between them were built solid of stones, with battering sides, to a height of five feet, and in the middle of each there was an opening to allow the worshippers to pa.s.s from one compartment to another. Trees, such as the candlenut and the red-leaved dracaena, and odoriferous shrubs were planted round the enclosure; and outside of it, to the west of the Holy of Holies, was a bell-roofed hut called _Vale tambu_, the Sacred House or Temple. The sacred _kava_ bowl stood in the Holy of Holies.[697] It is said that when the two traditionary founders of the _Nanga_ in Fiji were about to erect the first structure of that name in their new home, the chief priest poured a libation of _kava_ to the ancestral G.o.ds, "and, calling upon those who died long, long ago by name, he prayed that the people of the tribe, both old and young, might live before them."[698]

[Sidenote: Comparison of the _Nanga_ with the cromlechs and other megalithic monuments of Europe.]

The sacred enclosures of stones which I have described have been compared to the alignments of stones at Carnac in Brittany and Merivale on Dartmoor, and it has been suggested that in the olden time these ancient European monuments may have witnessed religious rites like those which were till lately performed in the rude open-air temples of Fiji.[699] If there is any truth in the suggestion, which I mention for what it is worth, it would furnish another argument in favour of the view that our European cromlechs and other megalithic monuments were erected specially for the worship of the dead. The mortuary character of Stonehenge, for example, is at least suggested by the burial mounds which cl.u.s.ter thick around and within sight of it; about three hundred such tombs have been counted within a radius of three miles, while the rest of the country in the neighbourhood is comparatively free from them.[700]

[Footnote 678: Th. Williams, _Fiji and the Fijians_, Second Edition (London, 1860), i. 242 _sq._]

[Footnote 679: Charles Wilkes, _Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition_, New Edition (New York, 1851), iii. 86.]

[Footnote 680: John Jackson's Narrative, in Capt. J. E. Erskine's _Journal of a Cruise among the Islands of the Western Pacific_ (London, 1853), pp. 475-477. The narrator, John Jackson, was an English seaman who resided alone among the Fijians for nearly two years and learned their language.]

[Footnote 681: Ch. Wilkes, _op. cit._ iii. 96.]

[Footnote 682: _United States Exploring Expedition, Ethnology and Philology_, by H. Hale (Philadelphia, 1846), p. 65. Compare Capt. J. E.

Erskine, _op. cit._ p. 248: "It would also seem that a belief in the resurrection of the body, in the exact condition in which it leaves the world, is one of the causes that induce, in many instances, a desire for death in the vigour of manhood, rather than in the decrepitude of old age"; Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 183: "The heathen notion is, that, as they die, such will their condition be in another world; hence their desire to escape extreme infirmity."]

[Footnote 683: Ch. Wilkes, _op. cit._ iii. 94 _sq._ Compare Th.

Williams, _Fiji and the Fijians_, i. 183-186; Lorimer Fison, _Tales from Old Fiji_ (London, 1904), pp. xxv. _sq._]

[Footnote 684: Ch. Wilkes, _op. cit._ iii. 96. Compare Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 188 _sq._, 193 _sqq._, 200-202; Lorimer Fison, _op. cit._ pp. xxv. _sq._]

[Footnote 685: Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 200.]

[Footnote 686: Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 189; Lorimer Fison, _op.

cit._ p. xvi.]

[Footnote 687: Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 189.]

[Footnote 688: Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 197.]

[Footnote 689: Ch. Wilkes, _op. cit._ iii. 100. Williams also says (_op.

cit._ i. 167) that the proper time for performing the rite of circ.u.mcision was after the death of a chief, and he tells us that "many rude games attend it. Blindfolded youths strike at thin vessels of water hung from the branch of a tree. At Lakemba, the men arm themselves with branches of the cocoa-nut, and carry on a sham fight. At Ono, they wrestle. At Mbau, they fillip small stones from the end of a bamboo with sufficient force to make the person hit wince again. On Vanua Levu, there is a mock siege."]

[Footnote 690: Th. Williams, _op. cit._ i. 198.]

[Footnote 691: Rev. Lorimer Fison, "The Nanga, or Sacred Stone Enclosure, of Wainimala, Fiji," _Journal of the Anthropological Inst.i.tute_, xiv. (1885) pp. 27 _sq._ On the other hand Mr. Basil Thomson's enquiries, made at a later date, did not confirm Mr. Fison's statement that the rite of circ.u.mcision was practised as a propitiation to recover a chief from sickness. "I was a.s.sured," he says, "on the contrary, that while offerings were certainly made in the _Nanga_ for the recovery of the sick, every youth was circ.u.mcised as a matter of routine, and that the rite was in no way connected with sacrifice for the sick" (Basil Thomson, _The Fijians_, pp. 156 _sq._). However, Mr.

Fison was a very careful and accurate enquirer, and his testimony is not to be lightly set aside.]

[Footnote 692: Rev. Lorimer Fison, "The Nanga, or Sacred Stone Enclosure, of Wainimala, Fiji," _Journal of the Anthropological Inst.i.tute_, xiv. (1885) p. 26. Compare Basil Thomson, _The Fijians_, p.

147: "The _Nanga_ was the 'bed' of the Ancestors, that is, the spot where their descendants might hold communion with them; the _Mbaki_ were the rites celebrated in the _Nanga_, whether of initiating the youths, or of presenting the first-fruits, or of recovering the sick, or of winning charms against wounds in battle."]

[Footnote 693: Rev. Lorimer Fison, _op. cit._ p. 27.]

[Footnote 694: Rev. Lorimer Fison, "The Nanga, or Sacred Stone Enclosure, of Wainimala, Fiji," _Journal of the Anthropological Inst.i.tute_, xiv. (1885) pp. 14-26. The _Nanga_ and its rites have also been described by Mr. A. B. Joske ("The Nanga of Viti-levu,"

_Internationales Archiv fur Ethnographie_, ii. (1889) pp. 254-266), and Mr. Basil Thomson (_The Fijians_, pp. 146-156). As to the interval between the initiatory ceremonies Mr. Fison tells us that it was normally two years, but he adds: "This period, however, is not necessarily restricted to two years. There are always a number of youths who are growing to the proper age, and the length of the interval depends upon the decision of the elders. Whenever they judge that there is a sufficient number of youths ready for admission, a _Nanga_ is appointed to be held; and thus the interval may be longer or shorter, according to the supply of novices" (_op. cit._ p. 19). According to Mr.

Basil Thomson the rites were celebrated annually. Mr. Fison's evidence as to the gross license which prevailed between the s.e.xes after the admission of the women to the sacred enclosure is confirmed by Mr. Basil Thomson, who says, amongst other things, that "a native of Mbau, who lived for some years near the _Nanga_, a.s.sured me that the visit of the women to the _Nanga_ resulted in temporary promiscuity; all tabus were defied, and relations who could not speak to one another by customary law committed incest" (_op. cit._ p. 154).]

[Footnote 695: Rev. Lorimer Fison, "The Nanga, or Sacred Stone Enclosure, of Wainimala, Fiji," _Journal of the Anthropological Inst.i.tute_, xiv. (1885) pp. 14 _sqq._; Basil Thomson, _The Fijians_, pp.

147, 149.]

[Footnote 696: Rev. Lorimer Fison, _op. cit._ p. 30.]

[Footnote 697: Rev. Lorimer Fison, _op. cit._ pp. 15, 17, with Plate I.; Basil Thomson, _The Fijians_, pp. 147 _sq._ Mr. Fison had not seen a _Nanga_; his description is based on information received from natives.

Mr. Basil Thomson visited several of these structures and found them so alike that one description would serve for all. He speaks of only two inner compartments, which he calls the Holy of Holies (_Nanga tambu-tambu_) and the Middle Nanga (_Loma ni Nanga_), but the latter name appears to imply a third compartment, which is explicitly mentioned and named by Mr. Fison. The bell-shaped hut or temple to the west of the sacred enclosure is not noticed by Mr. Thomson.]

[Footnote 698: Rev. Lorimer Fison, _op. cit._ p. 17.]

[Footnote 699: Basil Thomson, _The Fijians_, p. 147.]

[Footnote 700: As to these monuments see Sir John Lubbock (Lord Avebury), _Prehistoric Times_, Fifth Edition (London, 1890), p. 127.]

LECTURE XX

THE BELIEF IN IMMORTALITY AMONG THE NATIVES OF EASTERN MELANESIA (FIJI) (_concluded_)

[Sidenote: Worship of ancestors in Fiji.]

In the last lecture I described the rites of ancestor worship which in certain parts of Fiji used to be celebrated at the sacred enclosures of stones known as _Nangas_. But the worship of ancestral spirits was by no means confined to the comparatively small area in Fiji where such sacred enclosures were erected, nor were these open-air temples the only structures where the homage of the living was paid to the dead. On the contrary we are told by one who knew the Fijians in the old heathen days that among them "as soon as beloved parents expire, they take their place amongst the family G.o.ds. _Bures_, or temples, are erected to their memory, and offerings deposited either on their graves or on rudely constructed altars--mere stages, in the form of tables, the legs of which are driven into the ground, and the top of which is covered with pieces of native cloth. The construction of these altars is identical with that observed by Turner in Tanna, and only differs in its inferior finish from the altars formerly erected in Tahiti and the adjacent islands. The offerings, consisting of the choicest articles of food, are left exposed to wind and weather, and firmly believed by the ma.s.s of Fijians to be consumed by the spirits of departed friends and relations; but, if not eaten by animals, they are often stolen by the more enlightened cla.s.s of their countrymen, and even some of the foreigners do not disdain occasionally to help themselves freely to them. However, it is not only on tombs or on altars that offerings are made; often, when the natives eat or drink anything, they throw portions of it away, stating them to be for their departed ancestors. I remember ordering a young chief to empty a bowl containing _kava_, which he did, muttering to himself, 'There, father, is some _kava_ for you. Protect me from illness or breaking any of my limbs whilst in the mountains.'"[701]

[Sidenote: Fijian notion of divinity. Two cla.s.ses of G.o.ds, namely, G.o.ds strictly so called, and deified men.]

"The native word expressive of divinity is _kalou_, which, while used to denote the people's highest notion of a G.o.d, is also constantly heard as a qualificative of any thing great or marvellous, or, according to Hazlewood's Dictionary, 'anything superlative, whether good or bad.'...

Often the word sinks into a mere exclamation, or becomes an expression of flattery. 'You are a _kalou_!' or, 'Your countrymen are G.o.ds!' is often uttered by the natives, when hearing of the triumphs of art among civilized nations."[702] The Fijians distinguished two cla.s.ses of G.o.ds: first, _kalou vu_, literally "Root-G.o.ds," that is, G.o.ds strictly so called, and second, _kalou yalo_, literally, "Soul-G.o.ds," that is, deified mortals. G.o.ds of the first cla.s.s were supposed to be absolutely eternal; G.o.ds of the second cla.s.s, though raised far above mere humanity, were thought nevertheless to be subject to human pa.s.sions and wants, to accidents, and even to death. These latter were the spirits of departed chiefs, heroes, and friends; admission into their number was easy, and any one might secure his own apotheosis who could ensure the services of some one to act as his representative and priest after his death.[703] However, though the Fijians admitted the distinction between the two cla.s.ses of G.o.ds in theory, they would seem to have confused them in practice. Thus we are informed by an early authority that "they have superior and inferior G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses, more general and local deities, and, were it not an obvious contradiction, we should say they have G.o.ds _human_, and G.o.ds _divine_; for they have some G.o.ds who were G.o.ds originally, and some who were originally men. It is impossible to ascertain with any degree of probability how many G.o.ds the Fijians have, as any man who can distinguish himself in murdering his fellow-men may certainly secure to himself deification after death. Their friends are also sometimes deified and invoked. I have heard them invoke their friends who have been drowned at sea. I need not advert to the absurdity of praying to those who could not save themselves from a watery grave.

Tuikilakila, the chief of Somosomo, offered Mr. Hunt a preferment of this sort. 'If you die first,' said he, 'I shall make you my G.o.d.' In fact, there appears to be no certain line of demarcation between departed spirits and G.o.ds, nor between G.o.ds and living men, for many of the priests and old chiefs are considered as sacred persons, and not a few of them will also claim to themselves the right of divinity. 'I am a G.o.d,' Tuikilakila would sometimes say; and he believed it too. They were not merely the words of his lips; he believed he was something above a mere man."[704]

Writers on Fiji have given us lists of some of the princ.i.p.al G.o.ds of the first cla.s.s,[705] who were supposed never to have been men; but in their account of the religious ritual they do not distinguish between the worship which was paid to such deities and that which was paid to deified men. Accordingly we may infer that the ritual was practically the same, and in the sequel I shall a.s.sume that what is told us of the worship of G.o.ds in general holds good of the worship of deified men in particular.

[Sidenote: The Fijian temple (_bure_).]

Every Fijian town had at least one _bure_ or temple, many of them had several. Significantly enough the spot where a chief had been killed was sometimes chosen for the site of a temple. The structure of these edifices was somewhat peculiar. Each of them was built on the top of a mound, which was raised to the height of from three to twenty feet above the ground and faced on its sloping sides with dry rubble-work of stone.

The ascent to the temple was by a thick plank, the upper surface of which was cut into notched steps. The proportions of the sacred edifice itself were inelegant, if not uncouth, its height being nearly twice as great as its breadth at the base. The roof was high-pitched; the ridge-pole was covered with white sh.e.l.ls (_Ovula cypraea_) and projected three or four feet at each end. For the most part each temple had two doors and a fire-place in the centre. From some temples it was not lawful to throw out the ashes, however much they might acc.u.mulate, until the end of the year, which fell in November. The furniture consisted of a few boxes, mats, several large clay jars, and many drinking vessels. A temple might also contain images, which, though highly esteemed as ornaments and held sacred, were not worshipped as idols. From the roof depended a long piece of white bark-cloth; it was carried down the angle so as to hang before the corner-post and lie on the floor. This cloth formed the path down which the G.o.d was believed to pa.s.s in order to enter and inspire his priest. It marked the holy place which few but he dared to approach. However, the temples were by no means dedicated exclusively to the use of religion. Each of them served also as a council-chamber and town-hall; there the chiefs lounged for hours together; there strangers were entertained; and there the head persons of the village might even sleep.[706] In some parts of Viti Levu the dead were sometimes buried in the temples, "that the wind might not disturb, nor the rain fall upon them," and in order that the living might have the satisfaction of lying near their departed friends. A child of high rank having died under the charge of the queen of Somosomo, the little body was placed in a box and hung from the tie-beam of the princ.i.p.al temple. For some months afterwards the daintiest food was brought daily to the dead child, the bearers approaching with the utmost respect and clapping their hands when the ghost was thought to have finished his meal just as a chiefs retainers used to do when he had done eating.[707]

[Sidenote: Worship at the temples.]

Temples were often unoccupied for months and allowed to fall into ruins, until the chief had some request to make to the G.o.d, when the necessary repairs were first carried out. No regular worship was maintained, no habitual reverence was displayed at the shrines. The principle of fear, we are told, seemed to be the only motive of religious observances, and it was artfully fomented by the priests, through whom alone the people had access to the G.o.ds when they desired to supplicate the favour of the divine beings. The prayers were naturally accompanied by offerings, which in matters of importance comprised large quant.i.ties of food, together with whales' teeth; in lesser affairs a tooth, club, mat, or spear sufficed. Of the food brought by the worshippers part was dedicated to the G.o.d, but as usual he only ate the soul of it, the substance being consumed by the priest and old men; the remainder furnished a feast of which all might partake.[708]

[Sidenote: The priests.]

The office of priest (_mbete_, _bete_) was usually hereditary, but when a priest died without male heirs a cunning fellow, ambitious of enjoying the sacred character and of living in idleness, would sometimes simulate the convulsive frenzy, which pa.s.sed for a symptom of inspiration, and if he succeeded in the imposture would be inducted into the vacant benefice. Every chief had his priest, with whom he usually lived on a very good footing, the two playing into each other's hands and working the oracle for their mutual benefit. The people were grossly superst.i.tious, and there were few of their affairs in which the priest had not a hand. His influence over them was great. In his own district he pa.s.sed for the representative of the deity; indeed, according to an early missionary, the natives seldom distinguished the idea of the G.o.d from that of his minister, who was viewed by them with a reverence that almost amounted to deification.[709]