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A new edition of Toland's History of the druids: - Free History Ebooks

A new edition of Toland's History of the druids: - Free History Ebooks

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Arabians, Greecs, or Romans ;OF THE DRUIDS. 149at least many areai)t not to believe it <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir Irish <strong>of</strong>spring: yet'tiscertain, that all those nations meant by <strong>the</strong>sestones withont statnes, <strong>the</strong> eternal stability andpoiver <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Deity*; and that he coii'd not be representedby any similitude, nor under any figureAvhatsoever.For <strong>the</strong> numberless figures, which,notwithstanding this doctrine, <strong>the</strong>y^had (some <strong>of</strong>'em very ingenious, and some very fantastical) wereonely emblematical or enigmatical symbols <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>divine attributes and operations, but not <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>divine essence. Now as such symbols in differentplaces were different, so <strong>the</strong>y were <strong>of</strong>ten confoundedtoge<strong>the</strong>r, and mistaken for each o<strong>the</strong>r.Nor do I doubt, but in this manner <strong>the</strong> numerousearns in Gaule and Britain induc'd <strong>the</strong> Romansto believe, that Mercury was <strong>the</strong>ir chief God f,becavise among <strong>the</strong>mselves he had such heaps, asI show'd above; whereas <strong>the</strong> Celtic heaps wereall dedicated to JBelenus, or <strong>the</strong> sun.The Romanhistorians in particular are <strong>of</strong>ten misled by likenesses,as has been already, and willnot seldomagain, be shown in our history; especially withregard to <strong>the</strong> Gods, said to have been worshipedby <strong>the</strong> Gauls. Thus some modern critics haveforg'd <strong>new</strong> Gods, out <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> sepulchral inscriptions<strong>of</strong> Gallic heroes. I shall say no more <strong>of</strong> such* To avEixuvi^ov Toy QiOv Kett jUOvi/txov. Jd. Ibid.t Deum maxime Mercurium colanf. IIujus sunt pluriraasimulacra, &c. Cces, de bello Gallko, lib. 6,

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