CHAPTER XII 
Of the Bloody Sacrifice : and Matters Cognate. 
It is necessary for us to consider carefully the problems con- 
necœd with the bloody sacrifice, for this question is indeed 
traditionally important in Magick. Nigh ail ancient Magick 
revolves around this matter. In particular ail the Osirian 
religions — the rites of the Dying God — refer to this, The 
slaying of Osiris and Adonis ; the mutilation of Attis; the cuits 
of Mexico and Peruj the story of Hercules or Melcarth; the 
legends of Dionysus and of Mithra, are ail connected with this 
one idea. In the Hebrew religion we find the same thing 
inculcated. The first ethical lesson in the Bible is that the only 
sacrifice pleasing to the Lord is the sacrifice of bloodj Abel, who 
made this, finding favour with the Lord, while Cain, who offered 
cabbages, was rather naturally considered a cheap sport. The 
idea recurs again and again. We hâve the sacrifice of the Passover, 
following on the story of Abraham s being commanded to sacrifice 
his firstborn son, with the idea of the substitution of animal for 
human life. The annual ceremony of the two goats carries out 
this in perpetuity. And we see again the domination of this idea 
in the romance of Esther, where Haman and Mordecai are the 
two goats or gods; and ultimately in the présentation of the rite 
of Purim in Palestine, where Jésus and Barabbas happened to be 
the Goats in that particular year of which we hear so much, without 
agreement on the date. 
This subject must be studied in the “Golden Bough”, where 
it is most learnedly set forth by Dr. J. G. Frazer. 
Enough has now been said to show that the bloody sacrifice has 
from time immémorial been the most considered part of Magick. 
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