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Internet Book of Shadows, (Various Authors), [1999], at sacred-texts.com


 
 
                               Lupercalia 
                                She-Wolf
 
 Lupercalia ia a Roman ritual of purification and fertility dating from
 such an ancient time that even the Romans of the first century B.C.E.
 had forgotten its origin and to which Gods it was dedicated and even the
 meaning of some of its symbolism. (Contrary to Z Budapest's statements,
 it was not known whether it was to Faunus and in fact I think it may
 have been sacred to the more ancient founding Goddess, Rumina, the
 She-Wolf of Rome.)  Central to the ritual is the lustration (light
 flogging) with a goat skin scourge (see, Gardner didn't
 invent it).  This was often accompanied by much rowdiness and horse-pla-
 y.  The purpose was the purification of the people from curses, bad luck
 and infertility.  The ritual is performed on February 15.  The name of
 the month comes from the februa, anything used in purifying including
 wool (used for cleaning), brooms, pine boughs (which make the air sweet
 and pure), etc.
 
 The rite began in the cave of the She-Wolf in the city of Rome where
 legend had it that the founders of the city, Romulus and Remus, had been
 suckled by the wolf before they were found by a shepherd.  The sacred
 fig tree grew in front of the cave.  Vestals brought to the site of the
 sacrifice the sacred cakes made from the first ears of the last years
 grain harvest.  Two naked young men presided over the sacrifice of a dog
 and a goat.  With the bloody knife, their foreheads were smeared with
 blood, then wiped clean with wool dipped in milk.  The young men laughed
 and girded themselves in the skin of the sacrificed goat.   Much
 feasting followed.  Finally, using strips of the goat skin, the young
 men ran, each leading a group of priests, around the base of the hills
 of Rome, around the ancient sacred boundary of the old city called the
 pomarium.  During this run, the women of the city would vie for the
 opportunity to be scourged by the young men as they ran by, some baring
 their flesh to get the best results of the fertility blessing (you can
 see why the Christian church tried so hard to get this ritual banned,
 but it was so popular that it continued for quite some time under the
 new regime.)
 
 Except for the intrusion of foreign cults, this was the only Roman
 ritual where a goat was sacrificed.  Dogs were only offered to Robigus
 (a guardian associated with crops), the Lares Praestites (the guardians
 of community), and Mana Genata (ancestral guardians).
 
 Because of the cave, the fig tree, the milk, and such, I suspect the
 very oldest forms of this rite honored a Goddess.  Unlike some of the
 other Roman rites like the October Horse sacrifice, there is no other
 Indo-European equivalent in Vedic, Scandinavian, Irish, or Indo-Iranian
 traditions.
 
 With modifications, the Temple of Pomona performed Lupercalias and has
 a great time.
 ................................................................................
 2604
 


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