The Mistery of Belicena Villca breath terror but it was perceived epidermally , as if a dreadful Presence would have sprouted from the rays of the Moon and oppressed them all with an icy and overwhelming hug .
Invariably that climax was reached when the Ritual began . So a Hierophant was heading to the back of the Stone Head and ascending a small stairway that was carved out of the rock of the menhir and went inside . The staircase , which had eighteen steps and culminated in a circular platform , allowed access to a frustoconical platform : this was a narrow enclosure about eight feet high , excavated exactly behind the Face and barely lit from the ground by the Perennial Lamp . On the platform of the floor , there was , indeed , a tiny stone hearth in whose stove was placed , since the Lydians perfected the form of the Cult , the Perennial Lamp : a slab allowed to cover the upper mouth of the stove and regulate the output of the meager light . Now this light was minimal because the Hierophant was getting ready to perform a key operation of the ritual : to open the Eyes of the Goddess . To achieve this he only had to move inwards the two pieces of stone , supportive with each other , which usually remained perfectly assembled on the Face and caused the illusion that some Stony Eyelids covered the bulb of her eyes : those heavy pieces required the strength of two men to be put in their place , but , once there , it was enough to remove a lock and they would slide by themselves on a guide ramp that crossed the entire interior enclosure .
You have to imagine this scene . The enclosure of Ashes of the Sacred Forest forming the clearing and in its center , huge and imposing , the Apple Tree of Tharsis and the statue of the Goddess Pyrene . And sitting in front of the Face of the Goddess , in a position that further exalts the colossal size and the disturbing serpentine hair , the Chosen , with fixed glances and eager hearts , awaiting Her Manifestation , the personal call that opens the doors of the Trial of Cold Fire . From on high , Goddess Ioa pours torrents of silver light on that picture . Suddenly , coming from the nearby Forest , a group of beautiful dancers stands between the Chosen and the Goddess Pyrene : they bring the body naked of dresses and only wear ornamental objects , bracelets and rings in hands and feet , colorful necklaces and belts , hoops with long pendants , ribbons and squeezers on the forehead , which let the long hair fall freely . They come jumping to the rhythm of a syrinx and they do not stop at any moment but immediately indulge in a frenzied dance . They have previously practiced the ritual libation of an aphrodisiac nectar and that is why their eyes are bright with desire and their gestures are insinuating and lascivious : the hips and bellies move incessantly and can be seen , at every moment , in a thousand different positions ; firm breasts flutter like flying doves and wet mouths open eagerly ; all the dance is an irresistible invitation to the pleasures of carnal love .
Of course , the eroticism displayed by the dancers was aimed at sexually exciting the Chosen , to ignite in them the Hot Fire of animal passion . That dance was a survival of the ancient Cult of Fire and its culmination , in other times , would have resulted in a wild orgy . But the Cold Fire Reform had changed things and now ritual intercourse was forbidden and required instead that the Chosen experience Hot Fire in the heart . If any Chosen lacked the strength to reject the invitation of the dancers , he could join them and enjoy a delight never imagined , but that would not save him from death because he then would be killed in punishment for his weakness . The attitude demanded of the Chosen required that they remain immutable until the conclusion of the dance , keeping their sight fixed on the Face of the Goddess .
Let ' s go back to the scene . The volume of the music was increasing and now it is a chorus of flutes and drums that accompanies the cadencious movements ; The dancers gasp , the dance becomes feverish , and the erotic expression reaches its apogee , behind them , the Smile of the Goddess seems more ironic than ever . The Chosen focus on Pyrene but cannot help but perceive , as among the mists of a dream , the dancing feminine beauties that intoxicate them with passion , which inevitably draws them into a hot and suffocating abyss . It is then when the intervention of the Goddess becomes necessary , when the Chosen ,
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