The Egyptians called Saturn Set. At first Set was invoked for all good things. Later all evil was ascribed to him and his images were all destroyed. Set cruelly murdered his highly favoured brother, Osiris. The Tradition of the Old Testament portrayed this earthy Spirit as Eve, and as the evil Cain who murdered his more blessed brother, Abel. Abel offers the supreme sacrifice of a lamb, while Cain is a vindictive vegetarian, who believes himself holier than his brother. The Greeks called this planet-god Chronos, Time. He is still feared by the material-minded as Old Father Time, still the implacable devourer of his children, reaping the ripe harvest with his Traditional sickle. Revealing different faces of this all-pervading spirit, the Greeks worshipped Pan, the Goat, the spirit of nature, and golden Ceres, the goddess of cereals, queen of the harvest and the horn of plenty. Pan was the model for the Christian Devil. |
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