Motif
fatal breach of taboo
fatal_breach_of_taboo
A motif of the Sacred Law and Social Order family, within the sub-family Taboo and Ritual Restriction. Every row below is a tagged passage; each rests on a quote in its source text.
1 occurrences
1 traditions
comparative
-
The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 1 of 2) CHAPTER I. THE KING OF THE WOOD. / MACAULAY. / CHAPTER II. THE PERILS OF THE SOUL. / HEINE.; lines 4104-4157 confidence: high
A high-ranking New Zealand chief leaves food by the roadside; a slave eats it, learns it was the chief’s, suffers convulsions and stomach cramps, and dies by sundown; the account says the chief’s tapu had been communicated to the food by contact.
Several episodes describe death following violation of taboo by eating sacred food or fruit, using a chief’s tinder-box, or potentially wearing a chief’s garment.
read in the book →