THE ESSENES.
33
This writer discerns the evidence of Buddliistic origin in the doctrines of tlie " Ophites,"
or serpent worshippers, a Gnostic sect which assumed a definite existence about the middle
—
The promulgation of these Indian tenets from a source so remote
"
an apparently insurmountable objection is thus explained
The Essenes, or Hessenes,
Buddhist monks in every particular, were established on the shores of the Dead Sea for
of the second century.
—
:
'
thousands of ages' before Pliny's times." ^ Mr King then cites the habits of the priests
of Diana, who " were forbidden to enter the baths," and observes, " that in all
religions emanating from the East, personal dirtiness has ever been the recognised outward and visible
sign of inward purity; fully exemplified in fakirs, dervises, and medieval saints."
^
Although bathing was a leading feature of Jewish Essenism, in some other respects the
members of this sect, if we may credit Josephus and Porphyry, conformed very
habits of
with the condition of body common to the Oriental religionists. The former of these
writers assures us, and the latter copies him, " that they change neither garments nor shoes
*
till
they are worn out, or made unfit by time."
strictly
Leaving undecided the question of origin, it may, however, be fairly assumed that
Essenism having once made its appearance, received into itself many foreign elements, and
the opinion of Neander, " that it adopted the old Oriental, Parsee, and Chaldean notions," has
been very generally accepted.*
What
ultimately became of the Essenes
pure matter of conjecture, and in the
attempted solution of this problem the speculations which connect them with other and later
systems have their source. They are to be traced down to about a.d. 400, after which they
2.
is
Epiphanius, Bishop of Constantia and metropolitan of Cyprus,
early in the fourth century and died A.D. 402, alludes several
times to them in his celebrated work, " Against the Heretics."
fade
into obscurity.
away
who was born
The
first
not altered at
in Palestine
notice
as follows
According to
all.
in consequence of
among
is
some
"
:
The Essenes continue
them
in their first position,
there have been some dissensions
difference of opinion
among
and have
the Gorthenes,
which has taken place among them
— I mean
the Sebuens, Essenes, and Gorthenes.^
"
Next follow the
Epiphanius again speaks of them under the title, against the Ossenes, viz.
Ossenes, who were closely connected with the former sect.
They, too, are Jews, hypocrites
:
in their demeanour,
name
and peculiar
which I received,
traditions
Ossenes, according to
people in their conceits.
They originated, according to the
the regions of Nabatea, Itruria, Moabitis, and Antilis.
The
in
its
etymology, signifies the stout
race.
A
certain person
named
be brought fonvard the greater authority
'
King, The Gnostics and their Remains, p. 22. Against this view may
who says " It would lead to the greatest mistakes if, from the resemblance of religious phenomena where
human mind itself, we should be ready
relationship can be traced to the common ground of origin in the essence of the
How much that is alike may not be found in comparing the
to infer their outward derivation one from the other.
of Keander,
phenomena
bility of
vol.
i.,
-
:
of
Brahminism and
any such derivation
is
of
Buddhism with those
apparent to everybody
Josephus, Jewish AVar, Book
considerable extent mechanical ?
6
of the sect of Bmjhards, in the Middle Ages, when the inijiossi(Neander, General History of the Christian Religion and Church,
p. 59).
King, The Gnostics and their Remains,
3
*
"
ii.,
chap,
p. 24.
viii., § 4.
It is possible that the purifications of the Essenes
Neander, General History of t