Acting under this
persuasion, the Algonkin women who desired to become mothers, flocked to
the couch of those about to die, in hope that the vital principle, as it
passed from the body, would enter theirs, and fertilize their sterile
wombs; and when, among the Seminoles of Florida, a mother died in
childbirth, the infant was held over her face to receive her parting
spirit, and thus acquire strength and knowledge for its future
use.[253-1] So among the Tahkalis, the priest is accustomed to lay his
hand on the head of the nearest relative of the deceased, and to blow
into him the soul of the departed, which is supposed to come to life in
his next child.[253-2] Probably, with a reference to the current
tradition that ascribes the origin of man to the earth, and likens his
life to that of the plant, the Mexicans were accustomed to say that at
one time all men have been stones, and that at last they would all
return to stones;[253-3] and, acting literally on this conviction, they
interred with the bones of the dead a small green stone, which was
called the principle of life.
Pages:
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412