Page:The Mythology of All Races Vol 3 (Celtic and Slavic).djvu/471

 CHAPTER I WORSHIP OF THE GODS ACRIFICES of animals, grain, and food were offered to the gods and genii; and in time of war captives were slaughtered in their honour,  $1$ These sacrifices were performed by fathers of families, by chieftains of clans, and by princes; but the existence of a special and highly developed priesthood is proved only among the Elbe Slavs, where the head priest received the same honour as the king himself. $2$

The Elbe Slavs worshipped their idols  $3$ in temples adorned with great taste and splendour;   $4$ and In addition to this, trees and groves were consecrated to the gods, both among the Elbe Slavs and among the Russians. $5$ Such a svatobor, for example, was on the island of Rügen;  $6$ while between Stargard and Lübeck stretched a great oak grove, guarded by a wooden fence provided with two gates. This grove was full of idols in whose honour sacrifices and feasts were held; and whoever concealed himself there when threatened by death was considered inviolable, being under the protection of the gods. $7$ In Bohemia it was not until 1092, in the reign of Bfetislav II, that the sacred groves, held in high honour by the people, were hewn down and burned. $8$ The pagan Russians, so far as historical evidence goes, did not build special temples for their gods, but erected their idols in the open on slopes and hills. $9$ Besides trees and groves, sanctity also attached to mountains,  $10$ as well as to rivers and fountains. $11$

Among the annual festivals, that of Svantovit in Arkona, which reminds us of the autumnal dziadys,  $12$ is described at considerable length,   $13$ whereas the other feasts, which in the