Dies sanguinis
Dies Sanguinis (Day of Blood), also called Sanguinaria, was a festival held in Ancient Rome on the Spring Equinox. Due to discrepancies in different calendar systems, this may be reflected as anytime between March 21 and 25. Festivities for the god Attis were celebrated from 15 to 28 March.[1]
Order of festivities[]
Following two days of mourning for the annual death of the god Attis, the Day of Blood arrived. On this day the galli, priests of the goddess Cybele, carried out a ritual of self-flagellation, whipping themselves until they bled. Some are also said to have castrated themselves. The Day of Blood was followed by a Day of Joy and Relaxation (Hilaria and Requietio) to celebrate Attis' resurrection. This was followed by a rest day, and then a day of revelry during which an image of Cybele was bathed in the Little Almo River (Lavatio).[2]
Rituals[]
On the Day of Blood, the priests of Bellona (the Bellonarii) mutilated their own arms and legs with sharp knives and drank their own blood or offered it to Bellona, asking her to unleash her war fury. Because of this, the day was also known as Bellona's Day.
They also used a deadly nightshade plant known as the Bellonaria (solanum). The name is a corruption of Belladonna. When a priest ate its seeds, they would start to hallucinate. Those hallucinations were used by them to make prophetic and oracular statements in the name of their goddess.
References[]
- ^ "Roman Goddess Bellona ***". www.talesbeyondbelief.com. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ^ Meyer, Marvin W. (1999). The ancient mysteries: a sourcebook : sacred texts of the mystery religions of the ancient Mediterranean world. University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-8122-1692-9.
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- Ancient Roman culture