James George Frazer opens his expansive comparative study of religion and mythology by examining the persistent rule of the Arician priesthood at Nemi, where a priest held office until slain by his successor who had plucked the golden bough. Frazer posits that this bizarre survival cannot be understood through classical antiquity alone, but requires investigating the crude philosophy of primitive humanity, arguing that the modern European peasant preserves archaic beliefs older than written literature. Central to this primitive worldview is sympathetic magic, based on the principle that like produces like, through which early man attempted to control the elements, sunshine, rain, and the fertility of crops without the intervention of personal deities. Before gods were conceived as transcendent beings, humans believed they shared in this supernatural power, leading directly to the widespread institution of incarnate gods and divine kings whose very lives were thought to regulate the order of nature.
Frazer documents how these human deities were held responsible for natural calamities, resulting in their deposition or execution when famines occurred, while simultaneously surrounding them with elaborate taboos to preserve their vital force. The analysis delves into the nature of the soul, viewed by primitive minds as a detachable entity susceptible to capture by ghosts, demons, or sorcerers, requiring complex rituals and precautions to prevent its permanent absence. By systematically comparing the taboos governing kings, priests, and sacred objects with the folk customs of modern European peasantry regarding tree-worship and spring festivals, Frazer demonstrates that the sacred grove of Nemi and its desperate priesthood belong to a universal stage of religious evolution where vegetation spirits were embodied in living men.
