Motif
Balder's life in the mistletoe
balder_s_life_in_the_mistletoe
A motif of the External Soul and Life-Token family, within the sub-family Plants and Trees Holding Life. Every row below is a tagged passage; each rests on a quote in its source text.
1 occurrences
1 traditions
comparative
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The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 2 of 2) The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 2 of 2) / CONTENTS; lines 7958-8041 confidence: medium
Frazer says Balder's life in the mistletoe fits primitive thought; an object may be a person's life or death, and a person may be killed by the object containing it.
Frazer concludes that Balder's life being in the mistletoe harmonizes with external-soul patterns and explains why a blow from the object could kill him.
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